The award of Freedom of the City of Dublin acknowledges the contribution of certain people to the life of Ireland’s capital city. It also bestows honour to important visitors to Dublin.

The Lord Mayor of Dublin nominates people for the Freedom of the City. Any nominations are then brought before a meeting of the City Council where it must be ratified by a majority vote.
To date, only 76 people have been given the Freedom of the City of Dublin.

Holders of the Freedom of Dublin have a number of ancient privileges and duties not applicable to ordinary citizens such as:

-    The right to bring goods into Dublin through the city gates, without paying customs duties.
-    The right to pasture sheep on common ground within the city boundaries. This includes modern-day College Green and St. Stephen’s Green. Bono exercised this right on the day of his ceremony.
-     The right to vote in municipal and parliamentary elections.
Freeman and Freewoman duties include:

-     Each Freeman/Freewoman has to be ready to defend the city from attack.
-     A Freeman/Freewoman can be called on to join a city militia at short notice.

According to a law passed in 1454, any merchant who becomes a Freeman/Freewoman must possess the following items:

-     A coat of mail
-     A bow
-     A light helmet
-     A sword of his/her own
-     Freemen from all the other trade guilds must have a bow, arrows and a sword.

A law passed in 1465, states that each Freeman/Freewoman has to provide himself/herself with a longbow (of his own length) made of yew, witch-hazel or ash. He/she must also have twelve arrows made of the same wood.

The full list of 76 freemen and freewomen --
 
    Isaac Butt, 4 September 1876, 16 October 1876
    W.E. Gladstone, 1 November 1877, 7 November 1877
    U.S. Grant, 30 December 1878, 3 January 1879
    Edward E. Potter,26 April 1880, 4 May 1880
    Charles S. Parnell,3 January 1882, 16 August 1882
    John Dillon, 3 January 1882, 16 August 1882
    Kevin Izod O’Doherty,10 August 1885, 1 September 1885
    Patrick A. Collins,22 July 1887, 2 August 1887
    William O’Brien, 22 July 1887, 2 August 1887
    [The Marquess of] Ripon,16 January 1888, 2 February 1888
    John Morley, 16 January 1888, 2 February 1888
    Patrick F. Cardinal Moran1 October 1888, 4 October 1888
    Margaret Sandhurst,19 September 1889, 20 September 1889
    James Stansfeld, 19 September 1889, 20 September 1889
    George Salmon, 14 March 1892, 30 June 1892
    Stuart Knill, 23 December 1892, 2 January 1893
    Timothy Daniel Sullivan,10 December 1887, 24 October 1893
    Thomas Sexton, 28 December 1887, Did not sign roll
    J.E. Redmond, 18 December 1901, 3 April 1902
    P. A. McHugh, 30 October 1901, 3 April 1902
    An Craoibhín Aoibhín, 29 June 1906, 7 August 1906
    Spencer Harty, 2 September 1907, No date given
    Hugh P. Lane,10 February 1908, Did not sign roll,
    Richard Croker, 1 July 1907, 24 August 1908
    E. O’Meagher Condon, 28 September 1909, 4 October 1909
    Charles A. Cameron, 30 September 1910, 20 February 1911
    Kuno Meyer, 18 July 1911, 22 April 1912
    Peadar Ua Laoghaire, 18 July 1911, 22 April 1912
    Daniel Mannix, 5 August 1920, Did not sign roll
    John McCormack, , 3 September 1923, 6 September 1923
    Ehrenfried Gunther, 30 June 1928, 3 July 1928,
    Baron von Hunefeld, Hermann Koehl, 30 June 1928, 3 July 1928
    James C., Fitzmaurice, 30 June 1928, 3 July 1928
    Frank B. Kellogg, 25 August 1928, 30 August 1928
    Lorenzo Cardinal Lauri, 2 May 1932, 27 June 1932
    John Lavery, 12 August 1935, 17 September 1935
    John Purser Griffith, 4 May 1936, 8 June 1936
    G. Bernard Shaw, 4 March 1946, 28 August 1946
    Richard J. Cushing, 16 September 1949, 16 September 1949
    Paul A. Dever, 16 September 1949, 16 September 1949
    Sean T. O Ceallaigh, 4 May 1953, 2 June 1953
    John Cardinal D’Alton, 4 May 1953, 2 June 1953
    Gerald P. O’Hara,12 July 1954, 27 July 1954
    Chester Beatty,7 November 1955, 26 July 1956
    John F. Norton, 11 August 1958, 28 October 1958
    G.P. Cardinal Agagianian1 May 1961, 22 June 1961
    Michael Cardinal Browne 16 July 1962, 23 August 1962
    John F. Kennedy, 27 May 1963, 28 June 1963,
    Hilton R.H. Edwards,11 June 1973, 22 June 1973
    Micheál Mac Liammóir,11 June 1973, 22 June 1973
    Eamon de Valera, 3 February 1975, 7, March 1975
    John A. Costello,3 February 1975, 7, March 1975
    Joannes Paulus PP. II,24 September 1979, 29 September 1979
    Noel Purcell, 22 June 1984, 28 June 1984
    Maureen Potter (O’Leary)22 June 1984, 28 June 1984
    Akihito, 20 February 1985, 4 March 1985
    Michiko, 20 February 1985, 4 March 1985
    Stephen Roche, 28 September 1987, 29 September 1987
    Nelson Mandela, 18 July 1988, 21 September 1988
    Pádraig Ua hIrighile,4 March 1991, 22 April 1991
    M. Teresa M.C., 1 February 1993, 2 June 1993
    John [Jack] Charlton,11 April 1994, 26 May 1994
    William J. Clinton, 6 November 1995, 1 December 1995
    Gabriel M. Byrne, 12 April 1999, 11 May 1999
    [Aung San Suu Kyi], 1 November 1999, Has not yet signed roll,
    Paul McGuinness, 1 November 1999, 18 March 2000
    The Edge, 1 November 1999, 18 March 2000
    Larry Mullen Junior, 1 November 1999, 18 March 2000
    Adam Clayton, 1 November 1999, 18 March 2000
    Bono, 1 November 1999, 18 March 2000
    Mikhail Gorbachev, 3 December 2001, 9 January 2002
    Kevin Heffernan, 1 March 2004, 17 May 2004
    Ronnie Delany, 5 September 2005,5 March 2006
    Bob Geldof, 5 September 2005,5 March 2006
    Thomas Kinsella, 5 February 2007, 24 May 2007
    Louis Le Brocquy, 5 February 2007, 24 May 2007