Medieval Ireland

Medieval Ireland 1170 – 1541 AD

A time of Gothic architecture, proud dynasties and new agricultural practice – along with war, famine and plague – life in medieval Ireland was anything but dull!

Anglo-Norman Ireland was at its most stable and prosperous in the second half of the thirteenth century. Though by the end of that century and into the fourteenth century the colonies were in a total crisis. War and famine brought devastation to the land, but the Black Death was truly merciless. However it wasn’t all bleak, new forms of urbanisation had become common, Gothic grandeur could be seen in the castles, abbeys and walled towns and the great elite magnates had begun to change from colonial settlers to ‘more Irish than the Irish themselves‘.

Don’t forget to click the ‘Materials‘ tab for extra resources to help you to dig deeper into the story!

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Materials

  • We have a number of audiobooks that help to tell the story of medieval Ireland. These include Ballyhanna – Stories from the Grave that tells the tale of a long forgotten graveyard in Donegal and Mullamast – The Story of a Medieval Village  
  • Dublin: The Making of a Medieval City by Howard Clarke, Sarah Dent and Ruth Johnson gives a very accessible and interesting introduction into Medieval Dublin.
  • I recommend Tales of Medieval Dublin a book that gives a good overview of different aspects of life in Dublin during the period.
  • We didn’t manage to get to it this time (but we surely will in a future course!) but the subject of pilgrimage can give great insights into medieval life, in terms of belief, spirituality, travel, transport and society. Dr. Louise Nugent wrote an excellent book on the subject recently: Journeys of Faith – stories of pilgrimage from medieval Ireland.
  • It’s a little more on the technical side but Medieval Irish Buildings by Tadhg O’Keeffe is a book that is pretty much ever-present on my desk. It’s available here.
  • Similarly, Clare Downham’s Medieval Ireland gives a thorough view of medieval Ireland though it is a more technical publication.
  • Tadhg also appeared in Episode 4 of our Amplify Archaeology Podcast to discuss Irish Castles. You can hear this fascinating chat here.
  • Another castle-related episode featured a trench-side chat with Cóilín Ó Drisceoil of Kilkenny Archaeology at his dig at Kilkenny Castle. Hear the story here.