400th anniversary of the Royal Schools of Ulster [audio 5min @17:50]

Students at the Royal School, Portora, in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, contacted "Making History" after they completed a project on the founding of theirs and five other schools by James I's Charter in 1608. They wanted more information about how the founding of their school fits in with the history of the Plantation of Ulster and whether or not Catholic children as well as Protestant were allowed to attend. Dr Jonathan Bardon explained the background to the establishment of the Royal Schools and how they were meant to provide a kind of social cement for the newly arrived 'planters' from England, Scotland and the Isle of Man. They were not intended for Catholic children, just the children of the 'planters'.