march-top.html
1686 Payments to the Catholic church are reinstated in Britain and Ireland on this day in 1686. King James II was a Catholic and made the move shortly after taking over the throne from Protestant King Charles II.
James also began handing important government and military positions out to Catholics, although he did reluctantly allow his daughter to marry a Protestant.
* * *
1848 Sarah Purser, the Irish artist, was born in Dublin on this day in 1848. She was skilled in stained glass work and became known as one of the best stained glass artists in the world.
However she worked mainly as a portrait artist. She received many commissions – she had orders for her work from as far as New York and was hugely popular amongst the British upper classes. She once famously said: “”I went through the British aristocracy like the measles.”
She used her money wisely, most notably with a substantial investment in the Guinness brewery.
* * *
1974 Happy birthday to Irish golfer Peter Lawrie, born in Dublin on this day in 1974. He was named the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year in 2003, and has regularly finished inside the top 100 on the World Order of Merit since.
In 2008, he won his first title on the European Tour, with a tense playoff victory over Spaniard, Ignacio Garrido in the Open de España.
* * *
1983 On this day in 1983, Irish born Chaim Herzog was elected as president of Israel. His father was Polish, and was the Chief Rabbi of Ireland. Herzog was born in Belfast and educated in Dublin before moving to London. He fought for the British army during World War II.
He then moved to Palestine and fought in the Arab-Israeli War of 1948. His experience as a soldier was quickly recognised and he was made head of intelligence. After the war, Herzog opened his own law practice before entering into politics.
He was elected leader of Israel on 22 March 1983 after a marginal victory of 61 to 57 over his opponent Menachem Elon. He remained president for more than a decade before retiring from politics. During his reign, Herzog remained passionately opposed to Saddam Hussein’s rule in Iraq, and described the country as ‘a nest of world terror’.
* * *
1998 Sonia O’Sullivan made it two in two days as she won gold again in Morocco’s World Cross Country Championships on this day in 1998.
This time the Cork star won the 4km with an impressive time of 12 minutes and 20 seconds, a full 14 seconds clear of Morocco’s second placed Zahra Ouaziz.
* * *
2002 The man found guilty of murdering investigative reporter Victoria Guerin, successfully got his conviction overturned on this day in 2002. Guerin was murdered in 1996, after gathering evidence on several major drug lords in Ireland.
Paul Ward was convicted of her murder in 1998, but got that decision overturned by the Court of Appeal in Dublin on this day in 2002, due to proving that the evidence used against him was not credible.
He did, however, remain behind bars for sentences for other crimes he had committed.
march-bottom.html
