Project to bridge the gap between academic and public activity surrounding Ireland and the First World War
With Ireland’s ‘Decade of Commemorations’ underway, historians at Goldsmiths, University of London and the University of Exeter have created a special website to gather information and knowledge about Ireland’s involvement in the First World War.
The www.irelandWW1.org website project will collate research and event information and act as a networking forum to allow academics, and members of the public and various organisations to introduce themselves to each other.
Free-to-use resources not available elsewhere, will be hosted on the site. The first has been donated by the former mayor of Belfast, Cllr Tom Hartley, who has provided a detailed listing of war dead mentioned on family graves in Belfast City Cemetery. The site will also contain news, notification of events, and other resources invaluable to researchers engaged in this subject.
Professor Richard Grayson, Head of the Department of History at Goldsmiths, and Dr Catriona Pennell, lecturer in History at the University of Exeter, who jointly created the new website see it as a project which bridges the gap between academic and public activity relating to this important area of history.
Professor Grayson said: “Catriona and I have both been involved in a number of events which have flagged the amount of work going on around centenary celebrations. During these discussions, we have become aware that there are many connections which could be made between academics and community groups, but which have not yet been made. We want to do something about this, and believe that a website which acts as an information hub could be useful for academics and community groups.”
Dr Pennell commented: “We feel strongly that our own academic research is enhanced by close networking with the many community level organisers who are also engaged with the subject of Ireland and its forthcoming centenaries. We hope that this website will continue to develop positive working relations and collaborations between academics and non-university led organisations who share the same passion: to enhance public understanding of Ireland’s experience of the First World War.”
The Decade of Commemorations marks not only Ireland’s involvement in the First World War, but also other events such as the Ulster Covenant, the Easter Rising and the War of Independence. The Decade therefore comprises a series of significant centenary anniversaries occurring between 1912 and 1922. Those who fought in the First World War, and subsequent conflicts, will be commemorated at Remembrance services this Sunday (11 November).
Notes to editors
- For more information about the Department of History at Goldsmiths, University of London visit www.gold.ac.uk/history
- For more information about the Department of History at the University of Exeter visit http://humanities.exeter.ac.uk/history/
- About Goldsmiths, University of London:
Internationally renowned for its creative and innovative approach to teaching and research, Goldsmiths, University of London offers undergraduate, postgraduate, teacher training and return-to-study opportunities in subjects covering the arts, social sciences, humanities and computing.
Goldsmiths has been part of the University of London for more than 100 years, and is ranked 9th in the UK for world-leading 4* research (Research Assessment Exercise 2008). It is also recognised for its academic excellence, illustrated by Goldsmiths’ membership of the 1994 Group, which brings together a select number of research-focused universities.
- About the University of Exeter
The Sunday Times University of the Year 2012-13, the University of Exeter is a Russell Group university and in the top one percent of institutions globally. It combines world-class research with very high levels of student satisfaction. Exeter has over 18,000 students and is ranked 7th in The Sunday Times University Guide, 10th in the UK in The Times Good University Guide 2012 and 10th in the Guardian University Guide. In the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 90% of the University’s research was rated as being at internationally recognised levels and 16 of its 31 subjects are ranked in the top 10, with 27 subjects ranked in the top 20.
The University has invested strategically to deliver more than £350 million worth of new facilities across its campuses for 2012, including landmark new student services centres – the Forum in Exeter and The Exchange in Cornwall – and world-class new facilities for Biosciences, the Business School and the Environment and Sustainability Institute.
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