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Itinerary
Aerial View - Battle Aftermath
This unique half day tour retraces the steps of the 1916 Rising volunteers, and in particular their leaders and the signatories of the proclamation. We will assemble at the side of Liberty Hall at the exact point where the volunteers assembled before their march on the GPO. We will proceed through Dublin city centre to the portico of the GPO where the proclamation of the Irish Republic was read by Padraig Pearse, the leader of the volunteers. We will proceed inside the building, visualising with the help of your guide the battle that waged during Easter week. The statue of Cuchulainn is also evident inside the building and we can draw the analogy between his last stand and that of the I rish revolutionaries in the face of overwhelming odds.
O' Connell Bridge looking west along the Liffey
From the GPO, we proceed down the former Sackville Street (now O' Connell Street) to O' Connell Bridge itself and from there your guide will give you an overview of the main battle of the Rising, including the berth of the Helga alongside the Custom House which pounded Sackville Street for days and destroyed the inside of the GPO as we can see above.
Courtyard - Dublin Castle
Moving westwards along the Liffey quays we arrive at Dublin Castle, passing City Hall on the way. For many hundreds of years the castle was the seat of power for the British and it was the site of a fierce battle during the Rising. Indeed, it was here at the castle gate that the first fatality occurred. An RIC Sergeant who confronted the insurgents was summarily despatched on this site.
St. Michael's Arch
Leaving the castle by the western gate, we pass under St. Michael's Arch at Christchurch Cathedral and over the Liffey at the Millenium Bridge. It is only a short distance to Arbour Hill Cemetery, the final resting place of the leaders of the volunteers beneath a mural depicting the Proclamation in Irish and English.
Royal Hospital viewed from its gardens
Further west we pass through the stately grandeur of the courtyard and gardens of the Royal Hospital, now the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA). In previous centuries, and particularly during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, old soldiers from famous campaigns, most notably the Crimean War, resided here during their final years.
Inside Kilmainham Gaol
On the final leg of our journey we proceed along the main thoroughfare of the hospital past Bully's Acre, the reputed resting place of Robert Emmet after his execution outside St. Catherine's Church in Thomas Street. We pass under Richmond Tower on our way to Kilmainham Gaol, site of the execution of the leaders of the Rising. Kilmainham Gaol houses the Gulbankian Award-Winning Museum, personal artefacts from the period, and the subsequent War of Independence and the Civil War. Finally, visitors can experience the eerie silence of Stonebreakers' Yard, site of the executions.
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