Track 1: Harry Boland discusses his family background, his grandfather James Boland, his father, Gerald, and his uncles, Harry and Edmund Boland. Harry Boland was responsible for the introduction of Michael Collins to the IRB and the interviewee recalls his father, Gerald, always distrusted Collins. Track 2: Harry Boland speaks of his family’s involvement in the 1916 Rising – due to the Countermanding Order by Eoin MacNeill, his father, Gerald, had gone home, and could get back into the city only as far as Jacob’s. Harry’s uncles were in the Metropole. Reminiscences about his schooldays, being educated by the Christian Brothers, and the 1916 Commemorations in his school in 1966, are also described by Harry Boland. Track 3: A discussion follows on the original letters written by the interviewee’s uncle, Harry, to Kitty Kiernan. The interviewee describes his memories of his father’s involvement in organising the Fianna Fáil party, being one of the key people in the party at that time. Track 4: The interviewee reflects on Arthur Griffith’s response to the signing of the Treaty, the influence exerted by Frank Aiken over Éamon de Valera during the Emergency, and the visit paid by de Valera to the Boland home when Gerald Boland was dying. An unexpected visit to the Boland home by Richard Mulcahy, who had been Minister for Defence in the Free State Government, is recalled. Harry Boland reads excerpts from letters written by Gerald Boland during his time in Mountjoy Prison, and he points out that some further letters still remain with the Department of Justice. Track 5: Details of the killing of Harry Boland during the Civil War, and memories of the character of Gerald Boland, are recalled. The reasons why Gerald Boland left the IRB after the 1916 Rising are explained. Track 6: Harry Boland describes the funeral of his uncle, Harry Boland, the attendance, and the iconic painting of the funeral by Jack Butler Yeats, RHA. The next generation, and the taking on of the mantle in political life, are discussed. The invitation by Harry Boland (interviewee) to Charles Haughey to join Fianna Fáil when in UCD, and his subsequent candidacy for election, are discussed. Gerald Boland’s military medals, and their importance within the Boland family, are mentioned. Track 7: Harry Boland speaks about his aunt, Kathleen Boland, a member of Cumann na mBan. The funeral of Gerald Boland and the people who attended are recalled. The Arms Trial is mentioned, along with the interviewee’s views of the new and the old IRA and the politics of today. (The arms trials of 1970 constituted a series of trials following the dismissal by Taoiseach Jack Lynch of Charles Haughey and Neil Blaney.)
Harry Boland (b. 1925), Part 1
Harry Boland (b. 1925), Part 1
€10.00 – €20.00
Additional information
Type: | Disk, MP3 |
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Audio series: | The 1916 Rising Oral History Collections |
Bitrate: | 128 kbps |
Download time limit: | 48 hours |
File size(s): | 5.55 MB, 8.85 MB, 8.56 MB, |
Number of files: | 1 |
Product ID: | CD191601-006 |
Subject: | Boland, Gerald and Boland, Harry (Interviewee’s father and uncle respectively) |
Recorded by: | Maurice O’Keeffe – Irish Life and Lore |