Ireland and the Renaissance court is an interdisciplinary collection of essays exploring Irish and English courts, courtiers and politics in the early modern period, c. 1450-1650. Chapters are contributed by both established and emergent scholars working in the fields of history, literary studies, and philology. They focus on Gaelic cúirteanna, the indigenous centres of aristocratic life throughout the medieval period; on the regnal court of the emergent British empire based in London at Whitehall; and on Irish participation in the wider world of European elite life and letters. Collectively, they expand the chronological limits of ‘early modern’ Ireland to include the fifteenth century and recreate its multi-lingual character through exploration of its English, Irish and Latin archives. This volume is an innovative effort at moving beyond binary approaches to English-Irish history by demonstrating points of contact as well as contention.

"Ireland and the Renaissance Court represents an important and first-of-its-kind contribution to our understanding of the political governance, cultural politics and interconnections that took place between courts in early modern Ireland and England. The book’s use of Irish-language sources, innovative methodologies, interdisciplinary approaches, and keen insights makes it an essential collection, and one that will influence the field for years to come."
Prof. Sarah Covington, Queens College and the Graduate Center, CUNY

-- .

David Edwards is Senior Lecturer in History, University College Cork.
Brendan Kane is Professor of History, University of Connecticut.