plantation towns, Ulster, seventeenth century, historical geography
While previous Plantation schemes in Ireland such as that of Laois–Offaly and Munster in the second half of the sixteenth century had witnessed the emergence of some urban settlements, the scheme of Plantation drawn together for the lands of Ulster in the early seventeenth century was the first to contain formal plans relating to the establishment of a network of towns across the recently seized lands of Gaelic lords there. The establishment and development of this urban network over a relatively short period of time, and almost from naught, dramatically transformed Ulster’s landscape, economy and society. These ‘alien’ towns with their distinctive form alongside the assemblage of buildings and features – courthouses, market places and churches – which dominated their streetscapes were to become key components of the cultural landscape reflecting, legitimising and naturalising the new socio-economic and political order that had been imposed on Ulster as a result of plantation. Today, over four centuries after their conception, these towns remain as intriguing components of the cultural landscape. As attested to by this present volume of essays, they continue to provide a potent field of study for archaeologists, geographers and historians amongst others, interested in their origins, development and evolution .