as all the links above will suggest (except Doll's), there's more to it than simple religion. I assume from your other question that you're doing something about religious wars or tensions. That's usually only half the story, and the suggestion that religion is somehow in the business of promoting bloodshed doesn't really stand up.
Fair point jno - but I suppose we could go further again and talk about the raiding parties from Ireland on Britain in Viking times.
The reason I started in 1580 was that the question specifically mentioned the protestant people.
Oooh - just spotted jno's 2nd point too. And he's (she?) 100% right. Although the most recent issues were caused by political alliegance, it pretty much went hand in hand that one side were catholic and the other protestant. Nothing's ever that straight forward though
fair point, Whickerman... to go into the matter further, someone should post a link to Luther, Henry VIII and the origins of Protestantism... but I can't be bothered since timwhite shows no sign of having read any of the answers yet anyway...