Irish History, Culture, Heritage, Language, Mythology
In the Liturgical calendar, today is the Feast Day of Pope Saint John Paul II. He is widely known to Catholics as Saint John Paul the Great, especially in the names of institutions. It is traditional to celebrate saints’ feast days on the anniversary of their deaths, but that of John Paul II (22 October) […]
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1612 – Birth of Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Burlington, 2nd Earl of Cork, in Youghal, Co Cork. He was an Anglo-Irish nobleman who served as Lord High Treasurer of Ireland and was a Cavalier. 1674 – Birth of James Logan, Colonial statesman and scholar in Lurgan, Co Armagh. 1775 – Two hundred passengers are […]
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1610 – Birth of James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormond; royalist soldier; and three times Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. 1649 – New Ross town, Co Wexford, surrenders to Oliver Cromwell. 1680 – Birth of minister and church leader, John Abernethy, in Coleraine, Co Derry. 1745 – Death of Jonathan Swift. He was an Irish satirist, […]
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1171 – Henry II (1133-1189) King of England, Duke of Normandy and Aquitaine, arrives in Ireland from France with an army and declares himself “Lord of Ireland”. Henry’s involvement was partly at the request of some dissident Irish chieftains and lords who feared losing their own lands. Three years previously Dermot MacMurrough “represented the malice […]
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Thomas Fortune Ryan was born near Lovingston, a small Nelson County community south of Charlottesville, Virginia. Despite certain myths regarding his background, Ryan was neither orphaned nor penniless as a youth and he traced his ancestry to Protestant Anglo-Irish settlers in the 17th century. At age 17, Ryan perceived a lack of economic opportunity in […]
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1171 – Henry II, fearful that Strongbow will grow too powerful in Ireland, lands at Waterford with an army. The Normans, Norse and Irish all submit to him, except for the most remote Irish kings. 1738 – In a duel at Mullingar, Arthur Rochfort, MP for Co Westmeath, shoots Dillon Pollard Hampson in the stomach. […]
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“Give us the future, we’ve had enough of your past, give us back our country to live in, to grow in, to love.” –Michael Collins, during the treaty negotiations. Michael Collins was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance in the First Dáil of 1919, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the […]
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1582 – Pope Gregory reforms the calendar introduced by Julius Caesar in 45BCE: 4 October is followed by 15 October. However, the reform will not be implemented in Britain and Ireland till 1752. 1690 – After taking Cork on 28 September, Marlbourough takes Kinsale for the Williamites, who now control Munster. 1763 – Birth of […]
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1318 – Death of Edward Bruce, Earl of Carrick. He was a younger brother of Robert the Bruce, King of Scotland, and supported his brother in the struggle for the Scottish crown, then pursued his own claims in Ireland. The Irish annals state that de Brus took the hostages and lordship of the whole province […]
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Kerry’s dominance in Gaelic football over the past century is a testament to the county’s passion for the sport — a passion that was forged by the bitterness of the Civil War. The worst atrocities occurred in Kerry. In retaliation for the killing of five Free State soldiers (including two members of the Dublin Brigade) […]
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