Category: History

1916 Easter Rising – For the Curious: A Play in Dublin and Short Films in Cork

There are two events taking place this week which the curious Irish person or visitor to Ireland will find interesting at this time of commemoration of the 1916 Easter Rising:

The Secret Meeting

The first is a play performed by the Dublin Lyric Players about a little-known, unminuted, secret meeting between James Connolly and the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB). James Connolly “disappeared” for three days on the 19th January 1916, and his colleagues and associates thought he had been abducted by the British authorities. In fact, he was taken to a meeting with the IRB leadership which included Patrick Pearse.
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Amazing Video of Berlin & Potsdam in July 1945

If you’d like to visit Berlin today, check out this link for Things to do in Berlin and to see the sights or get a guided tour.

If you’d like to see a fascinating colour video of what Berlin was like at the end of World War 2, view this video. They have come a long way.

Busy with Recovery

Human chains clearing rubble. Berlin 1945The scale of the destruction is enormous, yet people are busy at work. People aren’t waiting for things to be done for them, but are getting on with clearing the rubble and rebuilding. Such spirit!

This video of Berlin & Potsdam in July 1945 contains footage taken from an airplane flying over Berlin as well as street scenes filmed from a road vehicle as it drives through the city. One can see people busily going about their business, and clearing rubble from the many collapsed buildings. The scale of the destruction is truly shocking and the immensity of the rebuilding task facing the inhabitants becomes clear as we see street after street and block after block of bombed-out, collapsed and burned buildings.
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