A PLAQUE has been unveiled in Dublin honouring the first child to be killed during the Easter Rising.
Dublin City Council unveiled the tribute in memory of Sean Francis Foster this week, the first of 40 children who were killed during the Easter Week uprising in Ireland in 1916.
Sean Francis Foster was two when he was killed in the Easter Rising (Pic: Dublin City Council)Sean was just two years old when he was hit in the head by a bullet as his mother escaped the gunfire between Irish Volunteers and British soldiers on Church Street, near Father Matthew Hall. It is believed he died instantly.
Yesterday, Lord Mayor of Dublin Daithí de Róiste unveiled the plaque to pay tribute to Sean, at Sean Foster Place, North King Street, Dublin 7.
Terence O'Neill, a first cousin of Sean Foster, with Lord Mayor of Dublin Daithí de Róiste unveiling the plaque“Whilst it is important that we honour the heroes of the 1916 Easter Rising, it is also important to ensure the innocent dead are not forgotten,” he said.
“Until now, many of them have gone unnamed, their final resting places unmarked, their sacrifice unrecognised.
“Today we remember and honour Sean Foster, one of the innocent victims.”
Foster and Allen performed at the ceremonyFoster and Allen performed the song Grace at the plaque unveiling ceremony.
Mick Foster is a relative of Sean’s, whose father John and Mick’s Grandfather Tom were brothers.
Sean Foster died on April 24, 1916. Mick’s father was born on June 1, 1916 and he was named Sean in memory of his first cousin.
At the ceremony Mick Foster said: “It’s a day of mixed emotions, I knew Ted who was in the pram with Sean very well but it’s a proud day that Sean’s name and memory will live on.”
Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal O'Donohoe TD left) was also in attendanceSean Foster Place, where the commemorative plaque now stands, has undergone a transformation in recent years and now offers 30 new homes.
“These residences are part of the Dublin City Council's pilot project for Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) as dictated by its Climate Change Action Plan in the Markets Area of Dublin 7,” a Council spokesperson explained.
The city’s North King Street was a focal point of intense fighting during the 1916 rebellion.
Some 16 civilians lost their lives on this street alone, with nine of them killed on the site of the new development.
Pictured (l-r) Terence O'Neill with Lord Mayor of Dublin Daithí de Róiste at the ceremonyDublin City Council Central Area Committee, following consultation with the local history group in the area as well as Sean Foster’s relatives, determined that a new social housing development should be named after Sean.
The Central Area Committee also decided that a suitable plaque be erected at the complex, not only to commemorate Sean, but also to ensure that anyone living in the area or passing the development will be aware of the circumstances surrounding his death and development’s name.
