O'Connell Street

O'Connell Street. . , [Top photo caption reads] , Sackville Street, looking north, c.1750, , by Joseph Tudor, O'Connell Street , Long seen as the centre of Dublin, O'Connell Street is the city's favourite location for public commemorations and celebrations. Its origins lie in the mid-1700s, when an influential banker called Luke Gardiner developed an avenue of fashionable townhouses called Sackville Street here, which was later extended by the Wide Streets Commission. Following the Act of Union in 1800, when many aristocrats left Dublin for London, it became a largely commercial area., O'Connell Street's best-known landmark, the GPO, was built in 1818 and served as the rebel headquarters in the Easter Rising of 1916. The street suffered widespread damage during the Rising and the Irish Civil War, and had to be substantially rebuilt in the 1920s. It was renamed O'Connell Street after Daniel O'Connell, who led the struggle for Catholic emancipation., Garden of Remembrance , At the northern end of Parnell Square, at the top of O'Connell Street, the Garden of Remembrance commemorates those who died fighting for Irish independence. Then called Rotunda Gardens, it is where the Irish Volunteers were founded in 1912, where they assembled before the Easter Rising and where some were held after their surrender. In 2011, in a symbolic gesture of reconciliation, Queen Elizabeth II laid a wreath here., Statues of O'Connell Street , Some of Ireland's greatest figures are honoured here, including Daniel O'Connell, who spoke to crowds of up to a million while campaigning for Catholic emancipation. The Parnell Monument honours the Irish nationalist leader Charles Stewart Parnell. Trade Union leader Jim Larkin, who made a famous speech here during the 1913 Dublin Lock-out, is commemorated by a bronze statue., The Dubline Dublin Discovery Trail , The Dubline is an orientation route and the easiest way to explore many of the city's most visited sites. Along the route, discover the stories that shaped Dublin and trace the timeline of our city from its origins to the present day. Explore at your leisure the hidden gems along the way., For more information please visit: , www.VisitDublin.com, Dublin Discovery Trails , Explore Dublin's hidden treasures with a self-guided walk. Download the app at www.dublindiscoverytrails.com or from the nearby Visit Dublin Centre. Please follow the QR codes below for more information., Rebellion Trail , To explore the extraordinary story of the 1916 Easter Rising follow the Rebellion walking trail through Dublin city centre., [Timeline not transcribed] , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . , [Opposite side of marker, in Gaelic, needs photographed and transcribed]