Today In Irish History

May 13: 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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WATCH: A Short History of Ireland

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1842: Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (of Gilbert and Sullivan fame)

Arthur Seymour Sullivan is born in London to an Irish father Thomas Sullivan (1805–1866), a military bandmaster, clarinetist and music teacher.

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1945: Churchill Slams De Valera

Churchill and De Valera 1953

In his Victory in Europe speech, Winston Churchill slams Eamonn De Valera and his war time policy. (To add fuel to an already bitter relationship,  De Valera had not distinguished himself or Ireland’s reputation when he offered condolences to Germany on the death of Hitler.)

“(By the dawn of 1941), The sense of envelopment, which might at any moment turn to strangulation, lay heavy upon us. We had only the northwestern approach between Ulster and Scotland through which to bring in the means of life and to send out the forces of war. Owing to the action of Mr. de Valera, so much at variance with the temper and instinct of thousands of southern Irishmen, who hastened to the battlefront to prove their ancient valor, the approaches which the southern Irish ports and airfields could so easily have guarded were closed by the hostile aircraft and U-boats.

This was indeed a deadly moment in our life, and if it had not been for the loyalty and friendship of Northern Ireland we should have been forced to come to close quarters with Mr. de Valera or perish forever from the earth. However, with a restraint and poise to which, I say, history will find few parallels, we never laid a violent hand upon them, which at times would have been quite easy and quite natural, and left the de Valera Government to frolic with the German and later with the Japanese representatives to their heart’s content.

When I think of these days I think also of other episodes and personalities. I do not forget Lieutenant-Commander Esmonde, V.C., D.S.O., Lance-Corporal Keneally, V.C., Captain Fegen, V.C., and other Irish heroes that I could easily recite, and all bitterness by Britain for the Irish race dies in my heart. I can only pray that in years which I shall not see the shame will be forgotten and the glories will endure, and that the peoples of the British Isles and of the British Commonwealth of Nations will walk together in mutual comprehension and forgiveness.”

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READ: Full Text of Churchill Speech

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1954: Singer Johnny Logan

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Johnny Logan is born Seán Patrick Michael Sherrard is born in Melbourne, Australia. His father, singer Patrick O’Hagan (stage name) returned to Ireland when Logan was three. Logan is the most successful singer in Eurovision song contest history winning the competition twice as a singer – 1980 What’s Another Year,  1987 Hold Me Now and as a composer in 1992 with Why Me.

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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.

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