By Dara Boyle

Last week saw the beginning of the fourth annual Dublin Festival of History, which will continue until 8th October, and features a wide variety of events around the city.

The festival, organised by the Dublin City Library and Archive Service, began in Dublin Castle with a commemoration of the 1916 rising and a talk about the founding of the GAA. Other events over the past number of days have included talks on a diverse array of topics such as the First World War and the Hillsborough disaster, as well as tours, exhibitions and more. Many of the events are taking place in Dublin’s libraries.

This week’s schedule features a similarly mixed list of events, with a tour of the armoury at the National Museum of Ireland, film screenings in Pearse Street Library, and a lecture as Gaeilge in Dublin City Library about the Irish language in early 20th Century Dublin. These will all take place over the coming days.

Events catering for families and children include a workshop entitled ‘If Things Could Talk’, which invites families to examine objects from the National Museum to gain a greater appreciation of them.

This year’s festival is placing an emphasis on Irish history, due to it being the centenary of the 1916 Easter Rising. World history is also playing a part, however, with coverage of events such as the bombing of Pearl Harbour.

Entry to all the events is free, however some may require booking in advance.

For more details on the Festival and a full list of upcoming events, see dublinfestivalofhistory.ie