Remember 1609!

We are never too far away from one commemoration or another in the North. One that did pass me by – until now – was the beginning of the Plantation of Ulster in 1609. The McCracken Cultural Society, who aim to promote the Irish language, history, music, drama and dance irrespective of creed, class, background or ability, will host a lecture entitled “1609: remembering a turbulent year which left its mark on Ulster” on Friday, 8th May, at 7pm in the William Conor Lecture Hall, University of Ulster, York Street, Belfast.

The talk will be in Irish and will be given by Dr Éamonn Ó Ciardha, a history lecturer at the University of Ulster. He is an expert on this period and will look at how the Plantation affected every aspect of the Gaelic way of life in Ireland.

This is the second annual Robert Mac Adam memorial lecture. Certainly, last year’s talk by Fionntán de Brún on Patrick Pearse was well worth hearing and this year’s topic is definitely of interest. Indeed, this is the first public event I have noticed on 1609 which is quite strange given how the events of that year still echo today. The talk will be followed by a session in McCracken’s Bar, Joy’s Entry, Belfast. Info: www.ccmr156.com