logo
Exhibition marks 400th anniversary of St Oliver Plunkett's birth

Exhibition marks 400th anniversary of St Oliver Plunkett's birth

RTÉ News​a day ago

The official launch of an exhibition to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the birth of St Oliver Plunkett will take place in Drogheda, Co Louth today.
The exhibition will include a number of artefacts and memorabilia associated with the iconic saint that have never previously been on public display.
St Oliver Plunkett was born in Loughcrew in Co Meath on 1 November 1625 and was ordained to the priesthood in Rome in 1654, having studied at the Irish College in the city.
He later became the Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland and maintained his duties in the face of the Penal Laws when the Catholic Church was being suppressed.
St Oliver Plunkett was eventually arrested and tried for treason in London. He was hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn on 1 July 1681.
His head was rescued by a group of his friends and eventually made its way to St Peter's Church in Drogheda, where it remains today in a specially made shrine.
A series of events is taking place in the town this year to mark 400 years since St Oliver Plunkett's birth, and also the 50 years since his can canonisation in 1975, when he became the first newly-made Irish saint for almost 700 years.
The official launch of the St Oliver 400 Commemorative Exhibition will take place at the Drogheda Civic Offices on Fair Street.
The exhibition will include St Oliver's Crozier loaned from a private collection, the original ebony casing which housed the saint's head and an original coffin plate from the Monastery of St Catherine of Siena in Drogheda.
Other items going on public display are three silver crucifixes attributed to the saint and vestments loaned from St Patrick's Cathedral in Armagh and Mullingar Museum.
The exhibition also includes a large collection of banners, books, coins and a written account of the then archbishop's trial in London in 1681.
Co-chair of the Saint Oliver 400 Community Group, Tommy Burns said: "It is fitting that St Oliver who reformed the clergy, built schools, brought peace and hope to the people is still so fondly remembered in Ireland, and exemplified in this important exhibition in Drogheda, 400 years after his birth."
Meanwhile, local historian Séamus Bellew, who specialises in heraldry and genealogy, said: "This exhibition brings together a rare collection of items, comprising books, brasses and the reliquary that housed St Oliver's head, all from the 17th century and much more besides...a must see."
Thomas McEvoy, Deputy Chief Executive of Louth County Council, said it is important to commemorate the life of St Oliver as his story is one of "resilience and integrity during some of the most turbulent periods in our history."
Mr McEvoy said: "His unwavering commitment to peace, reconciliation, and education serves as a timeless example for us all and the Saint Oliver 400 Exhibition brings this legacy to life in a new and powerful way.
"On behalf of Louth County Council, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the Saint Oliver 400 Community Group who have organised this exhibition here in our Civic Offices in the heart of Drogheda."
The exhibition runs at 'The Exhibition Space' at Drogheda Civic Offices on weekdays until 4 July.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Terror chief ‘Harmless' Harry Stockman on brink of being kicked out of the UVF
Terror chief ‘Harmless' Harry Stockman on brink of being kicked out of the UVF

Sunday World

time23 minutes ago

  • Sunday World

Terror chief ‘Harmless' Harry Stockman on brink of being kicked out of the UVF

Stockman's desperate attempt to save pal Irvine from the chop have backfired and he could be gone within a week The paramilitary leader is said to be staring down the barrel as restless members turn their sights on him after years of corruption and he is set to follow close associate Winston `Winkie' Irvine out the door. Stockman's desperate attempt to save pal Irvine from the chop have backfired and he could be gone within a week. A vote of no-confidence has been called and Stockman will find himself on the outside after years of lining his pockets on the back of the UVF name. His friend Irvine's fate was sealed at a secret Battalion meeting this week and brings to an end a long criminal career and a charmed existence. Irvine, long time commander of UVF B Company in the Woodvale, is a wealthy man, thanks in part to a string of publicly-funded jobs – but more directly as a result of his criminal activities including racketeering and drugs. According to sources, he was also responsible for ordering beatings and forcing people from their homes, all of which made him a hate figure. The British and Irish governments turned a blind eye to his activities in the hope he was the man who could deliver the UVF away from criminality. Now, members of the terror group believe he was the under the control of British security services. This week, the Sunday World can reveal the chain of events that led to Irvine's expulsion and the shake up at the top of the organisation in decades. Irvine is said to be stunned at his expulsion, believing the leadership of Stockman and chief of staff John `Bunter' Graham had his back. But Graham saw the writing on the wall during a meeting of 1st Battalion UVF, attended by Brigade staff, company commanders, and senior members. They demanded Winkie's head and Bunter granted them their wish. With Irvine gone and Stockman likely to follow him out the door it raises fresh questions about the future of Graham himself. After more than four decades as chief of staff he now appears isolated. His ailing health could see him stepping down. Stockman would have been seen as his natural successor but with his fate all but sealed, the smart money is on Shankill commander Sam Austin, according to source. Allegedly the leader of the unit, he is a popular figure and is believed to have been one of the loudest calling for Irvine and Stockman to be expelled. The son of legendary UVF commander, the late Sam 'Pinky' Austin, he is seen as a safe pair of hands and is anti-drugs. He is vehemently anti-drugs having lost his son Dan to an accidental overdose in 2018. Graham had come under pressure in recent weeks to replace Stockman as second in command with Austin but may now step aside completely. Irvine now hasn't a friend in he world. His demise has been a long time coming but was inevitable the moment his MI5 handlers dropped him in 2022, sources believe. That came in the wake of a hoax bomb attack carried out by his UVF B Company and was aimed at then Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney who was attending a cross community peace building event in north Belfast hosted by the John Hume Foundation. Not only did his security service masters not know about it neither did Graham who insisted it had not been sanctioned. Irvine initially tried to dodge the blame claiming it had nothing to do with him and in a meeting with Irish government representative tried to pass the buck to East Belfast UVF and Mid-Ulster UVF. East Belfast at the time was at loggerheads with the Shankill leadership. Stockman went behind Graham's back telling senior figures that he had lost control of rogue elements within the organisation. Betraying Graham was a fatal mistake but even as the net was closing in Stockman tried fiercely for his friend even as details of Irvine's connections with intelligence services and the PSNI emerged during his court appearance and conviction for gun running. Anger remains over the sentence handed down to his co-accused Robin Workman who was ordered to transport a cache of weapons to Irvine. The guns were found in the boot of Irvine's car after the pair were intercepted in June 2022. Workman got five years while Irvine got 30 months and will likely to be out within a year. There is also suspicion around the delay in sentencing the pair and that Irvine's light sentence was influenced by the intelligence services. Last week we revealed that Graham had ordered Irvine was to be left alone to serve his sentence. But without the cover of UVF membership he is vulnerable, particularly as he is sharing a wing with the five people convicted of the murder of Ian Ogle, none of whom have any allegiance to the UVF. Others include Gary Taylor and Nigel Brown serving life for the 2005 murder of schoolboy Thomas Devlin in 2005 both of whom have been stood down and have come under threat from the UVF behind bars. Another is Stephen Brown doing 30 years for the double murders of teenagers Andrew Robb and David McIlwaine in Tandragee in 2000. Attention will now turn to Stockman, a divisive figure. A former shop steward in Shorts he rose to the top of the UVF following the Good Friday Agreement. He was lucky to survive when UVF man Dee Madine stabbed him 10 times in 2011. UVF sources have told the Sunday World a battalion meeting will take place shortly when Stockman's fate will be sealed. Harry Stockman News in 90 Seconds - Tuesday June 10

Closure order served on Dublin food business operating out of car workshop
Closure order served on Dublin food business operating out of car workshop

Irish Daily Mirror

time33 minutes ago

  • Irish Daily Mirror

Closure order served on Dublin food business operating out of car workshop

An unregistered food business in Co Dublin operating out of a shed building which was being used as working car workshop was ordered to close last month by The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI). The FSAI announced today that ten Closure Orders and five Prohibition Orders were served on Irish food businesses during the month of May for breaches of food safety legislation. The closure orders were issued by Environmental Health Officers in the Health Service Executive (HSE) and by officers of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI). Among the food businesses served Closure Orders last month under the FSAI Act, 1998, was Heyba's Kitchen located at Shed A3 Bremore Farm, Flemington Lane, Bremore in Balbriggan. A food safety inspector issued the Closure Order on May 24 after determining that "there is or is likely to be a grave and immediate danger to public health at, in or on the said premises". According to the inspector's safety report, the unregistered establishment was located in a shed building which "was divided in two by a head high fabric curtain where the other half of the shed was a working car workshop". It was also discovered that "the premises and equipment were not clean and maintained in good repair and condition and posed a risk of contamination", while "rodent droppings, dead insects, dirt and dust was evident in the food handling areas". A further four closure orders were served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on: Meanwhile, Five Closure Orders were served last month under the European Union (Official Controls in Relation to Food Legislation) Regulations, 2020 on: FSAI Chief Executive Greg Dempsey warned that all food businesses have a legal obligation to ensure the food they sell is safe to eat. 'The high number of Enforcement Orders in May is disappointing, especially as the type of non-compliances, such as unclean premises and pest infestations, are all preventable where the business has a food safety management system in place and staff are properly trained," he said. Get the latest crime and court stories straight to your phone on our new WhatsApp service. Sign up here

Austria reels from ‘national tragedy' after gunman kills nine at former school
Austria reels from ‘national tragedy' after gunman kills nine at former school

Irish Examiner

time40 minutes ago

  • Irish Examiner

Austria reels from ‘national tragedy' after gunman kills nine at former school

Austria will hold three days of national mourning after a 21-year-old man shot dead eight pupils and an adult at his old high school and injured a dozen more before turning his weapon on himself. Visibly moved at a media conference, the chancellor, Christian Stocker, announced a minute's silence for 10am on Wednesday to start the period of mourning for the victims of Austria's deadliest postwar mass shooting. The attack on Tuesday morning in the southern city of Graz was 'a dark day in the history of our country', an act of 'unimaginable violence' and 'a national tragedy that has shocked us all', he said. The interior minister, Gerhard Karner, said six of the shooter's victims were female and three male. Twelve people had been injured, he said, some seriously. Karner said the presumed shooter, a former pupil at the school who had left before graduating, had acted alone and was among the dead. The mayor of Graz, Elke Kahr, had earlier said that an adult — thought to be a teacher at the school — was among the fatalities. The gunman opened fire in two classrooms, one of which had once been his own, soon after 10am local time (9am Irish time). Police gave the all-clear about 90 minutes later, after a major security operation involving a special forces unit and several helicopters. A police spokesperson told reporters the suspect was a 21-year-old Austrian national who was armed with two weapons that he owned legally, and had no criminal record. His name has not been released. 'Everything else, and many other things have been speculated about at this point in time, is simply speculation,' the interior minister told reporters, adding that no further details would be announced because of the active police investigation. 'Out of consideration for family members, only reliable information will be released to the public,' Mr Karner said. He said nothing concrete could yet be said about the possible motive of the gunman. Citing police sources, the Kurier and Salzburger Nachrichten newspapers said the gunman was carrying two weapons, a pistol and a shotgun, one of them only recently acquired. Police said he had been found dead in a school bathroom. Local hospitals said they were treating 12 people, including two adults and five teenagers, two of whom were in a 'very critical condition' and five with 'serious injuries'. All underwent emergency surgery. Pupils and staff were evacuated from the 400-pupil BORG Dreierschützengasse high school in Graz and the building was thoroughly searched. Students and families were taken care of by crisis intervention teams at a nearby sports hall. The area around the school was cordoned off and public transport was diverted, with all streets around the school guarded by armed police. A Red Cross spokesperson said 160 responders attended the scene, including emergency doctors and paramedics. Mr Stocker said earlier in a statement there were 'no words for the pain and grief all of us in Austria are feeling'. He added: 'Today it's all about compassion. And about being there for one another. In these difficult times, humanity is our strongest force.' Austria's president, Alexander Van der Bellen, said: 'What happened today … strikes our country at the heart. These were young people who had their whole lives ahead of them. A teacher who accompanied them on their journey.' He said nothing could ease the pain felt by 'the parents, grandparents, siblings and friends of the murdered people at this moment', he said, adding that the country 'stood together, to withstand this pain, together'. Austrians own an estimated 30 firearms for every 100 people, making the country one of the most heavily armed civilian populations in Europe. Machine guns and pump-action guns are banned, but revolvers, pistols and semi-automatic weapons are allowed with official authorisation, and rifles and shotguns with a firearms licence, a valid hunting licence or for members of shooting clubs. Mass shootings, however, are rare. In 2020, four people were killed and 22 injured in a gun attack by a convicted jihadist in Vienna. In November 1997, a 36-year-old mechanic shot dead six people in the town of Mauterndorf before killing himself. 'Horrific act of violence' Ms Kahr, the Graz mayor, described the shooting as a 'terrible tragedy'. The Vienna mayor, Michael Ludwig, urged Austrians to 'stand together as a society. Hate and violence must never gain the upper hand. Our response to this must be an even stronger commitment to solidarity and respect.' Several European leaders expressed their condolences on Tuesday. Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he was "shocked and appalled" by the shooting, adding: "Such a horrific act of violence at a school is unconscionable". "My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families, the entire school community and the people of Austria." The EU's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said she was 'deeply shocked', adding that 'every child should feel safe at school and be able to learn free from fear and violence'. The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said schools should be 'symbols of youth, hope and the future', adding: 'It's hard to bear when schools become places of death and violence.' Germany's chancellor, Friedrich Merz, posted: 'Horrific news from Graz. Our thoughts are with our Austrian friends and neighbours and we mourn with them.' Hungary's prime minister, Viktor Orbán, said his thoughts were with victims' families. The Guardian Read More Greta Thunberg arrives in Paris after being deported from Israel

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store