The Life & Death of Kevin Barry (1902-1920)

The Life & Death of Kevin Barry (1902-1920)

Kevin Barry’s short life was full of firsts. He was the first person executed since the Easter Rising of 1916 and, as such, the 18-year-old medical student was the first person to be executed in the War of Independence. This story looks at his upbringing between...
George Plant (1904-1942) – IRA Executioner

George Plant (1904-1942) – IRA Executioner

The story of a ruthless IRA assassin of Protestant stock, a man who knew too much about government affairs in the 1930s and early 1940s, and how he was effectively set up for the firing squad. Complete access to all articles on this website for €12 / year...

The Morgan Family – Father Ted’s Forbears

A HISTORY OF THE MORGAN FAMILY – FATHER TED’S FORBEARS A shorter version of this history, written for the Irish Examiner, can be found here. THE KINGDOM OF TETHBAE Like any Irish family worth its salt, the Morgans claim descent from Niall of the Nine Hostages, the...

Holroyd-Smyth of Ballynatray

The Holrod-Smyth family were descendants of the Smyths of Ballynatray. Lady Harriette Holroyd-Smyth was a daughter of Charlotte, Countess of Mount Cashell, whose father was the last of the Smyths to own the property. Lady Harriette & Patrick Fleming Born in...
Barton of Straffan House, County Kildare, and Grove, County Tipperary

Barton of Straffan House, County Kildare, and Grove, County Tipperary

The remarkable tale of the family of ‘Wine Geese’ who, having arrived in Ireland in the last year of Queen Elizabeth’s reign, prospered in the wine trade despite the French Revolution.  They owned the Châteaux Léoville Barton and Langoa vineyards from where some of...