20 December-Narcissus Marsh

Narcissus Marsh, who served as Archbishop of Dublin from 1694 to 1703, established Marsh’s Library in Dublin in 1707. Located adjacent to St Patricks Cathedral it was Ireland’s first public library. Today Marsh’s Library continues to operate as a library in its original building. Almost 20,000 people from Ireland and across the globe visit Marsh’s Library every year.

Narcissus Marsh was born at Hannington, Wiltshire, England in 1638. He was educated at Magdalen Hall, Oxford and ordained in 1662. He was sent to Ireland as Provost of Trinity College Dublin in 1679. At Trinity he was responsible for several major developments and actively promoted the Irish language. Marsh later served as Bishop of Ferns and Leighlin, Archbishop of Cashel and Archbishop of Dublin. He died on November 2nd 1713 aged 74.

Narcissus Marsh, who established Marsh’s Library in Dublin in 1707, was born in the year 1638 On This Day.

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Narcissus Marsh

https://www.tcd.ie/provost/history/former-provosts/n_marsh.php

Marsh’s Library

 

 

 

17 December-Pope Francis

Pope Francis was elected to the Papacy on March 13th 2013. He is the 266th Pope of the Catholic Church. He is also the first Pope from the Americas and the first Jesuit to become Pontiff. Highly popular, Pope Francis is followed by almost 16 million people on Twitter.

Pope Francis was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1936. He was ordained to the priesthood on December 13th 1969 and served as archbishop of Buenos Aires from 1998 to 2013. He was created as cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church of Argentina in 2001. He served as Cardinal until he was elected to the Papacy in 2013.

Pope Francis was born in Buenos Argentina in the year 1936 On This Day.

Pope Francis

 

 

 

16 December-Dublin Fire Brigade

Thomas Purcell was an engineer and firefighter who was a native of Co Kilkenny, Ireland. He served as Chief Fire Officer of Dublin Fire Brigade during a time of great change and unrest from 1892 to 1917. Purcell is credited with having built the Brigade into a well-trained and efficient organisation

Thomas Purcell was born in Johnswell, Co Kilkenny in 1850. As a young man he was a member of the Kilkenny City Volunteer Fire Brigade. Purcell was awarded the medal of the Royal Society for the Protection of Life from Fire in July 1876. He was given the award for rescuing a woman during a fire at a drapery store in Kilkenny City.

In March 1892 Purcell was appointed Chief Fire Officer (Superintendent) of Dublin Fire Brigade. During his time in charge of the Brigade he was responsible for many innovations in training and equipment. He designed the first emergency ambulance for the fire brigade and oversaw its introduction in January 1898. Purcell was also responsible for the design of the brigade’s first motorised pump. It had a 50hp engine and a rear mounted turbine pump capable of delivering 350 gallons per minute. This was a big advance on the existing horse drawn equipment.

The first Dublin Fire Brigade motor pump designed by Thomas Purcell and built by Leyland arrived in Dublin in the year 1909 On This Day.

Dublin Fire Brigade

 

 

 

 

15 December-Uzi Submachine Gun

Uziel Gal was a native of Germany. Known as Uzi Gal he was the designer of the Uzi submachine gun. The gun became one of the most famous and best-selling weapons of the 20th century. Used by up to 20 armies around the world, it is widely used both as a police and special-forces firearm.

Uzi Gal was born Gotthard Glas in Weimar, Germany in 1923. In 1933 he moved with his family to England following the rise to power of the Nazis. Three years later the family moved to Yagur a Kibbutz in northern Israel. His submachine gun design was the winner of a competition in 1951 and was adopted for use by the Israeli Defence Forces.

Uziel Gal, designer of the Uzi submachine gun, was born in the year 1923 On This Day.

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Uzi Gal

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13 December-Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift is a singer, songwriter and actress who is a natïve of the USA. She began her career as a country music singer but has become a successful popular recording artist. The recipient of several awards Swift is one of the world’s best-selling music artists.

Taylor Alison Swift was born in Reading, Pennsylvania in 1989. Interested in music from a young age she began performing at the age of nine. Her family relocated to Nashville when she was fourteen to help further her career in country music. In 2006 her first album which she entitled ‘Taylor Swift’ was a major success.

Swift’s recordings, which are popular with both country and pop fans alike have made her an international success. To date she has received numerous awards, including 10 Grammy Awards and 21 Billboard Music Awards. In 2015 she was listed by Rolling Stone among the 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time.

Taylor Swift, singer, songwriter and actress was born in the year 1989 On This Day.

Taylor Swift