After being freshly engaged for just a day, Gerred and I headed up to Dublin to do a little bit of site seeing of Ireland's great city. The morning was spent touring the Dublin Writer's Museum and The Book of Kells at Trinity College's Library, both of which were places I've dreamed of visiting for a long time. Seeing the Chi Ro page was priceless.
The rest of the day was spent visiting historically important buildings of Easter Rising 1916, the battle that began the fight for Irish independence.
Now as probable as it is that I would be visiting the post office for postcard reasons, that was not our primary reason (because yes I did get postcards from here.) The main reason for visiting The General Post Office is because this is where the battle started. The leaders read here from the Proclamation of the Republic and signed it, just as shots were fired. Though, the Irish lost the battle, Easter Rising ignited a spark in the Irish people to fight for their independence. There are still bullet holes in this post office.
Our next stop was Kilmainham Gaol, the jail where the leaders of the 1916 uprising were executed and a long time jail until the end of the Irish Civil War. The only leader of the uprising left alive was Eamon de Valera, who later became the Prime Minister and President of the Republic of Ireland.
This is a peak inside the cell of Nee Grace Gillford. She married Joseph Plunkett, a leader of the uprising, for only 10 minutes before they shot him as she left the room. She later was brought back to the prison years later for being an anti-treatise-ist. She stayed in this very cell where she painted the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus.
Outside, this cross is where they had each of the leaders stand with a sheet of white paper over there heart and were executed.
It was only after the leaders were executed at Kilmainham Gaol that the rebellion began.
Shannon
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