Arbuthnott Lectures

The Justin Arbuthnott Trust, held by the University, provides a postgraduate scholarship each year and this lecture, both of which are designed to promote the better understanding of Ireland and various complex relationships which link Ireland and Britain.

About the Trust

The Justin Arbuthnott Trust was founded by friends and family of Justin Arbuthnott, an Edinburgh University History student who was drowned along with three friends one night in July 1989 when their boat capsized off the coast near County Donegal in Ireland. It provides a postgraduate scholarship each year and this lecture, both of which are designed to promote the better understanding of Ireland and various complex relationships which link Ireland and and various complex relationships which link Ireland and Britain. 

Previous lectures have been given by Professor Diarmaid Ferriter MRIA (University College Dublin), Adrian O'Neill, Ireland's Ambassador to the UK, Professor Mary E. Daly on 'Independence and sovereignty - rhetoric and reality; the Irish story', and Professor Tom Bartlett on 'The Irish at war - and some of their historians'.

Justin Arbuthnott Lecture 2025: 'Women and work in modern Ireland'

The 2025 Justin Arbuthnott Lecture was delivered by Professor Ciara Breathnach, Professor of Irish Gender History, University College Cork on February 4th 2025. 

Professor of Irish Gender History, at University College Cork. Professor Breathnach is one of Ireland’s leading historians and has published prize-winning studies on Irish gender and social history. In this lecture she will explore the fascinating history of Irish women through the lens of work. 

Arbuthnott Lecture 2022 by Dr Niamh Gallagher: 'Ireland and the First World War: Myth, memory, and history'

The 2022 Arbuthnott Lecture was 'Ireland and the First World War: Myth, memory, and history' given by Dr Niamh Gallagher on Tuesday 14 June, 2022.

Arbuthnott Lecture 2018 by Adrian O'Neill: 'Confusion is Not an Ignoble Condition'

The 2018 Arbuthnott Lecture was 'Confusion is Not an Ignoble Condition'. Taking a long-range view, Ireland's Ambassador to the UK, Adrian O'Neill, explores the complexities of the Irish-British relationship in the shadow of Brexit.

Arbuthnott Lecture 2017 by Mary Daly: 'Independence and Sovereignty - rhetoric and reality; the Irish story'

The 2017 Arbuthnott Lecture was 'Independence and Sovereignty - rhetoric and reality; the Irish story' delivered by Mary Daly. Mary E. Daly is Professor Emeritus in Modern Irish History at University College Dublin.

Arbuthnott Lecture 2013 by Professor Tom Bartlett: 'The Irish at war - and some of their historians'

The 2013 Arbuthnott Lecture was 'The Irish at war - and some of their historians' delivered by Professor Tom Bartlett. 

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