James Kelly Though he was one of the towering figures of eighteenth-century Irish Patriotism, Henry Flood is little remembered today. Unlike Henry Grattan, with whom he is frequently twinned in historical memory, popular valorisation was not to be his destiny. Thus, there are no statues in his honour; no pubs which bear his name … Read more
John Gray is the long-serving Librarian of that unique Irish institution, Belfast’s Linen Hall Library. He is equally well-known as a historian, dramatist, broadcaster and public speaker. During the bicentenary of the 1798 Rebellion, he was chairman of the Belfast-based United Irishmen Commemoration Society. Peter Collins talked to him recently. … Read more
Bill Meek Consider the following scenario. Two musicians are comparing tunes. As one plays the other smiles appreciatively and enquires: ‘Where did you get it?’, to which the player replies: ‘’Tis in the book’. The listener nods. No further explanation is necessary. ‘The book’ in question—The Music of Ireland—was compiled by Francis O’Neill, collector, … Read more
Gary Owens It was a wondrous drama, this life of his. With Ireland for the theatre and the whole civilised world as spectators. Speranza (Lady Wilde) on Daniel O’Connell, 1848. Few figures in Irish history have dominated their times in the way that Daniel O’Connell did. For three decades he personified the aspirations of … Read more
Danae O’Regan Anna, photographed by Henry O’Shea, Limerick (c. 1878). The Parnell sisters are exemplars of two distinct and typical streams of female action in the nineteenth century. Fanny excelled in the traditional field of philanthropic and fund-raising activities, and as a ‘poetess’, all considered suitable occupations for middle class ladies, … Read more