Public consultation meetings were held to stimulate discussion and ideas on how the 100th anniversary of the 1916 Rising should be commemorated. Proposals were also made in writing and by email. Two working committees were established – an Elected Members Committee and a Staff Committee representing Cultural Services.
Remembering Limerick People Involved in the Rising
Limerick has many important links with the 1916 Rising and it is planned to commemorate these in a programme of events and activities in 2016.
Two of the sixteen leaders executed after the Rising were Limerick men, namely Con Colbert and Edward Daly.
Con Colbert served under Eamonn Ceannt and commanded the garrison at Watkin’s Brewery, Ardee Street and Jameson’s Distillery, Bow Street. He also took part in the fighting at Marrowbone Lane. On 8th May 1916 he was executed for his role in the Rising.
Edward Daly was born in Frederick Street and went to school at Leamy’s and CBS Sexton Street. On Easter Monday 1916 he commanded the First Battalion of the Dublin Brigade and was in charge of the Four Courts Garrison. He was court-martialled, sentenced to death and executed in Kilmainham Jail on 4th May 1916.
Eamonn De Valera also played a significant role and was a leader in ‘Bolands Mill’. He became the first President of the new Dáil Éireann in 1919.
Kathleen Clarke (nee Daly) was from a prominent Republican family in Limerick and married Tom Clarke. She was a founding member of Cumann na mBan and she set up the Prisoners’ Dependants Fund immediately after the Rising.
Tommy McInerney, Sam Windrim and Donal Sheehan all took part in a mission to aid unloading of arms on Good Friday 1916 in which Donal Sheehan lost his life.
Dr. Richard Hayes fought in the Rising, seeing action with Thomas Ashe at Ashbourne, County Meath. He was arrested and imprisoned in England.
The involvement of the above and other Limerick men and women in the 1916 Rising will be commemorated in a programme of events in 2016. There are proposals for a number of memorial gardens to serve as a permanent legacy of 1916. There are also tree planting ceremonies planned throughout the county.
Limerick Genealogy will research and publish family histories of Con Colbert and Edward Daly while Donal Sheehan will be remembered in a series of events in Newcastle West.
A Miscellany of Commemorative Events
There will be a re-enactment of the march by 300 Volunteers to Glenquin Castle on Easter Sunday 1916. Eamonn De Valera will be remembered in a series of events in the De Valera Museum, Bruree.
A project ‘Limerick: A Musical AutoEthnography’ will look at music in Limerick in the 100 years since 1916. Anglesboro Drama Group will produce a play ‘1916 How Did We Get here’.
There will be an exhibition in Friarsgate Theatre, Kilmallock, of tapestries based on the theme of 1916. Limerick Printmakers will run a 1916 project with community groups.
The Limerick Writers Centre will produce an ‘Anthology of Reactions to 1916’ as well as ‘Children of the Revolution’ is an inter-county traditional music and song research project.
An interesting street project entitled ‘Reimagining Travel’ will celebrate a particular mode of transport used in 1916, namely, cargo bikes.
There will be a historic graveyard project creating links to those who fought in 1916 from the Ballyhoura area while an oral history project will be run in West Limerick recording stories of those with 1916 connections.
The Limerick Spring, a festival of politics will focus on the 1916 Proclamation while EVA 2016 will reflect on the Rising.
The Library Service in Limerick will open a new Local Studies Department at the Granary in 2016. To launch this, a series of public lectures on 1916 will be held including historians Dr. Diarmaid Ferriter and Dr. Sinéad McCoole.
The Limerick Museum will be re-launched and open to the public in a city centre venue and it will host a major exhibition on ‘Life in Limerick in 1916’. The Tricolour seized from the Limerick Volunteers in 1916 and currently held at the British Royal Museum will be returned and put on display.
The University of Limerick will hold a special concert in May 2016 to mark the centenary of the executions of the leaders of the Rising.
Iarnród Éireann will be unveiling a panel at Colbert Station in 2016 with a specially commissioned portrait of Con Colbert, some details of his life and a QR code that will allow download of a short ebook about him.
Tionóladh cruinnithe comhairliúcháin poiblí chun plé agus smaointe a spreagadh ar an gcaoi ar chóir comóradh 100 bliain Éirí Amach 1916 a cheiliúradh. Rinneadh moltaí i scríbhinn freisin agus ar ríomhphost.
Bunaíodh dhá choiste oibre – Coiste de Chomhaltaí Tofa agus Coiste Foirne a dhéanann ionadaíocht thar ceann na Seirbhísí Cultúrtha.
Na Daoine as Luimneach a bhí Páirteach san Éirí Amach a Thabhairt Chun Cuimhne
Is iomaí nasc tábhachtach atá ag Luimneach leis an Éirí Amach agus tá sé i gceist iad seo a chomóradh i gclár imeachtaí agus gníomhaíochtaí in 2016.
Ba as Luimneach do bheirt de na sé cheannaire déag a cuireadh chun báis tar éis an Éirí Amach, is iad sin Con Colbert agus Edward Daly.
Thug Con Colbert seirbhís faoi Éamonn Ceannt agus bhí sé i gceannas ar an ngarastún ag Drioglann Watkin i Sráid Bhaile Átha Fhirdhia agus Drioglann Jameson, Sráid Bowes. Ghlac sé páirt freisin sa troid ag Lána Mhuire Mhaith. Cuireadh chun báis é ar an 8 Bealtaine 1916 mar gheall ar a ról san Éirí Amach.
Rugadh Edward Daly i Sráid Fhreidric agus chuaigh sé ar scoil i Leamy’s agus ansin SBC Shráid Uí Sheasnáin. Ar Luan Cásca 1916 bhí sé i gceannas ar Chéad Chathlán Bhriogáid Bhaile Átha Cliath agus bhí sé i gceannas ar Gharastún na gCeithre Chúirt. Cuireadh armchúirt air, daoradh chun báis é agus cuireadh chun báis é i bPríosún Chill Mhaighneann ar 4ú Bealtaine 1916.
Bhí ról suntasach ag Éamon De Valera freisin agus bhí sé ina cheannaire ar ‘Mhuileann Uí Bheoláin’. Tháinig sé chun a bheith ina Chéad Uachtarán ar Dháil Éireann nuabhunaithe i 1919.
Ba dhuine de theaghlach Poblachtach mór le rá i Luimneach í Kathleen Clarke (nee Daly) agus phós sí Tom Clarke. Bhí sí ar dhuine de bhunaitheoirí Chumann na mBan agus chuir sí Ciste Cleithiúnaigh na bPríosúnach ar bun díreach i ndiaidh an Éirí Amach.
Ghlac Tommy McInerney, Sam Windrim agus Donal Sheehan páirt i misean chun cuidiú le díluchtú arm ar Aoine an Chéasta 1916 inar cailleadh Donal Sheehan.
Ghlac an Dr. Richard Hayes páirt sa troid san Éirí Amach, é i mbun gnímh le Tomás Ághas ag Cill Dhéagláin i gContae na Mí. Gabhadh é agus cuireadh i bpríosún i Sasana é.
Déanfar rannpháirtíocht na ndaoine thuas agus fir agus mná eile ó Luimneach in Éirí Amach 1916 a chomóradh i gClár imeachtaí in 2016. Tá tograí do roinnt gairdíní cuimhneacháin le bheith ina n-oidhreacht bhuan ar 1916. Tá searmanais chur crann beartaithe freisin ar fud an chontae.
Déanfaidh Limerick Genealogy taighde agus foilseoidh siad stair teaghlaigh Con Colbert agus Edward Daly agus tabharfar Donal Sheehan chun cuimhne i sraith imeachtaí sa Chaisleán Nua Thiar.
Bolg Soláthair d’Imeachta Comórtha
Beidh ath-tearmachtú ar an máirseáil a rinne 300 de na hÓglaigh chuig Caisleán Ghleann an Choim ar Dhomhnach Cásca 1916. Tabharfar Éamon De Valera chun cuimhne i sraith imeachtaí ag Músaem De Valera, i mBrú Rí.
Breathnófar leis an tionscadal ‘Limerick: A Musical Auto-Ethnography’ ar cheol i Luimneach sa 100 bliain ó 1916. Léireoidh Grúpa Drámaíochta Ghleann na gCreabhar dráma ‘1916 How Did We Get Here’.
Beidh taispeántas ar siúl in Amharclann Friarsgate, i gCill Mocheallóg, de thaipéisí bunaithe ar théama 1916. Reáchtálfaidh Déantóirí Priontaí Luimnigh tionscadal 1916 le grúpaí pobail.
Cuirfidh Ionad Scríbhneoirí Luimnigh ‘Anthology of Reactions to 1916’ ar fáil chomh maith le tionscadal taighde amhráin agus ceoil idirchontae, ‘Children of the Revolution’. Déanfaidh tionscadal sráide suimiúil dar teideal ‘Reimagining Travel’ modh taistil a úsáideadh i 1916 a cheiliúradh, is é sin an rothar lastais.
Beidh tionscadal reilige stairiúla ann a chruthaíonn naisc leo siúd ó cheantar Bhealach Eabhra a throid i 1916 agus reáchtálfar tionscadal staire ó bhéal in Iarthair Luimnigh agus scéalta na ndaoine sin a bhfuil nasc acu le 1916 á dtaifeadadh.
Díreoidh Earrach Luimnigh, féile pholaitíochta, ar Fhorógra 1916 agus déanfaidh EVA 2016 machnamh ar an Éirí Amach.
Osclóidh an tSeirbhís Leabharlainne i Luimneach Roinn Staidéar Áitiúla nua sa Ghráinseach in 2016. Chun é seo a sheoladh tionólfar sraith léachtaí poiblí ar 1916 agus ar na staraithe áireofar an Dr. Diarmaid Ferriter agus an Dr. Sinéad McCoole.
Déanfar Músaem Luimnigh a athsheoladh agus osclófar don phobal é in ionad i lár na cathrach agus tionólfar ann mórthaispeántas ar ‘An Saol i Luimneach i 1916’. Tabharfar ar ais Bratach na dTrí Dhath a tógadh ó Óglaigh Luimnigh i 1916 agus atá san British Royal Museum faoi láthair agus beidh sí ar taispeáint.
Reáchtálfaidh Ollscoil Luimnigh ceolchoirm speisialta i mBealtaine 2016 le hurraim a thabhairt do chomóradh céad bliain ó cuireadh ceannairí an Éirí Amach chun báis.
Nochtfaidh Iarnród Éireann painéal ag Stáisiún Cholbaird in 2016 le portráid de Con Colbert a coimisiúnaíodh go speisialta, roinnt mionsonraí dá shaol agus cód QR a cheadóidh íoslódáil r-leabhar gairid ina thaobh.