UK GOVERNMENT CONTEMPTUOUSLY REJECTS MANUSCRIPT TALKS

Rapport publié le 23/09/08 6:20 dans Cultures par Cathal Ó Luain pour Cathal Ó Luain

Rushen Abbey Isle of Man where the Chronicles of Man were reputedly written

In one of the most visible displays of contempt by the United Kingdom towards the Isle of Man government in recent years, attempts to negotiate the return of the Chronicles of Man and the Isles have been rebuffed

It is reported that the UK Government is unwilling to open negotiations for the return of the Chronicles, either on the basis of an ownership transfer or an indefinite loan.

The ancient manuscript was reputedly written by monks at Rushen Abbey in the 13th century but passed into the possession of the British library in uncertain circumstances. The discovery of a Scriptorium at the Abbey site in recent years seemed to support that view.

The Celtic League called for the medieval manuscripts return over twenty years ago. The campaign received a fillip last year when local media launched a campaign to seek popular support for the Chronicles return. Political pressure led to unanimous support in Tynwald for a motion calling for the return of the Chronicles of Man and the Isles from the British Library to the Isle of Man.

The moves prompted the Isle of Man Government to begin efforts to see if it could reach an agreement whereby the Chronicles could be returned to the Island where they would have become a primary exhibit item for Manx National Heritage

Manx political leaders, apparently stung by the British rejection, seem unwilling to pursue the issue and seem to have rolled over and accepted that the Chronicles will not be returned. However, it is unlikely that the Chronicles issue will cease to be contentious and bizarrely the document has highlighted that attitudes of the London government towards their Manx counterparts are as 'medieval' as the manuscript itself.

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