Sunday, August 9, 2026: Kilmainham Goal

On our way out of Dublin, we stopped at the Kilmainham Gaol. Goal means jail.

Oliver Cromwell is the most hated man in Irish history. He was to stamp out Catholics. Rebellions were many and squashed immediately. Five periods of rebellion were 1798, 1803, 1848, 1867, and 1916. Many involved executions and jails.

The Hunger Years

For one third of Ireland, the potato was their only food. The Vagrancy Act of 1847 made it a crime to be homeless or beg for food.

Even though it was a crime to beg, if you were jailed, you could get food. It might not be much but it was more than nothing. However, one did risk disease and death due to the crowded conditions.

This bar graph shows the number of prisoners in specific years. The spike is during the Hunger Years.

Thomas Roberts was the youngest inmate at the age of three and was imprisoned for two weeks for stealing food. There is no record of him after he served his sentence.

Many in the overcrowded jails were transported to other parts of the British Empire, mostly to Von Dieman’s Island (Tasmania) in Australia. This was the case for 40,000 people.

In 1862, the Victorian East Wing was built and the guards were able to better observe the inmate due to the architecture and the natural lighting.

1916

The leaders of the Easter Rising knew that they would become a blood sacrifice for their country.

The trials were quick. They were allowed to write letters to their loved ones.

All were executed by firing squad. A white cross was painted on their heart as a target for the firing squad. The marksmen consisted of 12 men, six standing and six on one knee.

Fourteen men were executed within days of their arrest. This depiction of the 14 shows the location of the bullet holes.

James Connelly was the last to be executed. He had extensive wounds and would not have lived much longer. The examining doctor told them that they needn’t bother to put him before a firing squad. The officials said that he must be shot. He was so bad that he had to be carried in on a stretcher and transferred to a chair. He kept falling forward so they tied him to the chair. However, his head slumped over his chest so the firing squad could not aim at the white cross over his heart. They tied his upper body again to the chair in order for him to be upright.

Joseph Plunkett had been recently diagnosed with tuberculosis so his trial took place around his bed. He was to be executed the following morning.

Joe was to marry Grace Gifford on Easter Sunday. However, when he had been imprisoned, she came to the jail in her wedding dress, bought a ring on the way, and had a priest perform the marriage in the prison chapel.

Grace had gone from fiance to bride to widow within 15 minutes.

The famous song Grace by Jim McCann chronicles their love and is the most popular song in Ireland and closes out every night in the pubs. Listen here: Grace

After the execution, public opinion shifted, and the rebellion became a rallying point for Ireland independence from British rule.

The jail was abandoned in 1966 and was in disrepair but volunteers jumped in to save this hallowed ground of historical significance.

The Italian Job, In the Name of the Father, and Michael Collins used the building for movies.

Insurrection is a famous 8-part Irish docudrama miniseries uniquely presenting the rebellion as if it were being covered live by a modern television news team.

Rebellion follows three diverse young women and their families, lovers and friends from Belfast, Dublin and London during the Easter Rising.

U2 shot a video in this infamous jail: Shake

There are unarmed guards in Ireland. Only emergency response teams have guns.

Celtic Tiger is a term used for the economic boon that started in the mid-90’s. Ireland continues to have a strong economy mostly due to IT and pharmaceuticals.

BREXIT affected Ireland. The European Union dictates that corporate headquarters must be in a European Union country. Companies left London for Ireland to stay in the EU.

It’s a Long Way to Tipperary was a popular WWI song. Tipperary was the name of a bar in London. It is not an Irish song.

Cattle and sheep are all grass fed and in demand. They have green grass year round. Butter is a product that is appreciated throughout the world.

One can assess the health of the soil on a farm. If it is good land, cattle are grazing. If the land is bad, sheep are grazing. If there are trees planted, it is not good farmland.

Ireland used to be heavily forested and went from 80% to 20% today. It was said that in the past a squirrel could travel the entire length of Ireland and not touch the ground. There is a government program encouraging people to plant trees. Oak is encouraged.

The County of Tipperary is called the Golden Vale since much of their farmlands are here.

Rock of Cashel is sometimes referred to as St. Patrick’s Rock. It is 1,500 years old.

Many Norman castles were built, and hundreds of ancient tower houses still dot the landscape. After the round towers were built, they started building a religious settlement which had churches and monasteries.

In 1647, thousands of Irish seeking shelter inside the Rock of Cashel were massacred.

Here are some notable events that happened here:

St. Patrick converted the King Aengus of Cashel in the 5th century.
Kings of Munster ruled from this hill for 600 years, and then the Vikings came.
Brian Boru became high king here in the year 978 and made Cashal his capital. He died in 1014 fighting the Vikings.
The O’Brien family gave the site to the Catholic church in 1101.
The father of Arthur Guiness worked here and his job was brewing.

Ireland doesn’t have many trains. The tracks were all destroyed during a period of civil unrest.

From the Rock of Cashal, one could see a smaller building where the monks and nuns cared for those with leprosy.

While we travel on the bus, our guide plays Irish music. To me, the music is either foot stomping fun or melancholy tunes which bring “an ache in your heart and a tear to your eye’.

Fair and Tender Ladies by Lumiere is one song that I found especially lovely. Lovely is the word used to describe anything … music, food, etc.

Hurling is the national sport. Camogie is the same sport but is played by women. They start very young and play for their counties. “Pride of place” is strong. There are 32 counties in the Republic of Ireland. They receive no pay but communities support them. They have regular jobs. It is described as part field hockey, part ballet, and part murder!

Tidy Towns was started in the ’50’s. There are three categories: city, town, and village. The judging is done secretly at the beginning, middle, and end of summer from May to October. The winner is announced in the first week of October. Even though one wants to win, they mostly want to finish higher than their county rival so there can be lots of craic (good stories) about it in the pubs.

Our guide’s town won right before COVID so they kept the trophy for three years. A feat hard to beat!!

Kinsale is a picturesque harbor town.