Hi, I'm Tony. This is my first post on the blog for our Media Project 2 module.

Our main task for the first two weeks of the project was to gather as much information as possible about the 1916 rising and get familiar with the events. Along with this, I also researched facts/events which would be unknown to a lot of people.




The following is research I carried out to familiarise myself with the events of 1916 and how it unfolded.

Source: http://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/50-facts-about-the-Easter-Rising-which-began-99-years-ago-today-PHOTOS.html

·         Key dates: 24^th – 29^th of April 1916

·         Key Locations: Dublin, Meath, Galway, Louth and Wexford.

·         Irish Leaders:

-          Patrick Pearse

-          James Connolly

-          Tom Clarke

-          Seán MacDermott

-          Jospeh Plunkett

-          Éamonn Ceannt

-          Thomas MacDonagh

·         British Leaders:

-          Lord Wimborne

-          Augustine Birrell

-          Matthew Nathan

-          Lord French

-          Lovick Friend

-          John Maxwell

-          William Love

·         Irish forces comprised of 1,250 men in Dublin and 2,000 – 3,000 elsewhere in the country.

·         British forces comprised of 16,000 men and 1,000 armed police in Dublin by the end of the week.

·         There were 466 killed (80 Irish soldiers, 132 British soldiers and 254 civilians).

·         Most significant uprising in Ireland since the rebellion of 1798.

·         The Easter Rising made the front page of The New York Times eight days in a row.

·         Joseph Plunkett married his fiancé, Grace Gifford, eight hours before his execution.

·         It is the only proclamation of its era that mentions women equally, beginning “Irishmen and Irishwomen”.

·         The buildings that were taken over during the rising included the GPO, the Four Courts, Jacob’s Factory, Boland’s Mill, the South Dublin Union, St. Stephen’s Green and the College of Surgeons.

·         The GPO was the main headquarters of the rebellion.

·         The British troops were commanded by Brigadier-General William Lowe.

·         James Connolly, the commander of the Dublin Bridgade, was injured early in the fighting so his position was passed on to Patrick Pearse.

·         Connolly was so badly injured that he had to be carried to his execution on a stretcher.

·         The deadliest battles in Dublin took place at Mount Bridge Street.

·         Irish Republican leaders unconditionally surrendered on Sturday, April 29^th.

·         The Easter Rising was at first considered a betrayal and the leaders were spat at on their way to jail. After they were executed, the mood changed.

Sixteen leaders were executed and a further 3,000 were arrested in connection to the groups.




I then went on to research facts which would be unknown to most people.

Source: 50 things you didn’t know about 1916 – Mick O’Farrell

·         Dublin and London were in different time zones from 1880 to 1916 – London followed GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) whilst Dublin followed DMT (Dublin Mean Time) which was 25 minutes behind

·         The first shot of the rebellion was fired in Laois

·         Firing stopped at St. Stephen’s Green so the ducks could be fed

Source: http://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/Ten-little-known-facts-about-Easter-Monday-1916-and-the-Rising.html

·         There are 30 original copies of the Proclamation of Easter 1916 – one of which sold for $1 million in 2006

·         The Proclamation was published in two parts and contained different point sizes as the printer did not have enough fonts

·         A Swede and a Finn fought with the Irish in the GPO. They were crewmen on a foreign ship and felt solidarity with the Irish

·         The rebels were responsible for the world’s first-ever radio broadcast

Source: http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/heritage/fifteen-facts-about-the-irish-flag-and-1916-1.2362893

·         Although the 1916 Easter Rising made the Irish tricolour famous, it was actually first flown publicly in Waterford City in 1848

·         The Green in the flag symbolises Irish republicanism

·         The Orange in the flag symbolises the Protestant minority in Ireland

·         The White in the flag symbolises the hope for a lasting peace between the two cultures of Ireland – Nationalists (mainly Catholic Ireland) and Unionists (mainly Protestant Ireland)

As part of the 1916 commemorations, all primary and post-primary schools will be presented with a national flag, a copy of the proclamation in Irish and English and a booklet detailing the protocols for respecting the flag.