The program for the 2016 U.S. commemorations of the 100th anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising was launched this week by members of the Irish and American governments and Irish celebrities in New York City. On hand to mark the occasion was Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ireland Charlie Flanagan, Irish Ambassador Anne Anderson, New York Senator Chuck Schumer, author Colum … [Read more...] about Weekly Comment: Irish Government Launches Year of U.S. Commemorations for 1916 Centenary
1916
The Rebel Countess
Rosemary Rogers, continuing her series on Irish women of note, profiles Constance Georgine Gore-Booth, the social agitator and revolutionary who took part in the Easter Rising of 1916. Revolutionaries are, almost by definition, romantic – what else could explain the fact that the iconic image of Che Guevara (whose Grandma Lynch, incidentally, was from Galway’s Lynch tribe) is … [Read more...] about The Rebel Countess
1916 Anniversary Sparks Debate
On the eve of the 90th anniversary of the Easter Rising, mainstream political parties are actively competing for the legacy of Ireland's historical revolution. The government has already announced that the state will officially mark the occasion on April 16 with a military parade past the General Post Office in O'Connell Street, site of rebel headquarters during the … [Read more...] about 1916 Anniversary Sparks Debate
Police Seize de Valera’s Love Letters
The Gardai (Irish police) have seized 18 letters written by Eamonn de Valera to his wife, Sinead, between 1912 and 1920. Some of the letters were written while he was imprisoned for his part in the 1916 Rising and others were written while he was in the U.S. promoting the idea of an independent Ireland. In one letter he tells his wife, "You are my first thought in the morning … [Read more...] about Police Seize de Valera’s Love Letters