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Irish Political Prisoners 1848-1922

Theatres of War

By Professor Sean Mcconville

Published November 28th 2002 by Routledge – 832 pages

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Description

This is the most wide-ranging study ever published of political violence and the punishment of Irish political offenders from 1848 to the founding of the Irish Free State in 1922. Those who chose violence to advance their Irish nationalist beliefs ranged from gentlemen revolutionaries to those who openly embraced terrorism or even full-scale guerilla war.

Seán McConville provides a comprehensive survey of Irish revolutionary struggle, matching chapters on punishment of offenders with descriptions and analysis of their campaigns. Government's response to political violence was determined by a number of factors, including not only the nature of the offences but also interest and support from the United States and Australia, as well as current objectives of Irish policy.

Reviews

"[A] scholarly and immensely readable account of three-quarters of a century of British experience of Irishmen - and very occasionally women - in their prisons."- Dr Garret FitzGerald, The Guardian

"Sean McConville graphically recounts both sides of this story - and does so with an even-handedness and objectivity that must command the respect of all his readers, whatever side of the Irish Sea they may be on." - Dr Garret FitzGerald, The Guardian

"Overall, this volume by Sean McConville rates as a 'must read' source for anyone interested in the Irish struggle for national self-determination from 1848 onwards, and the fate og those Irish men and womenwho opted for direct action in persuit of this goall until its realization in large measure early in the twentieth century." John Ainsworth, Queensland Univesrity of Technology

Name: Irish Political Prisoners 1848-1922: Theatres of War (Hardback) – Routledge 
Description: By Professor Sean Mcconville. This is the most wide-ranging study ever published of political violence and the punishment of Irish political offenders from 1848 to the founding of the Irish Free State in 1922. Those who chose violence to advance their Irish nationalist beliefs ranged...
Categories: Modern History 1750-1945, Irish History, Political History