I see some people are reading this post as being about Exeter but it’s referring to the University of Hertfordshire. And that’s Owen’s point. Less coverage about the axe falling there but it’s equally sad.

Owen Davies@odavies9.bsky.social · 4d ago

So a whole lot of my talented Humanities colleagues are now unemployed as of today. A lot of understandable concern over Exeter. But for over two decades my Hums colleagues were in the top quartile for their research contribution to society. History top 10. Now gone with only a national whisper.

Such a waste. Thinking of my friends & colleagues in History & across Hums. UH History is where I really learned *how* to teach & how to drive my teaching with my research. A dept that really cared about their students. So many brilliant & talented people in my old dept.

Glen O'Hara@gsoh31.bsky.social · 4d ago

So it's farewell to the History subject area at the University of Hertfordshire, not the first nor the last to go. One of the best departments in the country, just extinguished like a snap of the fingers. Think of the waste. (1/2)

A new coauthored article just out on open access. Written with Finola O’Kane and Chris Nikkel, it looks at the ways that Irish families with connections to enslavement elide, remember, or forget those connections www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Rotten roots: the colonial genealogies of Irish enslavers

This article reinterprets Irish links to Atlantic slavery as a problem of kinship, inheritance, and family memory. It focuses in particular on genealogy as a technology of memory within enslaver fa...

tandfonline.com

The article was inspired by a call for ‘messier’ histories of the Irish family by @leannecalvert.bsky.social and Maeve O’Riordan in their 2024 special issue of The History of the Family www.tandfonline.com/toc/rhof20/2...

This petition needs as many signatories as the Exeter one. Please sign and share — don’t let Hertfordshire managers get away with this just because a Russell Group one took the spotlight. #UKHE

Joanna Bourke@joannabourke.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Shocking news about redundancies in the Humanities at the University of Hertfordshire, despite their exceptional research activities. I have signed the petition against these actions: it would be great if you would as well: c.org/kDQynZV7J4 @bbkhistorical.bsky.social @bisa-bkk.bsky.social

16thC outfit courtesy of Melissa Shiels, the roll is surprisingly heavy, but mantle ideal for working from home! @whaireland.bsky.social

I was on BBC Radio Ulster Talkback today with @williamcrawley.bsky.social talking about "Belfastmen: An Intimate History of Life before Gay Liberation" - listen here from 12:47pm! www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Radio Ulster - Listen Live - BBC Sounds

Listen live to Radio Ulster on BBC Sounds

bbc.co.uk

Final spaces available for our ‘Locating Loss: histories of infertility in landscapes and spaces’ conference next week @unioflimerick.bsky.social - 27 May. Free, all welcome (booking required) - we have a wonderful line-up of speakers on the day - www.irishhumanities.ie/news-events/...

Irish Humanities Alliance | Locating Loss

Locating Loss: Histories of Infertility in Landscapes and Spaces conference, University of Limerick on 27 May 2026.<br /> <br /> The aim of the Locating Loss project is to explore the spaces…

irishhumanities.ie

You can now read mine and @sarahfoxhistory.bsky.social new article about the remedies 18thc women took six weeks before birth. doi.org/10.1017/S001...

Tom Hulme’s ‘Belfastmen’ launched tonight by @sophcocooper.bsky.social at No Alibis

Thinking of my friends & former colleagues at UH in History & broader Hums. An excellent dept who do excellent research, deliver a top programme, & support local students to achieve their full potential. All done in spite of the challenges & obstacles that come their way.

University of Hertfordshire UCU@uhertfordshireucu.bsky.social · 3mo ago

On Friday afternoon before the Bank Holiday, colleagues in the Humanities department were called to a meeting on Tuesday. They were informed that the University Portfolio Review had decided that English Language, English Literature, Philosophy, History & Creative Writing UG degrees would close

Loved doing this, love the Jacob’s factory girlos! Thank you @dublincityheritage.bsky.social @dubcitycouncil.bsky.social

Claire Dagger@clairedagger.bsky.social · 4mo ago

"a veritable Bridgerton on the Bann" 😘 drb.ie/article/unho... Many thanks to Lynsey Black for this lovely review of my book, Pious & Promiscuous. Life, Love and Family in Ulster. @ria.ie @ulhistory.bsky.social @cemslimerick.bsky.social #HistSex #HistFam #PiousPromiscuous

CfP: Global Histories of Hair, c. 1500–2026 (Lucerne, Oct 8–10, 2026)🚨🗃️ We’re organizing an interdisciplinary conference on global histories, cultures, and legacies of hair. Researchers from all relevant fields and early-career scholars are encouraged to apply. All costs are covered. 📆 May 15, 2026

With St Valentine’s Day tomorrow, we’re dipping into some of the courtship rituals and games explored in Pious and Promiscuous by @leannecalvert.bsky.social Find out more about Pious and Promiscuous: shop.ria.ie/products/pious

FINALLY sitting down this evening with @leannecalvert.bsky.social's 2024 article on trans* histories of the family in 18th C Ireland and its absolutely 👌🌟 Also picking up more than a few further reading suggestions! doi.org/10.1080/1081...

‘Came to her dressed in mans cloaths’: transgender histories and queer approaches to the family in eighteenth-century Ireland

This article engages with queer and trans scholarship to produce a methodological think-piece on how to queer the Irish family. It draws on a case study of alleged crossdressing and attempted intim...

doi.org

Lovely piece on hair gift-giving by @leannecalvert.bsky.social who has been digging around in the hairy archives at PRONI.

The Conversation UK@uk.theconversation.com · 6mo ago

As a physical piece of a person that would outlast their human life, a lock of hair symbolised immortal love.

Struggling to pick a #ValentinesDay gift? The answer might be atop your head! Little piece from me in @theconversation.com about #hairy gifts & tokens #HistSex @ulhistory.bsky.social @ria.ie @unioflimerick.bsky.social theconversation.com/forget-flowe...

Forget flowers: lovers in 18th- and 19th-century Ireland exchanged hair

As a physical piece of a person that would outlast their human life, a lock of hair symbolised immortal love.

theconversation.com

*drum roll* Here is the cover for my book, which will be published by @cornellupress.bsky.social on 15 April 2026! I thought it would be nice to share a bit of info on who these men were and how their lives and interests inspired the design...

Please send us any photos you have of past IFRWH events! We'd love to show them off as part of our anniversary celebrations 🥰 Please share widely #HistWomen #GenderHist #WomenAlsoKnowHistory

Intl Federation for Research in Women's & Gender History@ifrwh-offical.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Next year will mark 40 years since the founding of IFRWH! If you attended one of our conferences or events and have photos, we'd love to receive them! Please share them with us: ifrwh1987@gmail.com We aim to use the photos at future events & build our archive #HistWomen #WomensHist #GenderHist

Have you published a book on transnational women's or gender history between 2020 and 2025? Do submit to the IFRWH book prize. Closing date for submissions is end Feb. Full details on eligibility & how to apply below. Please share! 👇#GenderHist #WomensHist

Intl Federation for Research in Women's & Gender History@ifrwh-offical.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Published a book on transnational women's or gender history 2020-25? 🚨Submissions to the Ida Blom-Karen Offen Book Prize in Transnational Women's & Gender History now open🚨You can see the full details on our website: www.ifrwh.com Closing date is 28 February 2026! #WomensHist #GenderHist

Lovely to see so many abstracts winging in today for the @whaireland.bsky.social conference in Limerick in May 😍 cfp closes 30 January so keep em coming! #WomensHist #GenderHist sites.google.com/view/whai202...

WHAI2026

Welcome to the homepage for the next Women's History Association of Ireland conference. Our next annual conference will take place 29-30 May 2026 at Mary Immaculate College, Limerick. The conferenc...

sites.google.com

Don't forget! Less than a week to submit your abstract for what promises to be a brilliant conference!

Society for the Study of Nineteenth Century Ireland @ssnci.bsky.social · 7mo ago

Don't forget to submit your abstract for our 2026 conference 'Intimacies in nineteenth-century Ireland' @maynoothuniversity.ie deadline for abstracts 1 Feb! For more see ssnci.org/annual-confe...

Calling History of Fam folks! UL are hiring an Assistant Professor in Irish History with specialism in #HistFam to cover a period of leave. I'm not on the panel but happy to informally answer qs about the MA HoF programme to anyone interested www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DQE158/a...

Assistant Professor in Irish History at University of Limerick

Apply for the Assistant Professor in Irish History role on jobs.ac.uk, the top job board for academic positions in higher education. View details and apply now.

jobs.ac.uk

Lovely to see my MA History of Family students sharing their research 🥰 Paula Cronin features in the Kilkenny People with a piece about her grandfather's career in the British Army "From Kilkenny to the Kyber Pass" @ulhistory.bsky.social #HistFam www.kilkennypeople.ie/news/history...

From Kilkenny to the Khyber Pass: Lance Corporal William Ryan and the making of an imperial soldier

A family history revealed a surprise Kilkenny connection

kilkennypeople.ie

Don't forget to submit your abstract for our 2026 conference 'Intimacies in nineteenth-century Ireland' @maynoothuniversity.ie deadline for abstracts 1 Feb! For more see ssnci.org/annual-confe...

Request for #skystorians Im finishing a piece on food&sex & looking for scholarship to cite on ingestion as an allegory for intercourse. Partic interested in food moving through the body, changing shape & form. I have Rachel Hope Cleves new book & a super PhD thesis by Catherine Rose Ellis #HistSex

If you’re at a loose end tonight, come along to the first Galway Archeological and Historical Society lecture of the year! I’m speaking on tangled knots of sibling obligation, guardianship, unravelling family reputation and the nephews caught in the crossfire (poor Edmund). The Harbour Hotel at 8pm!

#ICYMI or need something to liven up your week back to work, click below to listen to me chat to Fin Dwyer about the sex lives of Presbyterians in 18th century Ulster. We cover baby daddy drama, masturbation, adultery & more #HistSex @ulhistory.bsky.social #IrishHist #NewBook #HistFam

University of Limerick@unioflimerick.bsky.social · 7mo ago

UL's Dr Leanne Calvert joins Fin Dwyer on the Irish History Podcast to discuss her research into the secret sex lives of Presbyterians in Ulster in the 18th century, which she has revealed in her book, Pious & Promiscuous: Life, Love & Family in Presbyterian Ulster. open.spotify.com/episode/6dkU...