Today In History

A first edition draft of a chapter from James Joyce's "Ulysses" is sold for close to £900,000 at an auction on this date in 2001. The scribble-filled manuscript of the chapter, titled Eumaeus, was sold by Sotheby's. It was expected to sell for more than £1m. … [Read more...] about July 10, 2001

The 50th anniversary of Fleadh Nua took place in Ennis, Co. Clare, drawing thousands of traditional music fans from around the world. Fleadh Nua, which promotes Irish traditional music and culture, is one of many festivals that take place in Ireland during the summer, but it is credited with being the premier event of its kind. The Fleadh began in Dublin in 1970, where it was … [Read more...] about May 27, 2001

After two years of living in Tralee and Waterford, refugees from Kosovo were granted the right to become Irish citizens on February 13, 2001. In 1999, almost 1,000 Kosovar refugees first arrived in Ireland. They were displaced due to the ethnic war  and "cleansing" taking place in their homeland, and fled to Ireland under the United Nations Human Rights Council protection … [Read more...] about February 13, 2001

On this day in 2000, Buddhist spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama visited Belfast and met with MP and fellow Nobel Peace prize laureate John Hume. Both Hume and the Dalai Lama were champions for peace. The city of Belfast played host to the spiritual leader for three days, who was attending the World Community for World Peace held in Belfast. … [Read more...] about October 19, 2000

Thirty-three years after the 1967 film adaptation of James Joyce's epic novel Ulysses was released, Ireland finally decided to lift the ban on the film. Many consider Joyce's great novel to be "unfilmable." However, Joseph Strick, an idealistic American director, decided to take up the project. His adaptation, much like the book, drew much controversy. Many scenes were cut at … [Read more...] about September 27, 2000