BBC - A History of the World - Object : Good Friday Agreement

A signed copy of the historic Good Friday Agreement

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This cope of the Agreement is on display at Bagenal's Castle in NewryThe Good Friday Agreement, in Irish Comhaontu Aoine an Cheasta, is also known as the Belfast Agreement, in Irish Comhaontu Bheal Feirste, and occasionally as the Stormont Agreement was a major political development in the Northern Ireland peace process, effectively signalling the end of the major phase of the Troubles, the 30 conflict between Irish republicans and the British Army, Royal Ulster Constabulary and loyalist paramilitary groups in which almost 4,000 people died.

It was signed in Belfast on 10 April 1998 (Good Friday) by the British and Irish governments and endorsed by most Northern Ireland political parties. On 23 May 1998 the Agreement was endorsed by the voters of Northern Ireland in a referendum. On the same day, voters in the Republic voted separately to change their constitution in line with the Agreement. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) was the only large party that opposed the Agreement. The Agreement entered into force on 2 December 1999.

Please note, this is an archival item and is available for consultation by the public in our Reading Room.

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