Letters linked to struggle for independence set for auction

Rare letters linked to Ireland’s struggle for independence, including a handwritten note by the British prime minister, which were found in a collection not seen in public for almost a century, will go on display in Cork today before the collection goes under the hammer.

Auctioneer Ted Hegarty said the public response to the auction of material from the Keyes McDonnell collection has been so overwhelming that he has arranged a viewing of key items in Cork City today.

Most of the items are from the Castlelack House collection of William Keyes McDonnell and his wife Kathleen, who played a significant role in the country’s fight for independence from 1913.