Conor Kostick - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Conor Kostick
Chronologically-secure volcanic event histories are important for improving our understanding of ... more Chronologically-secure volcanic event histories are important for improving our understanding of volcano-climate responses, and securing ice core chronologies. We present an exploratory case-study that attempts to reconcile the chemical fingerprints of major volcanism in Greenland ice-cores for the years 670e730 CE. This period experienced considerable volcanic perturbation with multiple volcanic signals registered in all 8 Greenland ice-core datasets studied, including some comparable in magnitude to the great 1815 Tambora eruption, but reconciling signals with divergent dating between datasets presents a number of challenges. To further our understanding of the volcanic history of this period, frost-rings, tree-ring growth width and density minima from Europe, Siberia and China are considered together with Western European, Near Eastern and Chinese documentary evidence. These reveal a striking sequence of co-occurring inter-regional climatic extremes and social crises. We further examine a recently proposed 7-year adjustment to the GICC05 chronology used by many Greenland ice cores, and find that this results in a more coherent volcanic history for these years, and an improved agreement with tree-ring and written records. Three major volcanic events can now be identified, dated to 681, 684 e686 and 706e707, with several moderate events further contributing to a sustained climate pertur- bation reflected in prolonged temperature reductions in high-resolution reconstructions.
Societal Resilience; Cailbrating Ice-Cores; Richard III; disability; MRSA
The contribution of Irish workers to the struggle for independence (1918 - 1923) has been hugely ... more The contribution of Irish workers to the struggle for independence (1918 - 1923) has been hugely underestimated. It is only by including Ireland's history of soviets, general strikes and popular boycotts that we can fully appreciate the context for the eventual climbdown by Britain.
A conference for early career medievalists, supported by the British Academy. This will explore t... more A conference for early career medievalists, supported by the British Academy. This will explore the relevance of medieval research to high impact questions. It will assist in the formation of networks for research and grant capture.
Post Classical Archaeologies, 2015
This paper discusses volcanic eruptions and their climate impact in Europe 400-800 CE. Combining ... more This paper discusses volcanic eruptions and their climate impact in Europe 400-800 CE. Combining the historical evidence with that from proxy sources, it expands upon existing knowledge of these events as well as highlighting previously unrecognized or misdated erup- tions. The four case studies indicate that the cumulative effect of two or more eruptions within a short space of time may have had the greatest impact on the historical record. Keywords: volcano, eruption, climate, crises, sources
Volcanic eruptions contribute to climate variability, but quantifying these contributions has bee... more Volcanic eruptions contribute to climate variability, but quantifying these contributions has been limited by inconsistencies in the timing of atmospheric volcanic aerosol loading determined from ice cores and subsequent cooling from climate proxies such as tree rings. Here we resolve these inconsistencies and show that large eruptions in the tropics and high latitudes were primary drivers of interannual-to-decadal temperature variability in the Northern Hemisphere during the past 2,500 years. Our results are based on new records of atmospheric aerosol loading developed from high-resolution, multi-parameter measurements from an array of Greenland and Antarctic ice cores as well as distinctive age markers to constrain chronologies. Overall, cooling was proportional to the magnitude of volcanic forcing and persisted for up to ten years after some of the largest eruptive episodes. Our revised timescale more firmly implicates volcanic eruptions as catalysts in the major sixth-century pandemics, famines, and socioeconomic disruptions in Eurasia and Mesoamerica while allowing multi-millennium quantification of climate response to volcanic forcing.
Authors: M. Sigl, M. Winstrup, J. R. McConnell, K. C. Welten, G. Plunkett, F. Ludlow, U. Büntgen, M. Caffee, N. Chellman, D. Dahl-Jensen, H. Fischer, S. Kipfstuhl, C. Kostick, O. J. Maselli, F. Mekhaldi, R. Mulvaney, R. Muscheler, D. R. Pasteris, J. R. Pilcher, M. Salzer, S. Schüpbach, J. P. Steffensen, B. M. Vinther & T. E. Woodruff.
In Conor Kostick (ed.), Medieval Italy, Medieval and Early Modern Women: Essays in Honour of Christine Meek (Dublin), 2010
in A.V. Murray (ed.), The Crusades to the Holy Land (Santa Barbara, 2015), pp. 290 - 2.
A short essay that identifies the decline of Fatimid Egypt and the race for control of the Nile a... more A short essay that identifies the decline of Fatimid Egypt and the race for control of the Nile as the key strategic question for the crusaders.
War in History, 2013
Previous surveys of medieval thinking with regard to courage and cowardice have concluded that th... more Previous surveys of medieval thinking with regard to courage and cowardice have concluded that the greatest opprobrium was reserved for those knights who turned and fled from battle. A close examination of the many sources for the First Crusade, however, indicates that such battlefield behaviour was far less of an issue than that of desertion from the campaign. There is no comparison between the anger and violent expression of dismay directed towards those who abandoned the crusade and that levelled at those who fled from fighting. What this suggests is that the all-or-nothing nature of the enterprise, once it was far from Christian territories, combined with a theology that equated leaving the army with the violation of a pilgrim’s oath, altered the participant’s concept of cowardice. Leaving the crusade was the highest form of cowardice and all other displays of fear were relatively excusable.
German History, 2010
Modern discussion of the failure of Conrad III's army in Anatolia whilst on crusade in 1148 has m... more Modern discussion of the failure of Conrad III's army in Anatolia whilst on crusade in 1148 has mainly concentrated on the question of logistical supply, and there is no doubt that
lack of food and water played a considerable part in weakening the crusading forces. But there are important near-contemporary Latin sources, including ones written by authors resident in the kingdom of Germany who had spoken to returned crusaders, that provide evidence that social unrest within the ranks of Conrad's army played an important part in the failure of the expedition.
Journal of the History of Ideas, 2004
in Studies on Medieval and Early Modern Women 4: Victims or Viragos, 57-68, 2008
The Journal of Military History, 2009
Studies in Church History, 2009
Studies in Church History, 2010
Chronologically-secure volcanic event histories are important for improving our understanding of ... more Chronologically-secure volcanic event histories are important for improving our understanding of volcano-climate responses, and securing ice core chronologies. We present an exploratory case-study that attempts to reconcile the chemical fingerprints of major volcanism in Greenland ice-cores for the years 670e730 CE. This period experienced considerable volcanic perturbation with multiple volcanic signals registered in all 8 Greenland ice-core datasets studied, including some comparable in magnitude to the great 1815 Tambora eruption, but reconciling signals with divergent dating between datasets presents a number of challenges. To further our understanding of the volcanic history of this period, frost-rings, tree-ring growth width and density minima from Europe, Siberia and China are considered together with Western European, Near Eastern and Chinese documentary evidence. These reveal a striking sequence of co-occurring inter-regional climatic extremes and social crises. We further examine a recently proposed 7-year adjustment to the GICC05 chronology used by many Greenland ice cores, and find that this results in a more coherent volcanic history for these years, and an improved agreement with tree-ring and written records. Three major volcanic events can now be identified, dated to 681, 684 e686 and 706e707, with several moderate events further contributing to a sustained climate pertur- bation reflected in prolonged temperature reductions in high-resolution reconstructions.
Societal Resilience; Cailbrating Ice-Cores; Richard III; disability; MRSA
The contribution of Irish workers to the struggle for independence (1918 - 1923) has been hugely ... more The contribution of Irish workers to the struggle for independence (1918 - 1923) has been hugely underestimated. It is only by including Ireland's history of soviets, general strikes and popular boycotts that we can fully appreciate the context for the eventual climbdown by Britain.
A conference for early career medievalists, supported by the British Academy. This will explore t... more A conference for early career medievalists, supported by the British Academy. This will explore the relevance of medieval research to high impact questions. It will assist in the formation of networks for research and grant capture.
Post Classical Archaeologies, 2015
This paper discusses volcanic eruptions and their climate impact in Europe 400-800 CE. Combining ... more This paper discusses volcanic eruptions and their climate impact in Europe 400-800 CE. Combining the historical evidence with that from proxy sources, it expands upon existing knowledge of these events as well as highlighting previously unrecognized or misdated erup- tions. The four case studies indicate that the cumulative effect of two or more eruptions within a short space of time may have had the greatest impact on the historical record. Keywords: volcano, eruption, climate, crises, sources
Volcanic eruptions contribute to climate variability, but quantifying these contributions has bee... more Volcanic eruptions contribute to climate variability, but quantifying these contributions has been limited by inconsistencies in the timing of atmospheric volcanic aerosol loading determined from ice cores and subsequent cooling from climate proxies such as tree rings. Here we resolve these inconsistencies and show that large eruptions in the tropics and high latitudes were primary drivers of interannual-to-decadal temperature variability in the Northern Hemisphere during the past 2,500 years. Our results are based on new records of atmospheric aerosol loading developed from high-resolution, multi-parameter measurements from an array of Greenland and Antarctic ice cores as well as distinctive age markers to constrain chronologies. Overall, cooling was proportional to the magnitude of volcanic forcing and persisted for up to ten years after some of the largest eruptive episodes. Our revised timescale more firmly implicates volcanic eruptions as catalysts in the major sixth-century pandemics, famines, and socioeconomic disruptions in Eurasia and Mesoamerica while allowing multi-millennium quantification of climate response to volcanic forcing.
Authors: M. Sigl, M. Winstrup, J. R. McConnell, K. C. Welten, G. Plunkett, F. Ludlow, U. Büntgen, M. Caffee, N. Chellman, D. Dahl-Jensen, H. Fischer, S. Kipfstuhl, C. Kostick, O. J. Maselli, F. Mekhaldi, R. Mulvaney, R. Muscheler, D. R. Pasteris, J. R. Pilcher, M. Salzer, S. Schüpbach, J. P. Steffensen, B. M. Vinther & T. E. Woodruff.
In Conor Kostick (ed.), Medieval Italy, Medieval and Early Modern Women: Essays in Honour of Christine Meek (Dublin), 2010
in A.V. Murray (ed.), The Crusades to the Holy Land (Santa Barbara, 2015), pp. 290 - 2.
A short essay that identifies the decline of Fatimid Egypt and the race for control of the Nile a... more A short essay that identifies the decline of Fatimid Egypt and the race for control of the Nile as the key strategic question for the crusaders.
War in History, 2013
Previous surveys of medieval thinking with regard to courage and cowardice have concluded that th... more Previous surveys of medieval thinking with regard to courage and cowardice have concluded that the greatest opprobrium was reserved for those knights who turned and fled from battle. A close examination of the many sources for the First Crusade, however, indicates that such battlefield behaviour was far less of an issue than that of desertion from the campaign. There is no comparison between the anger and violent expression of dismay directed towards those who abandoned the crusade and that levelled at those who fled from fighting. What this suggests is that the all-or-nothing nature of the enterprise, once it was far from Christian territories, combined with a theology that equated leaving the army with the violation of a pilgrim’s oath, altered the participant’s concept of cowardice. Leaving the crusade was the highest form of cowardice and all other displays of fear were relatively excusable.
German History, 2010
Modern discussion of the failure of Conrad III's army in Anatolia whilst on crusade in 1148 has m... more Modern discussion of the failure of Conrad III's army in Anatolia whilst on crusade in 1148 has mainly concentrated on the question of logistical supply, and there is no doubt that
lack of food and water played a considerable part in weakening the crusading forces. But there are important near-contemporary Latin sources, including ones written by authors resident in the kingdom of Germany who had spoken to returned crusaders, that provide evidence that social unrest within the ranks of Conrad's army played an important part in the failure of the expedition.
Journal of the History of Ideas, 2004
in Studies on Medieval and Early Modern Women 4: Victims or Viragos, 57-68, 2008
The Journal of Military History, 2009
Studies in Church History, 2009
Studies in Church History, 2010
A great deal has been written about tactical play in the game of Diplomacy, but hardly anything o... more A great deal has been written about tactical play in the game of Diplomacy, but hardly anything on the best approaches to the negotiation side of the game. And yet it is the person-to-person interactions that give the game its distinctive character and which create the most interesting challenges. How do you form strong alliances? How can you tell if an ally is about to stab? Are there techniques you can use to break up the strong alliance of your opponents? In the Art of Correspondence in the Game of Diplomacy, Conor Kostick discusses these issues and many more. Through an in-depth analysis of the full correspondence of two classic games and through dozens of other examples, he offers a unique insight into what makes for effective negotiation in the game. This highly original contribution to the study of the game of Diplomacy is for readers who wish to improve their own play or who will enjoy witnessing the normally secret workings of the game, as players steer towards victory or disaster. Conor Kostick is an award winning military historian and novelist. He was an outright winner of Manorcon, one of Diplomacy's Grand Prix tournaments, and he was a member of the Irish Diplomacy team that won the world correspondence team championship in 2012.
From a staunchly Republican family, Michael O’Hanrahan’s outwardly quiet and serious demeanour co... more From a staunchly Republican family, Michael O’Hanrahan’s outwardly quiet and serious demeanour concealed a burning desire to see an independent Ireland. He was instrumental in setting up the first branch of the Gaelic League in Carlow. Michael also helped found the workingman’s club in Carlow, which he left when they decided to admit a British soldier. After moving to Dublin, he played important roles in both Sinn Fein and the Irish Volunteers. As quartermaster of the Volunteers, he was responsible for the procurement of many of the arms used in the Easter Rising. Michael O’Hanrahan was also a talented journalist and novelist whose development was cut short by his execution in 1916.
In this new biography Conor Kostick brings to life a man who helped launch the 1916 Rising.
Dispersed groups of armoured men are wielding long axes in a meadow on the southwest border of Le... more Dispersed groups of armoured men are wielding long axes in a meadow on the southwest border of Leinster. They are sweating in the sunshine and would welcome the opportunity to rest in the shade of a nearby line of trees. It is not timber that these men are hacking but heads from the several hundred corpses that are lying in the tall grass. Blood has been sprayed over the yellow marigolds and buttercups and has collected in dark, scarlet pools.
The First Crusade has failed to attract the attention of historians interested in social dynamics... more The First Crusade has failed to attract the attention of historians interested in social dynamics. This book is the first to examine the sociology of the sources in order to provide a detailed analysis of the various social classes which participated in the expedition and the tensions between them. In doing so, it offers a fresh approach to the many debates surrounding the subject of the First Crusade
The crusades are often seen as epitomising a period when hostility between the Christian West and... more The crusades are often seen as epitomising a period when hostility between the Christian West and the Muslim Near East reached an all-time high. As this edited volume reveals, however, the era was one which saw both conflict and cohabitation. Tackling such questions as whether medicinal and architectural innovations came to Europe as a direct result of the crusades, and why and how peace treaties
and intermarriages were formed between the different cultures, a distinguished group of contributors reveals how the Holy Wars led on the one hand to a reinforcement
of the beliefs and identities of each side, but on the other to a growing level of cultural exchange and interaction. This volume breaks new ground in exploring not only the conflict between the Christian and the Muslim worlds, but the impact of this conflict on the cultural evolution of European and Near Eastern thought and practices. Utilising the latest scholarship and original studies of the sources, this survey sheds new light on the cultural realities of East–West relations and marks a new departure for studies of the crusades.
Contributors include John France, Yehoshua Frenkel, Chris Wright, Natasha Hodgson, Alan V. Murray, Sini Kangas, Léan Ní Chléirigh, Susan Edgington, Jürgen Krüger, Yvonne Friedman and Bernard Hamilton.
The most extraordinary siege in medieval history began with the arrival of a Christian army at Je... more The most extraordinary siege in medieval history began with the arrival of a Christian army at Jerusalem in the dawn of 7 June 1099. There were other sieges that lasted longer, involved greater numbers of troops and deployed more siege engines, but nothing else in the entire medieval period compares to the extraordinary journey that the besiegers had made to reach their goal and the heady religious direction they had been given by the pope to embark on this military pilgrimage, the First Crusade
Warfare and the Miraculous in the Chronicles of the First Crusade. Elizabeth Lapina. University P... more Warfare and the Miraculous in the Chronicles of the First Crusade. Elizabeth Lapina. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2015. x + 212 pp. $74.95.
A review of this seminal book for the Journal of Historical Geography
Journal of Military History, 2009
Speculum, 2009
). Actes de la journée d'étude organisée à Louvain-la-Neuve le 15 avril 2005. (Textes, Études, Co... more ). Actes de la journée d'étude organisée à Louvain-la-Neuve le 15 avril 2005. (Textes, Études, Congrès, 23.) Louvain-la-Neuve: Université catholique de Louvain, 2007. Paper. Pp. 218; black-and-white figures, tables, and maps. €30. Distributed by Brepols, Turnhout, Belgium.
Science and Society, 2009
On April 24, 1916 -Easter Monday -a rebellion was launched on the streets of Dublin with the aim ... more On April 24, 1916 -Easter Monday -a rebellion was launched on the streets of Dublin with the aim of establishing a republic in Ireland and breaking away from the British Empire. After a week of fighting, the rebellion was crushed. The Easter Rising was a dramatic and pivotal moment in Irish and indeed Imperial history. As a consequence it has attracted a great deal of interest by historians ever since.
Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, 2011
Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, 2011
Journal of Military History, 2011
Journal of Military History, 2013
A review of this book, published in the Journal of Military History, 76.3 (2012), 858.
It is challenging to adopt an historical-climatological approach to the period 400 - 1000 CE, due... more It is challenging to adopt an historical-climatological approach to the period 400 - 1000 CE, due to the relative scarcity of written sources. Nevertheless, we have been able to build up a database of over 1,500 records for the period. When placing this data against the constantly improving availability of natural proxy sources, especially tree-rings and ice-cores, we are able to draw a number of statistically robust conclusions. Among them is the striking evidence that large volcanic eruptions are clearly linked to human epidemics.
A talk given to the Glasnevin Museum Winter Lecture Series on the 'soviet' movement in Ireland.
Recorded May 2010 Fantastic Futures with Philip Reeve, Oisin McGann & Conor Kostick in associatio... more Recorded May 2010
Fantastic Futures with Philip Reeve, Oisin McGann & Conor Kostick in association with Children's Books Ireland - Trinity Week
Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 November 2015, East Midlands Conference Centre, University Park, NG7 2R... more Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 November 2015, East Midlands Conference Centre, University Park, NG7 2RJ
Organizer: Dr. Conor Kostick (Conor.Kostick@nottingham.ac.uk)
The British Academy and The Department of History at The University of Nottingham present a two-day conference to consider the ways in which research into the medieval era can shed light upon ‘big picture’ humanities topics.
The workshops at the conference have been designed to help early-career researchers consider how their expertise best fits with sources of large-scale UK and international research funds and grants, and form new collaborative networks.
Are there any objective standards by we can judge music or is it all a matter of individual taste?
NCH, 16 April 2003 Darragh Morgan (vn), Chris George (vn), Bridget Carey (va), Sophie Harris (vc)... more NCH, 16 April 2003
Darragh Morgan (vn), Chris George (vn), Bridget Carey (va), Sophie Harris (vc)
Pawel Szymanski – Two pieces
Gerald Barry – Six Marches
Cleary – The Andalusian Dog
Clear – Its ‘d’ Jim, but not as we know it
Cleary – Carrowkeel
Sofia Gubaidalina – String Quartet No. 2
Wolfgang Rihm – Zwischen den Zeilen
Arvo Pärt – Psalom
Charles Ives – Scherzo
Franco Donatoni – La Souris sans Sourire
Concorde & Harry Sparnaay, Bank of Ireland Arts Centre, 7 December 2002. Ingólfson – Vink 2 (1994... more Concorde & Harry Sparnaay, Bank of Ireland Arts Centre, 7 December 2002. Ingólfson – Vink 2 (1994) O’Leary – Reflections II (2002); Torstensson – Spans (1981); Olofsson – Le Miroir Caché (2002); Sermilä – Ego 2 (1990)
Ronan Guilfoyle’s Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, with Conor Linehan (piano) and the RTÉ Concer... more Ronan Guilfoyle’s Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, with Conor Linehan (piano) and the RTÉ Concert Orchestra (Laurent Wagner, conductor) on 16 August 2002.
There is a quickening in the musical life of Ireland. The Steve Reich RTÉLiving Music Festival in... more There is a quickening in the musical life of Ireland. The Steve Reich RTÉLiving Music Festival in February demonstrated that there is an enthusiastic audience here for contemporary music. The Node concert this April proved that this audience was not entirely dependent on the celebrity and presence of the composer. For the Project Arts Theatre held some 150 people to listen to a concert of new music composed in the main by students of Trinity College Dublin.
Composer’s Choice: Jennifer Walshe’, National Concert Hall, Dublin, 27 March 2002
Horizons – featuring the music of John Buckley, Henri Dutilleux and György Ligeti National Concer... more Horizons – featuring the music of John Buckley, Henri Dutilleux and György Ligeti
National Concert Hall, Dublin, 29 January 2002, with the National Symphony Orcestra (Conductor: Colman Pearce) and soloist Peter Sweeney (organ)
When RTÉ’s Director of Music, Niall Doyle, introduced Raymond Deane’s newest work, Samara at the ... more When RTÉ’s Director of Music, Niall Doyle, introduced Raymond Deane’s newest work, Samara at the National Concert Hall on 18 November he described the composer as being at the height of his powers. This was not hyperbole as Raymond Deane does indeed convey through his recent music a sense of confidence, authority and an aesthetic that is not distorted by external pressures, such as that to succeed in a competitive commercial world, or that which is even more disastrous to so much new music, the attempt to create a niche through self-conscious avant-gardism.
Project Arts Centre, Dublin 20th December 2001
Gerald Barry The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (Friday 27 September 2002, world premiere, RTÉ Mu... more Gerald Barry
The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant
(Friday 27 September 2002, world premiere, RTÉ Music Commission)
National Symphony Orchestra
Gerard Markson, conductor
Orla Boylan, soprano
Mary Plazas, soprano
Corcoran, Ligeti, Leyendecker, and Hamel – Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery, Dublin, 14 October 2001
RTÉ Living Music Festival, 26th October The Theatre, The Helix Crash Ensemble Cond. Fergus Sheil ... more RTÉ Living Music Festival, 26th October The Theatre, The Helix
Crash Ensemble
Cond. Fergus Sheil
Berio — Sequenza III (voice) (1966)
Andriessen — Dubbelspoor (1994)
Berio — Thema (Omaggio a Joyce) (1958)
McKay — Ice Etchings (2002)
Berio — Sequenze I (flute) (1958)
Dennehy — To Herbert Brün (final movement) (2001)
New psychological states of mind emerged as alienation took hold of this population in an origina... more New psychological states of mind emerged as alienation took hold of this population in an original manner. At one fundamental level all individuals are alienated from all others, a fact that is shared by all human beings throughout time, but in the modern era other forms of alienation appear that are not manifest in earlier epochs of rural and small scale production.
In the philosophy of science, the discussion is often polarised between philosophers who are not ... more In the philosophy of science, the discussion is often polarised between philosophers who are not scientists and scientists who are unfamiliar with philosophy. But the philosophy of music is fortunate in having had a personality steeped in both the technical skills of the composer and a deep understanding of philosophical ideas – particularly the dialectics of Hegel.
For three days in May 2005, people were queuing to go to bed with Jennifer Walshe. The bed in que... more For three days in May 2005, people were queuing to go to bed with Jennifer Walshe. The bed in question is a musical instrument, a two-metre sound box, looking like a table, on which you lie, while the composer lies underneath, hidden by the white shrouds that cover the bed, and plays the strings underneath that stretch for the full length of the box.