A talk by Professor Séan Duffy on November 5th at 7.30pm in St. Edan’s Cathedral, Ferns
This talk is part of series organised by the Wexford Normandy Cultural Association to raise awareness of ‘2027 European Year of the Normans’. The first of these talks ‘The origins of the “Norman” invaders of Ireland’ is to be held in Ferns on November 5th, 2025.
It is only in the last century or so that we have started to refer to the invaders who began to arrive into Ireland in the late 1160s as “Normans”. Prior to that they tended to be called “English”. Neither term is ideal and for that reason some modern historians have resorted to hyphenated descriptors like “Anglo-Normans” or, since some came from Wales, “Cambro-Normans” or, since some spoke French rather than English, “Anglo-French”. It can be very confusing but this is inevitable because the invaders were not a single homogenous group. They were drawn from many different backgrounds, spoke different languages, and had different ethnicities. This talk explains some of the complexities, identifies the places of origin of some of the main strands of newcomers, and tries to bring some clarity to the question of who exactly Ireland’s “Normans” were.
Sean Duffy is Professor of Medieval Irish and Insular History at Trinity College Dublin, informal academic advisor on Ireland’s involvement in 2027 The Year of the Normans – People of Europe, and principal investigator on NAISC, the research project investigating Normandy and Ireland Settlement Connections (supported by the National Monuments Service).
Introduction, and Q&A session following the talk will be facilitated by Michael MacDonagh, Chief Archaeologist, National Monuments Service and 2027 European Year of the Normans Coordinator (Ireland).
The talk in Ferns is a collaboration between the Wexford Normandy Cultural Association and Ferns Heritage Project ,
Talks in the series will include :
- Enniscorthy District: November 5th at 7.30pm in St. Edan’s Cathedral Ferns Y21 E176
- Gorey District: December 4th at 7pm in Gorey Library
- New Ross District: December 11th at 7.30pm in the Dunbrody Visitor Centre, The Quay, New Ross Y34 A786
- Wexford District: Date and Location to be confirmed
- Rosslare District: Date to be confirmed.
Watch this space for details of upcoming talks.
These talks are supported by Wexford County Council Amenity & Arts Grant.
