The first Irish cities. An eighteenth-century transformation. By David Dickson. Pp xiv, 336. London/New Haven: Yale University Press. 2021. £25.00.

Abstract

noticed only two errors of fact— both of which relate to place-names: p. 269, Castledermot, said to be situated in County Carlow, is actually in (nearby) County Kildare; and p. 409, Lough Ramor, said to be in County Meath, is in (nearby) County Cavan. There is, however, one shortcoming that deserves mention. Despite running to ten pages, the index is quite inadequate for a book of this calibre. To take just three omissions – from many that could be cited – a search for ‘Bruce’ will prove fruitless, but at least one may expect to find it at the beginning of chapter 4 (albeit with no indication that ‘Bruce invasion’ occurs on p. 125); likewise with the ‘Remonstrance of the Irish Princes’, referred to on pp 111–12; likewise, too, with the notorious Lord Lieutenant Tiptoft, earl of Worcester (mentioned on pp 190–93). A rather less significant irritant is the occurrence of three extensive quotations from the State Papers — given on pp 217–18 — surely a rendering in modern orthography, rather than that of the time of Henry VIII, would be more user-friendly?.