A history shared

Last Saturday representing Athy I joined representatives of local history societies from around the country in welcoming visitors of the Ulster Federation of History Societies to our county town of Naas. The Ulster Federation is an umbrella organisation of history societies throughout Northern Ireland and in that regard fulfils the same role as does the Federation of Local History Societies in the south. The two federations have enjoyed excellent relationships extending back beyond the dark days of the ‘troubles’ and the visit to Naas by 35 Northern Ireland local historians was part of an Urban Experience Project initiated by the two federations over 20 years ago. The Project involves exchange trips between the two federations and these annual visits, either north or south of the border, help to cement strong bonds of friendship and cultural cooperation between all their members.

Seamus Moore, the newly elected Mayor of Naas, welcomed the visitors and as he did I was mindful that Seamus’ father Michael Moore, a native of Barrowhouse, had made his home in Nás na Rí, the meeting place of the Kings, some years after his involvement in South Kildare as a member of the Carlow/Kildare I.R.A. Brigade in the War of Independence.

While waiting for the Northern Ireland visitors to arrive Seamus showed me a banner made by Watsons of Sackville Street Dublin in 1882, on which was depicted a portrait of Lord Edward Fitzgerald. Lord Edward was at one time a Member of Parliament for the Borough of Athy and the banner with the words ‘God Save Ireland’ and ‘Eire go Brath’ boldly emblazoned above and below Lord Edward’s portrait was apparently a Land League banner. I understand Naas Town Council has gone to a lot of expense to preserve this important artefact from our past and their decision to do so is highly commendable. I am reminded that I have sought in vain over the years to track down a number of banners which at various times graced parades and public meetings held in Athy and elsewhere in the County of Kildare during the Land League and subsequent Home Rule periods of agitation. The Luggacurran Land League banner was traced to a pub in the Swan, but unfortunately has yet to be seen or recovered.

The fine room at the top of the Town Hall in Naas which was originally built as the town gaol in 1792 is now used at the local Council’s meeting chambers. It is a graceful room, the walls of which are adorned with paintings recording scenes from the history of Naas which was once the second town of the short grass county after Athy.

A quick guided tour of some of the more important buildings in Naas followed, of which St. David’s Church, built on the site of an earlier Celtic church in the centre of Naas, was the highlight.

After lunch more than 75 local historians from north and south of this island visited Palmerstown House, the seat of the Bourkes who were Earls of Mayo. The present house, located just outside Naas, was built in the Queen Ann style, by public subscription as a tribute to the Earl of Mayo after he was assassinated in India. The Earl’s body was returned to Ireland preserved in a barrel of rum, thereby earning him the nickname ‘the pickled earl’. His story, and that of Palmerstown House, was eloquently related to the visitors by Brian McCabe of the local history society.

I was delighted to hear from Brian that the memorial to the old Fenian John Devoy which marked his birthplace in Kill has recently been replaced near to its original site following the works on the motorway. The Devoy family originally came from Athy and Michael Devoy of Kill wrote a short history of Athy which was published in the Irish Magazine of March 1809. Michael, whom I believe may have been John Devoy’s grandfather, also wrote a history of Castledermot which was published in the May 1809 edition of the same magazine.

The visit of the Ulster Federation Members was a very enjoyable occasion and gave the Naas Local History Society members an opportunity to showcase their ancient town. I was particularly impressed by the generosity of Jim Mansfield in allowing access to his fine house at Palmerstown. There were minimum restrictions imposed on the 75 or so interested visitors as they went through almost every part of the building. It was the highlight of the day and congratulations must go to Larry Breen, National President of the Federation of Local History Societies of Ireland, who is also an active member of Naas Local History Society.

In Eye on the Past No. 541 I wrote of Patrick Moran who worked for some years as a shop assistant in Athy and who was hanged in Kilmainham Jail on 14th March 1921 for his alleged participation in the events of ‘Bloody Sunday’ 21st November 1920. Kilmainham Jail will be the venue for the launch of ‘Executed for Ireland – The Patrick Moran Story’ on Wednesday, 21st July at 7.00 p.m. The book by May Moran will be of particular interest for Athy folk.

Where is the memorial to the People’s Revolution?

Last year, the town council, and in particular its then chairman, Richard Daly, paid a long overdue tribute to the men of this town who died in the First World War. The council commissioned and erected on the facade of the 18th century town hall a plaque commemorating the 219 or so men from Athy and district who never had the opportunity of returning from service overseas to walk again the streets of their home town. They were a part of our history which remained neglected for decades, but an even more serious omission is the complete absence of anything in the town to recall the local men and women who before, during and after the 1798 Rebellion bore the brunt of the oppressive measures taken to quell what was effectively a people’s revolution. The ‘missing’ Memorial is in fact in safe keeping and has been for the last nine years, for it was commissioned and delivered in 1998 in time for its expected erection as part of the Irish nation’s year-long commemoration of the ’98 Rebellion. Regretfully, the Memorial, which was consigned to the town council’s stores, has languished there for so long that I sometimes wonder if it is being held in readiness for the 300th anniversary.

The late Lena Boylan of Celbridge, a wonderful local historian who was always ready and willing to share her extensive knowledge of Irish history, passed on to me some years before she died copies of some letters received by the Duke of Leinster during the Rebellion period. One such letter which I re-read with interest this week was written by Thomas Rawson on 13 June 1799, apparently in response to the duke’s demand that he step down as a burgess of Athy Borough Council. In the opening lines of the letter, Rawson, who up to the previous year lived in Glassealy House but moved to Cardenton after his home was burned by Irish rebels, referred to the duke’s call on him to resign.

There had been many complaints about Rawson’s behaviour during the ’98 Rebellion and the duke’s cousin, Thomas Fitzgerald of Geraldine House was particularly scathing in his criticism of Rawson, whom he once famously described as ‘a man of the lowest order, the offal of a dung hill’. Fitzgerald had particular reason to dislike Rawson. The cavalry troop of which Fitzgerald was captain was disbanded for alleged dis-loyalty, while Rawson headed up the newly-formed Loyalist Infantry Corps, which was less than gentle in its treatment of locals suspected of having arms or pikes. Rawson was also involved in public floggings, of which William Farrell of Carlow gave the following account.

‘The triangles were set up in the public streets of Athy ... there was no ceremony in choosing victims, the first to hand done well enough ... they were stripped naked, tied to the triangle and their flesh cut without mercy.’

The earlier mentioned Thomas Fitzgerald, writing in December 1802, pinpointed Rawson as the ring leader of the floggings in Athy, claiming that the Glassealy man

‘had every person tortured and stripped as his cannibal will directed. He would seat himself in a chair in the centre of a ring formed around the triangle, the miserable victims kneeling under the triangles until they would be spotted over with the blood of the others.’

It is no wonder then that the Duke of Leinster whose own son, Lord Edward Fitzgerald, was one of the ’98 leaders felt obliged to request Rawson to resign as a member of Athy Borough Council. The grounds for the request seemed to relate to Rawson’s involvement in erecting structures on the bridge of Athy without the permission of the duke, who was landlord of the town. However, the expected resignation did not materialise. Instead, Rawson defended himself with a spirited explanation of his actions which any neutral would find more than reasonable given the circumstances of the time. In doing so, Rawson gave an interesting account of some of the measures taken by the local loyalists in preparing to defend themselves against the Irish rebels. He wrote :

'This history of any and every barrier in the town of Athy is simply this and the truth can be proved by thousands. When Campbell commanded this garrison, he caused barriers of hogs heads, sods and earth to be made on the different approaches and on the centre of the bridge - he was ordered to evacuate the town and it was left for a long time to the sole protection of the yeomanry - weak and threatened as the town then was, a large body of rebels having the next night approached within 100 perches of it, I considered it absolutely necessary to put up temporary gates and a pailing at an expense of upwards of 50 pounds out of my own pocket - the town was protected. In November last, Captain Nicholson and a company of the Cork City Militia were sent here, he saw the sod work going to decay, he applied to General Dundas and by the general’s special directions (the inhabitants at large having subscribed a larger sum) strong walls of lime and stone were added to my gates - two large piers and a strong wall and platform were erected on the centre of the bridge under the direction of Captain Nicholson. In the beginning of May last, General Dundas inspected the Athy Infantry. New-made pikes had been recently found in the back house of a rebel captain of the town, several new schemes of insurrection were discovered for which many have since been convicted by court martial - the large house in the Market Square was occupied by a noted rebel from the County of Carlow and it appearing to the general that the barrier on the bridge could be commanded from the house, he was pleased to approve of the building of a second wall to cover the men ... I had temporary walls ran up, merely doubling the former barrier, and recollecting that for four months last summer we had lain on the flag-way on the bridge in the open air with stones for our pillows - I covered the walls with a temporary skid of boards which are not even nailed on.’

Rawson’s account of the bridge fortifications gave an interesting insight into the measures taken by the loyalists during the rebellion and suggest, as I have previously claimed, that the town of Athy consisted of the English town on the east banks of the Barrow and the Irish town on the opposite side.

The bridge fortifications referred to by Rawson could only provide protection from attack by Irish rebels who lived in and around the Irish town and particularly in the area known to many of the older generation as ‘Beggars End’.

Apart from the floggings on the streets of Athy, 1798 witnessed the public execution in June of seven young local men who had been imprisoned for a while in the lock-up in White’s Castle. Six of these young men were from Narraghmore, the seventh a Curragh man.

Another hitherto forgotten local massacre was referred to by Colonel Campbell, who commanded the 9th Dragoon stationed in the Military Barracks in Athy. In a letter he wrote on 2 June 1798, advising of troop movements against a body of rebels in Cloney Bog, Campbell reported:

‘The troops moved in three columns, the right by the east of the bog, the centre by the Monasterevin Road and the left by Ballintub-bert ... the left column passed the lawn at Bert and meeting with enemy on the way drew it and being closely pursued about 100 of them were killed’.

These accounts of what happened in and around Athy, all contemporary with the events they described, are good and sufficient reason for our present generation to commemorate the men of ’98 with a suitable monument in our town. There must be no further shilly-shallying about the matter. The monument created by Brid ni Rinn should be erected in a prominent position in the centre of Athy without any further delay.

If, as expected, the ’98 Monument is erected in Emily Square in front of the town hall, it will provide a fitting companion for the memorial erected last year to our townsmen who died fighting in France, Flanders, Gallipoli and other distance places during the 1914-18 War.

Notable Kildare Persons of the Millennium

I was recently invited to join a small group of local historians from the County of Kildare in a Millennium venture initiated by Seamus Cullen of Donadea. It’s purpose was to identify the notable Kildare persons of the last 1000 years, a task which in truth will be extremely difficult to accomplish. If you have been in any of the Dublin book shops recently you could not have failed to notice the plethora of books recently produced dealing with the 20th century in photographs and news reports. The nostalgia factor has been well built into these books clearly designed to strike a cord of recognition in the minds of the readers who want to re-visit scenes of times which had slipped from memory. In a way I suppose the availability of these books serve to open up to the scrutiny of a wider public than is usual, times past which a column like this seeks to do each week. Even if the general readers’ attention span goes no further than the last 100 years that in itself may serve to kindle an interest in a life and a society which has passed on. What better compliment to pay to the books produced for the Millennium than to acknowledge their usefulness in possibly encouraging a reader or two to delve further into the past of their own area or country.

Having been invited to join those brave local historians from North Kildare and the County’s mid-regions I am prompted to turn my mind to the notable personalities of County Kildare over the past 1000 years. The problem with such a quest is one of definition. Does one consider only persons of Kildare birth or should those who spent parts of their lives in the County be included? For myself I feel one should be flexible in setting out the parameters of definition in relation to what constitutes a Kildare person. For instance one man who spent a very short period in the County would in my opinion be regarded for all the wrong reasons as a notable Kildare personage of the past. I refer to Thomas Reynolds, informer and traitor to the United Irishmen of 1798, who during a short sojourn in Kilkea Castle managed to deprive the Republican movement of many of it’s leaders. He was not born in the County. He lived here for less than 1 ½ years, yet the effect of his unscrupulous work was so far reaching as to justify his inclusion in any list of notable persons of the County.

The average person asked to name the most notable Kildare persons of the last 1000 years might be hard pressed to come up with more than three names. Lord Edward Fitzgerald would undoubtedly be on most peoples short list and as he was a former Member of Parliament for Athy we locals must take great satisfaction in his association with our town. St. Laurence O’Toole, another South Kildare man born at Mullaghacreelan, Castledermot would also immediately come to mind, as would Cardinal Cullen, the first Cardinal of the Irish Catholic Church.

The three I have named all have connections and links with South Kildare so perhaps I should confine myself to searching out only those men or women with similar links. Mary Leadbetter, Quaker and author would be included if only for the fact that her writings have survived and kept her name before the public 170 years following her death.

Less well known would be Peter Corcoran, born in Athy who won what was effectively the world heavy-weight boxing championship in 1771 at a time when the competition was confined to Ireland and Great Britain. Corcoran is believed to have fled Ireland after killing a man and his subsequent boxing career in London was dogged with controversy. He is reputed to have “thrown” a fight for betting purposes, thereby losing support and face before the boxing public. Nevertheless he has to be included in any list of County Kildare notables of the last 1000 years.

Another sporting hero from Athy and one whom I have yet to include in an Eye on the Past must be Paddy “Darkie” Prendergast. Regarded as Ireland’s greatest horse trainer in the 1950’s, “Darkie” achieved success in Ireland and in England which marked him apart as a master of his craft. His achievements including the winning of English and Irish Derby’s and St. Legers must justify his addition to the list of notable County Kildare personages.

My own personal favourite for inclusion must be Reverend Thomas Kelly who although a Ballintubbert, Co. Laois man served as a Minister in Athy and elsewhere for many years prior to his death in 1855. He was a noted composer of Church hymns and only recently and after a long search have I succeeded in acquiring a copy of his “Hymns on Various Passages of Scripture”. Some of his hymns are still included in Church hymnals today and for this and for his founding of the Kellyites puts him in the frame for inclusion.

Another local man who like Thomas Kelly is remembered in the Heritage Centre in Athy must also be included in the select band of notable people of the last Millennium. He is of course Ernest Shackleton, Antarctic Explorer, born in Kilkea. Two other local men whose achievements were so different yet worthy of comment were John Vincent Holland and Juan Greene. Holland won the Victoria Cross for Courage during the First World War and for that joined the most exclusive world-wide band of men and women. Juan Greene spent his early adult years as did Holland in Argentina and like him returned to Ireland. Holland returned to enlist in World War I while Greene, in a different era, returned to take up farming on the family estate in Kilkea. One of the most important leaders of Irish farming he founded the Beet Growers Association and was first President of the National Farmers Association. His place in the history of Irish farming is assured.

Another man, is there no woman?, for inclusion in the list of South Kildare notables surely must be Patrick O’Kelly of Coolroe. Leader of the United Irishmen in South Kildare in 1798 he later wrote of his experiences as well as producing a number of other historical tomes. What then of the men of freedom of later generations like Eamon Malone who although born in Cork spent much of his early life in and around Athy. Commandant of the Carlow/Kildare brigade during the War of Independence he was lodged in Mountjoy Jail, went on hunger strike and later died a relatively young man. Unlike Patrick O’Kelly he did not have the opportunity to write of his experiences but nevertheless his inclusion in the list of South Kildare notables is justified.

But where I hear you ask are the female representatives of a people who endured much in the 1000 years which commenced 14 years before Brian Boru went into battle with the Danes at Clontarf? Maybe the answer lies in the oft repeated and somewhat cliched saying :- “Our wives and sweethearts, are, all of them the best in the world”. The poor mothers of 1847 who saw their children die of starvation left no record of their sufferings. To them must go the enduring remembrance of a time and a place when poverty and hunger stalked the Irish countryside. That they suffered so much is a testament to the harshness of our history’s past and the reason why the unknown women of “Black ‘47” must forever be counted amongst the Kildare people of note.

To travel back in time is to visit the heroes and heroines which time has not forgotten. The imprint of ink upon paper preserves a past for future generations but many are the good and noteworthy who have passed on unnoticed. They are soon forgotten, their good deeds lost forever, never to be retraced. History can only touch on the fringes of society at any time and the search for notable Kildare people is less a review of distinction and honour than the cut and paste of a written past.

Nevertheless, who would you include in the list of notable Kildare people of the Millennium?