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| Tom, Garvan and Rob |
This is Part 15 of our Ireland trip blog. We call this a
"Dublin Walking History Tour with a fiery, fun, red-headed Irishman!" Garvan is the "Dublin Tour Guide" and a living history book! He told us about the struggles of Ireland through history, the druids, the Gaelic language, abuse by the British through time, the great famine, mass exodus, and fight for independence. This blog will focus on Michael Collins and Ireland's fight for Independence.
You can book Garvan for 3
hour, 5 hour, 2 day tours or a pub crawl. We had the pleasure of his company
for 5 hours and we highly recommend him! (www.dublintourguide.ie/.)
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| Michael Collins. Credit: |
WHO WAS MICHAEL COLLINS? - You can't learn Irish history without
learning about Michael Collins. He was many things, but one thing that stood
out was that he was an Irish revolutionary leader that led Ireland to
independence from British rule. (Ireland was under England's rule for centuries
dating back to Tudor times). Michael
Collins was born on Oct 16, 1890 and was shot and killed in an ambush in August
1922 during the Irish Civil War.
WHAT IS EASTER RISING? - It's not a religious holiday- it's an
Irish rebellion against the British to gain independence. The "Rising"
was Collins' first appearance in national events and began on Easter Monday
1916.
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| Bad timing for the Dublin Post Office! |
BAD TIMING FOR THE DUBLIN GENERAL POST OFFICE? - We walked into the
post office and found a photo and write up about the Rising Headquarters in the
Post Office. We learned that the post office had just finished being
constructed and was opened for a month when the rebellion decided that it would
be a good base to hold its operations. The Rising was basically a military
disaster and as a result, the post office was left in ruins.
COLLINS SUCCEEDS - There's a lot of history behind Michael Collins,
and way too lengthy to go into here (look it up). Just know that in his third
attempt for Ireland's independence he succeeded. The Irish War of Independence started in
January 1919. Sadly, Collins was
assassinated on his way to Cork. Many songs, books, and films were made about
his life - honoring him. In 1996, Collins
was the subject of the film Michael Collins, with Liam Neeson
in the title role. He gave the people of
Ireland their country back and became a hero.
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| Ireland (Green), No. Ireland/UK (Blue). Credit: http://englishcinquiemeb2c.blogspot.com |
IRELAND GAINED INDEPENDENCE IN 2 STEPS
STEP 1: THE IRISH FREE STATE: The Irish Free State was established in
1922 as a "Dominion of the British Commonwealth of Nations under the
Anglo-Irish Treaty." Northern Ireland didn't take part in that agreement,
though because of the religious ultra-conservatives that lived there. Today,
Northern Ireland is still part of the United Kingdom, under British rule.
STEP 2: IRELAND REBORN IN 1937: The Free State came to an end in
1937, when the citizens voted to adopt their own constitution. It was under the
new constitution the Irish state was named Ireland!
NEXT: MEET WOLFE TONE AND HIS "SHINY SACK"
