The Making of Modern Ireland 1603-1923

Sometimes good isn't.

My review is based on reading this book as an introduction to Irish history. I can't comment on the accuracy of every detail in it. That being said, it seems to me a superbly written, well-balanced and objective study, well calculated to substitute accurate history for myth. For an English reader, it's valuable as a study of the relationship between the two countries - the fundamental incompatibility which (tragically) made the union a failure. If only...Why was Ireland never reconciled to England, as first Scotland and then Wales were - to the great benefit of all three countries? To understand that, as this book helps us to understand it, is to begin understanding not only the tragedies of Irish history, but the ultimate tragedy of British decline.