1366 Statutes of Kilkenny

The Statutes of Kilkenny were a series of thirty-five acts passed at Kilkenny, aiming to curb the decline of the Hiberno-Norman Lordship of Ireland. By the middle decades of the 13th century, the Hiberno-Norman presence in Ireland was perceived to be under threat, mostly due to the dissolution of English laws and customs among English settlers. These English settlers were described as "more Irish than the Irish themselves", referring to them taking up Irish law, custom, costume and language. The statutes tried to prevent this "middle nation", which was neither true English nor Irish, by reasserting English culture among the English settlers. While the Statutes were sweeping in scope and aim, the English never had the resources to fully implement them. Clarence was forced to leave Ireland the following year, and Hiberno-Norman Ireland continued to gain a primarily Irish cultural identity.