War of Friends Exhibition at Athenry Castle
The ‘War of Friends’ exhibition traces the relationship between Liam Mellows and Padraic O’Maille during the war of independence and their divided loyalties in the civil war that followed. The display was prepared with the assistance of Galway County Council, Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Media and provided to the Athenry Experience Group by Galway City Museum.
The exhibit banner listing the names of local 1916 Irish Volunteers was prepared by Dr. Bernard Kelly and Tomas Kenny. They and the Athenry Experience Group are conscious that the banner may not include the complete list of names and ask families of Volunteers to notify the Group of any omissions.
They also plan to develop a memorial wall and publish the stories and biographies of those involved at that time on all sides. They are appealing to family members or anyone with photos, documents or information about the people involved to provide them for inclusion on the group’s website athenryexperience.ie
A special thanks to Marie Gibbs and the OPW team at Athenry Castle for their assistance and Brian Quinn and Daniel Gill for their help with installing the exhibits at the Castle.
The Athenry Experience Group hope everyone enjoys the exhibit and that relatives of volunteers bring their family and friends to see the display and visit the magnificent Athenry Castle.
