Commemorating the 102nd anniversary of the death of Terence MacSwiney in Brixton Prison on October 25th 1920, Taoiseach Micheál Martin launched the collected works of Terence MacSwiney, The Art & Ideology of Terence MacSwiney – Caught in the Living Flame on Saturday last as part of the Cork City Council Decade of Centenaries 2022 programme.
A celebration of the literary work of Terence MacSwiney, the book is edited by Gabriel Doherty, Fiona Brennan and Neil Buttimer and is published by Cork University Press in association with Cork City Council’s Commemorations Committee. It includes a foreword by President Michael D. Higgins and messages from Taoiseach Micheál Martin, retired Cork City Librarian Liam Ronayne and Cathal MacSwiney Brugha.
Paul Moynihan, Director of Services Corporate Affairs & International Relations Cork City Council said: “The Art & Ideology of Terence MacSwiney – Caught in the Living Flame is an impressive body of work in its documentation and exploration of our city’s martyred Lord Mayor’s poetry, drama, and prose. A significant contribution, it offers new insight and understanding of such an enigmatic figure in Cork City’s Commemorative History."
Not only was Terence MacSwiney a political leader and freedom fighter, but he was also a noted writer, dramatist and poet. The collaboration that has resulted in the publication of this landmark volume sees each editor focusing on individual areas of the poetry, drama and prose of MacSwiney in one significant volume celebrating his literary talent.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin commented “This wonderful collection is the first time everyone has access to the remarkable diversity and ambition of Terence MacSwiney’s work. It is a tribute to all involved in its preparation and will be a vital tool in ensuring that scholars and all interested in our past can incorporate MacSwiney in many more aspects of our national story.”
The work is a key piece of the Cork City Council’s Commemorative Programme. The event had originally been planned for the 100th anniversary of his death in 2020 but was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic. The launch, in the Council Chamber at City Hall, was celebrated with a welcome from the Lord Mayor of Cork, selected readings by the editors and song by Máire Ní Chéileachair including "Shall my soul pass through old Ireland", written about Terence MacSwiney.
A presentation of a framed copy of the North Mon Past Pupils Union Epic Poem, A Triumvirate of North Mon Heroes commissioned for the Centenary programme by poet Caoimhín MacUnfraidh was made to an Taoiseach at the end of the ceremony.
