Trasna na Tíre Welcomes You

Margaret Buckley Maighréad Uí Bhuachalla, (July 1879 – 24 July 1962) was an Irish Republican activist and President of Sinn Féin from 1937 to 1950. She was the first female leader of Sinn Féin and was the first Irishwoman to lead an Irish political organisation.

In her long struggle for independence, Ireland had one vital weapon that the British did not possess and, as the shots of her battle for Independence rang out, it proved to be one that the the rebel forces perfected with deadly consequences for the ‘ancient enemy’. Eventually Ireland acquired almost 15,000 of these weapons. Some of them fell into Britain’s or her agents’ hands, some remained neutral, but the vast majority were in Irish Nationalist hands throughout this long struggle and, without them, Ireland would not be the free, independent, state she is today. This initially unknown, unrecognised and unique weapon was the Public House, and its ammunition consisted of (a) the publican, (b) the building itself where the licensee traded and (c) the bar staff who maintained this weapon. Indeed, it is no exaggeration to say that without the public house Ireland could well be still be part of the British Empire. In this, the first book to identify the pivotal role of the Irish pub, and to give an overview of the role of alcohol in the war for Irish independence, author and historian Eddie Bohan traces the vital place of the Irish pub as a meeting place, a safe house and even banker for the Irish revolution. Dublin-born Eddie Bohan is best known for his life-long work in the licensed trade, but more recently he has been researching and contributing to the field of the history of Irish broadcasting. He has lectured extensively on the history of 1930s Irish Radio, the history of Pirate Radio and the use of the airwaves during the 1916 Easter Rising. In 2013 he produced and presented a six-part television series marking the 25th anniversary of the introduction of the 1988 Wireless Telegraphy Act called ‘Dublin’s Pirate Days’. He currently runs the Irish Broadcasting Hall of Fame and is a regular contributor to the ‘Ireland’s Own’ magazine. In 2011 he began the original 1916 Easter Rising Coach Tour, visiting all the major battle sites of the Rising, which continues today. Purchase the book here: https://kilmainhamtales.ie/kts-13---thirst-for-freedom.php

Keep their Names Ever Green. The deaths of 7 Tipperary Volunteers/Sinn Féin Activists. From the 4th March to the 10th March, 1921, Tipperary experienced a wave of violence in which 7 Volunteers were killed and many more were wounded and arrested. On Saturday 6th March we will gather to remember the Volunteers who lost their lives in this bloody week in the Third and Second Tipperary Brigades. In the four separate and very different engagements between Volunteers and Crown Forces, this single week gives us a unique insight into how the war was being fought in Tipperary and the very real human cost of resistance to the Crown. Above all we will gather to honour these 7 men whose resistance cost them their lives Thomas Lee (20) - Fethard Martin Clancy (18) - Knockroe, Drangan Richard Fleming (30) - Knockroe, Drangan Patrick Hackett (23) - Knockroe, Drangan Patrick Hogan (23) -Derryclooney, Cahir Laurence Hickey (41) - Thurles William Loughnane (23) - Thurles

In his research Tomás has focused on the use of collected social memory, oral history and oral tradition in exploring the Irish Revolutionary Period. He has advocated for many years for the inclusion of oral sources to bring about a deeper and more rounded understanding of the period and has personally recorded over 400 interviews relating to Irish War of Independence and Civil War. His Doctoral Research at University of Limerick enabled a detailed examination of the entire landscape of memory associated with the revolutionary period and led to the creation of a new methodological framework for the use of memory in exploring the Irish War of Independence.

Linda Ervine is a language rights activist from East Belfast, Northern Ireland. She is a speaker and supporter of the Irish language and is the project leader of the "Turas" Irish language project which "aims to connect people from Protestant communities to their own history with the Irish language" Turas is operated through the East Belfast Mission of the Methodist Church in Ireland. Ervine has gained some media attention because of her coming from a Protestant Unionist background and supporting an Irish Language Act (a position generally regarded as unconventional).

Colourising the Irish Revolution Michael Barry’s ‘An Illustrated History of the Irish Revolution 1916-1923’ includes over 130 specially colourised photographs, as well as over 600 other images, periodicals and maps. Michael gives an introduction on how he found and selected the images. John O’Byrne outlines his painstaking approach to colourisation and how he gave authenticity to the historic photographs.

Recalled by his peers as an outstanding worker in the Irish revolutionary movement, and owner of a warm, humorous personality, Joseph MacDonagh has remained a forgotten figure of the period. Radicalised by the death of his brother Thomas following the Easter Rising, the younger MacDonagh occupied a number of different roles in this period until his tragic death in 1922: Sinn Féin activist, political prisoner, hunger striker, TD, councilor, Minister for Labour in the Dáil cabinet and newspaper propagandist. A rare tribute over a decade after his death in the Irish Press, led to Joseph MacDonagh being eulogised as ‘one of the most brilliant young Irishmen of our day’. In the centenary year of MacDonagh’s election to Dublin Corporation and the 98th anniversary of his death (on Christmas day in 1922) this lecture will illuminate many fascinating details of his life and his involvement in the pivotal events of early 20th century Ireland. Gerard Shannon is a native of Skerries in north county Dublin. He recently graduated with an MA in History from the DCU School of History and Geography. He is currently developing a biography of the IRA Chief-of-Staff, General Liam Lynch, for publication by Merrion Press in mid-2021.