The Scot in Ulster: Sketch of the History of the Scottish Population of Ulster

Harrison, John

Books Ulster

Sir John William Byers (1853-1920) was an eminent medical professional who had a passion for Ulster language and folklore. In the course of his distinguished career, and in his travels around the country, he collected words, expressions and superstitions of the people and studied them for origin and meaning. In 1904 he published 'Sayings, Proverbs and Humour of Ulster' which was based on the text of a lecture delivered to the Belfast Natural History and Philosophical Society in the previous year and on a paper contributed to the 'Northern Whig' newspaper in May 1901. His sudden and untimely death prevented the publication of a much more substantial work that had been in preparation for some years.

Sayings, Proverbs, and Humour of Ulster

Reference

Byers, Sir John William

Words, Language & Grammar

Stage magician and inventor John Nevil Maskelyne (1839-1917) made it his mission to expose fakes and charlatans who claimed supernatural abilities for personal gain. In 'The Fraud of "Theosophy" Exposed' (1912) he applied his fine mind and acerbic wit to debunking the founding gurus of the Theosophical Society and, most particularly, the outrageous hoaxer Helen Petrovna Blavatsky, or 'Madame Blavatsky' as she was commonly known. He regarded her as the greatest impostor of all time: "Hypnotism may account for the extraordinary influence and fascination which Madame Blavatsky was able to exercise over some people, and yet she was one of the most repulsive women one can imagine. A glance at the excellent sketch of her in this pamphlet will show that she had the appearance of being a gross, vulgar, sensual adventuress. (She turned the scale at 17 stone.) The enormous ring upon her hand, she said, possessed magical power. She had an enormous appetite, consuming vast quantities of fat meat, although her doctrine teaches that it is a deadly sin to eat meat. She had an insatiable love for tobacco, and was seldom seen without a cigarette in her mouth. Her language at times was too bad for publication." This new edition, with the text reset, includes notes that provide some additional background information.

The Fraud of Modern "Theosophy" Exposed: And the Miraculous Rope-Trick of the Indian Jugglers Explained

Maskelyne, John Nevil

Rowlinson, Derek A

Religion & Spirituality

Popular Rhymes and Sayings of Ireland

History

Marshall, John J.

Historical Study & Educational Resources

The new owner of a shop discovers his predecessor’s journal and embarks on an emotional journey that will change the course of his life. As he reads the bookseller’s diary, he becomes gripped by a compelling curiosity to know more about the man and the past of which he never spoke. “Despite the image the outside world may have had of him, Truelove most certainly had his lighter side. I knew from the outset that he was dead, because that was the reason given for the property coming on to the market. It was cruelly frustrating to think that I might have passed him on the street and not known who he was. I also felt a deep sense of regret at never having had occasion to seek out the bookshop when he was still alive. Through his journal I got to know the man in a way surpassed by only one other person, and that story began where the silk bookmark had been placed.” Truelove’s Journal is a gentle, touching story of life, love, and a passion for books.

Truelove's Journal: A Bookshop Novella

Literature & Fiction

Featherstonehaugh, Ralph St John

Literary

William R. Young's Fighters of Derry has for decades been one of the most overlooked works on the Siege of Derry and as a local genealogical resource. First published in 1932, the book was the product of ten years’ research which the author undertook when suffering from ill-health in the latter part of his life. He died in the following year. His reason for writing it is given in the Preface: “The history of the great Defence [of Derry] and the honour of the Defenders are safe in such hands [Lord Macaulay and Dr. Witherow]: but it has occurred to me that the present-day generation of Ulstermen, of all political creeds, whether Protestant or Roman Catholic, would be interested in a work giving short sketches of the men who played prominent parts in this great epic and subsequent campaign down to the fall of Limerick, with particulars of their family, antecedents, and present representative. There is scarcely an Ulsterman whose ancestry, direct or through a female line, has not some hereditary touch with participants in those memorable events.” The book is essentially divided into two parts: the first contains 1660 biographical entries relating to the defenders of Derry and the second has 352 on the Jacobite side, although some merely record the name and regiment or the name alone. Young was a proud Ulsterman and Unionist, but was nevertheless quick to acknowledgement the gallantry of the Irish who fought on the side of King James: “Though foiled at Derry and beaten at the Boyne (where a gallant Irishman is said to have exclaimed “Change Kings and we’ll fight you again!”), they fought desperately on at Athlone and Aughrim to the walls of Limerick, where they again and again proved the worth of an Irish soldier. There can to-day be nothing but sympathy and admiration for the thousands of Irishmen who, after Limerick, rather than accept extinction in their own land, elected to become exiles and serve in the armies of Spain and France, where the Irish Brigades in many a hard-fought battle proved themselves second to none, while their officers, in many cases, served with such distinction as to found families once ranking among the grandees of Spain, or high in the nobility of other continental countries.” Apart from individual accounts of eminent protagonists in the siege, such as David Cairnes, Rev. George Walker, the Duke of Schomberg, Patrick Sarsfield, etc., and the not so eminent too, there is also background given to many of the most influential families involved in the conflict.   This new edition provides a short biographical sketch of the author and has been enhanced with illustrations. The index has also been revised and substantially extended.

Fighters of Derry: Their Deeds and Descendants, Being a Chronicle of Events in Ireland during the Revolutionary Period, 1688–91

Young, William R.

Europe

The Bush that Burned

Foster, Lydia Mary

More than two centuries after the 1798 rebellion in Ireland the legend of Betsy Gray still refuses to die. The story remains as compelling as ever. In the company of her brother George, and her lover, Willy Boal, she is reputed to have ridden into the Battle of Ballynahinch wearing a green silk dress and brandishing a brightly burnished sword; but who she really was, where she came from, or even if she ever existed at all, are questions of contention yet. Whereas W. G. Lyttle’s novel Betsy Gray, first published in 1888, is not entirely historical, the author was evidently convinced of her identity and that she came from Gransha, near Bangor, County Down. Whatever the truth, his account of events in the area before, during and after the rising, based largely on interviews he conducted with locals whose relatives had suffered in it, continues to grip the imagination today.  This new edition includes an introduction to the author and his work, an essay on the legend of Betsy Gray, additional footnotes and a glossary of words used in the dialogue.

Betsy Gray or Hearts of Down: A Tale of Ninety-Eight

Lyttle, W. G.

This facsimile reprint of the Belfast and Province of Ulster Directory for 1852, published by James Alexander Henderson, is an invaluable resource for the genealogist and social historian alike. The book contains an historical retrospect of the city of Belfast as well as providing a description of the mid-nineteenth century religious, educational and literary institutions, jails, transport, etc. Apart from the street directory of Belfast, which gives names and occupations of the inhabitants of each street, there is an alphabetical directory, a professions and trades directory, and a directory of country residents. The provincial directory includes names of office holders, gentry, clergy and traders of the following towns and cities: Antrim, County; Antrim, Town; Ardglass; Armagh, County; Armagh, City; Aughnacloy; Ballibay; Ballycastle; Ballymena; Ballymoney; Ballynahinch; Banbridge; Ballyclare; Bangor; Blackwatertown; Carrickfergus; Castleblayney; Castledawson; Cavan, County; Cavan, Town; Clones; Coleraine; Comber; Cookstown; Donaghadee; Donegal, County; Down, County; Downpatrick; Dromore; Dungannon; Enniskillen; Fermanagh, County; Hillsborough; Larne; Lisburn; Londonderry, County; Londonderry, City; Lurgan; Maghera; Monaghan, County; Monaghan, Town; Moneymore; Moy and Charlemont; Newry; Newtownards; Portadown; Randalstown; Saintfield; Tyrone, County; Ulster, Province. The book also includes over 60 full pages of advertisements for various products and services.

The Belfast and Province of Ulster Directory for 1852

Henderson, James Alexander

In Orangeism as it was and is (first published in 1899) Richard Niven gives a brief, but thoroughly informative account of the history and nature of the Orange Institution from its formation in 1795 following the 'Battle of the Diamond' in Armagh to the arrest of William Johnston of Ballykilbeg for heading an Orange procession from Newtownards to Bangor on the 12th  of July 1867. However, the greater part of the book is devoted to reports on the ‘Battle of Dolly’s Brae’ in which Orangemen and Ribbonmen clashed following a 'Twelfth' procession near Castlewellan, County Down, in 1849. It is believed that a minimum of thirty people were killed in the incident and many others wounded.

Orangeism as it was and is: A Concise History of the Rise and Progress of the Institution

Niven, Richard

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