Blogs

Dublin City Council Historian in Residence Dr. Mary Muldowney and historian Catherine Holmes tell the story of the bombing of North Strand on the night of 30/31 May 1941. This special event to mark the 80th anniversary of the bombing was hosted by Charleville Mall Library on 31 May 2021.

Recorded online history talk hosted by Walkinstown Library by Historian in Residence, Cathy Scuffil.

Crisis in a Colonial Capital: The Black Death in Dublin with Dr Simon Egan

Recorded online history talk, jointly hosted by Dolphins Barn and Inchicore Library by Historian in Residence, Cathy Scuffil.

Soldiers and Sex-Workers: Venereal Disease in Early 20th Century Ireland by Dr Susannah Riordan.

Recorded on Tuesday 6 April as part of Dublin City Archives City Hall Lunchtime Lecture Series.

Dublin Festival of History returns for it's seventh year and takes place from the 1st October to the 21st October. This year’s Festival will see over 150 walks, tours, exhibitions and talks take place across 65 venues in the city. The Festival is an initiative of Dublin City Council, and all events are free and open to the public.The Festival will culminate with a ‘Big Weekend’ of talks at the Printworks, Dublin Castle, taking place Friday 18th October to Sunday, 20th October. The best-selling author of Wild Swans, Jung Chang, radio presenter and author Joe Duffy, and popular historian and TV presenter Dan Jones have been announced as part of the line-up. Commenting on the launch of the full programme of events, Dublin City Librarian, Mairead Owens, said: “The Festival of History has been growing year on year, reflecting Dublin City Council’s commitment to preserving and promoting the history and heritage of our capital city and striving to make history accessible to all.”“History is all around us – in our built environment as we walk through the streets, in the stories we tell and the particular phrases we say. This year’s Festival will bring alive the multi-faceted nature of history, from the impact of political decisions such as the partition of Ireland, or the building of the Berlin Wall, to the story of Lemon’s sweets, the Periodic Table, to how Constance Wilde helped women to start wearing trousers."Lord Mayor of Dublin, Paul McAuliffe, said: “Since it began in 2013, the Festival has gained a reputation for attracting world-class, best-selling historians of national and international significance, and 2019 is no different. We look forward to welcoming speakers such as best-selling authors Jung Chang, Tom Holland, Dan Jones, and more to Dublin to share their knowledge and join us in a celebration of history – how it has shaped who we are, and its significance in shaping who we become."If you have an interest in history you can’t miss this Festival and remember, all events are free!Search upcoming lecture/talks here.

From working in munitions factories, V.A.D. nursing, supporting the war effort through charitable works, and leading the anti-conscription movement, World War 1 led to a multitude of different experiences for Irish women. In this talk Pádraig Allen looks at some women of St John Ambulance who contributed to the war effort during the First World War.Recorded at Dublin City Library and Archive on 17 April 2018.Listen back to Pádraig's talk:Pádraig Allen has been volunteering with St John Ambulance Ireland for seventeen years. In 2014, Padraig decided to focus on the organisations enormous efforts during the war and the turbulent period in Ireland. It was then he started researching professionally on Ireland’s oldest first aid teaching charity and in 2015, Padraig founded the St John Ambulance Archives. Since then Padraig has worked on number of centenary projects, lectured on this history of the Brigade, written a number of articles for several newspapers and spoke on RTE about some of the research he has unearthed. His next project includes the role of St John Ambulance during The First World War and The Sinking of the RMS Leinster.He is now volunteer Archivist and Project Manager for St John Ambulance Ireland.

Last October Dublin City Archives marked the centenary of the Russian Revolution of 1917 with a series of lunchtime talks at Dublin City Hall. The talks curated by Francis Devine examined Ireland's political and cultural reaction to the Revolution.  Here you can listen back to two talks from the series. In the first, Donal Fallon examines witness statements from the Bureau of Military History, contemporary newspapers and ephemera to ascertain what the revolution meant to the Irish Left, the Trade Union movement, Sinn Féin and asks who were the Irish Bolsheviks? Then you can listen back to Dr Brian Hanley as he considers how initial support for the Russian Revolution changed to violent opposition to Communism in Ireland.Organised by Dublin City Library & Archive, 138-144 Pearse Street Dublin 2. Courtesy of History.comIreland responds to the Russian Revolution: Backing the Bolsheviks with Donal Fallon, Historian-in-Residence, Dublin City Council. Recorded at Dublin City Hall on 10 October 2017.Donal Fallon runs the Come here to me social history blog and is the author of John MacBride in the 16 Lives series, The Pillar: the life and afterlife of Nelson's Pillar and Come here to me! Dublin's other stories. He presented popular talks and tours as part of the Dublin Remembers 1916 programme and coordinated the My Area in 1916, Mo Cheantar agus 1916 project. Red Scares and Rebels: Ireland and Communism 1917-1937 with Dr Brian Hanley.Recorded at Dublin City Hall on 17 October 2017.Dr Brian Hanley is a historian and author. His publications include The IRA : a documentary history 1916-2005 (2015), The lost revolution : the story of the official IRA and the workers' party (2009) and A Guide to Irish Military Heritage (2004). Thank-you for listening to the Dublin City Public Libraries and Archive Podcast. To hear more, please subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher or SoundCloud. 

(Podcast) 'Live from the Conniving House: Poetry and Music in Eighteenth-Century Dublin' the 21st Annual Sir John T. Gilbert Lecture, was given by Dr Michael Griffin, University of Limerick at the Dublin City Library and Archive on Wednesday, 24 January 2018.