1170 – Diarmait Mac Murchada and the Normans march on the Norse kingdom of Dublin, avoiding an Irish force that awaits them to the south of it. Dublin falls to them on this date. Some Norsemen, including the king of Dublin, Ascall mac Ragnaill, flee to the Hebrides or the Isle of Man.

1601 – A Spanish army under Don Juan del Aguila lands at Kinsale.

1703 – The first Irish parliament of Queen Anne is called; Alan Brodrick is unanimously elected Speaker.

1728 – Philip Embury, founder of the American Methodist Church, is born in Ballingrane, Co Limerick.

1745 – The Jacobites are victorious at Prestonpans.

1795 – ‘Battle of the Diamond’ between (Protestant) Peep o’ Day Boys and (Catholic) Defenders near Loughgall, Co Armagh leaves 30 Defenders dead and leads to the foundation of the Loyal Orange Institution (later the Orange Order) ‘…to defend the King and his heirs as long as they shall maintain the Protestant ascendancy’.

1827 – Michael Corcoran, Union General, is born in Ballymote, Co Sligo.

1881- Revolutionary Éamonn Ceannt, is born in Glenamaddy, Co Galway.

1909 – Birth of artist, Tom Carr, in Belfast.

1922 – Six National Army soldiers are killed in a prolonged engagement with Republican fighters near Ballina, Co Mayo.

1922 – The Free State barracks in Drumshambo, Leitrim is attacked and one soldier is killed.

1932 – Birth of Mariga Guinness, née Princess Hermione Marie Gabrielle von Urach, Countess Württemberg; co-founder of Irish Georgian Society.

1949 – The Republic of Ireland soccer team beats England 2-0 at Goodison Park – England’s first defeat by a foreign side.

1970 – Birth of Samantha Jane Power in Dublin. She is an Irish-American academic, author and diplomat who currently serves as the United States Ambassador to the United Nations.

1978 – The IRA carried out a bomb attack on Eglinton airfield, Co Derry. The terminal building, two aircraft hangers, and four planes were destroyed in the attack.

1980 – Kerry beat Roscommon in Croke Park during the All-Ireland Football Final by 1-9 to 1-6 thus winning the championship and a three-in-a-row.

1981 – James Devine, an IRA prisoner, joined the hunger strike.

1981 – The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) was openly critical of the hunger strike.

1986 – Kerry GAA beat Tyrone GAA in Croke Park during the All-Ireland Football Final by 2-15 to 1-10 thus winning the championship and a three-in-a-row.

1991 – Loyalist prisoners started a fire in the dining-hall of Crumlin Road Jail, Belfast.

1991 – Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Peter Brooke, left Northern Ireland to begin a five-day visit to the United States.

1992 – James Molyneaux, leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), led a delegation from the UUP to talks in Dublin Castle, with the Irish Government. The talks were based on Strand Two and the topics discussed included constitutional matters, security cooperation, channels of communication between the two states, and identity and allegiance. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) did not attend the talks in Dublin. These were the first formal discussions by Unionists in Dublin since 1922.

1995 – It was revealed that the total amount of compensation paid by the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) for ‘Troubles’ related incidents (to the end of March 1995) was £1.12 billion.

1997 – Frank Steele, a member of MI6, claimed that various British governments had been in contact with the IRA since the first contact was established on 7 July 1972.

1998 – Members of the Garda Síochána and the RUC detained 12 men as part of their investigation into the Omagh bombing. Six were arrested in south Armagh, six in north Louth.

1999 – Delegations from the Ulster Unionist Party and Sinn Féin meet at Stormont for their first direct talks in two months.

1999 – Taoiseach Bertie Ahern pledges support for Arafat and the Palestinians.

2000 – Taoiseach Bertie Ahern condemns the missile attack on the MI6 HQ in London.

2000 – Gardaí arrest a man in connection with the bombing of Nelson’s Pillar in O’Connell Street, Dublin, in 1966.

2001 – Taoiseach Bertie Ahern announces that Ireland will put its airports, airspace, refuelling facilities and garda intelligence at the disposal of the US in the battle against terrorism.

2001 – Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, John Reid, announced that he was suspending the Northern Ireland Assembly at midnight. The suspension lasted just 24 hours. The effect of the suspension was to allow another period of six weeks (until 3 November 2001) in which the political parties would have an opportunity to come to agreement and elect a First Minister and Deputy First Minister.

2006 – Golfing history on Irish soil. The Ryder Cup officially opens at the K Club in Co Kildare. It is the first time golf’s premier team tournament has come to Ireland and to date, it is the biggest sporting event ever staged in the country.

Photo: ‘Galactic Express’, Tassagh Viaduct, Co Armagh, Patrick Hughes Photography

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