When I was asked to write a series of poems for an art exhibition in Australia earlier this year, I embarked on a dark voyage of discovery into the lives of Irish immigrant children 150 years ago.

Image: 'Image Above: Falling' by Jane…

DOMHNAIGH -- On August 6, 1775, Daniel O'Connell , 'The Liberator,' one of the most influential men in Irish history was born near Cahirciveen, County Kerry. Raised by his uncle, Daniel learned the Irish language and…

I am surely not the first Irish emigrant to have heard these words from their heartbroken mother. Guilt at the impact of my decision to leave Ireland and grief at the loss of my beloved mother are…

When President Michael D. Higgins gave the keynote address on International Women’s Day in Ireland this year, he spoke of the “diverse and often boundary breaking roles played by women in the Uprising of 1916, as well as the impact of the role of women in…

In April 2004 I was launching my first novel at the Irish cultural centre in Hammersmith, London, when a lady came over to me and shook my hand.

“I think I may be your cousin,” she said. “My name is Ethna Herron.…

DOMHNAIGH -- On December 4, 1887 Maria Winifred (Winnie) Carney (right), trade unionist and revolutionary was born at Fisher's…

What can the artifacts found buried with Viking women in Ireland tell us about their lives? Maeve Sikora, assistant keeper at the National Museum of Ireland, focuses on everyday objects excavated at burial sites and what they tell us about the…

In 1864, 20-year-old Vicksburg resident Emma Kline was arrested by Union officials, who were then occupying the city, perched above the Mississippi River in the state bearing the same name. She was charged with the crime of smuggling, one…

My historical novel "Lieutenant and Mrs. Lockwood" is based on an actual Irish family, and I've had people ask about their story. The Lockwoods'…

(Jack Kruschen, John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara & Chill Wills in McLintock! - 1963)

There…

DOMHNAIGH-- In the early morning hours of August 2, 1943, a small American torpedo boat was moving just west of New Georgia in the Solomon Islands. In command was a young…

Constance Markievicz was born in 1868 at Buckingham Gate London, the eldest daughter of Sir Henry Gore-Booth, 5^th Baronet and Arctic explorer, and Lady Gore–Booth (nee Hill).  As an…

Here are some Irish blessings which are perfect for Mother's Day:

“May embers from the hearth warm your hands,

May sunshine from an Irish sky warm your face,…

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Fifteen days before Christmas 1988, "Aunt" Bridie Halpin died. At 85, she had lived a good life, but it was still sad for the Halpin family for their Bridie was the…

Berndadette Devlin McAliskey, born in 1947 in County Tyrone, is a memorable political figure in the making of Ireland’s history.  As a founding member of the People’s Democracy, she was…

Patricia Horne is an Irish medical doctor who worked in Nigeria during in the 1950s at one of several medical missionary hospitals managed by Irish Catholic religious orders.

Horne…

** The contest period has now ended, but you may still feel free to tell us about your Irish heroine in the comments section!…

On Thursday, March 5, 2015, Kate Cunningham from the Women's Museum of Ireland joined us for a…

Much time has been devoted to analysing the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The politics, the violence and the impact this has had on the country as a whole has been extensively documented. But…