Kerry commemoration sees Taoiseach describe Daniel O'Connell as ‘one of the greatest Irish people'

Irish Independent

4 days ago

The Taoiseach spoke at the State Commemoration of the 250th anniversary of Daniel O'Connell's birth at The Liberator's Home, Derrynane House on the Ring of Kerry, on Wednesday afternoon.
The ceremony was attended by Oireachtas members, descendants of The Liberator, such as his great-great-great grandson Daniel O'Connell and great-great-great granddaughter Emily Lenehan, and members of the public, including some of those from the South Kerry Friends of Palestine group.
The Taoiseach delivered the keynote address at the commemoration after speeches from Kerry County Council Cathaoirleach, Michael Foley, Minister of State for the OPW, Kevin Moran, and Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport, Patrick O'Donovan.
Mr Martin spoke as calls for solidarity with Palestine came from campaigners on the Long Beach adjacent to Derrynane House.
'O'Connell showed us his solidarity and inclusive nationalism which sees the strength, not the threat, from robust rules-based cooperation with other nations, which embraces uniqueness of both national identity and a shared European identity,' the Fianna Fail leader said.
'Which sees the need to speak up for the people of Ukraine and the people of Gaza,' he continued.
'At this this tense moment of world affairs, where the values of democracy, human rights, religious freedom and the rule of law are being challenged, the spirit of Daniel O'Connell is important as it has ever been.
'250 years after his birth it is an honour and duty for us to gather here to remember the inspiring story of O'Connell's struggle for the rights of all and solidarity between people and nations.'
Mr Martin began by stating that O'Connell's lasting impact on the history of Ireland and the wider world makes 'this proud son of Kerry one of the greatest Irish people to have ever lived'.
'O'Connell was born into a family which had many resources but which was also part of a wider community defined by experiencing profound discrimination and dispossession,' he said.
'Through an extraordinary life he campaigned for justice, not simply for Ireland but for all people.
'He created the first mass democratic political movement the world had ever seen. In words which resonated with growing force he called for religious freedom, human rights and democracy in countless speeches and in front of crowds of previously unimagined scale.
'And while his campaign for Repeal did not succeed, he showed the spirit and the determination of the Irish people to control their own destiny.'
The Taoiseach, who spoke in Irish and English, said Daniel O'Connell, as a figure who fought to unite the Irish people behind shared values of solidarity and justice, does not represent a distant part of Ireland's history.
'We need to do more to remember and respect the role of O'Connell in the story of the Irish people,' he said.
He said O'Connell was proud to be from South Kerry and Ireland, and his connection to its scenery and people provided the foundations for everything he did in his life.
The Taoiseach said O'Connell became the 'greatest lawyer of his time'.
'Throughout the country he took up the cause of those facing arbitrary courts. He refused to be intimated by the power of the crown,' he stated.
Mr Martin said it would be a mistake to see O'Connell as someone who had only campaigned for his own religion.
'He believed that all members of all religions and in all countries should have the right to fully participate in the professional and political life of the State,' he said.
'He was not looking for supremacy, but equality and respect.'
The Taoiseach said O'Connell and his mass democratic campaign transformed the Catholic Emancipation movement in Ireland and Great Britain.
'After a steadily growing campaign it was a denial which could no longer be resisted' he said.
'The Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829 was no small achievement. It resonated throughout the world and Daniel O'Connell was hailed as a hero by all who believed in liberty.
'People looked to Ireland for inspiration about how to bring together oppressed people and to achieve dramatic breakthrough. There is no comparable example in our history of an Irish leader who had such international infamy.'
Mr Martin said The Liberator was also an icon for the Jewish community of Europe and those campaigning for the demolition of slavery.
'In his campaigns he refused to accept help from those who supported slavery, and he used every available platform to denounce it as a savage institution,' he stated.
'The great abolitionist Frederick Douglass was inspired by his commitment to the cause. And said of O'Connell that he stood in dramatic contrast to those who had no sympathy for the cause of liberty outside their own.'
As part of the event's cultural programme, Emily Lenehan told those present that her famed anscestor and his wife Mary developed Derrynane House as a family home.
'Daniel loved being here. Even at the height of his parliamentary career he returned every September and October to enjoy, as he put it, six or seven weeks of comparative mental inexertion,' Ms Lenehan said.
She said O'Connell welcomed many unexpected and unannounced visitors who came to petition him, seek his advice or avail of his influence.
'While in Derrynane, O'Connell lived, and I quote: 'everyday, all day, fulfilling to perfection the character of a hardy, hospitable mountain chief',' Ms Lenehan said.
Traditional music was provided courtesy of the Binneas Quintet while folk singer Tim Dennehy sang 'Dónall O'Conaill'.
Declan McCarthy performed extracts of speeches made by The Liberator at some of his mass meetings.
The ceremony concluded with the Taoiseach unveiling a plaque and planting a tree with the help of young descendants of O'Connell, Charlotte and Finley Davidson, before the national anthem was sung by Dr Gavan Ring.