Archive for ‘1798 rebellion’

May 30,

John B Keane on Matchmaking – Michael Davitt Irish League Founder – 1798 Rebellion at Today in Irish History

May 30: 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, Author and History buff.

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An insightful, realistic, yet humorous book on the job search process by Today in Irish History Curator Conor Cunneen

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1798: Rebel Success in Wexford

Rebellion continues with some success for Irish forces in Wexford. At Three Rocks, just outside Wexford town, 70 English militia are killed in a carefully planned ambush by Irish forces. In response to this and other action, English troops abandon Wexford town. At this stage, almost all of Wexford is in the hands of Irish forces.

A letter written at this time to a Mr. Addington by Dr. Butson, Dean of Waterford, describes in some detail the travails of the Loyalist population

” Waterford, May 3ist.

” Nothing can exceed the melancholy aspect of this place. The insurgents in our neighbouring county of Wexford are so numerous as to have taken possession of and destroyed the town of Enniscorthy not a house remaining ; men, women, and children murdered and burnt, particularly the clergy. A gentleman has informed me that he saw the bodies of Mr. Hayden, a clergyman past eighty years of age, and of Mr. Nun, a very respectable rector, lying unburied in the street, the day after their entrance, with 400 more dead bodies. Some detachments sent from hence have been defeated : from one under the command of General Faucett, 1 they took two fieldpieces. The rebels amount to 15 or 16,000 ; march in a disciplined manner, have a squadron of cavalry, and fire their cannon with precision. These ircumstances I give on the authority of officers who have been beaten back. Every tide brings us in boats full of wounded and fugitives. Yesterday the rebels were in possession of Wexford ; thus a port is open to the French, but it is a very bad harbour. At New Ross, ten miles from hence, about 1000 troops and some artillery are got together : the insurgents are around Wexford, about twenty-eight miles from thence. As yet, from the spirit of the principal inhabitants and clergy uniting to guard it, this city has not risen.”

Source. H. F. B. Wheeler & A. M. Broadley, The War in Wexford: an account of the rebellion in the south of Ireland in 1798, told from original documents (London 1910) pp. 83-4.

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Free Download: The War in Wexford: an account of the rebellion in the south of Ireland in 1798

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1906: Michael Davitt – Irish League Founder

Death of Michael Davitt (b.1846 in County Mayo). Davitt founded the Irish Land League in 1879, a non-violent action group designed to help Irish tenant farmers who effectively had no rights in 19th century Ireland.

Michael Davitt (1846-1906) Irish Land League Founder

The objectives of the Land League were “to bring out a reduction of rack-rents; second, to facilitate the obtaining of the ownership of the soil by the occupiers. That the object of the League can be best attained by promoting organisation among the tenant-farmers; by defending those who may be threatened with eviction for refusing to pay unjust rents; by facilitating the working of the Bright clauses of the Irish Land Act during the winter; and by obtaining such reforms in the laws relating to land as will enable every tenant to become owner of his holding by paying a fair rent for a limited number of years.”

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1951:De Valera Returns to Power

Irish general election sees Fianna Fail return to power under leadership of Eamonn De Valera.During this governing period of 1951-1954, De Valera would have his only meeting with Winston Churchill on September 16 1953.

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2002:John B. Keane RIP

Death  of one of Ireland’s finest (and funniest) playwrights John B. Keane. His many works include: Many Young Men of Twenty, Sive, The Year of the Hiker, The Field and Big Maggie.

John B. Keane 1928-2002

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John B. Keane on Matchmaking. Humorous and Serious

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

Irish gift ideas. Best selling Irish booksRonnie Drew and Luke Kelly - Musical Irish Gifts to the worldJoyce Image in For the Love of Being IrishMichael Collins: Image from 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)

   

May 29,

President John F Kennedy – Horrors of 1798 Rebellion at Today in Irish History

May 29: TODAY in Irish History:

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Irish gift ideas. Best selling Irish books

Snippets of Irish History by Conor Cunneen IrishmanSpeaks 

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

***********************

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NEW                    NEW

Product Details

SHEIFGAB! Staying Sane, Motivated and Productive in Job Search.

An insightful, realistic, yet humorous book on the job search process by Today in Irish History Curator Conor Cunneen

Special accessible price for job seekers on Kindle of $2.99

.

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1798: Irish Rebel Prisoners Massacred

Between 300-500 Irish rebels are massacred by English troops at Gibbeth Rath,  Co. Kildare after agreeing surrender terms. Tensions were running extremely high on all sides following reports of atrocities by both parties.  A force of 2,000 Irish rebels had agreed surrender terms with General Dundas. Having surrendered their arms, the prisoners were attacked by militia under the command of General Duff. There is little agreement as to what happened. Irish rebel sources suggest an unprovoked assault while Duff claimed his troops were fired on. Duff’s original report on the battle read:

“My Dear Genl. (I have witnessed a melancholy scene) We found the Rebels retiring from this Town on our arrival armed. We followed them with Dragoons; I sent on some of the Yeomen to tell them, on laying down their arms, they should not be hurt. Unfortunately some of them Fired on the Troops; from that moment they were attacked on all sides, nothing could stop the Rage of the Troops. I believe from Two to Three hundred of the Rebels were killed. (They intended, we are told, to lay down their arms to General Dundas). We have 3 men killed & several wounded. I am too fatigued to enlarge. I have forwarded the mails to Dublin.”

The horror and anger of participants can be seen in a separate note written by a Captain John Giffard whose 17 year old son Lieutenant William Giffard was killed by rebels

“My troops did not leave my hero unavenged – 500 rebels bleaching on the Curragh of Kildare—that Curragh over which my sweet innocent girls walked with me last Summer, that Curragh was strewed with the vile carcasses of popish rebels and the accursed town of Kildare has been reduced to a heap of ashes by our hands.”

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1917: John Fitzgerald Kennedy 

John Fitzgerald Kennedy is born the second son of Joe and Rose Kennedy in Brookline, Massachusetts.

JFK image in For the Love of Being Irish

Image of JFK in For the Love of Being Irish: An A-Z of Ireland by Conor Cunneen

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Kennedy visited Ireland on a number of occasions prior to becoming President. His final visit in June 1963 was to a rapturous response visiting Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick and his home county of Wexford. He spoke for 25 minutes to Dail Eireann in a wide ranging, historical speech that was maybe not always accurate. e.g. Ireland “is not neutral between liberty and tyranny and never will be.” Just twenty years previously, Ireland remained neutral in the face of the horrors of Hitler.

But the speech was uplifting and motivating to an Irish nation that was still young. Kennedy said

“This has never been a rich or powerful country, and yet, since earliest times, its influence on the world has been rich and powerful. No larger nation did more to keep Christianity and Western culture alive in their darkest centuries. No larger nation did more to spark the cause of independence in America, indeed, around the world. And no larger nation has ever provided the world with more literary and artistic genius.

This is an extraordinary country. George Bernard Shaw, speaking as an Irishman, summed up an approach to life: Other people, he said “see things and . . . say ‘Why?’ . . . But I dream things that never were– and I say: ‘Why not?'” ”

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Listen:  JFK’s speech to Dail Eireann (Irish parliament) on June 28th 1963.

Kennedy of course was a master of the public platform as his TV election debates in 1960 with Richard Nixon (another President of Irish extraction) proved. Kennedy would be elected President November 9th 1960 and be inaugurated on January 20th 1961.

His assassination in Dallas on November 22nd 1963 shocked the world and marked the end of “Camelot.”

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

Irish gift ideas. Best selling Irish booksRonnie Drew and Luke Kelly - Musical Irish Gifts to the worldJoyce Image in For the Love of Being IrishMichael Collins: Image from For the Love of Being Irish

___________________________________

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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