September 2002 Edition

Susan Hood. Royal Roots—Republican Inheritance: The Survival of the Office of Arms. Dublin: The Woodfield Press, 2002. €25.00 ISBN 0-9534293-3-4

This is the absorbing story of the Office of Arms—Ireland's heraldic authority—and the oldest Office of State. Founded in 1552, and derived from an earlier medieval heraldry based on the traditions of sovereigns and members of the nobility, today the Office has a much wider relevance, providing heraldic services for Irish people and institutions throughout the world. This book is the history of its remarkable survival during the last 150 years, when it bridged the transition from Crown Government to Republican State.

Born in Belfast in 1968, and raised in Dublin, Susan Hood holds a BA (Hons.) degree in history from Dublin University, and an MA in archive studies from the University of London. Employed as a researcher at the University of Ulster, she was awarded a doctorate in 1994, for a thesis on the history of Strokestown, County Roscommon. She works as an archivist at the Church of Ireland's Representative Church Body Library, Dublin.