Dan Mulhall paid tribute to Casement and fallen WW1 soldiers, writes Gerry Molumby
Irish ambassador Dan Mulhall visited Nottingham for the first time to commemorate Roger Casement’s role in the 1916 rising, and his subsequent legacy in modern human rights.
Mr Mulhall met members of the Irish Communities from Derby and Mansfield during a lunch at the Galleries of Justice before exploring the city’s Roger Casement which showcases his life and legacy.
Speaking on local BBC Nottingham and TV he said:’This year is the centenary of the Easter Rising and it has been a year in which we in Ireland have developed a new understanding of our history.
We realise that our history runs through the Easter Rising but it also runs through the battlefields of the Somme.
It is great to be able to do something on the same weekend here in Nottingham about Roger Casement and on Sunday recognise those who died in British uniform but were Irish nationalists who fought and died for Ireland on the battlefields of the Somme.’
The Galleries of Justice hosts (sic) the the exhibition which derails the life, crime, trial and subsequent legacy of Roger Casement, who was convicted of High Treason for his part in planning the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin.
Ambassador Mulhall said he was ‘very impressed’ by the museum, which is housed in what was once a Victorian courtroom, prison and police station.
He said:’It has such great connections with Ireland. In particular, it is very moving to be here and to see the dock where Roger Casement, along with Oscar Wilde, was tried.’
After meeting local dignitaries he gave a speech in the courtroom on Casement which was followed by a re-enactment form the treason trial of 29th June 1916 by Gerry Molumby (Triskellon Theatre) and actors from the museum.
Deirdre O’Beirne from Nottingham Irish Studies spoke on the Sherwood Foresters and their role in the Battle of Mount Street Bridge on Easter Monday 1916.
The event was organised by Tim Desmond (CEO) by Tim Desmond (CEO) and Bev Baker (Curator) in collaboration with Gerry Molumby.”
ONE CRITIC SUGGESTED THAT THE AMBASSADOR, CURATOR,ACTORS AND COLLABORATORS NEXT VISIT PENTONVILLE PRISON AND GET THEMSELVES BLOODY WELL HUNG.(only joking)
The piece above is a verbatim* account from THE IRISH WORLD (London) 19 NOVEMBER 2016
*except for the joke
Speaking of Perfidious Albion ,Casement said”They have no conscience when it comes to collective dealing….Collectively they are a most dangerous compound and form a national type that has no parallel in humanity”
Charles E. Curry, Sir RogerCasements Diaries( Munich, 1922), p 132; quoted in Charles Callan Tansill , America And The Fight For Irish Freedom :1866-1922 ; 1957,
p 182
Beachboy, thanks. I did not know there were Casement diaries published in 1922. Jack
I don’t know when Casements diaries were published.
If you look carefully you will see that at page 182 of Professor Tansills book published in 1957 he quotes from Currys book published in 1922. I have not seen Currys book.
And whether the quote is accurate or not I cannot say. But I am sure many would agree with it.