Irish History Podcast

In 1173 Strongbow returned to Ireland after fighting in Normandy for his king Henry II. Within months he faced one of the biggest crises since the invasion had begun as Gaelic resistance to the Invasion surged. Not only was his castle at Kilkenny destroyed but west of the Shannon Ireland's most powerful king Rory O'Connor was planning a major assault on the colony. The Norman presence in Ireland t...

In the Spring of 1925 newspapers around the world carried stories that a famine had broken out in Ireland. The Manchester Guardian reported 750,000 people were at risk, a figure repeated by the Soviet Union's daily Pravda . However there is no mention of this "famine" in Irish history books so in I went to the National Archives in search of evidence. What I found was tragic details of yet another...

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The year is 1174, much of Ireland is reeling from 5 years of warfare since the Norman Invasion began in earnest in 1169. The island is gripped by sweeping change and chaos. This podcast is an enthralling journey through this land ravaged by conflict.  Before I continue the story of the invasion this episodes stops and takes stock of how the invasion so far was changing life in Ireland. Taking...

On November 2nd 1324, Petronilla of Meath, one of 12 people charged with witchcraft in Kilkenny was burned at the stake in the town. She was the first person to suffer this horrendous fate in Irish history. In this festively themed podcast I trace the story behind this fascinating case and those accused and convicted of witchcraft. What actually happened in Kilkenny in 1324? Was Petronilla of Meat...

The story of protest in medieval Ireland is a forgotten but fascinating chapter in our history. While forthright and often violent these protests voiced the concerns of ordinary people so often excluded from written records. In this podcast I look at five protests from late medieval Ireland including a water tax in 1244 and Ireland's first recorded strike in 1299. The intriguing stories behind the...

At Easter 1172, Henry II left Ireland, having spent six months on the island. Before departing he conferred the Kingdom of Meath onto the Norman baron Hugh de Lacy. However Meath already a king, in fact it had several. Through most of the 12th century numerous Irish kings had been laying claim to what was one of the oldest territories in Ireland. Naturally when de Lacy tried to claim what Henry II...

On October 17th, 1172, Henry II became the first King of England to set foot in Ireland. Henry had come in the hope to proclaiming himself lord over the entire island. Awaiting him were not just his own Norman subjects who had been fighting in Ireland since 1169 but also dozens of Gaelic kings. How these kings in particular would react to Henry's claims would be crucial. The King however had prepa...

Despite their victory at the siege of Dublin (covered in Part VII), Strongbow and his Normans followers in Ireland are by no means in a secure position. In Wexford their comrade-in-arms Robert FitzStephen is being held prisoner. Meanwhile across Leinster they face widespread opposition. The man who invited them to Ireland Diarmait McMurrough is dead and his brother is hostile to the Normans. Meanw...

This podcast sees the Normans suffer a ferocious backlash after their conquests in the year of 1170. A Norse army including beserkers - feared viking warriors - attack Dublin before a vast host lead by the king of Connacht - Rory O'Connor besieges the town. The Norman presence in Ireland hangs by a thread as they lose the few friends they had. This episode also sees tensions ramp between Strongbow...

After their brutal conquest of Waterford, Diarmait McMurrough and his Norman allies marshaled their forces and marched on Dublin. If the most important town in medieval Ireland fell into their hands it could be a game changer. The claims of Rory O'Connor of Connacht to be Ireland's most powerful king would be in tatters. This scenario set up a major conflict over Dublin as Rory marched west, reach...

In the summer of 1170, Ireland stood on a precipice. After the arrival of several hundred Norman mercenaries in 1169 the fortunes of Diarmait McMurrough had changed. He had reconquered his lost power in the kingdom of Leinster and re-established himself as a major player in Irish politics. However this was only the beginning, a violent prelude to Diarmait’s main ambition. He was still waiting for...

On May 1st 1169, Robert FitzStephen a Norman Knight from Wales, finds himself on Bannow Strand, Ireland leading 300 Norman mercenaries. Their mission - to restore Diarmait McMurrough, the one time gaelic king of Leinster to power. However both they and Diarmait have much greater ambitions. With a few days of arriving in Ireland the Normans are outside the walls of Wexford besieging what is one of...

This podcast looks at the first Normans to arrive in Ireland, in a chapter often forgotten by the history books. These mercenaries accompany Diarmait McMurrough who returned to Ireland in 1167 to pave the way for the larger forces of Strongbow. However if these warriors led by Robert FitzGodibert, thought the Gaelic Irish were going to be a pushover they are in for a rude awakening. They...

Over the last few weeks Ireland has been rocked by yet another child abuse scandal. Newspaper headlines around the world have reported in disbelief details of how society in Ireland treated unmarried mothers and their children in so called “Mother and Child homes". Child mortality rates reached over 50% in some of these institutions. While many around the world are understandably astounded as to h...

This show looks at some of the most pivotal events in Ireland's history. As Part I of the Norman invasion drew to a close Diarmait McMurrough, the King of Leinster was routed after his powerful ally Muirchertach McLochlainn was killed in 1166. His rivals Rory O'Connor and Tiernan O'Rourke then forced him into exile. This episode follows Diarmait as he journeys across into the medieval crossroads t...

This is the first in a multipart series on the Norman invasion of Ireland. The Invasion was one of the most important and fascinating events in Irish history beginning Ireland's turbulent relationship with England. This episode sets the same in the brutal struggle for dominance between Irish kings in the 12th century. Become a supporter & access dozens of exclusive podcasts Patreon www.patreon...

1972 was one of the darkest yet defining years in modern Irish history. Nearly five hundred people were killed in the conflict known as “The Troubles” in Northern Ireland. Events of that year like Bloody Sunday, Bloody Friday and Operation Motorman would shape Ireland for decades to come. In many ways one death has been remembered more than any other – this was abduction and murder of Jean McConvi...

On this day 1000 years today, one of the most famous battle in Irish history, the Battle of Clontarf took place. In this show I look at day to day life in Ireland in 1014. Its a strange world that would stun, shock and surprise in equal measure. Become a supporter & access dozens of exclusive podcasts Patreon www.patreon.com/irishpodcast Acast https://plus.acast.com/s/irishhistory 📢June...

In a show with a title such as this you might expect names such as Oliver Cromwell or Strongbow to feature heavily. While these men are responsible for the deaths of thousands of people in Ireland, the greatest killers in Irish history are not humans but disease. In this show I take a look at the worst diseases to hit Ireland and how they changed the course of our history. Become a supporter &...

The potato is synonymous with the biggest disaster in Irish history – the Great Famine of the 1840s. However this is only part of the story of the potato in Irish history. The arrival of the potato in Ireland transformed the island and resulted in changes in how people lived their lives. In the podcast I examine the good, the bad and the ugly of the potato's fascinating and chequered relationship...

Everyone has heard of the Great Irish Famine of the 1840's when around 10% of the Irish population died from starvation and disease. This however was not the worst famine in Irish history. A century earlier in the 1740s the island was ravaged by an event known as the year of slaughter when as much as 20% of the population perished. Become a supporter & access dozens of exclusive podcasts Patre...

In 1270 the battle of Ath-an-Chip saw a major Gaelic Army take on the forces of the powerful Norman Lord of Connacht Walter de Burgh on the upper reaches of the river Shannon. This decisive battle would shape the history of medieval Ireland in Connacht for decades if not centuries to come... Become a supporter & access dozens of exclusive podcasts Patreon www.patreon.com/irishpodcast Acast htt...

Most of the podcasts I make focus on the darker aspects of medieval life. War is a common theme and famine is never far away. However in this podcast I am asking the question was life in medieval Ireland ever anything other than an endless struggle for survival. The show starts in the Vale of Dublin in 1326 when the region was an apocalyptic wasteland before looking back to 1234 when the region en...

Climate change is constantly in the news. In the late 13th & early 14th centuries Ireland was also battered by storms and maligned by poor weather. This podcast takes a look at some of the ways it impacted the medieval world. While society didn't collapse if the experience of our ancestors is anything to go by our future could be something of a rocky and hungry road! Become a supporter & a...