Yesterday thousands of people gathered at Béal na Bláth in Co Cork to commemorate the centenary of the death of Michael Collins in an ambush.
The assassination had a huge impact on the development of the Irish state.
And the fact that both leaders from the pro and anti treaty forces that emerged from the civil war - Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael - were there to address the gathering made the occasion even more historic.
Monaghan historian Dr Patrick Mulroe says that Collins was a revolutionary and a politician.
He pointed to the 'significance' of Collins' involvement in 1916 and the subsequent footing he had by 1922 - as a result of that - which few others in the country held at that time.
Dr Mulroe also highlighted the opposition that Michael Collins held towards partition on the island of Ireland.
"Michael Collins was very, very strong on the issue of partition," he continued.
"He organised a secret military operation in Northern Ireland in 1922 to try an overcome partition.
"He would have thought in 1922 that the Boundary Commission would have done away with partition.
"And, he would have envisaged Northern Ireland being much smaller."
