Monthly Archives: May 2014

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Lia Fáil Vandalized!

The Stone of Destiny on the Hill of Tara has been horribly vandalized again! A few years ago it was attacked with a hammer and this time someone threw tins of red and black gloss paint over the ancient standing stone on the Hill Of Tara. It is a stone long believed to have been essential in ancient king-making rituals in Ireland. This is such sad news. A spot so important and mystical should be sacred to all – no matter what religious or skeptical code you live by. Obviously, this person or persons not only doesn’t care about lore and history, but they have no respect for the land either. It breaks my heart. This type of destruction is becoming all too common at the historical sites in Ireland. It needs to be stopped.

I hope that the stone can be repaired without further damage and that the vandal is caught quickly. What horrible news.

In case you don’t know about the Stone here’s a brief history..

The stone had to accept the King of Ireland, much like the Arthurian legend – minus the sword. When the rightful king placed his foot on the stone it is said to have called out his name, declaring him High King of Ireland. It was said to have originally been positioned next to the Mound of the Hostages, the Neolithic passage tomb at Tara, and was moved to its current position on top of the Forradh in 1824 in commemoration of the 1798 Rebellion.

If anyone knows anything about this most recent act of vandalism, please please please let the authorities know. Or if you were on the Hill of Tara or in the general area, between 5pm yesterday evening and 10am this morning and if you saw anything out of the ordinary or suspicious please do get in touch with Navan Garda Station on 046-9079930.

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Memorial Day

Here in the U.S. Memorial Day means a three day weekend to most people. Many either forget, are opposed or are simply untouched by the idea of war and those who fight them. As a woman who is obsessed with the politics of another land and disagrees almost entirely with her own country’s foreign policy, Memorial Day is a strange one. Still, while I am opposed to war and I despise the greed from which almost all of them spring, I do not oppose those who fight them. I absolutely hate the fact that they are necessary – but I do not hate them. And I can hardly honor the patriot dead of one country without honoring my own, so here it is.

Those who are sent on a mission and who do not return should be honored, not just on Memorial Day but every day. Those lucky enough to come back should be cherished and cared for – and those who thrust them into the world should be forced to join them, in order to better understand what they’ve done.

Cheers to you…. and thank you for your service. May you never be forgotten.

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Stand up For James Connolly

 I’m sure that they’ll argue that he was Scottish born. I’m sure they’ll denigrate his socialist beliefs. Neither dispute the fact that he stood for Ireland when others didn’t – and included rich, poor, male and female equally in all of his philosophies. Write. Call. Stop this ridiculousness.
At 6pm on Sunday, 18th of May 2014, RTÉ1 Radio’s History Programme is asking the question: “Is James Connolly a false 1916 Icon?” Don’t let them degrade the winner of the Public Poll to choose the Greatest Irishman Ever. We need to flood RTÉ’s Inbox with support for James Connolly. Please take time to E-Mail: history@rte.ie saying that you support James Connolly as a National Irish Icon.
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Protect Moore Street!

On the off chance you are in Dublin this weekend, or you have the ear of an Irish politician, you should help protect Moore Street. It is home to one of the only outdoor markets left in Dublin, but aside from that it is also where the rebels of 1916 made their last stand and escape from the GPO before surrendering to stop civilian casualties. Developers want to replace all that history and street vending with another mall, though there are more than a few in the area and more hotels. Stand up and link arms for history, street vendors, farmers and locals. You can find more information via these 2 links

http://www.occuworld.org/news/817530

https://www.facebook.com/events/1537009746526361/Image

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Proclamation

When I visited Kilmainham Gaol in December, it was a bit like a pilgrimage for me. I knew that I would be walking through the notorious place I had been reading about for 20 years and that my Irish history knowledge would only be improved by going…but I didn’t really want to. I knew it’d be hard for me as I am a sensitive girl and I left my traveling companions elsewhere in order to do it alone. I was highly emotional, particularly when I visited “Last Words“, the exhibit on the top floor of the prison.

As I left the gaol, I really needed to collect myself. My makeup was runny from tears I had barely held back in the exhibit and my head was full of things I wanted to remember and write down. Most of all, I wanted a cigarette. I crossed the street to have one and to not fall apart in front of a major tourist attraction and found myself surrounded by humanoid, creepy bronze statues whose chests were full of bullet holes. In the split second it took me to put two and two together, I realized 2 things. These were the creepiest statues I had ever seen and I had come to the wrong place to collect myself, as it made me even more emotional and teary.

I don’t know if I like Rowan Gillespie or not. On one hand I believe he’s a genius. On the other, his work hits me in a visceral way that makes me uncomfortable. This is Proclamation, another place I had to add to the Atlas Obscura. It’s getting quite full of Irish places these days….

http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-proclamation-sculpture

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May 12th

Today marks the end of the anniversaries of the 1916 Executions. James Connelly was shot May 12th, 1916. He was carried into the prison yard and tied to a chair, due to injuries that would have killed him in a day or 2 anyway. Instead of letting nature take its course, they tied him to a chair and the firing squad shot him.

Last winter, a Sinn Fein guide mentioned rumors that he was already dead when they brought him into the yard, which was the first I had heard of the possibility. It wouldn’t surprise me  – after all, they were only posturing and proving a point by executing him, despite his feebleness and injuries. Either way, the 12th marks the anniversary of his death – and this photo was taken in December at the mass grave site in Arbour Hill. I quite like the leaves in the cracks – and while I sat at the grave, a feral tabby cat jumped right into my lap and started purring like mad, at just the perfect time.

It was a great way to spend  the afternoon.

Rest in Peace Mr. Connolly and all of your cohorts too.

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Before the gallows……

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I believe that he knew he was about to be executed. I believe that he thought it was worth it completely. I have seen his letters to his mother in person, once he  was imprisoned and about to die. This schoolmaster, this poet, this philosopher and this hero of Ireland – this reason that I wear an Easter Lily badge – this man, is an idealist – a cheerleader – a man who never lost his faith in humanity and justice. He was amazing. His triumph was through his failure. His life was short but full and meaningful.

Nov. 10th, 1879 – May 3rd, 1916

 

Padraig Pearse’s Address to Court Martial:

I desire in the first place to repeat what I
have already said in letters to General Sir John
Maxwell and to Brigadier General Lowe. My object in
agreeing to an unconditional surrender was to prevent
the further slaughter of the civil population of
Dublin and to save the lives of our gallant followers
who, having made for six days a stand unparalleled in
military history, were now surrounded and (in the case
of those under the immediate command of Headquarters)
without food. I fully understand now, as then, that my
own life is forfeit to British law, and I shall die
very cheerfully if I think that the British
Government, as it has already shown itself strong,
will now show itself magnanimous enough to accept my
single life to forfeiture and give a general amnesty
to the brave men and boys who have fought at my
bidding.

In the second place I wish it to be understood
that any admissions I make here are to be taken as
involving myself alone. They do not involve and must
not be used against anyone who acted with me, not even
those who may have set their names to documents with
me. (The Court assented to this,)

I admit that I was Commandant General
Commanding in Chief the forces of the Irish Republic
which have been acting against you for the past week,
and that I was President of their Provisional
Government. I stand over all my acts and words done or
spoken in those capacities. When I was a child of ten
I went down on my bare knees by my bedside one night
and promised God that I should devote my life to an
effort to free my country. I have kept that promise.
As a boy and as a man I have worked for Irish freedom,
first among all earthly things, I have helped to
organise, to arm, to train, and to discipline my
fellow-countrymen to the sole end that, when the time
came, they might fight for Irish freedom. The time, as
it seemed to me, did come, and we went into the fight.
I am glad we did. We seem to have lost. We have not
lost, To refuse to fight would have been to lose; to
fight is to win. We have kept faith with the past, and
handed on a tradition to the future.

I repudiate the assertion of the prosecutor
that I sought to aid and abet England’s enemy. Germany
is no more to me than England is. I asked and accepted
German aid in the shape of arms and an expeditionary
force. We neither asked for nor accepted Germany [sic]
gold, nor had any traffic with Germany but what I
state. My aim was to win Irish freedom: we struck the
first blow ourselves but should have been glad of an
ally’s aid.

I assume that I am speaking to Englishmen, who
value their freedom and who profess to be fighting for
the freedom of Belgium and Serbia. Believe that we,
too, love freedom and desire it. To us it is more
desirable than anything in the world. If you strike us
down now, we shall rise again and renew the fight. You
cannot conquer Ireland. You cannot extinguish the
Irish passion for freedom. If our deed has not been
sufficient to win freedom, then our children will win
it by a better deed.

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As we come to the end of the anniversaries for the execution dates in 1916, I have to stop and ponder the logic of the British government throughout history. The Rising was not popular and it was rife with miscommunication and leadership wars. If the government had not executed the leaders, making them martyrs, it may have been a footnote in history. They have made this mistake time and time again, almost as if they either WANT to concede their empire or as if they want the struggle to continue.

Whenever the people get sick of the fighting and membership of Republican fighters is down, they do something so wrong and so tyrannical that suddenly, there’s a giant surge in the ranks. This happened in 1916. It happened in Derry when the Army shot 26 peaceful protesters. It happened again when Bobby Sands and the other hunger strikers lost their fight and died in prison. Depending on how the dust settles, it may happen again in the aftermath of Gerry Adam’s arrest just weeks before elections. You would think that SOMEONE over the puddle would be more strategic and learn from their historical mistakes.

One of their biggest mistakes, was letting Grace Gifford and Joseph Plunkett get married the night before they executed him in 1916 at Kilmainham. It is a tragic love story of star crossed lovers – one that tugs on the heartstrings of anyone and everyone, even those who didn’t approve of the Rising. They were married in the prison chapel and were only allowed ten minutes of supervised time as husband and wife before the crown shot Joseph Plunkett the morning after the wedding. They were taunted and watched for the entire 10 minutes and yet, by all accounts, they only had eyes and ears for each other. 10 minutes of bittersweet joy before their love was destroyed – and as Shakespeare can attest to – that makes for an undying, sympathetic story that the whole world can stand behind, rebel or not.

Grace was a strong woman. She was the daughter of a mixed marriage (Catholic and Protestant) and was an unlikely rebel. She tried to make a living as an illustrator and a political cartoonist. She was to be married to Joseph Plunkett on Easter Sunday – plans that were made before she had any knowledge of the Rising. She insisted on the wedding in the prison chapel when she learned that her fiance was to be executed on May 4th, 1916. On May 3rd, she bought her own wedding ring and went to the jail to marry her love, despite her parents’ objections, knowing that she was to be a widow just hours later. She never remarried and remained Grace Gifford Plunkett for the rest of her days – a shining example of a dedicated Republican woman and a walking reminder of her tragic love story. She was known as Ireland’s tragic bride and she returned to Kilmainham Gaol as a prisoner years later.

Plunkett was a poet and a signatory on the Proclamation of Independence. Already a romantic and philosophical man, his wedding to Grace and their story of tragedy and dedication made their love a flash point of the rising that continued to burn after he was executed. Their 98th anniversary was just days ago.

Kilmainham has reopened as a museum and a tourist location. One of the first places you will visit there is the prison chapel where they were married. A projector displays their photos above the altar at the start of the tour and you will also see both of their cells while visiting. Hers still has one of her more famous paintings on the back wall – one of Mary, showing that her adoption of Joseph’s Catholic faith stuck even after her husband was killed.

On the 3rd floor of the Gaol is an unnerving and heartbreaking exhibition of ‘Last Words’ – featuring the letters, mementos, and other possessions of Republican prisoners and rebel leaders. The letters from the prison to Grace are almost as gut-wrenching as the correspondence between her and her future husband in the days leading up to their wedding and his death. It is impossible to stand in the room without feeling the power of their story and the shadow of their love that remains. It was also impossible for me to be there without tears streaming down my face for almost the entire tour.

So happy anniversary to Grace and Joseph. If there’s any justice in the world, they found each other again in their version of the afterlife and maybe someday soon, the free Ireland they both believed in will finally come to fruition.

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The Star-Crossed Lovers of 1916

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Hearsay and Folklore

Gerry Adams is getting a lot of flak for saying that his arrest was politically motivated and that the Boston Tapes were biased and not ever going to be used as evidence. Propaganda machines are churning on both sides since his initial arrest, trying to spin current events and the legitimacy of the Boston College Oral history tapes. Interestingly enough, the matter was decided by a judge long before  – and Gerry Adams may have been putting it mildly. The only surprise here is that the judge’s findings are not being reported….oh wait, I guess that’s no surprise at all

http://www.irishcentral.com/Federal-Judge-said-BC-tapes-full-of-hearsay-and-folklore.html#ixzz313Wvn3iC