University of Galway

Course Module Information

Course Modules

Semester 1 | Credits: 10

By several criteria, the period 1801-1921 was a stagnant one in Galway's history. Population statistics show a slight decline, and trade figures have a similar trajectory. It was a period of great change nonetheless, during which the state established major institutions - including a workhouse and a university; during which the railway and steamships revolutionised transport; during which there was institutional reform, several extensions to the electoral franchise, and a political revolution. Using documentary sources and the interpretative approach of 'history from below', students will examine the response of ordinary Galway people to changes in the world around them, in the spheres of education, work and welfare, entertainment, religion, and politics.
(Language of instruction: English)

Learning Outcomes
  1. Understand the patterns of Irish urban development, 1800-1922, and how Galway’s experience fitted within it.
  2. Evaluate the applicability of the approach of ‘history from below’ to the task of representing the lives of Galwegians
  3. Understand the placed played by civic, religious, and educational institutions in the everyday lives of Galwegians
  4. Understand the ways in which history is written by looking at a range of primary sources: statistical and pictorial, as well as the several types of prose sources.
Assessments
  • Continuous Assessment (100%)
Teachers
Reading List
  1. "'A town tormented by the sea'" by John Cunningham
    ISBN: 0906602327.
    Publisher: Geography Publications
  2. "Irish towns" by edited by William Nolan and Anngret Simms
    ISBN: 0906602262.
    Publisher: Geography Publications
The above information outlines module HI165: "Life In Urban Galway from the Act of Union to the Anglo-Irish Treaty" and is valid from 2017 onwards.
Note: Module offerings and details may be subject to change.