In this months issue we have a famous ship and a not so
famous woman. Titanic fever has hit struck at last whilst
the woman in question is none other than Grainne Ui Mhaile
(Grace O'Malley) - Ireland's very own warrior princess.
Additionally I can announce that that I am off on my
Summer vacation to San Francisco (the city by the bay)
to visit some relatives so, although our graphic artist
will be beavering away at the family coats of arms images,
I won't be available to answer any of your queries (and
I don't even feel guilty!)
All the very best,
(from an 'I don't care what the weather is like' Dublin),
Michael.
This newsletter is available on-line at:
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......but you'll be missing out!
In this issue:-
~~~~~ Free Resources Focus: SHAMROCK - The Irish Search Engine
~~~~~ News Snaps from Ireland
~~~~~ Titanic - the Irish connection
~~~~~ Grainne Ni Mhaille - The Gaelic Warrior Princess
~~~~~ Get Irish Citizenship
~~~~~ Monthly free competition result
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FREE RESOURCES FOCUS: SHAMROCK - THE IRISH SEARCH ENGINE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Information about Ireland Site hosts a free search
engine dedicated to sites of Irish interest only. It is
unique in that it allows site-owners to:
- add and update their link in real-time
- define their own description
- add an image that will be served whenever
someone selects their engine listing
For the searcher SHAMROCK provides an up-to date repository
of the very best of Irish related sites and allows for
viewing of the complete description of the site as well as
a site image BEFORE the site is visited.
Give SHAMROCK a spin at:
https://www.ireland-information.com/engine
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THE TITANIC AND IRELAND
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Titanic was built at the Harland and Wolff Shipyards in
Belfast in Northern Ireland in 1912. It was 882 feet long
and had a gross tonnage of 45,000 ton. It was the worlds
biggest boat.
Owned by The White Star Line who intended employing the ship
(as well as the Olympic - the sister boat) for transatlantic
traffic between Europe and America. The White Star Line,
owners of the Titanic, and also the builders, Harland and
Wolff, never publicly stated that the Titanic was unsinkable.
Despite carrying a maximum capacity of over 3200 passengers
and crew the ship was only equipped with 16 lifeboats and a
handful of life rafts. In total only one third of all those
aboard could have fitted into the life saving measures.
Passage cost anywhere between 870 and 2 pounds, with the
majority of passengers third class) opting for the cheaper
fare.
Splendour abounded on board the magnificent vessel with some
of the rooms even having fireplaces that burned coal in the
siting room, and gigantic beds in the bedroom. Huge 500 feet
promenades demonstrated the sheer scale of the boat.
Captain at the maiden voyage was E.J. Smith who had sailed
over two million miles for The White Star Line who had
complete confidence in him. The Titanic was to have been his
last voyage before retirement.
Some 63 males and 60 females boarded the giant ship at Cobh
at the very South of Ireland. The people of Cobh erected a
memorial to the Irish victims of the voyage. The memorial
was unveiled in 1998 by Liam Birke, T.D., who was the nephew
of one of the deceased passengers, Jeremiah Burke. The
monument features the Rice family, all six of whom perished,
along with 70 other passengers who boarded at the Cork port.
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NEWS SNAPS FROM IRELAND
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
IRELAND V YUGOSLAVIA MATCH ABANDONED
In a surprisingly pro-active stance taken by the Irish
Government, the Ireland versus Yugoslavia soccer match due
to be played in Dublin on June 5th. was abandoned as the
Serbs were refused travel visas and could not enter the
country.
It is possible that the Irish Soccer Association may now
face sanctions, possibly as much as being thrown out of
the European championships but more likely a hefty fine.
Ireland defeated Macedonia 1-0 in Dublin on June 9th which
puts the Irish team on top of their group and well placed
to qualify for the finals due to be played in Belgium and
Holland next year.
FREE INTERNET ACCESS FOR FIRST TIME IN IRELAND
Much to the dismay of traditional Internet Service
Providers, Ireland now has free Internet access thanks to
Ocean Technologies. The Oceanfree.net service offers
services of a type similar to those that have been offered
in the UK for some time now. Further deregulation of the
telecommunications market should ensure even more players
in the freenet market with Gateway Computers already
announcing that they intend to be offering free services
by early next year.
PICTURES OF POLITICAL CANDIDATES TOP APPEAR ON BALLOT PAPERS
A former 'Mayo person of the year' nominee by the name of
Ernie Sweeney has ensured that all European elections
candidates will have their photographic image alongside
their names on the ballot papers. This has been the norm
in Europe for some time and has been introduced by the Irish
Government on a pilot basis. The purpose is to assist those
with literacy problems to make an informed choice. It has
been suggested by some observers that a Ouija Board might be
a better aid for the Irish electorate.
RELIGION TO BECOME A SCHOOL EXAMINATION SUBJECT
Religion is to be part of the examination process starting
from next year. Students who excel in the subject can get
'points' that go towards the acquisition of College and
University places. This development has the support of the
Catholic, Protestant, Jewish and Muslim faiths. It is
intended that the curriculum will provide for an
understanding of the diversity of different religions as
well as an understanding of the non-religious way of life.
FATHER FINED FOR SLAPPING HIS SON
The Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children
has welcomed a court ruling in which a Galway man was fined
IR£100 for severely slapping his 4-year old son across the
face.
ISPCC director of services Paul Gilligan agreed with the
Court when it had viewed the incident as an assault.
'There is an exception in current law where a physical
assault can be justified as reasonable punishment and
used as a defence. We are looking for that to be changed,'
he said.
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GRACE O'MALLEY - GAELIC WARRIOR PRINCESS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ireland's contribution to female heroines includes
the 16th-century Grainne Ni Mhaille who was known as
the 'Queen of the Irish Seas'.
She was called Mhaol (meaning 'cropped hair'),
but was called Grace O'Malley by the English. Born in the
Province of Connacht, Grainne married and had 3 children
before she commenced her famous career on the high seas,
marshaling 3 pirate ships and up to 200 men as she opposed
the English attempts to remove her.
Her husband was an O'Flaherty who was executed by Queen
Elizabeths colonists who attempted to completely subjugate
the Irish way of life. In 1556 she married again, this time
to Iron Richard Burke and had a son named Tibbot. Captured
and jailed for 2 years she returned to her homeland in
Connaught to continue her defiance.
In 1558 Elizabeth I pardoned her in an attempt to bring
peace to the region but his attempt failed as the local
English administrators continued to goad the woman who had
been a thorn in their side for years. They even interned
her son and brother despite Elizabeth I instructing that
they be released.
Fighting was her only means of survival and this she did
until the Irish defeat at the Battle of Kinsale in 1601
checked her dominance. She died in 1603 and has since
been, to a large degree, overlooked as a genuine heroine
of Irish history.
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GET IRISH CITIZENSHIP
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Getting Irish Citizenship has a number of advantages. For a
start you will be able to pass Customs within the European
Union much easier than before and if you are interested in
working within the EU then having a passport of an EU country
will make things a lot easier. There are potential Health and
Welfare benefits also.
Eligiblity: If you have 1 or more Irish born parents then
you are automatically considered a citizen and can apply for
a Passport straight away. A person will be eligible if one of
their grandparents was Irish and possibly even if one of
their great-grandparents was Irish. You can also apply for
citizenship if you are the child of a naturalised Irish
citizen, providing you were born after your parent was
naturalized. Marrying an Irish citizen is another route
whereby citizenship may possibly be obtained.
If you are a U.S. citizen you can apply directly to
The Embassy of Ireland, 2234 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.,
Washington, DC, 20008, (202) 462-3939 or to any of the
Consulate Offices of Ireland, a full listing of which is
available here:
http://www.irlgov.ie/iveagh/foreignaffairs/embassy/altindex.htm.
Documentation: You will need to supply the long version of
your Birth Certificate and those of any relatives that you
are claiming citizenship through. Marriage and Death
certificates where applicable will be required. You will
also need to provide extensive proof of you own identity
(Passport, Driving License, Work Identification card, etc.).
You will need 2 Passport size photographs.
There is a fee of up to US$179 for adults, US$64 for
applicants under 18 years of age. The hardest part of the
process is collecting the required documentation, especially
the Birth certificates of relatives (Grandparents who may be
deceased, etc.). You will not in any way jeopardise your
currently held Citizenship or Passport status by holding
'dual' citizenship. To get the process started, contact the
Irish Consulate in your country, (details from:
http://www.irlgov.ie/iveagh/foreignaffairs/embassy/altindex.htm).
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JUNE COMPETITION RESULT
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The winner is: karenco@xtra.co.nz
who will receive our new Screensaver '6-pack':
Famous Irish Painters Screensaver
Irish Postage Stamps Screensaver
Irish Authors from the Past Screensaver
Irish Pubs Screensaver
Irish Whiskey Labels Screensaver
Oscar Wilde Screensaver
Well Done! Remember that all subscribers to this newsletter
are automatically entered into the competition every time.
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I hope that you have enjoyed this issue.
Please keep the feedback coming!
Until the next time,
Best Regards,
Michael Green,
Editor,
The Information about Ireland Site.
https://www.ireland-information.com
michael@ireland-information.com
