Place · Ireland
The history of Dublin, Ireland, one place at a time
Assembled from 2 dug tiles · 24 sourced records · last reviewed 10 September 2026
Dublin's ground carries siege, rebellion and argument in close quarters: a corner near Dublin Castle that saw a collapsed 1649 siege and 1922 street fighting, and a spot on O'Connell Street where a column stood, fell to a bomb, and gave way to the Spire.
These are the individual spots Strata has dug in Dublin — not a guide to the town, but a record of what happened on particular ground.
Digs in Dublin
The pillar Dublin argued about for 157 yearsA British admiral stood on this exact spot until republicans blew him off it in 1966. Spire of Dublin
377 BC–2003 A siege collapsed and a civil war opened near this corner
Siege of Dublin turned back nearby, 1649 Castleview
600–2016
Dublin in layers
377 BC–45 BC
Radiocarbon samples taken almost directly under this spot date to between 377 and 45 BC, showing people were active on this ground over two thousand years before the street existed. OpenContext
This former military barracks behind Dublin Castle sits close to where the River Poddle once formed the dark pool that gave Dublin its name — 'Dubh Linn'. Wikipedia: Ship Street Barracks
The George, a short walk north on South Great George's Street, is regarded as Ireland's best-known gay bar on a street long popular with the city's gay community. Wikipedia: The George, Dublin
A medieval monastic house, Holy Trinity Priory, occupied ground a short walk from this spot before the dissolution of Ireland's religious houses. Wikidata: Holy Trinity Priory
from c. 7th century
The Church of St Michael le Pole, believed to date from as early as the 7th century, occupied ground near Ship Street and Golden Lane before the Norse arrival in Dublin. Wikipedia: Church of St Michael le Pole
from c. 1204
A castle has stood on the site since the reign of King John, chosen for the highest defensible ground in the old city and rebuilt from the late 1600s into the Georgian palace visible today. Wikidata: Dublin Castle
from 1466
One of the oldest streets outside Dublin's old walls, recorded from at least 1466 as Cross Lane, it took its present name after the Goldsmiths' Guild moved to Golden Lane in 1812. Wikipedia: Golden Lane, Dublin
1649
Confederate and Royalist forces abandoned an attempt to storm English-held Dublin from positions near here after a crushing defeat at the Battle of Rathmines. Wikidata: Siege of Dublin
1751 onward
A Georgian house built in 1751 for the Earl of Drogheda stood at the corner of Cathedral Street and O'Connell Street, exactly where the Spire now rises, before it was demolished. Wikipedia, Cathedral Street, Dublin
1763–1798
Theobald Wolfe Tone, a founding figure of Irish republicanism, was born in Dublin in 1763 and died there in 1798 after a failed rebellion against British rule. Wikidata
1780–1803
Robert Emmet, leader of the failed 1803 rebellion against British rule, was born in Dublin in 1780 and executed in 1803. Wikidata
1808–1809
A granite pillar topped with a statue of Horatio Nelson was completed here in 1809, standing for 158 years until it was bombed. Nelson's Pillar
1814–1922
The Chapel Royal within Dublin Castle served as the household chapel of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland from 1814 until the office ended in 1922, later reconsecrated as a Catholic church in 1943. Wikipedia: Chapel Royal, Dublin
1913
On 30 August 1913, during the Dublin Lockout, Dublin Metropolitan Police baton-charged a crowd on O'Connell Street near here, killing two young men. History Ireland
1916
During the 1916 Easter Rising, artillery bombardment reduced the eastern side of O'Connell Street around here to rubble, destroying the GPO and neighboring buildings. Wikipedia, O'Connell Street
1916
The General Post Office, just south of here, served as rebel headquarters during the 1916 Easter Rising and remains Ireland's chief post office. General Post Office, Dublin
1916–1922
Clerys, on the street nearby, traces to 1853, but its current building only dates from 1922 because the original was completely destroyed in the Easter Rising. Clerys
1916
The Imperial Hotel, sitting above Clerys directly opposite the GPO, was destroyed in the fighting of the Easter Rising. Imperial Hotel, Dublin
28 June – 5 July 1922
For a week in summer 1922, gunfire and shelling along these streets marked the opening battle of the Irish Civil War as Provisional Government forces moved against anti-Treaty positions. Wikipedia: Battle of Dublin
1922
National Army troops shelled Republican positions along this stretch of O'Connell Street in 1922, destroying most of the buildings that had survived 1916. Wikipedia, O'Connell Street
1966
Republican activists planted a bomb that destroyed the 1808 Nelson's Pillar on this exact spot in 1966, leaving a gap in O'Connell Street for 37 years. Ireland Before You Die
17 May 1974
The Dublin and Monaghan bombings of 17 May 1974 struck the city center right around this location, part of a coordinated attack that killed dozens. Wikidata
2003
A 120-meter stainless steel spire, the Monument of Light, was raised on the site of the fallen Nelson's Pillar, filling the gap that had stood since 1966. Spire of Dublin
opened December 2016
Opened in 2017 inside Dublin Castle's Treasury Building, the Garda Museum traces policing in Ireland from medieval watchmen through the Dublin Metropolitan Police and RIC to today's Garda Síochána. Wikipedia: Garda Museum
Questions about Dublin
What is Dublin known for historically?
Dublin's recorded ground includes a royalist siege turned back at its walls in 1649, street battles that opened the Irish Civil War in 1922, and O'Connell Street's long argument over Nelson's Pillar, which stood from 1808 until a bomb destroyed it in 1966.
What happened at Castleview in Dublin?
Castleview sits at the junction of South Great George's Street, Stephen Street Lower, Coppinger Row and Golden Lane, close to the failed 1649 Siege of Dublin, near fighting from the 1922 Battle of Dublin, and within sight of Dublin Castle, whose origins reach back to around 1204.
What happened at the Spire of Dublin site in 1966?
A bomb destroyed Nelson's Pillar just after 1:30 a.m. on 8 March 1966, ending 157 years in which the column to the British admiral had stood on that spot in O'Connell Street. The Irish Army's follow-up demolition six days later damaged the street further, and the ground stood empty until the Spire rose in 2003.
What else happened on O'Connell Street before the Spire was built?
The Easter Rising of 1916 left that side of the street in ruins, and Civil War artillery in 1922 finished the destruction. Clerys department store and the Imperial Hotel above it were both damaged in the 1916 fighting, and a police baton charge in 1913 killed two people nearby.
What older history lies near Castleview in Dublin?
A pre-Norse church once stood just west of the site from around the 7th century, and Ship Street Barracks stood over Dublin's founding black pool. Golden Lane has carried its name since 1466, with goldsmiths arriving there in 1812, and The George, one of Ireland's oldest gay bars, anchors South Great George's Street nearby.
Which rebel figures connect to this part of Dublin's history?
Wolfe Tone, the rebel founder, was born and died in Dublin between 1763 and 1798, and Robert Emmet, the hanged rebel leader, was born in the city in 1780. The General Post Office, headquarters of the 1916 Easter Rising, stands a short walk from the Spire's site.