RTÉ's David McCullagh to feature in Louth Library Service's autumn lecture series

Louth Library Service has announced an exciting line-up for their autumn lecture series as part of Louth County Council’s Commemorative Programme 2024.

The talks will look at the early years of the Irish state, as well as reflecting on events during the Decade of Centenaries. These events are designed for adults specifically and are free to attend with no booking required.

The lectures will be presented by leading authors, historians, and broadcasters, including RTÉ's very own Dr. David McCullagh.

Acting County Librarian, Amanda Branigan, said: "Louth Library Service would like to acknowledge the ongoing support of the Commemorations Unit of the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media in funding the Louth County Council Commemorative Programme 2024."

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The series began on 5 September with a fascinating lecture led by historian, author and broadcaster Dr. Myles Dungan.

What's going on and when?

The Big House and the Irish Civil War, led by historian John Dorney, will take place on Wednesday 11 September at 6:30pm at Drogheda Library.  This lecture will look at how the country mansion of the Anglo-Irish landed class, or "the Big House",  was a consistent target for republicans throughout the Irish Revolution of 1919-23. Leading the talk, historian John Dorney is the editor of 'The Irish Story' website and author of 'Peace After the Final Battle: the Story of the Irish Revolution, 1912-1924' (2014) and 'The Civil War in Dublin: the Fight for the Irish Capital, 1922-1924' (2017).

RTÉ's Dr. David McCullagh will be presenting "Reaching for the stars" - de Valera & America in Dundalk Library on Saturday 21 September at 3pm. This talk will look at one of Ireland's most iconic politicians Éamon de Valera and his relationship with America throughout his life and career. This will be a fascinating look at how important the United States was in giving de Valera political support which helped him defeat his rivals as well as financial support without which he couldn’t have fought elections or established the Irish Press. Broadcaster Dr David McCullagh is an anchor presenter of the RTE news flagship, The Six-One News. He is a former presenter of Prime Time and was Political Correspondent for RTÉ for 12 years. He has a PhD in politics from University College Dublin and is the author of five books on Irish history, including 'De Valera Rise,1882-1932' and 'De Valera Rule, 1932-1975', the acclaimed two-volume reassessment of Eamon de Valera. His most recent book, The Great Irish Politics Book, is a guide to politics for children. 

Turtle Bunbury, "one of Ireland’s most prolific historians", will be leading the lecture on The Irish Diaspora at Ardee Library on Thursday 10 October at 6:30pm. Since 1800 an estimated 10 million people have left Irish shores and today, more than 80 million people worldwide claim Irish descent. This talk will trace the story of the Irish abroad from the first missionaries through the seafarers, warriors and explorers of centuries past. In this talk, Turtle Bunbury will be homing in on a variety of convicts, imperialists, emigrants, famine refugees and political activists. Turtle Bunbury has published over 20 books. The award-nominated podcaster's book 'The Irish Diaspora' has also been descried by BBC History Magazine as "impeccably researched… packed with vivid detail."