merrion street

As part of the Ireland 2016 Centenary programme official ceremonies to commemorate the executions of the fourteen Leaders of the 1916 Rising will take place between the 3^rd and the 12^th of May at the Stonebreakers Yard, Kilmainham Gaol, Kilmainham, Dublin 8. There will be individual ceremonies to commemorate each execution on the centenary date of the execution and the ceremonies will be attended by a Minister of the Government and relatives of each of the Leaders. Each ceremony will comprise of a number of elements including the reading of the trial documents relating the charge against the accused man, the plea that was entered, the verdict of the court and the witness statements provided. A member of the Capuchin Friars will also attend and deliver a reading from the memoirs of the individual Friar who attended each of the men prior to their execution. There will also be a wreath laying service with a Military colour party; Military Police wreath bearer and a Piper’s lament.  

The dates for the ceremonies are:

3^rd May:  Patrick Pearse, Thomas Clarke, Thomas MacDonagh

4^th May:  Joseph Plunkett, Edward Daly, Michael O’Hanrahan, William Pearse

5^th May:  John MacBride

8^th May:  Con Colbert, Eamonn Ceannt, Michael Mallin, Sean Heuston

12^th May: Seán MacDiarmada, James Connolly

Speaking in relation to the commemorations the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys TD said: “These ceremonies will be deeply personal occasions for the relatives of those who were executed 100 years ago. Their deaths led to a change in public opinion on the Rising and precipitated a period of political and social unrest in Ireland which could not have been predicted in the run up to the events of Easter 1916. It is my hope that these ceremonies will provide relatives with a solemn and respectful opportunity to remember the lives of their family members.”

The Minister for Defence also commented saying: “We commemorate the centenary of these solemn events which we contemplate now with the benefit of 100 years of insight and historical reflection.  When Pearse, together with the other Leaders proclaimed a free Irish Republic they paved the way for a free independent Ireland. We in this generation commemorate their memory and honour their commitment to the cause of Irish freedom.”

ENDS