Leaving in Irish culture, politics and history

Taking French Leave
The Eleventh Percy French Festival
Leaving in Irish Culture, Politics and History

Organised by Dr Brian Griffin and Professor John Strachan
Castlecoote House, County Roscommon
10 to 12 July 2019

Call for papers

‘Taking French Leave’ is the title of the annual Percy French Festival, to be held at Castlecoote House, Co. Roscommon, from 10 to 12 July 2019. Part of the festival proceedings will consist of a conference taking the topic of 'leaving' in Irish culture, politics and history as its theme. Holding such a conference is particularly opportune in 2019, which marks the centenary of the beginning of the Irish War of Independence, the start of the departure of most of Ireland from the United Kingdom; it is also 70 years since Ireland left the Commonwealth in 1949, and 2019 is the year when Northern Ireland, along with the rest of the United Kingdom, leaves the European Union.

Proposals are invited for papers of 20 minutes in length that explore any aspect of the topic of 'leaving' in Irish culture, politics and history. It is intended to publish the conference proceedings in a special issue of the peer-reviewed journal, Irish Studies Review, in 2020.

Abstracts of around 200 words should be sent to the guest editors of the special issue, Dr Brian Griffin (b.griffin@bathspa.ac.uk) and Professor John Strachan (j.strachan@bathspa.ac.uk) and by Friday 1 February 2019.