Washington, DC
SPRINGFIELD – The Easter Rising of 1916 set Ireland on the road to independence and Western Massachusetts plans to mark the event with the help of John Wayne.
A free showing of “The Quiet Man” with Wayne, Maureen O’Hara and director John Ford’s lovingly photographed vistas of the Irish countryside is set for 2 p.m. April 10 at CityStage and is just one of the events Neal and Mayor Domenic J. Sarno announced Friday.
A full list of events, scheduled from Tuesday, March 8 to Sunday, May 22, is attached below. Events include a genealogy workshop, a Catholic mass and the dedication of a memorial garden in Forest Park. PBS television station WGBY will air “The 1916 Irish Rebellion-Three Part Series” at 2:30 p.m. March 13.
Neal, D-Springfield, said the Easter Rising in Dublin has strong and direct ties to this region.
“It has direct parallels and took its inspiration from the American Revolution,” Neal said.
The Irish Declaration of Independence issued by Rising organizers says that the new Ireland is “supported by her exiled children in America”, Neal said.
The Rising took place from April 24 to 29 in 1916 as Britain fought World War I. The revolutionaries’ plan was take significant government buildings in Dublin and elsewhere in Ireland in an attempt to end British rule. They succeed in occupying the general post office in Dublin.
Before the uprising, the last significant rebellion in Ireland had been in 1798.
In 1916, the British used overwhelming including artillery force to end the rebellion.
“It was doomed to fail,” Neal said. “When the uprising began, the British had 400 troops in Dublin. By that Friday, they had 20,000.”
But the British decision to execute those behind the uprising made those people into martyrs and lead to the creation of the modern Irish State .
“Because they stood up to British colonial rule, the Easter Rising also gave rise to independence movements in other British colonies like India and Pakistan,” Neal said.
Springfield officials had previously announced plans to create a Garden of Remembrance in Forest Park to commemorate rising. This garden is t the first of its kind in the United States to honor the rising.
In a news release, Sarno said:
“The city of Springfield is honored to be hosting events commemorating the 1916 Easter Rising. Springfield has strong ties to Ireland, and I encourage all of our citizens and those of neighboring communities to take part in the programs soon to be offered throughout the region. On this 100th anniversary, it is an appropriate time for reflection on the sacrifices made by our ancestors. I believe that all nationalities can relate to the tenets of the proclamation set forth in 1916. And the Springfield community shares with Ireland the objective of achieving the goals set forth in the original proclamation.”
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