British Embassy

Picture the British Embassy in Dublin. It’s a grand building with a modern design and an impressive courtyard. This is the most important diplomatic mission of the United Kingdom in Ireland. But did you know that there wasn’t always an embassy here? The Irish Free State was established in 1922. However, the UK only had a Trade Commissioner representing them here until 1929. The Irish had established their own diplomatic mission in London as early as 1923. Imagine that! It took years before building a separate British Representative’s Office in 1939. They finally called it an embassy in 1949 after Ireland withdrew from the Commonwealth. Until 1972, the embassy was located on Merrion Square. But then everything changed. On 2 February 1972, the building was attacked by a mob. They threw petrol bombs and burnt the building down. It happened after what was known as “Bloody Sunday” in Derry, when the British Army killed fourteen unarmed Catholic civilians. In 1981, people protested against the IRA hunger strikes by trying to storm the British Embassy. So, the embassy that you see today has been built in 1995 on Merrion Road. It was designed by a firm called Allies and Morrison. Now, take a moment and imagine the courtyard, the cloister-like space in the heart of the building. You can almost feel the history of the building. You can almost hear the echoes of the past. It’s a reminder of the complicated, but fascinating relationship between the UK and Ireland. It’s a story that continues to unfold today. Now, let’s move on to the next stop on our tour.