MÁIRT -- On February 13, 1782, Dillon's regiment of the Irish Brigade of France helped capture St. Kitts from the British during the American Revolution. Earlier, Dillon's regiment had helped…

DOMHNAIGH -- On February 4, 1860, Spanish General Don Leopoldo O'Donnell y Jorris, 1st Duke of Tétuan, 1st Count of Lucena, 1st Viscount of Aliaga, won the battle of Tétuan in Spain's war against Morocco. Leopoldo was descended from a long line of O'Donnells in Spain, who had…

I had decided not to go on the Bloody Sunday march in Derry, my home town, because I was too frightened. I felt I had good cause. Word was that British parachute regiment was to be on duty here that day and I knew they had gone on a prolonged killing spree in Ballymurphy, Belfast, the previous August during…

DOMHNAIGH -- On January 28, 1967 , Helena Moloney, republican and trade unionist, died in Dublin. Moloney was born in Dublin in 1884. While only at teen-ager Moloney heard Maud Gonne give a pro-nationalist speech near the Customs House. Inspired by Gonne, Helena began a lifelong commitment to…

DOMHNAIGH -- On January 21, 1876, James "Big Jim" Larkin one of the greatest labor leaders of the 20th century, was born in Liverpool, England, the second son of a poor Irish couple. At 5 he was sent back to Newry, County Down, to live with his grandparents. He returned to…

LUAIN -- On January 15, 1861, Young Irelander Terence Bellew MacManus died in San Francisco. MacManus was born in County Fermanagh in 1811. He later moved to Liverpool, England, where he began a successful shipping agency. In 1843 he returned to Ireland and joined the Repeal Association and the…

SATHAIRN -- On Jan. 7, 1945 Major Thomas McGuire Jr., the second highest scoring US ace of WWII, and Medal of Honor recipient, crashed his plane and was killed…

DOMHNAIGH -- On December 31, 1602, Dónall O'Sullivan Beare and his clan began their epic march to Ulster. O'Sullivan had supported…

Above, my brother John Kelly

The main forecourt Crumlin Road jail.…

DOMHNAIGH -- On December 24, 1601, Hugh O'Neill and his Spanish and Irish allies were defeated by the English at the Battle of Kinsale, one of the most important battles in Irish history. With the able assistance of his main ally,…

He'd had a narrow escape the day before. They had almost caught him and he was lucky that he managed to elude them. An icy cold sweat broke out on his furrowed brow as…

DEARDAOIN -- On Dec. 17, 1803, rebel leader Michael Dwyer, whose guerrilla attacks had maddened British colonial authorities since 1798, surrendered. Dwyer was born in County Wicklow and he participated in the 1798 Rising; however, unlike most of the leaders and…

DOMHNAIGH -- On December 10, 1710, the Irish regiments in the service of Spain fought in the battle of Villaviciosa during the…

LUAIN -- On December 4,…

DOMHNAIGH -- On the night of November 26, 1781, units of Dillon’s and Walshes regiments of the Irish Brigade of France were among a force of about 400 commanded by Marquis de Bouille that landed on the British-held West Indies island of St. Eustache (now known…

On the 150^th anniversary of their deaths (November 23rd), let us pause to commemorate, the brave Fenian heroes forever known in Irish history as  “The Manchester Martyrs.”  

(Left: A 19th century poster commemorating the Manchester…

DOMHNAIGH -- On the morning of Nov. 5, 1688, William of Orange, King of the Netherlands and son-in-law of King James II of England, arrived in Brixham, England, with a large Dutch army. He had been invited by the Protestant noblemen of the country to come and usurp the English throne. Led by Lord Monmouth, a…

LUAIN -- On October 23, 1641, implementing a plan by Rory O'More and led by Phelim O'Neill (left), the Irish rose up against the English. Their plan had called for the seizing of Dublin Castle on the 23rd along with a general uprising in the countryside, but the…