Today In Irish History

March 24: TODAY in Irish History:

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Snippets of Irish History by Conor Cunneen IrishmanSpeaks

Conor is a Chicago based Motivational Humorous Business Speaker, Educator, Author and History buff.

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WATCH: A Short History of Ireland

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1909: Death of Irish playwright, poet and author John Millington Synge

John Millington Synge dies at the tragically young age of thirty-seven from cancer.

John Millington Synge

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Synge was one of the leading lights of what was known as the Irish Literary Revival and along with Yeats and Lady Gregory was a founding member of the Abbey Theatre. His most famous work is The Playboy of the Western World, a satirical comedy which exposed some of the issues at the time of a not very accepting Irish society. On opening night, January 26 1907, an angry crowd rioted during the play at what the Freeman’s Journal referred to (quite hyperbolickly)  as “an unmitigated, protracted libel upon Irish peasant men, and worse still upon Irish girlhood.”

When commenting on riots that occurred after the opening of Sean O’Casey’s  The Plough and the Stars, in 1926 Yeats referenced this event. “You have disgraced yourselves again. Is this to be an ever-recurring celebration of the arrival of Irish genius? Synge first and then O’Casey?

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1921: Clogheen Ambush

Six IRA men from the 1st Battalion, Cork No. 1 Brigade are killed when they are surrounded in a barn in Clogheen by the British Army. Their whereabouts may have been provided to army intelligence by a fellow IRA member who broke under questioning. In April 1922, the IRA shot a Patrick O’Connor in New York whom they believed was the informer.

Sourced at http://theauxiliaries.com/INCIDENTS/coolavohig-ambush/o%27connor/croxy.html

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1921: Cardinal James Gibbons

Death of Cardinal James Gibbons, American Cardinal, Bishop of Richmond and Archbishop of Baltimore was born in Baltimore MD to parents Thomas and Bridget (née Walsh) Gibbons who had emigrated from Tourmakeady, County Mayo. Not long after his birth, the family returned to Ireland. After his father’s death in 1847 at the height of the Famine, Gibbons’ mother moved the family back to the United States.

He was elevated to Cardinal in 1886, only the second American to gain the honor.

Gibbons was an active supporter of the working class and unions at a time when labor was exploited by numerous employers, stating “”It is the right of laboring classes to protect themselves, and the duty of the whole people to find a remedy against avarice, oppression, and corruption.”

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Want to learn more about Ireland? See these images and more in the acclaimed For the Love of Being Irish

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This history is written by Irish author, business keynote speaker and award winning humorist IrishmanSpeaks – Conor Cunneen. If you spot any inaccuracies or wish to make a comment, please don’t hesitate to contact us via the comment button.

Visit Conor’s YouTube channel IrishmanSpeaks to Laugh and Learn.

Tags: Best Irish Gift, Creative Irish Gift, Unique Irish Gifts, Irish Books, Irish Authors, Today in Irish History TODAY IN IRISH HISTORY (published by IrishmanSpeaks)

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