In the early summer of 1795 Russell, Neilson, Simms, McCracken and one or two more of us, on the summit of McArt’s Fort, took a solemn obligation—never to desist in our efforts until we had subverted the authority of England over our country. Tone, Autobiography. The Society of United Irishmen Commemoration Committee is organising a … Read more
(Beyond the Pale Publications, £12.95) (3:1) Reviewed by Tony Canavan In the wake of the revisionist/anti-revisionist debate in Irish history, one approaches any book with a title like The Cause of Ireland with a certain trepidation, especially when the author’s previous works include Ireland: the Propaganda War. What one is afraid of is a romanticised … Read more
until recently historians of 1798 regarded the rebellion in Wexford as a spontaneous popular reaction to unwarranted government repression and not part of a larger United Irish conspiracy. Scanty references to the county in the manuscript record and the bitter, apparently localised, character of the Wexford conflict seemed to support this interpretation. Today, inspired by … Read more