The Irish Colleges at Alcala de Henares, 1649-1785

Little has been written on the Royal College of St George the Martyr at Alcalá de Henares, the last Irish College founded in Spain for the education of students for the priesthood during the time of religious persecution in Ireland. This study, based mainly on material in the Salamanca Archives at St Patrick's College, Maynooth, traces the lives of Irish clerical students from the time of Cromwell until the partial relaxation of the penal laws in the late 18th century. It is the story...
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Little has been written on the Royal College of St George the Martyr at Alcalá de Henares, the last Irish College founded in Spain for the education of students for the priesthood during the time of religious persecution in Ireland. This study, based mainly on material in the Salamanca Archives at St Patrick's College, Maynooth, traces the lives of Irish clerical students from the time of Cromwell until the partial relaxation of the penal laws in the late 18th century. It is the story of the many young men who left Ireland in that period and risked the hazardous journey by sea and land to spend seven years studying Arts, Philosophy and Theology at the renowned University of Alcalá de Henares. Drawing on long-overlooked documents it gives an account of the College, its rectors and students (including names and places of origin), and the main events of its time. It offers a vivid insight into the reality of the students' lives - what they ate (and drank), the clothes they wore (and how these were paid for), the courses they followed, their pastimes, their connections with Ireland. It records passing Irish visitors to the College, from the high-ranking to the lowly, among them soldiers, needy priests and people eager and able to help the work of the College by loans and donations.