Wicklow delegation uses Würzburg visit to deliver political appeal about Palestine
The Wicklow PeopleBray cathaoirleach Cllr Malachaí Duddy used a cultural and diplomatic visit to Würzburg to issue a pointed appeal for German action on Palestine, telling city representatives that future generations would question Europe’s reluctance to intervene as civilians in Gaza and the West Bank face what he described as “brutality levelled on cities, women, children and innocent civilians”.
His remarks, delivered in the Würzburg City Council chamber during celebrations marking the jubilee of the German‑Irish Society, shifted the tone of what was otherwise a heritage-focused event commemorating centuries old links between Ireland and Franconia.
The Wicklow delegation’s presence in Würzburg was itself rooted in a long-standing relationship between the county and the Bavarian city.
Bray’s St Kilian’s Community School forged early links with Würzburg through the work of its late principal Kevin Meehan, while former Wicklow cathaoirleach George Jones highlighted Greystones’ connection to St Kilian’s Church at Blacklion, built with donations including from the Bavarian princess Sisi, Empress of Austria.
These ties have grown into a broader cultural and civic relationship, reflected in repeated exchanges between Wicklow representatives and Würzburg’s German‑Irish Society. Cllr Duddy’s speech leaned heavily on this shared heritage, using it as foundation for his appeal on Palestine.
Addressing councillors in German, Irish and English, Cllr Duddy connected the historic Irish–German relationship with contemporary humanitarian crises. He referenced the Würzburg Glosses, among the earliest surviving examples of written Irish, preserved in the University of Würzburg library, as evidence of deep cultural interconnection.
He went on to recount the medieval Irish monastic mission across the German speaking world, invoking figures such as St Fergal of Salzburg, St Gall of Gallen and St Coloman of Melk, once patron saint of Austria.
He listed the Irish Benedictine ‘Scottenklösters’ founded in cities including Regensburg, Vienna, Erfurt, Würzburg, Nuremberg, Konstanz, Eichstätt, Memmingen and Kelheim, extending as far east as Kyiv.
“This mission was not just one way,” he said, noting that german scholars such as Kuno Meyer, Heinrich Zimmer and Rudolf Thurneysen promoted Irish at university level during what he described as the forced extinction of the language under British rule.
He also recalled that the 1916 Proclamation referred to Germany as “our gallant allies in Europe” due to assistance secured by Roger Casement, who was schooled in Bray and grew up near Ashford.
Cllr Duddy contrasted Würzburg’s care for the remains of the three Irish saints with Ireland’s stewardship of the Glencree German War Cemetery, where 134 German military and civilian graves are tended. He further referenced Operation Shamrock, when almost 1,000 German speaking children were evacuated to Ireland after the Second World War.
Quoting the International Red Cross, he said the Irish public raised £12 million for post war relief, equivalent to £4 per head of population, “the largest single donation from any country.”
The delegation’s visit coincided with a separate gathering attended by senior Irish and German officials, including the Irish Ambassador to Germany, Maeve Collins.
Cllr Duddy closed his address by offering blessings for the feast day of the three Irish saints, but it was his appeal on Palestine that resonated most strongly, reframing a cultural commemoration as a moment of political urgency.