GENERAL POST OFFICE (DUBLIN)

The 'General Post Office' '(GPO)' (Irish: ''Ard-Oifig an Phoist'') in Dublin is the headquarters of the Irish postal service An Post, and Dublin's principal post office. Sited in the centre of the city's main thoroughfare O'Connell Street, it is one of Ireland's most famous buildings and was the last of the great Georgian public buildings to be erected in the capital.
The GPO was at first held in a small building on the site of the Commercial Buildings near Dame Street, and was afterwards removed to a larger house opposite the bank on College Green (since converted into the Royal Arcade;) and on 6 January, 1818, the new post-office in Sackville Street, later O'Connell Street, was opened for business. The foundation-stone of the building, which is built after a design of Francis Johnson, was laid by Charles Whitworth, 1st Earl Whitworth on 12 August, 1814, and the structure was completed in the short space of three years, for the sum of £50,000. The front, which extends 67.1 metres (220 feet), has a portico (24.4 metres (80 feet) wide), of six fluted Ionic columns, 137.16 centimetres (54 inches) in diameter. The frieze of the entablature is highly enriched, and in the tympanum of the pediment are the royal arms. On the acroteria of the pediment are three statues by John Smyth: Mercury on the right, with his Caduceus and purse; On the left Fidelity, with her finger on her lip, and a key in her hand; and in the centre Hibernia, resting on her spear, and holding her shield. The entablature, with the exception of the architrave, is continued along the rest of the front; the frieze, however, is not decorated over the portico. A handsome balustrade surmounts the cornice of the building, which is 15.2 metres (50 feet) from the ground. With the exception of the portico, which is of Portland stone, the whole is of mountain granite. The elevation has three stories, of which the lower or basement is rusticated, and in this respect it resembles the India House of London, where a rusticated basement is introduced, although the portico occupies the entire height of the structure. Over the centre of the building, a cupola contains the chimes and bell on which the clock-hammer strikes.

During the Easter Rising of 1916, it served as the headquarters of the uprising's leaders. The assault of the British forces extensively damaged the building and it was not repaired until the Irish Free State government took up the task some years later. The original columns outside are still pocked with bullet-marks. An original copy of the Proclamation is on permanent display in the GPO philatelic office. The building has remained a symbol of Irish nationalism and Irish national history. In commemoration of the failed Rising, a statue depicting the death of the mythical hero Cúchulainn is housed in the front of the building. This statue was featured on the Irish ten shilling coin of 1966 and on the "B Series" £20 currency note. As of 2005, the Irish government intends to transfer all postal business from the GPO and dedicate the entire building to the commemoration of the Easter Rising. ^[1]
The studios of 2RN, and later Radio Éireann, were located at the GPO from 1928 until the 1960's.^[2]
Formerly Nelson's Pillar was in front of the building, however this was destroyed by the IRA in an explosion in 1966. The Spire of Dublin now takes a dominant position in front of the building. Draws for Prize Bonds are held weekly, on Fridays, in the building.

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References

1. GPO to become 1916 monument - The Irish Times, 30 October 2005
2. Marconi: the Irish connection, , Michael, Sexton, Four Courts Press, ,

External links

★ Irish Architecture Online: GPO history and pictures

★ Project Gutenberg Article

★ An Post History and Heritage