Overview

The castles of Ireland are an essential part of the story of medieval Europe, but were, until recently, a subject neglected by scholars. The remains of several thousand castles shed a clear light on the experiences of Ireland during these crucial centuries. As objects meant to display their lord's power and prestige, castles had to be impressive, and uniformity denied that. Dr McNeill weaves the evidence from the castles into the story of the nature and development of lordship and power in medieval Ireland. The physical remains of the castles reflect the different roles of the competing lordships: English and Irish; Feudal and Gaelic; royal and baronial. He argues that the design of the castles contests the traditional view of Ireland as a land torn by war and divided culturally between the English and Irish.

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9780415165372

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Reviews

'This perceptive and often witty book is a challenge to the new generation of Ireland's medieval archaeologists and historians, for the answers to the many problems Tom McNeill poses lie still in the ground, or in the standing fabric of Ireland's 3,000 or so castles, awaiting the spade or the enquiring eye.' - Times Literary Supplement 'A meticulously researched and scholarly combination of archaeological investigation and interpretation of the wider socio-political context of the construction of castles and the purposes to which they were put.' - Republican News 'Castles in Ireland is the most careful and scholarly book to be written on castles for a generation. As such, it is a major step forward for castle studies.' - Antiquity 'Informed readers will be stimulated by this book and the less knowledgeable will find much to interest and surprise them. A most commendable and comprehensive study.' - Transactions of the Ancient Monument Society 'Stimulating and readable. It sets out the particular nature of Irish castelology with clarity, and, in the process, explains the nature of medieval Irish Power bases and networks the book is handsomely produced. It will be the standard work for many years to come.' - Archaeological Journal

Author Information

Dr Thomas McNeill took his doctorate in archaeology at Queen's University, Belfast, where he is currently Lecturer in Medieval Archaeology. He is the author of The English Heritage Book of Castles and The Archaeology of Ulster (with J. P. Mallory).

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