In 1709 several hundred families of German origin settled in Ireland. Known as the Palatines, they established roots mainly in Counties Limerick, Kerry, Tipperary and Wexford. From there they emigrated to many parts of the English-speaking world—Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand and the USA. Since its inception in March 1989, the Irish Palatine Association has … Read more
Born in Cologne, Germany, in 1577, Mathew de Renzi claimed descent from Albania’s national hero, George Castriott, also known as Scanderberg (d.1468), who defended his homeland against the Turks. De Renzi was a cloth merchant and operated from Antwerp, one of many foreigners who controlled trade in that city. But Antwerp’s trade declined as a … Read more
Alan Parker’s film version of Frank McCourt’s childhood memoir of his poverty-stricken upbringing in Limerick in the 1930s and ‘40s seems destined to bring Angela’s Ashes to an even wider audience than the phenomenally successful book. Since it was published in 1997, Angela’s Ashes has won the Pulitzer prize, spent over two years at the … Read more
VC: Did your background contribute to your interest in history? MPM: Yes. My father had a deep interest in the history of Ireland and my family had been involved in one way or another in the country’s history since the seventeenth century. We had a very good library and there were historic books all over … Read more
For many years I have had an interest in my father’s large collection of papers. After his retirement from politics in 1961, Prof. Kevin B. Nowlan and I assisted him in putting his large collection of War of Independence, truce, civil war and later personal and political papers in order, and having them transferred to … Read more