| Cathal Brugha Barracks | |
|---|---|
Dún Chathail Bhrugha | |
| Dublin,Ireland | |
_(2).jpg) A group photo in 2013 | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Barracks |
| Operator | Irish Army |
| Open to the public | Partial (Barracks museum and archives are open to public at certain times)[1][2] |
| Location | |
  Cathal Brugha Barracks Location within Dublin | |
| Coordinates | 53°19′37″N6°16′09″W / 53.32702°N 6.26906°W /53.32702; -6.26906 |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1810 (1810) |
| Events | 1916 Easter Rising,Irish War of Independence |
| Garrison information | |
| Current commander | Brigadier General Tony Cudmore[3] |
| Garrison | 2 Brigade ofIrish Army |
Cathal Brugha Barracks (Irish:Dún Chathail Bhrugha) is anIrish Army barracks inRathmines, Dublin. A key military base of theIrish Defence Forces, it is the headquarters of 2 Brigade,[4] and houses theMilitary Archives of theDepartment of Defence.
The barracks was originally constructed between 1810 and 1815, and namedPortobello Barracks for the area in which it was sited. (WhenSir Francis Drake looted the city ofPortobelo, Panama, died and was buried at sea in its harbour, many places in England and Ireland were commemoratively named Portobello – including part of Rathmines in 1696. The nearby canal bridge and the area became known asPortobello and thereafter, the barracks.)[5]
In 1817 William Windham Saddler, son of balloonistJames Saddler, set off in ahot-air balloon from the grounds of the barracks landing inHolyhead in North Wales.[6]
Originally designed as acavalry barracks, it saw some development along these lines, with additional land being purchased, and the addition of a church (1842) and canteen block (1868).[6]
Edgar F. Keatinge, writing in theDublin Historical Record in 1947, recalled his youth growing up in the vicinity of the barracks, at a time when Ireland was still part of theUnited Kingdom:
"We children used to haunt the barracks at Portobello... we became quite expert in the names and characteristics of the regiments quartered there. We could, for instance, knowingly distinguish the quick step of theRifle Brigade from the more measured tread of theSurreys, and even before we were near enough to recognize them by sight, our ears told us who they were. A great thrill was acavalry regiment and our joy was complete when themounted bands struck up."[7]
During the1916 Easter Rising and theIrish War of Independence, British troops from the barracks were involved in actions throughout Dublin. During this time, three journalists, including the pacifistFrancis Sheehy-Skeffington, were murdered in the barracks exercise yard on the orders of Royal Irish Rifles officer, Captain Bowen-Colthurst. In the subsequent court martial, Bowen-Colthurst was controversially found guilty but insane at the time of the murders.[8]
On 17 May 1922 Irish troops took possession of the Barracks, and it became the National Army's Headquarters under GeneralMichael Collins.[6]
In 1952 it was renamed forCathal Brugha, who was a leader during the 1916 rising,Minister for Defence in theFirst Dáil, and who lived locally for a time. Cathal Brugha, a leader in theAnti-Treaty IRA, was shot by the National Army on O'Connell Street during theBattle of Dublin.[9]
Since the end of theIrish War of Independence, the barracks has housed units of theIrish Defence Forces, and has more recently been developed as a result of the force's reorganisation. It became the Eastern Command HQ (again) in 1994. Following the 2012 reorganisation of the army,[10] the barracks became headquarters of the reorganised 2 Brigade.[4]
As of 2014, Cathal Brugha Barracks housed the following units:[11]
He had a good slice of luck, Jack Mooney was telling me, over that boxing match Myler Keogh won again that soldier in the Portobello barracks. By God, he had the little kipper down in the county Carlow he was telling me
— Ulysses, Chapter 8, Lestrygonians episode,James Joyce
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