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In this, the first two articles to mark the Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, we look at material in the Museum Collection which show how Royal Jubilees were marked in the area from the reign of Queen Victoria up to the present Queen. Next week’s article will explore how a number of local organizations have commemorated their own jubilees over the years.
The Reside Collection contains a number of interesting items relating to the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887. These include menus and programmes from dinners and concerts held in celebration of the event in Dublin and at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle. One of these artefacts is the service booklet from the Thanksgiving Service held in Westminister Abbey on 20th June 1887. There is a menu from a dinner held in the King’s Inn in Dublin and a silk menu from a dinner which may have been held in Dublin Castle. This memorabilia may have been originally owned by a local dignitary who attend Golden Jubilee events in both London and Dublin.
Material from the Newry Reporter in the Museum Collection gives some insight into local celebrations held to mark the Silver Jubilee of King George V in May 1935. Events were held in Newry, Bessbrook, Kilkeel and Warrenpoint and a number of local people were presented with Jubilee medals for public service. On Jubilee Day in Newry, the children of ex-servicemen were given a special matinee in the newly-opened Savoy Cinema. There is also a report of timber taken to the top of Slieve Martin by the Scouts for a Jubilee Beacon, being burned prematurely by ‘some person or persons unknown’ in the early hours of Jubilee Day!
Fancy dress parades are perennially popular with children and a Fancy Dress Parade was one of the events held in Newry to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Silver Jubilee in 1977. Another event was the releasing of balloons by the 1st Newry Earl of Kilmorey Cub Scouts at Windsor Hill Primary School.
The Golden Jubilee in 2002 was very significant for Newry as it was one of two towns in Northern Ireland, Lisburn being the other one, to achieve City Status. A charter granting City Status to Newry was presented by the Queen to Cllr. Frank Feely, then Deputy Chairperson of the former Newry and Mourne District Council at Hillsborough Castle. Other events in Newry included a sports day at Windsor Hill Primary School, a parade through Newry and a church service at St. Mary’s Parish Church. A Golden Jubilee exhibition was also held at Newry and Mourne Museum, which was then in the Sean Holywood Arts Centre.
The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2002 was marked by a Fun Day at Shandon Park in Newry and sports day at Windsor Hill Primary School. A dinner was also organized for sixty local pensioners by the 1st Newry Earl of Kilmorey Scout Group.
The Museum is currently offering free tours of the exhibition galleries on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 2.00 pm. These must be booked in advance by calling our Education Officer at 0330 137 4422.
Newry and Mourne Museum is open Tuesday – Saturday 10.00 am – 4.30 pm. Please call 0330 137 4422 or email museum@nmandd.org for further information.
Please visit our new website at www.visitmournemountains.co.uk
