Arbour Hill Prison
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Arbour Hill Prison () is a
prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where Prisoner, people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state ...
located in the Arbour Hill area near
Heuston Station Heuston Station, ( ; ; formerly Kingsbridge Station) also known as Dublin Heuston, is one of Dublin's largest railway stations and links the capital with the south, southwest and west of Ireland. It is operated by Iarnród Éireann (IÉ), ...
in the centre of
Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
,
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
. The prison is the national centre for male
sex offenders A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convictions for crime ...
. Adjacent to the prison are the Church of the Sacred Heart, the official church of the
Irish Defence Forces The Defence Forces (, officially styled ) derives its origins from the Irish Volunteers. Whilst the Irish for ''Defence Forces'' is , as Ó Cearúil (1999) points out, the Defence Forces are officially styled . is used in other contexts (e.g. ...
, and its cemetery, containing a memorial and burial place of 14 executed leaders of the
1916 Easter Rising The Easter Rising (), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an in ...
.


Architecture

The prison was designed by Sir
Joshua Jebb Sir Joshua Jebb, (8 May 1793 – 26 June 1863) was a British officer of the Royal Engineers who participated in the Battle of Plattsburgh on Lake Champlain during the War of 1812, He became Surveyor-General of convict prisons. By 1850, Penton ...
and
Frederick Clarendon Frederick Villiers Clarendon (c.1820 – 17 October 1904) was an Irish architect noted for his design work on a number of large public buildings in Dublin, including the Natural History Museum and Arbour Hill Prison. Life Frederick Clarendon ...
and opened on its present site in 1848, to house military prisoners. The church has an unusual entrance porch with stairs leading to twin galleries for visitors in the nave and transept. Another unusual feature is the Celtic round tower which erupts from a rectangular base. It opened as a civilian prison in 1975. The adjoining Church of the Sacred Heart, which is the prison chapel for Arbour Hill prison, is maintained by the Department of Defence. At the rear of the church lies the old cemetery, where lie the remains of British military personnel who died in the Dublin area in the 19th and early 20th centuries. An interesting feature is the tunnel which runs from
St Bricin's Military Hospital St Bricin's Military Hospital () is a military hospital in Arbour Hill, an inner city area of Dublin, Ireland, serving members of the Irish Defence Forces and under the administration of the Army's Medical Corps. History The hospital was found ...
, via the Prison to the former Collins Barracks. A doorway beside the 1916 memorial gives access to the Irish United Nations Veterans' Association house and memorial garden.


Inmates

Notable former inmates include Ray Burke TD and former ''
Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...
'' journalist
Tom Humphries Tom Humphries is a former sports journalist and columnist who wrote for ''The Irish Times'' while volunteering at a North Dublin Gaelic games club. His career as a leading sportswriter was ended after his history of child sexual abuse emerged ...
. In 1936 Moss Twomey, the
Chief of Staff of the Irish Republican Army Several people are reported to have served as Chief of Staff of the Irish Republican Army () in the organisations bearing that name. Due to the clandestine nature of these organisations, this list is not definitive. Chiefs of Staff of the Ir ...
was held in isolation in Arbour Hill before being transferred to
Curragh Camp The Curragh Camp () is an army base and military college in The Curragh, County Kildare, Ireland. It is the main training centre for the Irish Defence Forces and is home to 2,000 military personnel. History Longstanding military heritage Th ...
. On April 19, 1940, Irish Republican Jack McNeela died in Arbor Hill Prison after 55 days on hunger strike. McNella had been arrested and jailed for operating a pro-republican pirate radio station.


1916 leaders

The military cemetery behind this prison is the burial place of 14 of the executed leaders of the
1916 Easter Rising The Easter Rising (), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an in ...
. The leaders were executed in
Kilmainham Gaol Kilmainham Gaol () is a former prison in Kilmainham, Dublin. It is now a museum run by the Office of Public Works, an agency of the Government of Ireland. Many Irish revolutionaries, including the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising (Patrick Pea ...
and their bodies were transported to Arbour Hill for burial. The 14 buried in Arbour Hill are: *
Patrick Pearse Patrick Henry Pearse (also known as Pádraig or Pádraic Pearse; ; 10 November 1879 – 3 May 1916) was an Irish teacher, barrister, Irish poetry, poet, writer, Irish nationalism, nationalist, Irish republicanism, republican political activist a ...
* Tom Clarke *
Thomas MacDonagh Thomas Stanislaus MacDonagh (; 1 February 1878 – 3 May 1916) was an Irish political activist, poet, playwright, educationalist and revolutionary leader. He was one of the seven leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916, a signatory of the Proclama ...
*
Joseph Plunkett Joseph Mary Plunkett ( Irish: ''Seosamh Máire Pluincéid''; 21 November 1887 – 4 May 1916) was an Irish republican, poet and journalist. As a leader of the 1916 Easter Rising, he was one of the seven signatories to the Proclamation of the I ...
*
Éamonn Ceannt Éamonn Ceannt (21 September 1881 – 8 May 1916), born Edward Thomas Kent, was an Irish republican, mostly known for his role in the Easter Rising of 1916. Background Ceannt was born in the little village of Ballymoe, overlooking the River Su ...
*
Seán Mac Diarmada Seán Mac Diarmada (27 January 1883 – 12 May 1916), also known as Seán MacDermott, was an Irish republican political activist and revolutionary leader. He was one of the seven leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916, which he helped to organ ...
*
James Connolly James Connolly (; 5 June 1868 – 12 May 1916) was a Scottish people, Scottish-born Irish republicanism, Irish republican, socialist, and trade union leader, executed for his part in the Easter Rising, 1916 Easter Rising against British rule i ...
*
Ned Daly John Edward Daly (25 February 1891 – 4 May 1916; ) was commandant of Dublin's 1st battalion of the Irish Volunteers during the Easter Rising of 1916. He was the youngest man to hold that rank and the youngest executed in the aftermath. Backg ...
*
Willie Pearse William James Pearse (; 15 November 1881 – 4 May 1916) was an Irish republican executed for his part in the Easter Rising. He was a younger brother of Patrick Pearse, a leader of the rising. Background Willie Pearse was born in Dublin and th ...
* Michael O'Hanrahan *
John MacBride John MacBride (sometimes written John McBride; ; 7 May 1868 â€“ 5 May 1916) was an Irish republican and military leader. He was executed by the British government for his participation in the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin. Early life Jo ...
*
Michael Mallin Michael Thomas Christopher Mallin (; 1 December 1874 – 8 May 1916) was an Irish republican, Socialist and devout Catholic who took an active role in the Easter Rising of 1916. He was a silk weaver, the co-founder with Francis Sheehy-Skeffingt ...
*
Con Colbert Cornelius Bernard Colbert (; 19 October 1888 – 8 May 1916)D.J. Hickey & J. E. Doherty, ''A New Dictionary of Irish History from 1800'', Gill & MacMillan (Dublin), , Pg.75 was an Irish rebel and pioneer of Fianna Éireann. For his part in the ...
*
Seán Heuston Seán Heuston ( ; ;Piaras F. Mac Lochlainn, ''Last words : letters and statements of the leaders executed after the rising at Easter 1916'', Dublin: Stationery Office, born John Joseph Heuston; 21 February 1891 – 8 May 1916) was an Irish rep ...
The graves are located under a low mound on a terrace of Wicklow
granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
in what was once the old prison yard. The grave site is surrounded by a
limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
wall on which the names are inscribed in Irish and English. On the prison wall opposite the grave site is a plaque with the names of other people who were killed in 1916.


Location

The prison is located on Arbour Hill at the rear of the
National Museum of Ireland The National Museum of Ireland () is Ireland's leading museum institution, with a strong emphasis on national and some international archaeology, Irish history, Irish art, culture, and natural history. It has three branches in Dublin, the arch ...
at
Collins Barracks Collins Barracks () is a former military barracks in the Arbour Hill area of Dublin, Ireland. The buildings now house the National Museum of Ireland – Decorative Arts and History. Previously housing first British Armed Forces and later Iri ...
, Dublin 7. The area is also the site of the Arbour Hill Military Barracks. Bus Route(s): Nos. 37, 39, 70 from the city centre.


See also

*
Prisons in Ireland Prisons in Ireland are one of the main forms of punishment, rehabilitation, or both for the commission of an indictable offense and other offenses. Authority In 1925, shortly after the establishment of the Irish Free State, Minister for Ju ...


References

{{reflist


External links


Arbour Hill Prison
Buildings and structures in Dublin (city) Prisons in the Republic of Ireland