Historical Belfast

During the course of this project, The Linen Hall welcomed a range of community organisations to take part in engagement sessions which explored the theme of civil rights ‘then’ and ‘now’. Responses to questions about the idea of civil rights ‘now’ were enlightening and raised many issues; some new and some unresolved.  To help me compare and contrast the campaign for civil rights in the 1960s wit...

Terence O’Neill delivered his famous ‘Ulster at the crossroads’ speech in December of 1968 though it appeared from the events at Burntollet in January 1969 that the people had chosen to continue along the same perilous path as before. The subsequent change in political landscape set the tone for action and reaction to social change for a generation in Northern Ireland.   To help us understand the...

By 1968 the campaign for civil rights in Northern Ireland had moved onto the streets. It was a deliberate decision, inspired in part by global events, particularly the civil rights movement in America.  In order to help us understand better the street politics element of the civil rights movement I have enlisted the help and expertise of Dr Melissa Baird.  Melissa is an historian of modern Irish a...

In November 1966, a public meeting was called to highlight the issue of civil rights in Northern Ireland. This was held in the War Memorial Building in Belfast and the audience was drawn from all sectors of libertarianism in NI. By January 1967, at Belfast’s International Hotel, the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA) elected a 13-person steering committee and 5 broad objectives were...

Despite its structural difficulties, the new state of Northern Ireland continued in relative peace and stability from 1923 until the 1960s. The 1960s, though, were a decade of change both culturally and politically.  The formation of NICRA marked the formal beginning of the civil rights campaign. It was the commencement of a new era for Northern Ireland, albeit a turbulent one. To help us understa...

The concept of civil rights in Northern Ireland is as old as the state itself. Established in 1921, the new northern government inherited a deeply divided and disadvantaged society which its practices only served to deepen for half a century.  To help us understand the complexities of this period I have enlisted the help and expertise of Dr Cormac Moore. Cormac is a resident historian with Dublin...

Using new archival sources and information from some of the relatives of these forgotten activists, in her new book Rebel Women, Margaret Ward gives us a compelling account of the courageous contributions of over fifty women who were members of Cumann na mBan, or who were attached to the IRA between 1914 and 1924 in County Antrim. The book focuses on members of the Belfast branches and of branches...

Did you know that at Carlisle Circus in North Belfast sits a former church building which is on a World Monuments watch list that once featured other iconic sites such as the Great Wall of China and the Taj Mahal?  Well, it’s true. Carlisle Memorial Methodist Church serves as a sober reminder of the Belfast’s architectural legacy and its troubled past. Designed in the Gothic Revival style by noted...

On the outskirts of East Belfast is a house that might be considered as one of the most important houses in modern Irish history; Craigavon House.  Built for James Craig senior in 1870 to the designs of the Waterford-born architect Thomas Jackson it was once a glorious mansion but now sits in a state of semi-dereliction off the Holywood Road. For me, Craigavon House evokes the imagery of the Home...

On the evening of 23 March 1922, in the context of a bloody sectarian conflict that had been raging for almost two years, Owen McMahon locked up his pub on Ann Street with the assistance of his bar manager Edward McKinney. The Capstan was one of several pubs owned by Owen McMahan in Belfast, the others included the International at the corner of Donegall Street, the Century on Garfield Street, and...

More Stories from Belfast City Cemetery is the latest addition to Tom Hartley’s ‘Written in Stone’ series of books that use the story of each of Belfast’s cemeteries to explore the dynamic history of our city and its people. From Catholic to Protestant to Muslim and Jew, from the great and the good to the poor and the destitute, each grave has multiple stories to tell. Since the publication of the...

If any street, area, or location were to symbolise the rampant neglect of our historical landscape then it surely has to be this one. North Street epitomises Belfast’s disregard for its own backstory. At the lower end is the derelict Exchange and Assembly Rooms, once Belfast’s most important building; at the other end is a huge sign on a gable end reminding passers-by that this is ‘The heart of ol...

For this episode I’ve decided to re-trace some of my steps from last year. Early in 2023, while chatting with Eoin Brannigan – Editor In Chief at the Belfast Telegraph – we came up with a plan for a series of articles to feature in the newspaper. The series was directly inspired by Donal Fallon’s brilliant Three Castles Burning book A History of Dublin in Twelve Streets . “Do you think this could...

After a busy couple of months I’m back in the hot seat for Episode 36 and the first of 2024. Joining me for this one is Stuart Bailie. Stuart is a Belfast-based journalist and writer who has been working in the music industry since 1985, writing for the likes of NME, Mojo, Uncut, Q, Hot Press and Classic Rock. He is the author of several books including Trouble Songs: Music and Conflict in Norther...

Just when you thought that we knew everything that there is to know about the 1916 Easter Rising, yet more perspectives continue to seep from the archives and from locations more obscure. A 49-page document, now in the archives of the Linen Hall Library, offers a sensational eye-witness account of the Rising written in long-hand and on Gresham Hotel headed notepaper. It describes the thrilling exp...

'A masterful love letter' is how one reviewer has described the latest book by the prolific Professor Feargal Cochrane. Just when you thought that no more could be written on the history of this place, you'd be wrong, because 'Belfast: The Story of a City and Its People' is a timely and welcome contribution to the past, present and future of the place that many of us call...

On 13th November last year I was on holiday in Rome, on my way to St Peter’s Square in the Vatican City, when news reached me that Dr Eamon Phoenix had passed away. I was aware that he’d been unwell, nevertheless the news left me in shock and disbelief. Eamon was in my thoughts all of that day as I explored the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel. Later, I queued for admission to St. Peter’s Bas...

For this episode I’ve come to St John’s Catholic Church on the Falls Road to meet with the Parish Priest Father Martin Magill. I’m not here to make a podcast episode about the church though, I’m here to find out more from Martin about a project he’s been working on looking at the history of Belfast street names… Support the show

The biggest ship the world had ever seen, constructed by the world’s biggest shipbuilder Harland & Wolff; Titanic was (and still remains) something that Belfast is immensely proud of.  Belfast bore no shame from the tragedy of the ship’s sinking, for it was the blood, sweat and tears of our own that built it. “She was alright when she left here” was our tongue-in-cheek way of saying “We did ou...

Joe Biden, the 46th president of the United States, will begin a five-day visit to the island in Belfast next Tuesday and it got me thinking about previous visits to Belfast by US presidents. There haven’t been many, and you might be hard pushed to name them all, but each have been important in their own way, some more than others, and generally they have all been dominated by one issue; peace for...

When we think of the Dutch and their association with football it immediately evokes images of Johan Cruyff and his iconic ‘Cruyff turn’, Van Basten’s almost impossible goal in 1988, Ruud Gullit’s ‘sexy football’, Ajax winning the European Cup in 1995, and the famous ‘sea of orange’ that accompanies the Netherlands national team wherever they play. It really is a world away from our own domestic f...

The story of the UVF’s dramatic 1914 gunrunning operation at the height of the third home rule crisis is one that has often been told. What is less well-known about the UVF’s gunrunning story, however, is the fate of the man who provided the weapons. Bruno Spiro, a German Jew, was arrested in Hamburg in 1936 by the Gestapo and charged with what were described as “serious allegations”. He was taken...

You would be forgiven for being completely unaware of the rich Jewish heritage that exists in Belfast. Despite being a relatively small community today (less than 100 and still declining…) the Jews of Belfast have left an indelible mark on the history of our city.     For Episode 27 of the Historical Belfast Podcast I’ve been speaking to Steven Jaffe, Director of the Jewish Heritage Project. Link...

For this episode of the Historical Belfast Podcast I visited St. Matthew’s Parish Church, consecrated 150 years ago on 11 March 1872. I chatted with Sam Guthrie (Queen’s University Belfast) who has been busy working on an exhibition about the social history of St. Matthew’s and the surrounding community of the Shankill. Your support on Patreon would be hugely appreciated: https://www.patreon.com/h...

Standing weathered and tall at the Lisburn Road end of Sandy Row is the district’s Orange Hall; now over 150 years old.  Episode 18 of the Historical Belfast Podcast takes a closer look at the history of the hall which has acted as a community centre for generations of people living in Sandy Row. This Sandy Row mini-series is brought to you in collaboration with Belfast South Community Resources a...