Cnuasach aitheasc ó Chuairt Stáit Uachtarán na hÉireann, Michael D. Higgins agus Sabina Higgins chuig an Ríocht Aontaithe. 8–11 Aibreán 2014
Collected Speeches from the State Visit by President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, and Sabina Higgins to the United Kingdom 8–11 April 2014
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Contents
Clár an Ábhair Tithe na Parlaiminte, Westminster
2
Dé Máirt, 8 Aibreán 2014
Aitheasc na Banríona Eilís, Féasta Stáit, Caisleán Windsor
Tuesday, 8th April, 2014 7
Dé Máirt, 8 Aibreán, 2014
Aitheasc an Uachtaráin Higgins, Féasta Stáit, Caisleán Windsor
11
14
Royal Society, London Wednesday, 9th April, 2014
17
Dé Céadaoin, 9 Aibreán, 2014
Fleá sa Ghildhalla, Londain
Speech by President Higgins, State Banquet, Windsor Castle Tuesday, 8th April, 2014
Dé Céadaoin, 9 Aibreán, 2014
‘Taking Charge of Change’, Imeacht Óige, Halla na Cathrach
Speech by HM Queen Elizabeth II, State Banquet, Windsor Castle Tuesday, 8th April, 2014
Dé Máirt, 8 Aibreán, 2014
An Cumann Ríoga, Londain
Houses of Parliament, Westminster
‘Taking Charge of Change’, Youth Event, City Hall Wednesday, 9th April, 2014
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Dé Céadaoin, 9 Aibreán, 2014
Guildhall Banquet, London Wednesday, 9th April, 2014
Ceiliúradh, Halla Ríoga Albert, Londain Déardaoin, 10 Aibreán 2014
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Ceiliúradh, Royal Albert Hall, London Thursday, 10th April 2014
Compantás Ríoga Shakespeare, Stratford-Upon-Avon
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Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-Upon-Avon
Dé hAoine, 11 Aibreán, 2014
Gildhalla Naomh Muire, Coventry
Friday, 11th April, 2014 31
Dé hAoine, 11 Aibreán, 2014
St. Mary’s Guildhall, Coventry Friday, 11th April, 2014
Clár Chéad Chuairt Stáit Chuig an Ríocht Aontaithe ag Uachtarán na Héireann
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Programme for First State Visit to the United Kingdom by the President of Ireland
Sonraí na BPictiúr
39
Picture Credits
Contents
Clár an Ábhair Tithe na Parlaiminte, Westminster
2
Dé Máirt, 8 Aibreán 2014
Aitheasc na Banríona Eilís, Féasta Stáit, Caisleán Windsor
Tuesday, 8th April, 2014 7
Dé Máirt, 8 Aibreán, 2014
Aitheasc an Uachtaráin Higgins, Féasta Stáit, Caisleán Windsor
11
14
Royal Society, London Wednesday, 9th April, 2014
17
Dé Céadaoin, 9 Aibreán, 2014
Fleá sa Ghildhalla, Londain
Speech by President Higgins, State Banquet, Windsor Castle Tuesday, 8th April, 2014
Dé Céadaoin, 9 Aibreán, 2014
‘Taking Charge of Change’, Imeacht Óige, Halla na Cathrach
Speech by HM Queen Elizabeth II, State Banquet, Windsor Castle Tuesday, 8th April, 2014
Dé Máirt, 8 Aibreán, 2014
An Cumann Ríoga, Londain
Houses of Parliament, Westminster
‘Taking Charge of Change’, Youth Event, City Hall Wednesday, 9th April, 2014
20
Guildhall Banquet, London Wednesday, 9th April, 2014
Dé Céadaoin, 9 Aibreán, 2014
Ceiliúradh, Halla Ríoga Albert, Londain Déardaoin, 10 Aibreán 2014
25
Ceiliúradh, Royal Albert Hall, London Thursday, 10th April 2014
Compantás Ríoga Shakespeare, Stratford-Upon-Avon
27
Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-Upon-Avon 24 Friday, 11th April, 2014
Dé hAoine, 11 Aibreán, 2014
Gildhalla Naomh Muire, Coventry
31
St. Mary’s Guildhall, Coventry Friday, 11th April, 2014
Dé hAoine, 11 Aibreán, 2014
Clár Chéad Chuairt Stáit Chuig an Ríocht Aontaithe ag Uachtarán na Héireann
35
Programme for First State Visit to the United Kingdom by the President of Ireland
Sonraí na BPictiúr
39
Picture Credits
Address by
Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland to the
Houses of Parliament, Westminster Tuesday, 8 th April, 2014
Mr. Speaker, Lord Speaker: Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister: Leader of the Opposition and distinguished guests: I am delighted to be with you today. A Chairde: Tá fíorchaoin áthas orm bheith anseo libh. On the first day of this State Visit, I have been graciously and warmly welcomed by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth at Windsor Castle, and I have come to this place from a poignant and uplifting visit to Westminster Abbey. I am greatly honoured to be the first President of Ireland to address you in this distinguished Palace of Westminster. As a former parliamentarian, honoured to have spent twenty-five years as a member of Dáil Éireann, and a further decade serving in our Upper House, Seanad Éireann, it constitutes a very special privilege to be speaking today in a place that history has made synonymous with the principle of democratic governance and with respect for a political discourse that is both inclusive and pluralist. At the very foundation of British democracy is, of course, the Magna Carta which includes this powerful statement: “To no one will we sell, to no one will we deny or delay, right or justice.” Those beautiful and striking words have echoed down the centuries and remain the beating heart of the democratic tradition. Their resonance was felt
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immediately in Ireland through the Magna Carta Hiberniae – a version of the original charter reissued by the guardians of the young Henry III in November 1216. They are also words which echo with a particular significance when we have so recently seen the adverse consequences of a discourse that regards politics, society and the economy as somehow separate, each from the other; this is a divisive perspective which undermines the essential relationship between the citizen and the State. Today, as both our countries work to build sustainable economies and humane and flourishing societies, we would do well to recall the words of the Magna Carta and its challenge to embrace a concept of citizenship rooted in the principles of active participation, justice and freedom. Such a vision of citizenship is shared by our two peoples. It is here, in this historic building that, over the centuries, the will of the British people gradually found its full democratic voice. It is inspiring to stand in a place where, for more than a century, many hundreds of dedicated parliamentarians, in their different ways, represented the interests and aspirations of the Irish people. Next month marks the centenary of the passing of the Home Rule Act by the House of Commons – a landmark in our shared history. It was also here that the votes of Irish nationalist MPs in 1911 were instrumental in the passage of the Parliament Act, a critical step in the development of your parliamentary system. History was also made here in 1918 when the Irish electorate chose the first woman to be elected to this
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parliament – Constance Markiewicz – who, of course, chose not to take her Westminster seat but, rather, to represent her constituents in our independent parliament, the first Dáil Éireann. Constance’s sister, Eva Gore-Booth, who is buried in Hampstead, had been making, and would continue to make, her own distinctive contribution to history – not only in the Irish nationalist struggle, but as part of the suffragette and labour movements in Britain. Nearly 90 years earlier, the passage of the Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829 was secured by the leadership of our great Irish parliamentarian, Daniel O’Connell. O’Connell’s nationalism set no border to his concern for human rights; his advocacy also extended to causes and movements for justice around the world, including the struggle to end slavery. He was totally dedicated to seeking freedom, as he put it: “attained not by the effusion of human blood but by the constitutional combination of good and wise men.” While O’Connell may not have achieved that ambition during his own lifetime, it was such an idealism that served to guide and influence, so many years later, the achievement of the momentous Good Friday Agreement of 1998. That achievement was founded on the cornerstones of equality, justice and democratic partnership, and was a key milestone on the road to today’s warm, deep and enduring Irish-British friendship. Our two countries can take immense pride in the progress of the cause of peace in Northern Ireland. There is of course still a road to be travelled – the road of a lasting and creative reconciliation – and our two Governments have a shared responsibility to encourage and support those who need to complete the journey of making peace permanent and constructive.
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“The journey of our shared British-Irish relationship towards that freedom has progressed from the doubting eyes of estrangement to the trusting eyes of partnership and, in recent years, to the welcoming eyes of friendship.” Mr Speaker, Lord Speaker:
I stand here at a time when the relationship between our two islands has, as I have said, achieved a closeness and warmth that once seemed unachievable. The people of Ireland greatly cherish the political independence that was secured in 1922 – an independence which was fought for by my father and many of his generation. The pain and sacrifice associated with the advent of Irish independence inevitably cast its long shadow across our relations, causing us, in the words of the Irish MP Stephen Gwynn, to: “look at each other with doubtful eyes.” We acknowledge that past but, even more, we wholeheartedly welcome the considerable achievement of today’s reality – the mutual respect, friendship and cooperation which exists between our two countries. That benign reality was brought into sharp relief by the historic visit of Queen Elizabeth to Ireland three years ago. Her Majesty’s visit eloquently expressed how far we have come in understanding and respecting our differences, and it demonstrated that we could now look at each other through trusting eyes of mutual respect and shared commitments. The ties between us are now strong and resolute. Formidable flows of trade and investment across the Irish Sea confer mutual benefit on our two countries. In tourism, sport and culture, our people to people connections have never been as close or abundant. Generations of Irish emigrants have made their mark on the development of this country. As someone whose own siblings made their home here, I am very proud of the large Irish community that is represented in every walk of life in the United Kingdom. That community is the living heart in the evolving British-Irish relationship.
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I greatly cherish how the Irish in Britain have preserved and nurtured their culture and heritage while, at the same time, making a distinctive and valued contribution to the development of modern Britain. Mr Speaker, Lord Speaker: As both our islands enter periods of important centenaries we can and must, reflect on the ethical importance of respecting different, but deeply interwoven, narratives. Such reflection offers an opportunity to craft a bright future on the extensive common ground we share and, where we differ in matters of interpretation, to have respectful empathy for each other’s perspectives. This year the United Kingdom commemorates the First World War. In Ireland too, we remember the large number of our countrymen who entered the battlefields of Europe, never to return home. Amongst those was the Irish nationalist MP Tom Kettle who wrote that: “this tragedy of Europe may be and must be the prologue to the two reconciliations of which all statesmen have dreamed, the reconciliation of Protestant Ulster with Ireland, and the reconciliation of Ireland with Great Britain.” It is, I think, significant that Kettle refers to “this tragedy of Europe.” We must always remember that this brutal and tragic war laid the hand of death on every country in Europe. Kettle died as an Irish patriot, a British soldier and a true European. He understood that to be authentically Irish we must also embrace our European identity. It is an identification we proudly claim today, an identification we share with the United Kingdom, with whom we have sat around the negotiating table in Europe for over 40 years. We recognise that it has been in that European context of mutuality and interdependence that we took the most significant steps towards each other. Mr Speaker, Lord Speaker: I have been struck by the imposing canvases in this room, these depictions of the Battles of Trafalgar and Waterloo, painted by the Irishman Daniel Maclise. They
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call to mind another famous painting by this great artist that hangs in the National Gallery in Dublin. It depicts the 12th century marriage of Aoife, daughter of the King of Leinster, to Strongbow, the leader of the first Anglo-Norman force to arrive in Ireland. Those nuptials took place in the context of conflict and did not become a harbinger of harmony. Neither was there to be a marriage of hearts and minds between our two islands in the following centuries. Today, however, we have a fresh canvas on which to sketch our shared hopes and to advance our overlapping ambitions. What we now enjoy between Ireland and Britain is a friendly, co-operative partnership based on mutual respect, reciprocal benefit, and deep and indelible personal links that bind us together in cultural and social terms. In the final days of his life, the soldier and parliamentarian Tom Kettle dreamed of a new era of friendship between our two peoples – “Free, we are free to be your friend” – was how he put it in one of his poems. The journey of our shared British-Irish relationship towards that freedom has progressed from the doubting eyes of estrangement to the trusting eyes of partnership and, in recent years, to the welcoming eyes of friendship. I am conscious that I am in the company here of many distinguished parliamentarians who have made their own individual contributions to the journey we have travelled together. I acknowledge them and I salute them, as I acknowledge and salute all those who have selflessly worked to build concord between our peoples. I celebrate our warm friendship and I look forward with confidence to a future in which that friendship can grow even more resolute and more productive. Gura fada a ghabhfaidh pobail agus parlaimintí an dá oileán seo le chéile go síochánta, go séanmhar agus sa chairdeas buandlúite idir Éire agus an Bhreatain. [Long may our two peoples and their parliaments walk together in peace, prosperity and ever closer friendship between Ireland and Britain.] Thank you again for your kind welcome. Go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.
Speech by
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth ii at the
State Banquet, Windsor Castle Tuesday, 8 th April, 2014
Mr. President: Prince Philip and I are delighted to welcome you and Mrs. Higgins to Windsor Castle. The Castle was founded by William the Conqueror almost a thousand years ago. And a thousand years ago this very month, across the Irish Sea, Brian Boru, the most celebrated of Ireland’s High Kings, lost his life at the battle of Clontarf. Yet, despite ten centuries of intervening history, Windsor Castle has had to wait until today to see a formal visit to this country by a Head of State of Ireland. Prince Philip and I recall our visit to Ireland with great pleasure. We were received warmly wherever we went. Dublin; the city of Cork and its English market; Ireland’s historic landmarks like the Rock of Cashel; your people’s famous hospitality – and, of course, Ireland’s thoroughbred horses – all these and much more left a happy and enduring impression.
But even more pleasing, since then, is that we, the Irish and British, are becoming good and dependable neighbours and better friends; finally shedding our inhibitions about seeing the best in each other. Our two governments have responded to the change in mood. We now cooperate across the full range of public business; indeed, there is today no closer working relationship for my Government than that with Ireland. This fresh spirit is helping us economically: our trade is growing, supporting many thousands of jobs in both countries, and we are working together to win new business overseas. As our countries enter a period of historical resonance, it is right to look back in remembrance. In Dublin, I laid wreaths in the Garden of Remembrance for those who died in the cause of Irish freedom and at Islandbridge where Ireland’s dead from the First World War are commemorated. In August, we will mark solemnly the centenary of Britain’s entry into World War One, calling to mind the terrible toll it took. People from Ireland were involved in all the major campaigns and battles of the war. We will remember and honour their contribution and sacrifice, just as we remember our own. My family and my government will stand alongside you, Mr. President, and your ministers, throughout the anniversaries of the war and of the events that led to the creation of the Irish Free State. People have moved freely between these islands over the centuries. Britain has been hugely enriched by the
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“the goal of modern British-Irish relations can be simply stated. It is that we, who inhabit these islands, should live together as neighbours and friends. Respectful of each other’s nationhood, sovereignty and traditions. Cooperating to our mutual benefit. At ease in each other’s company.”
migration of Irishmen and women to these shores. The contribution of Irish people to Britain has reached into every walk of British life. On your visit, you are meeting men and women of Irish descent in parliament, in our universities, in our health service, in the civil service, music, faith, business, and sport.
Londonderry showed the very best of Northern Ireland to the world; and we will be recognising the work of individuals and groups who are helping to bring about further positive change – including the charity, Cooperation Ireland, of which we are joint patrons – at a reception here on Thursday.
And yet, over the years, many Irish migrants to Britain encountered discrimination and a lack of appreciation. Happily, those days are now behind us, and it is widely recognised that Britain is a better place because of the Irish people who live here. We can celebrate not just the Irish men and women who helped to build Britain but also the Irish architects who helped to design it, including that great architect of parliamentary reform, Daniel O’Connell, whose life and work you will have remembered this afternoon on your visit to Parliament.
Our two governments will continue to work together in Northern Ireland to support the First and Deputy First Minister and the Executive to advance the peace process and to establish a shared society based on mutual respect and equality of opportunity.
Mr. President: Two years ago, London hosted the Olympic Games. During that magical summer the Games proved to be a remarkable success, surpassing most people’s expectations. They also shone a light on the modern links between Britain and Ireland, as Irish companies worked alongside British ones in building the stadiums and running the Games themselves. And it took someone of Irish descent, Danny Boyle, to get me to jump from a helicopter. Mr. President: Sadly last year we lost the poet Seamus Heaney, whose roots lay in the Northern Irish countryside. His poems, written over many decades, reflected the changing circumstances of Northern Ireland, as hope and history jarred and then slowly began to rhyme. I am delighted that last year’s G8 summit in County Fermanagh and the city of culture festival in Derry/
Mr President, the goal of modern British-Irish relations can be simply stated. It is that we, who inhabit these islands, should live together as neighbours and friends. Respectful of each other’s nationhood, sovereignty and traditions. Cooperating to our mutual benefit. At ease in each other’s company. After so much chequered history, the avoidable and regrettable pain of which is still felt by many of us, this goal is now within reach. I started by speaking of ten centuries of history. But there is a balance to be struck between looking back at what has happened, and cannot be changed; and looking forward to what could happen, if we have the will and determination to shape it. My visit to Ireland, and your visit this week, Mr. President, show that we are walking together towards a brighter, more settled future. We will remember our past, but we shall no longer allow our past to ensnare our future. This is the greatest gift we can give to succeeding generations. Ladies and Gentlemen, I ask you to rise and drink a toast to the President and Mrs. Higgins and to the health and prosperity of the people of Ireland.
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Speech by
Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland at the
State Banquet, Windsor Castle Tuesday, 8 th April, 2014
A Shoilse Banríon, A Mhórgacht Ríoga: Your Majesty, Your Royal Highness: Thank you for your kind and generous welcome and for the warm hospitality you have extended to me, to Sabina and to our delegation. That welcome is very deeply felt and appreciated by me, and by the people of Ireland, whom I represent. However long it may have taken, Your Majesty, I can assure you that this first State Visit of a President of Ireland to the United Kingdom is a very visible sign of the warmth and maturity of the relationship between our two countries. It is something to be truly welcomed and celebrated. Your Majesty: You famously used some words of Irish during your State Visit to Ireland. Today I would also like to turn again to the oral tradition of our ancient language a seanfhocal, or wise saying, often applied to the mutuality of relationships. It observes simply: “ar scáth a chéile a mhairimid.” Because scáth literally means shadow, this phrase is sometimes translated as – “we live in the shadow of each other.” However, there is a more open and more accommodating meaning. Scáth also means shelter. The word embodies the simple truth that physical proximity brings with it an inevitability of both mutual influence and interaction. But more importantly, I believe, it implies the opportunity, even the obligation, of reciprocal hospitality and generosity; the kind of
generosity reflected in your words this evening when you encourage us to embrace the best version of each other. Ireland and Britain live in both the shadow and in the shelter of one another, and so it has been since the dawn of history. Through conquest and resistance, we have cast shadows on each other, but we have also gained strength from one another as neighbours and, most especially, from the contribution of those who have travelled over the centuries between our islands, and particularly in recent decades. The contribution of Irish men and Irish women to life in Britain, which Your Majesty has acknowledged with such grace, is indeed extensive and lends itself to no simple description. It runs from building canals, roads and bridges in previous decades, to running major companies in the present, all the while pouring Irish personality and imagination into the English language and its literature. Like so many of our compatriots, Sabina and I feel very much at home when visiting Britain, which should be the case with our nearest neighbour and our close friend. Tonight we celebrate the deeply personal, close neighbourly connection which is embodied in the hundreds of thousands of Irish and British people who have found shelter on each other’s shores. Your Majesty: When we are fortunate, history evolves into greater mutual understanding between peoples. The welcome that is so naturally afforded to British visitors in Ireland today
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was, I think, wholeheartedly expressed on the occasion of your State Visit in 2011. Your gracious and genuine curiosity, your evident delight in that visit, including its equine dimension, made it very easy for us to express to you and, through you to the British people, the warmth of neighbourly feelings. It laid the basis for an authentic and ethical hospitality between our two countries. Admirably, you chose not to shy away from the shadows of the past, recognising that they cannot be ignored when we consider the relationship between our islands. We valued your apt and considered words when you addressed some of the painful moments of our mutual history, and we were moved by your gestures of respect at sites of national historical significance in Ireland. These memorable moments and these moving words merit our appreciation and, even more, our reciprocity. While the past must be respectfully recognised, it must not imperil the potential of the present or the possibilities of the future – ár bhféidearthachtaí gan teorainn – our endless possibilities working together. This present occasion, which completes a circle begun by your historic visit three years ago, marks the welcome transformation in relations between our countries over recent years – a transformation that has been considerably progressed by the advancement of peace in Northern Ireland. We owe a great debt to all of those who had the courage to work towards, and make manifest, that peace. I wish to acknowledge here the remarkable contributions of my predecessors Mary Robinson and Mary McAleese. I am especially pleased that former President McAleese, and her husband Martin, are here with us this evening. We must, however, never set aside or forget those who died, were bereaved, or injured, during a tragic conflict.
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As the French philosopher Paul Ricoeur wrote, to be forgotten is to die twice. We owe a duty to all those who lost their lives, the duty to build together in peace; it is the only restitution, the only enduring justice we can offer them. We share, also, the imperative to be unwavering in our support of the people of Northern Ireland as we journey together towards the shelter and security of true reconciliation. We celebrate what has been achieved but we must also constantly renew our commitment to a process that requires vigilance and care. Your Majesty: We have moved on from a past where our relations were often troubled, to a present where – as you have indicated - Ireland and the United Kingdom meet each other in mutual respect, close partnership and sincere friendship. That friendship is informed by the many matters of mutual interest in which we work together and support one another. In recent times we have seen our two Governments working ever more closely together in the European Union and in the United Nations. We have seen
deepening partnership in the area of trade,as well as in development aid where we both share a common commitment to tackling hunger and upscaling nutrition. The future we each desire, and seek to work towards is one where Ireland and the United Kingdom stand together to seek common opportunities and to face common global challenges as partners and friends. Your Majesty: Ar scáth a chéile a mhairimid. The shadow of the past has become the shelter of the present. While we grieve together for lost lives, we will not let any painful aspect of our shared history deflect us from crafting a future that offers hope and opportunity for the British and Irish people.
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Ireland and Britain live in both the shadow and in the shelter of one another, and so it has been since the dawn of history. Through conquest and resistance, we have cast shadows on each other, but we have also gained strength from one another as neighbours and, most especially, from the contribution of those who have travelled over the centuries between our islands, and particularly in recent decades.
We again thank you for the hospitality that allows us, on this most joyous occasion, to celebrate the bonds of mutual understanding between our two peoples, and the warm, enduring friendship on which we have so happily embarked. I therefore invite you, distinguished guests, to stand and join me in a toast: To the health and happiness of Her Majesty and His Royal Highness, and the people of the United Kingdom; To a creative cooperation and a sustainable partnership between our countries and our peoples; and To valued neighbours whose friendship we truly cherish. Go raibh maith agaibh go léir.
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Speech by
Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland
Royal Society, London Wednesday, 9 th April, 2014
Vice-President Pethica: Distinguished Fellows of the Royal Society: Ladies and Gentlemen: May I thank Professor Pethica for his kind words of introduction, and all of you for your generous welcome. Mar Uachtarán na hÉireann, is mór an onóir agus an pléisiúr dom é cuairt a thabhairt ar an gCumann Ríoga, institiúid atá tar éis forbairtí gaoiseacha a dhéanamh ar eolaíocht an Iarthair agus ar ár dtuiscint ar an saol mór. [As President of Ireland, I am both honoured and greatly pleased to visit the Royal Society, an institution which has made such a profound contribution to the development of Western science and our understanding of the world.] This first State Visit by a President of Ireland to the United Kingdom is a celebration of the relationship between our two countries, in all of its rich dimensions. The vibrancy of this relationship irrigates the circulation of knowledge, the debates of ideas, and the many productive collaborations that bring together British and Irish scientists. Though sometimes not fully appreciated, the human and intellectual ties between our two countries carry great significance and historical depth. In 1968, my distinguished predecessor, Éamon de Valera, who had a keen, life-long interest in mathematics, was elected a Fellow of this Society. In the 1940s, de Valera had presided over the foundation
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of the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, in consultation with two of his old professors, Arthur Conway and Sir Edmund Taylor Whittaker. Professor Whittaker had, as Royal Astronomer of Ireland, taught mathematical physics at Trinity College Dublin before taking on a position at the University of Edinburgh. Arthur Conway had introduced de Valera to quaternions – a number system which itself originated in Ireland, in the work of William Rowan Hamilton, whose achievements are still celebrated each year in his native Dublin. In fact, the Royal Society’s Irish connections go back much further, to the Society’s very first meetings in the mid-1640s. Among the founding figures, that group of “natural philosophers” who put forward the virtues of observation and experimentation as a means to apprehend the natural world, we find Robert Boyle, the son of the Earl of Cork and one of the most prominent Irishmen to have made science his vocation. The experimental investigations, the spirit of discovery and questioning which made Boyle one of the central figures in the scientific revolution of the 17th century, aptly reflect the particular nature of the Irish genius. Indeed the most significant products of Irish culture have had as their defining characteristic a tendency to look at the world in novel and unconventional ways and to question prevailing orthodoxies. Because the power of imagination has, in Ireland, found such remarkable incarnations in the realm of words – in the spheres of arts and literature – its contribution to
our understanding of the natural world has, perhaps, been overshadowed. Even among the Irish, the names of Swift, Wilde, Yeats, Joyce, Shaw, Beckett or Heaney are of far more renown than that of Ernest Walton who, in 1951, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for his pioneering work on the artificial splitting of the nucleus of the atom. That is not as it should be: we need to better understand the role of scientific knowledge in shaping our relationship to the world. Irish scientific achievements represent many milestones in the journey of modern Western rationality. We can think of Robert Boyle and William Hamilton, but also of John Tyndall, who explained why the sky is blue; Nicholas Callan, who invented the induction coil; William Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse, who built the world’s largest telescope and used it to locate new structures in the heavens; George Gabriel Stokes, who investigated the phenomenon of fluorescence and advanced the wave theory of light; William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, who contributed so much to the transatlantic telegraph project; John Lighton Synge, who pioneered the study of black holes; or George Francis Fitzgerald, whose understanding of the laws of motion provided an essential building block for the Special Theory of Relativity. Let us not forget either the famous 1939 essay of John Desmond Bernal on The Social Function of Science. Finally, I am delighted to note that the first woman to be elected Fellow of the Royal Society, in 1945, was X-ray crystallographer Kathleen Lonsdale, from Newbridge, County Kildare.
It would be a mistake to view Irish science as somehow separate from our culture, as alien to the boundless imagination which drove our great writers. It was an Irish scientist – George Johnstone Stoney, Professor of Natural Philosophy at Queen’s College Galway and later a Vice-President of this Royal Society – who coined the term ‘electron’. But it was an Irish writer, James Joyce, who gave the word ‘quark’ its spelling, in a line of Finnegans Wake – “Three quarks for Muster Mark!”. This may have been an unintentional contribution to the development of particle physics, but it illustrates well the wealth of sources which shape the way we see, understand and talk about science. It is often said that ours will be the century of neuroscience, and advances in this area certainly give cause for optimism and excitement. But the humanities also have something essential to contribute to our comprehension of the nature of human consciousness or what it means to be human. The universe cannot be understood through its physical properties alone. I am convinced that it is through leaping the boundaries that divide discipline from discipline, science from the arts and humanities, and by marshalling the diverse influences from our intellectual heritage that we can best meet the complex challenges of the future. One great challenge lies in the rapid pace of scientific and technological development, its diffusion on a global scale, which has yet to be matched by the cultivation of critical and informed dialogues within the wider society on the impact of such developments. This, I believe, calls for some level of reintegration between science and philosophy; it requires the crafting of a wide-ranging ethical discourse in which all citizens – not just the most expert, or scientifically literate among them – are invited to take part. This challenge is all the more pressing as the ethical issues arising from contemporary scientific and technological applications have reached unprecedented levels of acuteness. Recent developments in the life sciences, for example, give new salience to the opportunities and perils encapsulated in the old Promethean myth. The damages inflicted to our planet by climate change also
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raise novel ethical questions: indeed, the possibility of the total destruction of our world was not a concern of Enlightenment philosophers. On all these questions, it is essential that we instigate far-reaching dialogues, not only between the disciplines but also, I would suggest, between Ireland and Britain. It would be so valuable to see these national dialogues expand and mature alongside the strengthening of scientific cooperation between our two countries.
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“Today the UK and Ireland share a scientific culture and a commitment to scientific endeavour which, if framed by an appropriate ethical discourse, offers the promise of new advances and a more conscious relationship to the world we inhabit.”
outstanding potential, and I wish them well in this final phase of their discussions. May I also commend the International Exchange Cost Share Programme, run jointly by the Royal Society and the Royal Irish Academy, which supports new collaborations between British and Irish Scientists.
In Ireland we have, in recent decades, made great strides in developing the scientific resources that will help us meet the challenges of the future and consolidate our international reputation for research excellence.
Science Gallery is another example of a vibrant partnership between Ireland and the UK. First established at Trinity College Dublin, Science Gallery will, in 2016, expand its programme of creative collisions between scientists, artists, designers and engineers, to a new gallery established on the Guy’s Campus of King’s College London.
The results achieved to date have been extremely encouraging. Ireland has emerged as a leading country globally for the quality of its scientific research, notably in fields such as immunology and probiotics, nanoscience, and materials science. Our country also ranks third in the European Union for innovation output.
The community of scientists on our two islands has led the world in so many fields, and left such a valuable legacy for humanity. The various initiatives I just mentioned do, I hope, plant the seeds for the breaking of new grounds through renewed cooperation between Irish and British scientists in the years to come.
For a country the size of Ireland, these are no mean accomplishments. But we have not achieved these feats on our own. To advance, science requires broad horizons, a willingness to seek out new ideas and perspectives from other disciplines and different cultures.
Today the UK and Ireland share a scientific culture and a commitment to scientific endeavour which, if framed by an appropriate ethical discourse, offers the promise of new advances and a more conscious relationship to the world we inhabit.
I am glad to say that this type of cross-fertilisation is very much part of the current research ecosystem in Ireland.
I am therefore delighted to have had this opportunity to visit the Royal Society to celebrate the centuries-old scientific links between our countries; to affirm and support the present nexus of British-Irish collaboration in science and research; and, in facing up to the challenges of the future, to encourage a discourse that is holistic, multidisciplinary and ethically robust.
Today is therefore a fitting occasion to draw attention to the scientific collaborations that currently play such a beneficial role in expanding our two countries’ shared horizon of possibilities. I know that Science Foundation Ireland and the Royal Society are discussing the establishment of a joint programme aimed at supporting Irish scientists of
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Go raibh míle maith agaibh. Thank you for your attention.
Speech by
Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland
Taking Charge of Change, Youth Event, City Hall Wednesday, 9 th April, 2014
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland: Tánaiste and Minister Fitzgerald: Ladies and Gentlemen: It gives me great pleasure to be with you here today in City Hall; a building from which we can see both the Tower of London, that resonates with history, and the gleaming new skyscrapers of the City – reminding us that London is a metropolis that powerfully displays the rich legacy of its past while also embracing with enthusiasm the possibilities of a new and modern age. Today we look at all those varying possibilities through the futures of a group of outstanding young people from both our nations, including many from the Irish Community in the United Kingdom. All of you, I know, are representatives of so many other young people, young people with energy and, above all, critical capacity, who are not afraid to imagine, to reconsider and to innovate as they craft the kind of world they wish to inhabit and enter into dialogue on the kind of future they aspire to make together. I am most impressed by the presentations we have just heard, that have been prepared and presented as a result of the dynamic engagement which has been taking place here today amongst some 50 young people. Young people who already are or, in the future, will be leaders, policy makers and, most importantly, emancipatory thinkers and active citizens helping to guide and shape a society that is creative, inclusive and constantly open to new concepts and new possibilities.
It was both inspiring and uplifting to hear your thoughts and insights on the challenges that face us today and your views as to how, working together, you can navigate the way forward towards a better future. The range of topics you have covered is deeply impressive. It extends across a wide cross-section of issues and concerns. It is a source of the greatest hope and confidence in the future to be in the presence of young people who have that remarkable ability to think about life in a way that is liberating, that is inclusive, and that has both the confidence and the moral courage to question the way things are and to set about making them better. During my first year as President of Ireland, I initiated a six-month consultation and conversation on the theme of ‘Being Young and Irish.’ My goal in that initiative was to engage young people as active and reflective citizens in contemporary Ireland and to recognise, affirm and encourage them as one of the key sources of wisdom in solving core social, political, economic and cultural issues. My vision for the initiative was that it would help build an active, inclusive citizenship for which we need a new discourse – one based on participation, equality, respect for all and the flowering of creativity in all its forms. The ‘Being Young and Irish’ initiative was aimed at young Irish people living in Ireland and abroad. Indeed, many Irish citizens living in Britain also participated in it and brought an important and unique perspective to the conversation. The resulting ‘Take Charge of Change’
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when, as citizens, we transcend such legacies, let go and reach a true sense of human empathy and solidarity with each other, thereby diminishing the toxic impact of sectarianism. Two outstanding award winners from Northern Ireland, who have demonstrated this spirit of solidarity, will shortly receive certificates. One of these has chosen a Gaisce-The President’s Award certificate under the Joint Award Initiative in Northern Ireland, and one has selected the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award certificate, both of which recognise exemplary active citizenship in Northern Ireland. These awards show the significant progress that has been achieved in bringing young people from both communities together in working towards a shared future. declaration – ‘Glac seilbh ar athrú’ – spoke of the future as “a place where young people reach their potential, have a solid future and a valued voice.” That is why I am so pleased to have heard how our fifty young people here today have expressed their individual and unique voices and have proven that they truly do have the power to effect positive transformation. They are demonstrating both a rigorous sense of active citizenship, and an ability to envision a future founded on a spirit of altruism, solidarity, and hospitality – a combination that has the potential to achieve great things. I know that many of our participants here today are from Northern Ireland, and that they are the first generation to grow up there as inheritors of a peace process founded on the cornerstones of equality and democratic partnership. Not only did the Good Friday Agreement of 1998 provide a template for peace and reconciliation within Northern Ireland, it also enabled a more dynamic and fruitful relationship between Ireland and Britain. In my visits to Northern Ireland I have met with many remarkable young people, already on the path to becoming actors in building a more open and ethical society. They are young people who understand only too well that prejudice or old grievances do not evaporate overnight when peace is announced or new legislation is passed. They know that animosities can only be removed
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That sense of unity and accord has been much in evidence here today and reminds us of the great debt we owe to the many organisations that do so much valuable work in empowering young people; organisations like the Washington Ireland Programme which has focused on students from both parts of Ireland; the British Youth Council, who have been so supportive in organising and co-hosting this event; and the Northern Ireland Youth Forum who, in partnership with the Council, ran the first elections to the Northern Ireland Youth Parliament last year, an event that provided a unique experience for young people from both communities. Indeed, I will shortly present an award to two young representatives from the Northern Ireland Youth Parliament. The vibrancy of the Irish community here in Britain, and the many flourishing Irish Community organisations are a testament to their own resilience and to the adaptive nature of British society. In Ireland we are very proud of our Diaspora and greatly value all they do to promote and sustain positive connections with many countries around the globe. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade plays a key role in supporting Irish emigrants everywhere in the world, and our Embassy here works closely with the large network of support and welfare organisations that have developed in Britain over the decades.
Organisations such as Irish in Britain, the Irish Chaplaincy in Britain, the Irish Travellers Movement in Britain and the various community services and county organisations provide practical support for members of the Irish community including new migrants, as well as for second and third generation Irish. These community organisations also allow our people to maintain links with their Irish identity and heritage and to contribute to the wider Irish community. Networks such as the Irish International Business Network, the London Irish Business Society and the London Irish Graduates’ Network also do invaluable work in helping young people to develop new skills and fulfil their potential to be future leaders. I am delighted that young representatives nominated by these organisations have taken part in today’s workshop. You represent, of course, a generation growing up as young Europeans, fellow members of the European Union, and there is so much work for both of our peoples to do outside of these islands. As young people and adults you will have a role to play in building and imagining the Europe of the future. We all wish to see an effective and progressive Europe – but one which also remains true to the values of its founders who saw the European Community as a vital instrument of peace and solidarity on a continent that had been scarred by war. Let us celebrate what we have witnessed today, the essential work on the hopes and possibilities of an important cohort of our citizens, young citizens of the United Kingdom and Ireland who have undertaken the task of re-thinking, re-imagining and re-structuring the way we live. Young people who are seeking to define the values to be applied in the world we share together. On both sides of the Irish Sea, our societies
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“Given the determination of our young people to change their community for the better, to engage in their society as active citizens, and to work with each other in a spirit of friendship and mutual respect, the future of our two islands is very bright indeed.”
face tough but exciting challenges, challenges that are full of possibilities in a changing world. Given the determination of our young people to change their community for the better, to engage in their society as active citizens, and to work with each other in a spirit of friendship and mutual respect, the future of our two islands is very bright indeed. Bhain mé an-sásamh as a bheith anseo inniu. Ba mhaith liom ár n-óige a mholadh agus comhghairdeas a dhéanamh leo as a bheith chomh fial lena gcuid smaointe, a bhfís agus a ndóchas don todhchaí. Guím gach rath oraibh go léir don todhchaí sin; todhchaí ina mbeidh bhur n-idéalachas, bhur misneach agus bhur bhfuinneamh ar fáil chun sochaí a bhaint amach a dhéanfaidh fónamh dá saoránaigh go léir. [It has been such a great pleasure to be here today. I would like to commend and congratulate all our young people who have given so generously of their ideas, their vision and their hopes for the future. I wish you all every success for that future; one where your idealism, your courage and your energy can offer so much to achieving a society that cherishes all its citizens.] Let me conclude with the words of the Irish poet and philosopher, John O’Donoghue. They come from his reflection “For a New Beginning” “Then the delight, when your courage kindled, And out you stepped onto new ground Your eyes young again with energy and dream A path of plenitude opening before you.” I wish you well on that path. Go raibh míle maith agaibh. Thank you.
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Speech by
Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland
Guildhall Banquet, London Wednesday, 9 th April, 2014
Your Royal Highnesses: Lord Mayor: Tánaiste: Excellencies: Ladies and Gentlemen: Mar Uachtarán na Éireann, as President of Ireland, I am deeply honoured and greatly pleased to be here with you tonight in celebration of what is the first State Visit by a President of Ireland to the United Kingdom I am of course conscious of the particular role that the Guildhall has played in Irish history. It was here, in 1609, that the Irish Society was conceived, during a meeting at which representatives from the livery companies of London considered undertaking a plantation in Ulster, on lands recently seized from Gaelic chieftains, and the construction of the first planned city in Ireland, on the Western bank of river Foyle. Over the intervening centuries the people of Derry/ Londonderry have lived through many of the most tragic and contentious events of our shared history. It was one of the great joys of my Presidency, then, to visit Derry last year as we celebrated together the creativity of the people of that great city during its tenure as UK City of Culture. That event in Derry/Londonderry stands as a symbol of the profound transformation of the relationship between our countries – from colonisation and conflict to partnership and friendship – and they are a symbol of our shared future together.
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The intertwined histories of Ireland and Britain have indeed known great turbulence, but we meet at a time when the relationship between us has never been more friendly or respectful. The vibrancy of this relationship now irrigates every aspect of our societies. Tonight, it is perhaps appropriate to recall and emphasise the social, cultural and economic currents in that relationship, which flow so evenly and naturally now that we may underestimate their significance. Today the UK and Ireland trade as equal partners within the wider European Single Market. As the Lord Mayor has indicated, our countries share over €1 billion in trade every week. The UK is Ireland’s largest export market, and Ireland is the fifth largest export market for the UK. We trade with each other, and we also spend time with each other. Two out of every five visitors to Ireland last year came from Britain; some returning to their communities, others seeking roots or reviving a connection. This reminds us that the relationship of peoples is not reducible to what is calculable in any commercial sense. Rather, it is the product of a multi-layered history that is inter-generational. Our connections with each other are complex and have been influenced by factors of history and economics. During the 1950s, around half a million Irish men and women made the journey across the Irish Sea. These immigrants made such an important contribution to the reconstruction of Britain after the war – building
new roads, working in factories and hospitals, tilling fields. Their children and grandchildren now populate all sectors of British life – proud to be British, and equally proud of the Irishness of their roots. Even in our globalised and mobile world, such level of interconnectedness is rare in its depth and the richness of what is shared. There are numerous areas in which even closer cooperation between the United Kingdom and Ireland can yield mutually beneficial fruit, including construction, the financial services, research and development, tourism, and, most of all perhaps, the creative industries, the agri-food industry, and the energy sector. The first joint UK-Ireland trade mission to Singapore is but one recent example of our ability to identify the common challenges and opportunities facing our two islands. May I say how delighted I am at the Lord Mayor’s announcement of the establishment of the City of London Corporation’s scholarship in AngloIrish Literature. This scholarship will add one more thread to the canvas of our common endeavours. The close, multi-stranded working relationship which we have built together is a great resource, one of immense value to our shared future. Ladies and Gentlemen: The institution of which you are a part, and these surroundings we now enjoy, signify for us something quite profound: that while an enduring institution is an achievement in itself, it also must change to address new challenges. Our global world now is an interdependent existence. Our world, so connected by intricate, and often unaccountable, financial logics, is one where a tremble in one corner of the globe can trigger a financial
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earthquake in another, leading to consequences not envisaged by their authors or sources in either the developed or developing world. In Ireland, we have our own direct experience of this. As a small and open economy, we were hit simultaneously by the global financial crisis, over which we had but little control, and by one of its derivatives - the destructive fallout from the collapse of a domestic construction and banking bubble. We have made progress in addressing these great challenges. Our exports have come back to levels significantly higher than their pre-crisis peak. We have returned to a modest but real growth, and are winning back the trust of our people and of investors; a point not unnoticed by that ‘panopticon’ of the contemporary financial world – the rating agencies. Most importantly, we have gone from losing 1,600 jobs a week during the peak of the crisis to now creating 1,200 jobs a week. Ireland’s innovative companies are meeting needs across the world - from visitor access software in the Houses of Parliament, here in London, to customer information on the Paris metro, to medical devices that enable blood-free surgery in cardiac centres around the globe. Another Irish groundbreaking initiative is ‘Origin Green’, which is making Ireland one of the most verifiably sustainable places in the world to produce food. Our human resources are a magnet for investment. Ireland, with the youngest population in the European Union, has the highest percentage of graduates among its population of any country in the Union. Many of these highly qualified graduates are working in Britain and developing skills which, we hope, they will apply in
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“That event in Derry/Londonderry stands as a symbol of the profound transformation of the relationship between our countries – from colonisation and conflict to partnership and friendship – and they are a symbol of our shared future together.”
the future in Ireland. I am especially conscious here of the prominent role that is being played by so many Irish academics and researchers within the British university system. We are committed in Ireland to investment in education and research and this is yet another area where there are great benefits to collaboration between us. In responding to our recent economic crisis, Ireland received significant support from our partners in Europe and, on a bilateral basis, from our friends here in the United Kingdom, for which we are deeply grateful. But it is the ordinary people of Ireland, and generations yet to come, who have borne and continue to bear the cost of the painful decisions that have been taken, aimed at stabilising the public finances and reducing the astounding levels of public debt incurred from rescuing our banks. In the end, it is how our respective peoples experience the results of our action or inaction that is the test of the quality of our decisions. The test will always be a human impact one. As Seamus Heaney reminded us last year, not long before his passing: “we are not simply a credit rating or an economy but a history and a culture, a human population rather than a statistical phenomenon.” The human cost of the financial crisis has been enormous. While unemployment is receding in Ireland, it remains too high and the emigration of our young people is a challenge to our future prosperity. It is clear to us in Ireland that providing opportunity for our young people, and harnessing their talents, will be the true measure of our recovery. Beyond any specificity of the Irish or British versions of the crisis, however, the scale of what we have experienced in recent years calls for a much more
fundamental analysis of the nature of our contemporary economic system. When the financial and technological forces that hold sway are unaccountable and seem more powerful than Governments, it poses the question as to who is responsible for their consequences. These are profound issues which require a rich public discourse that seeks to find and craft a sustainable and ethical relationship between economy and society. We need an approach that embraces the totality of the work of such as the great Adam Smith. Yes, we may be familiar with the author of the utilitarian Wealth of Nations; but we also need the so much more ethically minded author of Theory of Moral Sentiments. Our need is for a dialogue that is pluralist, and capable of engaging with the wide range of models that our
f l e á s a g u il d ha l l , lon d a in 23
intellectual life makes possible. It is such a dialogue that I am seeking to promote in Ireland, and I know that such a debate is also taking place in Britain. The City of London has, throughout history, been a crucible for new ideas in social and economic theory. No one understands better than you that economies and societies best flourish in a climate of intellectual openness, where orthodoxies and dominant models are constantly interrogated. In the wake of a banking crisis, it is within our power to envisage new models of possibility – ones where tradition and innovation can enrich each other; where trust and diversity can coexist; and where a sustainable and competitive economy can be based on truly ethical foundations. Ireland and Britain may be just two countries where such a dialogue is under way. We both recognise, and celebrate, boundless possibilities. When we reflect on the political changes we have witnessed in Northern Ireland, and their benign impact on the wider BritishIrish relationship, we have seen in one generation the
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unimaginable becoming reality. In such an enabling atmosphere of transformational possibility, we are well capable of having this conversation about solutions to the great challenges facing our respective economies and societies. May I offer, once again, my sincere appreciation for your welcome tonight, and for your attention. In modest exchange, let me offer something that, coming from the President of Ireland, might seem transformational. As a follower of the beautiful game, I look ahead two months to Brazil and say that if Ireland cannot be at the World Cup Finals, then I will raise a glass to England to go all the way. And just in case there are some in the audience not prepared to go quite that far, then I will ask all of you to join me in this toast: to the gracious Lord Mayor; to this great city of London; to this great nation of Britain; and to the great friendship between our two peoples.
Remarks by
Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland
Ceiliúradh, Royal Albert Hall, London Thursday, 10 th April, 2014
Your Royal Highnesses, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent:
celebration, and indeed the past few days, so positive and uplifting.
A Thaoisigh, A Thánaiste:
First of all, Sabina and I wish to express our deep appreciation to our hosts – Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth and His Royal Highness, the Duke of Edinburgh, for the gracious welcome and warm hospitality they have extended to us and to our delegation.
A Chairde go léir: Nach bhfuil sé cóir go dtréaslaímid leis na ceoltóirí is leis na hamhránaithe den scoth atá ag glacadh páirte san ócáid cheiliúrtha seo. [Isn’t it right and proper that we congratulate the firstrate musicians and singers who are taking part in this celebratory occasion.] In this magnificent venue and on this wonderful and historic occasion, I wish to extend my thanks to a number of people who have made this evening’s
The grace and warmth which has been so evident in the manner in which they have prepared for, and arranged, my State Visit is reflective of the true and deep friendship that now exists between Ireland and the United Kingdom.
ha l l a ríog a a l b e rt 25
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“This evening’s celebration demonstrates once again not only the importance of culture in general but, in particular, the depth and richness of our Irish cultural tradition.”
I am delighted that their Royal Highnesses, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent have been able to join us this evening, and we all hope that they will have been sufficiently entertained to transmit a positive review to the Queen.
This celebration, above all, is in a special way for the thousands of Irish people in this Hall who have made Britain their home or whose parents or grandparents did, as well as the friends, neighbours, relatives and in-laws, they have brought along.
This evening’s celebration demonstrates once again not only the importance of culture in general but, in particular, the depth and richness of our Irish cultural tradition.
I thank you most sincerely for the fidelity you have shown to Ireland over many years; for the contribution you have made to the development of Britain; and for your part in the consolidation of an enduring friendship between our two countries.
What we have seen and heard also shows how deeply interwoven are the wider cultures of these islands, and how from their collusions and collisions they have influenced and enriched each other. So may I thank all of our artists for the authenticity, generosity and excellence of their performances. May I also acknowledge, with deep gratitude, the work of Culture Ireland, the production team and all the people here in the Royal Albert Hall whose fruitful collaboration has made this wonderful night possible.
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You remain and will always be a cherished member of the Irish family. I thank all of you who have travelled to be here, be your journeys long or short. On a night like this, it is great to be Irish. And it is even better to share it in the company of our friends in Britain. Ar aghaidh leis an gceol. Beannachtaí oraibh go léir.
Speech by
Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland
Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-Upon-Avon Friday, 11 th April, 2014
It was Václav Havel who said: “Words are a mysterious, ambiguous, ambivalent, and perfidious phenomenon. They are capable of being rays of light in a realm of darkness... They are equally capable of being lethal arrows. Worst of all, at times they can be the one and the other. And even both at once!” The words exchanged between Ireland and England have often been part of a long and sometimes tortured exchange. We cannot pretend that it was always a happy and friendly affair, to do so would be a disservice to truth and history. Here in this place, sacred to the English language and its many glories, it would be inauthentic and foolish to gloss over truth, since at the heart of language there is and there must be a passion for truth. Today I want to acknowledge a great truth: the English language that we share, if it was once the enforced language of conquest, it is today the very language in which we have now come to delight in one another, to share our different and complementary understandings of what it means to be human together in this world, transacting in the currency of words. To share a language is to privilege the existence of the other, to accept the joy and the responsibility of hospitality. To search for the expression of hope, grief, and justice in a common language is a deepening and widening of understanding. It is to expand the horizons of solidarity, and solidarity is the search always and everywhere for a future in a world not yet fashioned or
even born, where our children and their children can share in compassionate mutual understanding. A valued friend said to me, when I told him I was coming here – “remind them that Shakespeare was christened in Latin and buried in English.” It could equally be said of his contemporary, Cervantes, that he was christened in Latin and buried in Castellano. It is, in other words, a longstanding feature of the European mind that at any given time it has a lingua franca as well as, in any given place, a local language in which to express itself, its mentalité, its sense of being in the world. That English, to whose Anglo Saxon foundations he added so much, was the site of Shakespeare’s expression of his genius. A language open and inclusive, today it has become the lingua franca of much of our contemporary world. We Irish, never mind the complex ways in which it happened, were early adapters. Indeed, outside of the island of Britain, and long before the Americans, we were the first outsiders to enter into dialogue with the English language, inside the frame of that language itself and its origins. That word ‘dialogue’ is so important since from the very earliest times the English language as used in Ireland, as used by Irish men and women, has pursued its own path, animated and shaped by not just a difference in how we and you experience the world but by a crucial, structural distinction. Shakespeare’s English was a construct that had by his time melded into itself Anglo Saxon, Old High German,
com pa n tá s ríog a s ha ke s pe a re 27
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“...the English language that we share, if it was once the enforced language of conquest, it is today the very language in which we have now come to delight in one another, to share our different and complementary understandings of what it means to be human together in this world, transacting in the currency of words.”
Norse, Italian, Norman, French, Latin and Greek. By the Elizabethan age, that language had arrived, more or less, at its full powers of expression. To be sure, the vagaries of fashion and an expanding vocabulary have ensured that English as spoken and written in Britain has continued to evolve, but structurally and syntactically it has changed only imperceptibly from the days of Shakespeare. In Ireland, by contrast, the English language underwent a different evolution, and this is because the manner in which we deploy the language is shadowed and deeply inflected by the enduring Irish language. This is not just a question of vocabulary, still less is it a reflection of an imperfect grasp of the language – it could not be seriously argued that Shaw and Wilde, Sheridan, Oliver Goldsmith or Brian Friel had an imperfect grasp of English. No, what I am pointing to here is the way in which the fluidity, the conceptual grace and above all the relationship with time and tense that is characteristic of the Irish language has inflected and shaped the English we write and speak. English English, if I might permit myself the term, has a positive love of all that is definite, short and exact. It possesses, for instance, the shortest, most explosive and emphatic of negatives in the word ‘no’. There is no single word in Irish for ‘no’. To convey a negative in Irish it is necessary to go a little further. If I frame the question, in English, ‘was the audience composed of intelligent, good-looking people’, the answer in English might be ‘no’ – not, of course, in this present instance. If I were to ask in Irish, ‘an raibh an lucht éisteachta ciallmhar dathúil?’ the curmudgeonly answer might well be ‘ní raibh siad’, which you might translate as ‘they were not’ or ‘they were neither’ perhaps with an implied ‘alas’.
Again, I hope you will not think I am referring to present company, since it is evident that you are all intelligent and, if you will permit me, also good-looking. I offer this minor example of difference in order to point to something that should excite us to celebrate difference. It may well be that Latin, as a lingua franca, was superseded by English, between his christening and his funeral in the life of Shakespeare, precisely because English was not, once we Irish began to adventure in the language, ever in danger of becoming a dead language. I might even argue, tentatively of course, that English would never have become a world language, as it is today in new circumstances of a technological revolution sourced in telegraphy, were it not for, first the Irish, then
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the Americans, anglophone Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders, Indians, South Africans and certain peoples of the Caribbean.
This apparent nonsense phrase is a phonetic rendition of the Irish ‘Cailín ó cois Siúire mé’, ‘I am a girl from the banks of the Suir.’
The magnificent poetry of Derek Walcott has made a dynamic English of his negotiation between the patois of St. Lucia and the sonnets of Shakespeare. The advent of the American demotic into poetry and prose has irradiated and profoundly enlivened English, from Mistress Bradstreet to Adrienne Rich, from Hawthorne to Don de Lillo. And what is gained from the magnificent Australian sprawl of Les Murray’s poetry, or the novels of Doris Lessing, born in what was once Rhodesia, and the Canadian Margaret Attwood? What gifts have we been given, through the English language, in the novels of Nadine Gordimer or J.M. Coetzee?
The tune to this Irish folksong appears in the The Virginal of Queen Elizabeth the First, most likely conveyed to her by Edmund Spenser. Alfred Perceval Graves, son of the Bishop of Limerick wrote new words for the tune, and I propose to conclude with a brief poem by Alfred’s son, Robert Graves, author of inter alia “The White Goddess” with its beautiful tribute to Amergin whom we share.
George Bernard Shaw once observed that the English and the Americans are two people separated by a common language. It was a witty remark and, in terms of psycho-linguistics, an astute observation. More to our point here, his perception can be very usefully reframed to cast light on the present happy phase of relations between our two peoples, as we pass slowly but surely into a new kind of relationship between Ireland and Britain. If I invoke here the spirits of Joyce and Beckett, Wilde, Shaw, Yeats and Seamus Heaney, it is to point towards the amplified sense of our common humanity these great writers have won through to, exercising their imaginations in our doubled English. And the evidence is there in the work we have seen and heard from the Bard himself. In Henry IV, Act i., Scene 4, Pistol responds to a greeting in French with what to the groundlings, and no doubt their betters, would have sounded like gibberish. He employs the phrase ‘Caleno o custure me’.
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Robert, evoking Ezekiel, reminds us that the dictionary is a valley of dry bones. If a dictionary was a tool of empire in the 16th century, in the 21st an approach to the language of the other can be a tool of discovery of the means of ethical cooperation in facing common challenges. Dance of Words “To make them move, you should start from lightning And not forecast the rhythm: rely on chance, Or so-called chance for its bright emergence Once lightning interpenetrates the dance. Grant them their own traditional steps and postures But see they dance it out again and again Until only lightning is left to puzzle over — The choreography plain, and the theme plain.” It is the business of living souls to breathe life into words, and I have no doubt but that our long conversation in a shared language will continue into the far future to breathe new life and the lightning of our different imaginations into a common human purpose. Thank you, go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.
Address by
Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland At A Reception At
St. Mary ’s Guildhall, Coventry Friday, 11 th April, 2014
A dhaoine uaisle, a chairde. Tá an-áthas orm bheith anseo libh inniu. I am delighted to bring a memorable State Visit to a close in a city with so many Irish connections, and in a place that enjoys great renown as a symbol of peace and reconciliation. I would like to thank Coventry City Council for hosting us here today and for extending such a warm welcome. I am very grateful to the Lord Mayor, Councillor Gary Crookes and to the Leader of the Council, Councillor Ann Lucas. I have had a very long personal association with Britain, and have been visiting here for over fifty years. I first came as a university student seeking work during the term holidays. My two sisters emigrated to England at the age of twenty, and worked for British Rail at Central Station and Victoria Station in Manchester. They both married in Manchester, one to a railwayman from a multi-generational railway family from Oldham, where my sister and her family still live. My other sister married an Irishman from Mayo, all of whose family except one, lived in England. When I came as a post-graduate student to Manchester University in 1968, and initially stayed with my sister in Corby Street near Belle Vue, I regularly moved between the two worlds of an Irish construction worker’s family in Manchester, and the realm of British academia. My field of research was apt – migration. Over the intervening years I have travelled regularly to Britain – to stay in touch with my siblings and their
families; to visit Irish community centres; to maintain fraternal contacts in the labour movement; and, as a parliamentarian, to advance inter-parliamentary links with my colleagues in Westminster. During all this time, including the decades of the 1970s and 1980s when the conflict in Northern Ireland cast a dark shadow over British-Irish relations, I was always impressed by the resilience of the Irish community in Britain. In the 1960s, in Manchester and across Britain, monuments to the labour of Irish workers could be seen throughout the cities and countryside, most particularly with the construction of the motorways but also on the building sites where Irish tradesmen and labourers were often the backbone of the workforce. The phrase “the men who built Britain” was more than an idle boast. It was a statement of pride in the reputation for industry and capacity for hard work rightly earned by our people. As historians such as Ultan Cowley have recounted, that tradition of Irish construction work goes back at least as far as the building of the canals and railways, through to the construction, in more recent times, of the Channel Tunnel and the skyscrapers of the City. There are other sectors of the economy, too numerous to list here but including agriculture, teaching and nursing, where routes of labour migration were carved especially deeply. Indeed, it was a great privilege for me, on Wednesday, to witness the continuing contribution of Irish nurses and doctors to British medicine during my visit to University College Hospital in London.
gil d ha l l a n aom h m u ire 31
During the 1950s, around half a million Irish men and women made the journey to Britain, my sisters among them. When we think of the circumstances in which these earlier generations of Irish emigrants moved to Britain, it is a joy to note that there is virtually no aspect of British civic or political life that has not been enriched by contributions from the Irish community. That success is due in no small part to the determination and character of those who settled here in more difficult times – some indeed who are in this room today. Today the Irish community has become one of the most dynamic communities in Britain. This is reflected in the fact that some 50,000 Irish people now sit on the boards of British companies. In my speech at the Guildhall in London earlier this week, I pointed to the contemporary contribution being made, by our many highly skilled graduates, to British industry, to the professions, in commerce and in education. For this generation, migration is often temporary, or may even take the form of commuting, and many of these young people will return to Ireland enriched by the experience and education they gain here. In marking the successes and achievements of those Irish men and women who have made those journeys and built new lives in Britain, we must also, of course, recognise that for some of our people, migration from Ireland was painful and traumatic. Many left difficult circumstances behind and some found hard lives in their new home. The story of the Irish in Britain has many dimensions, but as President of Ireland I am immensely proud today to bear witness to your contribution to the culture and life of Britain, and your continuing centrality in our national identity. Of course British people too made the journey in the opposite direction, to Ireland - some for reasons of
32 st. mary’s g uild h all, covent ry
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“Our two nations have come a very long way in recent years in terms of mutual understanding and cooperation. It is a journey not yet complete, but we are both strongly committed to continuing our journey in cooperation, as we face current and future challenges together.”
employment; others for reasons of family or romantic attachment; and others again because they just felt an affinity for the smaller island. Since the time of Saints Patrick and Colmcille, the journeys in both directions across the Irish Sea have been countless. This afternoon, I would like to recall just two that have direct relevance to Coventry. In September 1950 a young poet, born and raised in Coventry quite close to here, moved to Belfast to take up a new job as Librarian at Queen’s University. He was a migrant. His name was Philip Larkin, and over the next five years in Belfast he wrote some of the finest poetry of his career. Later, drawing on a migrant’s sensibility, he wrote a description of his emptied family home. It stands today as one of the most apt descriptions of the memory of an emptied home felt by any migrant, and felt by so many Irish homes marked by emigration not only during that decade: “Home is so sad. It stays as it was left. Shaped to the comfort of the last to go As if to win them back.” So, while we rightly celebrate the legacy of the contribution of Irish emigrants to this country, we should not forget the terrible human cost exacted by this aspect of our history on our own people, the leaving and the left, and the emptied landscape of possibility. Two years after Philip Larkin returned to this country, another poet left his native Belfast to take up a new job as Director of the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum here in Coventry. John Hewitt would call this city his home for the next fifteen years and would memorably capture Coventry’s great generous spirit as it rebuilt itself after the Blitz, writing of:
time, that humanity and compassion had not been extinguished. I was therefore honoured to be welcomed to Coventry Cathedral by Dean Witcombe and to witness a number of its symbolic features associated with peace, reconciliation and ecumenical dialogue. I was particularly pleased to meet representatives of other Christian faiths in the Chapel of Unity. Coventry is rightly respected for its outstanding work in the art of healing the wounds of past conflicts. Its story provides a powerful inspiration for those in Northern Ireland who are continuing to struggle to deal with the legacy of conflict, and to ensure that the toxins of a divisive past do not poison our hopes for a shared future. “..............this eager city, the tolerance that laced its blatant roar, its famous steeples and its web of girders as image of the state hope argued for” Transience is the circumstance at the heart of these great poets’ work, as it is at the heart of the experience of all migrants. When they arrived here, many Irish men and women did indeed find “the state hope argued for” and we will never forget the generosity of those who held out the hand of friendship to them. Standing here in this ancient Guildhall, in the shadow of your great Cathedral and under the watchful gaze of those two protagonists at the battle of the Boyne, William and James, I am reminded of the words of Nelson Mandela, at whose funeral I was honoured to speak; “Courageous people do not fear forgiving, for the sake of peace”. What is true of great people might also be said of great cities. This great city has lived and continues to live by those words. In 1944, with the Second World War still raging and only a few years after the city had been devastated in the Blitz, and in an act of great empathy on your part, you reached out to another devastated city and twinned with Stalingrad, now Volgograd. You rebuilt and dedicated your Cathedral to reconciliation and forgiveness – reminding the world, at a dark
The lesson of Coventry is that peace will only be embedded when we each have the generosity and the empathy to recognise the common humanity of the other, including former enemies, and to accord respect to their differing perspectives and narratives. This empathy has been sustained in Coventry as you have extended your hand in solidarity to cities all over the world, twinning with, among many others, Warsaw in 1957, Dresden in 1959 and, recognising those strong Irish connections, Cork in 1958. Cork was, of course, the final stop for Queen Elizabeth during her visit to Ireland three years ago. I am therefore delighted to see representatives from the city of Cork here today reinforcing those important links. Her Majesty’s State Visit to Ireland was a groundbreaking event for Britain and Ireland. Our two nations have come a very long way in recent years in terms of mutual understanding and cooperation. It is a journey not yet complete, but we are both strongly committed to continuing our journey in cooperation, as we face current and future challenges together. It has been my privilege during this State Visit to continue strengthening the hand of friendship stretching across the Irish Sea. Sabina and I would like to take this opportunity to thank our hosts, Her Majesty the Queen and His Royal Highness, the Duke of Edinburgh for the warmth of their welcome and their kindness and hospitality over these past few days.
g il d ha l l a n aom h m u ire 33
Through the Lord Chamberlain, the Earl Peel who is with us today, and the Viscount Hood and Lady Mary Morrison who graciously accompanied us throughout the visit, I also wish to express our appreciation to the team at the Royal Household for the efficiency and courtesy of all the arrangements made on our behalf. My warm thanks also to the Tánaiste and his wife Carol, as well as Ambassador Dan Mulhall, his wife Greta and all the team in the Embassy and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The programme of events during the visit has demonstrated the depth, authenticity and warmth of the relationship between our two countries. It has illustrated that, in virtually every area of life, the people of the United Kingdom and Ireland are cooperating with each other, are learning from each other, and are supporting each other practically and on a daily basis. I cannot think of a better place to bring this State Visit to a close than among the Irish community: with the Irish in Britain, active for 40 years; with the St. Patrick’s Club in Leamington Spa which has just celebrated its 50th year; with the Coventry Irish Society; the Coventry Cork Poets Group; and the Coventry County Associations. You, and all Irish organisations, play a vital role by providing a “home from home” for our community. I thank you for your fidelity to your homeland of origin; for your solidarity to each other; and for the contribution you have made to the warm friendship that now exists between Ireland and the United Kingdom.
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This State Visit has had its essential share of ceremonial formality, but at its heart it has been about the warmest of relations between close neighbours. If I may be allowed a note of regret from this visit, it is that the late Seamus Heaney was not with us to witness it. Seamus and Marie rightly shared the table of honour at the State Dinner in Dublin Castle during Her Majesty’s visit in May 2011. It was an honour not just merited by Seamus’ poetic genius, but also by his humanitarian and reconciling influence within the Republic of Letters and the Republic of Conscience, and above all by his enthralling companionability. In reflecting on what Seamus might have made of this State visit to the United Kingdom, I thought of his following lines: “Our pioneers keep striking Inwards and downwards, Every layer they strip Seems camped on before.” The historical terrain shared by our two peoples has been the site of many and different camps over the years. We, in this generation, are now the pioneers who are stripping away the old layers of the troubled past and creating a new path of hope and opportunity. As I conclude this first State Visit by an Irish President to the United Kingdom, my earnest hope is that our two countries will continue to tread the path of neighbourly friendship together. Go raibh míle maith agaibh agus rath Dé oraibh go léir.
Clár Chéad Chuairt Stáit chuig an Ríocht Aontaithe ag Uachtarán na h Éireann Dé Máirt, 8 Aibreán, 2014
Dé Céadaoin, 9 Aibreán, 2014
10:55 a.m. (Sasana) Ambasáid na hÉireann, Londain Cuireann A Mhórgacht Ríoga, Prionsa na Breataine Bige, agus A Mórgacht Ríoga, Bandiúc Chorn na Breataine, fáilte roimh an Uachtarán agus Sabina Higgins sula n-imíonn siad chuig Bóthar Datchet, Windsor
10:15 a.m. (Sasana) Caisleán Windsor Amharcann an tUachtarán ar Bhratacha na Reisimintí Éireannacha scortha, i gcuideachta A Mhórgachta Ríoga, Diúc York, ina ról mar Ardcheannasaí ar Reisimint Ríoga na hÉireann.
12:00 p.m. (Sasana) Windsor Fáilte Dheasghnách A Soilse, An Bhanríon, agus A Mhórgachta Ríoga, Diúc Dhún Éideann, ag an Dás Ríoga, Bóthar Dachet
11:15 a.m. (Sasana) Londain Tugann an tUachtarán cuairt ar Ospidéal an Choláiste Ollscoile
01:05 p.m. (Sasana) Caisleán Windsor Glacann an tUachtarán agus Sabina Higgins lón i gCaisleán Windsor arna óstáil ag A Soilse Ríoga, An Bhanríon, agus A Mhórgacht Ríoga, Diúc Dhún Éideann 03:45 p.m. (Sasana) Londain Tugann an tUachtarán cuairt ar Mhainistir Westminster agus leagann sé fleasc ar uaigh an tSaighdiúra Anaithnid 04:15 p.m. (Sasana) Londain Tugann an tUachtarán aitheasc i bPálás Westminster agus freastalaíonn sé ar fháiltiú 07:25 p.m. (Sasana) Caisleán Windsor Cuireann an tUachtarán fáilte roimh an Uasal Ed Miliband MP, Ceannaire an Fhreasúra 08:00 p.m. (Sasana) Caisleán Windsor Freastalaíonn an tUachtarán agus Sabina Higgins ar Fhéasta Stáit arna óstáil ag A Soilse, An Bhanríon, agus A Mhórgacht Ríoga, Diúc Dhún Éideann
12:25 p.m. (Sasana) Londain Tugann an tUachtarán cuairt ar an gCumann Ríoga 12:30 p.m. (Sasana) Londain Tugann Sabina Higgins cuairt ar RADA 01:30 p.m. (Sasana) Ambasáid na hÉireann, Londain Freastalaíonn Sabina Higgins ar lón dírithe ar dhearadh na hÉireann arna óstáil ag an Uasal Greta Mulhall 01:30 p.m. (Sasana) Londain Glacann an tUachtarán lón atá á óstáil ag an bPríomh-Aire David Cameron in Uimhir 10 Sráid Downing 03:15 p.m. (Sasana) Halla na Cathrach, Londain Freastalaíonn an tUachtarán ar Imeacht Óige dar teideal ‘Taking Charge of Change’ 04:45 p.m. (Sasana) Pálás Buckingham, Londain Cuireann an tUachtarán fáilte roimh an Uasal Nick Clegg MP, Leas-PhríomhAire 07:25 p.m. (Sasana) Gildhalla, Londain Freastalaíonn an tUachtarán agus Sabina Higgins ar Fhleá arna hóstáil ag an Ró-Onórach, an Seanóir Fiona Woolf, Ard-Mhéara Chathair Londan agus ag an Uasal Nicholas Woolf
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Déardaoin, 10 Aibreán, 2014
Dé hAoine, 11 Aibreán, 2014
09:55 a.m. (Sasana) Wytham, Oxford Tugann an tUachtarán cuairt ar FAI Farms Ltd.
10:00 a.m. (Sasana) Caisleán Windsor Fágann A Soilse, An Bhanríon agus A Mhórgacht Ríoga, Diúc Dhún Éideann slán ag an Uachtarán agus ag Sabina Higgins
12:20 p.m. (Sasana) Newbury Tugann an tUachtarán cuairt ar Park House Stables, Kingsclere 05:30 p.m. (Sasana) Halla Naomh Seoirse, Caisleán Windsor Freastalaíonn an tUachtarán agus Sabina Higgins ar fháiltiú le téama Thuaisceart Éireann arna óstáil ag A Soilse, An Bhanríon
11:15 a.m. (Sasana) Stratford-upon-Avon Tugann an tUachtarán cuairt ar an Chompántas Ríoga Shakespeare 12:10 p.m. (Sasana) Stratford-upon-Avon Tugann an tUachtarán cuairt ar áit bhreithe Shakespeare
08:10 p.m. (Sasana) Halla Ríoga Albert, Londain Freastalaíonn an tUachtarán agus Sabina Higgins ar cheolchoirm dar teideal ‘Ceiliúradh’
01:45 p.m. (Sasana) Coventry Tugann an tUachtarán cuairt ar Ard-Eaglais Coventry
02:15 p.m. (Sasana) Gildhalla Naomh Muire, Coventry Freastalaíonn an tUachtarán ar fháiltiú phobail Éireannaigh arna óstáil ag an gComhairleoir Gary Crookes, Ard-Mhéara Coventry
04:45 p.m. (Baile Átha Cliath) Aeradróm Mhic Easmainn, Baile Dhónaill Filleann an tUachtarán abhaile ón gCuairt Stáit chuig an Ríocht Aontaithe
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Programme for First State Visit to the United Kingdom by the President of Ireland Tuesday, 8 April, 2014
Wednesday, 9 April, 2014
10:55 a.m. (England) Irish Embassy, London President and Sabina Higgins are greeted by HRH The Prince of Wales and HRH The Duchess of Cornwall before departing for Datchet Road, Windsor
10:15 a.m. (England) Windsor Castle President views the Colours of the disbanded Irish regiments, accompanied by HRH The Duke of York in his role as Commander-inChief of the Royal Irish Regiment
12:00 p.m. (England) Windsor Ceremonial Welcome by HM the Queen and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh at the Royal Dais, Datchet Road
11:15 a.m. (England) London President visits University College Hospital
01:05 p.m. (England) Windsor Castle President and Sabina Higgins attend lunch at Windsor Castle hosted by HM The Queen and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh 03:45 p.m. (England) London President visits Westminster Abbey and lays a wreath at the grave of the Unknown Warrior 04:15 p.m. (England) London President delivers an address at the Palace of Westminster and attends a reception 07:25 p.m. (England) Windsor Castle President receives Mr. Ed Miliband MP, the Leader of the Opposition 08:00 p.m. (England) Windsor Castle President and Sabina Higgins attend a State Banquet hosted by HM The Queen and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh
12:25 p.m. (England) London President visits The Royal Society 12:30 p.m. (England) London Sabina Higgins visits RADA 01:30 p.m. (England) Irish Embassy, London Sabina Higgins attends Irish Design lunch hosted by Mrs. Greta Mulhall 01:30 p.m. (England) London President attends lunch hosted by Prime Minister David Cameron at No. 10 Downing Street 03:15 p.m. (England) City Hall, London President attends ‘Taking Charge of Change’ Youth Event 04:45 p.m. (England) Buckingham Palace, London President receives Mr. Nick Clegg MP, Deputy Prime Minister 07:25 p.m. (England) Guildhall, London President and Sabina Higgins attend a Banquet hosted by the Rt Hon Alderman Fiona Woolf, the Lord Mayor of the City of London and Mr. Nicholas Woolf
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Thursday, 10 April, 2014
Friday, 11 April, 2014
09:55 a.m. (England) Wytham, Oxford President visits FAI Farms Ltd.
10:00 a.m. (England) Windsor Castle President and Sabina Higgins are farewelled by HM The Queen and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh
12:20 p.m. (England) Newbury President visits Park House Stables, Kingsclere 05:30 p.m. (England) St. George’s Hall, Windsor Castle President and Sabina Higgins attend a Northern Ireland themed reception hosted by HM The Queen 08:10 p.m. (England) Royal Albert Hall, London President and Sabina Higgins attend a concert entitled ‘Ceiliúradh’
11:15 a.m. (England) Stratford-upon-Avon President visits The Royal Shakespeare Company 12:10 p.m. (England) Stratford-upon-Avon President visits Shakespeare’s Birthplace 01:45 p.m. (England) Coventry President visits Coventry Cathedral 02:15 p.m. (England) St. Mary’s Guildhall, Coventry President attends an Irish community reception hosted by Cllr Gary Crookes, The Lord Mayor of Coventry 04:45 p.m. (Dublin) Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel President returns from State Visit to the United Kingdom
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Sonraí na B Pictiúr
Picture Credits
An tUachtarán Michael D. Higgins agus Sabina Taobh istigh President Michael D. Higgins and Sabina Higgins Higgins i gcuideachta i gcuideachta A Soilse, An den chlúdach pictured with HM Queen Elizabeth and HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh at the State Banquet tosaigh Bhanríon Eilís agus A Mhórgachta Ríoga, an Prionsa hosted by the Queen in Windsor Castle. ©Áras an Pilib, Diúc Dhún Éideann ag an bhFéasta Stáit arna Inside Front Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew óstáil ag an mBanríon i gCaisleán Windsor. ©Áras an Cover Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew An tUachtarán Michael D. Higgins ag tabhairt aithisc i dTithe na Parlaiminte, Westminster. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
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President Michael D. Higgins delivering an address at the Houses of Parliament, Westminster. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
An tUachtarán Michael D. Higgins ag tabhairt aithisc i dTithe na Parlaiminte, Westminster. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
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President Michael D. Higgins delivering an address at the Houses of Parliament, Westminster. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
A Soilse, An Bhanríon Eilís ag tabhairt óráide ag an bhFéasta Stáit in onóir chéad Chuairt Stáit chuig an Ríocht Aontaithe ag Uachtarán na hÉireann. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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HM Queen Elizabeth II delivering a speech at the State Banquet in honour of the first State Visit to the UK by the President of Ireland. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
Aíonna ina suí ag an bhFéasta Stáit, Caisleán Windsor. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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Guests seated at the State Banquet, Windsor Castle. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
An tUachtarán Michael D. Higgins agus A Soilse, An Bhanríon Eilís’ ag an bhFéasta Stáit, Caisleán Windsor. ©Alan Betson, The Irish Times
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President Michael D. Higgins and HM Queen Elizabeth II at the State Banquet, Windsor Castle. ©Alan Betson, The Irish Times
An tUachtarán Michael D. Higgins ag tabhairt óráide ag an bhFéasta Stáit, Caisleán Windsor. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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President Michael D. Higgins delivering a speech at the State Banquet, Windsor Castle. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/ Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
Uachtarán na hÉireann, Michael D. Higgins agus an tOllamh John Pethica (ar dheis), Leas-Uachtarán agus Rúnaí Fisice an Chumainn Ríoga, leis an Dr Joseph Roche, Gailearaí Eolaíochta Choláiste na Trionóide, agus turgnamh glasála candaim á léiriú, ina ndéantar forsheoltóir a chur ar foluain i réimse maighnéadach, le linn cuairte ar an gCumann Ríoga i Londain. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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President of Ireland Michael D Higgins and Professor John Pethica(right), Vice President and Physical Secretary of the Royal Society with Dr Joseph Roche, Trinity College Dublin’s Science Gallery, demonstrating a quantum locking experiment which involves levitating a superconductor in a magnetic field during a visit to The Royal Society in London. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
An tUachtarán Michael D. Higgins agus Sabina Higgins i gcuideachta (ó chlé go deas) Nikita Harkin, Daniel Oliver agus William Pauley ag imeacht óige i Halla na Cathrach, Londain. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/ Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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President Michael D. Higgins and Sabina Higgins pictured with (left to right) Nikita Harkin, Daniel Oliver and William Pauley. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/ Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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An tUachtarán Michael D. Higgins leis an Seanóir Fiona Woolf, Ard-Mhéara Londan ag Fleá an Ghildhalla, Londain. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
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President Michael D. Higgins pictured with Alderman Fiona Woolf, Lord Mayor of London at the Guildhall Banquet, London. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
Sabina Higgins ag Fleá an Ghildhalla, Londain. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
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Sabina Higgins pictured at the Guildhall Banquet, London. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
Sa phictiúr, tá na ceoltóirí (ó chlé), Donal Lunny, Steve Nieve, Conor J. O’Brien, Paul Brady, Elvis Costello, Glen Hansard, Andy Irvine, Lisa Hannigan, Imelda May agus John Sheahan ag Ceiliúradh, ceolchoirm a rinne ceiliúradh ar chultúr na hÉireann i Halla Ríoga Albert, Londain. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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Pictured are performers, from left, Donal Lunny, Steve Nieve, Conor J. O’Brien, Paul Brady, Elvis Costello, Glen Hansard, Andy Irvine, Lisa Hannigan, Imelda May and John Sheahan at Ceiliúradh, a concert celebrating Irish culture in the Royal Albert Hall, London. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
Amharc i Halla Ríoga Albert le linn Ceiliúradh. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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A view of the Royal Albert Hall during Ceiliúradh. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
Baill Chompántas Ríoga Shakespeare ag féachaint ar an Uachtarán Michael D. Higgins agus aitheasc á thabhairt aige do Chompántas Ríoga Shakespeare, Stratford-UponAvon. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
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Members of the Royal Shakespeare Company looking on as President Michael D. Higgins delivers an address at the Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-UponAvon. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
Sabina Higgins agus (ar dheis) An Ridire Antony Sher, Ealaíontóir Comhlach i gCompántas Ríoga Shakespeare, Stratford-Upon-Avon. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
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Sabina Higgins and (right) Sir Antony Sher, Associate Artist at the Royal Shakespeare Company, StratfordUpon-Avon. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
Baill den phobal áitiúil Éireannach agus fáilte á cur acu roimh an Uachtarán Michael D. Higgins agus Sabina Higgins nuair a tháinig an tUachtarán i láthair chun aitheasc a thabhairt i nGildhalla Naomh Muire, Coventry. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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Members of the local Irish community greet President Michael D. Higgins and Sabina Higgins as the President arrives to deliver an address in St. Mary’s Guildhall, Coventry. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
Chun tuilleadh acmhainní faoi Uachtaránacht Michael D. Higgins a fháil, téigh go dtí www.president.ie, más é do thoil é. For further resources on the Presidency of Michael D. Higgins please visit www.president.ie
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An tUachtarán Michael D. Higgins leis an Seanóir Fiona Woolf, Ard-Mhéara Londan ag Fleá an Ghildhalla, Londain. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
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President Michael D. Higgins pictured with Alderman Fiona Woolf, Lord Mayor of London at the Guildhall Banquet, London. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
Sabina Higgins ag Fleá an Ghildhalla, Londain. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
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Sabina Higgins pictured at the Guildhall Banquet, London. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
Sa phictiúr, tá na ceoltóirí (ó chlé), Donal Lunny, Steve Nieve, Conor J. O’Brien, Paul Brady, Elvis Costello, Glen Hansard, Andy Irvine, Lisa Hannigan, Imelda May agus John Sheahan ag Ceiliúradh, ceolchoirm a rinne ceiliúradh ar chultúr na hÉireann i Halla Ríoga Albert, Londain. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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Pictured are performers, from left, Donal Lunny, Steve Nieve, Conor J. O’Brien, Paul Brady, Elvis Costello, Glen Hansard, Andy Irvine, Lisa Hannigan, Imelda May and John Sheahan at Ceiliúradh, a concert celebrating Irish culture in the Royal Albert Hall, London. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
Amharc i Halla Ríoga Albert le linn Ceiliúradh. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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A view of the Royal Albert Hall during Ceiliúradh. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
Baill Chompántas Ríoga Shakespeare ag féachaint ar an Uachtarán Michael D. Higgins agus aitheasc á thabhairt aige do Chompántas Ríoga Shakespeare, Stratford-UponAvon. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
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Members of the Royal Shakespeare Company looking on as President Michael D. Higgins delivers an address at the Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-UponAvon. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
Sabina Higgins agus (ar dheis) An Ridire Antony Sher, Ealaíontóir Comhlach i gCompántas Ríoga Shakespeare, Stratford-Upon-Avon. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
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Sabina Higgins and (right) Sir Antony Sher, Associate Artist at the Royal Shakespeare Company, StratfordUpon-Avon. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Johnny Bambury
Baill den phobal áitiúil Éireannach agus fáilte á cur acu roimh an Uachtarán Michael D. Higgins agus Sabina Higgins nuair a tháinig an tUachtarán i láthair chun aitheasc a thabhairt i nGildhalla Naomh Muire, Coventry. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
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Members of the local Irish community greet President Michael D. Higgins and Sabina Higgins as the President arrives to deliver an address in St. Mary’s Guildhall, Coventry. ©Áras an Uachtaráin/Fennell Photography – Chris Bellew
Chun tuilleadh acmhainní faoi Uachtaránacht Michael D. Higgins a fháil, téigh go dtí www.president.ie, más é do thoil é. For further resources on the Presidency of Michael D. Higgins please visit www.president.ie
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This publication was co-funded by Ireland's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Áras an Uachtaráin