Wilde IrisheFeb 98 minSciath and Starga: 16th Century Gaelic Irish ShieldsGaelic Irish shields in the 16th century seem to have been of two distinct varieties. The general word for shield, sciath, was originally...
Wilde IrisheAug 20, 202112 minIrish Ring Pommel Sword: New Insight into UseThe 2014 discovery of a new example of a sixteenth century Irish ring pommel sword has provided fresh insights into this weapon.
Wilde IrisheMay 1, 202142 minThe Saffron Shirt, Part 1: Saffron and Silk, Urine and GreaseThe Irish saffron shirt (léine croich) and mantle followed a similar trajectory to that of their lineal descendant, Highland dress. ...
Wilde IrisheMar 3, 202124 minDonnell O’Hagan’s Company of Shot: 1593This brief note focusses on details of the organisation, equipment, clothing and training of a typical company of ‘shott’ in the service...
Wilde IrisheFeb 2, 202130 minWright’s Chieftains: A Tale of Two PaintingsTwo of the most important visual documents of traditional Gaelic dress have been somewhat overlooked, their full value obscured by a...
Wilde IrisheDec 12, 202010 minA Fight With O'Rourke: 1589This account of the government’s final engagement with Brian na Múrtha O’Rourke provides a vivid picture of the nature of Elizabethan...
Wilde IrisheSep 16, 202012 minIrish Tower Houses: a Spotter’s GuideRough men-at-arms, cross-gartered to the knees Or shod in iron, climbed the narrow stairs
Wilde IrisheAug 24, 202012 minO’Donnell’s Kern—A Sixteenth-Century Campfire TaleSo there you have the Circuit of Manannán mac Lir of the tuatha dé danann, who used to be going round Ireland.
Wilde IrisheAug 4, 20205 minA Fault as Light as Wind: Braigetóiri?“Dow knowest an Irishman cannot abide a fart.”
Wilde IrisheJul 6, 20206 minLucht Tighe—Service Kindreds of Irish ChieftainsThe courts of Gaelic regional lords were served by hereditary service kindreds of long standing.
Wilde IrisheMay 22, 202011 minLeinster Clandonnells; the Queen Majestie’s GalloglassAn examination of the lineage, organisation, land holdings, and campaigns of the government galloglass.
Wilde IrisheApr 23, 20208 minSword Dance of the Irish KernThe kern in Elizabethan Ireland were said to have a sword dance peculiar to them. What can we learn of its nature?
Wilde IrisheApr 11, 202010 minIrish Domestics: Household of an Irish ChiefEverything in common but the bed.
Wilde IrisheMar 28, 20207 minHorseboys: Irish Lackeys, Irish Footmanship—Part 2“A Teague! A Teague! Well run, Irish!”
Wilde IrisheMar 24, 20204 minHorseboys: Irish Lackeys, Irish Footmanshipfor so they call their horse-keepers be they never so old knaves
Wilde IrisheFeb 21, 20205 minDiscoveries at Tullyhogue: O’Neill Inauguration Site & Native Settlement"The traitor is gone to the stone to receive that name."
Wilde IrisheFeb 14, 20206 minA Rising-Out of MacSweeneys armed “According to the Usage of the Country.”And it was then that a levy of galloglasses was made on Clann Suibhne, and this is how the levy was made.
Wilde IrisheFeb 8, 20203 minGalloglass vs. Redshank: Don’t Fight Over Spilt Milk."Fight it out in the fair fields."
Wilde IrisheJan 24, 20204 minA John Derricke Drawing: Hidden in Plain Sight?It has been regretted that we do not have Derricke’s presumed original drawings, as they would have greater immediacy.
Wilde IrisheJan 11, 20204 minBeware the Cat: Part 2Whereupon the kern took his dart, flung it and struck her through.