Nick Maxwell By John Gibney The Decade of Centenaries—was it a Good Thing or a Bad Thing? It is worth pondering the question as we head towards its end. The concept was deemed to suit the commemoration of the Irish revolution, though historians are often acutely aware of the tensions between commemoration, with its present-centred implications, and … Read more
BY DONAL FALLON REBEL IRISHWOMEN Last year, 2022, was an interesting one for Claddagh Records, the iconic label founded by Garech Browne in 1959. Revived in recent times, the label is dipping into its rich archival collections, the late Browne insisting that he ‘would like the recordings to be available to anyone interested in Irish … Read more
By Brian Smyth The National Committee for Commemorative Plaques in Science and Technology (NCCPST) was formed in 1997 to celebrate achievements across science, technology, engineering and mathematics in Ireland. Over the past 25 years the committee has erected 75 plaques, and it aims to erect at least a further 125 to commemorate those who have … Read more
BY AODHÁN CREALEY JANUARY 28/1547 King Henry VIII (55) died. Popularly remembered for his six marriages and his despotism (it’s estimated that he judicially murdered some 1,500 of his subjects, from humble servants to queens), it was Henry, of course, who introduced the Reformation to these islands. In 1534, when Pope Clement VII refused him … Read more
By Brian Trench Just over 130 years ago, on 25 November 1892, Douglas Hyde delivered a lecture that was a landmark in the Irish Revival. ‘The Necessity for De-Anglicising Ireland’, later published as a pamphlet, underpinned the formation of the Gaelic League less than a year later. For this lecture Hyde had the platform of … Read more