Remembrance Sunday events?

mackes

Hi everyone - I was just wondering if there was any events happening in Kilkenny for Remembrance Sunday?

S28382

Why would there be anything on in KK for Remembrance Sunday?

fabbydabby

To commemorate the tens and tens of thousands of Irishmen who saw service with the British military.

road_high

Because hundreds (if not more) of Kilkenny men fought and died in the Great War.
OP possibly something in St. Canices Cathedral but I wouldn't be sure. Tends to be very low key in the Republic if commenerated at all. Think there is something on in the Memorial Gardens in Inchicore each year.

mackes

Events was probably the wrong word but some cities and towns have a commemoration of sorts at a war memorial or in a church and I was just wondering if Kilkenny had something similar? I suppose Kilkenny doesn't have an open air memorial in the city so there is no focus for something to happen. Thanks for the replies!

holyhead

Isn't there a memorial of sorts on Canal Square.

S28382

I didnt think anywhere in Ireland except Dublin had any remembrance events going on we barely even remember our own people that fought and died in our own civil war.

catbear

I posted this last year, very interesting australian website that lists ANZAC soldiers with Kilkenny as their birthplace.
http://mappingouranzacs.naa.gov.au/list-birth.aspx?birth=Kilkenny%2C%20Ireland

slimjimmc

mfitzy wrote: »

Because hundreds (if not more) of Kilkenny men fought and died in the Great War.
OP possibly something in St. Canices Cathedral but I wouldn't be sure. Tends to be very low key in the Republic if commenerated at all. Think there is something on in the Memorial Gardens in Inchicore each year.

There's already an official National Day of Commemoration for that, it remembers all Irish solidiers who died in wars or on UN service.

Of course that doesn't prevent people organising their own ceremonies for next Sunday.

Scallion 'ater

fabbydabby wrote: »

To commemorate the tens and tens of thousands of Irishmen who saw service with the British military.

I don't understand the growing obcession in this country with going out of our way to remember those who fought for the British in their wars. All Irish who died in service, regardless of for who, are remembered on the National Day of Commemoration every July which includes a ceremony in Kilkenny up at the Castle.

Increasing numbers in this country seem to want to mirror what goes on in Britain at this time of year. We do our bit every July and this is enough in my view. Why is there no similar impetus to specially remember those who died in the Spanish civil war?

catbear

I think it's growing because there's a greater appreciation of the heritage that Ireland shares with Britain and the demagogues of the Irelands isolationist past are losing their prominence in the present globalised Irish society.

Ireland and Britain are still politically separate entities within the EU but we share a greater cultural heritage with the UK than with any other EU state. Celebrating common heritage such as remembering the Irish fallen of the great war is not refuting the present state, although some think it is. Ultimately in Ireland it's a private affair and no one should use the apparatus of state to stop someone from wearing the poppy in commemoration.

Plus Irelands 200,000 troops were volunteers and I respect descendants who wish to honour them and don't see it was a celebration of the glory of war. A greater number volunteered for the second world war and many civilian Irish supplied labour in Britain during the war. Irelands imports and exports were completely dependent on the allied protected convoys.

Isn't the Spanish civil war still as contentious as the Irish civil war? Does Ireland celebrate the Irish Civil war with its own day?

Scallion 'ater

catbear wrote: »

Does Ireland celebrate the Irish Civil war with its own day?

Of course we do. The National Day of Commemoration honours all Irish people who died in past wars including UN peacekeeping missions. This covers our Civil War and the Great War, amongst others. I still don't see why some think we should hold additional ceremonies to coincide with Britain's commemoration.

catbear

Scallion 'ater wrote: »

. I still don't see why some think we should hold additional ceremonies to coincide with Britain's commemoration.

Who said we have to. It's a personal choice of individuals to wear a poppy on the 11th for whatever reason. No one is being compelled to. If it's too prevelent on TV then take a break from UK channels. I can not judge those who wear a poppy just as i can not judge those who cover themselves up in a hajib. Both could be viewed as alien to contempory irish culture yet neither limit my personal freedom.
If you still feel you have to wear a poppy because others wear it then you have to ask yourself what is it in your mind that's compelling you.
If others choose to hold a commemoration you're not obligued to attend. I have no reason to wear a poppy on the 11th and i know nobody will be offended by that. It's not yours or my business if a group pay respects to family members who served in the great war.
If you opposed to a group choosing to pay respects to their fallen relatives well then there's nothing i can say, that's too much like westboro baptist church behaviour.

Scallion 'ater

catbear wrote: »

Who said we have to. It's a personal choice of individuals to wear a poppy on the 11th for whatever reason. No one is being compelled to. If it's too prevelent on TV then take a break from UK channels. I can not judge those who wear a poppy just as i can not judge those who cover themselves up in a hajib. Both could be viewed as alien to contempory irish culture yet neither limit my personal freedom.
If you still feel you have to wear a poppy because others wear it then you have to ask yourself what is it in your mind that's compelling you.
If others choose to hold a commemoration you're not obligued to attend. I have no reason to wear a poppy on the 11th and i know nobody will be offended by that. It's not yours or my business if a group pay respects to family members who served in the great war.
If you opposed to a group choosing to pay respects to their fallen relatives well then there's nothing i can say, that's too much like westboro baptist church behaviour.

I never said anything about those who choose, as they are entitled, to wear a poppy. I'm not judging them. Why are the goalposts moving?

UK TV - what's that got to do with anything I have said?

My point is that there is already a public remembrance of, inter alia, those who died in the Great War on the National Day of Commemoration. There is nothing else organised for them and why should there be. Of course I agree that if they wish to privately remember, at this time, their family members who died in the Great War they can of course do so but the tenet of the opening post and those that followed seemed to me to be about whether there is anything specific happening in Kilkenny at this time i.e. a public event.

catbear

Scallion 'ater wrote: »

My point is that there is already a public remembrance of, inter alia, those who died in the Great War on the National Day of Commemoration.

The OP asked if there were any events on remembrance day, they weren't saying "hey everyone let's snub the national war remembrance day".
Would you have the same reaction if someone came on asking if there was anything on for the American or Russian memorial day? They're not asking for something to change, they're not consulting you for an opinion. They're simply asking for information but you respond by stating that there's already a public remembrance day. Armistice is specific to the ending of the great war. Some countries adopt it as their national war memorial day. There are 11/11 events in Australia and New Zealand but their public war memorial day is ANZAC day and no one takes it as a personal affront to ANZAC day when people privately observe 11/11 too.

A public event can be privately organised, it doesn't need to be sanctioned by government decree and the OP never suggested that it had to be a state sanctioned event. You could always turn up at an event and start asking people what's wrong with the national commemoration day during the two minutes of silence but again that's very Westboro Baptist Church.

Personally when I think of armistice memorials I'm reminded more of the reconciliatory spirit of Gordon Wilson. However every year someone tries to drag armistice day information requests into a political issue. Last year: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=75321865
Get over it. If people want to reclaim their heritage then who's to frustrate them?

Scallion 'ater

catbear wrote: »

The OP asked if there were any events on remembrance day, they weren't saying "hey everyone let's snub the national war remembrance day".
Would you have the same reaction if someone came on asking if there was anything on for the American or Russian memorial day? They're not asking for something to change, they're not consulting you for an opinion. They're simply asking for information but you respond by stating that there's already a public remembrance day. Armistice is specific to the ending of the great war. Some countries adopt it as their national war memorial day. There are 11/11 events in Australia and New Zealand but their public war memorial day is ANZAC day and no one takes it as a personal affront to ANZAC day when people privately observe 11/11 too.

A public event can be privately organised, it doesn't need to be sanctioned by government decree and the OP never suggested that it had to be a state sanctioned event. You could always turn up at an event and start asking people what's wrong with the national commemoration day during the two minutes of silence but again that's very Westboro Baptist Church.

Personally when I think of armistice memorials I'm reminded more of the reconciliatory spirit of Gordon Wilson. However every year someone tries to drag armistice day information requests into a political issue. Last year: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=75321865
Get over it. If people want to reclaim their heritage then who's to frustrate them?

I know the opening post did not look for my opinion but if you look you will see I was responding to the subsequent comments including where fabbydaddy indicated that in his view there should be a remembrance commemoration.

To be honest I couldn't give a hoot what they do in other countries but your reference to some of them adopting it as their national war memorial date overlooks the fact that most would have been participants in WWI and/or WWII which we weren't.

Like the OP post I never said it had to bea state sanctioned event - whydo you attribute things to me that I never said. Despite all your re-editing you never addressed my questions about why you addresed the poppy issue which I never raised and your curious assumption that I am irritated by UK TV.

saspeir

I'm not a pacifist but the Poppy sh!te is total glorification of war. It not only remembers WW1 and WW2 (which there was nothing great about btw since millions died!) but also remembers British Legion soldiers that have died since.

It's nothing more than a guilt trip into giving them money to look after soldiers injured these days. Have you seen the size of the military hospital in Birmingham? It's huge. Shows why they need such funding and that's only a symbol of acute care. Imagine the ongoing mental anguish and smaller injuries and care that would have to be paid for.

I'd sooner give the money to Irish charity that will impact on the lives of all, SVP for example.

I'd still remember those of WW1&2 in my own more dignified manner alongside the soldiers of the struggle for independence. Those two sets of soldiers were probably closer in outlook than any of the ties that exist between Ireland and Britain that Catbear talks about, so seems more appropriate to me!

Rant over... See ya next year!

road_high

Christ a big discussion on Rememberance Day on the Kilkenny forum....
But related there's a very good book out recently, Kilkenny and the Great War. Haven't got my hands on yet but I will.
Hundreds and hundreds of Kilkenny men fought in that war (make of the merits for/against as you will) but I really believe these guys should not be forgotten or writen out of history, as they were until very recently.
None of us today can even imagine the conditions they endured and died in the trenches.