The Conquest ends in 1185 and the Topography describes the island as Gerald saw it in 1183 to 1185, so neither covers 1200, but they explain the lordship of Ireland as John found it: the grants of Leinster and Meath, the de Courcy conquest of Ulster, the Irish kings and their customs, and Gerald's advice on governing the country. Written by a kinsman of the Geraldine settlers and hostile to the Irish, which is the view most English lords held in 1200.
About this source
- Title
- Topographia Hibernica; Expugnatio Hibernica
- Author
- Gerald of Wales (Giraldus Cambrensis)
- Author's dates
- about 1146 to about 1223
- Written
- Topographia 1187 to 1188; Expugnatio 1189, revised later
- Language
- Latin
- Covers
- Ireland to 1185
- Kind
- History
Forester's translation omits some passages. The Scott and Martin edition is standard for the Expugnatio.
Where to read it
Editions
- J. F. Dimock (ed.), Giraldi Cambrensis Opera, Rolls Series 21, vol. 5 (1867)
- A. B. Scott and F. X. Martin (eds and trans.), Expugnatio Hibernica: The Conquest of Ireland (1978), Latin and English, not free (not freely online)
Translations
- T. Forester, The Topography of Ireland and The History of the Conquest of Ireland, in T. Wright (ed.), The Historical Works of Giraldus Cambrensis, Bohn (1863), English
- J. J. O'Meara, The History and Topography of Ireland, Penguin (1982), not free (not freely online)
Read it online
- Latin text, Rolls Series vol. 5, at the Internet Archive
- Forester's English translation at the Internet Archive