Irish History

One week in May 1916, seven Irish women became widows. When they had married their husbands they had embarked on very different lives. They married men of the establishment; one...

On 19 January 1947 Ireland was invaded by a "freakish" anticyclonic weather phenomenon that lasted for two months. The arctic siege brought freezing temperatures of -14 Degrees Centigrade (7 DegreesF),...

Written about by novelists and poets, the "Big House" has been a part of the Irish landscape for over 400 year. This anthology portrays life in the big house in...

A few minutes after noon on the 24th April, 1916, Patrick Pearse stepped outside the newly occupied GPO on Sackville Street with a copy of the Proclamation of the Irish...

Lady Lavery has been remembered for the numerous portraits by her husband, the painter Sir John Lavery, celebrated in 'The Municipal Gallery Re-visited' by W.B. Yeats. This first biography of...

In 1892 hunger, poverty and desolation were endemic in the area around Foxford in County Mayo in the aftermath of the great famine and the Land War. It was in...

In Vanishing Ireland II, the follow up to the bestselling Vanishing Ireland I, we take another journey down memory lane and, through a unique collection of portrait interviews, we look...

St Patrick is one of the best-known and best-loved saints in the world. His life and legacy is deeply ingrained in Irish history and society, as the annual 17 March...

The SAS describes its attitude to the use of lethal force as 'Big boys' games, big boys' rules'. Anyone caught with a gun or bomb can expect to be shot....

"Contemporary Ireland: A Sociological Map" provides a very readable, in-depth description and analysis of the transformations that have taken place in Ireland over the past ten years during the heyday...

A lively and inviting history of Belfast-exploring the highs and lows of a resilient city Modern Belfast is a beautiful city with a vibrant tradition of radicalism, industry, architectural innovation,...

Tax & Drugs & Rock'n'Roll is the story of how an influx of British pop stars in the early 1980s was a significant catalyst in the miraculous transformation of Ireland...

Branded as 'Bandit Country' by the British government, South Armagh was the heartland of the Provisional IRA. It was the rebel Irish stronghold where Thomas 'Slab' Murphy reigned supreme, bomb...

On the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, Peter Taylor tells for the first time the gripping story of Operation Chiffon, the top-secret intelligence operation that helped bring peace...

This is a ground breaking new book that looks back on Ireland's struggle for freedom with a refreshingly new perspective and attitude. This is a journey into a turbulent period...

A collection of papers presented by historians at Mary Immaculate College, University of Limerick on riots and public violence across 16th, 17th 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st Century Ireland. Including:...

The Boyne Valley is a place of history, myths and legends. This rich valley is home to some of Ireland's most famous heritage sites and monuments - Tara, Newgrange, Kells...

Eamon de Valera is the most remarkable man in the history of modern Ireland. Much as Churchill personified British resistance to Hitler and de Gaulle personified the freedom of France,...

Far more Irishmen live outside Ireland than within it. This fascinating study, by Ireland's best known and most controversial contemporary historian, reveals why this is, how it has come about...

The second part of the landmark trilogy documenting modern-day Northern Ireland, by the author Provos and BritsBased on a three-part BBC TV series, this is an inside account of the...

Eamon de Valera is the most controversial figure in modern Irish history and as this book argues, the most misunderstood. 'Dev' has been characterised as a stern, un-bending, devious and...

In his first book, award-winning radio and TV presenter Ryan Tubridy tells the fascinating story of the iconic president John F Kennedy's visit to Ireland. The idolized, handsome and glamorous...

St Enda's is no ordinary school, and Padraic Pearse is no ordinary headmaster.His pupils are inspired by his vision of freedom and an Irish Republic, and John Joe and his...

The Ulster Tourist Development Association declared in 1935 that 'Armagh is perhaps the most important county in Ulster from the tourist's point of view'. It is certainly the case that...

The perfect stocking filler for lovers of Irish History. From mesolithic Ireland to the peace process, this little book covers all of the main historical and cultural events, places and...

Originally from west Kerry, Thomas Ashe was a schoolteacher in north County Dublin and a founding member of the Irish Volunteers. During the 1916 Rising he commanded the Fingal Battalion...

'This is a history shaken by intimacy - a brave and rigorously humane book' Sean HewittHow far would you go for the missing?When Clair Wills was in her twenties, she...

John Redmond and Edward Carson remain two of the biggest names in modern Irish history. At the peak of their careers as senior members of the British parliament, they were...

This book situates the history of Trinity College Dublin within the great upheavals and changes that were taking place in Ireland and the wider world in the transformative period between...

The Abbey Theatre played a leading role in the politicisation of the revolutionary generation that won Irish freedom, but comparatively little is known about the men and women who formed...

The perfect stocking filler for lovers of Irish Castles. A pocket-sized guide to around 140 of Ireland's most dramatic castles and strongholds, all of which are open to the public,...

Maire Nic Shiubhlaigh was a founder actress of the Abbey Theatre and its first leading lady on its opening in 1904, when she played the title role in W. B....

From the dawn of history to the decline of the Celtic Tiger - how Ireland has been shaped over the centuries.Ireland has been shaped by many things over the centuries:...

Edward Cahill SJ was a well-known and influential figure in Ireland during the early decades of the new Irish state. As Professor of Ecclesiastical History and Sociology at the Jesuit...

Kilmainham Gaol is a building with a remarkable history. From 1796, when the first prisoners were received within its portals, to 1924, when the last prisoners were removed, it held...

*****'There have been many books written about the events of Bloody Sunday, however, none has wrenched the reader as violently back to those CS gas-choked streets, dumping them right in...

'Informed, impeccably researched and written' Neil Oliver'A masterpiece of evocative scientific storytelling' Brian CoxThe Celts are one of the world's most mysterious ancient people. In this compelling account, Alice Roberts...

Towards the end of the 20th century, the decades of abuse and neglect perpetrated in Ireland's comprehensive carceral network began finally to be exposed. The mistreatment endured by children and...

This biography tells the story of Hazel Lavery, one of London's most influential and beautiful women in the 1920s, a popular society hostess and fervent supporter of Ireland's independence. It...

From the creator of The Irish History Podcast comes a fascinating look at Irish history through the lens of murder. In A Lethal Legacy, Fin Dwyer charts 200 years of...

The 1930s in Ireland is often remembered as a bleak period of economic stagnation and unemployment. But, 1932, hailed by the Irish Press as a 'new era', was an early...