Kilkenny Castle, 1395
On the 18th of February 1366, 650 years ago today, the ‘Statutes of Kilkenny’ were enacted in Kilkenny Castle.
Via Historic Kilkenny:
In 1361, King Edward III sent his son, Lionel, Duke of Clarence, to Ireland to assess the situation there. After repelling an invasion led by Edward Bruce, the English hold over Ireland was weak.
Many of the English who had settled in Ireland had begun to adopt the customs and language of the Irish. Consisting of 35 acts, the statutes attempted to stop the Gaelicisation of the English in Ireland.
These included
– No intermarriage between Irish and English
– No adoption of Irish children or fosterage of Irish children to English households
– No use of Irish names or dress
– English Common Law would be the law of the land rather than the Brehon Laws of the Irish
– Separation of Irish and English churches
– No ‘games which men call hurling with great clubs of a ball on the ground’Unfortunately for King Edward III, the Statutes were never fully implemented due to lack of funds and manpower in Ireland. The English lords there strengthened their ties to the great Irish families. This Gaelicisation would not be challenged again until the early 17th century….
FIGHT!
Illustration: Kilkenny Castle 1395 by Daniel Tietzche-Tyler
Thanks Ruadhán