15th Century images of Ireland

PatsytheNazi

Came across this interesting wiki with some interesting images from 15th century Ireland in a 1581 book by John Derricke, an English follower of the Lord Deputy of Ireland and is as expected a one sided account of Sir Henry Sidney's version of putting down rebellion. It is held in Edinburgh University and their are 13 pictures or woodcuts, whic propaganda and bias aside, tell something about life in Ireland, dress etc in the late 15 Century. Anyone with any more information to add on the period I would be thankful.

One of the most interesting images is that of the Chieftain at a banquet and being entertained by a bard and a harper but notice the two guys warming their asses at the fire to show how uncouth the Irish were supposed to be !!!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Image_of_Irelande_-_plate03.jpg

Here are the rest -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Image_of_Irelande,_with_a_Discoverie_of_Woodkarne

spurious

That picture came up a few years ago in a Junior Cert. History paper. Some of the answers it elicited were hilarious. Some thought the guys in the bottom left were boiling babies and that they guy with the tonsure was giving the fingers to the fellows showing him their behinds.

PatsytheNazi

spurious wrote: »

That picture came up a few years ago in a Junior Cert. History paper. Some of the answers it elicited were hilarious. Some thought the guys in the bottom left were boiling babies and that they guy with the tonsure was giving the fingers to the fellows showing him their behinds.

Yes indeed, I'm sure some of the junior cert answers were hilarious !! One thing about the picture is how the women seem to have their hair curled up on top of their head. I just wonder, was this possibly the style for sort of noble women, as I would imagine that the ordinary woman who working in the fields etc wouldn't have had the time for such practises and would have worn their hair long ?

PatsytheNazi

One of the things noticeable is how the English soldiers are better prepared wearing body armour and helmets, sheilds etc while the Irish soldiers led by a piper in picture 2, ofcourse haven't such.

"The Irish chieftain receives the priest's blessing before departing to fight the English, who are shown in full armour".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Image_of_Irelande_-_plate04.jpg

Picture 2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Image_of_Irelande_-_plate02.jpg

MarchDub

PatsytheNazi wrote: »

Came across this interesting wiki with some interesting images from 15th century Ireland in a 1581 book by John Derricke, an English follower of the Lord Deputy of Ireland and is as expected a one sided account of Sir Henry Sidney's version of putting down rebellion. It is held in Edinburgh university and their are 13 pictures or woodcuts, whic propaganda and bias aside, tell something about life in Ireland, dress etc in the late 15 Century. Anyone with any more information to add on the period I would be thankful.

One of the most interesting images is that of the Chieftain at a banquet and being entertained by a bard and a harper but notice the two guys warming the asses at the fire to show how uncouth the Irish were supposed to be !!!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Image_of_Irelande_-_plate03.jpg

Here are the rest -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Image_of_Irelande,_with_a_Discoverie_of_Woodkarne

John Derricke is a well known propagandist of the Elizabethan period. Not very much is known about his life but he is described as English and he participated in the English campaign in Ireland against the Ui Neill and O'Mores in the 1570s. Images were very important in a period of limited literacy and his woodcuts were very much done for public consumption. He is considered to be anti-Irish and anti-Catholic. One of his most famous - besides the bare bottomed MacSweeny cook-out - is the one of The O'Neill and other Irish chieftains supposedly surrendering to the Queen's representative. It was as important for the Irish public to see the chieftains surrendering as it was for the English interested parties to demonstrate in pictures what they claimed was their success.

Here is a link to an edited version of the poem he wrote about the Irish: The Images of Ireland. He warns English men against any social mixing with the Irish - most especially they should avoid Irish women.

http://www.wwnorton.com/college/english/nael/16century/topic_4/derricke.htm

PatsytheNazi

Here is a representation of Irish soldiers in 1521 by German Alberecht Durer. Notice the axe type weapons of the two men on the right and the man second from the left carrying a mammoth of a sword. I was puzzled about such a weapon as I had seen it in movies etc as it seemed to me to be impractical as it was so big and heavy. Until I seen a programme on Discovery by an English guy called Mike Loades who is a medieval weapons expert. He said such a sword was used to cut down horses and then of course finish off the cavalry man who would have been thrown from the horse.

Still, it would take a man with very strong nerves to wait and side step just at the last second to swing the sword at the legs of the horse to bring it down.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Durer-Irish-16thC.jpg

MarchDub

PatsytheNazi wrote: »

Here is a representation of Irish soldiers in 1521 by German Alberecht Durer. Notice the axe type weapons of the two men on the right and the man second from the left carrying a mammoth of a sword. I was puzzled about such a weapon as I had seen it in movies etc as it seemed to me to be impractical as it was so big and heavy. Until I seen a programme on Discovery by an English guy called Mike Loades who is a medieval weapons expert. He said such a sword was used to cut down horses and then of course finish off the cavalry man who would have been thrown from the horse.

Still, it would take a man with very strong nerves to wait and side step just at the last second to swing the sword at the legs of the horse to bring it down.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Durer-Irish-16thC.jpg

Also the three on the right are sporting the Irish 'glibbe' hairstyle - we mentioned this on another thread some time ago [are you there CDfm?].

And if you look at the knife that the far right guy is holding it looks like the Irish Skeen - a broad dagger - and was a weapon banned by Henry VIII [as were the Irish hairstyles BTW]. The Irish cloak/cape that the middle guy is wearing was also banned as it was easy to hide skeens under it.