Printing in the vernacular: the Louvain Project

When Flaithrí Ó Maolchonaire (Florence Conry), appointed minister provincial of the Irish Franciscans at the general chapter of the order in Toledo in 1606, successfully petitioned Philip III of Spain that same year for permission to found a college in Louvain, he aimed to provide suitable priestly training for young Irish Franciscans. The first mention … Read more

Galileo and Peter Lombard

In 1979, in one of the first public addresses of his pontificate, Pope John Paul II called for a new study of the long-contested ‘Galileo affair’ that would permit ‘a frank recognition of wrongs from whatever side they came’. Needless to say, the initiative was widely welcomed, and when the pope established a formal commission … Read more

After the Flight: the Plantation of Ulster

When the principal Ulster lords, together with almost 100 of their followers, fled the province in September 1607 they left behind a situation of some confusion. Among their own followers the removal of the focus of local loyalties and the administrators of everyday life created a sense of despondency, and even of betrayal. Some of … Read more