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The year of liberty : the story of the great Irish Rebellion of 1798
Now available for the first time in trade the newly revised, definitive account of the most important event in Irish history--the rebellion of 1798.
Hardcover
First published October 1, 1969
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About the author
Thomas Pakenham
33 books91 followersThomas Francis Dermot Pakenham, 8th Earl of Longford, is known simply as Thomas Pakenham. He is an Anglo-Irish historian and arborist who has written several prize-winning books on the diverse subjects of Victorian and post-Victorian British history and trees. He is the son of Frank Pakenham, 7th Earl of Longford, a Labour minister and human rights campaigner, and Elizabeth Longford. The well known English historian Antonia Fraser is his sister.
After graduating from Belvedere College and Magdalen College, Oxford, in 1955, Thomas Pakenham traveled to Ethiopia, a trip which is described in his first book The Mountains of Rasselas. On returning to Britain, he worked on the editorial staff of the Times Educational Supplement and later for ,i>The Sunday Telegraph and The Observer. He divides his time between London and County Westmeath, Ireland, where he is the chairman of the Irish Tree Society and honorary custodian of Tullynally Castle.
Thomas Pakenham does not use his title and did not use his courtesy title before succeeding his father. However, he has not disclaimed his British titles under the Peerage Act 1963, and the Irish peerages cannot be disclaimed as they are not covered by the Act. He is unable to sit in the House of Lords as a hereditary peer as his father had, due to the House of Lords Act 1999 (though his father was created a life peer in addition to his hereditary title in order to be able to retain his seat).
After graduating from Belvedere College and Magdalen College, Oxford, in 1955, Thomas Pakenham traveled to Ethiopia, a trip which is described in his first book The Mountains of Rasselas. On returning to Britain, he worked on the editorial staff of the Times Educational Supplement and later for ,i>The Sunday Telegraph and The Observer. He divides his time between London and County Westmeath, Ireland, where he is the chairman of the Irish Tree Society and honorary custodian of Tullynally Castle.
Thomas Pakenham does not use his title and did not use his courtesy title before succeeding his father. However, he has not disclaimed his British titles under the Peerage Act 1963, and the Irish peerages cannot be disclaimed as they are not covered by the Act. He is unable to sit in the House of Lords as a hereditary peer as his father had, due to the House of Lords Act 1999 (though his father was created a life peer in addition to his hereditary title in order to be able to retain his seat).
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
September 18, 2013
PEASANTS, PIKES AND PRIESTS
Thomas Pakenham is one of the finest British narrative historians of recent decades. Primarily known for his history of late nineteenth century European imperialism in Africa ("The Scramble for Africa") and his detailed account of "The Boer War", his earlier work on The Great Irish Rebellion of 1798 - "The Year of Liberty" - seems to be rather less well known. This is a great shame as in terms of the quality of the research, and the writing, it seems (to this reader at least) to be a book that sits comfortably with his two more famous works.
Pakenham details the personalities, the events, and the historical reality that led to an uprising of over a hundred thousand Irish peasants in late spring 1798 in order to throw the British out of Ireland. The idealism and incompetence of the leadership of the United Irishmen left the peasantry without their "natural" leaders; the brutality of the British and "loyalist" policy of disarming the peasantry, the historical facts of the dispossession of that same catholic peasantry, and the heady atmosphere of the revolutionary years (including two French invasions of Ireland that parenthesise this history: one failure, one too little and too late) all played their part in making the Rebellion almost inevitable. The ferocity of the "loyalist" response gave little hope for peace ever being restored, and it was only the appointment of Lord Cornwallis, and his putting a stop to their worst excesses, that restored any sort of normality to the country.
"The Year of Liberty" is a heart-rending book, the tragic tale of a peasantry forced into retaliating against a heartless and vicious oppression that left them with little choice but to rebel. Armed with Pikes and agricultural implements, and with the guidance and leadership of a handful of more or less reluctant priests, they faced off against the British Imperial State. By the end of the rebellion over 30,000 lives had been lost.
The prose is a model for the narrative form of historical writing; it easily engages the reader without sacrificing the complexities of context, places, personalities or events. Included are some excellent maps that allow the reader the novelty of being able to geographically locate nearly every place mentioned in the text. There is also a detailed chronology of the rebellion, a bibliography and comprehensive endnotes that indicate the rich variety of primary and secondary sources Pakenham has consulted. As with Pakenham's other narrative histories, one can fully appreciate the awesome amount of work that went into this book. It is no surprise that he only wrote three of them over a period of twenty odd years. Well recommended.
Thomas Pakenham is one of the finest British narrative historians of recent decades. Primarily known for his history of late nineteenth century European imperialism in Africa ("The Scramble for Africa") and his detailed account of "The Boer War", his earlier work on The Great Irish Rebellion of 1798 - "The Year of Liberty" - seems to be rather less well known. This is a great shame as in terms of the quality of the research, and the writing, it seems (to this reader at least) to be a book that sits comfortably with his two more famous works.
Pakenham details the personalities, the events, and the historical reality that led to an uprising of over a hundred thousand Irish peasants in late spring 1798 in order to throw the British out of Ireland. The idealism and incompetence of the leadership of the United Irishmen left the peasantry without their "natural" leaders; the brutality of the British and "loyalist" policy of disarming the peasantry, the historical facts of the dispossession of that same catholic peasantry, and the heady atmosphere of the revolutionary years (including two French invasions of Ireland that parenthesise this history: one failure, one too little and too late) all played their part in making the Rebellion almost inevitable. The ferocity of the "loyalist" response gave little hope for peace ever being restored, and it was only the appointment of Lord Cornwallis, and his putting a stop to their worst excesses, that restored any sort of normality to the country.
"The Year of Liberty" is a heart-rending book, the tragic tale of a peasantry forced into retaliating against a heartless and vicious oppression that left them with little choice but to rebel. Armed with Pikes and agricultural implements, and with the guidance and leadership of a handful of more or less reluctant priests, they faced off against the British Imperial State. By the end of the rebellion over 30,000 lives had been lost.
The prose is a model for the narrative form of historical writing; it easily engages the reader without sacrificing the complexities of context, places, personalities or events. Included are some excellent maps that allow the reader the novelty of being able to geographically locate nearly every place mentioned in the text. There is also a detailed chronology of the rebellion, a bibliography and comprehensive endnotes that indicate the rich variety of primary and secondary sources Pakenham has consulted. As with Pakenham's other narrative histories, one can fully appreciate the awesome amount of work that went into this book. It is no surprise that he only wrote three of them over a period of twenty odd years. Well recommended.
October 14, 2015
Utterly gripping narrative history, written with admirable fair-mindedness. Pakenham makes it clear that this was a Civil War, with all the extra bitterness that this involves. It was in no way a war between "Irish Catholics" and "English soldiers". The rebellion was denounced from Catholic pulpits on the orders of the hierarchy, who stood foursquare with the Government (notwithstanding the prominent part played in the rising by some parish priests). Almost all the combatants on both sides were Irish, although in the latter stages the rebels were reinforced by the French and the loyalists by some regiments of English and Scottish soldiers.
Almost from the beginning the rebellion was marked by atrocities - such as the two year old girl, her little dog, and her grandfather who were all torn apart by rebel pikes for the unfortunate crime of being Irish Protestants. "No quarter" was given by either side, but even so, the atrocities committed by Irish combatants on both sides were pretty severe (e.g. the hospital full of wounded rebels and a barn full of loyalist women and children were both deliberately set alight and the persons inside burned alive).
Pakenham does not gloss over the cruelty and foolishness of the (Irish) loyalists, showing how their repression fed directly into the causes of the rebellion, and gives his due to the (English) General Lord Cornwallis, whose humane conduct did so much to end it (despite attempts to undermine him by the Irish loyalists). He also discusses the rising in Ulster, where it was in fact the (Presbyterian) Protestants who took the lead in the rebellion, although he also shows how that Protestant-Catholic rebel alliance was ultimately chimerical (though it has not stopped some Irish nationalists from dreaming ever since that it might become resurrected). Most intriguing of all is the fact that the leadership of the rebellion was philosophically at the opposite extreme to the vast majority of the peasant rank and file. The pike armed peasants, armed with fanatical courage and a fierce Catholic faith, were mown down in their thousands. Their leaders were generally alcoholic atheists who scorned as superstition the faith their armies professed, and their French allies were lead by men who had happily massacred the royalist Catholic peasant rebels of north west France, who in appearance and belief seem to have much in common with the Irish rebels.
The best part of the book deals with the arrival of the French, who apologise with exquisite politeness for interrupting the dinner party of the (Protestant) Bishop of Killala. What follows would make a brilliant film - the developing relationships between bishop, French, and rebels being fascinating and full of surprises - and not without humour (the Irish slogans on the rebel flags have to be translated for the bishop, because although his Hebrew is pretty good he knows nothing of the Irish language!)
There are a couple of minor flaws (hence 4 stars rather than 5). The last chapter strikes some odd notes, and contains some surprising inaccuracies, such as the claim that the Government never gave any financial support for the Catholic church. (The Maynooth Grant, which started several years before the rebellion, allowed £8,000 a year to Ireland's principal Catholic seminary - equivalent to nearly a million US dollars in today's terms). The quotation on the back cover from A J P Taylor is as mendacious as everything else written by that wretch, and shows he cannot have read the book at all. But none of this really detracts from the brilliance of the book and its illustration of the fact that there are no easy straight lines in Irish history. The author is a left wing rationalist and an Irish Republican; and yet he is also the 8th Earl, living in a magnificent ancestral castle. I am reactionary enough to be happier about the latter part of that sentence than the former, but like every unprejudiced reader, I also feel a huge well of sympathy as my mind's eye travels over the battlefield of Vinegar Hill, where - pikes by their sides,wearing scapulars sewn with holy medals - the rebel dead lay in their thousands.
Almost from the beginning the rebellion was marked by atrocities - such as the two year old girl, her little dog, and her grandfather who were all torn apart by rebel pikes for the unfortunate crime of being Irish Protestants. "No quarter" was given by either side, but even so, the atrocities committed by Irish combatants on both sides were pretty severe (e.g. the hospital full of wounded rebels and a barn full of loyalist women and children were both deliberately set alight and the persons inside burned alive).
Pakenham does not gloss over the cruelty and foolishness of the (Irish) loyalists, showing how their repression fed directly into the causes of the rebellion, and gives his due to the (English) General Lord Cornwallis, whose humane conduct did so much to end it (despite attempts to undermine him by the Irish loyalists). He also discusses the rising in Ulster, where it was in fact the (Presbyterian) Protestants who took the lead in the rebellion, although he also shows how that Protestant-Catholic rebel alliance was ultimately chimerical (though it has not stopped some Irish nationalists from dreaming ever since that it might become resurrected). Most intriguing of all is the fact that the leadership of the rebellion was philosophically at the opposite extreme to the vast majority of the peasant rank and file. The pike armed peasants, armed with fanatical courage and a fierce Catholic faith, were mown down in their thousands. Their leaders were generally alcoholic atheists who scorned as superstition the faith their armies professed, and their French allies were lead by men who had happily massacred the royalist Catholic peasant rebels of north west France, who in appearance and belief seem to have much in common with the Irish rebels.
The best part of the book deals with the arrival of the French, who apologise with exquisite politeness for interrupting the dinner party of the (Protestant) Bishop of Killala. What follows would make a brilliant film - the developing relationships between bishop, French, and rebels being fascinating and full of surprises - and not without humour (the Irish slogans on the rebel flags have to be translated for the bishop, because although his Hebrew is pretty good he knows nothing of the Irish language!)
There are a couple of minor flaws (hence 4 stars rather than 5). The last chapter strikes some odd notes, and contains some surprising inaccuracies, such as the claim that the Government never gave any financial support for the Catholic church. (The Maynooth Grant, which started several years before the rebellion, allowed £8,000 a year to Ireland's principal Catholic seminary - equivalent to nearly a million US dollars in today's terms). The quotation on the back cover from A J P Taylor is as mendacious as everything else written by that wretch, and shows he cannot have read the book at all. But none of this really detracts from the brilliance of the book and its illustration of the fact that there are no easy straight lines in Irish history. The author is a left wing rationalist and an Irish Republican; and yet he is also the 8th Earl, living in a magnificent ancestral castle. I am reactionary enough to be happier about the latter part of that sentence than the former, but like every unprejudiced reader, I also feel a huge well of sympathy as my mind's eye travels over the battlefield of Vinegar Hill, where - pikes by their sides,wearing scapulars sewn with holy medals - the rebel dead lay in their thousands.
February 17, 2020
I picked this book up in order to fill the hole that is Irish history in my brain and as I had read Thomas Pakenham before, I thought this would be a good start. Boy, was I wrong.
Pakenham's books, such as his works on the Boer War and the Scramble for Africa, are excellent history. They do not sacrifice detail for narrative and while they may be challenging for the average history reader, they are wonderful for those well-versed.
The Year of Liberty, however, reads like a thesis (perhaps it was as it is one of his earliest works?) and never finds a way to manage a flowing narrative or even keep me awake. Pakenham throws pointless name after name at you and town after town as if you are sitting there with a rolodex and municipal map of Ireland in front of you. Pakenham also fails to achieve an overarching narrative and frequently gets lost in small minor details about the experiences of individuals. The experiences of individuals displays his deep level of research but it goes beyond necessity and the reader struggles to find their way back to the central narrative.
Pakenham is a decent author and an even better researcher but in this early work of his he never manages to find the appropriate balance that he would achieve later in life.
Pakenham's books, such as his works on the Boer War and the Scramble for Africa, are excellent history. They do not sacrifice detail for narrative and while they may be challenging for the average history reader, they are wonderful for those well-versed.
The Year of Liberty, however, reads like a thesis (perhaps it was as it is one of his earliest works?) and never finds a way to manage a flowing narrative or even keep me awake. Pakenham throws pointless name after name at you and town after town as if you are sitting there with a rolodex and municipal map of Ireland in front of you. Pakenham also fails to achieve an overarching narrative and frequently gets lost in small minor details about the experiences of individuals. The experiences of individuals displays his deep level of research but it goes beyond necessity and the reader struggles to find their way back to the central narrative.
Pakenham is a decent author and an even better researcher but in this early work of his he never manages to find the appropriate balance that he would achieve later in life.
December 9, 2014
'Who fears to speak of 98,
who blushes at the name?
When cowards mock the patriot ' fate,
Who hangs his head with shame?'
I grew up listening to this recitation & this evocative work is one of the best works of a great historian.
who blushes at the name?
When cowards mock the patriot ' fate,
Who hangs his head with shame?'
I grew up listening to this recitation & this evocative work is one of the best works of a great historian.
March 14, 2017
This is a rambling, confused, and hard-to-follow history of the '98 rebellion. The book needed better maps, and Pakenham needed a better editor.
January 18, 2024
"They also found the bodies of two beautiful women fantastically dressed in green silk, who had carried the rebel standards. They had been known as the Goddess of Liberty and the Goddess of Reason, and were apparently the town prostitutes".
Comprehensive, yet this book is also stolid in its delivery. Stripped of romanticisim, Packenham gives a detailed and chronological account of the Irish 1798 rebellion primarily from a military perspective. He provides a good summary of the battles themselves as well as the political intrigue in Dublin Castle. Its advantage is the structure, which provides an overview of the rebellion, yet the prime movers on both government and rebel forces are only afforded a few descriptive passages. Battle scenes, however, are grand and similar in scale to a Hieronymous Bosch painting. Particularly gruesome are the accounts of half hangings and pitchcapping, which involved British soldiers smearing pitch mixed with gunpowder on a prisoners head before lighting it on fire. One particular highlight, the arrest of rebel leader Lord Edward Fitzgerald, is described up to the moment of his arrest with gripping precision, as well as the malign influence of Thomas Reynolds, his trusted friend turned government informer. Packenham points out the competence of the peasant rebel forces compared to the British army despite their lack of training. The panicked response of the British government to contain the rising was equally met with an oblivious attitude toward Irish issues within Pitts cabinet. One gets the sense that the rising could have succeeded, from Castlereagh's terrified response to the information that French fleets were on their way to liberate Ireland.
The timespan of the book accounts for the days of the revolution itself (between June and May) without much significant analysis of its pre-text. This book is inadequate in shedding light on the reasons that revolution broke out (Catholic disenfranchisement, the penal laws and the influence of the twin French revolution). It does successfully, however, describe the pandemonium and utter confusion which took place.
Comprehensive, yet this book is also stolid in its delivery. Stripped of romanticisim, Packenham gives a detailed and chronological account of the Irish 1798 rebellion primarily from a military perspective. He provides a good summary of the battles themselves as well as the political intrigue in Dublin Castle. Its advantage is the structure, which provides an overview of the rebellion, yet the prime movers on both government and rebel forces are only afforded a few descriptive passages. Battle scenes, however, are grand and similar in scale to a Hieronymous Bosch painting. Particularly gruesome are the accounts of half hangings and pitchcapping, which involved British soldiers smearing pitch mixed with gunpowder on a prisoners head before lighting it on fire. One particular highlight, the arrest of rebel leader Lord Edward Fitzgerald, is described up to the moment of his arrest with gripping precision, as well as the malign influence of Thomas Reynolds, his trusted friend turned government informer. Packenham points out the competence of the peasant rebel forces compared to the British army despite their lack of training. The panicked response of the British government to contain the rising was equally met with an oblivious attitude toward Irish issues within Pitts cabinet. One gets the sense that the rising could have succeeded, from Castlereagh's terrified response to the information that French fleets were on their way to liberate Ireland.
The timespan of the book accounts for the days of the revolution itself (between June and May) without much significant analysis of its pre-text. This book is inadequate in shedding light on the reasons that revolution broke out (Catholic disenfranchisement, the penal laws and the influence of the twin French revolution). It does successfully, however, describe the pandemonium and utter confusion which took place.
December 28, 2024
Very detailed (at times almost too detailed) account of the 1798 rebellion in Ireland against British rule, with sporadic help from Napoleonic France also known as the Year of the French.
The last chapter which seeks to place the year in wider context of Irish struggles for independence is somewhat outdated now - the book was written in the 60s so predates the Troubles, joining the Eurozone, Brexit, and the Peace Process.
I had only a basic notion of this period so the extent of the rebellion was a surprise - I had no idea several counties escaped colonial control for several weeks and c. 30,000 people died. It’s a shame he struggled to find many documents from the rebel side so the narrative is very British influenced, but otherwise it’s a comprehensive version of events which led to the abolition of the Irish Parliament and the union of Ireland with Britain in 1801.
The last chapter which seeks to place the year in wider context of Irish struggles for independence is somewhat outdated now - the book was written in the 60s so predates the Troubles, joining the Eurozone, Brexit, and the Peace Process.
I had only a basic notion of this period so the extent of the rebellion was a surprise - I had no idea several counties escaped colonial control for several weeks and c. 30,000 people died. It’s a shame he struggled to find many documents from the rebel side so the narrative is very British influenced, but otherwise it’s a comprehensive version of events which led to the abolition of the Irish Parliament and the union of Ireland with Britain in 1801.
February 5, 2024
A very thorough and readable telling of the 1798 United Irishmen movement and the uprising against British rule in Ireland. The author gives an almost day-to-day account of the heroic and tragic events that shook the British and the Protestant Ascendency in Ireland. Revolutionary France came to the aid of the United Irishmen but it was too little and too late. The Act of Union that followed changed nothing for the Catholics who were still down-trodden in their own land. The Year of the French as it came to be known was just one uprising in Irish history culminating first in the 1916 Rising and subsequent War of Independence and secondly in the tragic history of Northern Ireland which the British partioned from the rest of the island in 1921.
March 26, 2020
An excellent history of a bloody conflict, told without the soaked-in bias normally found in Irish history books. Both versions are very well presented - the small hardback/paperback "regular" book and the large format "coffee-table" book with great pictures and maps giving a great feel for the period. A time in Irish history when something tangible could have happened, the United Irishmen came close. But the weather, spies and an ambivalent French presence went against them. A great read.
January 1, 2020
Great read
A comprehensive and informative read on the Irish rebellion of 1798. Excellent detail and research that provided a wealth of information to somebody like me that had little knowledge of the subject area. A great book about a little known but bloody period of Irish history.
A comprehensive and informative read on the Irish rebellion of 1798. Excellent detail and research that provided a wealth of information to somebody like me that had little knowledge of the subject area. A great book about a little known but bloody period of Irish history.
December 22, 2024
This is the second time I've read it; enjoyed it even more than the first. One of the best history books I've ever read. Pakenham writes in an exciting, readable style that gives a great insight into the personalities involved.
November 28, 2021
A good general history of the rebellion.
July 5, 2025
An interesting short summary, in traditional narrative history form.
October 30, 2019
Bit heavy at times, but good all encompassing narrative of the '98 Rebellion, and lacking Bias.
While not as enjoyable as Pakenham's 'The Boer War', Pakenham still brings to life several of the battles which occurred in this time period, as well as the characters leading them.
While lacking Bias, Pakenham still is not afraid of negatively portraying certain characters. If a person is morally reprehensible, he will make it clear no matter which side they are fighting for.
One person I would have liked to have read more about was Theobald Wolfe Tone, however there wasn't really much room left in the book.
Worthwhile read to truly understand the rebellion in full.
While not as enjoyable as Pakenham's 'The Boer War', Pakenham still brings to life several of the battles which occurred in this time period, as well as the characters leading them.
While lacking Bias, Pakenham still is not afraid of negatively portraying certain characters. If a person is morally reprehensible, he will make it clear no matter which side they are fighting for.
One person I would have liked to have read more about was Theobald Wolfe Tone, however there wasn't really much room left in the book.
Worthwhile read to truly understand the rebellion in full.
December 16, 2015
'The Year of Liberty: The History of the Great Irish Rebellion of 1798' is the first book I have read by this author - Thomas Pakenham - and having read it I Shall bee seeking out more of his work.
As the book's title indicates, the core narrative relates to the happenings of 1798 on the island of Ireland. As someone who is regrettably ignorant of many of the finer points of Irish History and its struggle for independence, I was glad that the author included a large preface and a series of short opening chapters designed 'to plug the gaps' and provide context. In concert, these chapters furnish the reader with a comprehensive map of the sociopolitical landscape in Ireland in the years immediately preceding 1798, namely, those which gave genesis to the rising.
Pakenham style, while dry at times, and often rather wordy, is engaging and kept me turning the pages throughout. In conclusion, for those who are looking for one, I think this book would serve as a good, scholarly introduction to the topic.
Happy Reading,
Gavin
As the book's title indicates, the core narrative relates to the happenings of 1798 on the island of Ireland. As someone who is regrettably ignorant of many of the finer points of Irish History and its struggle for independence, I was glad that the author included a large preface and a series of short opening chapters designed 'to plug the gaps' and provide context. In concert, these chapters furnish the reader with a comprehensive map of the sociopolitical landscape in Ireland in the years immediately preceding 1798, namely, those which gave genesis to the rising.
Pakenham style, while dry at times, and often rather wordy, is engaging and kept me turning the pages throughout. In conclusion, for those who are looking for one, I think this book would serve as a good, scholarly introduction to the topic.
Happy Reading,
Gavin
May 22, 2013
A great history book though very detailed oriented and condensed; I had to take it in small doses. The Great Rebellion of 1798 was a massive undertaking on the part of the Irish peasants who made up a majority of those who fought. The scale of insurrection was as large as it was chaotic and equally, provided quite the thorn in the side of the English gentry. Pakenham provides an unbiased account of this legendary event in modern Irish history; it is searingly honest and often times darkly satirical; see how Pakenham points towards the timing of the French invasion and Napper Tandy being smashed of the drink upon landing on Irish shores. If you are a history buff, I suggest you to endeavour the read. If you are easily distracted by heaps of information this may not be the book for you.
July 26, 2011
I'm not a lover of Military history, hence the low score, otherwise a fairly enjoyable history book with entertaining anecdotes including one about a severed finger being used to stir a bowl of punch...
October 16, 2015
Absolutely fantastic and readable. I want to start it all over again.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews