Andrew Reed was born on 26 September 1837 in Galway town, the third of four children born to John and Mary (née Adamson) Reed. Andrew Reed’s father was a land agent, but Reed’s mother died three years after his birth and his father later remarried. Reed attended Dame School and Erasmus Smith’s school and was … Read more
On 19 September 1803 Robert Emmet was tried for high treason in Green Street courthouse, found guilty, and sentenced to be hung, drawn and quartered. He was executed the next day in Thomas Street. It is often thought that the case against Emmet was one of irresistible strength, so that, for example, the corruption of … Read more
The Irish Greyhound pig was a descendant of the European wild pig (Sus scrofa) that had roamed Irish forests since prehistoric times. It was first domesticated in Ireland during the Neolithic. In the early Middle Ages there was not much distinction between the wild pig and the domesticated pig; the domesticated pig was fed on … Read more
If I may begin at the end of Niall Meehan’s letter, he refers to his ‘promotion’ of—and my non-participation in—‘this important debate’ on the Kilmichael ambush. In fact, I have been debating the ambush and other aspects of the revolution in Cork since my first book, The IRA and its enemies, came out in 1998. … Read more
How many divisions has the pope? As Eamon O’Flaherty observes in his review of Irish media reaction to the death of Pope John Paul II (TV Eye, pp 52–3), ‘remarkable claims have been made about John Paul II’s influence on world history, the most notable being that he was the main architect of the downfall … Read more