Tomás Séamus Ó Cléirigh (Thomas James Clarke) was born on the 11th day of March in 1858.  He was  one of the oldest members of the 1916 Rising.  Clarke was also known as Henry Wilson, an alias he used to counteract any publicity that his own name may attract in his role as…

In the early 14th century, the Clan O’Malley, a great seafaring family, rose to power in Mayo. They ruled the southern shore of Clew Bay and most of the barony of Murrisk for over 300 years. They were ruthless pirates and terrorised the ships to and…

Aidan MacCarthy crouched low in the air raid shelter he and the other prisoners of war had dug themselves. They had seen two American B-29 bombers flying toward the city of Nagasaki before they went into the shelter. A few POWs had stayed outside, though, wanting to see bombs fall on the Japanese for a bit of…

Anne Bonny

DOMHNAIGH -- On March 8, 1700, or perhaps a year or two earlier, …

Publisher: Merrion…

"There are many noble traits in the Irish character, mixed with failings which have always raised obstacles to their own well-being; but an innate love of justice, and an indomitable hatred of oppression, is like a gem upon the front of our nation which no darkness can obscure. To this fine quality I trace their hatred of…

Roger David Case (later known as Sir Roger Casement) was born in Doyle’s Cottage, Lawson Terrace, Sandycove, South Dublin. His father was Captain Roger Casement of The Kings Own Regiment of Dragoons. His mother was Anne Jephson (or Jepson) who came from a Dublin Anglican…

Edward "Ned Daly" is one of the 1916 Easter Rising leaders less known for his role as Commandant in the Irish Military Brotherhood.  Out of a family of ten children, he was the only son born to Edward and Catharine Daly (nee O’Mara) in Limerick.  His father…

There is a statue commemorating his bravery in Fitzgerald Park in Cork City where he was born, but many Cork residents today have no idea who he was. Yet history students in Venezuela know him as one of the most trusted aides of Simon Bolivar, the liberator of what is today…

On this day, February 24, 1841, we remember with pride the birth of a unique Irishman, a man whose fertile mind far surpassed the greatest minds…

On top of roof and window,

Those boys stood up to fight,

‘Til the burning of the cottage

And no escape in sight.

It was around 4 pm on a…

When the rebels in Britain’s American colonies rose up against British rule in 1776, some of the most stalwart supporters of the cause of independence were the same Irish clans that had fought against the English / British rule of their own island for centuries. One of the septs that fought to the bitter end of…

By Joseph Gannon

Many men become known as heroes for their bravery in battle, for their willingness to face death in an effort to kill the enemy and obtain an objective, or for helping win the war for their country.

They are often celebrated by millions of their countrymen and…

Softly, gently, "Comrade", he cried

"No longer on earth can I stay

I will never more roam through my own native home

Tipperary so far away"…

The next time you look up at the full moon to make your wish, direct your gaze toward the southeast portion and locate the area known as the Mare Serenitatis (Sea of Serenity). There you will observe the valley where Apollo 17, the last in a series of lunar missions, landed Dec. 10, 1972. Nearby,…

It was mid-afternoon of July 22, 1864, and the Confederate infantry of General Cheatham’s Corps of John Bell Hood’s Army of Tennessee was breaking through the Federal…

On a crisp, clear afternoon in what is now southwest Montana, in January 1836, a thin bearded man in his mid-30s, dressed in buckskin, was racing across the valley of the meandering Yellowstone River on the back of a very fast horse. Ahead of him in the distance, lit by the bright sunlight, he could see the…

National Museum of Ireland The flag of Dillon's Regiment, Irish Brigade of France.

By Joseph E. Gannon Managing Editor…

Richard Hetherington O'Kane (below-right, in his Annapolis graduation photo) was born on February 2, 1911 in Dover, New Hampshire, a town near the Atlantic coast with a population of about 13,000 at the time. His father, Dr. Walter Collins O'Kane, was a professor of entomology at the University. Richard attended…