Historian Jane Ohlmeyer reflects on Ireland’s difficult relationship with imperialism in the early modern period

By Rhiannon Davies

Published: Wednesday, 24 January 2024 at 07:53 AM


Often described as England’s first colony, Ireland has a long – and deeply complicated – relationship with empire. Rhiannon Davies speaks to historian Jane Ohlmeyer to learn more about this complex picture, from how Ireland was a ‘laboratory of empire’ to how imperialism influenced the clothing people wore.

Jane Ohlmeyer is the author of Making Empire: Ireland, Imperialism, and the Early Modern World (Oxford University Press, 2023)