“As Odd a Group of Characters As We Have Met For a Long Time”

© The Publishers

Full title: Vicious Circle: the case of the missing Irish Crown Jewels

Creator / Author: Francis Bamford & Viola Bankes

Item Type / Page count: Book / 212pp

When Published: 1965

Publisher / Place of Publication: Max Parrish / 1 – 5 Portpool Lane, London EC1

About: The title of this posting is taken from the summary on the dust-jacket of the book pictured above. Equally apt is the quote from the London Mail (1912) also on the same dust-jacket: “Will anyone ever have the courage to tell the whole truth about this wretched business?”. The Irish Crown Jewels were kept by the Office of Arms in Dublin Castle and they were last seen on 11^th June 1907, subsequently presumed stolen, and remain unaccounted for. This book was the first full account of the affair to be published. However, the definitive answer to the mystery still remains elusive today.

ID number(s): None

Contents: Foreword — 1. The Disappearance — 2. The Investigation — 3. The Interlude — 4. The Inquiry — 5. The Aftermath — Postscript — Index.

WW Connection #1: The custodian of the Irish Crown Jewels at the time of their disappearance was Sir Arthur Vicars, who had links with Grangecon in West Wicklow. He was a half-brother of Pierce (O’) Mahony of Grangecon Demesne and would have stayed there regularly. Afterwards, Pierce O’Mahony took up a spirited campaign to save Vicars from dismissal, but was unsuccessful. Vicars was Hon. Secretary to the County Kildare Archaeological Society from its inception in 1891 until 1920. For the years 1909-1920, his address is listed as Grange Con, although this may have been for correspondence purposes. He also contributed an article ‘Notes on Grange Con, Co.Wicklow’ to the January 1902 issue of the Society’s Journal.

WW Connection #2: One of the employees in the Office of Arms was Pierce Gun Mahony, son of Pierce Mahony (above) and nephew of Sir Arthur Vicars. He was the only person to keep his job following the controversy.

WW Connection #3: One of the chief suspects in the disappearance of the jewels was Frank Shackleton, brother of explorer Ernest whose family had connections with nearby Kilkea and Ballitore.

Extra #1: Check Libraries Ireland for this publication.

Extra #2: Check OCLC WorldCat.org for this publication in libraries worldwide.

Extra #3: Browse the 1901 Census entry for Mahony Family in Grangecon.

Extra #4: Browse the 1911 Census entry for Mahony Family in Grangecon.

Twelfth Collection of Articles on West Wicklow History

© Individual Contributors

Full title: Journal of the West Wicklow Historical Society: Number 12, 2023-24

Creator / Author: West Wicklow Historical Society & contributors, joint editors Chris Lawlor, Declan Keenan

Item Type / Page count: Journal (Complete issue) / 200p

When Published: 2023

Publisher / Place of Publication: West Wicklow Historical Society / Baltinglass (?), Co. Wicklow.

About: This twelveth publication of this biennial journal was launched in the Coimín Centre, Blessington on 9/11/2023. It includes perhaps the most diverse set of topics yet to appear in this journal. Full contents are listed below. The most extensive article in this issue runs to 24 pages. In it, Peter W. Halligan provides an enlightening account of the castles at Oldcourt and Three Castles. 

ID number(s): 0790-1739

Contents: Foreword from the Chairman / Paul Gorry — Donal McDonnell (1945-2022) — Secretary’s Synopsis / Cora Crampton — Noel Lyons (1942-2022) — Editor’s Preface / Chris Lawlor — Mapping the devolved Gaelic territories and districts of the O’Tooles / Declan Keenan — Migrant railway workers and local communities: a case study of Harristown station on the Sallins-Tullow branch line 1883-1951 / John O’Brien — Some observations on the Great famine in County Wicklow, c.1845-1850 / Gerald Cullen — Gentry, Brides and Lions / Maura Murphy Gibson — The man who wore a blue shirt in 1933: the Bass War in West Wicklow and Kildare / Declan O’Connor — A little bit of Bulgaria in Ireland: Pierce O’Mahony (1850-1930): politician and philanthropist / Brian McCabe — Dame Ninette de Valois (Edris Stannus) / Paul Tyrell — A 1792 Rental of the Lordship of Belan, Co. Kildare / Richard B. Lennon —Language Matters Revisited / Ita Roddy — Death from a Flat-Nosed Bullet in Blessington / James Scannell — A farming community: Hollywood in the early twentieth century / John Glennon — Sadhbh O’Byrne – glimpses of a Gaelic woman of sixteenth-century Ireland / Cora Crampton — The Manor of Blessington, created by Michael Boyle / Jim Corley — Revisiting the 1798 Dunlavin massacre for its 225th anniversary / Chris Lawlor — Balfe the Robber / Brendan Corrigan — A sociological interpretation of the Hillfort Capital – exploring Hughstown and Tinoran hillforts (part 1 of 3) / Mairéad Kelly — Charles Maule Drury (1848-1939) – collector of folklore / Paul Gorry — The castles of Oldcourt and Three Castles / Peter W. Halligan — ‘I say it as I think it’ : The life and controversial times of Rev. T. C. O’Connor, Rector of Donoughmore and Donard / Rosemary Raughter — Query / Peter W. Halligan.

Extra #1: Illustrated throughout with black & white photographs and maps.

Extra #2: Check Libraries Ireland for this publication.

Extra #3: Check OCLC WorldCat.org for this publication in libraries worldwide

Extra #4: Visit the West Wicklow Historical Society website

A Royal Scandal Averted

© The Publisher

Full title: Scandal & Betrayal: Shackleton and the Irish Crown Jewels

Creator / Author: John Cafferky and Kevin Hannafin

Item Type / Page count: Book / 319pp

When Published: 2002

Publisher / Place of Publication: The Collins Press / West Link Park, Doughcloyne, Wilton, Cork.

About: The theft of the Irish Crown Jewels from Dublin Castle in 1907 continues to fascinate, not least because of the official suppression and/or disappearance of vital evidence. In this well-researched book, the authors detail the highly-charged politics of the time and explain how the jewels could have disappeared from one of the most high-security locations in the country. They also present a convincing theory of the reason for the jewels removal and why they may still be in existence. During the course of their research, the authors were even confronted with an elaborate hoax which they succeeded in disproving.

ID number(s): 1903464250

Contents: List of Illustrations — Who’s Who — Preface — The Rise and Fall of Arthur Vicars — Ireland: A Land of Discontent — Sir Antony Patrick MacDonnell and Devolution — The Aberdeens Return to Ireland — Homosexuality Within the Royal Household — The King’s Arrival — The Kane Report — Infernal Telegrams — `I’ll have no Scandal’ — The Government Procrastinates — Enter The O’Mahony – Champion of Causes — MacDonnell Takes Charge — The Inquiry — Tidying Up — Conclusion — Epilogue: Our Initital Investigation.

Appendix I Last Will and Testament of Sir Arthur Vicars — Appendix II Author’s Comment on Sir Arthur’s Will — Appendix III Inspector Lowe’s Report — Appendix IV Statement of Sir Arthur Vicars — Appendix V Supplementary Statement of Sir Arthur Vicars — Appendix VI Statutes of the Order of St. Patrick, Concerning the Custodianship of the Insignia — Appendix VII Letter from The O’Mahony to Augustine Birrell, the Chief Secretary for Ireland – June 1908 — Appendix VIII Letter from `The O’Mahony’ to Augustine Birrell, the Chief Secretary for Ireland – July 1913 — Appendix IX The Wyndham/MacDonnell Correspondence — Appendix X Estimates from Schedule submitted by Sir Arthur Regarding the Safe — Notes — Bibliography.

WW Connection #1: The custodian of the Irish Crown Jewels at the time of their disappearance was Sir Arthur Vicars, who had links with Grangecon in West Wicklow. He was a half-brother of Pierce (O’) Mahony (The O’Mahony) of Grangecon Demesne and would have stayed there regularly. Afterwards, Pierce O’Mahony took up a spirited campaign to save Vicars from dismissal, but was unsuccessful. Vicars was Hon. Secretary to the County Kildare Archaeological Society from its inception in 1891 until 1920. For the years 1909-1920, his address is listed as Grange Con, although this may have been for correspondence purposes. He also contributed an article ‘Notes on Grange Con, Co.Wicklow’ to the January 1902 issue of the Society’s Journal.

WW Connection #2: One of the employees in the Office of Arms was Pierce Gun Mahony, son of Pierce Mahony (above) and nephew of Sir Arthur Vicars. He was the only person to keep his job following the controversy.

WW Connection #3: One of the chief suspects in the disappearance of the jewels was Frank Shackleton, brother of explorer Ernest whose family had connections with nearby Kilkea and Ballitore.

Extra #1: Includes eight pages of photographs.

Extra #2: Check Libraries Ireland for this publication.

Extra #3: Check OCLC WorldCat.org for this publication in libraries worldwide.

Extra #4: Browse the 1901 Census entry for Mahony Family in Grangecon.

Extra #5: Browse the 1911 Census entry for Mahony Family in Grangecon.

Grangecon Link to the Irish Crown Jewels

© The Publisher

Full title: The Stealing of the Irish Crown Jewels: an unsolved crime

Creator / Author: Myles Dungan

Item Type / Page count: Book / 301pp

When Published: 2003

Publisher / Place of Publication: Town House Dublin / Trinity House, Charleston Road, Ranelagh, Dublin 6.

About: The so-called Irish Crown Jewels were presented to the Order of St. Patrick by King William IV in 1831 and were worn on ceremonial occasions by the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. They were kept by the Office of Arms in Dublin Castle. They were last seen on 11^th June 1907 and, presumably having been stolen, remain missing to this day. This book looks at how the jewels could have disappeared from one of the most high-security locations in the country.

ID number(s): 9781860591822

Contents: Acknowledgements — Prologue — Dramatis Personae — [Act One Theft and Investigation] The Safe — Hark the Heralds — The Theft — Raising Kane — ‘Star Chamber’ — Whispers — [Act Two The Scapegoat] The Commission Sits — Vicars Bows Out — [Act Three Denouement] Death and Misadventure – Aftermath — [Epilogue] Who Stole the Irish Crown Jewels? — A Note on Sources — Timeline — Index.

WW Connection #1: The custodian of the Irish Crown Jewels at the time of their disappearance was Sir Arthur Vicars, who had links with Grangecon in West Wicklow. He was a half-brother of Pierce (O’) Mahony of Grangecon Demesne and would have stayed there regularly. Afterwards, Pierce O’Mahony took up a spirited campaign to save Vicars from dismissal, but was unsuccessful. Vicars was Hon. Secretary to the County Kildare Archaeological Society from its inception in 1891 until 1920. For the years 1909-1920, his address is listed as Grange Con, although this may have been for correspondence purposes. He also contributed an article ‘Notes on Grange Con, Co.Wicklow’ to the January 1902 issue of the Society’s Journal.

WW Connection #2: One of the employees in the Office of Arms was Pierce Gun Mahony, son of Pierce Mahony (above) and nephew of Sir Arthur Vicars. He was the only person to keep his job following the controversy.

WW Connection #3: One of the chief suspects in the disappearance of the jewels was Frank Shackleton, brother of explorer Ernest whose family had connections with nearby Kilkea and Ballitore.

Extra #1: Check Libraries Ireland for this publication.

Extra #2: Check OCLC WorldCat.org for this publication in libraries worldwide.

Extra #3: Browse the 1901 Census entry for Mahony Family in Grangecon.

Extra #4: Browse the 1911 Census entry for Mahony Family in Grangecon.