Nelson's Pillar

LordSutch · 06-03-2016 11:24PM

Kermit.de.frog wrote: »

50 years a go next week, March 8th, Nelson's Pillar was blown up on O'Connell Street by a bunch of nuts.

Was this ok in hindsight? They could have kept the pillar and replaced Nelson with a better person like Charles Haughey for example where we have yet to have a fitting memorial or Bertie Ahern when he dies.

We would have had the views over the city that the spire does not offer. Or even just kept Nelson who by some accounts was a good looking fella.

What say you?

...and replaced Lord Nelson with "a better person like Charles Haughey" :rolleyes:

Don't think Haughey was a better person than Lord Nelson, in fact I'm sure he wasn't, but I do however agree that the Pillar was blown up by a bunch of nuts. With a little help from the Irish army who finished off the job.

If they hated Lord Nelson so much then all they had to do was get a sharp shooter to place a shot right in the middle of Nelsons effigy on the top of the pillar, and blow it to smitherenes . . . . Then it could have been replaced with? take your pick of Irish heroes.

I think the Pillar itself would have remained a great tourist attraction (after a makeover), and bear in mind that you could actually climb up Nelsons pillar to the top overlooking the GPO, whereas in London, Nelsons column is a solid mass and has no staircase to the top! (Dublin had the best version) prior to the nutters blowing it up. I might also add that architecturally Nelsons pillar fitted in perfectly with its suroundings. - The Spire is far too tall, too shiny and too skinny, and it has no public access

Iwasfrozen · 06-03-2016 11:25PM

Sweetemotion wrote: »

It was also celebrated when it was blew up, so what's your point?

To counter "fountain boys" statement that the pillar was put up against the will of the inhabitants of Dublin. What's yours?

Iwasfrozen · 06-03-2016 11:27PM

LordSutch wrote: »

...and replaced Lord Nelson with "a better person like Charles Haughey" :rolleyes:

Don't think Haughey was a better person than Lord Nelson, in fact I'm sure he wasn't, but I do however agree that the Pillar was blown up by a bunch of nuts. With a little help from the Irish army who finished off the job.

If they hated Lord Nelson so much then all they had to do was get a sharp shooter to place a shot right in the middle of Nelsons effigy on the top of the pillar, and blow it to smitherenes . . . . Then it could have been replaced with? take your pick of Irish heroes.

I think the Pillar itself would have remained a great tourist attraction (after a makeover), and bear in mind that you could actually climb up Nelsons pillar to the top overlooking the GPO, where as in London, Nelsons column is a solid mass and has no staircase to the top! (Dublin had the best version) prior to the nutters blowing it up. I might also add that architecturally Nelsons pillar fitted in perfectly with its suroundings. - The Spire is far too tall, too shiny and too skinny, and it has no public access

This. A statue of Wolftone would have kept the 'Ra heads happy.

Sweetemotion · 06-03-2016 11:30PM

Iwasfrozen wrote: »

To counter "fountain boys" statement that the pillar was put up against the will of the inhabitants of Dublin. What's yours?

That not every inhabitant was happy with the statue.

Iwasfrozen · 06-03-2016 11:31PM

Sweetemotion wrote: »

That not every inhabitant was happy with the statue.

So? Not every inhabitant is happy with the Spire.

A Dub in Glasgo · 06-03-2016 11:34PM

LordSutch wrote: »

...and replaced Lord Nelson with "a better person like Charles Haughey" :rolleyes:

Don't think Haughey was a better person than Lord Nelson, in fact I'm sure he wasn't, but I do however agree that the Pillar was blown up by a bunch of nuts. With a little help from the Irish army who finished off the job.

If they hated Lord Nelson so much then all they had to do was get a sharp shooter to place a shot right in the middle of Nelsons effigy on the top of the pillar, and blow it to smitherenes . . . . Then it could have been replaced with? take your pick of Irish heroes.

I think the Pillar itself would have remained a great tourist attraction (after a makeover), and bear in mind that you could actually climb up Nelsons pillar to the top overlooking the GPO, whereas in London, Nelsons column is a solid mass and has no staircase to the top! (Dublin had the best version) prior to the nutters blowing it up. I might also add that architecturally Nelsons pillar fitted in perfectly with its suroundings. - The Spire is far too tall, too shiny and too skinny, and it has no public access

Forelock tugged... everytime.... tourists must be appeased no matter what...

A Dub in Glasgo · 06-03-2016 11:35PM

Iwasfrozen wrote: »

This. A statue of Wolftone would have kept the 'Ra heads happy.

Try and get his name right and you just might be taken seriously

timthumbni · 06-03-2016 11:38PM

A Dub in Glasgo wrote: »

Try and get his name right and you just might be taken seriously

What about a statue of booby sands??? Mary Lou said she would organise it..

bodice ripper · 06-03-2016 11:44PM

Should have built one of these:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memento_Park

Memento Park is an open-air museum in Budapest, Hungary, dedicated to monumental statues and sculpted plaques from Hungary's Communist period (1949–1989). There are statues of Lenin, Marx, and Engels, as well as several Hungarian Communist leaders.

The Rape of Lucretia · 06-03-2016 11:45PM

timthumbni wrote: »

What about a statue of booby sands??? Mary Lou said she would organise it..

Bejayney. We have enough of our streets named after the terrorists of 100 years ago - we surely dont need to go adding any of the more recent one ?

storker · 06-03-2016 11:48PM

The Rape of Lucretia wrote: »

Bejayney. We have enough of our streets named after the terrorists of 100 years ago - we surely dont need to go adding any of the more recent one ?

I know...what about Saints' names?

bodice ripper · 06-03-2016 11:48PM

The Rape of Lucretia wrote: »

Bejayney. We have enough of our streets named after the terrorists of 100 years ago - we surely dont need to go adding any of the more recent one ?

Come now, everyone would want to live on Booby Street

steddyeddy · 06-03-2016 11:49PM

I live in the UK where some groups protest against Islam. This isn't in anyway indicative of the English people and neither is a group of people celebrating Nelson.

I actually admire Nelson a lot in some respects. My family were sea farers so I can appreciate how advanced Nelson was in terms of maritime warfare. That said I think statues should be voted in and not imposed.

LordSutch · 06-03-2016 11:50PM

bodice ripper wrote: »

Come now, everyone would want to live on Booby Street

Specially Mary Lou

)

storker · 06-03-2016 11:51PM

bodice ripper wrote: »

Come now, everyone would want to live on Booby Street

I'd prefer Tit Terrace.

storker · 06-03-2016 11:53PM

diomed wrote: »

Careful now. They'll be calling you a west-Brit. :pac:

It's a handy term, though, and saves time. Because once someone uses it, you know you're dealing with a fool.

Fratton Fred · 06-03-2016 11:53PM

steddyeddy wrote: »

I live in the UK where some groups protest against Islam. This isn't in anyway indicative of the English people and neither is a group of people celebrating Nelson.

I actually admire Nelson a lot in some respects. My family were sea farers so I can appreciate how advanced Nelson was in terms of maritime warfare. That said I think statues should be voted in and not imposed.

Have you visited HMS Victory? It's a very interesting ship.

pablo128 · 06-03-2016 11:55PM

timthumbni wrote: »

What about a statue of booby sands??? Mary Lou said she would organise it..

Bobby is alright. He already has a road named after him, in Tehran of all places. And of all the buildings on that road, one of them is the British embassy. The Brits were so incensed when Iran changed the name to Bobby Sands Street, they knocked out a new door out onto a different street so their post wouldn't have Bobby Sands Street on it. Hilariously, the original name was Winston Churchill Street.

Which brings us onto another point. If the Brits were embarrassed about the name of a road, how do you think the Irish thought about a giant statue of Nelson on our main thoroughfare?

storker · 06-03-2016 11:56PM

Fratton Fred wrote: »

Have you visited HMS Victory? It's a very interesting ship.

Different era, I know, but HMS Belfast is well worth a visit too.

06-03-2016 11:57PM

Iwasfrozen wrote: »

Being pro or anti Union can both be right wing or left wing.

There were celebrations in Dublin when Nelson's victory at Trafalgar was announced and a well attended ceremony to lay the first stone of the pillar.

Please get your facts right before you start to lecture me or anyone else about history.

P.S. your name doesn't suit, fountains are synonymous with knowledge.

In typical charlatan fashion you seem to have spent 20 seconds googling this. There were certainly "celebrations" reported in Dublin by the pro-Union/British Empire press in 1808 (just as in Easter Week 1916 the same press for political reasons gave the impression of universal opposition to the Rising, a spin JJ Lee showed was indisputably untrue). That usually amounted to a gathering of the colonial community telling each other how great their fellow British were at violence and how they must glorify it with another massive monument to tell the native Irish who's in charge.

PS: I see your grasp of the meaning of this user name is as lamentable as your grasp of Irish history. This is what happens when you do another quick google and fail abysmally to get the primary meaning.

The Rape of Lucretia · 06-03-2016 11:58PM

pablo128 wrote: »

If the Brits were embarrassed about the name of a road, how do you think the Irish thought about a giant statue of Nelson on our main thoroughfare?

Proud. And grateful.

steddyeddy · 06-03-2016 11:59PM

Fratton Fred wrote: »

Have you visited HMS Victory? It's a very interesting ship.

I haven't visited the Mary Rose yet but I definitely plan to visit victory! Apparently there's a submarine museum on Gosport that is sometimes hosted by a submarine commander that used to run it 50 years ago!

maryishere · 06-03-2016 11:59PM

steddyeddy wrote: »

My family were sea farers so I can appreciate how advanced Nelson was in terms of maritime warfare.

Ad so it would be only natural that out of respect to the 400 Dubliners who served Nelson faithfully, and out of respect to the people of Dublin who fundraised the funds for the pillar and built it, this part of our history should be rebuilt. It would be better than the spire thats there now and a huge tourist attraction, which people could climb the 168 steps to see Dublin beneath them.

Only the Taliban and extremist Republicans advocate blowing up historic momuments.

Iwasfrozen · 07-03-2016 12:00AM

Deleted User wrote: »

In typical charlatan fashion you seem to have spent 20 seconds googling this. There were certainly "celebrations" reported in Dublin by the pro-Union/British Empire press in 1808 (just as in Easter Week 1916 the same press for political reasons gave the impression of universal opposition to the Rising, a spin JJ Lee showed was indisputably untrue). That usually amounted to a gathering of the colonial community telling each other how great their fellow British were at violence and how they must glorify it with another massive monument to tell the native Irish who's in charge.

PS: I see your grasp of the meaning of this user name is as lamentable as your grasp of Irish history. This is what happens when you do another quick google and fail abysmally to get the primary meaning.

If a 20 second google is all it takes to cut through your lies what does that say?

Are you alleging the press exaggerated the celebrations? Made them up entirely? Hmm, I call bull shít on that one sir.

Sweetemotion · 07-03-2016 12:03AM

Iwasfrozen wrote: »

If a 20 second google is all it takes to cut through your lies what does that say?

Are you alleging the press exaggerated the celebrations? Made them up entirely? Hmm, I call bull shít on that one sir.

Never ever, have the press exaggerated anything

Iwasfrozen · 07-03-2016 12:05AM

Sweetemotion wrote: »

Never ever, have the press exaggerated anything

Of course they have, but a man alleging the press have exaggerated the celebrations of Nelson has to provide something to back it up. I won't just take him at his word.

Eugene Norman · 07-03-2016 12:06AM

storker wrote: »

It's a handy term, though, and saves time. Because once someone uses it, you know you're dealing with a fool.

Really?. Surely it's an accurate description of some posters who oppose Irish independence and would have preferred we stay in the union. Scottish unionists are called north Brits by the SNP.

Iwasfrozen · 07-03-2016 12:08AM

Eugene Norman wrote: »

Really?. Surely it's an accurate description of some posters who oppose Irish independence and would have preferred we stay in the union. Scottish unionists are called north Brits by the SNP.

Never heard of that but it made me laugh, all Scots are North Brits.

Eugene Norman · 07-03-2016 12:09AM

maryishere wrote: »

Ad so it would be only natural that out of respect to the 400 Dubliners who served Nelson faithfully, and out of respect to the people of Dublin who fundraised the funds for the pillar and built it, this part of our history should be rebuilt. It would be better than the spire thats there now and a huge tourist attraction, which people could climb the 168 steps to see Dublin beneath them.

Only the Taliban and extremist Republicans advocate blowing up historic momuments.

Oh plenty of British students want to remove imperialist statues, if not blow them up.

Statues are often removed or taken down. Most communist era statues in post communist Eastern Europe for instance.

Eugene Norman · 07-03-2016 12:10AM

Iwasfrozen wrote: »

Never heard of that but it made me laugh, all Scots are North Brits.

Sure. And somebody who wanted Ireland to stay in (or rejoin) the union was (or is hoping to be) west British. Both terms are accurate.

Nelson's Pillar

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