176: The Enlightenment of Charlotte Brooke ( c.1755 - 1793) by Francis Kane

"As yet, we are too little known to our noble neighbour of Britain: were we better acquainted, we should be better friends. The British muse is not yet informed that she has an elder sister in this isle…” (Charlotte Brooke, 1789).
Charlotte Brooke, late 18th century Irish genius, author of the momentous “Reliques of Irish Poetry”, published in the momentous year of 1789, was undervalued in life, forgotten by history, and, notwithstanding her emergence over the last decade from the mists of unremembering, remains a somewhat mysterious figure.
This talk aims to contribute to the growing conversation and appreciation of the work and vision of Charlotte Brooke. Listeners will hear about Charlotte’s Brooke family background and her all-too-short life story. The ‘Cavan Brookes’ are a famous family – Charlotte and Peter Brooke, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 1989 -1992 share a common ancestor.
The talk will refer to recent academic and journalistic literature about Charlotte and her work and will also offer some original research findings by Stephen McCracken and Francis Kane on evidential links between Charlotte Brooke and people in the 1780s who later became active members of the United Irishmen.
The main source for the talk is the book itself, an incredible, revolutionary collection of Irish poems and songs, one even written by Charlotte herself. Francis grew up with this book in the house and has marvelled at it since childhood. There is the Irish civilisation, visible for the first time in history, in print. The romantic and floral translations into English reveal an expansive and brilliant mind attempting something beyond the words on the page.
Charlotte died poor in 1793, much too soon. Rejected by academia, she did not live to experience or comment on the years of growing revolutionary fervour in Ireland through the 1790s. Her vision of ‘sisterhood’ between Britain and Ireland slipped into the cultural void. Her beloved Gaelic civilisation, however, widely in terminal decay and decrepitude, was ‘saved’ (up to a point). Others were inspired by her. She was a very gifted, idealistic, and charitable person. This talk is part of the growing appreciation of her significance, and we look forward to sharing our research for the first time.

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