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1879 Nevill Coghill was killed on this day in 1879, aged 25. Coghill was awarded the Victoria Cross for gallantry in the Battle of Isandhlwana, the first major conflict of the Anglo-Zulu war. Coghill attempted to save the life of one of his comrades who had lost his horse while being chased by the enemy. Unfortunately, both were caught and killed. The VC was awarded posthumously in 1907.
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1901 On this day in 1901, Queen Victoria died and Edward VII took the throne.
At this time, Ireland were still ruled by Britain, although the Irish War of Independence and the Easter Rising followed over the next 20 years, eventually resulting in the free state.
Click here to read more about the Easter Rising 1916
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1967 Happy birthday to Eleanor McEvoy, born on this day in Dublin in 1967. McEvoy is a successful singer/songwriter and her 1992 album, A Woman’s Heart, sold more than 750,000 copies in Ireland.
Click here to read more about Eleanor McEvoy plus link to six videos
Eleanor McEvoy performing Only a Woman’s Heart.
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1972 Éamon Broy, (also known as “Ned” Broy), the man who gathered vital information for IRA leader Michael Collins during the Irish War of Independence, died on this day in 1972.
Broy was a Detective Sergeant for the Irish Metropolitan Police. It was from this position that he could gather information about the British tactics and resources and then secretly have them passed on to Collins.
See our Series of BITESIZE articles abour all the background to the Irish War of Independence
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1987 Happy birthday to Shane Long, Irish international footballer and Premier League forward. Long was born on this day in Dublin in 1987 before heading to England to pursue a career in professional football.
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1998 Plans for Ireland’s biggest ever gold mine were announced on this day in 1998 after it was announced that up to 1 million ounces of high grade gold had been discovered in County Monaghan.
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1999 On this day in 1999, the Supreme Court decided that Lansdowne Road could host pop concerts. Music legends U2 and Michael Jackson played the stadium, before it was demolished and rebuilt into the spectacular 50,000 seater Aviva stadium.
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