Pious and promiscuous

Step into the intimate worlds of Presbyterian women and men who lived, loved and laboured in long-eighteenth-century Ulster. Drawing on letters, diaries, newspapers and church court records, this book reveals the personal moments that shaped the rhythms and rituals of Presbyterian family life. From anxious parents and lovesick courting couples to rebellious youths, unfaithful spouses and grieving widows, these stories bring to life the full range of human experience. Pious and Promiscuous offers a vivid and previously unseen glimpse into how ordinary people navigated life's most significant milestones as members of a closely knit religious community. Their stories may make you laugh, gasp or even shed a tear, as you encounter the colourful – and oftentimes messy – lives of Ulster's Presbyterians.

Leanne Calvert is a historian specialising in the Irish family. Her research focuses on family, gender and sexuality in Ireland and North America during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. She has published extensively on Irish family life, with a particular emphasis on Presbyterian sources. Leanne has held positions at Queen’s University, Belfast, Ulster University and the University of Hertfordshire. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Irish History at the University of Limerick, where she also directs the MA History of Family programme.