Kinsale

Attention all readers: I did not survive the sinking of the Titanic. :( Talk about a downer to your day.

On the journey from Kilkenny to Kinsale I detoured to the port city of Cobh, aka Queenstown as it was called during Victoria's reign (reverted back to Cobh after Irish independence from Britain in 1922).

Cobh, Queenstown at the time, was the last port of call of the Titanic prior to its voyage across the Atlantic for New York City. 123 souls boarded in Cobh, mainly 3rd class passengers, 76 of whom perished at sea during the sinking. In remembrance of this terrible tragedy, the Titanic Experience and Museum has been created in what was the White Star Line building, and where those who actually boarded the Titanic 113 years ago actually stood. Upon entrance to the experience/museum, you get a boarding card with the name of a passenger who boarded Titanic at Cobh, April 11, 1912. At the end of your tour/experience, you get to find out if you made it. I was Patrick Canavan, a young lad of 21 from Knockmaria, County Mayo, who decided

to try his luck in America. He and 13 others from his area set off on Titanic for a new life - only 3 survived. A third class ticket at the time cost £8/$40. In today's currency it would be $640. Contrast that to a first class ticket, £870/$4350, or $69,600 today.

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My first morning in Kinsale I decided to take a tour of the city to orient myself. This was a historical walking tour given by two men of the names Don and Barry. My guide for the morning was Barry Maloney, who grew up in Kinsale and is an incredibly informative person. We learned about the great battle of Kinsale of 1601. Who else has heard of this battle? I ask this because once you hear the story you realize just how important it was and it made me wonder why, at 33 years of age, was I hearing about it for the first time? In 1601, the Spanish launched its fourth and final armada and descended upon the port town of Kinsale. The English, occupiers of Ireland at the time, worked their way to consume to face their enemy. Chieftains of the north, namely chief O'Donnell and chief O'Neill, who hated the British decided that the enemy of their enemy was their friend and so marched southward to help the Spanish fight off British forces. The English were outnumbered, however, due to a variety of follies, still managed to beat the northern Irish chieftains and the Spanish. This had a few implications. One, this ended chieftain rule in Ireland. Two, it lead to great star forts being

constructed at the entrance to the harbor for better protection, one of which still stands in almost full glory. Three, this meant that the British maintained their stronghold in Ireland and a good take off point for exploring the New World. If the Spanish had been victorious, it is highly likely that those of us in America would be speaking Spanish as our first language. Ponder that for a moment... ¿Se hablo espanol? Claro que si.