Kilmainham Gaol

The Killmainham Gaol (jail) in Dublin is one of those places that overwhelms you the moment you step through the doorway. The torment and utter misery of the people who lived and died there is almost too much to take in. Between the time it opened in 1796 and closed in 1924 the concentration of suffering contained in those walls left an indelible stain on the fabric of humanity. 

Originally designed as an upgrade over the inhumane dungeons being used to house prisoners it ultimately proved to be little better. Overcrowding was a constant issue, especially during the famine in the 1840s when begging was made illegal, as at least 5 men had to share 8x10 cells while the women and children (yes, as young as 5 years old) slept on straw covered stone hallways outside the cells. The lucky ones were sent to Australia on some of the few boats that were promised to alleviate the crowding while most others were left to die from disease or starvation. 

In 1916 most of the leaders of the Easter Rising were sent here and quickly executed by the British for defying British rule and fighting for Irish independence. The rising itself was timed to catch the British offguard as they were engaged in fighting WWI but it also caught most of the Irish population off guard as well. And with many Irishmen serving in the British army at the time and their families surviving on stipends from the military, there were some divisive feelings on who was to blame for the fighting. However the swiftness and sheer number of executions and abuses of the British military against Irish people finally unified Irish opinion against the British and ultimately led to the war of independence and soon after a free Irish state.

the site where most of the leaders of the rising were shot by firing squad

The final addition to the jail where some of the leaders of the rising were held including Eamon de Valera who avoided execution due to his American citizenship. He would go on to become Taoiseach (prime minister) and also president. He would return to the jail in 1966 to officially open it as a museum.