Lecture 120: Green & Silver - A Canal Odyssey in Ireland by Robert Harris

The Canal Age in Ireland began in the early 1700s and reached its zenith in the mid nineteenth century. Today, following an extraordinary revival of fortunes in the twentieth century, the whole island of Ireland can be traversed by water inland from south to north, and the system is administered by a cross-border navigational authority responsible for the management, maintenance, development and promotion of over 1000 km of canals and navigable rivers.
Today’s talk focusses largely on an interesting period in the history of the system - immediately following ’The Emergency’. It traces the journey of an English couple - the Rolts - who were probably the last to circumnavigate the ‘Green & Silver’ route around the Grand and Royal Canals in the 1940s, just prior to closure of navigation. Since their day that route has been re-opened with the help of governments and enthusiasts. 70 years later, Robert and Finola retrace the Rolt’s journey, and find tales a-plenty which provide an illustrated commentary of how Ireland has changed itself when viewed from the waterways.
Robert Harris retired to West Cork over a decade ago. He and Finola Finlay have been writing the online Roaringwater Journal throughout that time. Robert is an authority on the canal system of England and Wales and has written a standard work - Canals and their Architecture, first published in 1969.

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