Onsite Guided Tour: Revolutionary Women: Exploring Women's Roles in Conflict in Ireland

Tour at a glance

Level: Junior and Senior Cycle, Transition Year
Group Size: 15
Location: Soldiers & Chiefs exhibition, 20th century gallery
Duration: 45 minutes
Available: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Booking: Please contact bookings@museum.ie to book this session

This tour explores the roles of women in Ireland's military history, with a particular focus on the revolutionary period of 1913 - 1923. Students will be introduced to some of the women involved in conflicts in Ireland, including the 1803 rebellion, 1916 Rebellion, the War of Independence and Irish Civil War, and will explore how these events affected both those who fought and also the civilians who lived through them. This tour will introduce students to leading female revolutionaries, including Countess Markievicz, Elizabeth O'Farrell and Ann Devlin. Students will see artefacts that tell the stories of these women, from weapons hidden in books to a Cumann na mBan uniform.

Curriculum links

History

Strand
Junior Cycle

Development of Historical Consciousness
Working with Evidence
Acquiring the “big picture”
The History of Ireland

Senior Cycle:

Working with Evidence
Movements for political and social reform, 1870-1914
The pursuit of sovereignty and the impact of partition, 1912-1914

Learning outcomes

Gain a greater knowledge of the role that Irish women played in conflcits at the beginning of the 20th century
Hear stories about both some of the most famous revolutionary women in Ireland, and also some more lesser-known figures
Explore artefacts directly connected to the Revolutionary period in Ireland

Teacher feedback

Excellent tour guide, so knowledgeable and welcoming

The tour was so well planned. Our guide was very informative and had a great knowledge of the subject. This tour was so engaging, all the students loved it. You could see the guide was very passionate about history.

Resources and suggestions

Online
To learn more about the chaning roles of women during this period, you can watch our virtual tour Bonnets, Bandoliers and Ballot Papers: Bonnets, Bandolies and Ballot Papers

At the Museum
Also visit the following related galleries in the Museum: Recovered Voices: the Stories of the Irish at War 1914-1915 and Asgard

Before your visit

We recommend teachers try to visit the exhibition in advance, if possible, to get familiar with the layout, key objects and key narratives within the exhibition
Read literature and poetry depicting events from and around the period
Use these resources and the exhibition visit to imagine and discuss the feelings and motives of people in the past and to discuss how an event in the past may have been perceived by those who participated in it
Consider choices made by individuals and organisations and the contexts these choices were made in
Plan a project around your visit. Students could research key personalities and organisations

After your visit
Ideas for post-visit activities include: