One of the most argued over events in the career of Hugh O’Neill, second Earl of Tyrone, is his departure from Ireland with Rory O’Donnell, Earl of Tyrconnell, on 14 September 1607. English contemporaries claimed that he fled in anticipation of the discovery of a plot of his against the government. Later apologists for O’Neill … Read more
Famine can be defined as a failure of food production or distribution, resulting in dramatically increased mortality. In Ireland between 1845 and 1849, general starvation and disease were responsible for more than 1,000,000 excess deaths, most of them attributable to fever, dysentery and smallpox. These three highly contagious diseases, which had long been endemic in … Read more
In 1829 a Dublin carman named Foley was charged with ‘furious driving’ in Sackville Street while going to post a letter for a gentleman in the Post Office. When asked what he had to say for himself, he pleaded with the magistrate, ‘Oh, Sir, these is Donnybrook times and everyone is merry now, if you … Read more