Review of “Ireland’s History: Prehistory to the Present,” by Kenneth Campbell. New York: Bloomsbury Press. 2014, paper, 408 pages.
These disenfranchised folk—migrants also—cannot be kept down!
Since tomorrow is St. Patrick’s Day, it is fitting to mention a great book that takes us from the beginning forward—and focuses more on the Irish than on others. Suffice it to say, many waves of conquerors, foes, armies, and landlords have tried since day one to destroy the Irish spirit. They have not realized one simple fact, however.
The Irish spirit cannot be destroyed.
Many people may not know that the first several waves of Irish migrants to this nation faced a huge amount of racism and violence. It was hard for the Irish to find work, housing, and help. However, they persevered.
The poorest and most desperate Irish—from the far west of the country—often were Catholic and did not speak much English. They had to struggle very hard to make it in this country. This book goes back to the beginnings of the isle and wraps up the first days of Ireland. The book focuses much more on recent history of the Irish people.
Every book about Ireland takes a different approach, lies in a certain field, and focuses on the eras the author considers most important. This book is no different. Although the book deals with topics from Ireland’s prehistory to the present, it nonetheless gives much more emphasis to things political in the last couple of centuries than it does to the more complete picture.
In only 400 or so pages, we would not expect to be viewing everything that had ever happened on the island. The first chapter is titled “Irish History—Introduction and Overview.” In this chapter, the reader gets an explanation of why Campbell has written yet another history of Ireland. He argues that the nationalistic and ideal stories of the past may be interesting, but that it is also time to move away from the romantic and dramatic and look at the more complex story of the island (these being my words for his approach, not those of the author).
Campbell employs this different approach and argues that climate, religion, complicated social changes, immigration, migration, technology, changes in daily life, and changes within the island are worthy of exploration. Instead of focusing solely on the impact of other cultures and governments from the outside, Campbell looks more at the synergy of forces, changes, and cultures within the island.
This difference sets the book apart from many which have been written on the topic. And while the book is mainly political, it delves into political beliefs, strife, protests, hopes, and aspirations on the island principally. The book has less to do with the oppression from the British and the invasions on the part of the Vikings than it has to do with things Irish.
To move us along in the direction he wishes to head, he names the second chapter “Prehistoric Ireland” and covers the arrival of the Celts as a group more unified by culture and language than by race. He also discusses the people who had already been on the island for 7,000 years before the Celts arrived. By chapter three, we are already reading about “Irish Christianity and Early Medieval Ireland.” In this way, Campbell fast-forwards us to a point through Irish history that he can focus, strongly, on just the last few centuries.
As in most of my reviews, I do not give away the content of the book here, only the focus and the mood of what the author is trying to achieve…
Campbell, himself, admits the book is important because it takes a different perspective and tries to break out of the pattern of so many of the other books on Irish history. I think it does do that.
Teachers of history, of political science, and of cultural studies will find a great deal here, as the text could be used as primary source in advanced high school courses or certainly also as a good reference. As long as the teacher realizes the bent of the book toward the realm of the political, the book is beneficial for its discussions of internal dynamics of Ireland.
Fans of books on Ireland will welcome its no-nonsense approach to talking in more technical and less dramatic ways about what has happened on the island since its beginnings. It is a mature and thorough discussion of Irish history that will complete one’s views if in fact the reader has dealt mainly with more sentimental—although interesting—historical discussions of the island.
I enjoyed this book. I recommend it. It gave me gave me an additional perspective to consider.