Nick Maxwell 1941 The Rosslare–Fishguard ferry Patrick was sunk by the Luftwaffe a few miles off Fishguard. Twenty-three lives were lost. 1990 Captain Terence O’Neill, latterly Lord O’Neill of the Maine, prime minister of Northern Ireland (1963–9), died. 1959 Seán Lester, Antrim-born civil servant who was the last secretary-general of the League of Nations (1940–5), died. 1817 … Read more
1916 The Ulster Unionist Council agreed to accept Lloyd George’s offer of the permanent exclusion of six north-eastern counties from Home Rule. 1964 The Rivonia Trial in South Africa, which had begun the previous October, concluded. Nelson Mandela and two of his co-accused were sentenced to life imprisonment. 1972 Twelve prominent Irish businessmen were amongst the … Read more
1979 John Wayne, Hollywood actor (72), died. The son of Clyde Robert Morrison (1884–1937), a drunken drugstore proprietor, he weighed in at an amazing 13lbs at birth. Born Marion Mitchell Morrison, Wayne made over 160 films, notably in collaboration with Irish-American director Seán Aloysius O’Feeney, a.k.a. John Ford, and Dublin-born Maureen O’Hara. Wayne himself could … Read more
Mon 8.15pm Clontarf Historical Society, Resource Centre, St John the Baptist Church. History of St Anne’s House and estate and the Guinness family connections, Joan Sharkey. Adm. €5.
1876 James McKnight (75), journalist and agrarian reformer, died. McKnight came to national prominence in 1847 as spokesman for the thousands of Presbyterian tenant farmers who flocked to join the Ulster Tenant Right League, which sought to give legal protection to the Ulster Custom. Regarded at the time as the leading Presbyterian layman, it was … Read more