Looking back: Armagh conference 2016

On Saturday 23rd April, the Church of Ireland Historical Society (COIHS) hosted its first conference of the year in the Armagh Public Library.

Ms Valerie Adams, who is librarian and archivist at the Presbyterian Historical Society, began proceedings with a broad overview of the Church of Ireland records housed in the Public Records Office of Northern Ireland. She highlighted, in particular, the ‘unique’ collection for Armagh diocese in PRONI which contained valuable manuscripts covering the medieval and early modern periods. Mr Ruairí Cullen, who is pursuing his PhD at Queen’s University, Belfast, was the second presenter of the day. He delivered an excellent paper on George T. Stokes and the oriental origins of Irish Christianity. After lunch, Dr Jane McKee of the University of Ulster gave a detailed assessment of the Drelincourt family and their Huguenot background. She focused especially on the interesting early Irish career of Peter Drelincourt who has strong connections with the seventeenth-century magnate, James Butler, Duke of Ormond. The day finished with a paper by Mr Colin Armstrong who talked about the life and accomplishments of Jeremy Taylor, the seventeenth-century bishop of Down and Dromore.

Members of the Society will be notified when the papers given by Dr McKee, Ms Adams and Mr Armstrong are available on podcast. If anyone wishes to hear these papers but has not joined the Society, you are welcome to subscribe to our annual membership by visiting our membership page. Postgraduate students can avail of our special discount membership but are asked to email the secretary with proof on institutional affiliation prior to subscribing. Please visit the contact page. All members of the public are welcome to join COIHS.