Varied topics at Kildare Irish military seminar
Paul Clarke, Joe Mallon, John Roche and Kevin Carton at the Military Seminar in the Riverbank Arts Centre Newbridge
KILDARE County Council’s Library & Arts Service has hailed the 9th Irish Military Seminar a success, following a diverse and well-attended programme of events that took place across Kildare Town, Naas, and Newbridge from Tuesday, May 13 to Saturday, May 17 2025.
Local historian and organiser of the event, James Durney, said: ”All the events were well attended and went well. People travelled from across the country to see some of the talks.” The seminar opened with a special screening event on Tuesday, May 13 at Naas Library & Cultural Centre. The audience viewed two films: ‘The Rathbride Flying Column – Kildare in the Civil War’ by the Prosperous Heritage Society and ‘The Land’, a World War I short produced by FrameIt Productions. A lively discussion followed, moderated by author and film historian Wayne Byrne, who was joined by Joe Murphy and Joseph Butler.
The highlight of the week was the main event at the Riverbank Arts Centre on Friday, May16. Cathaoirleach of the County of Kildare, Councillor Kevin Duffy, officially opened the weekend’s programme at 7.30pm. Attendees were then treated to an engaging conversation between former Lieutenant-Colonel Ray Lane and Cathal Berry, which centred around Lane’s military service and his experiences dealing with landmines and explosive devices—stories relayed from his best-selling memoir, ‘Only a Soldier Knows’.
Saturday, May 17, saw a great attendance at the Riverbank Arts Centre for a series of insightful talks by acclaimed historians and authors.
Topics ranged from the role of the Irish in the Resistance to the life of IRA. leader Rory O’Connor, Irish military involvement in France (1690–1815) by Stephen McGarry, The connection between Irish people and resistance movements in Nazi-occupied Europe by Clogadh Finn and John Morgan, and the relationship between colour and conflict in Ireland from 1922 to 1945 by Michael B Barry and John O’Byrne.
Kildare Community Library also launched Michael Rowley’s compelling photographic exhibition, ‘All the Queen’s Men and all the Queen’s Women’, featuring the portrait work of J.F. Church on the Curragh Camp from 1860 to 1880. The exhibition remains open to the public during regular library hours.
With the impending 10th year of the Military Seminar coming up next year, history buffs and military fanatics can look forward to another special event with a great selection of talks in 2026.
