30 July 2025
By Valerie Ryan
valerie@TheCork.ie
Now in its fourth consecutive year, the National Archives in partnership with Cork County Council returns the Michael Collins Diaries 1918–1922 to Michael Collins House Museum, Clonakilty, continuing the annual August loan that began in 2022.
This year’s exhibition highlights a lesser-known aspect of Collins’ revolutionary work, his international connections. Alongside the diaries, visitors will see for the first time a selection of letters exchanged between Michael Collins and Donal Hales, a fellow Cork man, who was an Irish diplomat based in Genoa, Italy, from 1919 to 1922.
Michael Collins Diaries Launch July 2025 – L-R Jamie Murphy, General Manager, Michael Collins House Museum, Jessica Baldwin, Senior Conservator, National Archives of Ireland, Eimear O’Neill, Municipal District Officer, Cork County Council, Cllr Caroline Cronin, Chair of the West Cork Municipal,
Aoife Power, Administrative Officer, Cork County Council. Photo: Dermot Sullivan
Michael Collins Diaries Launch July 2025 – L-R Aoife Power, Administrative Officer, Cork County Council, Jamie Murphy, General Manager, Michael Collins House Museum, Cllr Caroline Cronin, Chair of the West Cork Municipal District, Eimear O’Neill, Municipal District Officer, Cork County Council, Jessica Baldwin, Senior Conservator, National Archives of Ireland. Photo: Dermot Sullivan
These letters, preserved in the National Archives, reveal a diplomatic relationship that ran parallel to the military and political efforts at home. Hales, acting as the Irish Republic’s consular and commercial agent in Italy, regularly sent Collins Italian newspaper clippings and reports on European sentiment toward Ireland’s independence movement. In return, Collins shared candid updates on the escalating conflict, political developments, and the challenges of building a new state.
The correspondence, often personal in tone reflects the trust Collins placed in Hales and the importance of maintaining international awareness during the War of Independence. The letters also offer insight into the logistical and strategic support Hales provided from abroad, including efforts to secure recognition and resources for the Irish cause.
The diaries have undergone conservation, archival processing, and digitisation at the National Archives. Visitors can explore all five diaries in full via an interactive touchscreen display.
The diaries are on loan to the National Archives by the family of the late Liam and Betty Collins, Clonakilty, Cork.
Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr. Mary Linehan Foley said, “We are pleased to once again feature the diaries at the Michael Collins House Museum throughout August. The newly included correspondence on loan from the National Archives, between Michael Collins and Donal Hales significantly enriches this year’s exhibition, offering a more intimate perspective on the lives and relationships that shaped our nation’s history.”
Orlaith McBride, Director of the National Archives, said, “The National Archives is proud to support the continued loan of the Michael Collins Diaries to Clonakilty, along with included correspondence from our collections, which deepens our understanding of Collins’ international role. Partnerships like this reflect our commitment to preserving and sharing Ireland’s rich documentary heritage.”
Admission to the exhibition is free, and Michael Collins House Museum will extend its opening hours throughout August. For more information, visit www.michaelcollinshouse.ie and www.nationalarchives.ie
Exhibition Information:
Venue: Michael Collins House Museum, 7 Emmet Square, Clonakilty, County Cork
Dates: 28th July – 31st August 2025
Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday 9am – 6pm
Admission: Free
Donal Hales (c1888-1969)
Donal Hales from Knocknacurra, Bandon, Co. Cork was an Irish nationalist and diplomat who served as the consular and commercial agent for the Irish Republic in Italy from 1919 to 1922. Based in Genoa, he played a key role in promoting Irish interests abroad during the War of Independence.
Appointed by Minister Ernest Blythe, Hales was responsible for propaganda efforts in Italy, publishing pro-Irish articles in various Italian newspapers, including Voce Repubblicana, Il Cittadino, La Stampa and even Mussolini’s Il Popolo d’Italia. Hales maintained regular contact with Collins, who sent him detailed accounts of British military actions in Ireland. Hales used these letters to inform and influence Italian public opinion. He was the brother of Seán Hales, a pro-Treaty TD who was assassinated in December 1922. Donal later wrote to the Freeman’s Journal condemning the retaliatory executions of Republican prisoners by the Free State.
Before his diplomatic role, Hales had lived in Italy since before 1914, working as a teacher. He married an Italian woman and was well integrated into Italian society, which helped his efforts to build trade and political connections between Ireland and Italy.
Documents on Display
- Michael Collins’ working diary, 1919
- Correspondence between Michael Collins and Donal Hales, 1919–1922, including:
- Letter & postcard from Donal Hales to Michael Collins, sent from Genoa, Italy, 1919
- Letters from Michael Collins to Donal Hales, sent from Dublin, 1919
- Italian newspaper clipping enclosed by Hales, 1919