A NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR 2021
''A model of research and analysis ... Townshend''s concise and intelligent book tells a painful story that is probably not yet over'' Simon Heffer, Daily Telegraph
A compelling history of the turbulent journey to Irish independence, published for the centenary of the Partition
In the aftermath of the horrors of the Irish Famine, the grim, distrustful relationship between Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom deteriorated into a generations-long argument about ''Home Rule''. The unprecedented nature of the Irish problem - with most Irish people wanting to break away from the world''s largest Empire - made it extraordinarily difficult for either side to come up with a compromise. For many years actual independence seemed inconceivable. And then, as these bitter disputes continued, it became clear that under no circumstances would the Protestants be party to any of it.
The Pa
