Dáil Éireann has long awaited its historian. Brian Farrel’s small but seminal work, The Founding of Dáil Éireann (1971), remains a proven and valuable guide. Arthur’s Mitchell’s book provides a comprehensive tour of anything that falls under the ambit of the Dáil for the years 1919-1921. It is a massive and scholarly work. The bibliography … Read more
1995 is the seventy-fifth anniversary of the infamous sacking of Ballbriggan by the Black and Tans during the War of Independence. To commemorate this Ballbriggan and District Historical Society have organised a tribute to two local men killed at the time. The tribute, including a narrative, will take place on 24 September in St Mary’s … Read more
On 27 April 1923 de Valera and Aiken published peace proposals to end the civil war: all arms should be under control of the executive government responsible to the people through their elected representatives. They insisted that all arms would have to be surrendered. Nevertheless when Fianna Fáil came back into constitutional politics, albeit as … Read more
Just over seventy years ago in the early evening of 22 August 1922 a car stopped at Newcestown church County Cork and its principal passenger wandered alone in the churchyard. Then driver and passenger set off north-eastwards and turned left at Quarry Cross to take the road to Bealnablath and then on to Cork. The … Read more
But such is Collins’ continued celebrity that images of him are not confined to the illustrative plates of biographies and histories relating to his life and times. If one wanders along Westmoreland Street or Stephen’s Green in Dublin it is possible to buy reproductions of some of the more famous photo-journalism of the revolutionary period. … Read more