Nick Maxwell Sir, —I bought your magazine for the first time recently while waiting for a train at Heuston Station. I really enjoyed it, but the outstanding article was by Charlie McGuire on Seán McLoughlin. What a fascinating account of this man, and, of course, the epilogue had me really purring! But can we have more, please? … Read more
Sir, —Paul Bew dismisses as ‘an amusing educational parlour game’ thestatement that Redmondite home rule could have delivered politicalfreedom ‘without the political and economic costs of the 1916 project’.He castigates nationalists for proposing ‘to celebrate 1916 in aninevitably rhetorical overblown style’ (HI 14.2, March/April 2006). Healso advises nationalists ‘finally to close the door on the … Read more
Sir, —Hot on the heels of comparing Ulster unionists to the Nazis, it now seems that Mary McAleese wishes to reinstate the glorification of a rebellion that caused immeasurable suffering to the very people the insurgents were seeking to free from ‘oppression’. This seems particularly unfortunate at a time when the Republic of Ireland seemed … Read more
The Scotch-Irish: from the north of Ireland to the making of America Ron Chepesiuk (McFarland & Co., North Carolina, £17.95) 0786422734 To buy or not to buy? This is the constant dilemma we all face when we pick up a book that has just been published. With a long-standing and particular interest in the Scotch-Irish, … Read more
Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson: a political soldier Keith Jeffrey (Oxford University Press, £40, €57) ISBN 9780198203582Sir Henry Wilson has not been treated well by historians. As a soldier, he rose to the top of his profession and played a significant role in formulating Allied policy after 1917, which contributed to victory over the Central … Read more