Irish in Europe

The battle of Kinsale, 1601, fought during the Nine Years War of 1594-1603, marked a turning point in Irish history. However, although the political power of the Gaelic nobility was broken and royal authority in the kingdom was enhanced, Ireland remained strategically important for other European powers, especially Spain and, later, France. Therefore, when political, social and religious changes at home caused many Irish to migrate, temporarily or permanently, they headed for Habsburg and Bourbon territories.

The essays in this collection explore the motivation for migration in the early 17th century. They chronicle important aspects of migrants' integration into European networks of influence and they indicate the role of the European influence in modernizing the migrant communities and the country that produced them.

Thomas O'Connor lectures in history at NUI Maynooth, county Kildare. He is the author of An Irish theologian in Enlightenment France, 1714-96: Luke Joseph Hooke (FCP, 1995) and editor of The Irish in Europe, 1580-1815 (FCP, 2001). Mary Ann Lyons lectures in history at St Patrick's College, Drumcondra, Dublin. She is co-editor of the journal Irish History (FCP) and author of Church and society in county Kildare, c.1480-1570 (FCP, 2000).