DOMHNAIGH -- On June 20, 1763, one of the most famous revolutionary leaders in Irish history, Theobald Wolfe Tone, was born at 44 Stafford St., now called Wolfe Tone St., in Dublin. Tone was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and called to the…

LUAIN -- On June 14, 1690, William of Orange, King of Holland, and recently declared King of England, arrived in Belfast with his fleet. The Catholic King James II had been tolerated by the Protestant nobility for a time because all his possible heirs were…

Today June 9, we remember with pride an Irishman whose mind, efforts and foresight changed the world forever. Colmcille also known as…

MÁIRT -- On June 8, 1853, John Mitchel escaped from Australia, eventually making it to the United States. Mitchel, a member of the Young Ireland Party, was born in Comnish, Co. Derry. John was the son of a Presbyterian minister. He obtained a…

MÁIRT -- On June 1, 1866, the Fenian Brotherhood undertook the most famous action of its history: the invasion of Canada. Mexican and…

LUAIN to MÁIRT -- On May 17-18, 1918, the British government began arresting all the leaders of Sinn Fein that it could round-up. Britain desperately wanted to impose conscription on the Irish to replace its tremendous losses in the trenches of…

Every April 23 we remember with great pride another in the long line of Irishmen who despite all the odds stacked against them, nevertheless decided to take a stand against an oppressive enemy. So set aside a little time today and read his fascinating full story at the link at the end of this…

I wrote this and read it at several annual W.B. Yeats Society of New York poetry awards ceremonies, at which the winners of cash prizes are introduced and present their winning entry and a few of their other poems.

Anglo-Irish William…

On Easter Monday 1916 one of the most important events in the long, tortuous history of Ireland took place. The event, so shocking and bold, is still debated and analysed until this very day. This is a personal tribute to that  handful of dreamers and visionaries, the brave men and women of Ireland, the poet and…

In school, if you ever looked at images of the surface of the Sun you would have seen what appeared to be dark areas dotted across the surface. These anomalies are known as sunspots and appear dark because they are cooler than other parts of the Sun’s surface. Occasionally you would also have seen…

DOMHNAIGH -- On March 28, 1820, William Howard Russell , (right) among…

I've been down in the green valley, the holy place.

MÁIRT -- On March 16, 1828, Patrick Cleburne, one of the finest generals produced by either side during America's long, bloody civil war was born at Bride Park Cottage in Ovens Township, Co. Cork, just outside Cork City. Robert E. Lee would one day say of…

LUAIN -- On March 1, 1776, Irish-born Andrew Lewis was appointed a brigadier general in the…

DOMHNAIGH -- On February 14, 1895, Sean Treacy, a revolutionary leader during the …

LUAIN -- On February 1, 1702, the Irish Brigade of France added to its growing reputation as elements of the Brigade fought at …

DOMHNAIGH -- On January 24, 1862, Miles Byrne, United Irishman and officer in Napoleon's Irish Legion, died in Paris. He was active in the 1798 Rising in Wexford and fought all its major battles, right through the rebels' climactic defeat at Vinegar…

DOMHNAIGH -- On January 17, 1860, Dr. Douglas Hyde, Gaelic scholar and first President of Ireland, was born at Castlerea, County Roscommon. Hyde was the son of a Protestant minister and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He had a great facility for languages, learning Latin,…

LUAIN -- On January 11, 1775, Louis De Lacy (right), soldier in the armies of Spain and France, was born in St. Roque, Spain, near Gibraltar, of Irish parents. Louis' father, Patrick, was an officer in the Irish Ultonia regiment of the Spanish army.…

In the land of Mac Nessa where epitaphs are written in blood, and nocturnal shadows flit freely in the cold moonlight, when the white hoar frost of winter’s breath blankets the big marsh, envelops the bracken and heather, coats the blackthorns in a slick sheen, clings to intricate webs as bejeweled wonders and the bleak, frozen bogs shiver and sleep,…