logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2025
40m 59s

232. Colonising Ireland: The First Plant...

Goalhanger
About this episode

In 1607, after launching a failed rebellion in Ulster against the English, Hugh O’Neill and other Irish nobles are forced to flee Ireland, and their lands are confiscated. In response to the revolt, an insidious narrative about Irish people emerges in Tudor England, describing them as ‘caterpillars’ and ‘barbarians’ who needed ‘civilising’.


In the wake of the development of the Ulster Plantation, a group of London merchants establish The Honourable Irish Society to colonise County Derry, renaming it County Londonderry in an ode to their origins. How did the city’s 17th century history shape its role in The Troubles? And what’s the difference between plantations in Ireland and plantations in the Caribbean?


Listen as William and Anita are joined once again by Professor Jane Ohlmeyer at Jaipur Literature Festival to discuss English imperialism in Ireland in the early 1600s.


_____________


Empire UK Live Tour: The Booze & Brews live show is going on a UK tour! William and Anita will be discussing the extraordinary history of ordinary drinks such as tea, beer and gin & tonic, highlighting how interconnected our drinks cabinets are with the British Empire. Empire Club members will receive a link to the members' pre-sale on Wednesday 26th of February, and general sale goes live on Thursday 27th of February.


If any members who signed up through Apple Podcasts don't receive a link to the ticket presale, please email us at empire@goalhanger.com!



Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, and a weekly newsletter! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up.


Email: empire@goalhanger.com


Instagram: @empirepoduk 


Blue Sky: @empirepoduk 


X: @empirepoduk


goalhanger.com


Assistant Producer: Becki Hills


Producer: Anouska Lewis


Senior Producer: Callum Hill

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Up next
Yesterday
297. Gaza in WW1: A Rematch For Gallipoli (Part 7)
How did British Army General Murray fail to take Gaza in 1917? Who was General Allenby and how did his tactics in the cavalry charge on Gaza City lead to transformation in the region? What are the connections between the Gallipoli campaign and the siege of Gaza? Anita Anand and W ... Show More
43m 43s
Oct 5
296. Ottoman Gaza: Gunpowder Conquests & Rising Nationalism (Part 6)
In 1516, the Ottomans defeated the mighty Mamluk Empire in the Middle East, taking control of Gaza. How did Ottoman forces roll out scorched-earth tactics on Gaza City to punish those who had rebelled against them? How did the citrus and cotton industries develop in Ottoman Pales ... Show More
57m 1s
Oct 1
295. Crusader Gaza: Saladin & Richard The Lionheart (Part 5)
Why did Crusaders travel from Western Europe to Gaza and The Levant in the 11th century? Who was Saladin and how did he conquer the Franks? How did the Mamluks defeat the Mongols in the 1200s and usher in an era of prosperity for Gaza? Anita and William are joined by Jonathan Phi ... Show More
49m 7s
Recommended Episodes
Jun 2025
576. The Irish War of Independence: Rise of the IRA (Part 1)
What are the origins of the Irish War of Independence? What impact did the First World War have on Irish efforts for Home Rule? What was the mood in Ireland following the bloody Easter Rising of 1916? And, who was Éamon de Valera, the man who dominated the story of not only Irish ... Show More
1h 11m
Jul 2
579. The Irish War of Independence: Showdown in London (Part 4)
What were the terms of the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed in December 1921, following negotiations between the UK and Sinn Féin? How was it received by the Irish people? What was the process by which it was agreed between Lloyd George, Winston Churchill, Michael Collins, and Arthur G ... Show More
1h 6m
Jun 2025
578. The Irish War of Independence: Bloody Sunday (Part 3)
What occurred on Bloody Sunday on 21 November 1920 - a turning point in the Irish War of Independence and one of the bloodiest and most brutal moments in Irish history? How many British Army Officers were assassinated on the instructions of firebrand political leader, Michael Col ... Show More
59m 46s
Jun 2025
577. The Irish War of Independence: The Violence Begins (Part 2)
What was Sinn Féin’s totemic first move after winning a majority seat in 1917? Were the IRA’s methods during this early stages of the war as violent as they are commonly believed to have been? How sectarian was the IRA? What crucial strategy did the Irish adopt in order to overwh ... Show More
1h 4m
Sep 24
The Rising Storm: The American War of Independence & Ireland
This episode is part of a wider series on the 1798 Rebellion, but you can enjoy it as a stand-alone story.When the American Revolution broke out in the 1770s, it sent shock waves across the Atlantic, transforming Irish politics and society. To explore this enthralling story the e ... Show More
43 m
Aug 20
593. The Fight of the Century
Why did two men - John Heenan and and Tom Sayers - illegally meet in a field in Hampshire, in 1860, to brutally fight one another, captivating Britain in the process? What can the fight tell us about the nature of Britishness in the 19th century? Was this the birth of boxing? Who ... Show More
57m 19s
Sep 17
The Penal Laws: An Irish Apartheid?
This podcast opens a broader series on the 1798 Rebellion, but also works as a stand alone episode.For over a century, Irish Catholics and Presbyterians were subjected to the Penal Laws. Although the vast majority of the population, they were banned from voting, sitting in parlia ... Show More
47m 19s
Jul 2019
Rachel B. Herrmann, "No Useless Mouth: Waging War and Fighting Hunger in the American Revolution" (Cornell UP, 2019)
When the British explored the Atlantic coast of America in the 1580s, their relations with indigenous peoples were structured by food. The newcomers, unable to sustain themselves through agriculture, relied on the local Algonquian people for resources. This led to tension, and th ... Show More
43m 28s
Sep 9
After 1066: The Harrying of the North
Dr. Eleanor Janega unravels the blood-soaked aftermath of the Battle of Hastings and the Norman Conquest of England. Joined by Professor Levi Roach, Eleanor delves into the harrowing campaign, known as the Harrying of the North, where William the Conqueror brutally suppressed the ... Show More
51m 47s
Apr 2025
How Did the American Revolution Start?
On 19th April, 1775, just over 250 years ago, the opening salvos of the American Revolutionary War were fired at the battles of Lexington and Concord. Elite British Redcoats went head-to-head with the famed provincial Minutemen in bloody skirmishes across the Province of Massachu ... Show More
1h 18m