Capel Street is a street in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. On 20 May 2022, it was made traffic-free, following a campaign by people who wanted to improve the quality of life on the street. It is now the longest traffic-free street in Dublin.

History

Capel Street is named after

Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex, PC (163113 July 1683), also spelt Capel, of Cassiobury House, Watford, Hertfordshire, was an English statesman. Early life He was the son of Arthur Capell, 1st Baron Capell of Hadham (executed in 1649) by ...

Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the Kingdo ...

1672–1677. Historically, it was the site of the

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

of St Mary's Abbey. The street was laid out by Sir Humphrey Jervis in the late 17th century on the Abbey lands he purchased in 1674. He also built Essex Bridge (today

Grattan Bridge Grattan Bridge () is a road bridge spanning the River Liffey in Dublin, Ireland, and joining Capel Street to Parliament Street and the south quays. History The first bridge on this site was built by Sir Humphrey Jervis in 1676. It was named ...

), and the street was known for its mansions and a royal

mint MiNT is Now TOS (MiNT) is a free software alternative operating system kernel for the Atari ST system and its successors. It is a multi-tasking alternative to TOS and MagiC. Together with the free system components fVDI device drivers, XaA ...

. In the 18th century, it became a commercial hub, with two- bay buildings replacing most of the "Dutch Billy" houses. In the late 1700s, the Italian composer,

Tommaso Giordani Tommaso Giordani (c. 1730 to 1733 – before 24 February 1806) was an Italian composer active in England and particularly in Ireland. Life Giordani was born in Naples between 1730 and 1733 and came from a musical family. His father was Giuseppe ...

, performed at a small purpose built theatre on the street. The

Capel Street Theatre Capel Street Theatre was an 18th-century theatre located on Capel Street in Dublin, Ireland. The Capel Street Theatre had two distinct periods in its history. The first theatre on the site was called the 'New Theatre in Capel Street' or 'City T ...

also stood there in the 18th century. The Torch Theatre operated on Capel Street from 1935–41. The street declined in the 20th century, before a revival around the 1980s. Today it is known for its variety of restaurants, shops, cafés and pubs; as

Panti Rory O'Neill (born 16 November 1968), also known by his stage names Panti, Panti Bliss and Pandora Panti Bliss, is a drag queen and gay rights activist from Ballinrobe, County Mayo, Ireland. Early life O'Neill, the son of a veterinary surgeo ...

, the owner of Pantibar put it, "You can buy a

lightbulb An electric light, lamp, or light bulb is an electrical component that produces light. It is the most common form of artificial lighting. Lamps usually have a base made of ceramic, metal, glass, or plastic, which secures the lamp in the so ...

sexual lubricant Personal lubricants (colloquially termed lube) are specialized lubricants used during sexual acts, such as intercourse and masturbation, to reduce friction to or between the penis and vagina, anus or other body parts or applied to sex toys to ...

, Brazilian rice, get a pint and go to a trad session". Louis Copeland's tailor is another notable business.

Architecture

The street affords a vista all the way from the junction with Bolton Street south through Parliament Street to Dublin's

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

. Capel Street is notable for the remains of some "Dutch Billy" houses dating from the

18th century The 18th century lasted from January 1, 1701 ( MDCCI) to December 31, 1800 ( MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions. During the century, slave trad ...

Gallery

File:Berlin optician Capel Street Dublin.jpg, Berlin Optician, 157 Capel Street File:Former Torch Theatre, 114-116 Capel Street, Dublin.JPG, Site of the Torch Theatre, 114–116 Capel Street File:Slattery's Bar, Dublin.jpg, Slattery's Bar, 129 Capel Street File:Pub - panoramio (3).jpg, Jack Nealon's pub, 165 Capel Street

References

{{reflist

External links

Archiseek page on Capel Street
Streets in Dublin (city) Abbey Street

History

Architecture

Gallery

See also

References

External links