The Royal Irish Academy

‘Instituting Grangegorman’ is the second in the Grangegorman Histories podcast series exploring the histories of the Grangegorman area of north, inner-city Dublin. Over the past 250 years, Grangegorman has been the site of a workhouse, a prison and a large psychiatric hospital and now this site is being redeveloped as a health and education campus for the HSE, TU Dublin and the local community. This podcast explores the history of the Richmond Lunatic Asylum, now the recently restored TU Dublin Lower House.

Join architectural historian, Patrick Quinlan, as he explores the chequered career of this landmark building: a story of optimistic conception and utilitarian service, of neglect, decline and demise, culminating in the latest chapter of rebirth as a valued architectural and historical landmark.

The architect of the original asylum building was Francis Johnston, most noted as the architect of the General Post Office on O’Connell Street, Dublin and the Chapel Royal in Dublin Castle. He designed and constructed the building, which opened in 1814, in a spirit of optimism as a national solution to the shameful conditions in which people with mental illnesses were confined in prisons, bridewells and houses of industry all over Ireland.

The original design and construction included architectural innovations and features that were informed by moral treatment: a progressive and humane approach to the care of people with mental illness popular during the early 19th century. However, by the later 20th century, the building became synonymous with the worst aspects of institutionalisation. Its closure in 1989 was heralded as ‘symbolic of a revolution in healthcare’; its ‘dungeon-like architecture’ fit only for demolition. Three quarters of the building was levelled but Johnston’s entrance front survived. It endured two further decades of decay and dereliction before it was identified as a building of architectural, social and historical importance and worthy of protection. It has become part of the regeneration of the Grangegorman site, transforming this former hospital complex. The building reopened in 2021, ready to write its next chapter as a key centre for student services on the new TU Dublin Grangegorman campus.

About the podcaster:

Patrick Quinlan, B.Arch, ARB, MUBC

Patrick holds a Masters in Urban and Building Conservation from UCD and is a practicing architect with professional experience spanning from modern healthcare to the conservation and reuse of a range of historic structures. His recently published Walls of Containment, the Architecture and Landscapes of Lunacy explores the history of Ireland’s legacy asylum sites through the lens of architectural history. Patrick is a past recipient of the RIBA Dissertation Commendation and is currently undertaking a PhD at Birkbeck, University of London.

Before you listen to the podcast, please note that some of the language that will be used in describing these histories is contemporaneous language of that historical period. This terminology is no longer acceptable. However, to give truth to these difficult histories, it is important to use the terminology of that time. It’s use is applied strictly within context.

Grangegorman Histories is a public history programme of research and shared discovery of the Grangegorman site and surrounding communities. Founding partners: Dublin City Council, Grangegorman Development Agency, HSE, Local Communities, National Archives, Royal Irish Academy and TU Dublin.

Visit www.grangegormanhistories.ie.

The ARINS podcast theme this month considers the benefits of cross-border cooperation in the Arts.

Drawing on a report commissioned by ARINS, produced by the Audience Agency and co-funded by Department of Foreign Affairs, the lead author of the report Dr. Steven Hadley Research Fellow Trinity College Dublin, and Darren Ferguson, CEO of Belfast based organization, Beyond Skin that harnesses the arts as a mechanism for dialogue to develop a society free from racism and sectarianism, join our host Rory Montgomery to discuss the future of cross-border cooperation in the arts.

You can read the report and more ARINS research: https://www.ria.ie/read-arins-research

Beyond Skin: https://www.beyondskin.net/history

Audience Agency: https://www.theaudienceagency.org/

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This is episode 15 of a podcast series that provides evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south.

Host Rory Montgomery, MRIA, talks to authors of articles on topics such as cross border health co-operation; the need to regulate social media in referendums, education, cultural affairs and constitutional questions and the imperative for good data and the need to carry out impartial research.

ARINS: Analysing and Researching Ireland North and South brings together experts to provide evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south. The project publishes, facilitates and disseminates research on the challenges and opportunities presented to the island in a post-Brexit context, with the intention of contributing to an informed public discourse. More information can be found at www.arinsproject.com.

ARINS is a joint project of The Royal Irish Academy, an all-island body, and the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies at Notre Dame's Keough School of Global Affairs.

In this month’s episode, host Rory Montgomery and Brendan O’Leary, Lauder Professor of Political Science, at the University of Pennsylvania, discuss Brendan’s latest book Making Sense of a United Ireland, Should it Happen, How Might it Happen? (https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/448578/making-sense-of-a-united-ireland-by-oleary-brendan/9781844886050) published today. O’Leary makes sense of it all from government ministries to ideological mindsets.

The discussion explores demographic, electoral, and political changes, slowly and steadily shaping Northern Ireland. Should these slow, steady changes accelerate referenda on the future of Northern Ireland?

O’Leary counsels against premature calls for referenda arguing that it would be inappropriate to hold a referendum in Northern Ireland where there is not sufficient evidence that a majority in Northern Ireland would be likely to vote for a united Ireland. Referenda should not be called until such point that it is clear that there has been a shift in opinion.

O'Leary calls for timely preparation and detailed deliberation by the Irish government in the event of successful referendums north and south. He advocates for a series of processes including a standing constitutional all party forum and for systematic evaluation of difficult questions by way of deliberative forums on small dimensions of the momentous questions of Irish reunification. To avoid being unprepared in advance of a British government decision to initiate a referendum at any time O'Leary champions the case for the Irish government to create a ministry for unification. A ministry would support efforts seeking to shape arrangements and create models and mechanisms to better determine how a united Ireland might successfully operate.

What happens when you merge two distinct legal, administrative and judicial systems with legacy concerns? The reunification of Germany is arguably the closest and most recent example of the systemic complexities faced should referenda on both sides of the Irish border allow for the processes of Irish unification to begin. In this ARINS podcast Tobias Lock and Aoife O’Donoghue discuss the lessons learned from German Unification and how we might best apply them.

You can read the article by Tobias Lock, as it appears in Irish Studies in International Affairs, at doi.org/10.1353/isia.2022.0010.

Tobias Lock, is Jean Monnet Chair in EU Law School of Law and Criminology Maynooth University.

Aoife O’Donoghue is Professor of Law, Queen’s University Belfast.

This is episode 13 of a podcast series that provides evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south.

Host Rory Montgomery, MRIA, talks to authors of articles on topics such as cross border health co-operation; the need to regulate social media in referendums, education, cultural affairs and constitutional questions and the imperative for good data and the need to carry out impartial research.

ARINS: Analysing and Researching Ireland North and South brings together experts to provide evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south. The project publishes, facilitates and disseminates research on the challenges and opportunities presented to the island in a post-Brexit context, with the intention of contributing to an informed public discourse. More information can be found at www.arinsproject.com.

ARINS is a joint project of The Royal Irish Academy, an all-island body, and the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies at Notre Dame's Keough School of Global Affairs.

In this month's episode of the ARINS podcast, Joanne McEvoy and Fidelma Ashe explore the ways in which including and encouraging popular engagement can not only enrich constitutional discussion but critically can shape constitutional change.

You can read the article by Joanne McEvoy, Jennifer Todd and Dawn Walsh, as it appears in Irish Studies in International Affairs, at doi.org/10.1353/isia.2022.0008

Joanne McEvoy is Senior Lecturer in the School of Social Science at the University of Aberdeen.

Fidelma Ashe is Professor of Politics at the Ulster University.

This is episode 12 of a podcast series that provides evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south.

Host Rory Montgomery, MRIA, talks to authors of articles on topics such as cross border health co-operation; the need to regulate social media in referendums, education, cultural affairs and constitutional questions and the imperative for good data and the need to carry out impartial research.

ARINS: Analysing and Researching Ireland North and South brings together experts to provide evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south. The project publishes, facilitates and disseminates research on the challenges and opportunities presented to the island in a post-Brexit context, with the intention of contributing to an informed public discourse. More information can be found at www.arinsproject.com.

ARINS is a joint project of The Royal Irish Academy, an all-island body, and the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies at Notre Dame's Keough School of Global Affairs.

In this month's episode, Katie Liston, Joseph Maguire and Bruce Kidd explore the role of sports in crafting identities and shaping politics on the island of Ireland.

You can read Katie Liston and Joseph Maguire's paper, as it appears in Irish Studies in International Affairs, at doi.org/10.1353/isia.2022.0005.

Bruce Kidd's response is available at doi.org/10.1353/isia.2022.0007.

Katie Liston is Senior Lecturer School of Sport, University of Ulster.

Joseph Maguire is Professor Emeritus of Sociology of Sport, Loughborough University.

Bruce Kidd is Professor Emeritus Sport and Public Policy University of Toronto.

This is episode 11 of a podcast series that provides evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south.

Host Rory Montgomery, MRIA, talks to authors of articles on topics such as cross border health co-operation; the need to regulate social media in referendums, education, cultural affairs and constitutional questions and the imperative for good data and the need to carry out impartial research.

ARINS: Analysing and Researching Ireland North and South brings together experts to provide evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south. The project publishes, facilitates and disseminates research on the challenges and opportunities presented to the island in a post-Brexit context, with the intention of contributing to an informed public discourse. More information can be found at www.arinsproject.com.

ARINS is a joint project of The Royal Irish Academy, an all-island body, and the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies at Notre Dame's Keough School of Global Affairs.

Policing has been complicated and contentious on both sides of the island of Ireland. The prospect of a united Ireland raises profound and even jarring questions with regards to policing, questions which will require a depth of consideration, analysis and consultation if the issue is ever to be addressed effectively. In this episode, Vicky Conway and Roger Mac Ginty examine how policing in a united Ireland might coordinate questions of governance, oversight and accountability.

You can read Vicky Conway's paper, as it appears in Irish Studies in International Affairs, at doi.org/10.1353/isia.2022.0006

Vicky Conway is Associate Professor of Law, Convenor of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at DCU Law School. Roger Mac Ginty is Professor of Defence, Development and Diplomacy in the School of Government and International Affairs at Durham University.

This is episode 10 of a podcast series that provides evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south.

Host Rory Montgomery, MRIA, talks to authors of articles on topics such as cross border health co-operation; the need to regulate social media in referendums, education, cultural affairs and constitutional questions and the imperative for good data and the need to carry out impartial research.

ARINS: Analysing and Researching Ireland North and South brings together experts to provide evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south. The project publishes, facilitates and disseminates research on the challenges and opportunities presented to the island in a post-Brexit context, with the intention of contributing to an informed public discourse. More information can be found at www.arinsproject.com.

ARINS is a joint project of The Royal Irish Academy, an all-island body, and the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies at Notre Dame's Keough School of Global Affairs.

The Good Friday Agreement and the Dayton Peace Agreement in Bosnia and Herzegovina have often been compared as the two best-known and longest-lasting power-sharing or consociational agreements from the 1990s. The post-Brexit debate on possible referenda on a united Ireland has added a new dimension to this comparison. If referenda lead to the creation of a united Ireland, what does the experience of Bosnia and Herzegovina offer to the debate on the political structures of a united Ireland? In this episode, Tajma Kapic and John Doyle consider how the experience of the DPA may help shape future political arrangements in a united Ireland.

You can read Tajma Kapic's paper, as it appears in Irish Studies in International Affairs, at doi:10.1353/isia.2022.0001

Tajma Kapic is a doctoral researcher at the School of Law and Government, Dublin City University.

John Doyle is Director of DCU Institute for International Conflict Resolution and Reconstruction and Professor of International Conflict Resolution in DCU School of Law and Government.

This is episode 9 of a podcast series that provides evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south.

Host Rory Montgomery, MRIA, talks to authors of articles on topics such as cross border health co-operation; the need to regulate social media in referendums, education, cultural affairs and constitutional questions and the imperative for good data and the need to carry out impartial research.

ARINS: Analysing and Researching Ireland North and South brings together experts to provide evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south. The project publishes, facilitates and disseminates research on the challenges and opportunities presented to the island in a post-Brexit context, with the intention of contributing to an informed public discourse. More information can be found at www.arinsproject.com.

ARINS is a joint project of The Royal Irish Academy, an all-island body, and the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies at Notre Dame's Keough School of Global Affairs.

Ireland's Ambassador to the United States, Daniel Mulhall, invites you to the American launch of 'Irish Lives in America' (Royal Irish Academy, 2021), a St Brigid’s Day celebration of the lives and achievements of Irish women who made America their home over the last 300 years.

We'll meet characters such as Margaret Maher, one of the multitude of 'Bridgets' in America (a collective name given to Irish domestic servants) who is credited with preserving the poetry of Emily Dickinson; Belinda Mulrooney, a Sligo native who became the richest woman in the Klondike, ran her own bank, then lost it all; Gertrude Brice Kelly, a respected New York surgeon and political radical calling for an independent Ireland; Kay McNulty, a pioneering ‘human computer’ whose work went unrecognized for many years, and many other extraordinary women who made their mark on America.

Joining the Ambassador in conversation are Liz Evers and Niav Gallagher, editors of 'Irish Lives in America'.

The book is available in all good bookshops or online at https://www.ria.ie/irish-lives-america

One of the many perspectives from which the pros and cons of a united Ireland can be weighed is that of human rights protection. In a united Ireland how differently, if at all, would the human rights of people living in Northern Ireland or in Ireland be protected? In this month's episode of the ARINS podcast, Brice Dickson and Rory Montgomery look at the implications for the protection of human rights in a united Ireland.

You can read Brice Dickson's paper, as it appears in Irish Studies in International Affairs, at https://doi.org/10.3318/isia.2021.32b.48

Brice Dickson is Professor of International and Comparative Law at the School of Law, Queen's University Belfast.

Rory Montgomery is a former diplomat and Honorary Professor in the George Mitchell Institute, Queen's University Belfast.

This is episode 8 of a podcast series that provides evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south.

Host Rory Montgomery, MRIA, talks to authors of articles on topics such as cross border health co-operation; the need to regulate social media in referendums, education, cultural affairs and constitutional questions and the imperative for good data and the need to carry out impartial research.

ARINS: Analysing and Researching Ireland North and South brings together experts to provide evidence-based research and analysis on the most significant questions of policy and public debate facing the island of Ireland, north and south. The project publishes, facilitates and disseminates research on the challenges and opportunities presented to the island in a post-Brexit context, with the intention of contributing to an informed public discourse. More information can be found at www.arinsproject.com.

ARINS is a joint project of The Royal Irish Academy, an all-island body, and the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies at Notre Dame's Keough School of Global Affairs.