Beyond the Book of Kells: On the Conquest of Ireland
Tuesday, 5 December 2017, 6:30 – 8pm 
This lecture is part of a series entitled "Beyond the Book of Kells: The stories of eight other medieval manuscripts from the library of Trinity College Dublin."
In this third talk of the series, Dr Caoimhe Whelan from Trinity's Department of History will discuss TCD MS. 592: A Hiberno-English translation of Gerald of Wales' On the Conquest of Ireland. Gerald of Wales was perhaps the principal propagandist of the twelfth-century English invasion of Ireland and his work was to have a lasting impact on both colonisers and colonised. TCD 592 presents a fifteenth-century English translation of Gerald's work, apparently written for an Anglo-Irish audience, complete with marginal notes highlighting the English claim to Ireland and offering warnings against Irish treachery.
Further Information
To over 600,000 visitors a year, Trinity is synonymous with the Book of Kells. But that ninth-century manuscript is only part of the story. Ranging in date from the fifth century to the sixteenth, and with origins from across Western Europe, Trinity’s six hundred medieval manuscripts contain languages from Latin and Greek to Old Irish, Old English, Welsh, German, Dutch, Spanish, Italian, Provencal, and Vaudois. The texts embody in microcosm the entire gamut of medieval thought. This series of lectures from manuscript experts – Irish and international – will offer the public an opportunity to encounter eight other extraordinary books from Trinity’s collections, from the ninth-century Book of Armagh to a key manuscript of one of the great medieval English poets, William Langland.
The "Beyond the Book of Kells" lecture series is lead by Dr Mark Faulkner of Trinity College's School of English. It is held as part of the Manuscript, Print, and Book Cultures research theme, in association with the Trinity Long Room Hub, the Faculty of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences, and the Library of Trinity College Dublin.
The manuscripts have been digitised to coincide with this lecture series. For more information, please click here.
Campus Location: Trinity Long Room Hub Arts and Humanities Research Institute
Accessibility: Yes
Room: Neill Lecture Theatre
Research Theme: Manuscript, Book and Print Culture
Event Category: Arts and Culture, Lectures and Seminars, Library, Public
Type of Event: One-time event
Audience: Undergrad, Postgrad, Alumni, Faculty & Staff, Public
Cost: Free
Contact Name: Dr Mark Faulkner
Contact Email: mark.faulkner@tcd.ie
More info: www.tcd.ie…
