Nc. Johnson, SCULPTING HEROIC HISTORIES - CELEBRATING THE CENTENARY OF THE 1798 REBELLION IN IRELAND, Transactions Institute of British Geographers, 19(1), 1994, pp. 78-93
In this paper I explore the role of public statuary in constructing a
heroic analysis of the past through an examination of the centenary ce
lebrations staged to commemorate the 1798 rebellion in Ireland. Monume
nts entered the arena of public, secular space in Ireland mainly durin
g the nineteenth century. It was not until the latter decades of that
century that nationalist statuary, which sought to elaborate Ireland's
quest for political independence, emerged. The significance of these
monuments rests, I argue, in their popular appeal and the debates that
surrounded their construction and unveiling. Although an alliance of
nationalist interests was achieved during the centenary celebrations,
this paper emphasizes the tentative nature of that alliance and the ge
ndered iconography and discourse surrounding the statues themselves.