From today’s Irish Times: Next stop, Antarctica: ‘Van Diemen’s Land’ and its many historical Irish connections www.irishtimes.com/opinion/an-i...

Just published: www.fourcourtspress.ie/books/2023/c...

We are sorry to hear of the death of Tom Dunne, professor emeritus of history at UCC and formerly a director of Cork University Press. Details of funeral arrangements are at rip.ie/death-notice...

250 years ago today America began its march toward independence at the Battles of Lexington and Concord. The battles marked “No Kings Day, Part I.” Today millions of Americans will take part in “No Kings Day, Part II.”

On the 125th anniversary of the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the Town of Concord invited BC President William Devlin, SJ to “The Concord Fight” in commemoration of the beginning of the American Revolution. We’re sending our best to our friends in Concord on the 250th Anniversary of the Battle!

"Rory McIlroy’s wish to be identified as Northern Irish is typical of his generation" by Stephen Collins in @irishtimes.com, incl mention of research by our director Prof Shirlow showing that support for a united Ireland is not growing despite demographic changes: www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2025...

Last day for abstracts!

My thanks to Cormac O'Hanrahan and all involved with 'Cut & Paste', an annual historical journal on Arthur Griffith. An enjoyable launch in the James Joyce Center. My own article is about Griffith and Michael Collins' turbulent dealings with each other in early 1922 as civil war loomed.

‘What we are witnessing are not the collapse of the institutions of American democracy, it is the collapse of the culture of democracy… and it can be seen on this side of the Atlantic too’ Lord Sumpton - hardly a bleeding heart liberal- incredibly worrying on state of democracy

Crown Imperial fritillary attended by a court of bright tulips, Merrion Square, Dublin

My friend Dr. Joanne Liu, former international president of Doctors Without Borders, was cancelled at NYU. The vice-president in education asked to see her powerpoint, prior to her lecture. One slide showed the number of humanitarian workers who died in Gaza. NYU cancelled the event.

Call for papers for the 35th Conference of Irish Historians, 'Inner lives and outer realities' closes 31 March. Open to historians of any geographic area and period. www.maynoothuniversity.ie/news-events/...

George Clooney’s Good Night, and Good Luck: The Broadway audience gasps at Musk’s ‘Nazi salute’ www.irishtimes.com/world/us/202...

Dublin parish unveils sculpture of atonement for Jesuits’ abuse www.thetablet.co.uk/news/dublin-...

A fantastically important postscript to this piece: David Graham asks Jeffrey Goldberg about possible retaliation, and Goldberg gives a perfect answer — with perfect swipes. www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...

Reminder - get your abstracts in by March 31st #speirgorm #skystorians #history #irishhistory

Very pleased to be associated again this year with CUT&PASTE. The 2025 issue will be launched by: Paschal Donohue TD, Minister for Finance 10am on MONDAY 31st MARCH 2025 at the JAMES JOYCE CENTRE NORTH GREAT GEORGE'S STREET DUBLIN 1 Copies on sale at the event €7 each

Excellent letter in the Irish Times reminding us that Irish builders did not build the White House as indicated by the Taoiseach this week. It was build by slaves including those owned by the Irish architect James Hoban.

Permanent position for the right professional archivist. 😎

A report on my recent visit to Savannah GA in the special St Patrick’s Day issue of the Irish Catholic newspaper published today. Felix www.irishcatholic.com/st-patrick-a...

apparently my attempts at housework are feckin hilarious #Mabel #catsky

My books finally arrived! Very grateful to the team at @cambridgeup.bsky.social for the superb production and supporting the project. Thinking today of the late David Fitzpatrick who began this project and to whom it is dedicated, and also of my mother who would have loved to see it in print.

If you missed today's #IrishStudies seminar by @felixmlarkin.bsky.social on 'Cartoons and the Irish - two centuries of humour', a recording is now available at youtu.be/CW_Ow4Crdss

“You meet saints everywhere. They can be anywhere. They are people behaving decently in an indecent society.” —Kurt Vonnegut

Your friendly reminder that WB Yeats was an ardent supporter of Blue, Black, and Brown Shirts, saw equality as mob rule, hierarchy as natural & espoused deeply eugenicist beliefs. The line is catchy as hell, but it means the very opposite of how it is being deployed here.

My letter in today’s Irish Times.

Steve Levitsky gives the canonical answer about whether defending democracy is the right answer electorally for Democrats - that can't be the question. *Society* has to defend democracy and the Constitution, or they could cease to exist. nymag.com/intelligence...

Ewenny Priory 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 as painted by Turner in 1795, & my photo from 2024. In his time it was used as a farmyard (chickens!). Upon exhibition in 1797 one reviewer commented “‘In point of colour and effect this is one of the grandest drawings we have ever seen, and equal to the best pictures of Rembrandt.”

Our next #IrishStudies seminar is on Mon 10 March at 4.30pm. Felix Larkin @felixmlarkin.bsky.social will speak on 'Cartoons and the Irish: Two Centuries of Humour'. All welcome (in-person and online) www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/irish-stud... #IrishHistory

En route from Knock Airport to Sligo, well worth stopping in Charlestown to see some exquisite Harry Clarke stained glass windows 💚

Liberté. Égalité. Incrédulité.

My upcoming seminar on Irish historical cartoons in Queen’s University Belfast (March 10th). www.qub.ac.uk/schools/Iris...

From 21 February @royalhistsoc.bsky.social will be closing and archiving its X account. From this date all updates from the Society - and its promotion of work by fellow organisations for #history and the humanities - will be via BlueSky. Please encourage colleagues to join us here #skystorians

We've reached the chapter in Gibbon where the mad emperor is appointing magicians, acrobats, and paid agents of the Persians to the highest offices of state.

Report on my lecture yesterday in Christ Church Cathedral on the Sick & Indigent Roomkeepers Society (from the Dublin & Glendalough diocesan website). dublin.anglican.org/news/2025/02...

The Association of Leaders of #Missionaries and #Religious of #Ireland (#AMRI), which represents over 150 religious congregations, wrote to #BishopBudde thanking her for her “courage in publicly conveying the truth, grounded in the #Gospel, that reminds us all of our duty of care” bit.ly/40Za4il

New article: ‘An indelible imprint’ – Irish Penal Transportation to Australia – Between 1788 and 1868, a total of 825 convict ships transported 167,000 people to penal servitude in Australia, about 40k were Irish men and women www.theirishstory.com/2025/02/03/a...

“Sinn Féin members in the bar, they were able to get taxis [to leave the scene] but they weren’t able to get an ambulance.” The McCartney family on the murder of their brother Robert McCartney by members of the IRA 20 years ago. podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/t...

Reminder: lecture tomorrow (February 4th) on the Sick & Indigent Roomkeepers Society in Christ Church Cathedral at 1.10pm. christchurchcathedral.ie/event/no-hom...

What a counterpoint to the cruelty of the past two days. Her quiet words of dignity and empathy for our fellow human beings should shame those venal, spiteful people.

This is a brilliant painting. As a final year undergrad, I took a course with David Fitzpatrick on Ireland & Britain in the First World War. It led to one of my favourite pieces of research I've ever done: on Irish war artists in the Great War. William Orpen's paintings and writings blew my mind.

This is so good, so appropriate to the present circumstances. Thanks @dedalusdenaries.bsky.social