Michael Collins

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John Daly Opinion A century on, the shot that killed Collins still reverberates

The past is another country, and one that arrives to mixed emotions in this summer of 2022. In six weeks’ time, the centenary of one of the most divisive moments in Irish history will confront us – and awaken a dormant enmity some might have thought had long ago expired. No chance.

Obituary: Jim Fitzpatrick, lawyer, newspaper proprietor, promoter of peace and consensus in Northern Ireland

James (Jim) J Fitzpatrick, who has died at the age of 92, was an important figure over many years in the media and politics of Northern Ireland. He was born in Belfast on July 15, 1929, a son of prominent solicitor James F Fitzpatrick and Ann (née Boylan), a schoolteacher from Ballybay, Co Monaghan. Jim was one of eight children .

Half a copy of the 1916 Proclamation ripped from printers by British troops sells at auction for €15,000

Half of a Proclamation of Independence from 1916, ripped from the printing frame by British troops after the failure of the Easter Rising, has sold at auction for €15,000.

Assassins’ bullets on a London street led Ireland down the long and bloody road to Civil War

On June 22, 1922, British Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson unveiled a memorial at Liverpool Street station in London to the 1,200 men of the Great Eastern Railway Company who had died in the Great War.

Saluting the historic handover of Dublin barracks 100 years on

‘Nice uniform, mate,” was how Irish Army officer James Dolan was greeted by his admiring British counterpart, as they prepared for the handover of what was then known as Portobello barracks in Dublin.

Letters to the Editor Opinion Food security should be front and centre in UN messaging

The devastating damage caused by explosive weapons, especially when used in places where many people live, is evident each night on our television screens.

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John Downing Opinion The Irish pub can offer warmth and cheer, as I was reminded in Vienna this past week

My “favourite Irish pub” in Brussels, way back when, was run by a Moroccan Jew and his Danish girlfriend. I say favourite because it was – by a country mile – the most spurious, un-Irish hostelry I have ever encountered.

Colin Murphy Opinion Anglo-Irish Treaty lessons could point a way forward for Russia and Ukraine

History haunts our understanding of the war in Ukraine. As Financial Times columnist Simon Kuper put it: “There’s one thing that Ukrainians, ordinary Russians, Vladimir Putin and westerners all have in our heads during this conflict: the Second World War”.

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What Lies Beneath: Shining a deserved light on an artist and friend of the poor

Sarah Cecilia Harrison Self Portrait

The quiet man who makes great art in a room above a sweet shop

A dapper but retiring man, the artist Patrick Reel lives with his sister Esther in a big, rambling three-storey Georgian house on the corner of Ludlow Street and Church Hill in Navan, Co Meath.

Letters to the Editor Opinion Our many decent men must not be blamed for society’s ills

Sir — As the wife of a decent man, mother of two good sons, sister of a man of integrity and aunt of eight kind and upright nephews, I feel compelled to write in defence of men.

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Yes, there is the tragedy of partition but tomorrow marks the centenary of something we can be proud of

These days it is probably better known as the venue for the nation’s newer official hobby of holding tribunals of inquiry. But from 1204, when the English King John first ordered its construction, until January 16, 1922, Dublin Castle was the hated centre of British rule in Ireland.

Letters to the Editor Opinion Border was fault of decision by UK’s imperial parliament

In his letter of January 10, Pól Ó Deoráin, who was born in Northern Ireland, tells us he “sees nothing to shout and be pleased about” in relation to how this country has progressed since independence.

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John Daly Opinion The Big Fellow’s presence will be felt by us all in 2022

WHEN the story of 2022 is written in 12 months’ time, it’s likely one name will tower above all others. Michael Collins – who continues to elicit admiration and aversion a century after his death – will likely stride boldly through the headlines of the coming year. Not even Covid will match The Big Fellow’s grasp upon the nation’s collective imagination.

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Political almanac 2022: The ‘nu’ variant, pigeon English and a united Ireland – of sorts

THE political year ahead will be dominated by Covid-19 (again), Brexit (again), Sinn Féin hogging the polls (again) and the Coalition parties squabbling internally (again).

Truce to Treaty Part 8: After Dáil majority approved peace plan, de Valera threatened bloodshed

On January 7, 1922, Dáil Éireann approved the Anglo-Irish Treaty, by 64 votes to 57. On June 16, 1922, voters, in a general election in the 26 counties, firmly endorsed its decision.

Taoiseach rules out any official inquiry into who shot Michael Collins

A historical state inquiry to establish definitively who was responsible for the assassination of Michael Collins at Béal na mBláth in Co Cork nearly a century ago has been ruled out by the Taoiseach.

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Frank Callanan obituary: Renowned senior counsel, prolific writer and Fine Gael trustee who was also ‘the most entertaining of companions’

Like a character written by his beloved James Joyce, Frank Callanan went on his final journey through the Georgian streets of Dublin with pomp and style, his wife Bridget leading a large and distinguished funeral procession from their home in Fitzwilliam Square for requiem mass in St Andrew’s Church, Westland Row.

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Gerard O’Regan Opinion Bon-bons from Harrods sharpened the taste for freedom

Maybe it was the sombre winter gloom of a late London evening, but standing outside 22 Hans Place on Monday, one could touch a thread in our history from 100 years ago.

Colum Kenny Opinion Truce to Treaty Part 7: They did not ‘sign the Treaty’ so London agreement left Dáil free to say yes — or no

The final days of the Treaty talks were chaotic. They included a mad dash back to Dublin, and a long last session with the British that stretched past midnight.

Tortuous Anglo-Irish Treaty talks come to life with a human touch

The Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921 has been picked over repeatedly these past hundred years. It brought to an end one form of hostilities but divided Irish politics acrimoniously and led to civil war.

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Truce of 1921 ended war, but opened door for IRA and British intelligence

AS THE Decade of Centenaries series of events navigates its way towards the more troubled Civil War period of our nation’s history, we reflect on life during one of the more relatively peaceful periods of the 1919-23 period.

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Colin Murphy Opinion Big Tech’s engines of discontent must be curbed if civil society is to survive

One hundred years ago tomorrow, the Treaty negotiations began in London. That Treaty was the most polarising event in Irish history. So why does it often feel like public discourse has never been as polarised as now?

Truce to Treaty Part 5: Irish cheer talks, optimism in London

Thousands of Irish emigrants thronged Euston railway station in London. They came to support negotiators arriving by train from Holyhead. Bands played The Soldier’s Song and marched behind cars carrying Treaty delegates through cheering Irish crowds.

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Roslyn Dee Opinion History of big events can be found in the smallest items

It was the silver cigarette case that kept drawing me back. Twice I walked away from the glass display case in the National Museum and twice I went back.

Truce to Treaty Part 3: Pragmatic Dev views partition as inevitable

It was, wrote one reporter, “the most memorable gathering that has been held in Dublin in our recent history”. The post-Truce Dáil met for the first time on August 16, 1921, in Dublin’s Mansion House. In a “pitiless downpour”, members of the public queued to be admitted and many had to be turned away. Inside a crowded Round Room, the new TDs stood up. They recited together an oath to “support and defend the Irish Republic”.

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Frank Coughlan Opinion The lost leaders who could have made all the difference

There is a decency about eulogies that sometimes compensates for their lack of honesty or precision. Almost everyone deserves that little space after their passing, where the good or decent things they accomplished overshadow the bad or the indifferent.

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John Daly Opinion Michael Collins would terrify the fat cats of today

The small boy in me is never far away, and especially when it comes to war and soldiers. So it was last week, on a fine sunshine morning and nobody to answer to, I took a long day’s journey into history.

New 'Young Fella' documentary delves into Collins' Cork youth

A thought-provoking new documentary is set to delve into the life of the 'Big Fella' when he was just a Little Fella', exploring the key events and influences that shaped his short but explosive life.

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‘Political correctness gone wrong’ – descendant of Michael Collins on museum’s ‘ethical’ withdrawal of Collins’ bloodstained cap from shooting

The Minister of State responsible for the development and upkeep of museums has hit out a decision of the National Museum to withdraw from public exhibition, the uniform hat worn by Michael Collins when he was shot dead at Béal na Bláth .