Read about the history of the Irish people's desire for Home Rule and how they went about their quest for recognized independence from Great Britain.

• The Irish War of Independence
• Encyclopedia.com: Micahel Collins

Be sure to be familiar with the following terms: Eamon de Valera, Michael Collins, Sinn Fein, and the IRA (Irish Republican Army). In the end, the country was partitioned, the northern section becoming Northern Ireland, a Protestant stronghold, and the Republic of Ireland a mostly Catholic state.

What about India and their bid for Home Rule? Although it would not happen until after 1947, 163 years after Great Britain took control of India, after World War II the British recognized the right of the Indian population to self-rule. The person who led the Indians—both Hindu and Muslim—to independence and home rule was a man named Mahatma Gandhi.

Read the Britannica: Mohandas Gandhi (1869 - 1948) and watch Biography: Mahatma Gandhi (3:04) that describes his style of civil disobedience known as passive resistance. Another leader would use Gandhi's nonviolent, passive resistance to achieve racial equality in the United States. Do you know who it was? As Americans, we recognize him each year on January 15th. Answer