Thomas MacDonagh Weekend Cloughjordan, Co. Tipperary 2-6 May 2019

The Thomas MacDonagh Summer School is a celebration of the heritage and culture of Cloughjordan and the surrounding countryside.

In the General Election of 1918 Joseph, the youngest of the MacDonagh siblings (1883-1922), was elected a Member of Parliament for the constituency of Tipperary North. He took his seat, not in Westminster, but in the first Dáil Éireann, held in 1919. His story continued through the turbulent years of internment and restrictive laws to the guerrilla warfare and reprisals that came to be known as the War of Independence.

In the programme this year the Summer School examines this period while music, Irish language and culture is celebrated through the weekend events.

The opening of the weekend’s events will be held at 9pm, 2 May, on the eve of the anniversary of the execution of Thomas MacDonagh with a candlelight procession from the MacDonagh Museum to the statue of MacDonagh on Main Street, where a wreath will be laid. It will be followed by Seisiún Cheoil in Grace’s Pub.

The Thomas MacDonagh Summer School begins at 10:30 am on Saturday 4th May. Dr. Mary McCarthy of UL has been invited to chair. Advance booking is required; contact Thomas MacDonagh Centre 087 3946862/ macdonaghweekend@gmail.com.