Irish History - Early Irish Revolutions & Rebellions (1169 to 1798)

Introduction

Step into six centuries of Irish resistance, rebellion, and resilience. This course explores Ireland’s turbulent journey from the first Norman landings at Bannow Bay in 1169 to the revolutionary fervour of 1798. Through dramatic battles, shifting alliances, and daring uprisings, we uncover how Ireland’s long struggle for independence shaped its people, culture, and national identity.

The Gaelic Resistance to the Norman Conquest (1169–1200)

• Week 1: The political landscape of pre-Norman Ireland — Gaelic kingship, Brehon law, Diarmait Mac Murchada’s invitation to Strongbow, and the arrival of Henry II.
• Week 2: Gaelic resistance under Rory O’Connor and others; consolidation of Norman power; long-term consequences of conquest — land, culture, and identity.

The Nine Years’ War (1593–1603)

• Week 3: The Tudor conquest of Ireland, religious tensions, and the rise of Hugh O’Neill and Hugh Roe O’Donnell.
• Week 4: Major battles (Clontibret, Yellow Ford, Kinsale); Spanish involvement; the fall of Gaelic Ireland and the Flight of the Earls.

Irish Rebellion of 1641 & The Irish Confederate Wars (1641–1653)

• Week 5: Causes of rebellion — plantation policies, religious conflict, and social unrest. The 1641 uprising and propaganda wars.
• Week 6: The formation of Confederate Ireland, key figures (Ormond, Owen Roe O’Neill), and the Cromwellian conquest — massacres, confiscations, and collapse.

The Jacobite/Williamite War in Ireland (1689–1691)

• Week 7: Context of the Glorious Revolution; James II’s campaign in Ireland; the Siege of Derry and the Battle of the Boyne.
• Week 8: The Treaty of Limerick, the Flight of the Wild Geese, and the birth of the Penal Era — Ireland caught between empire and exile.

The United Irishmen Rebellion (1798)

• Week 9: Enlightenment influences, Wolfe Tone and the Society of United Irishmen, alliances across religious divides, and the French revolutionary impact.
• Week 10: The rising of 1798 — Wexford, Ulster, and the French landings; reasons for failure; aftermath and the Act of Union; the enduring legacy of republicanism.

10 Week Course: Tuesdays 6pm-8pm

Starts: 27th Jan 2026