Glasnevin cemetery - The History
The largest cemetery in Ireland, embodies the history of Ireland through its story & the famous men & women buried here. It has acted as Ireland’s National Cemetery & is the final resting place of those who have helped shape modern Ireland.
It first opened its gates in 1832 after a series of events prompted Daniel O'Connell to establish a burial place for the Catholic nation of Ireland.Prior to the establishment of the Glasnevin Cemetery, Irish Catholics had no cemeteries of their own in which to bury their dead & as the repressive Penal Laws (enforced on the Irish since the 17th century by the British) placed heavy restrictions on the public performance of Catholic services, it had become normal practice for Catholics to conduct a limited version of their own funeral services in Protestant cemeteries.
This practice continued until an incident at a funeral held in Dublin provoked public outcry when a Protestant sexton reprimanded a Catholic priest for proceeding to perform a limited version of a funeral mass. The event was the final blow to the humiliation of the Catholic population. The outcry prompted Daniel O'Connell, champion of Catholic rights, to launch a campaign & prepare a legal opinion proving that there was actually no law passed forbidding praying for a dead Catholic in a graveyard. O'Connell pushed for the opening of a burial ground in which both Irish Catholics & Protestants could give their dead dignified burial.
With the passing of the 'Act of Easement of Burial Bills' in 1824, a committee was formed to administrate the proposed cemetery. A small plot of land had been acquired for this purpose at Goldenbridge, Dublin but soon proved insufficient. After some investigation, a second site amounting to nine acres, was bought at Glasnevin - to be named Prospect Cemetery. The land was consecrated by Monsignor Yore in September 1831 & its first internee, a Michael Carey from Francis Street, Dublin, was buried in February 1832. Glasnevin Cemetery, as it is now known, has grown from its original 9 to over 120 acres. Approximately one and a half million men & women are laid to rest there
Body Snatchers
The cemetery itself is enclosed by a medieval style wall. Ten watchtowers stand overlooking the grounds. The towers were erected during the 19th century to deter body snatchers. These Bodysnatchers, or 'Sack-em-ups', made a living from stealing fresh corpses and selling them on to the medical profession for dissection. Only with the passing of the Anatomy Act of 1832 (which allowed for the donation of bodies to medical science), did these activities subside
Walking Tour
The tour lasts one and a half hours & takes the graves of Daniel O'Connell, Charles Stewart Parnell, Eamon DeValera, James Larkin, Maud Gonne MacBride, Countess Markievicz, Ann Devlin, Brendan Behan, Michael Collins & many other graves of interest.
The tours take place daily,including Sundays & bank holidays, at 14:30 & costs €5.
All enquiries & bookings can be made by telephoning the Cemetery at: (01) 8301133.
Recent History
On 26th Sept '07 during the deconstruction of the 1916 Sigerson Memorial in Glasnevin Cemetery, workmen found a time capsule buried in in the masonry of the memorial. Made of indestructible lead, it was found in a stone canopy covering a beautiful sculpture — reminiscent of Michaelangelo’s famous Pieta — by the late nationalist Mrs Dora Sigerson Shorter.
Cylindrical in shape, it measures three and a half inches in width and two feet in length and has lead caps soldered on either end. It may have remained unfound for many years only as the memorial was in a pretty bad state, with shrubs and grass growing out of the roof, it was decided that In order to restore it, it had to be disassembled with the roof taken off the canopy which is where the long lead cylinder was found in the stonework.
After much debate, the cylinder was replaced (unopened) back in the statue, after a search of government records revealed it contained a vellum parchment listing all those who died in the Easter rebellion of 1916 (which is commemorated by the monument). But as the cylinder wasn't opened, is that really what's inside it...
The above information & more can be found at:
www.independent.ie
www.glasnevin-cemetery.ie
Please stick to the paths in the graveyard. There is no need to disturb the graves to retrieve the cache