5 Top Interesting Historical Events of Dublin

5 Top Interesting Historical Events of Dublin

Dublin Castle
Image: Unsplash

Dublin is the capital of Ireland, the small city is home to the O’Connell Bridge the unique bridge with the same size of width and length! Dublin is derived from the Old Irish Gaelic language, ‘Dubh Linn’, which means Black Pool. The city might be small, but it has about 665 pubs! Imagine that! And, the oldest pub in Ireland Brazen Head which is still operating, opened its doors in 1168! The city’s symbols include The Harp, Celtic Cross, and the Green Shamrock. 

As one of the oldest cities in the world, Dublin sure has some of the most interesting events that have happened over time. Here are some five historical events that will excite you!

1. Foundation of Dublin by the Vikings 

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Dublin was founded by Vikings in 841(10th Century) and named the city ‘The Norse Kingdom on Dublin’. They fortified the city with stone walls in the 11th Century. In 1169, the Norman invasion of Dublin happened at the request of Diarmait Mac Murchada. After the settlement, Dublin grew in leaps and bounds, becoming an important economic and trade hub in Europe. The residents were converted to Christianity after by Ireland’s Patron Saint, St Patrick, whom St Patrick’s Day is named after.

The city at that point was fortified by trenches and earth with a wooden palisade on top. After his death, Strongbow, the earl of Pembroke, succeeded him, but shortly after, in 1171, King Henry II launched an invasion and declared himself Lord of Ireland. During his reign, King Henry VIII wanted to convert his people to Protestantism, which the people were not very thrilled about! In a quest to convert the people, the Trinity College was opened but you had to be a protestant to attend! And then in 1601, during the Battle of Kinsdale, and the English conquest of Gaelic Ireland, there was a decree where only protestants could occupy leadership posts, in what was called ‘The Siege of Supremacy’.

2. The center of the “The Pale”

Image: Wikimedia Commons

In 1172, Dublin was given a charter and made the center of the “The Pale”. The Pale was a strip of land in Ireland that was under the control of the English Kingdom. This was done so that the English crown could have authority over the settlers. The strip stretches from Dundalk in Louth to Bray in Wicklow, became the base of England’s rule in Ireland. 

The phrase ‘beyond the Pale’ is used in Ireland to mean doing things outside the limits of acceptable judgment. It is said that once someone passed ‘the Pale’, they were outside of England’s jurisdiction and therefore were exposed to cruelties of rural Ireland and the inhabitants!

3. The building of the Dublin Castle 

Image: Pixabay

Dublin is a city founded by Vikings in 841. The kingdom was a client state of England and then Great Britain. The kingdom was administered by a viceroy who was appointed by the king or queen from Dublin Castle. The castle was initially a medieval fortress and stood on where the present Upper Castle stands. The castle was used as a prison, a fortress, a treasury, and the seat of the English Administration in Ireland for more than seven centuries! It was built during the reign of King John of England. This castle was built in 1230 and was in very good form until 1684 when a massive fire destroyed a better part of it. Some part of the castle was untouched by the fire and still stand today. The castle was handed over to the Irish government in January 1922 when the British influence in Ireland came to an end as Ireland became an independent state.

The castle was rebuilt in the 17th and 18th centuries and was turned into a Gregorian Palace which now has staterooms and apartments, and most state functions take place there; the presidential inaugurations have been taking place at the castle since 1938. The Chapel Royal was added to the Lower Castle Yard in the Castle in the 19th Century. 

There are guided tours in the castle, where one can visit and experience the State Apartments, Chapel Royal, Heritage Centre, Undercroft, the Craft Shop, and restaurants. 

4. The Dublin gunpowder disaster 

Image: Wikipedia

On 11th March 1597, a shipment of gunpowder barrels was being unloaded by a crane, and as the wooden crane was lifting four barrels towards the quay, 140 barrels resting by the riverside exploded. The explosion demolished up to 40 houses and claimed 126 lives, 1 percent of the population in Dublin at the time. The gunpowder was being transported from the Tower of London to England to supply the English Army which was fighting The Nine Years’ War; a war where the British were trying to assert their power and rule on the island. 

The city after that underwent a massive expansion to have brick buildings replace the mostly wooden structures. 

5. The Siege of Dublin

Battle of Dublin
Image: Wikipedia

The Irish were not having it. They did not want the English rule in Ireland, and they were waging war. The Siege of Dublin happened in 1649 when the Royalist rebellion started and the Irish received a retaliation by the English Amy in what is known as the Siege of Dublin. At that time, the Irish Royalists with the help of the Confederation Forces attempted to recapture Dublin from the English Republican Forces but failed immensely. This was during the War of the Three Kingdoms (British Civil Wars), between England, Scotland, and Ireland. 

Ireland had been under the control of Michael Jones since 1647 and when King Charles I died in battle and England’s gaining of independence in 1649 this changed a lot of things for Ireland. The Duke of Ormonde attempted to seize the part of Ireland that was under the control of the London Parliament but was defeated by Oliver Cromwell. King Charles I had been executed in battle a few months before during the Civil war in England and Oliver Cromwell landed in Ireland with a massive army. He was brutal towards the Irish Catholics who inhabited the Island and who been revolting since 1941. After his defeat during the siege, left for Kilkenny and in August, he went back with troops to launch a campaign which was meant to moderate the Royalist resistance in Ireland. In 1660, Dublin was handed over to royal control after the Irish Restoration.