Dublin Marks St Patrick's Day

Evening Herald, 17 March 1921

St Patrick’s Day celebrations continued across the island of Ireland during the War of Independence, although the ongoing hostilities meant that there were few large-scale parades or demonstrations. This report from the Evening Herald gives a snapshot of how the day was celebrated in Dublin in 1921. In addition to the religious services, trips to the coast and charitable collections that traditionally marked the day, it also shows how the shamrock, the symbol of St Patrick, was used for political purposes in different communities.

Our Day. The Wearing o’ the Green. National Holiday

The festival of St. Patrick was strictly observed as a national holiday in Dublin to-day. All Government offices, bunks and business houses were closed. Licensed premises were also shut down, and the streets of the city were practically deserted after noon. The weather conditions were of the most favourable character. The morning broke clear and beautiful, and throughout the day there were occasional busts of brilliant sunshine.

Fairly large crowds left the city by tram and train for coast, but there was nothing like the big exodus the previous years. Baldoyle Races claimed the largest number of visitors. Trains, trams, char-a-bancs, and hackney cars for this popular fixture were crowded. In the afternoon the football fixtures at Dalymount Park and Lansdowne road were well attended.

Auxiliaries Wear It

The shamrock was scarcely ever so generally worn. Many displayed it on their hats and the label of their overcoats. In several cases the trefoil was utilised to adorn miniature photographs of Sinn Fein leaders and the men who were executed for their part in the Rising of 1916. 

Members of the Auxiliary forces, who were active throughout the morning in various parts of the city, were profusely decorated with shamrock, while in some instances they had small green flags inset with Union Jacks suspended from the barrels of their rifles.

In the streets and outside all the city churches the Gaelic League made its annual appeal for the language movement. Several hundred collectors were at work, and judging from the number of flags displayed by all classes of the people, the object commanded itself to public favour and was generously supported. The house-to-house collection also began to-day and will continue for a month.

As in previous years, the religious observance on the National Festival was a marked feature and at the churches there were large congregations. The sermons were in Irish in a large number of churches, while in many others the evening devotions were of a distinctively Irish character.