Irish History

In 1500, most of Ireland lay outside the ambit of English royal power. Only a small area around Dublin was directly administered by the crown. The rest of the island...

Born in Cloughjordan in Co. Tipperary, MacDonagh was a poet and playwright, an educator and political activist. Appointed to the IRB Military Council he became a member of the Provisional...

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...

An in-depth study of the most significant Irish clergyman in the history of the stateFor three decades, 1940-72, as Archbishop of Dublin and Primate of Ireland, John Charles McQuaid imposed...

In January 2007, in the space of six days, three large fishing boats sank off the south east coast of Ireland. Seven men were claimed by the sea, four survived....

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...

Superintendent William Geary was unjustly dismissed by the Irish Executive Council on 25 June 1928 contrary to his legal rights under Police Rules, Statutory Law and the Irish Constitution; he...

Ireland's landscape is marked by fault lines of religious, ethnic, and political identity that have shaped its troubled history. Troubled Geographies maps this history by detailing the patterns of change...

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...

This third edition of Tracing Your Irish Ancestors retains the three-part structure of earlier editions, but updates and improves the material already included while adding new sources which have emerged...

'Some of these stories are accurate; all of them are true...' In his "An Irish History of Civilization", Don Akenson, the world's leading scholar of the Irish Dispora, fuses history...

Ireland today stands at a defining moment. The prosperity of the Celtic Tiger years has given way to the sudden crash, the turbulence of the euro crisis, and the loss...

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,...

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...

'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...

Contraception was the subject of intense controversy in twentieth-century Ireland. Banned in 1935 and stigmatised by the Catholic Church, it was the focus of some of the most polarised debates...

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...

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...

"Great Irish Speeches" contains 50 of the most stirring and memorable speeches in Irish history. From the political oratories of Charles Stewart Parnell, Michael Collins and Eamon De Valera to...

Stop the lights! It's the one you've been gummin' for - the second book of Feckin' Irish Slang that'll stop you losing the head when listening to the guff that...

This is a substantial and widely acclaimed biography of Sean Lemass, considered one of the finest political leaders in the history of the Irish state. The author explores facets of...

Elizabeth Bowen takes us on a tour through the history of the famous Dublin landmark, the Shelbourne Hotel, in this evocative account of Irish life. Looking out on Dublin as...

This text traces the origins of Irish republicanism in the American and French revolutions. It then deals with the development of the United Irish and Defender movements in the 1790s,...

A first-hand account of the 1916 Rising and its aftermath brings alive the historic events that ushered in the beginnings of an independent Irish state. A Londoner and a member...

No. 1 BestsellerA successful property developer in England, the Sligo-born Tom Gilmartin had ambitious plans for major retail developments in Dublin in the late 1980s. Little did he know that...

The history of the Middle Ages [in Ireland] is so neglected that the only figure of renown is Strongbow, the man who led the Norman Invasion of Ireland in the...

This engaging book traces the history, archaeology, and legends of ancient Ireland from 9000 B.C., when nomadic hunter-gatherers appeared in Ireland at the end of the last Ice Age to...

When the Celts first arrived in Ireland around 200 B.C., the island had already been inhabited for over 7000 years. Drawing on a wealth of archaeological evidence and the author's...

In 2002, an eighty-five-year-old former civil servant was voted 'Irishman of the Century'. Widely regarded as "the architect of modern Ireland", T.K. Whitaker's life spans the history of the Irish...

Shortlisted for the Political Book Awards 2013 Political Book of the YearOne of the most inspiring women of our age, Mary Robinson has spent her life in pursuit of a...

The gripping story of the tumultuous destruction of the Irish country house, spanning the revolutionary years of 1912 to 1923 During the Irish Revolution nearly three hundred country houses were...

This is an account of how an angry young man can cross the line that divides theoretical support for violence from a state of 'killing rage', in which the murder...