County Hall

It was a bright, warm evening as I joined the small, but growing group outside the County Hall. We were there for a free, guided visit of the old building, that is part of the Dún Laoghaire Rathdown Summer of Heritage 2026 programme. There are many other interesting places to visit, so I expect that it’s going to be a busy time ahead.

The building, which stands on the corner of Marine Road and Crofton Road, was selected the winner after a competition for its design was held. In the 1850s the town commissioners noted that due to the rising local population that a town hall was needed. The growth in trade, due to the development of the harbour and the introduction of the new train system, made the need inevitable, and the plan submitted by the architect John Loftus Robinson won. The foundation stone was laid in November 1878, and the building, which is in the Lombard-Romanesque style, opened on the 20^th April 1880. The cost was £16,000!

Our guide, who we met at the arched entrance on Marine Road, was informative throughout and quick to answer a question. Inside, the main hall was bathed in many colours as the sunlight flooded through a large stained-glass window. There was a courthouse, entered from Crofton Road, when the place opened but that has long gone.

We made our up the grand stairs to the recently revamped Council Chamber where councillors meet and conduct business. Across from it is the tall Assembly Room, a marvellous space where conferences, presentations and parties are held. Back in the 1950s many concerts were held here, and it was where The Pike Theatre Players performed the first play The Millstone in September 1951. 

More stairs led us to the Board Room, a place that has hardly changed in years, and the views from here were worth the visit. In the corridor outside the are a number of fine paintings, including works by Evie Hone and Pierre Bonnard which were a real surprise!

Kilmainham Gaol

Of all the centenary celebrations in the last few years there was one this year which only became aware recently. That is the closure of Kilmainham Gaol, which for more than a hundred years was a place of dread and death for many Irish men, and women. The place, which was built on Gallows Hill, opened its doors in 1796 at a time of rising political tensions as the energy from the 1789 French Revolution was very much in the air and the authorities decided to take action.

Robert Emmet

One of the first high-profile prisoners was Henry Joy McCracken who had the door shut behind him on 11 October 1796. Later, in 1803, Robert Emmet was sent to Kilmainham Gaol before his execution on 20 September outside St Catherine’s Church on Thomas Street. His final words, from the gallows, were: ‘ My friends, I die in peace and with sentiments of universal love and kindness towards all men.’

In the following decades many men were sent to Kilmainham for involvement in various attempts at insurrection. Some of these prisoners were later deported to the penal colonies of Australia and Tasmania, many of whom never saw Ireland again.

In October 1881 Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Parliamentary Party, was sent to gaol for opposing the recently enacted Land Act. He was released the following May. After that the gaol was closed and given to the British Army for use as a detention centre.

It would soon be busy with the influx of prisoners after the Easter Rising in 1916. And it was here that the leaders of the failed action were executed in May, before being buried in Arbour Hill. It was used to hold prisoners during the Civil War, with Eamon de Valera being the last man released in 1924. It closed soon afterwards, and it was ironic that when it was refurbished to what we see today the opening ceremony was led by none other than Eamon de Valera, then the President of Ireland.

Kilmainham Gaol

Theobald Wolf Tone

Theobald Wolfe Tone was born 20 June 1763 in 27 St Bride’s St. near Dublin Castle, and shortly afterwards his family moved to 44 Stafford St. (renamed Wolfe Tone St. in his honour). He was the eldest of sixteen children born to Peter Tone and Margaret Lamport, of which only six of them survived beyond infancy. They were a middle-class protestant family and Peter, who was born in Bodenstown, County Kildare was a successful coachbuilder.  

Theobald Wolf Tone

After school he entered Trinity College in 1781, although he had wanted to become a soldier. He was a good student, winning a scholarship (on his graduation in 1786) and medals in the College Historical Society, a noted debating forum that had been founded in 1745 by former student and eminent politician Edmund Burke. In 1785 he and Matilda Witherington eloped and were married on 21 July without her parent’s permission, something that damaged the future relationship with his in-laws. They had four children with none of them living later than 1806. He went to London in 1786 and studied law at Middle Temple, while writing articles and a novel. Returning to Dublin he was called to the Bar in 1789 and practised on the Leinster circuit. However, it was not for him and he said, ‘I soon got sick and weary of the law’. Politics and the world-changing effect of the French Revolution drew him in.  

In the early 1790s Tone began writing pamphlets and his An argument on behalf of the Catholics of Ireland, which was published in August 1791, became his most famous effort. This got him noticed, and along with others they formed the United Irishmen on 14 October 1791, which held its first meeting four days later with the declaration ‘AN EQUAL REPRESENTATION OF ALL THE PEOPLE IN PARLIAMENT’.

Tone was captured in October 1798 as he tried to land with French troops and military supplies. He was sentenced to hang for treason, but he died on 19 November from a self-inflected knife wound to his neck. Later, he was buried in Bodenstown graveyard.

Tone’s statue at St Stephen’s Green, Dublin.

Sea Breathe

A few verses on the beauty of Dublin Bay in the sunshine – bliss!

*

A stroll by the sea, now there’s a thing

Sounds good to be, and has a nice ring

Fresh wind on my face

Ohh, what a place

Blue sky above, birds on the wing

From Sandycove northwards, Dublin Bay’s a thrill

It’s beauty seductive, my heart to fill

Tangy air to breathe

It’s just what I need

As waves crash on rocks, white foam does spill

Off to the right, is the Martello of Joyce

Beautifully placed, such a wonderful choice

Where Ulysses did start

His famed work-of-art

Bloomsday followed, for which we do rejoice

Whyte’s Academy

Long before it was a café the building at 75 Grafton Street was a school and originally described by its owner Samuel Whyte as a ‘seminary for the institution of youth’. And in its sixty-six-year history it left a profound mark on its students, as well as pushing forward a new style of teaching that was open to both catholic and protestant boys and girls.

Samuel Whyte had an interesting birth, to say the least, as he was born, in 1733, on board a ship as it made its way along the Mersey in stormy weather before docking in Liverpool. His mother sadly died shortly afterwards due to complications of his birth. He was the illegitimate son of Solomon Whyte who died in 1757 leaving Samuel £500 in his will which he used to open his school on the 3^rd of April 1758.

Growing up in Dublin he was friendly with his relations, the Sheridan family, where he met and later taught the future playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan the writer of such classics as The Rivals and The School for Scandal. Another pupil who was taught by the Principal of the English Grammar School (his own description) was Thomas Moore, the poet, who was impressed with Whyte’s methods and a curriculum that included astronomy, languages, history, mathematics, literature and oratory. Robert Emmet was another pupil who paid attention in class and absorbed Whyte’s lessons on oratory. This was shown in 1803 when Emmet gave his famous Speech from the Dock in Green Street court-house on 19^th September after he had been convicted of high treason. It is considered to be one of the greatest speeches ever made as many anti-colonial groups around the world drew inspiration from it.

Richard Brinsley Sheridan

With the introduction of the Act of Union (1800) and the exodus of wealthy families to England the school went into decline. After Whyte died at No. 75 on 11^th October 1811 the school was run by his son Edward, before he closed it in 1824.

Today the building is where you will find Bewley’s Oriental Café.

Bloomsday – Joyce’s Gift

Bloomsday is almost upon us, and Dublin is getting ready for another busy day. There will be celebrations of Joyce’s great book in many places around the city, with readings, lectures, singing and performances on offer. Many visit the James Joyce Museum, in the Martello Tower in Sandycove, as it is the place where Ulysses begins. Joyce’s friend Oliver St. John Gogarty had rented the place for £8 per year and invited him to come and stay. He did, for six days only, but the place left such an impression on him that he set the opening scene of his most famous book on the roof. And, by the way, the view from up there across Dublin Bay is spectacular.

A Few Bloom-ing Lines

The sun is high, on the bright, warm day

Martello busy, crowds moving in sway

Joyce’s words are spoken

Rapt silence unbroken

As salty air tickles, drifting in from the bay

*

‘Twas in the Tower, where it all began

For Mulligan and Dedalus, your only man

Then a walk on the beach

Eternity to reach

On Sandymount Strand, as the bubblin’ tide ran

*

On a sunlit Howth Head, they did caress

Bloom and Molly, in her fine new dress

Then a stroll on the pier

‘Fancy a drink, my dear?’

‘To a gin and tonic, I must say YES!’

Cornelius Ryan – Reporter

Cornelius ‘Connie’ Ryan was born on the 5th June 1920 at 33 Heytesbury Street, Dublin, and went to CBS Synge Street, which was close to his home. He entered the Royal Irish Academy of Music where he studied violin, and graduated in 1936. Always interested in writing he sent plays to various theatres, but without success.

Cornelius Ryan

He moved to London in 1940 and joined the Reuters news agency the following year where he reported on the Blitz. Later, as a war correspondent with the Daily Telegraph he saw action going on fourteen bombing missions with the US Air Force over Germany. After D-Day (6^th June 1944) he went with General Patton’s US 3^rd Army as it fought its way through France and Germany to the end of the fighting. In the last few months of the global conflict, he went to the Pacific and witnessed the surrender of Japan. While there he opened the Daily Telegraph’s bureau office in Tokyo, before moving to Jerusalem as Middle East bureau chief.

In 1949, after attending the fifth anniversary of the D-Day landings, he began the work that would bring him fame and fortune. Over the next ten years he interviewed soldiers, from both sides, citizens, resistance fighters and wrote his most famous book The Longest Day. It was published to great acclaim in 1959, and was made into a box-office success in 1962 that featured a cast of famous actors and won two Oscars in 1963. The Last Battle (1966), his account of the collapse of Berlin, and A Bridge Too Far (1974) the story of the ill-fated Operation Market Garden, were also well received. Bridge was also made into a movie (1977) and was directed by Richard Attenborough.

He moved to Ridgefield, Connecticut, and was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1970. He was awarded the French Légion d’honneur in 1973, and died in New York on the 23^rd November 1974. On his gravestone is one word ‘Reporter’.

Irish Medics

Francis Rynd (1801-1861) surgeon and inventor, graduated from Trinity College in 1821and practiced for a time at the Meath Hospital. While working there he performed an operation, the first of its type, on a patient, Margaret Cox, in June 1844. She was suffering painfully from neuralgia in her face and any drugs administered w ere od little avail. So, Rynd used a thin, hollow needle which fed a solution of morphine directly into the patient’s bloodstream. The pain stopped, and Margaret was once able to sleep without discomfort. The instrument, which was later developed as the modern hypodermic syringe in1853 by Dr. Charles-Gabariel Prvaz, but Rynd’s contribution was crucial.

Francis Rynd

In 1830 he was elected a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), and established a successful practice at 14 Hume Street with many of the city’s rich as patients. This brought him great wealth, which he lost due to bad investment decisions.

After all his fine medical work he had a strange end. While driving his phaeton (a four-wheeled horse-drawn carriage) in Clontarf on the 19^th July 1861, he had an accident and Rynd died from a heart attack.

The surgeon, William Dease (1752-98), after initially studying in Dublin went to Paris where he completed his training. He returned to Ireland and opened a practice on Sackville St (now O’Connell Street), and was appointed surgeon at the United Hospitals of St Nicholas and St Catherine.

William Dease

In 1780 he was a founder member of the Dublin Society of Surgeons, and he was chair of the committee that successfully campaigned for a royal charter. This was granted in 1784 when the RCSI was established.

He was a wonderful teacher, and as an expert surgeon he made significant contributions in inventing surgical instruments. He was a prolific writer and his Observations on wounds of the head (1776), brought him international recognition.

His end was, however, tragic. After the 1798 rebellion when he was tipped off about his impending arrest as a suspected United Irishman, he severed his femoral artery and died. 

Thomas Farrell, the well-known sculptor, was commissioned Dease’s grandson to create an image of the great surgeon, and it was presented to the Royal College of Surgeons on the April 27th, 1886.

Royal College of Surgeons

The Grand Canal

Although I have often walked along its banks and crossed it in both cars and buses, I didn’t know much about the Grand Canal until an engineer friend recently enlightened me. It has had quite a history, and at one time it might even have been filled in, but thankfully it is now a popular attraction for many activities.

A plan for the construction of a canal connecting Dublin to the Shannon was put forward in 1715, with work beginning in the mid-1750s. Progress was slow as working in the Bog of Allen proved particularly difficult, and the canal was only finished in 1804. It stretches 82 miles (131 kms) from Dublin, as it passes through Kildare, Laois before reaching the Shannon at Shannon Harbour in County Offaly. Along the way, there are 43 locks to navigate, 32 bridges to cross (or sail under) and 9 towns to visit.

‘O commemorate me where there is water’

Soon after its completion passenger boats were operating on a regular basis with the journey from Dublin to Shannon taking about eighteen hours. This became a popular option of getting to the capital before taking a ship to England or further afield. Besides the passenger travel the canal was the then main highway for goods to and from Dublin, and it was not until 1960 that the final working barge slid quietly along its still waters and into history.

The canal is many things to many people especially to those who enjoy the Grand Canal Greenway, which is a great place for walkers, joggers, cyclists and anglers. And it’s also a favourite with those on cruisers. However, Patrick Kavanagh, the poet, who lived near the canal on Pembroke Road, wrote of his love for it:

O commemorate me where there is water
canal water preferably, so stilly
greeny at the heart of summer. Brother
commemorate me thus beautifully.

Patrick Kavangh statue at Baggot Street Bridge

On Parade

The recent St Patrick’s Day parade in Dun Laoghaire was a busy, colourful affair as thousands of onlookers packed the pavements and cheered as various troops passed. It was a cold but sunny day, and the crowds began arriving long before the troops gathered and readied themselves for the Big Day.

Close by, the LÉ Samuel Beckett was berthed in Dún Laoghaire Harbour and offering free tours to the public. It was a nice gesture, and another part of the well-planned day which was organized by Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and other local organisations. Cormac Comerford, our Olympian Alpine skier was the Grand Marshall, while broadcaster Bobby Kerr’s voice kept all informed as to who was passing by. 

Volunteers…in full voice

Along the seafront at Glasthule a line of poles with each troop’s designated number marked the forming-up area, and it seemed to go on and on. The grassy area was packed as dance troops and jugglers got in some late practice, while music blasted from big speakers on the promenade lifting the atmosphere. The wind was cold as it swept in from the bay, and we stamped our feet and clapped hands to stop from freezing on the spot.

My troop, the James Joyce Tower Volunteers, from the nearby Martello Tower in Sandycove, was making its debut, and a great time was had by all, certainly the ladies who were wonderfully dressed in the style of Molly Bloom! We were positioned about half-way along in the line of participants and enjoyed every moment as we waved and sang our way past the cheering, happy faces. We sang songs like ‘The Sandycove Martello’ and ‘Love’s Old Sweet Song’, a Joyce favourite that was sung with gusto. Oh yes, it was a great day that will live long in the memory of those who were lucky enough to have taken part, and now looking forward to next year’s celebration!

James Joyce Museum, Sandycove, Dublin