By Laura Fitzachary ‘It must, however, be remembered, when considering their good fortune, that in the day in which they lived beauty was all powerful’ —Francis Gerard, Some celebrated Irish beauties of the last century (1895). Dublin in the mid-eighteenth century had varying degrees of social hierarchy, and the highest level of social standing, or … Read more
By Richard Harrington In late 1641, as the dispute between Crown and Parliament in England veered towards civil war, Ireland was torn apart by one of the most chaotic rebellions in its history. Spurred by fear of a Parliamentarian victory, Gaelic Irish and ‘Old English’ Catholics joined forces to overthrow English rule and reverse the … Read more
By Frank McDonald It was Trevor White, director of the wonderful Little Museum of Dublin, who suggested a year ago that I might write an ‘essay’ for an exhibition it was planning, with A Little History of the Future of Dublin as its clever title. The idea was to explore how different generations of Dubliners … Read more
Declan Keenan’s ‘An inauguration of a MacWilliam Íochtair at Rausakeera, Co. Mayo, during the Nine Years War’ (HI 29.6, Nov./Dec. 2021) included the line (p. 23, top of first column) ‘He [Theobald ne Long (Theobald of the Ships)] had reportedly access to three galleys and a mini-navy comprising hundreds of ships, a rarity in Gaelic … Read more
Sir,—In his excellent article on Delia Murphy (HI 29.6, Nov./Dec. 2021) Aidan O’Hara stated that Seán Ó Siocháin was a ‘former President of the GAA’. This is incorrect, as Ó Siocháin never held the position of President. However, he did hold official positions in the GAA for many years, beginning in 1946 when he became … Read more