Michael
Collins was born on 6th Oct 1890 at a place called Sam's Cross outside
Clonakilty, Co Cork. He took part in the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin. In
1921 Collins was a signatory to a Treaty bring to an end the war between Britain
& Ireland. This treaty was not to the liking of all Irishmen and a
civil war broke out. Collins had said after the signing "I tell you
early this morning I signed my death warrant". He was killed in an
ambush in Cork in 1923. Prior to the treaty Collins was responsible for
organising resistance to British rule in Ireland. His tactics are said to be the
basis for all Guerrilla warfare.
Eamonn
De Valera was born in Manhattan, New York on the 14th October 1882, son of a
Spanish immigrant father and an Irish immigrant mother. He was a commandant in
the 1916 Rising and had his death sentence commuted because the British
authorities were unsure of his nationality and wanted to avoid an international
incident with the United States. Elected as a Sinn Fein MP for East Clare in
July 1917. He was elected as President of Ireland on the 25th June 1959 at the
age of 76, and held office until the 24th June 1973 having been re-elected on
1st July 1966. He died on the 29th of August 1975 at the age of 92.
Mary
Robinson was elected to office in 1990---a milestone event in Irish
society---not only was she the first woman president of Ireland, she was, at the
time, one of only three female heads of state in the world. She resigned the
presidency on Sept. 12, 1997, 11 weeks short of her full 7 year term, to accept
the position of United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Arthur
Guinness. It was in 1759 that young Arthur Guinness, then 34 and already
experienced brewer, decided to set up business in Dublin. His new premises
covered a mere one-acre at St. James's Gate on the banks of the Liffey. Small
beginnings certainly, but that did not deter Mr. Guinness's ambition, if the
lease is anything to judge by. It was for 9,000 years, at 45 Pounds p.a. The
economic climate of the time did not encourage optimism competition was stiff as
a result of English imports. Yet, inspite of it all, the Guinness brewery
flourished and grew.
U2. Was formed in 1978 by Larry Mullen (drums), Adam Clayton
(bass), The Edge (guitar) and Bono (vocals), while they were all still students
at Dublin's Mount Temple School.
The
teenage U2 made a local name for themselves in their native Dublin and
released a three track EP on CBS called U23 in 1979. In January 1980, a
readers' poll in the Irish rock magazine Hot Press gave U2 the top spot
in five categories. In April, they signed with Island Records and in May
released their first single, 11 O' Clock Tick Tock. Recent Grammy awards
include: Best Rock Group Performance (Achtung Baby), Best Alternative
Album (Zooropa) and Best Music Video, Long Form (Zoo TV Live from
Sydney). U2 have also won five MTV awards and their worldwide record
sales are now in excess of 70 million.
With
their unique blend of contemporary and traditional Irish music, the Corrs, have
established themselves as true originals. On their new "TALK ON
CORNERS," Dundalk, Ireland's favourite sibling quartet-Jim
(keyboards/guitars/vocal), Andrea (lead vocals, tin whistle), Caroline (drums,
bodhran, vocals) and Sharon (violin, vocals)-create a sound steeped in the folk
music of their homeland.