VIDEO: Éamon de Valera reopens Kilmainham Jail in 1966

THIS incredible archive footage shows President Éamon de Valera attending the official reopening of the newly restored Kilmainham Jail in 1966.

It is one of several films about Kilmainham made by firefighter and historian Leslie Crowe, founder of the Lorcan Film Unit.

It shows a large crowd gathered outside Kilmainham Jail to see President de Valera return to the place where he had been condemned to death in the wake of the Easter Rising.

Relatives of those executed at Kilmainham in 1916 also attended the ceremony, during which the President laid a wreath in the execution yard. They were joined by the Taoiseach of the day, Sean Lemass.

We’d like to offer our sincere thanks to the Crowe family for allowing us to share this important footage with our readers.