The Burning of Cork: A message of hope from the embers 100 years on

And as we are in this decade of centenaries, let’s fix that lens on 1920 when, 100 years ago next week, Auxiliaries burned out the commercial centre of Cork City in reprisal for an IRA ambush, writes Clodagh Finn

Crowds of onlookers throng St Patrick St on the day following the burning of Cork City centre by crown forces. Ref. 303

Right now, it feels as if we are wading through treacle, and that is putting it mildly. People are fed up. You can sense it in the air. Christmas is not going to be anything like last year; there can be little doubt about that.

It might be an idea, then, not to compare this lacklustre December to the sparkle of recent years but to compare it to a more distant — and arguably much more difficult — past. That is not to downplay the many challenges of the present, just to acknowledge the unexpected comfort that comes with knowing we are not the first to face hard times.