John Hume (1937-2020) was an Irish politician, civil rights leader, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate who played a key role in the Northern Ireland peace process. He was born in the city of Derry and was educated at St....
History of Ireland
Terence O’ Neill (Baron ‘ Neill of the Maine)
Terence Marne O’ Neill (1914-1990) was the fourth Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the first of them who endeavored to reconcile Protestants and Catholics within the northern state and also to attempt a...
Republic of Ireland Act Is Signed in 1949
The Republic of Ireland Act was signed by the President of Ireland. It became law on 21 December 1948 and was brought into force on 18 April 1949, the 33rd anniversary of the Easter Rising. Since Eamon De Valera had...
Éire and World War II (1939-1945).
During the 1930’s Europe was inching steadily towards war. The fascist states of Germany and Italy were in the process of expanding their empires. Stalinist Russia was in lock-down. The western democracies were in...
Sinking of RMS Leinster In The Irish Sea
On 10 October 1918, the RMS Leinster set sail from Carlisle Pier, Kingstown (now called Dún Laoghaire) in County Dublin bound for Holyhead in Wales. The ship was torpedoed by the German UB-123 submarine making it the biggest loss of life in the Irish sea. The...
The Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence occurred between 1919 - 1921. In December of 1921, the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty between the Irish and British governments concluded the Irish war for independence. The war resulted in over 2,000 deaths and the creation of the...
Proclamation of the Irish Republic
POBLACHT NA hÉIREANN THE PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT OF THE IRISH REPUBLIC TO THE PEOPLE OF IRELAND IRISHMEN AND IRISHWOMEN: In the name of God and of the dead generations from which she receives her old tradition of nationhood, Ireland, through us, summons her children to...
1916 Easter Rising
The 1916 Uprising occurred on Easter Monday in Ireland lasting 6 days with over 12,000 British troops surrounding Dublin and the Irish republican leaders surrendering to stop further civilian causalities. It's considered the birth of an independent Irish Republic. The...
Seán MacDiarmada (1883 - 1916)
Seán MacDiarmada (also known as Seán MacDermott / John MacDermott) was a leading Irish republican who was involved with promoting the Irish language, the Gaelic revival, and Irish nationalism. As one of the signatories of the Irish Proclamation he was widely respected...
Thomas MacDonagh (1878-1916), Teacher, Playwright & Irish Nationalist
Thomas MacDonagh was a teacher, a playwright, and a member of the provisional government that declared the Proclamation of the Irish Republic in 1916. Born in the village of Cloughjordan in County Tipperary in 1878 his parents, Joseph and Mary Louise née Parker, were...
Joseph Plunkett (1887-1916), Poet, Journalist & Irish Nationalist
Joseph Plunkett was born into a wealthy Catholic family in the city of Dublin. In his early years, Joseph contracted tuberculosis and although he was taken abroad to the warmer climate of the Mediterranean, he was to suffer from the effects of the disease all his...
Thomas Clarke (1857-1916) - An Irish Nationalist
Thomas Clarke was a leading member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood and main planner of the 1916 Easter Rising alongside Seán MacDiarmada. Thomas James Clarke was the second son of Sergeant James Clarke a Protestant Irish soldier serving in the British Army and...
Éamonn Ceannt (1881-1916) Irish Musician & Nationalist
Éamonn Ceannt was a leading Irish nationalist who helped with the revival of the Irish culture and also became involved with the planning of the 1916 Easter Uprising. He was one of the 7 signatures of the Proclamation of Independence from Britain. Edward Thomas Kent...
Padraig Pearse (1879 - 1916), Teacher, Poet, & Irish Nationalist
Patrick Pearse was born in Dublin on 10th November 1879 and whose full name is Patrick Henry Pearse or as probably preferred in Irish Pádraic Anraí Mac Piarais. He spoke Irish from an early age and became a member of the Conradh na nGaeilge (Gaelic League) and by when...
James Connolly (1868 - 1916), A Socialist & Irish Republican
James Connolly was born in Edinburgh’s Cowgate area in the parish of St. Patrick's, on the 5th June 1868. His parents, John and Mary were Irish Catholic immigrants who originally came from County Monaghan. Connolly was born into deep poverty, his father worked as a...
Ireland & The Outbreak Of World War 1.
In the early years of the 20th century, the international scene was one of national and empirical tensions. The great powers of France, Germany, Russia, and Great Britain were vying with each other for power not only in Europe but in Africa and Asia. The moribund...