Letter from Julia Taylor to Maire Elizabeth Savage Armstrong, 4 May 1916 Letters 1916-1923 Julia Taylor

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 Austrian Centre for Digital Humanities Vienna, AT 2026

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This letter was written by Julia Taylor to Marie Elizabeth Savage Armstrong (b. 1854). Marie was the wife of poet George Francis Savage Armstrong (1845-1906).The letter concerns the Easter Rising. Taylor describes the noise of fighting and laments over the loss of life. She states that the soldiers were nearly dead for want of food and that all they had received were some biscuits and tea. Taylor also writes about how the military came and searched the village with machine guns on the top of streets and armoured cars. Julia mentions that Mrs. Pearse and her daughter, the mother and sister of Patrick Pearse, remain in the Hermitage, the site of Pearse's school in Rathfarnham.The rest of the letter concerns personal affairs, such as the letters Miss Taylor has recently sent and received.

 Public Record Office of Northern Ireland Savage Armstrong Collection, D/618/166 https://letters1916.ie/item/411 English Julia Taylor 1916-05-04 The Priory, Rathfarnham, Dublin, Ireland. Marie Elizabeth Savage Armstrong Strangford House, Strangford, Co. Down, Ireland. Female Easter Rising Ireland 1916

The data in these XML files was generated based on a data dump from the Magellan database (https://github.com/Maynooth-Center-for-Digital-Humanities/Magellan). Each database record has been converted to a JSON file (https://github.com/letters1916static/letters-data/tree/main/json). The element section of the JSON file contains the TEI-encoded contents of the letters. The TEI XML has been cleaned and made well-formed using a Python script (https://github.com/letters1916static/letters-data/tree/main/src).

 The Priory Rathfarnham May 14th 16 Dearest Dammie I don't think I answered a nice long letter I had from you just before the rebellion. What a time we have had. Here the roar of of Cannon of Rebel & machine guns never ceased night or day, only some times the Fleetspokeup & then we heard nothing else & our windows rattled, it was awful. The house lighted by night by fires, & by day we looked into a lurid cloud, in the night there seemed to be a sea of fire — Soldiers home from the Front, say what was Sackville St, is now like Ypres. Is it not wicked to say say that lazyness & 'wait & see' policies brought such terrible loss of life & destruction of property. The soldiers were nearly dead from want of food. From Monday till Friday only a little biscuit & some tea. We were better off than those in Dublin as we helped each other. The first flour for Rathfarnham. came in armoured cars with escort of troops, & last Tuesday the military came to search the village with machine guns at top of street & armoured cars in it too. I think 3 of those in. Hermitage straight op p osite is the 'St Enda' the Pearce's & the mother & sister are still there. Where you stand on Carlisle Bridge beyond the Pillar there is only a black, smoking, stinking mass. The wall or front of a house standing like a skeleton & also down to Custom House. Dr. Lent biked in to see Bank was safe 3 or 4 days. He said bullets were falling like a hail shower - & on Tuesday& Wed there was still a little sniping. Clyde Rd round St Bartholemews was very bad. There are some of the soliders buried in the Church grounds. There are many other things I heard but dont care to write. I had a nice letter from Staff he is very busy at his garden. I also had from Cecil 2 lines, and another short one from D. I wrote to her a civil letter Easter Eve - but did not hear since- & just wrote a P. S. to Cecil to say we were safe but neither wrote. but Dammie dear I simply could not respond to all her gush — I was just friendly & hoped she would write & tell me how they got on 'I was always glad to hear' It is a most painful photo to me. She swears so to dominate poor Cecil & it is a horrid face tho' handsome. He is not likely to get more work afloat. One's age - she & he say - & they are giving up the flat & going to the country to start a food farm. I don't under stand it at all. A letter from Wm Read. love to you- I do hope Frank & Raymond are both better — With much love Your dearest Granny For my affec. Julia I here a Ply. Lady Garden'sPupil— Letter from Julia Taylor, about the Rebellion. 1916 Ms Savage-Armstrong Strangford House Strangford Co. Down Julia Taylor Letter from Julia Taylor to Maire Elizabeth Savage Armstrong, 4 May 1916 Strangford House, Strangford, Co. Down, Ireland. Letter from Julia Taylor to Maire Elizabeth Savage Armstrong, 4 May 1916 The Priory, Rathfarnham, Dublin, Ireland. Letter from Julia Taylor to Maire Elizabeth Savage Armstrong, 4 May 1916