Kathleen Hughes (historian)

Kathleen Winifred Hughes (born 8 September 1926 in Middlesbrough, † 20 April 1977) was an English historian that a new image of early Christian Irish church developed through a systematic study of contemporary sources, and thus the research in this area for decades coined. In particular, they studied the relationships of early Christian Irish Church to Wales, Scotland, England and continental Europe.

Academic Journey

After completing her schooling she began her studies in 1944 at Bedford College, University of London. After the completion of studies and the additional teaching degree, she started as a PhD student with research on the Holy Finnian of Clonard. As the story of Finnian of Clonard and is closely associated with Llancarfan in Wales, she dealt with the early relations between Ireland and Wales. Among other things, by the lectures of Francis Wormald, she developed a deep interest in ancient manuscripts and medieval art. They also learned at this time in several trips to Oxford and Ireland Old and Middle Irish, what you opened the way to the medieval sources. She closed her doctorate in 1951 from.

From 1951 to 1955 she worked as an Assistant Lecturer in History at Royal Holloway College. Then she got a job as a lecturer in history at Newnham College, Cambridge. In 1957 she was appointed University Assistant Lecturer in the Faculty of History. In 1976 she took over the succession of Nora Chadwick as a lecturer for the early history and culture of the British Isles.

Works

Her early publications were in particular the holy Finnian, his connection to Wales and Clonard one. There were also increased analysis of some medieval manuscripts. Then began generalizing works on the early Christian Church in Ireland, which is about pilgrimages treated or the training of monks. Particular importance was her 1966 published book The Church in Early Irish Society, the embedding of the early Christian church in the then Irish society represented comprehensively for the first time here.

In her other works, she intensified her research of early medieval Ireland contacts to the Picts and England. Law known was her 1972 published book about the primary sources for the early medieval church history of Ireland Early Christian Ireland: Introduction to the Sources.

Numerous essays published until after her untimely death in 1977, including in particular their confrontation with earlier ideas about the early Christian Church Irish The Celtic Church:. Is this a Valid Concept? and the updated work The church in Irish society, 400-800 for the legislation then still in planning row A New History of Ireland.

Appreciation of her work

Dáibhí Ó Cróinín, the publisher of the work Prehistoric and Early Ireland, recognizes the work of Kathleen Hughes from the perspective of 2005: Although some recent work also revise the view of Hughes in part, it was undoubtedly the most important historian of the Irish Church history of their generation. With her ​​work, The church in early Irish society by 1966 she had the area of previous stereotypes and freed with her ​​work of 1972 on the sources for early medieval church history, she pointed the way forward.

In 2000, began a series of lectures held annually in memory of Kathleen Hughes about the medieval history of Wales at the Hughes Hall, Cambridge.

Bibliography of selected works

• Kathleen Hughes: The Church in Early Irish Society. Methuen & Co Ltd, 1966.
• Kathleen Hughes: Early Christian Ireland: Introduction to the Sources. Cornell University Press, 1972, ISBN 0-8014-9135-5.
• Kathleen Hughes and Ann Hamlin: The Modern Traveller to the Early Irish Church. London, 1977. 1997 and 2004 appeared in a new edition at Four Courts Press, ISBN 1-85182-194-5.
• Kathleen Hughes: The Celtic Church: Is this a Valid Concept? . In: Cambridge Medieval Celtic Studies, Year 1981, Issue 1, pages 1-20. ( This publication is based on a lecture as O'Donnell Lecturer at the University of Oxford by Hughes from the year 1974/75 She herself had to publish a revised version, . However, was prevented by her early death in it. )
• Kathleen Hughes: The church in Irish society, 400-800. Written in 1974, but published only in 2005 in the band Prehistoric and Early Ireland, ISBN 0-19-821737-4.