Taoiseach and Trinity graduate Leo Varadkar has been announced as the opening speaker at a symposium on Trinity’s history to mark the 425th anniversary of the university.
The event, which will be opened by Varadkar on September 26th in the Dining Hall, will include a number of other speeches on topics ranging from the founding of Trinity to Patrick Prendergast’s speech on the future of the college in the 21st century.
Speakers will include academics from both within and outside of Trinity. Prof Patrick Geoghegan, the Trinity lecturer turned speechwriter to Varadkar, and Prof Michael Brown, from the University of Aberdeen, are among those who will speak at the symposium. The discussion will mainly focus on Dublin and the college’s history in the 17th and 18th centuries.
The event will also feature a discussion of Trinity’s development over the last number of decades by historian and radio broadcaster Dr John Bowman, as well as a speech about the archaeology of All Hallows by Linzi Simpson.
Appointed taoiseach in June, Varadkar became the first Trinity graduate to take up the position. He graduated with a medicine degree in 2003 and joined Young Fine Gael in the university, a society which he chaired during his time as a student. Since his graduation, Varadkar has returned to Trinity a number of times, including appearances at Trinity Ball and to offer support to Med Day.
Varadkar has attracted considerable international attention in the weeks since his appointment as taoiseach, from building a friendship with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to causing a stir in the UK over his comments on Brexit.
In a press statement after Varadkar’s appointment, Prendergast stated he was looking forward “to welcoming him on campus as Taoiseach and for staff and students to meet with him”, and congratulated him on a “major achievement for him both personally and professionally”.
A book of photographs including an essay by Prendergast entitled Trinity 425 was published earlier in the year to commemorate the anniversary.
