By Robin Fuller One hundred years ago it was quite common for Irish people to believe that they were living in times foretold by St Malachy, the twelfth-century archbishop of Armagh. Malachy purportedly predicted that, after 700 years under the yoke of her foe, Ireland’s ‘light shall burst forth as the sun’: ‘The Church of … Read more
By Eoin Magennis and Lesa Ní Mhunghaile Nano Aiken’s 1934 application for a military service pension named two unlikely referees for the 1923 period of service. One was Monsignor Eugene O’Callaghan, chaplain to Armagh Gaol and later bishop of Clogher. The other was Sir Dawson Bates, minister for Home Affairs in the Northern Ireland government. … Read more
By Liam Kennedy Generations of Irish Catholic parents rushed to have their infants baptised as soon as possible after birth. In this they were different from Presbyterian and Church of Ireland families, who might wait for weeks and sometimes months before arranging the baptismal ceremony. By the later twentieth century, however, many Catholic parents were … Read more
By Sophie McGurk Kilmainham Gaol exists in the forefront of Ireland’s mind as the site of execution of seven leaders of the 1916 Rising. It is an institution intrinsically linked with the story of Irish nationalism. Kilmainham Gaol was first built in 1796 and from its conception it was a site of crowded incarceration and … Read more
By Jesse Harrington This month (11 May 2025) will see the international public commemoration of the 800th anniversary of the canonisation of St Lorcán Ua Tuathail (Laurence O’Toole), twelfth-century archbishop and patron saint of Dublin. The event will be attended by municipal, regional and state dignitaries and officials, and will be marked by an ecumenical … Read more