Dáil Éireann 1919

The first meeting of Dáil Éireann took place in the Round Room of the Mansion House on 21 January 1919. On its 50th anniversary, a lecture by Professor Kevin B. Nowlan reflecting on the first Dáil was broadcast on radio prior to live coverage of the official commemoration.

Listen here to Professor Kevin B. Nowlan.

"Without knowing practically anybody in the county, I was selected and elected"

Ernest Blythe, Robert Barton and James Ryan recall how they were chosen as Sinn Féin candidates for the 1918 election.

"In the summer after the Rising, the country changed"

Public opinion changed greatly between 1916 and the general election of December 1918. Sinn Féin's influence on the farmers, the British Government's attitude to the Nationalist Party, a threat of conscription to the British Army and the execution of the leaders of the Easter 1916 Rising were all to impact on voting. Alasdair Mac Cába, Pádraig O'Keeffe, Richard Mulcahy and Ernest Blythe, who were all elected in 1918, talk about events that increased support for Sinn Féin.

Pupils of Saleen National School Set the Scene at the Mansion House

In a bilingual radio programme for schools from 1969, boys and girls from Saleen National School, Cork, give the results of the 1918 election and explain what took place in the Mansion House on 21 January 1919.

What the Papers Said and What the People Thought

Listen to the comments of British and Irish newspapers from the morning of the first meeting of the Dáil. Professor Liam Ó Briain, who had stood for election in 1918, describes the mood of the people on that day. He remembers people being unsure of what to expect whether they were hostile or loyal.

"I was wedged underneath one of the big white statues..."

Máire Comerford came up from Wexford to witness the first meeting of the Dáil. She recalls what little it was possible to see and hear of the events. She also attended a social gathering afterwards.

"Fé Ghlas ag Gallaibh"

Seán Nunan was one of four clerks managing proceedings at the first meeting of the Dáil. Nunan's main duty was to answer the roll call for those elected deputies who could not attend because they were imprisoned.

"The country was jubilant...highly jubilant"

Joseph O'Doherty, who had been elected for Donegal North, recalls the programme of events for the meeting of the first Dáil and the reaction of the press and the public to the occasion.

Democratic Programme

Three major documents were read at the first meeting of the Dáil, including the Declaration of Independence and an appeal to the free nations of the world to recognise Ireland as a state in its own right. There was also a declaration of social policy. This programme of social intent was largely a Labour Party initiative. It was originally drafted by party members Tom Johnson, William O'Brien and Cathal O'Shannon. The party had not contested the 1918 election.

In these two clips, Cathal O'Shannon, Richard Mulcahy, Seán MacEntee and others give the background to what became known as the Democratic Programme.

Sinn Féin Courts

Conor Maguire, who would later become Chief Justice of Ireland, explains how the courts were set up and describes a break-through land agitiation case in Kilmaine, Mayo.

Live Television Coverage of Dáil Commemoration

The Dáil returned to the Round Room of the Mansion House to mark the 50th anniversary of its first meeting and to honour the surviving members of that Dáil. This was the first time that RTÉ Radio and Television broadcast live coverage of a Dáil session. Eleven of the twelve surviving Sinn Féin deputies attended: Joseph O'Doherty, P.J. Ward, Dr James Ryan, Robert Barton, Richard Mulcahy, Ernest Blythe, Seán MacEntee, Dr Brian Cusack, Alasdair Mac Cába, Pádraig O'Keeffe and Eamon de Valera. Seán Nunan, who had acted as a clerk to the Dáil in 1919, was also present.

90th Commemoration of First Dáil

RTÉ offered live internet and television coverage of the 90th commemoration of the first Dáil on 20 January 2009, when both houses of the Oireachtas met in the Mansion House, Dublin. You can watch the celebrations here:

RTÉ News Special

1919 in Macroom

You can find out more about this period in history and what happened in Macroom, Cork, by listening to the RTÉ Radio One documentary "How Macroom Remembers." Follow the link below.

How Macroom Remembers