World-renowned historian is still a Conahy man at heart - Kilkenny Live

From cutting across fields in North Kilkenny to go to national school to travelling around Paris to delve into 17th Century historical sources, the life story of Joe Bergin is a fascinating one.

The Conahy man opted for the academic path in life that took him to the hallowed halls of learning at Cambridge University. His ground-breaking historical research has been honoured in France!

While rising to the top of his field of expertise, Joe always kept strong links with his home parish, where his family are very proud of his achievements.

Joe’s story begins in Rathkyle, on the border of the Conahy and Ballyragget parishes, where he grew up with his parents Con and Bridget, sisters Mary, Margaret and Bridget, and brother Larry. ‘The middle of nowhere, the second last house in the parish of Conahy,’ as his brother Larry describes.

In the 1950s, in the summertime, they really did go to school through the fields. It was a shortcut from their home to Byrnesgrove national school. Their teacher was Joe Dunphy who went on to great things at Ballyhale National School. He was the kind of teacher who got his students interested in topics, Joe remembers, and as a young teacher he had ambition, for himself and his students, and energy. The school would close in 1967.

From Byrnesgrove it was on to Rockwell College for secondary school. The Bergins had cousins already studying at Rockwell so if they were going to secondary school it was going to be there. In the ’50s it wasn’t always a ‘given’ that children went on to secondary school, but there was some tradition of it in the family.

He enjoyed most subjects, but it was a twist of fate that saw Joe start to study French. When he made little progress studying Greek, he switched to French, a class he wouldn’t have had timetable space for if he’d stayed with Greek.
Rockwell College was also where Joe adapted his Ballyragget GAA hurling skills to the game of rugby. It was a sport he kept up for many years, even playing for Stade Francais during his time in Paris! The outside-half was voted their best player for a number of years.

Joe spent some time in a seminary, before his third level destination of UCD. It was at UCD where Joe made a friendship that would set him on his career path.
As a student of history, from 1967 to 1972, Joe achieved his degree and masters. One of his professors there was the famed FX Martin, professor of medieval history and campaigner.

Prof Martin guided Joe in university, and when he was granted a scholarship to continue his studies encouraged him to do a thesis on Erasmus of Rotterdam. The thesis delved into the political ideas of the Renaissance. It went well for Joe, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to continue to write in the area of the political ideas of that time.
Undecided on his next career step, and waiting for his thesis results, Joe made use of his French and headed off to France for a year. One of many times he spend living in the country.

At the end of his second year in UCD a friend of Joe’s had secured a post at a boarding school for orphaned children in France, not as a teacher but a kind of chaperone to the children, and Joe managed to get the same job. And at the end of his masters study he returned.
This was the early ’70s and, as Joe describes, there was a crisis in French schools, and the pupils basically threw out the staff. So he left Paris to return to Ireland. Click NEXT to continue the story...