UCD Adult Education Centre
HN221
From Plantations to Peace Process: A History of Ireland, 1534–1998
Spring Term 2012
Dr John Cronin & Dr Irial Glynn
Course Outline
I
2 Feb.
II
9 Feb.
III
16 Feb.
IV
23 Feb.
V
1 Mar.
VI
8 Mar.
VII
15 Mar.
VIII 22 Mar.
IX
29 Mar.
X
5 April
The Sixteenth Century: Conquest Resumed
The Ulster Plantation, 1641 Rebellion and Cromwell (1603–59)
The Return of the King: Conquest Concluded (1650–1691)
The Eighteenth Century: Penal Era, Golden Age and 1798
1798, Daniel O’Connell and the Rise of Catholic Politics
The Famine and its aftermath (1845-1870s)
The Age of Parnell: From the Land War to Home Rule (1879–1893)
A Clash of Generations? Socialism, Feminism and 1916 (1893–1916)
Divided loyalties & building a state (1917–48)
Fashioning a Republic and Northern Ireland (1949-present)
For the newcomer to Irish History, who wants a good basic text that will introduce
them to the main themes, before they move on to more detailed texts, try any of the
following:
Roy Foster (ed.), The Oxford illustrated history of Ireland (Oxford, 1989).
Seán Duffy, The Concise History of Ireland (Dublin, 2000).
T. W. Moody & F. X. Martin, The Course of Irish History (Cork, 1994).
For a more detailed survey of Irish History try any one of the following:
Thomas Bartlett, Ireland: A History (Cambridge, 2010) [E30 approx. or widely available in
local libraries]
James Lydon, The making of Ireland: from ancient times to the present (London, 1998).
Further Reading (note: most of these should be freely available in your local libraries):
S.J. Connolly, Contested Island: Ireland, 1460-1630 (Oxford, 2009)
S.J. Connolly, Divided Kingdom: Ireland, 1630-1800 (Oxford, 2008). These books are easily
the best surveys of the early modern period published in the last 50 years. They can be
read separately or together.
Alvin Jackson, Ireland, 1798-1998: Politics and War (Oxford, 1999)
Two ‘classic’ histories are:
J.C. Beckett, The Making of Modern Ireland, 1603-1923 (London, 1966)
F.S.L. Lyons, Ireland Since the Famine (London, 1971).
Both are a little dated, but still eminently readable.
For the 20th century, two of the best (if quite academic) studies are:
Diarmaid Ferriter, The Transformation of Ireland (New York, 2004)
J.J. Lee, Ireland, 1912-1985: Politics and Society (Cambridge, 1989)
There is also the Oxford New History of Ireland series, which is divided into several
volumes. Each one covers a separate period, and is made up of discrete articles written
by various historians. They have recently been re-published in paperback for a price of
E35 each, and are well worth picking up for their mixture of general and specific analysis.
You will certainly get them in Hodges Figgis on Dawson St, and should get them in
Easons or any other large chain – or online. The volumes were written and published
over a 20-year period and are not always reflective of current research, but are still
invaluable as introductory surveys.
The volumes are organised as follows (we’ve only listed the volumes relevant to the
course):
III: Early Modern Ireland, 1534-1691
IV: Early Modern Ireland, 1691-1800
V: Ireland Under The Union, 1801-1870
VI: Ireland Under The Union, 1870-1921
VII: Ireland, 1921-84
Of course, if there are any aspects or periods of the course that we have covered
so far, or will cover, that you would like to know more about, just send one of us
an email and we will send you a more detailed list of reading.