The Local Studies section of the Kilkenny County Library Service has published a brochure Kilkenny on the Eve of War. This publication is comprised of a collection of articles that set the political and historical scene in Ireland and Kilkenny leading up to the outbreak of World War I. To view the brochure please visit the Local Studies section of the Kilkenny County Library Service.
The National Museum of Ireland is hosting a day of talks exploring the experiences of soldiers, nurses and civilians during World War I and how the War has been commemorated across Europe and in Australia. You can also drop in and get information from the Royal Dublin Fusiliers Association on how to trace people that fought in the War. For a full programme go to www.museum.ie Booking essential. Tickets 10 euro full price or 7 euro concessions.
For further information click here.
Maynooth University – Kilkenny Campus are offering a short course this autumn to mark the anniversary of the outbreak of World War I; 2014 is the centenary of the outbreak of World War 1, the Great War, the “war to end all wars”.
This short course will look at the causes and the course of the war; the conditions for the soldiers in the trenches and for the civilian population at home; and the aftermath of war in Europe. It will also examine the effects of the outbreak of war on the political landscape here in Ireland, and finally the Kilkenny links with the war will be explored, and in particular the soldiers who fought in the war and their backgrounds.
For more details on the course, click here.
The Irish Life and Lore oral history collection, entitled The Irish Country House and the Great War was launched on 30th July 2014, just days before the one hundred year anniversary of the British declaration of war against Germany on August 4th 1914.
This oral history collection includes recordings from members of 52 families from all areas of Ireland. The content of the oral history collection ensures that those who fell, those who suffered lifelong physical and psychological injury and those fortunate enough to survive unscathed, will not be forgotten. Members of their families who have been recorded for the project speak of their family histories, their childhood homes, their family tradition of military service, their service records and the lives lived after the war by those who survived. Anecdotes relating to their personal lives and relationships are recounted, often with gentle humour and pathos, and the bitter heartbreak endured by parents and siblings on the death of a beloved family member is described.
To find out more about this collection visit the Irish Life and Lore website.
Generations Exploring Heritage Together
Heritage Week 23rd – 31st August
The theme of this year’s Heritage Week which runs from Saturday 23rd – Sun 31st August is “Generations Exploring Heritage Together”. Local heritage groups have compiled a fabulous programme of events. Our military heritage is very well represented in the programme, and includes guided walks and talks about the contribution that Kilkenny men and women made to both World War I and the War of Independence.
According to Dearbhala Ledwidge, Heritage Officer, “This is the most diverse and comprehensive Heritage Week programme to date. It’s a great opportunity for people to experience and enjoy the wonderful heritage we have on our doorstep in County Kilkenny”. Click here for a recent press release relating to Heritage Week.
The Kilkenny Heritage Office has compiled a free County Kilkenny ‘Heritage Week’ Event Guide which outlines over 70 ‘Heritage Week’ events taking place in the County. s happening in your area and to request a free copy of the Kilkenny Heritage Week brochure, contact Dearbhala Ledwidge, Heritage Officer, Kilkenny County Council. Tel: 056 7794925. dearbhala.ledwidge@kilkennycoco.ie or click here to download a copy.
Heritage Week is co-ordinated in County Kilkenny by the Heritage Office of Kilkenny County Council, and nationally by the Heritage Council, in conjunction with the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and is part of European Heritage Days, which is celebrated in 40 countries across Europe.
For further information, contact:
Dearbhala Ledwidge, Heritage Officer, Kilkenny County Council
Email: dearbhala.ledwidge@kilkennycoco.ie Phone: 056 7794925
The National Museum of Ireland invites former army residents of Collins Barracks to come and share their experiences of what life was like at Collins Barracks and help contribute to the growing oral history archive at Collins Barracks.
On Thursday 28th August during Heritage Week, join Museum Educator Edith Andrees and share your experiences of life at Collins Barracks and, through recorded interviews, help us to uncover the history that often goes unwritten.
To find out more click here.
Centenary Memorial Mass & Talk will take place at St. John’s Church Kilkenny on Wednesday July 30th at 7.30p.m.
Speaker: Mr. Paddy Neary, Wolfe Tone Street
Wreath laying: Bishop Seamus Freeman SAC, Bishop of Ossory, and Mr. Andrew McGuiness, Mayor of Kiolkenny.
Music: Thukolo Gospel Choir
This year’s Heritage Week runs from 23rd August to 31st August; this year’s programme includes a number of events focusing on various aspects of our military heritage. See the Kilkenny Event Guide 2014 for details of military events organised throughout the county:
Photograph above: Taken from front cover of the ‘Guide to the Military Service (1916-1923) Pensions Collection’
The Military Service Pensions Collection is the Military Archives’ latest online collection and is the single most important archival collection relating to Ireland’s revolutionary period, comprising hundreds of thousands of individual accounts of the activities of nationalists throughout the period from the 1916 Rising to the end of the Civil War in 1923. It is a cornerstone project of the Government Decade of Centenaries 2012-2022 Commemorative programme.
The collection records the personal commitment and sacrifice by those men and women who shouldered the task of gaining independence for this country. This release provides a window into every parish and townland in this country and the activities undertaken by ordinary people pursuing the ambition of nationhood. The release of these records will provide Irish people at home and abroad with fascinating and copious information about their ancestors who played a part in the establishment of independent Ireland.
The first release of the Military Service Pensions Collection (MSPC) comprises approximately 452,000 images relating to over 3,000 individuals and mainly deals with 1916 personalities and survivors, but also containing crucial supporting documentation which help to understand the pensions files in context.
The first phase of the collection is available to view online at www.militaryarchives.ie
The information and application forms are also plotted on a 1912 OSI map providing a greater awareness and visibility of the location of activity sites during Easter week 1916 (see image below), which can be viewed on the Military Archives website.
As part of the launch of the Military Service Pension Collection in January 2014, a comprehensive guide was produced in order to provide an introduction and context to this important and significant collection. The Guide to the Military Service (1916-1923) Pensions Collection is available to view on the Military Archives website as a pdf file and a hard copy may be viewed at the libraries throughout County Kilkenny.
Heritage Week Event – Exploring Gowran’s Contribution to the Great War
Padraig Yeates will outline the situation which existed in Ireland during the War years. This will be followed by Alyson Gavin who will speak about her quest for Aubry White, the soldier who is commemorated in the beautiful stained glass window in St Mary’s Church. Military historian Gordon Power will hold a talk and workshop on associated memorabilia. A questions and answers session will follow. The National Library of Ireland exhibition Gallant Sons will be in the church on Saturday and Sunday, 23rd and 24th August. If you have any medals or photographs of ancestors who served that you would like to know more about why not send your query to us in advance? To find out more about this event visit the Heritage Week website www.heritageweek.ie.