Thomas Francis Meagher, and the Tricolour, 1848
Meagher’s story is extremely important in the origins of the Irish tricolour flag, because of his central role in promoting it during 1848, and his role in the 1848 rebellion, establishing its relationship with the idea of an Irish republic.
He popularised the tricolour flag of green, white and orange that would eventually fly in Dublin during the 1916 rising. It became the flag of the new state in 1922, and was formally recognised in the 1937 Constitution as the flag of Ireland: ‘The national flag is the tricolour of green, white and orange’.
When he presented the flag in Dublin in 1848, he explained the meaning behind it - "The white in the centre signifies a lasting truce between the “orange” and the “green”—and I trust that beneath its folds, the hands of the Irish Protestant and the Irish Catholic may be clasped in generous and heroic brotherhood".
Meagher flies the Tricolour in 1848
Thomas Francis Meagher flew an Irish Tricolour flag on 7 March 1848 from the Wolfe Tone Club in Waterford City in celebration of the 1848 revolution in Paris. After a visit to Paris, he presented a silk Irish tricolour to the citizens of Dublin in April 1848.
Meagher’s story is extremely important in the origins of the Irish tricolour flag, because of his central role in promoting it during 1848, and his role in the 1848 rebellion, establishing its relationship with the idea of an Irish republic.
First Colour Record of Irish Tricolour 1853
The Stokes Tapestry was the first colour picture of the Tricolour in 1853.
This large pictorial work featuring 250 figures was made by Stephen Stokes between 1833 and 1853 and illustrates his experiences in the British Army in Ireland and subsequently in the Dublin Metropolitan Police. It illustrates historical events during his lifetime, and popular personalities and characters of the early Victorian period.
It was the first visual record we had of Meagher’s tricolour flag. This very special tapestry by Stephen Stokes is now on display in the National Museum of Ireland at Collins Barracks.
The Irish Flag in the 18th & 19th Centuries
The letter in The Irish Press drew attention to the importance of the green flag in the years before the 1916 Rising.
The letter writer is G.A. Hayes McCoy the historian who wrote "A History of Irish Flags from Earliest Times"
