Sir, —In his reassessment of the reputation of Oliver Cromwell, Micheál Ó Siochrú outlines the known historical facts relating to his campaign in Ireland (August 1649–May 1650), detailing his programme of ethnic cleansing, the massacre of military and civilian personnel at Drogheda and Wexford, the forced removal to Connacht and the transportation of slave labour … Read more
Sir,— I am currently researching a book on the Bayno, the famous playcentre established by the first Lord Iveagh in 1909 in the Myra Hall inFrancis Street, Dublin, and then transferred to Bull Alley in 1915.This magnificent building was created by Iveagh inspired by thepeople’s palaces movement in England, particularly that on the Mile EndRoad … Read more
The strength of the Royal Irish Academy’s special issue on Domestic life in Ireland lies in its editorial courage. Having selected the domestic subject, the editors bring together studies charting diverse material from domestic archaeologies of everyday life through the Neolithic to the provision of 1950s local authority rural housing and the morphology of Celtic … Read more
The first constitution of the new Irish state was innovative: it asserted the sovereignty of the people; it included a bill of rights, a guarantee of free elementary education, trial by jury and direct democracy (on the say-so of 75,000 electors). And it contained a provision allowing judicial review of legislation, which broke with the … Read more
Bookworm has always had a soft spot for local history, and some very handsome examples of the genre have appeared in recent times. First up is a truly magnificent production: the Eglish Historical Society’s stunning The book of Eglish, where the Oona flows (Eglish Historical Society, 512pp, hb, no price given, ISBN 9781905989263). All human … Read more