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The Gaelic League & The Hill of Uisneach by Angus Mitchell
Westmeath Archaeological & Historical Society Presents
The Gaelic League & The Hill of Uisneach (1906-1913)
A Lecture by Angus Mitchell
This will now be an online lecture – see link below.
Angus Mitchell is a historian who has lived in Ireland for over twenty years. He has published extensively on the War of Independence and his work has focussed on the contribution of Protestant dissenters to the shaping of the Irish revolution. He is a regular contributor to both History Ireland, the Dublin Review of Books, and Ríocht na Midhe.
In 2023/24 he was awarded a Royal Irish Academy Bursary to carry out research into the Hill of Uisneach between 1898 and 1928.
Online Zoom Link: Click to Start Lecture
Due to unforseen Circumstances this lecture will now be broadcast live on Zoom on 25th September 2024 at 8pm. click the link above.
The Gaelic League and the Hill of Uisneach
Over three consecutive summers between 1910 and 1912, the O’Growney Branch of the Gaelic League in Westmeath organized “Feis Uisnig”.
These feiseannafollowed the structure and programming of similar events held across Ireland at that time. They proved to be an important catalyst in spreading the Cultural Revival throughout the Irish midlands and in awakening broader interest and engagement with the language movement in a relatively remote area.
The intention behind these occasions was to both educate and entertain while deepening a sense of community, unity and national well-being. The local parishes of Tang, Boher, Castletown and Drumraney were connected to the broader national movement and key public intellectuals addressed the gatherings.
Through Uisneach’s portal, Westmeath welcomed many of the leading figures involved in the Revival, notably Douglas Hyde, Eoin MacNeill, Alice Stopford Green, Francis Joseph Bigger, Agnes O’Farrelly, Alice Milligan, Mary Hayden, Arthur Griffith, Patrick Pearse, Ada English, Eamon de Valera and John MacBride.