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The Burning of the City Exhibition

Helen McGonagle, Executive Librarian at Cork City Libraries discusses 'The Burning of Cork' exhibition 

The Burning of Cork - on the night of December 11 and early hours of December 12, 1920 - was one of the darkest moments in the history of Cork and of the Irish War of Independence.

City-Hall-in-Ruins

Members of the British Crown Forces set fire to the commercial heart of the city and destroyed its City Hall and Carnegie Free Library in a spate of arson attacks, leaving hundreds of businesses in ruins and thousands of citizens unemployed.

Alexander-Drapers-after-the-Burning-of-Cork

As the centenary of that tragic event in our history approaches, Cork City Libraries  presents an online exhibition, detailing the spiral of deadly episodes leading up to the Burning of Cork, what happened that night, and how our Beautiful City responded to rise from the ashes and rebuild over the following decade.

City-Hall-Clock-Tower-after-the-Burning

 With rarely-seen images and stories of many unknown people involved in the lead-up, on the night of the Burning of Cork itself, and in its aftermath, please visit this upcoming exhibition and enjoy new insights into our city's historic past.

Click here to view the exhibition the Burning of the City

To learn more about #Cork1920 from Cork City Libraries, please click here

Cork City Libraries