The History Department is home to a culture of research excellence which is expressed in the scholarship of individual faculty, in ambitious collaborative ventures, and the vibrancy of postgraduate research. The range of expertise within the Department is considerable. The research interests of the faculty span the late medieval period to the twentieth century; incorporate Irish, European, and Middle Eastern history; and extends across the fields of political, social, and cultural history with particular strengths in urban history, Irish republicanism, art and architecture, local history, diplomatic relations, oral history, history of family, history of medicine, music histories, and history of universities.  Members of the Department lead the Centre for Early Modern Studies and engage in interdisciplinary research on print and material culture, the history of ideas, and religious thought, besides a range of other specialist interests.   

Dr Ciara BreathnachHistory of the family; medical humanities; health histories in late nineteenth and early twentieth-century Ireland; gender; visual history; the Irish in New Zealand and America.

Dr David FlemingEarly modern Ireland; history of localities; political, social and cultural history of eighteenth-century Ireland.

Dr Sara Hannafin: Irish migration and return, second-generation migrants, emotion for place and home, geography in education.

Dr Richard KirwanEarly-modern Germany; history of universities; early-modern print culture; History of the Reformation.

Dr Alistair MalcolmSpain in the golden age; diplomatic and court politics; cultural history; politics and artistic patronage.

Dr Karol Mullaney-DignamModern and early modern periods, encompassing aspects of social and cultural history, musicology, and historiography.

Dr Breandan MacGabhann:  Interaction of the biosphere and environmental change; modern urban ecosystem services; GIS and remote sensing.

Dr Niamh NicGhabhannIrish art and architectural histories; ecclesiastical architecture; antiquarianism; aspects of arts/heritage management and cultural policy.

Dr Rachel MurphyHistory of family; local history; landed estates; environmental history; digital and spatial humanities.

Dr Ruán O'DonnellModern Irish, European and Australian history, The United Irishmen; imperialism; Irish revolutionary movements; commemoration.

Dr Catherine Porter: Human geography, digital and spatial humanities; geographic information systems; history of cartography, early modern Britain and Ireland.

Contact the Department of History

The Department of History Office is located in the Main Building in Room C1076
The Head of Department is Dr. David Fleming
Individual staff members can be contacted through the details on their profile pages in the staff section
Email: history@ul.ie
Phone: +353 61 202280