Hidden Tipperary

“Pat” Armstrong, Moyaliffe, Co. Tipperary

More than 340 men and one woman from here in Co. Tipperary enlisted in the Australian forces during the First World War. Of those who enlisted; 45 were killed or died as a result of their service.

An event to be hosted in Clonoulty village hall on Wednesday next (August 20th 2014 beginning 7.30pm sharp) by Mrs Kitty Barry (Vice-chairperson of County Tipperary Historical Society) and Chaired by Mr Richard O’Brien (Chairman of County Tipperary Historical Society), will now for the first time discuss Tipperary’s overall involvement in this ‘war to end all wars’.

Guest speakers at this Clonoulty, Co Tipperary event will include historians Professor Jeff Kildea, Dr. Danny Cusack and Mr Tom Carroll.

Professor Jeff Kildea – Tipperary’s Contribution to the Australian War Effort

Prof. Jeff Kildea is a historian, lecturer and author with a PhD in history from the University of New South Wales. He is currently the Keith Cameron Professor of Australian History at University College Dublin having previously taught Irish and Australian history to undergraduates at the University of New South Wales and at Sydney University’s Centre for Continuing Education.

Prof. Kildea is an Adjunct at the Global Irish Studies Centre at the University of New South Wales and has written books and articles and presented papers both in Australia and Ireland on early 20th-century Irish-Australian history. His books include “Tearing the Fabric” (Sectarianism in Australia 1910-1925) (2002), “Anzacs and Ireland” (2007) and “Wartime Australians,” Billy Hughes (2008). He is currently researching Irish Anzacs and a biography of Hugh Mahon, the Labour member for Kalgoorlie who in 1920 was expelled from the Commonwealth parliament for his criticism of British rule in Ireland.

For more than 30 years Prof. Kildea has practised as a barrister from 5 Wentworth Chambers and is now an Acting Commissioner of the Land and Environment Court. He is also the editor of Land & Environment Court Law & Practice NSW and a contributing author to “Planning & Development Service NSW,” published by Thomson Reuter.

On Wednesday night next, Professor Kildea will for the first time here in Tipperary publicly examine Tipperary’s contribution to the Australian war effort and tell the stories of some of the little known Irish ANZACs from our county who fought and died in the War.

Dr. Danny Cusack – With the Anzacs at Gallipoli: Fr John Fahey

Dr. Danny Cusack is an independent historian currently residing at Kells, Co. Meath. A native of Perth, Western Australia, he has lived in Ireland for many years. He has completed a PhD and book on the Meath-born Western Australian politician Senator Paddy Lynch (1867-1944) and written and lectured on various aspects of the history of Meath (where he has family connections) and on Irish-Australia.
His talk entitled “With the Anzacs at Gallipoli: Fr John Fahey (1883-1959),” Dr. Cusack will discuss the Rossmore born priest who served most of his life in Western Australia. As an Australian army chaplain he took part in the famous Gallipoli landing of April 25 1915.

Mr Tom Carroll – Personal Accounts from Gallipoli

Mr Tom Carroll is a native of Clonoulty and a retired company director. His expertise was in regional and local economic development. His particular interest is local history and to understand how it was affected by change at national and international level i.e. political, economic, social and technological change. In regard to local history his focus has been on his native county, Tipperary, his mother’s county (Laois), his wife’s county (Kilkenny), and Limerick where he resided for some 46 years.
He will give those in attendance information on his uncle: Lce. Cpl. Martin Carroll, 1st Battalion Royal Munster Fusiliers: killed in Gallipoli 28th June 1915.
Also on his uncle-in-law from Conahy / Three Castles, Co. Kilkenny: Private William Keeffe, 1st Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers, killed in Gallipoli 25th April 1915. Tom has William’s diary completed to the day prior to his death, extracts from which provide insights into the life of an ordinary soldier.

WWI Memorabilia – St Mary’s War Museum

St Mary’s War Museum will display rare World War I memorabilia, some relating to Gallipoli, at this major Clonoulty historic gathering.
Note: Discussion & Refreshments afterwards.

Further Information: Please address all queries to: catherinebarry@eircom.net

Admission to this event costs just €5.00, with all proceeds going to the Tipperary Libraries Digitisation Project.

An all-island tourism delegation from counties Tipperary, Armagh, Clare and Dublin, latter areas with strong connections to the only undisputed High King of Ireland, Brian Ború, will embark on a promotional drive in the United States next week.

Coinciding with the millennial anniversary of Ború’s death at the Battle of Clontarf in 1014, National Brian Ború Programme representatives from Tipperary, Armagh, Clare and Dublin, will attend the annual Milwaukee Irish Fest in Wisconsin, where they will be seeking to attract some of the estimated 150,000 festival goers to Ireland.

Internationally, Brian Ború is celebrated for his contribution to uniting Ireland and quelling the destabilising impact of the Vikings. Born in Killaloe in East Clare, Brian Ború became the only undisputed High King of Ireland and today is regarded as the most significant figure in Irish history.

Ború is a central theme of this year’s Milwaukee Irish Fest from August 14th -17th. Established in 1981 by members of Milwaukee’s Irish community, the Fest covers 74 acres of Lake Michigan’s shoreline and showcases Irish music, history, dance, drama, sports and culture. The Festival is also used by tourist agencies such as Tourism Ireland, Aer Lingus and CIE Tours, as an opportunity to market Ireland as a desirable tourist destination.

The travelling Ború tourism delegation will be located in the festival’s ‘Cultural Pavilion,’ where extensive promotional material on visitor attractions associated with Ború will be distributed.

Members of the delegation, which includes historians, living history interpreters, genealogists, musicians, a bowyer and a folk theatre group will also deliver a series of public lectures and demonstrations on Brian Ború’s life in culture, history, food, genealogy and music.

Among the sites and buildings associated with Brian Ború that will be promoted in Milwaukee will be Killaloe where he was born, Clontarf where he was killed following his victory over the Viking rulers of Dublin in 1014, St. Patrick’s Cathedral in the City of Armagh where he is buried; the Rock of Cashel where he was crowned High King of Ireland; and Lough Derg and the River Shannon where his navy was located.

All four locations feature prominently in the National Brian Ború Programme, a comprehensive nationwide programme of commemorative festivals and events taking place during 2014.

Tipperary Representation at Milwaukee Irish Fest

Sean Laffey, writer and editor for Irish Music Magazine, headed up the Cashel Heritage group, which produced the 2014 Ború celebrations. He will speak on the music of warriors, among other things.
Geraldine Wall Laffey, an educator, will present scriptorium lettering in both the Children’s Tent and the Boru Tent
Joanne Hughes, an archaeologist and member of the Cashel Heritage Group, is an expert on the Viking excavations in Ireland. She will present a Viking dig in Viking costume in the Children’s area.

In addition, Maurice Lennon and the Willis Clan will present Lennon’s Brian Ború ‘The High King of Tara’, at the festival. This orchestral suite, written by Lennon in 2002, was produced by Lennon and Donal Lunny, who will also appear at the 2014 Milwaukee Irish Festival. Clare artists Sharon Shannon and Socks in the Frying Pan will also perform at the Fest.

Visit www.brianborumillennium.ie to learn about the National Brian Ború Programme of events taking place during the remainder of 2014. Visit www.irishfest.com for more on Milwaukee Irish Fest.