April 2021

April 2021  News and updates on the programme of commemorations relating to the events in Irish history that took place between 1912 and 1923.   If you would like to inform us of any suitable material for future newsletters – anything related to the Decade of Centenaries – please feel free to email [email protected].   1. Events with application/registration deadlines  Mayo Decade of Centenaries Artist Residency Mayo Decade of Centenaries Artist Residency Closing date for applications is Thursday April 15th 2021.  To commemorate the Decade of the Centenaries, Mayo County Council Arts Service invites submissions for a special residency working with the Jackie Clarke Collection’s artefacts relating to the following events of this period in Irish history; Irish War of Independence, Truce, and Civil War.  This commission will provide one artist with an opportunity for a six-month residency.  DETAILS HERE  Donegal’s Decade of Centenaries 2021 Programme Donegal’s Decade of Centenaries 2021 Programme Lectures, history, art, a virtual tour, memorials and more to form part of Donegal’s Decade of Centenaries 2021 Programme  Donegal County Museum is delighted to announce funding has been secured by Donegal County Council’s Culture Division from the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sports and Media under the Community Strand of the 2021 Decade of Centenaries programme as part of the Decade of Centenaries Initiative 2012-2023.  This funding will enable the Culture Division to deliver 8 exciting and innovative projects across a wide range of themes. The projects are:  Historian in Residence A historian in residence will carry out research on two of the Donegal County Archives Collections – The Joseph Murray Collection (Vice Brigadier, 4 Brigade, 1st Northern Division, South East Donegal) and on selected Rural & Urban District Council minute books from 1918 – 1925. The outcome of the research will be six published essays and a series of online talks.  Wainfest Children’s’ Activities During Wainfest, the Donegal Library Service will organise a number of online talks by Irish authors aimed at primary aged children across Donegal. There will also be an educational live presentation in libraries by John D Ruddy, Creator of Manny Man and the YouTube history series Manny Man Does History.  Donegal Library Service Lecture programme The Donegal Library Service will organise a series of online lectures exploring a variety of themes connected to the revolutionary period. The talks will be delivered by both local and national experts.  Open call for Artists Artists of all disciplines (resident and working in/or from County Donegal ) will be invited to submit proposals for a creative project exploring, responding to or reflecting on aspects of life in Donegal during the period 1919 to 1923. One artist and one project will be selected through an Open Call.  Artist in Residence Donegal County Archives and the Donegal County Museum Services will engage an Artist in Residence to create new artistic work/s in response to their collections of material pertaining to the period 1919-1923.  WWI database based on the County Donegal Book of Honour Donegal County Museum will create an on-line database containing all the listings published in the 5th edition of the County Donegal Book of Honour, The Great War 1914-1918 along with additional information uncovered by the Museum in their research.  Virtual tour of the exhibition ‘From Conflict to Division, Donegal 1919-1925 ’Donegal County Museum will develop a virtual tour of its exhibition ‘From Conflict to Division Donegal 1919-1925’ so visitors can access the exhibition despite the restrictions of the Covid 19 pandemic.  Audit of Memorials As part of the implementation of the County Donegal Heritage Plan, Donegal County Council will commission an audit of publicly-accessible memorials relating to the Decade of Centenaries (1912 – 1923). The Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sports and Media works with partner Departments and stakeholders to support and facilitate commemorative actions and events under this initiative, with local authorities including Donegal County Council holding a key partner role in coordination, planning and delivery of the programme.  FULL DETAILS HERE

As part of the ‘Decade of Centenaries’ commemorations, the Department of Education is inviting schools and students at all levels of primary and post-primary schools across Ireland, in the 2020/2021 school year, to enter the annual schools’ history competition. The selected themes have a particular link to events of a century ago across the island of Ireland.  Topics This year, at both primary and post-primary levels, projects are invited under the following general headings. Please note that all categories can incorporate a local/regional studies theme:  Revolution in Ireland – a study of a  political/revolutionary event from the 1912–1922 period, a particular aspect of the event, or an individual/group/organisation associated with  it. As with the other categories, this can incorporate a local/regional studies theme.  Ireland and the First World War – a study of the Irish experience of the war from the perspective of an individual or group. This could involve a focus on a particular battle, an individual participant’s story or a consideration of the entire 1914–1918 period.  Women during the revolutionary period in Ireland – a study of a particular individual/group/organisation/movement striving to improve the quality of women’s lives or involved in revolutionary activity in Ireland in the 1912–1922 period.  War of Independence – a study of a political/revolutionary event from the 1919–1921 period, a particular aspect of the event, or an individual/group/organisation associated with  it.  Civil War – a study of a particular individual/ organisation/ group/ movement/ event during the civil war in Ireland and its impact. The deadline for receipt of completed projects is 30 April 2021 with the winners being announced, and prizes awarded, before the end of September 2021. FULL DETAILS HERE

Lunchtime Seminar: The Irish Revolution 1916-1923 This twelve part free online history lecture series on the Irish Revolution will examine the key events and personalities from the 1916-1923 era and be presented in an accessible manner.  Commencing on Wednesday 14 April – Wednesday 30 June at 1pm. Each lecture will be approx. 30 minutes in length followed by discussion based on relevant primary source documents.  Booking required. DETAILS & REGISTRATION HERE  North Kerry War of Independence Lecture Series North Kerry War of Independence Lecture Series Despite the perception held for some time that Kerry was relatively inactive during the War of Independence, the first six months of 1921 in Listowel and North Kerry was a turbulent time. The very first day of the year witnessed the death of Listowel IRA volunteer and student of All Hallows John Lawlor, following a savage beating by the Black & Tans. Later that month RIC Detective Inspector Tobias O’Sullivan was assassinated on the streets of Listowel, and in February 1921 most of Ballylongford was burned by the Black & Tans. However, the months of April and May 1921 was the bloodiest period of the War in North Kerry. On April 7th IRA volunteer Mick Galvin was killed by British forces during an ambush at Kilmorna. As a reprisal for this event, Kilmorna House was burned to the ground by the local IRA on April 14th and Sir Arthur Vicars who was staying in the house with his sister, was led to the end of the garden by three members of the Flying Column and shot dead. On May 12th Crown forces shot dead three unarmed members of the IRA Flying Column – Paddy Dalton, Jerry Lyons and Paddy Walsh, at Gortaglanna, Knockanure, a short distance from Kilmorna. A fourth member, Con (Cornelius) Dee made a miraculous escape. This event has been immortalised in the famous ballad The Valley of Knockanure. As part of its programme of events to commemorate the centenary of the War of Independence in Listowel and North Kerry, Kerry Writers’ Museum will host a series of online lectures during April and May as follows:  • April 9th – ‘Sir Arthur Vicars and the Irish Crown Jewels’ by historian, author & broadcaster Myles Dungan  • April 16th – ‘Kerry’s Downton Abbey: Pierce Mahony and the Kilmorna House Visitors Book’ by historian Tom Dillon  • April 30th – ‘What it said in the Papers: How the Press reported on the War of Independence in North Kerry’ by Kerry County Archivist Michael Lynch  • May 7th – ‘When Freedom’s Sword Was Drawn’: The Gortaglanna Tragedy, 12th May 1921’ by historian and author Martin Moore  • May 14th – ‘Rhyming History: The War of Independence & the Ballads of atrocity in the Valley of Knockanure’ by poet and author Gabriel Fitzmaurice  All lectures will take place live on ZOOM at 7.30 pm each night.  To get a free registration link email [email protected] DETAILS HERE  Midwives of the Nation This filmed performance follows the women of 1916 – the dispatchers, the doctors, the gunrunners, the nurses, the smugglers, the big characters and the not so big characters of the Easter Rising. Written by Joe O’Byrne and Carnation Theatre. Play runs approx. 1 hr. The play can be viewed on Vimeo at any time during these days. A URL and password will be provided before the date.  Please book at: [email protected]. Conferences  Burning of the Custom House Online Centenary Conference The online series of talks to mark the centenary of the burning of the Custom House by the Dublin Brigade, IRA on 25 May 1921 was launched by Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage Darragh O’Brien.  It was then followed by two talks from historians Tim Carey and Liz Gillis Tim Carey spoke about the history of the Custom House and Liz Gillis discussed events that took place in Ireland in 1920. AVAILABLE HERE Lectures will continue every Saturday until the final event on Tuesday May 25th.    Keep an eye on http://www.kilmainhamtales.ie/ for future lectures.

3. Exhibitions    Crawford Art Gallery:’For those that tell no tales’ Dara McGrath: For Those That Tell No Tales 24 April – 29 August 2021  Crawford Art Gallery announces Dara McGrath’s forthcoming exhibition ‘For Those That Tell No Tales’ as part of the Decade of Centenaries 2012-2023 programme and will open as an online exhibition 24 April. Through 60 photographic works, McGrath explores the powerful living histories of those who lost their lives directly due to the Irish War of Independence. Launching online on Saturday 24 April, an interactive map will reveal a selection of the artist’s images and simultaneously, across selected billboards in Cork City, audiences will also be able to encounter the compelling stories of a century ago. The full experience of the exhibition will await visitors with the much anticipated reopening of Crawford Art Gallery in due course. The War of Independence was a defining moment in Ireland’s history. Between 1919 and 1921, approximately 1,400 people died in the struggle for an independent Irish republic. Cork city and county saw the bloodiest of the fighting. In total, 528 people of all backgrounds – including members of the public, Irish Volunteers, and British Forces – lost their lives directly due to the conflict in Cork. Beyond the recognised memorials and major landmarks there are many more sites within the landscape where people lost their lives. The public walk by unaware of the tragedies that took place at these unmarked locations, including that of Norwegian sailor Carl Johannsen whose life was ended by a ricochet bullet while alighting from a boat in the Port of Cork docks or Josephine Scannell who, at nineteen years old, was shot dead by a stray bullet while sitting near a window in her house on French’s Quay. Amongst the death toll, 63 suspected or known informants were executed in the city and county. Some of their bodies were never seen again. The photographs of contemporary artist Dara McGrath elevate these spaces as sites of memory for those individual lost lives. With accompanying texts, over sixty works will be exhibited in which McGrath acknowledges the place and circumstances of their deaths, which bore so heavily on their communities and still resonate today. An online interactive map of the locations will be available for visitors to Crawford website, to further explore a selection of the photographs and stories. City walkers will also have the opportunity to see the images and text at a selection of locations around the City. McGrath’s work is based on research by Dr. Andy Bielenberg of the Department of History at University College Cork, who has researched the lives, circumstances and sites of death of the War of Independence victims. The exhibition is kindly supported by The Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media under the Decade of Centenaries 2012-2023 initiative and Cork Public Museum. Crawford Art Gallery Director, Mary McCarthy says “We are pleased to be working with artist Dara McGrath to present this new body of work. It provides new insights into our experiences of place and history and acknowledges that places are complex and layered. McGraths images and texts are evocative and mesmerising.” In conjunction with this exhibition, Crawford Art Gallery’s Learn & Explore team will be hosting a programme of events, ranging from guided walking tours around Cork City, ‘In Conversation’ events with McGrath and other artists, and collaborations with schools and educators. Details will be published through the Gallery’s website and social media channels in the coming weeks. DETAILS HERE

3. Podcasts  A history of partition from the 1920 Government of Ireland Act to Brexit              New History Ireland Hedge School PODCAST A history of partition from the 1920 Government of Ireland Act to Brexit  Will be released at 5pm on Friday 9th April on the History Ireland Spotify channel, History Ireland website, or wherever you get your podcasts.  While the constitutional outcomes of the revolutionary period have evolved over time, one has remained constant over the past century—partition. While a previous Hedge School in December 2020 examined how that came about in 1920/21 this discussion will focus on its effects over the following century, up to and including the uncertainly caused by Brexit and growing calls for a border poll on Irish unity. Tune in to History Ireland editor, Tommy Graham, in discussion with Paul Bew, Brian Hanley, Martin Mansergh, and Margaret O’Callaghan.  This Hedge School supported by the National Library.     HISTORY IRELAND PODCASTS AVAILABLE HERE

Kilkenny County Council Library ServicesDecade of Centenaries Resources  An expanding series of podcasts by historian and author Eoin Swithin Walsh, who explores various aspects of Kilkenny during the revolutionary period. Eoin’s own book, ‘Kilkenny in Times of Revolution, 1900-1923’ [image above] is available *HERE*  PODCASTS AVAILABLE HERE

4. Teaching Resources                Dictionary of Irish Biography The Dictionary of Irish Biography (DIB), a hugely important national and international resource for scholars of Irish society, history and culture, has moved its digital corpus of nearly 11,000 biographical entries to a new purpose-built, free-to-access repository. DETAILS AVAILABLE HERE      Royal Irish Academy Educational Resources The RIA is providing free access to Art and Architecture of Ireland and the Dictionary of Irish Biography, to the curriculum-linked lesson plans that can be found on the pages for A history of Ireland in 100 words, A history of Ireland in 100 objects, Judging Dev, Ireland 1922 (forthcoming), Documents on Irish Foreign Policy, and the Irish Historic Towns Atlas.  AVAILABLE HERE

5. Publications  When women are erased from history, what are we left with?  Between 1912 and 1922, Ireland experienced sweeping social and political change, including the Easter Rising, World War I, the Irish Civil War, the fight for Irish women’s suffrage, the founding of the Abbey Theatre, and the passage of the Home Rule Bill. Women and the Decade of Commemorations, edited by Oona Frawley, highlights not only the responsibilities of Irish women, past and present, but it also privileges women’s scholarship in an attempt to redress what has been a long-standing imbalance.  Contributors discuss the importance of addressing missing history and curating memory to correct the historical record when it comes to remembering revolution. Together, the essays in Women and the Decade of Commemorations consider the impact of women’s unseen, unsung work, which has been critically important in shaping Ireland, a country that continues to struggle with honoring the full role of women today. BUY HERE

Women and the Irish Revolution examines diverse aspects of women’s experiences in the revolution after the Easter Rising. The complex role of women as activists, the detrimental impact of violence and social and political divisions on women, the role of women in the foundation of the new State, and dynamics of remembrance and forgetting are explored in detail by leading scholars in sociology, history, politics, and literary studies. Prof Connolly’s introduction to the volume is available to read *here*  BUY HERE Follow us! Twitter: @Centenaries Facebook: @decadeofcentenaries https://www.decadeofcentenaries.com