Famous Facts of Ireland,
People and Events

Famous facts of Ireland, facts are not the problem. The problem is however just what facts of Ireland are famous. Just the same as interesting facts about Ireland or famous people of Ireland what exactly makes these facts actually famous. Are they famous within Ireland or facts about Ireland that are famous the world over. Or maybe they are just considered famous by me and nobody else. In any case these famous facts of Ireland are in no particular order or importance. Just a random list of famous facts of Ireland.

famous facts of Ireland, famous people

Theobald Wolfe Tone Irish protestant Lawyer involved in setting up the society of United Irish Men. In 1798 Wolfe Tone was involved in an attempted rebellion against the British. The rebellion failed, Wolfe Tone was captured and sentenced to death. He chose to end his own life.

Charles Stuart Parnell, born in 1846 in Avondale, Co. Wicklow, elected to the english parliment in 1875. Became president of the Irish Land league in 1879. His highly successfull in Land agitation and obstruction of parlimenary business. His career went downhill after being involved in a very public divorce scandal.

Michael Davitt, born in Mayo in 1846, elected to the House of Commons in 1892, but left in 1896, was a driving force in the Fenian movement.

Michael Collins born in 1890, outside Clonakilty, Co. Cork. He was a member of the Irish Republican Brotherhoood and director of Intelligence of the irish Republician Army. Involved in the 1916 Easter Rising . His tactics for doing this are said to be the basis for all Guerrilla warfare. In 1921 Collins was a signatury to the treaty which brought about an end to war for Irish Independence from Britain. The terms of the treaty were to result in a civil war in Ireland and Collins was killed in an ambush in Beal na Bláth, Co. Cork on the 22nd of August, 1922.

Eamon De Valera born in New York in 1882 to a Spainsh father and an Irish mother. He was a commander Easter Rising and was sentenced to death by the British authorities. However unsure of his nationality and not wanting to create an international incident with the United States, his sentence was commuted. Elected as a Sinn Fein representative for East Clare in 1917. President of Ireland in 1959. Re-elected President in 1966. Died in 1975 at the age of 92.

Douglas Hyde was the first president of an independent Ireland.

Mary Robinson became the first female President of Ireland in 1990, one of only three female heads of state in the world.

Mary McAleese succeeds Robinson as President.

Dr. Pat O'Callaghan wins Ireland's first ever Olympic gold medal as an independent nation, he won his gold in the hammer event in 1928 in Amsterdam.

1956 in Melbourne saw Ronnie Delaney win Olympic gold at the 1500 metres an olympic record at the time of 3 minutes 41.2 seconds.

John Treacy wins the World Cross Country Championship in a rain sodden Limerick in 1978

1985 and Clones, County Monaghan man Barry McGuigan defeats Eusebio Pedroza at Loftus road, London. McGuigan is now a successful boxing pundit with Sky Sport.

Stephen Roche wins the Tour de France in 1987.

Dublin native Michael Carruth wins boxing gold at the barcelona Olympics, the first Irishman to win boxing gold.

Michelle De Bruin (nee Smith),swimming , won 3 gold and 1 bronze at the Atlanta olympics in 1996. She was later disgraced when found to be using performance enhancing drugs, although she never had to relinquish her medals.

Cian O Connor won a showjumping gold in Athens but his horse was found to have traces of a prohibited substance and he had to relinquish his medal.