We our delighted to jointly host our second Spring lecture with the Old Dundalk Society.

In this the quatercentenary of St Oliver Plunkett’s birth in 1625, speaker Tommy Burns will talk about St Oliver’s life in the Dundalk area. St Oliver lived at Ballybarrack for a substantial period of time in the 1670s and he ordained many priests in the area including Castletown and Dundalk. After being arrested in 1679, he spent some time in jail in Dundalk but was not found guilty of the charges against him at Dundalk. Subsequently Archbishop Oliver Plunkett was taken to London where he was found guilty as a result of trumped-up charges and he was martyred in Tyburn in 1681.

Tommy Burns has been involved with the St Oliver Plunkett for Peace and Reconciliation Committee since 1997. The group has welcomed many pilgrims and visitors to St Peter’s in Drogheda including John and Pat Hume in 2001. Tommy has compiled St. Oliver Plunkett Journey to Sainthood (most recent edition in 2019). Links have been forged with the German town of Lamspringe where St Oliver’s body reposed from 1683 to 1883, when it was translated to the Benedictine monastery at Downside in England. Tommy has spoken about St Oliver in many locations both at home and abroad.

The lecture will be held in the County Museum in Dundalk on Thursday 10 April at 8 p.m.

All are welcome.

The lecture will be recorded and made available on the Society’s YouTube channel. Details will be added here when available.