At a time when there is a greater acknowledgement of the role played by Irishmen in the British army, there is a group of Irishwomen with a unique claim to recognition for their humanitarian work among soldiers. Elise Sandes was the founder of a welfare movement that survives today. She was an evangelical Christian and … Read more
When increasing numbers of tithe-payers refused to pay during 1830 and 1831, many Church of Ireland clergymen found themselves in financial trouble. In order to alleviate their difficulties, the Clergy Relief Fund, 1831 Act was passed. The total fund amounted to £60,000. It had ‘1831’ in its title because only arrears for that year could … Read more
Andrew Reed was born on 26 September 1837 in Galway town, the third of four children born to John and Mary (née Adamson) Reed. Andrew Reed’s father was a land agent, but Reed’s mother died three years after his birth and his father later remarried. Reed attended Dame School and Erasmus Smith’s school and was … Read more
On 19 September 1803 Robert Emmet was tried for high treason in Green Street courthouse, found guilty, and sentenced to be hung, drawn and quartered. He was executed the next day in Thomas Street. It is often thought that the case against Emmet was one of irresistible strength, so that, for example, the corruption of … Read more
The Irish Greyhound pig was a descendant of the European wild pig (Sus scrofa) that had roamed Irish forests since prehistoric times. It was first domesticated in Ireland during the Neolithic. In the early Middle Ages there was not much distinction between the wild pig and the domesticated pig; the domesticated pig was fed on … Read more