The current phase of the CIRCLE project began in 2008 with funding from the Irish Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences. But in fact the Irish Chancery Project was originally the brainchild of Jocelyn Otway-Ruthven, the formidable Lecky Professor of History at Trinity between 1951 and 1980. Work on the reconstruction first got … Read more
Medieval buildings dominate many parts of the Irish landscape. Castles are the largest surviving structures from medieval Ireland, and monastic buildings and their inhabitants dominate many chapters of Irish history. Accounts of the lives and fortunes of these people and the landscapes they inhabited are found across a wide range of sources—annals, letters, manuscripts—but these … Read more
Inishmurray: monks and pilgrims in an Atlantic landscape Volume 1: Archaeological survey and excavations 1997–2000. Jerry O’Sullivan and Tomás Ó Carragáin (Collins Press, €49.95) ISBN 9781905172474 The remains on Inishmurray, described by Lord Dunraven as ‘the most characteristic example now in existence of the earliest monastic establishments in Ireland’, consist of a central cashel containing … Read more
Contested island: Ireland 1460–1630 Divided kingdom: Ireland 1630–1800 S.J. Connolly (Oxford University Press, £35 each) ISBN 9780198208167 ISBN 9780199543472 The last decade has seen the publication of many surveys of the history of Ireland, including tomes from S.J. Connolly’s Queen’s University Belfast colleagues Alvin Jackson and Paul Bew. Tom Bartlett will shortly publish a single-volume … Read more
Armagh’s cathedrals by Tony Canavan Church of Ireland +44 (0)28 [048 RoI] 37523142, admin@armaghpubliclibrary.co.uk, www.stpatricks-cathedral.org Daily 10am–5pm (–4pm Nov.–March) Suggested donation £3, £2 concession, children & students free Guided tours available with advance notice Catholic +44 (0)28 [048 RoI] 37522638/37522802, www.armagharchdiocese.org Admission free, voluntary donation Guided tours available with advance notice The Church of Ireland … Read more