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The RDS (also known as the Royal Dublin Society but now rarely expanded), or Cumann Ríoga Bhaile Átha Cliath (CRBÁC) in Irish, was founded on 25 June 1731 to "to promote and develop agriculture, arts, industry, and science in Ireland".[1] The society's name is synonymous with its main premises in Ballsbridge in Dublin. These premises include the "RDS Arena", "RDS Simmonscourt", "RDS main hall" and other venues which are used regularly for exhibitions, concerts and sporting events - including regular use by the Leinster Rugby team.[2]
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The society was originally founded by members of the Dublin Philosophical Society, as the 'Dublin Society for improving Husbandry, Manufactures and other Useful Arts'. On 8 July 1731 - a couple of weeks after initial foundation - the designation 'and Sciences' was added to the end of its name.[3]
The stated aim of the "Dublin Society" was therefore to promote the development of arts, agriculture, industry and science in Ireland. The "Royal" prefix was adopted in 1820 when George IV became Society patron.[4]
The society acquired its current premises at Ballsbridge in 1879, and has since increased from the original fifteen to forty acres (60,000 to 160,000 m²). The premises consist of a number of exhibition halls (at the "RDS main hall"), a stadium (the "RDS arena"), meeting rooms, bars, restaurants, and a multi purpose venue named "RDS Simmonscourt Pavilion".
The RDS main hall is a major centre for exhibitions, concerts and other cultural events in Dublin. It hosts for example the Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition each January.
The Simmonscourt pavilion has a capacity of approximately 7,000, and hosted the Meteor Music Awards in February 2008, as well as a number of concerts including The Smashing Pumpkins' and Avril Lavigne. Simmonscourt is where the show jumping horses are stabled during Dublin Horse Show week.
The RDS Arena was developed to host equestrian events, including the annual Dublin Horse Show. It is often used for other sporting events however - primarily soccer and rugby. Between September 1990 and April 1996 it was used for home games of Shamrock Rovers football club, on 19 February 1992 it played host to a home game between the Republic of Ireland national football team and Wales, and hosted the 2007 and 2008 FAI Cup finals.
In 2007 and 2008 the arena's capacity was expanded to 18,250 (with additional seated stands being built), and the venue is now used by the Leinster Rugby team for home Heineken Cup and Magners League games. The club also moved their Leinster Rugby Store to the RDS (between the two parade rings), and it is open on match days.
The DART runs close to the RDS premises with Lansdowne and Sandymount being the closest stops. The RDS is serviced by bus routes number 7, 5 and 45, which stop outside the Main Hall Entrance to the RDS on Merrion Road.
The first solely Society-run Horse Show was held in 1868 and was one of the earliest "leaping" competitions ever held. Over time it has become a high profile International show jumping competition, national showing competition and major entertainment event in Ireland. In 1982 the RDS hosted the Show Jumping World Championships and incorporated it into the Dublin Horse Show of that year.
In recent years the venue has been used as a performance venue for numerous rock, heavy metal and pop bands. These have included Metallica (2003, 2004 and 2006), and My Chemical Romance, Iron Maiden, The Eagles, Slipknot, Korn, Linkin Park, Guns N' Roses, The Darkness, Tenacious D, Stereophonics and more.
Other popular acts such as Shania Twain, Avril Lavigne, Michael Jackson, Dolly Parton, Shirley Bassey, Rod Stewart, Tina Turner, Britney Spears, George Michael, Justin Timberlake, Kanye West, and Rihanna have all played the RDS Arena. In June 2008 American Paramore played their debut Irish concert in the RDS Arena. Bruce Springsteen has played there five times since 1988, including during "The Rising Tour" in 2003 and, most recently, in May 2008 when he played three dates on his "Magic Tour". [5]
The RDS has also hosted the Eurovision Song Contest on two occasions.
In 2006 the RDS hosted a Smackdown event as part of the WWE summerbash tour of Europe which fetured Wrestlers such as Stone Cold Steve Austin, John Cena, Kurt Angle, Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio.
The RDS is the home of Leinster Rugby. The RDS hosts Leinster's home matches in the Magners League and the Heineken Cup as well as some pre-season games.
Shamrock Rovers F.C. were tenants between 1990 and 1996. During this time the Stadium hosted a match between Republic of Ireland national football team and Wales in February 1992 and a UEFA Cup tie between Rovers and Gornik Zabrze in August 1994. The RDS also hosted the FAI Cup Final in 2007 and 2008. The UEFA Cup tie between St Patrick's Athletic and Hertha Berlin in September 2008 was also played at the RDS.[6]
In 1983, the Ireland team played in the World Group of the Davis Cup for the only time. The match against a United States team including John McEnroe was played in the RDS rather than the usual venue, Fitzwilliam, to accommodate crowds of 6,000 each day.[7]
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| Preceded by Congresgebouw The Hague |
Eurovision Song Contest Venue 1981 |
Succeeded by International Centre Harrogate |
| Preceded by Palais du Centenaire Brussels |
Eurovision Song Contest Venue 1988 |
Succeeded by Palais de Beaulieu Lausanne |
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