Actor Richard Todd, who was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Cpl. Lachlan McLachlan in 1949's The Hasty Heart, was born on June 11, 1919 in Dublin. After training for a military career, Todd changed his sights and enrolled at the Italia Conti Academy of Theater Arts in London. He first appeared in a production of Twelfth Night in 1936. Todd enlisted in the British … [Read more...] about June 11, 1919
February 3, 1919
On this day in 1919, Eamon de Valera escaped from Lincoln Prison in England. His escape was aided by fellow nationalists Harry Boland and Michael Collins. De Valera's escape entailed a copy of the key which fit the locks of the jail. He also dressed up as a woman. Several other Sinn Fein members who had been arrested along with him on May 17, 1918 for allegedly taking part in … [Read more...] about February 3, 1919
January 21, 1919
The Irish War of Independence begins. On January 21st, 1919, a group of IRA members acting independently shot and killed two Royal Irish Constabulary officers traveling with explosives through Soloheadbeg, Co. Tipperary. In response to the attack, the British Government declared the area a Special Military Area under its Defense of the Realm Act. Though the 21st is commonly … [Read more...] about January 21, 1919
November 11, 1918
World War I famously came to an end on this day in 1918. Ireland's part in the First War was complex. Still part of the United Kingdom, the movement for Irish independence began before and during the war. Nationalists who joined the Irish Volunteers instead of the British Army during this period were somewhat aided by axis forces like the Germans. They staged the Easter … [Read more...] about November 11, 1918
February 5, 1918
The first U.S. ship carrying American troops to Europe during the First World War is torpedoed and sunk on February 5, 1918 near the coast of Ireland. The SS Tuscania, originally a luxury liner which was converted to a troopship for the war, was bombed by a German U-Boat off the Northern coast of Ireland. The ship intended to enter the Irish Sea from the north, after several … [Read more...] about February 5, 1918