President Michael D. Higgins unveils War of Independence monument in Kenmare, honoring local volunteers who fought in the Conflict of Independence. honoring local volunteers who fought in the Conflict of Independence, particularly the Headford Junction Ambush of 1921, during which the British Army suffered some of its worst losses of the war.
President Higgins and his wife Sabina held a day-long series of festivities in the town, which drew hundreds of people.
Many of them were students from nearby elementary and secondary schools.
President Higgins also paid a visit to the Kenmare Peninsula holdings, which cover 13 acres and are located near Kenmare Pier. The fields are being developed as a public park by Kerry County Council and the local community. To commemorate the occasion, President Higgins planted an oak tree.
Ms Higgins then addressed at an event at the town’s Cumann na mBan Park.
Rosalie Rice, a Kenmare woman, sent a telegram from Kenmare Post Office to her cousins Timothy and Eugene Ring at Valentia Cable Station on Easter Monday 1916, who transmitted the message to the United States that the Easter Rising had begun.
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