‘Why did Jimmie die?’

In the early days of his dialogue with Sinn Féin, John Hume was fond of posing the question: ‘Why did Jimmie die?’ He knew it was the most difficult question […]

1966 and all that: the 50th anniversary commemorations

The timing of the 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising was significant. As taoiseach, Seán Lemass was anxious to secure Ireland’s future within the European Economic Community (EEC) and had […]

The long revolution: the 1916 rising in context

It is certainly rare (and possibly fortunate!) that words spoken at an academic history conference find their way onto the front pages of leading newspapers and, by degrees, into most […]

1916 as virtual history

If only Ulster unionists had accepted Home Rule; if only Home Rulers had accepted partition in 1912 before the Ulster Volunteer Force was formed; if only the Curragh Mutiny hadn’t […]

Seán McLoughlin – the boy commandant of 1916

Seán McLoughlin was born in Dublin on 2 June 1895, the second child of six eventually born to ITGWU activist Patrick McLoughlin and his wife Christina. Involvement in Irish nationalist […]