Clubs and Societies in Eighteenth Century Ireland

Clubs and Societies in Eighteenth-Century Ireland, edited by James Kelly and Martyn J Powell and published by Four Courts Press was launched at the Royal Irish Academy  on 9th December.  Clubs and societies emerge as a distinct feature of the Irish social landscape from the end of the seventeenth century.  Some – the Hellfire Club, the Free Masons, the Friendly Brothers of St Patrick, the Royal Dublin Society – have left a rich legacy, but there is a far greater number of philanthropic and charitable bodies, intellectual societies, political bodies such as the Aldermen of Skinners  Alley, dining and drinking clubs, sports and hunting clubs, and many more that have been all but forgotten.  This collection looks at the phenomenon that produced a vast array of clubs and societies shaping social, political and intellectual life in the eighteenth century.

Professor Kelly is Head of the History Department at St Patrick’s College.

 

 

Last Updated: Friday December 10 2010