Micheal O Doibhilin's Posts - The Wild Geese2024-03-28T10:57:24ZMicheal O Doibhilinhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/MichealODoibhilinhttps://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/57439680?profile=original&xn_version=202403260758&width=48&height=48&crop=1%3A1&xj_user_default=1https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blog/feed?user=0dzcq7ltbdt80&xn_auth=noAnne Devlin - Ireland's Hero and First Female Political Prisonertag:thewildgeese.irish,2014-10-03:6442157:BlogPost:1212982014-10-03T21:30:00.000ZMicheal O Doibhilinhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/MichealODoibhilin
<p style="text-align: left;"><em><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84708364?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-right" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84708364?profile=RESIZE_480x480" width="375"></img></a> <span class="font-size-1">As requested, here an account of the life of <strong>Anne Devlin, assistant to Robert Emmet.</strong></span></em></p>
<p><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span class="font-size-7" style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino;">I</span>n the church of St. Nicholas of…</strong></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><em><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84708364?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="375" class="align-right" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84708364?profile=RESIZE_480x480"/></a><span class="font-size-1">As requested, here an account of the life of <strong>Anne Devlin, assistant to Robert Emmet.</strong></span></em></p>
<p><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span class="font-size-7" style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino;">I</span>n the church of St. Nicholas of Myra</strong> in Dublin’s Liberties, on 21/5/1838, 24-year-old</span> <strong style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Catherine Campbell</strong> <span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">married</span> <strong style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">William Maginnis</strong><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">. Present at the wedding were Catherine’s proud mother Anne and father William.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">But the marriage was not to last – by 1846 <strong>William Maginnis</strong> was dead as the <strong>Great Famine</strong> took hold of the country, leaving a widow and a year-old baby, William.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Once again Catherine’s mother Anne must have felt that the fates were conspiring against her, for she had buried her own husband – Catherine’s father – on January 12<sup>th</sup> that year, and her life was taking its final, tragic turn.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Anne had married <strong>William Campbell</strong> in <strong>St. Catherine’s Church</strong> in <strong>Meath Street</strong> on April 14<sup>th</sup>, 1811 and was to spend almost 35 years with this ‘good man’ as she later described him. It <i>was</i> a good marriage, as marriages went in <strong>19<sup>th</sup> Century Dublin Liberties</strong>. The newlyweds moved into a mews at the back of 2 Mullinahack – <strong>John’s Lane</strong> - where they lived in relative comfort. There was stabling for William’s horse there, and the dwelling could be entered from either the main house or directly from John’s Lane.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Anne took in washing (William could collect and deliver it for her with his horse and dray) and they had, according to Anne <em>‘a competence sufficient unto our needs’</em>.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The Campbells had four children – <strong>Catherine</strong> (1812), <strong>John</strong> (1813), <strong>William</strong> (1816) and <strong>MaryAnne</strong> (1822). But all was not well. <strong>John</strong> may have died in late childhood, while William was so weak and ill all his life that, even though he eventually moved out of the family home to try to make his own way in the world, he frequently had to return to his mother to be nursed through one of his many illnesses. Daughter <strong>MaryAnne</strong> became a drug addict, addicted to the medicines of the day (possibly painkillers prescribed to Anne herself) and eventually died before her thirtieth birthday in a lunatic asylum in <strong>New York</strong> from a fatal overdose of someone else’s medication.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">When Anne’s husband died in 1846, she lost much of her income – not just William’s earnings, but much of her own for now she could not carry laundry any distance – either to collect or deliver, and her fortunes declined. By late 1850, as the Great Famine was finally receding, Anne had to move from her mews to a garret in <strong>2 Little Elbow Lane</strong> (where <em>Reginald Street</em> now is) – soon to be acknowledged as the worst slum in Europe.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">But even at this stage Anne was not alone – she was, in fact, <i>never</i> alone now and had not been since she was released from prison in <strong>Dublin Castle</strong> in 1806. Always in the background, everywhere she went, was a policeman noting what she did, who she spoke to, who greeted her. Anyone who appeared to know her was marked as a potential enemy of the State and could be arrested or questioned without warning.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">For <strong>Anne Campbell</strong> was a dangerous woman. Better known as <span style="color: #993300;"><strong>Anne Devlin</strong></span>, she had been born into a comfortable Catholic tenant farming family near <strong>Rathdrum </strong>in <strong>County Wicklow</strong> in 1881. Following the failed United Irish Rebellion of 1798 Anne's family moved to <strong>Rathfarnham</strong> in <strong>Co. Dublin</strong> to escape persecution by Crown Forces.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1802 Anne volunteered to help <strong>Robert Emmet</strong> organise his abortive rebellion of 23 July 1803. Anne was Emmet’s unpaid assistant and confidant, privy to all his plans. She knew at least fifty of the leading businessmen in Dublin who had subscribed about £75,000 (€15,000,000 or $93,840,000 today) to fund this rebellion, and had been in charge of Emmet’s headquarters on the day of the rebellion itself. She had berated Emmet when he returned after his failure for abandoning her cousins and brothers who had joined him in his venture but was, over the next 2½ years, to see her family decimated as she remained loyal to Emmet’s democratic ideals.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84708411?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="400" class="align-left" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84708411?profile=RESIZE_480x480"/></a></span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">In the aftermath of the rebellion Anne and her family were arrested at their home in</span> <strong style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Rathfarnham</strong> <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">and marched to</span> <strong style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Dublin Castle</strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">. Here they were interrogated and then sent to</span> <strong style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Kilmainham Gaol</strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">. Anne, her sisters, father, mother and brothers were now in the hands of the evil</span> <strong style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Dr. Edward Trevor</strong> <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">– medical inspector of the Gaol …</span> <strong style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><em>and paid British spy</em></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">While Anne’s family were released over the coming months (though her father Bryan was not released until 1806) Anne was coming in for very special attention from <strong>Dr. Trevor</strong>. While in <strong>Dublin Castle</strong> she had been offered £500 (c. €1,000,000 or $1,251,185 today) for the names of the men who had financed Emmet’s rebellion, but had refused it out of hand. There could have been a reward of up to £500 for each of these men if their names had been known (£25,000 then or a total of €50,000,000 now!) and Trevor wanted it. For 2½ years he tortured Anne, keeping her in the worst imaginable conditions in prison – solitary confinement, total darkness, etc. So awful were the conditions that she developed <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erysipelas" target="_blank">erysipelas</a> – a usually fatal disease contracted from filthy living conditions and which killed one out of every three who contracted it, usually painfully and swiftly – within a matter of days. Even today there is no sure cure for this.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">In prison Anne met <strong>Robert Emmet</strong> who advised her to tell what she knew of his rebellion and save herself, but she refused to become an informer, continuing to endure the worst that Trevor and the <strong>British Crown</strong> could do to her.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="2">(When Robert was first captured he was brought to Kilmainham Gaol on August 26th to await trial. Anne came to the Gaol on September 3.</font></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="2">Robert was allowed exercise in the yards alone, Dr. Edward Trevor and Chief of Police Town-Major Sirr arranged for Anne to be "accidentally" allowed into the same yard while they surreptitiously watched from a prison window to see if Anne and Robert would acknowledge each other but Anne saw them and realised their plan so she refused to appear to know Emmet.</font></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="2">Surreptitiously the two exchanged words while Robert continued to hit a ball against a wall with a paddle or racquet. He told Anne to save herself, to tell what she knew of him but she refused.<br/> <br/> Frustrated, Trevor ordered Anne brought back to her dungeon cell and she never saw Robert again after that).<br/> <br/> We do not know the date of this meeting, but it appears to have been some time after Anne entered the Gaol. If it was, say, 2 weeks after, then it would be about September 17, which would make sense as, with Emmet's trial approaching on the 19th, the Crown would be looking desperately for evidence that would convict him.</font></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><font size="2"><font size="2">After his trial Robert Emmet had been brought to Kilmainham Gaol in the middle of the night, under heavy guard and manacled. The Head Gaoler, (there was no Governor of the Gaol until 1820) ordered the chains to be removed and put Robert into the condemned cell, where he spent the time writing until about midday on the 20 September when he was taken to Thomas Street to be executed. Anne was not given the opportunity to meet Robert at this time.</font></font></span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">She even saw her youngest brother Jimmy die in her arms in jail at the age of just 11 from gaol fever, but would not yield.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Released eventually in 1806 following the intervention of <strong>Mrs. Hanlon</strong>, wife of the brutal head gaoler of <strong>Dublin Castle</strong> where she had been transferred by Trevor in an attempt to hide her from the authorities who were by this time beginning to release untried prisoners from Kilmainham, Anne found her father on his deathbed and her family ruined.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Over the next few years she suffered the loss of much of her immediate family. Not one of those she had protected came to her assistance save only the <strong>Hammonds</strong> – former friends of the Emmets - who gave her a position as Lady’s Companion to the aged <strong>Mrs. Hammond</strong>.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Shortly after Mrs. Hammond’s death in 1810 Anne married <strong>William Campbell</strong> from the Dublin Liberties.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Apart from being followed everywhere now by police, Anne was also suffering badly from the ongoing effects of erysipelas which frequently left her bloated (looking <i>“more like a cow than a woman”</i> she once recorded). At times her eyes were squeezed so tightly shut she could not see across the road and had to be helped. And still she worked, and had children, and kept house, and never informed on anyone.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Imagine, then, her final years. Alone, in a virtual open prison, deserted by those she had protected, penniless, gradually sinking further into oblivion until she was found dead of starvation in her slum garret on September 18<sup>th</sup>, 1851 at the age of 71, dressed in rags, her furniture and everything of value pawned for food.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">But she had not betrayed those who had helped Emmet, ever, despite the awful cost to her and her family. Had she done so, a wealthy and powerful layer of nationalist leadership would have been wiped out, the spinal chord of Nationalism severed, and the country we have today would not exist.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">It is no idle claim to say that we owe our freedoms and liberties today directly to Ireland’s first female political prisoner, Anne Devlin – a true lady of the Dublin Liberties.</span></p>
<p><span class="font-size-2" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Ar dheis Dé go rabh a anam. May she rest in peace, in the arms of God.</strong></span></p>
<p></p>
<p align="right" style="text-align: left;"><span class="font-size-1" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><em>P.S. For a fuller account of Anne's live read <strong>"Anne Devlin - bravest of the brave"</strong> available by post from my publishing house, <a href="http://www.kilmainhamtales.ie/01-anne-devlin.php" target="_blank">Kilmainham Tales Teo.</a></em></span></p>
<p align="right" style="text-align: left;"></p>
<p align="right" style="text-align: left;"></p>Eulogy for Anne Devlintag:thewildgeese.irish,2014-09-25:6442157:BlogPost:1201352014-09-25T21:21:44.000ZMicheal O Doibhilinhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/MichealODoibhilin
<p><strong><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707506?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-left" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707506?profile=original" width="400"></img></a> At the Commemorative mass for Anne Devlin in St. Catherine's Church, Meath Street, Dublin on Sunday 14 September, 2014 I gave the following Eulogy:</strong></p>
<p><em>"As we celebrate this decade of centenaries, it is easy to forget those who went before, and without whom many of these events would not have happened.</em></p>
<p><em>One such person was Anne Devlin, in…</em></p>
<p><strong><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707506?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="400" class="align-left" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707506?profile=original"/></a>At the Commemorative mass for Anne Devlin in St. Catherine's Church, Meath Street, Dublin on Sunday 14 September, 2014 I gave the following Eulogy:</strong></p>
<p><em>"As we celebrate this decade of centenaries, it is easy to forget those who went before, and without whom many of these events would not have happened.</em></p>
<p><em>One such person was Anne Devlin, in whose memory today’s mass is being offered.</em><br/> <em>Anne married William Campbell in this church in 1811, and so began her life in the Liberties of Dublin. Originally from Rathdrum in Co. Wicklow, she was to live in the Liberties for 40 years, most of her time in John’s Lane, just behind the church at the end of this road. For the last few months of her life she lived in Little Elbow Lane just up the road from us. At that time – 1851 – this was probably the worst slum in Dublin, but has long since vanished, to be replaced by Reginald Street today.</em></p>
<p><em>Anne’s children were baptised in this church too, and her eldest daughter got married in another nearby church – St. Nicholas of Myra.</em></p>
<p><em>Anne’s husband died in 1846 – in the middle of the great Famine – and Ann suffered much as a result. Hardly able to continue working taking in laundry, so ill that she was often blind and had to be helped across the road, she gradually lost all she possessed – even her home – and had to move to a miserable garret in Little Elbow Lane, where she died, mainly of starvation, at the age of 71.</em></p>
<p><em>A simple and not untypical life for the times – but we remember Anne for much more than this. She could have been wealthy, very wealthy, but chose a life that eventually killed her rather than become an informer.</em></p>
<p><em>For Anne had worked with Robert Emmet on his ill-fated rebellion of 1803, which took place mostly in Thomas Street near us, in front of the other St. Catherine’s Church there. When that rebellion failed, and Robert was in jail, Anne and her family were arrested. For 2½ years Anne was to suffer horribly at the hands of Dr. Edward Trevor, medical inspector of Kilmainham Gaol …. and paid British spy. Sensory deprivation, total darkness, solitary confinement, starvation – everything Dr. Trevor could do to try to break her, to find out the names of those who had helped Emmet fund and organise his rebellion.</em></p>
<p><em>But she would not tell – no matter what the cost. Her family lost everything, her youngest brother Jimmy died in prison, only nine years old … yet she stood firm and refused to become a hated informer. Even huge bribes - £500 - more money than she could ever earn, did not turn her head.</em></p>
<p><em>Even when eventually released from prison Anne was not free for the police followed her every where, every day, noting who she spoke to, who she knew, making her virtually unemployable, right to the day of her death.</em></p>
<p><em>Yet she stood true to Emmet and his supporters. She kept those supporters alive to pass on their ideas, their hopes that Ireland would one day be free, and their children could pass these ideas on too, until we eventually began the Easter Rising of 1916 and the War of Independence that followed, which led to the freedoms we have today.</em><br/> <em>Without Anne, those supporters would have been lost. Without them, we would have lost the spinal chord of our republicanism and all we have today would not exist.</em></p>
<p><em>And it is for that that we remember Anne today, who gave up everything so that we, eventually, would be free to celebrate this Decade of Centenaries.</em></p>
<p><em>Ar dheis Dé go mairí sí i gcónaí."</em></p>
<p>This was the ninth year we remembered Anne in this way. The church is midway between her two homes and near the church of St. Nicholas of Myra where her eldest daughter got married. all of Anne's children were baptised in St. Catherine's Church.</p>
<p>I began these commemorations in 2005, and this was (to the best of my knowledge) the first time since 1951 that she had been remembered. Even in 2003, when we celebrated the bi-centenary of Robert Emmet's rebellion, Anne barely got a look in other than as his "valued servant", a term that would have had her turning in her grave.</p>
<p>In 1951 Mrs. Sean T. O'Kelly unveiled a memorial to Anne on the bridge at Aughrim, Co. Wicklow (see above)</p>
<p>In 2004 I was involved with the Committee that commissioned the statue of Anne that now stands in Rathfarnham, Co. Dublin, near where Robert Emmet had his headquarters as he planned the rebellion. it's a lovely statue, but not many see it in this village. I am agitating to have something similar erected in the heart of the Liberties where she spent most of her life, and to have plaques erected at the significant locations there.</p>Remembering Robert Emmettag:thewildgeese.irish,2014-09-25:6442157:BlogPost:1199582014-09-25T03:40:24.000ZMicheal O Doibhilinhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/MichealODoibhilin
<p><strong><span class="font-size-3" style="color: #993300;"><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707668?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707668?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750"></img></a> On Friday September 20th, 1803, Robert Emmet was hanged and beheaded by Executioner Thomas Galvin in Thomas Street, in front of St. Catherine’s Church, before a crowd of up to 45,000 people.</span></strong></p>
<p><strong><span class="font-size-3" style="color: #993300;">Each year the Emmet and Devlin Memorial…</span></strong></p>
<p><strong><span class="font-size-3" style="color: #993300;"><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707668?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707668?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024"/></a>On Friday September 20th, 1803, Robert Emmet was hanged and beheaded by Executioner Thomas Galvin in Thomas Street, in front of St. Catherine’s Church, before a crowd of up to 45,000 people.</span></strong></p>
<p><strong><span class="font-size-3" style="color: #993300;">Each year the Emmet and Devlin Memorial Association (of which I am a founding member) remembers this tragic event and places a wreath in commemoration at the foot of the commemorative plinth which stands there today.</span></strong></p>
<p><strong>Philip Emmet</strong> (descendant of Robert Emmet’s brother Thomas who was exiled to the United States) placed the wreath, as he has done on many previous occasions. Master of Ceremonies was <strong>Aidan O’Hara</strong>, and the day was organised by Frank Connolly – both founder members of the Association.</p>
<p>A large crowd turned up to remember Robert, and Aidan briefly outlined the events of that day 211 years ago before Philip Emmet laid the wreath and a minute's silence was observed in memory of a brave young man.</p>
<p>After the wreath-laying we all repaired to St. Catherine’s Church for a talk by <b><font color="#FF0000">Cllr. Mary Hanafin</font>,</b> who delivered the keynote address at this commemoration.</p>
<p><b>In her talk, <font color="#FF0000">Cllr. Hanafin</font> urged <font color="#0088CC">Education Minister Jan O’Sullivan T.D.</font> <i>‘not to consign History to history’</i>, and to protect history as a core subject in the new Junior Cycle syllabus.</b></p>
<p><i>"The memory of our forefathers – including James Connolly, James Larkin and others important to the Labour Party – can be kept alive in the minds of the next generation by protecting History as a subject. The choice rests with the Minister for Education"</i> Cllr Hanafin said.</p>
<p>Speaking on the topic <font color="#00CC00">‘<b>History – a thing of the Past?’</b></font> she urged Minister O’Sullivan not to be bound by the mistake of her predecessor, <font color="#0088CC">Ruairí Quinn</font>, who proposed removing History as a core subject at Junior Cycle level.</p>
<p><i>"History gives students a sense of identity, develops citizenship, shows the relationship between current and past events, and fosters an appreciation of diverse traditions and cultures"</i> Cllr Hanafin said.</p>
<p>The new proposals for Junior Cycle envisage only three compulsory subjects - Irish, English and Maths. Cllr Hanafin said the inclusion of History in this list <i>“would give students the skills of critical thinking, analysis, and the ability to distinguish fact from fiction, and truth from prejudice.</i></p>
<p><i>In the future, are Robert Emmet and Anne Devlin to be simply street names? Will Michael Collins be solely a film character, or did Game of Thrones really happen?"</i> she asked.</p>
<p><i>"If 12-year-old students are faced with a choice of subjects, the pressure will be to select a language for university entry, science for employment opportunities, technology for the digital economy, and</i> <i>business for</i></p>
<p>entrepreneurship. History will suffer, and so will our understanding of ourselves and the world we live in" Cllr Hanafin added.</p>
<p>She claimed that the option of taking history as a short course would lead to a lack of context or international setting, asking <em>“How, for example, can the 1916 Rising be understood without referring to World War l or the Home Rule Bill?</em></p>
<p><em>Without a knowledge of history, we cannot fully appreciate literature from Yeats to McCann. In an increasingly globalised world, our history is part of what distinguishes us from others. Many of the problems in Israel, Ukraine, Syria and elsewhere are rooted in the past, but without a sufficient knowledge of history, our understanding for today and tomorrow is limited.</em></p>
<p><em>Every education system in Europe, with the exception of England and Albania, requires students to take history until the age of 15. The removal of compulsory history in England led to a class and gender divide in those who chose it, and they are currently trying to reverse the decision. Minister O’Sullivan could learn from their mistake. We constantly bemoan the lack of study of women in history. Minister O’Sullivan can make her own mark on history by making it a core subject and giving it the status it deserves"</em> Cllr Hanafin concluded.</p>
<p>Cllr. Hanafin’s remarks were applauded by all present, and the support for them was obvious in the questions and discussion that followed.</p>
<p>All then repaired to nearby Arthur’s Pub on the invitation of landlord Declan McKiernan for light refreshments, where the discussion continued in an informal and very welcoming setting for some time.</p>
<p>More photos and further information on the Kilmainham Tales website at <span style="color: #800000;"><a href="http://www.kilmainhamtales.ie/"><span style="color: #800000;"><strong><em>www.kilmainhamtales.ie</em></strong></span></a></span></p>Remembering Anne Devlintag:thewildgeese.irish,2014-09-25:6442157:BlogPost:1200622014-09-25T03:00:00.000ZMicheal O Doibhilinhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/MichealODoibhilin
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707659?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-left" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707659?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="750"></img></a> <strong><span class="font-size-7" style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino;">E</span>very year, on the Sunday closest to her anniversary</strong>, I organise a commemoration of Ireland's greatest women - Anne Devlin. I have been dong this for the last nine years now, and each year the format is the same: Midday mass in St. Catherine's Church on Meath Street in Dublin's…</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707659?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" class="align-left" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84707659?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024"/></a><strong><span class="font-size-7" style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino;">E</span>very year, on the Sunday closest to her anniversary</strong>, I organise a commemoration of Ireland's greatest women - Anne Devlin. I have been dong this for the last nine years now, and each year the format is the same: Midday mass in St. Catherine's Church on Meath Street in Dublin's Liberties. This is the church where Anne got married in 1811, and where her children were baptised - all four of them. At this mass, I give a short eulogy.</p>
<p>After mass, I go to Glasnevin Cemetery where Anne is buried, to lay a floral tribute on her grave. I usually say a few words at the graveside, and some prayers.</p>
<p>This year’s <strong>Anne Devlin Commemoration</strong> was a great success with people travelling from, for example, Belfast and Tyrone to attend. We were especially happy to greet our friends from the <strong>Anne Devlin Society, Belfast</strong> who hired a coach for the day to travel down. (I had given a talk on Anne at their inaugural meeting in April of this year.)</p>
<p>There were many new faces at this year’s commemoration and it is good to see that word is getting out about this forgotten Irish hero. Indeed, several people/organisations put up notices on their websites/Facebook pages, for which we are very grateful. <em>Mile buiochais, a cairde uilig.</em></p>
<p>The day started out with 12 noon mass in St. Catherine’s Church, Meath Street. This church had a special meaning for Anne – it was where she got married, and where her children were baptised.</p>
<p>Fr. Niall said the mass, and I gave a short eulogy after the Communion which was received with a warm round of applause from the large congregation. After mass we had a chance to gather and talk for a while in the warm sunshine. Several local people shared stories and memories of their own parents or grandparents who had fought in the struggle for Ireland’s freedom with me, and expressed their gratitude and pleasure that a local hero was being remembered.</p>
<p>We went to the other St. Catherine’s Church in Thomas Street, then to visit the site of Robert Emmet’s execution on September 20, 1803, and where Anne Devlin was brought in a carriage from Kilmainham Gaol the following (under heavy armed guard, much to her amusement) and was forced to look at the pigs rutting around in Robert’s blood which still stained the roadway.</p>
<p>Declan McKernan, of Arthur’s Pub beside St. Catherine’s, was among the large attendance at the mass and afterwards invited everyone back to Arthur’s for tea or coffee – a lovely and generous act by a man who respects and honours Irish history.</p>
<p>Others put flowers on the grave too, so for a few days at least, it will show that Anne is not forgotten.</p>
<p>We all repaired to the Cemetery Restaurant and spent some time there mingling and chatting. On the way, we caught the end of the presentation of Patrick (<em>not</em> "Padraig" as Glasnevin insists on calling him) Pearse’s speech at the funeral of O’Donovan Rossa. Our congratulations to the actor, whom we have heard and seen perform this before – he is excellent and infuses his rendition with genuine passion.</p>
<p>Over the next couple of hours, people wandered off to view various graves in the graveyard and, eventually, we ourselves departed about 5:00 pm.</p>
<p>Once again, our thanks to all who attended, and we hope that all arrived home safely. We hope to see them all again next year, <em>le Cunamh De</em>.</p>
<p>Photos were taken by Kevin Devlin and more can be seen on my website - <a href="http://www.kilmainhamtales.ie">www.KilmainhamTales.ie</a></p>
<p></p>1916 and the Rebels' Prieststag:thewildgeese.irish,2014-04-07:6442157:BlogPost:874372014-04-07T20:00:00.000ZMicheal O Doibhilinhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/MichealODoibhilin
<p><strong><span class="font-size-7" style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino;"><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84704850?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-right" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84704850?profile=original" width="269"></img></a> A</span>s some of you may know,</strong> I publish a series of books on Irish history (eight in the series to date) under the general title of Kilmainham Tales. To accompany these I have set up a website to carry further information and on that site we are currently running a series of articles on…</p>
<p><strong><span class="font-size-7" style="font-family: 'book antiqua', palatino;"><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84704850?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/84704850?profile=original" width="269" class="align-right"/></a>A</span>s some of you may know,</strong> I publish a series of books on Irish history (eight in the series to date) under the general title of Kilmainham Tales. To accompany these I have set up a website to carry further information and on that site we are currently running a series of articles on the priests of the Revolution.<br/> <br/> Probably the majority of those who rose against the British Empire in Ireland were Catholics. However, officially their church disowned them - and again during the War of Independence and the subsequent Civil War. <br/> <br/> But not all priests practiced what the Church preached. The brave Capuchin friars, for example, argued that these men's lives were at risk and, whether one agreed with their objectives or not, these men were entitled to the comforts and ministrations of their Church.</p>
<p>So they did that. <font face="Arial">Fathers <strong>Albert Bibby, Aloysius Travers, Augustine Hayden, Columbus Murphy <em>and</em> Sebastian O’Brien</strong> ministered to the leaders of the Easter Rising in Richmond Prison, Kilmainham Gaol and Dublin Castle, having previously accompanied the men and women carrying the cease-fire orders.</font> <br/> <br/> <font face="Arial">They continued their ministrations during the following two conflicts.</font></p>
<p><font face="Arial">Their stories have never been told in any detail up to this. Now author and historian Joe Connell is writing these stories and we are publishing them online. (A small book within the Kilmainham Tales series) will follow the completion of the series on the website, with additional detail in the book.</font></p>
<p><font face="Arial">To date three articles and an introductory article are online, accessible at <a href="http://www.kilmainhamtales.ie/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">www.kilmainhamtales.ie</a> and follow the links, or go direct to <a href="http://www.kilmainhamtales.ie/priests-and-friars---ministering-to-republicans-1.php" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><font color="#0072C6">http://www.kilmainhamtales.ie/priests-and-friars---ministering-to-republicans-1.php</font></a></font></p>
<p><strong>More on the Irish War of Independence</strong></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-blacksmith-hammers-the-auxies-at-clonfin-longford"></a><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/irish-rebel-maurice-meade-may-you-live-in-interesting-times" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Irish Rebel Maurice Meade: May You Live in Interesting Times</a><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-blacksmith-hammers-the-auxies-at-clonfin-longford"></a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-blacksmith-hammers-the-auxies-at-clonfin-longford">"The Blacksmith" Hammers the Auxies at Clonfin, Longford</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/dillon-s-cross-and-the-burning-of-cork-city" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dillon’s Cross Ambush and the Burning of Cork City</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/corkman-capture-mallow-barracks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Corkmen Capture Mallow Barracks</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-ballymahon-barracks-attack-arming-the-boys-of-longford" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ballymahon Barracks Attack: Arming the Boys of Longford</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-listowel-mutiny-shoot-on-sight" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Listowel Mutiny: “Shoot on Sight”</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-ballymacandy-ambush-i-would-not-turn-off-my-road-for-any-shin">The Ballymacandy Ambush: "I would not turn off my road for any Shin...</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/sean-treacy-at-war-tipperary-far-away">Seán Treacy at War: Tipperary 'Far Away'</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/paddy-o-brien-and-the-rathcoole-ambush-vengeance-is-mine-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“Paddy” O’Brien and the Rathcoole ambush: Vengeance Is “Mine”</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-scramogue-ambush-roscommon-steps-up" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Scramogue Ambush: Roscommon Steps Up</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-1st-brigade-cork-volunteers-and-the-coolnacahera-ambush-1">The 1st Brigade Cork Volunteers and the Coolnacahera Ambush</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/michael-brennan-and-the-east-clare-brigade-at-the-glenwood-ambush">Michael Brennan and the East Clare Brigade at the Glenwood Ambush</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/piltown-ambush-1-november-1920">100 Years Ago: The Piltown Ambush (1 November 1920)</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/liam-lynch-civil-war-martyr-it-never-should-have-happened">Liam Lynch, Civil War Martyr: “It never should have happened”</a></p>
<p>“<a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/tipperary-s-dan-breen-the-hardest-hard-man">Tipperary’s Dan Breen: The Hardest Hard Man</a>.”</p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/greyhound-on-train-the-rescue-of-hogan-at-knocklong" target="_blank" rel="noopener">'Greyhound on Train': Rescuing Seán Hogan at Knocklong</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-clonbanin-ambush-to-hell-with-surrender" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Clonbanin Ambush: “To Hell With Surrender!”</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/george-lennon-waterford-rebel" target="_blank" rel="noopener">George Lennon: Waterford Rebel</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/george-lennon-the-piltown-cross-ambush" target="_blank" rel="noopener">George Lennon & the Piltown Ambush</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-kilmallock-barracks-attack-burning-down-the-house-in-limerick" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Kilmallock Barracks Attack: Burning Down the House in Limerick</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-tureengarriffe-ambush-cork-kerry-strike-a-blow" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Tureengarriffe Ambush: Cork & Kerry Strike a Blow</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-tourmakeady-ambush-shrouded-by-the-fog-of-war-in-mayo" target="_self">The Tourmakeady Ambush: Shrouded By the “Fog of War” in Mayo</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-headford-ambush-time-runs-out-in-kerry" target="_self">The Headford Ambush: Time Runs Out in Kerry</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/cataclysm-in-cork-the-battle-of-clonmult" target="_self">Cataclysm in Cork: The Battle of Clonmult</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-scourge-of-tralee-stalking-the-the-major" target="_self">“The Scourge of Tralee”: Stalking the “The Major”</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-dromkeen-ambush-down-into-the-mire-in-county-limerick" target="_self">The Dromkeen Ambush: Down Into the Mire in County Limerick</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/rineen-ambush-hell-comes-to-county-clare" target="_self">The Rineen Ambush: Hell Comes to County Clare</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-carrowkennedy-ambush-june-2-1921-revenge-is-a-dish-best-serve" target="_self">The Carrowkennedy Ambush, June 2, 1921: Revenge is a Dish Best Served Cold</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/tom-barry-we-may-have-great-men-but-we-ll-never-have-better" target="_self">Tom Barry: 'We May Have Great Men, But We’ll Never Have Better'<br/></a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-battle-of-crossbarry-breaking-the-back-of-the-british-occupat" target="_self">The Battle of Crossbarry: ... 'Who Piped Old Ireland Free'</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-kilmeena-ambush-seeds-of-victory-in-a-defeat" target="_self">The Kilmeena Ambush, May 19, 1921: Seeds of Victory in a Defeat</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/co-waterford-burgery-ambush-march-19-1921" target="_self">'Nigh Comeragh's Rugged Hills': Ambush at The Burgery</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/trauma-at-the-burgery-part-1" target="_self">The R.I.C. In An Untenable Position, Part 1: Trauma at The Burgery</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-irish-war-of-independence-the-lispole-ambush-avoiding-disaste" target="_self">The Lispole Ambush -- Averting Disaster on the Dingle Peninsula</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/patrick-white-a-tragic-death-on-spike-island" target="_self">Patrick White: A Clareman's Tragic Death on Spike Island</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/and-to-watch-the-sunbeams-dancing-o-er-the-wicklow-mountains-high" target="_self">'And To Watch the Sunbeams Dancing O’er the Wicklow Mountains High'</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/always-remember-cumann-na-mban" target="_self">Always Remember ~ Cumann na mBan</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/my-fathers-story-how-the-nuns-of-kylemore-abbey-saved-his-life" target="_self">War of Independence -- How the Nuns of Kylemore Saved My Father's Life</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/terence-macswiney-irish-martyr" target="_self">Terence MacSwiney: Irish Martyr</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/walking-to-work-through-a-battle-zone" target="_self">Walking to Work Through a Battle Zone</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/review-of-emmet-dalton-somme-soldier-irish-general-film-pioneer" target="_self">Review of 'Emmet Dalton - Somme Soldier, Irish General, Film Pioneer' by Sean Boyne</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-village-of-generals" target="_self">Ballinalee, County Longford: The Village of Generals</a></p>
<p><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-anglo-irish-treaty-seed-of-the-troubles" target="_self">The Anglo-Irish Treaty: Seed of 'The Troubles'</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/shot-while-attempting-to-escape">Shot While Attempting To Escape</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:184709">Easter Rising to Irish Civil War Archive Available Online</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:111606">Michael Collins: Saga of Heroism Against Daunting Odds</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:180517">A Short History of Michael Collins, Ireland's 'Big Fellow'</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:74979">Great Irish Romances: Michael Collins and Kitty Kiernan</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:144731">Kitty and Michael: a revolutionary courtship</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:163757">The Tan Who Was Hanged By His Own Side</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:24652">Liam Lynch: Victim of the Irish Civil War</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:87437">1916 and the Rebels' Priests</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:8890">After The Rising … 'Fron-goch and the Birth of the IRA'</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:177498">Ernie O'Malley: Mayo-Born Freedom Fighter and Writer</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:75936">The Wild Geese Virtual Síbín with Cormac O'Malley</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:8961">Evidence Abounds: British Leaders OK'd Mayhem</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:162480">The Price of Freedom</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:8947">The West Cork Trail: Scenes From the Anglo-Irish and Civil Wars, 1920-1922</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:189731">How I Learned That Grandad Executed Erskine Childers</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:151451">Leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising: Éamon de Valera</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:184590">Erskine Childers: Author, Irish Gunrunner, Churchill's Bête Noire</a></p>
<p><a href="https://thewildgeese.irish/xn/detail/6442157:BlogPost:63600">The Scum of England, or Ordinary Men? A Review of DJ Kelly's 'Running with Crows'</a></p>
<p>The Forgotten Ten:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/kevin-barry-just-a-lad-of-18-summers" target="_self">Part 1: 'Just a Lad of 18 Summers'</a></strong></li>
<li><strong><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/kevin-barry-part-2-an-example-has-to-be-made" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Part 2: 'An Example Has To Be Made'</a></strong></li>
<li><strong><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/kevin-barry-part-3-proud-to-die-for-the-republic" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Part 3: 'Proud To Die for the Republic'</a></strong></li>
<li><strong><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/part-4-down-into-the-mire" target="_self">Part 4: 'Down Into the Mire'</a></strong></li>
<li><strong><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/part-5-england-executes-prisoners-of-war" target="_self">Part 5: 'England Executes Prisoners of War'</a></strong></li>
<li><strong><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/part-6-death-with-no-tremblings" target="_self">Part 6: 'Death With No Tremblings'</a></strong></li>
<li><strong><a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/part-7-fight-on-struggle-on" target="_self">Part 7: 'Fight On, Struggle On'</a></strong></li>
</ul>