They have stolen our history’. Thus has the work of professional historians of Ireland been decried in recent years. This statement is true: the labours of historians have wholly revised popular perceptions of the past in Ireland. The catharsis thus engendered would not have been so tempestuous had the historians themselves been better communicators. All … Read more
This is an extremely well-organised and comprehensive treatment of its subject matter. Writing in a crisp, precise style, Connolly takes a thematic approach so that each chapter stands on its own. Not only is the book generously foot-noted but the author gives the reader a précis of the significant debates currently animating historians of the … Read more
Experimentation in historical writing and methodology in order to make it accessible and meaningful to a general readership is once again fashionable. The virtues of narration, imaginative reconstruction based partly on intuition, and the linking of disconnected developments over long periods of time are being tried and tested in order to create a more popular … Read more
A History of Ulster . Jonathan Bardon (Blackstaff Press, 1992, £14.95) and Nine Ulster Lives, G. O’Brien & P. Roebuck (eds.) (Ulster Historical Foundation, 1992, £7.95) (1:1) Tony Canavan On being presented with Jonathan Bardon’s A History of Ulster one recalls the Duke of Gloucester’s comment on being presented with Edward Gibbon’s Decline and Fall, … Read more
An Historical Zoo? Two hundred and forty delegates attended the Irish Museums Association annual seminar in Tralee on 26 -27 February entitled Museums and tourism: heritage for all?’The big turn- out reflected the importance of the topic. Matt McNulty of Bord Fáilte argued robustly for the need to respond to changing patterns in tourism and … Read more