The Dublin Festival of History is coming to Richmond Barracks!
The Dublin Festival of History is an annual festival with free events like walks, talks, tours, screenings, and more. The festival provides people in the city with an opportunity to listen, discuss, and engage with topics explored by best-selling Irish and international historians.
There will be talks, guided walking tours and children’s workshops taking place in Richmond Barracks as part of the festival. These talks will cover a range of topics from poetry to distilling to immigration and more. Our children’s workshops aim to make children familiar with history in fun and engaging ways, like encouraging children to create timelines of their lives or testing their history knowledge with an escape room.
In 1969, while still a schoolboy, Gerard Smyth published his first poems in The Irish Press. It was the beginning of a life in poetry that led to friendships with many poets, including Thomas Kinsella and Michael Hartnett. In this special event with Smyth, part poetry reading and part reminiscence, he will talk about how poets share an ongoing dialogue and influence each other, or as poet Billy Collins called it, “the great conversation” between poets.
Join researcher and writer Sean J Murphy for this talk about the history of Irish whiskey. Until the late nineteenth century Irish whiskey enjoyed a golden age before going into decline. In our time, Irish whiskey has staged a remarkable revival and there are now about 50 distilleries in Ireland, with four in Dublin.
This talk brings together researchers Dr Sarah Arnold, Dr Ciara Chambers and Dr Denis Condon to showcase their ground-breaking work on Ireland's cinematic heritage. Supported in the past by funding from the Irish Research Council (now Research Ireland), their research explores how archival film can deepen our understanding of Irish cultural identity and media history. This event invites audiences to engage with rediscovered footage, critical insights, and conversations about the evolving relationship between archives, screen culture, and public memory. Join us for a compelling journey into Ireland’s film past and its relevance for contemporary audiences.
The 1935 Citizenship & Nationality Act allowed for Irish citizenship to be granted to foreign nationals who had made Ireland their home. Dr Martin Molony tells the stories from the National Archives files of those who joined the new State and contributed to its cultural, economic and political establishment.
Comics Kevin Larney and Jason Brennan take turns delving into bizarre stories from the annals of Irish history on this popular Irish podcast. Fresh from their sell out national tour in 2024, where they covered topics like Tom Crean and William Desmond Taylor, they'll be bringing a brand new story to the fore on their Festival of History debut.
We are running bilingual walking tours on Saturday 4 October, as part of the Dublin Festival of History. Everyone is welcome - learning or líofa! These tours will be free, but booking is essential. All tours leave from Richmond Barracks.
Beidh leagan dhátheangach ar ár dturais siúil threoraithe Dé Sathairn an 4ú Deireadh Fomhair. Fáilte roimh chách - learning nó líofa! Beidh na turais seo saor in aisce. Imíonn gach turas ó Dhún Richmond agus tá áirithint riachtanach.
Two tours are available:
Goldenbridge Cemetery is Ireland's first garden cemetery and was founded by ‘the Liberator’ Daniel O’Connell almost 200 years ago.
Visitors will be guided through this unspoilt cemetery and learn about its unique history, including the vaults, the armed guards, the Cuban bloodhounds, the body snatchers and the people buried in the historically significant and interesting graves within its walls.
Walk in the footsteps of the 1916 leaders as they went to their deaths in Kilmainham Gaol following a cursory court-martial at Richmond Barracks. Along the way you will hear of local poets and poetry.
Learn about the police and military riot on Emmet Road during the 1913 lock-out and how six young lads from Inchicore fought for democracy in the Spanish Civil War. You will hear of the malevolent doings of the Sham Squire and how ‘Carey told on Skin the Goat’.
Solve the puzzles inspired by the history of Richmond Barracks. Join Historian in Residence for Children Dervilia Roche, and see if your team can be the first to find their escape key.
Piece together the history of our building by exploring the Richmond Barracks timeline. Join Historian in Residence for Children Dervilia Roche, and create a timeline of your own life, your family, or anything else!
The Dublin Festival of History provides people with a wonderful opportunity to explore history, heritage and culture in neighbourhoods across Dublin, not just Richmond Barracks. Visit the website for a full list of the festival’s 250+ events taking place from 26 September to 12 October.
The Dublin Festival of History is brought to you by Dublin City Council, and organised by Dublin City Libraries in partnership with Dublin City Council Culture Company.
Posted 23 Meán Fómhair 2025
Tagged with: News