My Journey into Artanes Past

My Journey into Artane’s Past

By Tom O’Farrell

The ruins of St Nicholas Church, Community Park adjacent to Pinebrook Housing Estate, Artane

Foreword Artane is a busy suburb of North Dublin, an area bustling with housing estates, schools, shops, restaurants, pubs, churches, a community centre and Artane Castle Shopping Centre. Its location close to other suburbs such as Raheny, Clontarf, Killester, Coolock and Beaumont means there is no shortage of activities for people living in the neighborhood, which is predominantly a settled and mature area occupied by generations of families. It is known for many reasons, ranging from its famous natives (Bram Stoker, Brendan Gleeson and Larry Mullen to name a few) but also from the tragic events of the Stardust fire in 1981, when 48 people died in a fire in a local disco on Valentine’s night. Many people across the country associate it with the Artane Boys Band (now known as Artane School of Music and including girls), which proudly marches and played to full crowds in Croke Park on All Ireland final days.

St Joseph’s Industrial School is another well-known landmark, a reflection of a time in Ireland when the Catholic Church endeavored to look after the less fortunate in society, but which also resulted in tragedy for some of those who attended in terms of their treatment there.

Some of these stories are covered in this book, but there is also much more to the history of Artane than many people know about. It was once the location of Artane Castle and this is what defined some of the great stories of Artane in years gone by.

The Fitzgerald dynasty, who were the appointed Earls of Kildare in Ireland by the Crown of England for generations and who ruled for the Crown (as Lord Deputies of Ireland) in the late 15th and early 16th centuries, had an involvement in Artane through Artane Castle. This was due to the role of the Castle in the resurrection against the Crown by Thomas Fitzgerald, or Silken Thomas as he was known, who took refuge in Artane Castle during his insurrection. The Fitzgerald’s story is included here as such was their power in Ireland for such a long period of time that their link to Artane is something to be proud of. Generations on from Silken Thomas, Lord Edward Fitzgerald lead the 1798 Rebellion against the Crown and James Fitzgerald developed Leinster House, the present day seat of Dail Eireann. Gerald Fitzgerald, the father of Silken Thomas, kept in repair several castles in Ireland such as Rathangan, Kilkea, Woodstock, Castledermot, Athy and Carton House and as a family they left a lasting legacy on the Ireland of today.

Artane Castle was originally developed by the Hollywood family, whose story is also told here.

What preserves the memory of the Castle (long demolished and which was replaced in 1870 by Artane House, which became St Joseph’s Industrial School) and what links it with the Artane of today is the ruins of St Nicholas Church, which was associated with the Castle and which has a tombstone to the Hollywood family within it.

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It is these ruins of St Nicholas Church that have lead to the telling of this tale by Tom O’Farrell.

Tom has lived in Pinebrook in Artane for over 40 years. A man who likes to keep himself busy, he noticed the public park in Pinebrook needed some attention. As a project during the Covid pandemic, he spent many hours cleaning the park with the assistance of other local residents.

This included the ruins of the old Church within the park, where he cleared the overgrown ivy, tidied up the tombstones and from there opened up the history of the Church and the story of Artane Castle and its inhabitants.

Tom’s story within these pages is to give a flavour to those reading it of what happened in Artane since the first recording of information about it dating from the 12th Century. Factual references and bibliographies are not included. In terms of the facts and dates referred to, Tom has researched the information from various sources and spoke to many historians. He has interpreted the information in as true a light as he can and reflected the facts as such.

To quote Oscar Wilde, “Anybody can make history; only a great man can write it”.

Róisín Purcell (Née O’ Farrell)

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Chapter 1 - Artane, the “Height of the Flocks” Artane (in Irish Ard Aidhin) or historically known as Tartaine has a recorded history spanning over 900 years. For a long time it was a quiet rural area, a village located on the north side of Dublin city. The Catholic parish was linked with the Finglas parish up to the Protestant Reformation in 1641 (when Protestantism took over as an alternative religion to Catholicism across Western Europe), when it became a Civil Parish (a collection of different townlands) in the ancient barony of Coolock.

The name Tartaine means Height of the Flocks and came about because of the numerous flocks of birds which have congregated since ancient times and continue to congregate in the large grass areas of what is now St David’s Secondary School. They are brent geese who travel to Ireland each year from Artic Canada via Greenland in the month of November. They search for food in local parks and football pitches and have always come inland from the marshy seaside areas of nearby Clontarf to neighboring Artane.

Before any development took place the area of land in Artane consisted of 954 acres, which was mostly made up of rough pasture with no hedges and only suitable for cattle grazing. While Artane Castle was built in the 14th Century, the area of Artane was not really populated until the 17th century. In 1663 a Census was carried out and it recorded 40 persons, 32 Irish and 8 English. By 1831 the Census showed the population had increased to 538, 170 were described as labourers. By the 18th and 19th Century, Artane was populated by a mix of the Gentry (upper or ruling class British people who settled in Ireland) and those people who worked for them.

Examples of the local Gentry were Lord Charlemont who lived in Marino House, Benjamin Guinness in Beaumont, General Cuppage in Annesely Lodge on the Malahide Road and the Domville family in Santry House.

Living conditions for the working families of the Gentry landowners in the 1700s and 1800s when the area became more populated were deplorable. If houses had gardens they would grow their own vegetables. However the soil was used so frequently that produce was very poor. The diet of the people who lived and worked in the area was mainly bread, milk, oatmeal, barley and oats, fish and potatoes and very rarely meat, none of which had much nutritional value. There were also health issues for people living in unhygienic and unsanitary conditions.

This created great anxiety and despair and the likelihood of serious illness for people in poor physical health. The lifestyle of the workers in Artane and throughout Ireland often lead to the easy transmission of infectious diseases including small pox, typhus, cholera and dysentry.

Children were particularly vulnerable as they had less immunity than an adult would have, with the result that a child would be unlikely to survive if infected. Evidence shows a child’s life expectancy was 5 years old. Evidence on the number of deceased children can be seen at the memorials for graves located within the confines of St. Nicholas Church in the Community Park adjacent to Pinebrook housing estate off the Kilmore Road (dated in the 1700s and 1800s). To add to a family’s anxiety and despair medical attention was almost non-existent. Doctors if and when available had very little medical knowledge. Medicines were cheap and inferior. Payment

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for a doctor’s visit was by cash, a dozen eggs or some vegetables, e.g. 2 heads of cabbage.

The Gentry had their own Doctor employed for their personal attention. They would offer a Doctor a section of land to secure their services and as payment.

In the early Victorian times (c. 1837 when Queen Victoria’s reign as Queen of England began) some of the red brick houses on the Malahide Road and Skelly’s Lane were built to replace the straw roof thatched cottages used by agricultural workers. A rent of 1 shilling and 6 pence or 8 cents (modern equivalent) per week was charged for each household. Conditions of employment by the Gentry were extremely harsh as they did not treat workers in a humane manner. Heavy fines were imposed for minor offences with dismissal on the 3rd offence. When not at work they could not leave their homes, they were confined to their houses at night and had to be available if required.

Between 1845 and 1852, during the Great Famine in Ireland, wealthy families in the area (the Gentry families) assisted destitute and poor labourers of Artane and Coolock. General Cuppage gave them gardens, houses free of rent, paying them weekly wages without deductions.

Benjamin Guinness was amongst others who offered financial assistance to poor labourers by providing local work projects i.e. the construction of the Malahide Road.

In the 18th Century the quarrying industry was very busy supplying stone, gravel, slates and sand to local projects i.e. houses and roads. These quarries were located in Coolock and Rockfield in Artane (now the site of Rockfield Park between Whitethorn, Thorndale and Elm Mount estates). They were owned as family businesses over many generations. Employment conditions were equally harsh in the quarries with safety a low priority and the risk of personal injury always imminent for the workers.

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Chapter 2 - The Hollywood's holding in Artane Castle While the area of Artane began to be populated from the 17th and 18th Century, its history goes back a lot further than this, and is dominated by the story of the Hollywood family.

The Hollywoods were an influential Anglo-Norman family who originated from the 13th Century.

Robert Hollywood (De Holywood) built Artane Castle in 1361. He held the position of Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer (equivalent of the UK court system in Ireland, he was the chief judge of this system, which operated from the Four Courts building in Dublin). He was an ancestor of both the Hollywood family and the Earls of Howth.

The great European scholar and Mathematician John Hollywood was another member of this influential family. He was educated at Oxford University and went later to Paris where he wrote several learned works. He died around 1235 and was buried in the convent of St Maturine in Paris.

Under the laws of the English Crown, it was strictly forbidden for Crown officials to purchase land or receive gifts without royal consent. Robert Hollywood as a member of the Crown had acquired the land in Artane. In 1361, he received a financial penalty from the Crown and all his lands were taken from him. He continued however to hold his position of authority in Ireland and in 1367 he was appointed to sit on a Royal Commission, which meant he was to investigate all illegal matters of interest affecting the Crown.

In 1377 Robert received a Royal Pardon for his previous conviction for acquiring land illegally, and finally was given back Artane Castle and the other land he had acquired. In 1390 he became the first registered owner of Artane Castle and the first person to reside in the Castle.

Robert married twice, his first wife Joan and his second wife Nesta and he had a son Christopher. After Robert’s death, Christopher succeeded to some large estates including Artane Castle and he became a Commander in the King’s army.

When Christopher died in 1416, his son Robert Hollywood Jnr, who was then a minor, became a Royal Ward and the King appointed Sir Robert FitzEustace as his legal guardian.

Christopher’s daughter Eleanor married the first Baron of Howth, and they had a child who became the second Baron of Howth - also named Christopher (Junior) or known as Stephen St Laurence. Christopher (Junior) died in 1462 and his tomb is in the family church in St Mary’s in Howth.

In 1473 when Robert Hollywood Jnr died, the Hollywoods had been in Artane for over 100 years. Robert Hollywood Jnr had 3 daughters - Margaret, Elizabeth and Eleanor. He left the Manors of Coolock, Cloghran and other lands to be held jointly by them (strangely with no mention of Artane, which included Artane Castle).

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Margaret married Sir Morris Burghill with whom she had a son Christopher. When Margaret died her husband inherited her half share of these lands.

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Elizabeth married Thomas Doudall who became Clerk of the Kings Role of Chancery in Ireland.

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Eleanor married John Burnell of Castleknock and ownership of her part of the lands passed into the Burnell family. John Burnell took part in the rebellion of Silken Thomas and was executed for treason in Tyburn prison in 1534. As a result all of his lands were confiscated by the Crown. When the lands were regranted, his cousin John Bathe of Drumcondra Castle (where All Hallows college was subsequently built), retained the family estates which was passed by inheritance to the Bathe family. John Bathe was an Irish lawyer, Stateman and Chancellor of the Exchequer. He was also a prominent landowner in County Dublin. Despite some suspicions about his loyalty during the rebellion of Silken Thomas he was a much trusted servant of the English Crown and a Roman Catholic at heart.

The Hollywood and Bathe families were both strong Catholic families in Artane and North County Dublin. They were loyal to the Crown, in a time in the 15 th and 16th Century when the Catholic Church was a persecuted one and the Crown wanted to rid Ireland of the evils of Popery. On the other hand the Crown did not want to aggravate the Catholic Gentry families such as these, due to their potential to cause unrest in Ireland.

The most distinguished of the Hollywood family that came from Artane was the Jesuit priest Father Christopher Hollywood. He was Robert Hollywood’s nephew and was born in Artane

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Castle in 1559. Because of his religion he was sent abroad to be educated and in 1579 he entered the Jesuits at Dole in France. He was known as Christopher “Sacre Bosco”. He speedily made a name for himself in the Universities of Europe. He became a Professor of Scripture at Ferrara and later at Padua in Italy.

At that time persecution of Irish Catholics was at its highest. In 1598 the Pope sent Father Christopher from Italy to Ireland. However he was arrested in England on his return to Ireland and spent the next six years in the Gatehouse prison at the Tower of London and in Wisbech and Framlinghan Prisons, where he suffered great hardships.

After the death of Queen Elizabeth I in 1603, King James I ordered the immediate release of Father Christopher. He was deported to Flanders in Belgium. On March 16th 1604 he returned to Ireland. He was immediately elected Superior by his brethren and resumed his priestly duties.

He was hunted and pursued on many occasions by the British in Ireland, but he always avoided capture. One of his favourite hiding places was Dunsoghley Castle near St. Margaret’s in Swords. It was built by Thomas Plunkett in 1450, who was Baron of Kileen and Earl of Fingal.

Father Christopher lived between Artane and Dunsoghley Castles until his death in 1626. A small chapel is adjacent to Dunsoghley Castle dated 1573.

During the time of the Penal Laws (laws passed against Roman Catholics in Britain and Ireland after the Reformation and to enforce Protestantism on them), the Hollywood family made Artane Castle a place of refuge for people on the run. In the years 1660 to 1693 the Crown persecuted any person who was a Catholic or attempted to practice their religion. Shocking atrocities were carried out towards their rights, including gross injustice, defrauding them of their property and punishment towards their family’s education.

Artane Castle had its own Mass house. Father Richard Cahill was Parish Priest for Clontarf, Santry and Coolock. Father Cahill lived in the Castle for 40 years, with the Hollywood family.

There was also a hedge school in the Castle, where Catholic children were secretly educated (by Father James Drake). In 1797 Fr Cahill left Artane Castle and moved to Coolock to build a Church there. He later returned to Artane Castle after the church in Coolock was closed down.

Father Cahill and Father James Drake took a very serious risk on their personal safety by practicing their Catholic faith and teaching the Catholic religion from the refuge of Artane Castle.

The British Government had spies sending in constant reports on the number of priests that found shelter in Artane Castle and there were numerous reports that Mass was celebrated there. The Government also had Priest Hunters and if a Priest was found he would be hanged.

Huge fines were also levied equal to £48 or 2000 florins for saying Mass. It was found necessary for a Priest celebrating Mass to remain behind a curtain which would conceal the Priest’s identity except for his hands when giving communion. The reason the Mass house in Artane Castle was not closed was due to the power and influence of the Hollywood family and the fear by the Crown that any move against them would cause unrest in Dublin.

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Nicholas Hollywood was another member of the Hollywood family of Artane Castle, the son of Thomas Hollywood. When Thomas Hollywood died, Thomas St Lawrence became his legal guardian and at this point Thomas St Lawrence took up residence in Artane Castle. After entering Lincolns Inn to become a barrister, Thomas St Lawrence became a leading Irish Statesman and Judge. He was appointed to the Office of Attorney General and during the time he resided in Artane Castle, he was involved in efforts to save the life of Archbishop Allen of Dublin during the famous Rebellion of Silken Thomas in 1535. He also stood Surety for Gerald Fitzgerald 9th Earl of Kildare (father of Silken Thomas) who was suspected of inciting this Rebellion.

In 1641 King Charles 1 visited Artane Castle to gain support from Irish Chieftains on a promise to end anti-Catholic discrimination in the country and raise an army for the Royalists in the English Civil War. In 1641 another Christopher Hollywood within the Hollywood family (nephew of the Jesuit priest Fr Christopher Hollywood) invited Luke Netterville a Catholic in command of a small garrison of troops based in Fingal to occupy the Castle. As a result of this action hostilities broke out and Artane Castle came under siege by confederates or protestant English and Scottish Settlers.

With the defeat of Charles 1 and the pending trial of the King for treason Christopher Hollywood and his brother Nicholas Hollywood were indicted in Kilmainham Court in 1662 for high treason and their part in the rebellion (the war of the Catholic Confederation).

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In 1663 all lands including Artane and Santry were confiscated from Nicholas Hollywood. As Nicholas’ son John was a minor at the time and counted innocent, he obtained the rest of the estates for his male heirs and an income from the Hollywood Estates. When John died, he left the lands to his son and heir Christopher. As he was a minor, he was granted the lands in Artane and Santry to hold them for the King until further notice.

Christopher Hollywood married Elizabeth Talbot of Malahide and remained living in Artane Castle for many years. In 1711 Christopher’s wife died and her remains are in a family crypt inside the historic St Nicholas Church, in the Community Park adjacent to Pinebrook housing estate.

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In 1680 a grant was made by King Charles II, whereby the King entrusted the family estates to Sir Arthur Forbes, one of the Commissioners of the Court, to hold the lands for him for 1,000 years after the Hollywood interest expired. In 1687 the lands of Artane were once again in dispute and subject to a court hearing. After the death of John Hollywood and the death of Christopher Hollywood (John’s son) in 1718 and failure of the male line of John Hollywood, the lands were consigned to Lord Grannard under the grant of 1680. He transferred the properties to his ancestor Sir Arthur Forbes and from then Artane Castle passed through different landlords including Lord Marlborough, who was an absentee landlord, the Donnellens of Ravensdale and perhaps the most distinguished of the landlord of Artane Castle, the Fitzsimons family.

The Fitzsimons family were Protestants, but their son Henry Fitzsimons became a priest in the Jesuit Order. He was also a legendary figure in the Rebellion of 1545 in support of Silken Thomas. During the Elizabethan times he was arrested and jailed for 6 years in Dublin Castle.

For many years Artane Castle remained closed and left derelict and in ruined condition. It was fenced off until 1825 when Matthew Boyle bought the site and demolished the remains of the Castle and Artane House was constructed.

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Chapter 3 - Geraldines - Fitzgeralds / Fitzmaurice Dynasty Ireland in 1500 was an Anglo-Norman run country since the 12th century. Many of the native Irish had been expelled from various parts of the country (mainly the East and Southeast) and replaced with English peasants and labourers. The Pale was a defended area in which English language and culture predominated and where English law was enforced by a government in Dublin.

Ireland at the beginning of the Tudor period in England The Irish were, for the most part, outside English jurisdiction, maintaining their own language, social system, customs, and laws. The English referred to them as "His Majesty's Irish enemies". The rise of “Gaelic” influence had resulted in the passing in 1366 of the Statutes of Kilkenny which outlawed many social practices (e.g. use of the Irish language and Irish dress).

Beyond the Pale, the authority of the Dublin government was tenuous and over the 14 th and 15th Centuries, the territories controlled by the Norman Lords in Ireland achieved a high degree of independence. The Butlers, Fitzgeralds, and Burkes raised their own armed forces, enforced their own law, and adopted the Irish language and culture.

By 1500, English monarchs had delegated government of Ireland to the most powerful of these dynasties – the Fitzgeralds of Kildare, to keep the costs of running Ireland down and to protect the Pale. The King's Lord Deputy of Ireland was chief of the administration, based in Dublin Castle, managing Ireland on behalf of the Crown.

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This Fitzgerald / Fitzmaurice dynasty, also known as the Geraldines, comprised of two great branches - one branch was ruled by the Earl of Desmond and the other by the Earl of Kildare.

They were titled Peers of Ireland since the 13th Century and described as “more Irish than the Irish themselves”, speaking the Irish language.

The Geraldines were a rich and powerful family, achieved by the conquests of large areas of Irish land by the sons and grandsons of Gerald of Windsor. From 1075 to 1135 Gerald Fitzgerald was a Norman Castellan of Wales. Gerald’s wife Nesta Ferch Rhys was a Welsh princess and a female descendant of the Fitzgeralds and Fitzmaurices. In 1456 Gerald Fitzgerald became the 8th Earl of Kildare and was known as Garrett the Great or Garret Mór Fitzgerald.

In 1487 Gerald Fitzgerald, the 9th Earl of Kildare, known as Garret Óg Fitzgerald (son of Garret Mór) was appointed Lord Deputy of Ireland and lived in Maynooth Castle, Co. Kildare. In 1526 he was ordered to return to England. On his arrival Cardinal Wolsley, who had a close and personal relationship with the King and was an enemy of the Fitzgeralds, made an allegation about Gerald Fitzgerald that he had committed crimes against the King and arranged an order for his immediate execution. He was imprisoned for two years. On his release he was pardoned by the King and resumed his normal duties in Ireland as Lord Deputy.

In 1534 he was once again sent for by the King. He left his son the young Lord Thomas (age 21 years) as Lord Deputy of Ireland. Lord Thomas was also known as Silken Thomas. On his arrival in England Gerald Fitzgerald was again arrested and sent to the Tower of London on various charges. Cardinal Wolsley had claimed he sent letters to France and Spain requesting them to invade Ireland. Lord Thomas or Silken Thomas was informed by a forged letter that his father Gerald had been beheaded. It was a plot to ruin the family. It was alleged the letter was sent by Thomas's foster half-brother.

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Thomas Fitzgerald, or “Silken Thomas” In 1534 Archbishop Alen of the Dublin Diocese, who owed his advancement to Cardinal Wolsley and shared his hostility of the Fitzgeralds, had been sent to Dublin two years previous by Wolsley. During his term of office he gathered together all legal documents and books referring to the Diocese. He also took note of how much land was available to the Monasteries. He had ulterior motives for this interest, as the King was beginning to eye this land to help bolster his finances.

When the rumour of Gerald Fitzgerald's death reached Archbishop Alen, whether it was fear of a guilty conscience or fear of revenge by Silken Thomas, he made an attempt to flee the country. He left that evening on a light Barque (Boat) near Dame Gate in the city, but his boat was driven ashore by storm near Clontarf. He decided to make his way across the fields and take refuge in Artane Castle, where his friend Thomas St Laurence was residing and acting as a guardian to Nicholas Hollywood.

Silken Thomas on receiving the news of his father’s supposed death rushed from his home in Maynooth Castle. On hearing that Alen was hiding in Artane Castle he ordered the distraught Archbishop Alen to be brought before him. The Archbishop was dragged from his bed and in the Great Hall in Artane Castle, he knelt at his feet and pleaded for his life. There is some controversy as to what Silken Thomas meant by his command “Rid me of this Clown” which was said in Irish and whether he had a genuine intention to murder the Archbishop. However his two men (Nicholas Weafer and John Teeling) set upon the unfortunate prelate and brutally murdered him. Archbishop Alen was 58 years old and buried in a pauper's grave.

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Legend has it a memorial with Archbishop Alen’s name identifying the location of his grave in the old Cemetery (now the Community Park adjacent to Pinebrook housing estate) was removed by Powers Supermarket in 1982 during landscape work in the area.

Silken Thomas, after the murderous event in Artane Castle, broken-hearted at the news of his father’s supposed death in London and fearful for his family’s safety and position, marched in a passionate fury from Artane to St Mary's Abbey (back of Capel Street) with his army of Kinsmen and some Galloglas troops (Scottish Mercenaries). They stormed into the Chapter House where the King’s Supreme Council was having a secret meeting. He slammed down the Great Sword of State, resigned his position as Lord Deputy of Ireland and declared himself an enemy of King Henry VIII. He followed it straight away by raising a Rebellion against the Crown and its forces. He retreated to his Castle in Maynooth and failed in his attempt to get support from Spain or Scotland or from the Irish families. They saw him as a reckless 21 year old rebel with no hope of success. He was known to be an impetuous youth, he had an appreciation for clothes and silken banners carried by his standard barers, hence the name given to him of “Silken Thomas”.

Thomas decided to march from Maynooth again on Dublin Castle this time, with his insurgent army, who besieged the perimeter walls of Dublin city through the Newgate entrance. The citizens firstly refused him entry. As a retaliation his army burned down homes outside the city walls, kidnapped the children of defenders of the Castle and the city and threatened to put them on the front lines. After a period of time a truce was reached and the citizens agreed to allow Thomas and his troops to enter the city. The siege of the Castle did not last long as they were short of ammunition. Their light cannon failed to have any effect on the strong fortress walls and they shot headless arrows over the perimeter. The inhabitants soon discovered the weakness of the army and they rushed out and dispersed them. After a few days, Thomas and his army, aware Sir William Skeffington had landed from England with a relief force, retreated again to his Castle in Maynooth.

After his failure on Dublin Castle many leaders of neighboring clans withdrew their support and departed from the Rebellion. In the meantime Gerald Fitzgerald, who had not actually been beheaded as Thomas believed, on receiving news of his son’s wild and hopeless struggle, already sick from palsy took to his bed and died a heartbroken man on the 23 September 1534.

He was buried in the Chapel Royal in the Tower of London. A short time later all the Fitzgerald family and followers were ex-communicated by the Catholic Church.

The new Lord Deputy of Ireland Sir William Skeffington on his appointment received instructions from King Henry VIII to actively march against Lord Thomas (Silken Thomas). Sir William was an elderly man and did not enjoy good health. He waited over the winter months until March 1535 when he laid siege to the home of Silken Thomas, Maynooth Castle. Sir William Skeffington took some heavy cannon from Dublin Castle and after 9 days of a siege the outer walls of the Castle were in ruins. It was alleged Silken Thomas’ foster half-brother Parese who was in command of the defenders negotiated a surrender with Sir William. The deal would include a guarantee of the defenders safely and they would receive a pardon. However on

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surrender of the Castle no mercy was shown and all 37 defenders including Parese were executed. This incident was recorded in history as the Maynooth pardon.

Silken Thomas was not in the Castle during the siege but in Athlone seeking support for his cause, having realised the Rebellion where he thought his father was executed failed to make an impact. He negotiated his surrender with the new Lord Deputy of Ireland Leonard Gray who guaranteed him his personal safety and persuaded him to submit to the King's mercy. On his journey to Dublin he was arrested and sent to the Tower of London. In the meantime, 3 of his uncles were invited to a reception in Kilmainham Castle and on arriving were arrested, handcuffed and brought to Dublin Castle. The remaining 2 were arrested in Dublin. Silken Thomas and his 5 uncles were imprisoned in Tyburn Prison in London and on 3 February 1537 all were executed. His uncles were drawn and quartered.

Siege on Dublin Castle, 1534 After the Rebellion of Silken Thomas, King Henry VIII implemented the policy of surrender and regrant. This extended royal protection to all of Ireland's elite without regard to ethnicity; in return the whole country was expected to obey the law of the central government. All Irish lords were to officially surrender their lands to the Crown, and to receive them back in return by Royal Charter. The keystone to the reform was in a statute passed by the Irish parliament in 1541, whereby the lordship was converted to the Kingdom of Ireland, the intention was to assimilate the Irish upper classes and to develop a loyalty on their part to the new crown. They were granted English titles and for the first time admitted to the Irish Parliament. This policy was never really successful and the Irish continued to cause trouble and unrest for the English Crown for generations to come.

Meanwhile for the Fitzgerald family, their story continued after the death of Silken Thomas and his father. Gerald Fitzgerald, the 11th Earl of Kildare, a 12 year old, who was half brother of Silken Thomas, was lying ill of smallpox in the village of Donore, Co Kildare when Silken Thomas was arrested. He was the last remaining hope of the Fitzgerald family, he was moved

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around the country to various cousins while the authorities searched for him. He was offered a pardon but knowing what happened to his uncles, he declined. Lady Elizabeth Grey, sister to the new Lord Deputy of Ireland, Leonard Grey, who was stepmother to Silken Thomas, assisted in avoiding the Earl’s capture. Lord Grey was later accused of allowing the escape of his sisters stepson, the young Earl of Kildare. He was tried for high treason and executed in the Tower of London on orders from the King in 1541.

Lady Eleanor O’Donnell (Gerald’s aunt) finally arranged the Earl’s escape to France and then passed him on to Cardinal Pole in Rome where he was educated. After the death of Henry VIII in 1547 he visited London, married a Mabel Brown and was restored to his Irish estates by Edward VI. He was a trusted servant of the Crown and during Lord Grey’s term as Deputy of Ireland accompanied him against rebel Irish chieftains. The Government still had doubts about him. He was confined with his family to Dublin Castle and the Tower of London. He was eventually liberated and died in London in 1585. His remains were brought back to Ireland and interred in Co Kildare. He conformed to the Protestant religion in the early reign of Queen Elizabeth 1.

Maynooth Castle, home of the Fitzgeralds, remained the property of the Crown when in 1552 it was restored to the Fitzgerald family during the reign of Edward VI.

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Chapter 4 - Artane Industrial School / St. Joseph's Industrial School In 1825 Matthew Boyle a wealthy linen merchant from Mary Street in Dublin acquired the lands in Artane. He demolished the old Artane Castle and in its place built a modern residence on a site a few hundred meters from the Castle. He called the house Artaine Castle but sometime later changed the name to Artaine House. The location gives a splendid view of Lambay, Ireland’s Eye Island, the Dublin and Wicklow mountains. Ownership of the property passed later to his nephew M O’ Callaghan.

At one time the distinguished soldier and author General Sir William Butler was in residence during his boyhood years.

On 9 July 1870 M. O’Callaghan sold the building to the Christian Brothers. Reverend Brother Hoope set about immediately to raise funds for the school. St. Joseph’s School was established under the Industrial Schools Act Ireland in 1868 by the Christian Brothers at the request of the Archbishop of Dublin, Cardinal Cullen. The school was for Roman Catholic boys up to the age of 14 years who were committed by Magistrates for destitution, neglect, truancy, inadequate care and minor offenses such as skipping school. About 5% were orphans. The boys were to receive religious instruction, secular education and a wide variety of industrial training i.e. painting and decorating, weaving and tailoring, cabinet making, carpentry, flour milling and baking, boot and shoemaking, hairdressing, plumbing, plastering, farming, tinsmiths, blacksmiths, cart and wheel wrights. They even had their own forge. Classroom education included algebra, geometry, bookkeeping, shorthand writing and drawing. A farm was also set up on the large school property and the school had its own infirmary which was in the care of an Italian Order of Nuns. They showed great compassion and kindness to the boys.

From the original 3 boys on the opening of the school, numbers rose quickly to 40 boys who were living in temporary tarred sheds. With the acquisition of additional lands in 1872, the number expanded to 336 boys. The following year accommodation improved with the construction of cottages for the teachers located at different points around the grounds. In that same year a School of Music was introduced, with the formation of the Artane Boys Band.

There were 40 to 80 boys as members. They went on to be famous playing in Croke Park before major GAA games. They had listeners from all over the world with the quality and range of music. In 1962 they performed in New York and Boston and appeared on US television. The band continued after the school closed in 1969. In 2004 girls were admitted into the band and it was renamed Artane School of Music.

In 1877 the school was housing 700 boys, reaching its maximum of 825 Boys in 1883. A swimming pool and a church was built and the school farm area was extended to 240 acres. In 2008 the historic church was destroyed by fire.

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An image of the boys in the School, where they were silenced during mealtimes and only allowed speak to each other when granted permission

On arrival at the school the boy's name was considered obsolete. They were to be identified by a number on their clothing and footwear. The school was run similar to a strict military regime.

The boys would respond to a trumpet call when ordered. Any personal troubles ambitions or welfare was neglected. Punishment was common by some individual Brothers, even for the smallest misdemeanor, i.e. last one leaving the showers. Older Brothers had authority over younger colleagues. All the heavy workload of the institution fell on a number of inexperienced Brothers which helped create a climate of fear.

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My Journey into Artane’s Past | by Tom O’Farrell

Boys in the school making their own shoes

After the acquisition and redevelopment of the school property by Abbey Homesteads in 1973 / 74 the main school building being listed as a protected structure was saved, during alterations to the site. However a number of other buildings in the area were demolished. Some debris from these buildings was used to fill in the swimming pool which had been built in 1883.

In 1969 Artane school finally closed. Approximately 15,500 boys educated during their detention from opening first on 9th July 1870 to 30th June 1969. During closure 211 were still detained in the school. Most were sent to other institutions around the country. Some were returned to their parents or placed in jobs.

In 1973 St. David’s Secondary School moved into the upper floor of the building and now operates as a secondary school in the entire of the building.

In 2009 St. Joseph's Industrial School was the subject of an extensive investigation by the Commission of Inquiry. The school with all its attributes on education and trades also cast perhaps the darkest stain on our history. The inquiry found that physical abuse had been frequent and severe sexual abuse by members of the Brothers had been a chronic problem and not dealt with. There were many examples of general neglect of the boys.

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Chapter 5 Artane School House The Artane National School House was located directly across the Kilmore Road from Domino’s Pizza. It was built in 1832 for £600. The cost of the building was financed by Mathew Boyle, owner of Artane House, who also contributed £10 per annum for 30 years towards the teachers’ salaries. The school was for the education of Catholic Boys and Girls living in the Artane / Coolock areas. A total of 116 and 107 girls attended the school. There was a flat for the resident teacher within the buildings. After the school’s closure the building was used as a Parochial Hall and served the local population of Artane. The FCA also used the buildings for meetings until it was finally closed and demolished.

A short distance from the old schoolhouse on the Kilmore Road just passed the existing roundabout and on the entrance to Skelly’s Lane there were 2 cottages on the left-hand side rebuilt in 1837. In the garden of one house there were 2 large statues of Queen Victoria and her husband, the Prince Consort Albert erected shortly after their marriage. On 10 February 1840 Skelly’s Lane was then a boreen and it has been suggested that the lane was a medieval route from Dublin to Baldoyle.

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My Journey into Artane’s Past | by Tom O’Farrell

Chapter 6 Oratory of the Resurrection After the sale of Artane Industrial School property in 1969 to the builders Abbey Homestead, Brother Tim Leonard proposed a memorial building which would remind us of the service provided to orphans and destitute boys detained over 100 years in the school and in particular the memory of the deceased 53 Brothers and 246 boys. A proposal was made and accepted by Powers Supermarket to purchase a site for the Oratory from Abbey Homestead and to transfer the ground back to the Brothers with this agreement in place. A plan was submitted with Brother Leonard to the Provincial Council and the Archbishops of Dublin. A leading Church architect was then commissioned to design the buildings. The Oratory was designed with great sensitivity and to provide a haven of peace and prayer that was achieved by the use of the tiled floor pattern, simplicity of the Altar, Stations of the Cross and the coloured leaded Stained Glass windows. On entering the building there is also the names of deceased Brothers and boys engraved on a Memorial Wall.

A further difficulty arose on the transfer of deceased Brothers and pupils buried on school property. To comply with the law permission would be required from living relatives for their removal. This was found to be impossible. To add to the problem the Memorials with the persons’ names and location was vandalised. All information was now gone. With the cooperation of Abbey Homestead provision was made for the removal of the deceased Brothers and boys to a graveyard area within the Oratory complex, which is at the rear of the building with the ground laid out in grass.

The Oratory is now in the care of the Serbian Orthodox Church. They have acquired a lease on the building. Reverend Father Mladen Gardovic celebrates a service on Sunday mornings for his patrons. The official opening ceremony in the Oratory of the Resurrection was on 27 August 1983 by the Archbishop of Dublin Dermot Ryan. The total cost of the Oratory was IR£300,000 borne by St Mary’s Province (Order of the Christian Brothers).

In April 2021 the Archbishop of Dublin the most Reverend Dermot Farrell has reviewed the lease agreement on the Oratory of the Resurrection with the Serbian Orthodox Church. As a result, the Oratory will remain within the Catholic Church. The maintenance of the Oratory will be the responsibility of the Serbian Orthodox Church. Religious services will be celebrated separately by both churches as agreed.

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My Journey into Artane’s Past | by Tom O’Farrell

Chapter 7 - St Nicholas Parish Church Artane The church cannot be viewed in isolation from Artane Caste and the Hollywood family. It is today the only visible reminder of Artane Castle and can be seen from the Kilmore Road and behind the oratory of the resurrection in the Community Park adjacent to Pinebrook housing estate. The date for the foundation of the church is unknown however a reference between 1181 and 1212 relates to monies being paid to the mother church in Finglas. St Nicholas Church as well as St. Margaret’s and St. Brigid’s churches (The Ward) were in the parish of Finglas (changed later to Coolock).

The church was also listed in the ‘Crede Mihi’ as the oldest existing church in the Dublin diocese dated 1275. All 3 churches were under the jurisdiction of the chancellor, the Archbishop of Dublin, in St Patrick’s Cathedral up to the 16th Century.

In a civil survey 1654-1656 Nicholas Hollywood in his will requested to be buried with his ancestors in Tartaine Church (Artane Church).

On the 19th February 1713 Christopher Hollywood erected a crypt in the church for his wife Elizabeth, daughter of John Talbot, who died on 23 June 1711. Christopher is also in the crypt he departed this life on 12 August 1718.

Beside the crypt is a sarcophagus with no name or date of the deceased, however information states that a Richard Connolly Esquire of Elm Park, Artane is interred within. In 1535 Thomas St Laurence of Howth was granted an income if he repaired the chancel (alter) and provided funds for a Chaplin. Around 1640 the church finally fell into disuse because of the lack of a congregation. In 1982 the church was affected again by a project introduced by Power Supermarkets which involved the removal and reciting of existing memorials from within the graveyard and facilitated the landscaping of the site and converted the area into a public park.

The Archaeological Society of Ireland were invited to carry out any investigations of the site in the vicinity of the church. They found 39 glazed floor tiles dated from the early 16 th Century. A design on a tile had displayed a soldier in armour holding a sword or sphere, one coffin handle, 1 lead bung, a 16th Century coin, 1 stem of a clay pipe and 3 small roof slates.

In the graveyard 63 graves were found and 47 memorials were recorded. The dates range from 1711 to 1874. A number of trades are also represented on the memorials such as a cooper stone cutter, a greengrocer and a coach smith.

In the early 1960’s Dublin Corporation in preserving the church, used concrete blocks to support the east and west gables which prevented further deterioration to the structure of the church. All of the memorials that were removed were relocated around the perimeter and inside the floor area of the church. In 1982 all work was completed and the property was handed over to Dublin Corporation and is now a community park in the care of Dublin City Council.

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Acknowledgement This note is to confirm my journey into Artane’s past is at an end. It was a very rewarding experience, both interesting and educational. In my research I have attempted to be as meticulous as possible and filtered through a lot of misinformation claiming to be factual. If discrepancies are found in my research, I can only suggest I have investigated and crossreferenced all names, dates, locations and incidents in my best attempts to maintain accuracy.

As an acknowledgement I would like to firstly thank my family, Marian, Eimear and Róisín, for their wonderful support and assistance.

A special thank you to Joanne O’Sullivan (with reference to the proposed signage for St Nicholas Church in the Community Park), neighbours Brian and Ann, Brother John Ledwidge, Eileen Hutchinson, the Three Amigos and my neighbours.

I would also like to thank the Department of Culture Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Coolock Library and the Historical Section of Pearse Street library, the Register of Deeds, the Valuation Office and the Archives Department.

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