Articles
Star Wars in Dingle
One of the major stories so far this year for Dingle, and Ireland as a whole, is that of the blockbuster film series...
The wedding of the Easter Rising.
Joseph Plunkett and Grace Gifford’s marriage was one of the many personal tragedies of 1916 The 1916 rising changed the course of Irish history. While pundits and historians reflect on what it was all for one hundred years on, it has always been seen in Ireland as the sacrifice of a few for many.
The Women of the 1916 Rising
On the first day of the rising, Pádraig Pierce stood on the steps of the General Post Office and read out the proclamation of the Irish Republic. The verse ‘Ireland has organised and trained her manhood’ has always stuck out as odd from that revolutionary document, not least because many women had a huge part in the rising.
Aoife and Strongbow
With the 1916 centenary celebrations close at hand, the country is focused on that Easter week which marked the last years of English Dominion over Ireland. How did we end up under British rule in the first place? Well, just in time for Valentine's Day, that's a tale of love and war (all the best tales are).
A People's Rebellion. Easter 1916
The Irish state has never been old enough to mark centenaries. It is not yet one hundred years old. But this year marks the hundredth since the 1916 Easter Rising, a cataclysmic event that not only paved the way for an Irish Republic, but heralded the end of colonialism...
The Lady's Charm of Luck and Protection
When it comes to patron Saints, Patrick gets most of the glory. From dyeing the Hudson River in Chicago to putting green lights on Tokyo Tower, St. Patrick's day makes a celebrity of our Saint. Less well known, outside of Ireland of course, is our other patron, Brigid.
Kerry Versus the World
Cath Finntrágha, The battle of Ventry
You probably aren’t aware, but one of the greatest battles in history took place not far from Dingle...
The lonely life of a monk
There is little left standing of the monastic site of Riasc, save for the Riasc Ogham Stone. The early 7th Century settlement is off the beaten track even by today’s standards, but fourteen hundred years ago it would have felt truly isolated.That is after all what the monks wanted. Living in little clocháns: solemn, empty beehive shaped stone huts, they devoted their lives to prayer and study.
The two things Irish monks gave us to enjoy
We have a lot to thank the ancient monks for in Ireland. When they weren’t getting pillaged by marauding Vikings, they were busy preserving Irish history as we know it. They were the first to use the Latin alphabet as we now use it...
The first Irish American
Next Columbus day, remember who really found America.
Columbus Day has just gone by in the United States, marking the Italian explorer’s famous journey across the Atlantic. Most Scandinavians will wag their fingers and remind us that the Viking Leif Erickson got there four hundred years earlier. The Norse Vikings were driven out of Ireland in 1014 at the battle of Clontarf, by High King Brian Ború, and haven’t been back since. So we can forgive them for not knowing America was discovered eight hundred before Columbus.
Passing down
So much of Ireland has changed over the last forty years. Workers who thatched roofs, span wool and weaved wicker have grandchildren working in tech companies, consultancy and financial services. Those old industries are rarely passed down.
Standing Inspiration
Ireland's Ancient Standing Stones,Ireland standing stones are a symbol of a culture which was already ancient by the time the great pyramids of Egypt were built. Stretching back over 5,000 years, these millennia old artefacts continue to bare witness to an unbroken tradition of craftsmanship. Irish craftsmen like Brian de Staic have over the generations been inspired by those nameless, long passed artists who enriched the island with a wealth of symbolic artefacts.