The 1916 Proclamation
The Proclamation is one of the most important documents of modern Irish history. Drafted in large part by Padraig Pearse, it was hurriedly printed under very difficult conditions in Liberty Hall on the night before the Rising began. Shortly before mid-day on Easter Monday, Pearse,
standing under the GPO portico, read out the Proclamation declaring Ireland a sovereign independent Republic. Copies were then pasted up on buildings around the city centre. Recently acquired by the Company, An Post's copy is one of the few to have survived the turmoil of Easter Week and the passage of nearly a century. It is now on public display in the Philatelic Shop of the G.P.O. and a facsimile edition with a short explanatory note may be purchased (new window) online.
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