The Story of the Irish Race: A Popular History of Ireland

by Seumas MacManus

The whole saga of the Irish from earliest times to the present -- the various races from the time of Firbolg and the quest and occupation by the Milesians Spain through the various invasions; history, culture, religion, laws, arts, ties, folklore, trade, literature, heroes Fein, Easter Uprising, etc. Sketches a rough and ready picture of the more prominent peaks that rise out of Ireland's past-the high spots in the story of the Irish race. Written especially for the American reader (whom the author found to be as unknowing about Ireland's past as about the past of Borneo)... --alibris ... 'Indispensable for anyone who wants to understand the Irish people--their political struggle, their magnificent literature, and their whole great contribution to Western Civilization, a contribution amazing in its richness and variety." --from jacket flap.

Genres: History, Ireland, Nonfiction, Irish Literature, Historical, Mythology, European History

737 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1921

About the author

Seumas MacManus was an Irish dramatist, poet, and prolific writer of popular stories, who played an important role in the rise of Irish nationalist literature.

Reviews

[Rob]

i found a $20 bill on page 100 while looking at it at powells bookstore, so i bought it

[Thedailyloaf · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book in 1984 (I was 14). this was the first book I ever read on Irish history. I found it engrossing, if at times rather exaggerated. over the years I have read quite a bit of Irish history and keeping coming back to this every once in awhile.

of course, it is a bit "propagandist" concerning several subjects. particularly the famine period of 1844-48. it's not that the information is necessarily false, it's simply that the information is certainly told from an unwaveringly Nationalist point of view.

when one considers that:

A) this was written in the aftermath of the Irish Civil War by a man who served in the resistance

B) the title states "A Popular History of Ireland"

this is in fact a great resource in understanding where Nationalistic Ireland is coming from to this day. yes, it's "propaganda" to a degree. however, while I understand those of the pro-Loyalist persuasion will undoubtedly pan this work as part of a pan-Nationalist conspiracy, it's invaluable in immersing the reader in a passionate, well argued point of view. it spans the entire scope, from prehistory until 1922. the sections on pre-Norman Irish civilization are (for lack of a better adjective) 'effin' awesome. McManus sums up Cuchulain, Fionn Macumhail, Irish-Celtic Christianity, the Tuatha de Dannan, Vikings etc in a relatively easy narrative. sometimes a bit choppy, his info is mostly taken from contemporary sources, with lots of quotes and footnotes throughout, the entire read is absolutely rollicking in "Paddy Fever".

I would strongly suggest this read for a beginner newly delving into Irish history, as well as for anyone with an interest into Irish Nationalism

[Shannon McDermott · Rating 5 out of 5]

On the first page of this book, the author calls it a "crude compendium" and "a rough and ready sketch." Perhaps so, but at 725 pages and a historical span of nearly three thousand years, it is quite a sketch.

To his credit, the author makes no pretensions to neutrality. He declares on the first page that the purpose of this rough and ready sketch is to provide a history of Ireland for her people and exiles (and descendants of those exiles - of whom I am one). This is a book of the Irish, by the Irish, and for the Irish.

A more rigorous book might have been written, as the author acknowledges at the outset. The opening chapters consist greatly of speculation about the historical basis of Irish legends, especially those of the Tuatha De Danann. The later chapters are strong and unequivocal in their anti-British viewpoint. They are not, however, hateful. (And reading the accounts of Britain's conquest and keeping of Ireland - including atrocities of murder, rape, and torture - and the ruthless self-interest with which Great Britain ruled the Irish, and the oppressive laws with which it sought to disenfranchise and degrade an entire people ... well, I could see why many of the Irish have hated the English. I felt I could come to hate them myself.*)

The book's clear Irish viewpoint, once recognized, is valuable in understanding the Irish viewpoint. There is also a kind of richness that flows from this viewpoint, from reading of Ireland from someone who loves Ireland. The author's pleasure in the lore and songs and poetry of Ireland, his love of it through every defeat and misfortune, his delight in its glories - all of this shines through the pages.

The author may well be biased (and his expressed opinions are, of course, not infallible). Yet this is not propaganda. The author means to provide history. He recounts events that reflect poorly on the Irish and provides support for anti-English or pro-Irish statements from sources that have no bias in favor of Ireland (and perhaps some in favor of England).

This book is flavored with deep emotion, sharpened with strong opinions. It is also filled with apt quotations, powerful details, and colorful sketches of great characters. The author shows great skill in what he chooses to relate and how, and wholly avoids the dryness that comes of too much attention to statistics and too little attention to the individual stories that make up the great arc of history.

The Story of the Irish Race is not a definitive history of Ireland, but probably no single book could be. Whatever its limits, it is written with respect for the truth and love for Ireland. It reprises Irish history too little known in America and reflects the Irish spirit that has so doggedly resisted domination down through the centuries.

And it quotes poetry in the footnotes and sometimes in the text itself. What more could you want?


*In case the tone of this statement is misunderstood, let me clarify: I don't hate the English.

[P.J. Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Irish history emerges from misty legends. This book sifts for facts among the fables. Invaders and powerful kings make up much of the early narrative, as it was they who left historical footprints. Tribal Ireland needed powerful kings to form a united front against foreign invaders. Indeed, Ireland was invaded and colonized so many times from so many directions that it is hard to say for sure who the Irish are. It is a story marked by wars, famines, persecutions, and widespread suffering. Saints and scholars enter the narrative, followed by freedom fighters and Fenians. At times this book becomes a litany of atrocities committed against the Irish, but that's the way it was.

This is the Irish experience to about 1920. Did you know that the Irish invaded England? That Christianity was established in Ireland before St. Patrick arrived? That the Renaissance began in Ireland? That Irish monks were in North America centuries before Columbus? That wearing a moustache was punishable by death under the English penal laws? That the Irish were more fluent in Latin than in English? That it was unchivalrous to wage war before the enemy was ready?

This is a big book, not a quick or easy read, but it can be read piecemeal. It covers a lot of ground, from Irish customs and costumes to arts and crafts, poetry, trade and manufacture, politics, laws, education, religion, monasticism, the status of women, etc. It could benefit from artful condensation and better organization. It may be too detailed for some readers. Bias? Yes, but it does not obscure the facts … or the fables.

[Monica]

As one review said, this book is written for Americans who know dittily about Irish history, myself included.

[Ashley Harp · Rating 3 out of 5]

The start of the book was great - probably the first third. It dove in depth about Ancient Ireland: where the people came from, who they were, ancient lore, traditions, government, etc. It was very interesting and well written. As the book progressed I felt that the research and the writing got sloppier. It became much more opinionated and one sided. It felt more like a personal opinion essay on injustices suffered by the Irish people. The descriptions of events stayed the same - each atrocity and removal of freedom was the worst, most savage thing experienced yet. Really?
The history was interesting as I have not studied Irish history before. I was a bit disappointed with the book as a whole after such a strong start. It's still one I'll keep and possibly refer back to though.

[Patrick · Rating 1 out of 5]

Every little Irish shop in America seemed to sell this book when I was growing up, and I got a copy as a gift from my mother at the time. I never got around to reading it then and the book itself is long gone, but I'm finally reading the text as an ebook. Unfortunately, neither the tone (unabashedly uncritical and ahistorical) nor the style (unnecessarily convoluted) have worn at all well since the book's initial publication almost a hundred years ago. Here is an example of the tortured prose:

"Even of Fursa's servant, St. Maguille, the memory is honoured at St. Riquier, where is his holy well, and where, more than four centuries after, and again four centuries after that, his body was enshrined in a very precious shrine, and re-enshrined with ecclesiastical honours."

Tolerant though I usually am of historical styles, I cannot see this as anything other than a failed attempt at "fine writing."

[Moonkiszt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This history of the Irish "race" is one of those tomes to read slowly, gently, with long spaces between to give a reader time to understand the context, the inhabitants (be they native or newcomer, defender or invader), the place, and the physical constraints of the land, weather, surrounding waters and uneasy grounds beneath bare feet.

Written over 100 years ago, the Story has snippets of history of those who came to live on the Irish island starting as far back as memory - weaving Milesian (those who descend from Milesius of Spain) blood lines with the Firblog and the Tuatha De Danann. Once origins were thoroughly discussed, chapters range widely from Tara, to Saints Patrick and Bridget, to Vikings, Geraldines, Henry VII's Policies, to Red Hugh, The Rising of 1798, Sinn Fein and so many more. Especially interesting to me (a fan of endnotes in my reading materials), this has at the end of each chapter, sources for those who want to further explore.

Of particular interest to me was the discussion of Irish Brehon Law Code:
Every chieftain had his own Brehon (a Gaelic judge). . ."to decide the causes of that country." "Three doors," declared the Irish, "through which truth is recognised: a patient answer, a firm pleading, appealing to witnesses. Three glories of a gathering: a judge without perturbation, a decision without reviling, terms agreed upon without fraud."

I spent nearly two years with this at my bedside. It was a welcome bedfellow.

[Lucinda Reed-Nowland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a light, easy read, although it is easier to read than any history text I have had to tackle. I am reading this for pleasure, and it is an enjoyable book. It is written in a fast paced, novel-like style, but it is very involved and will take a while to finish.

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Cuchulain goes into a killing rage, his lower legs turn around backwards, one eye sinks into his head, the other sticks out like a horn, his hair sticks up straight into hard spikes. Though normally he's a kind of good looking guy.

[William Guerrant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightfully old fashioned and patriotic.

Narrative histories of Ireland almost always disproportionately (imho) focus on the 20th century, which is understandable. Published in 1931, this hefty 700+ page history is a refreshing exception to that.

A note of caution: the author has woven facts, legends and polemics together in a way that modern historians would find objectionable, and while he does not pretend to be unbiased, he does pretend to be veridical.

For my records:

Next I read In Praise of Ireland, compiled by Neville Hilditch. Five stars. A delightful little book. I am unable to enter it in "My Books" because Goodreads doesn't have it in its library, even though it has other of Hilditch's "In Praise of..." books, and Goodreads no longer allows readers to add books not in its library.

After that I read Great Gaels: Ireland at Peace in a World at War by Martin Quigley, Jr. (also not in the Goodreads library, grr...), a very interesting and well written look at Irish government and society in the early 1940s. Five stars.

[Brady McLaughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

The prose of propaganda with the references of a history textbook, what’s not to love?

Good but so very very dense. Probably a 3.75 in reality but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[Pam · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is not a book for someone who, like me, has only a mild interest in Irish history, and absolutely no background. The old-fashioned writing, almost circular in the ancient history part of the book, it was difficult for me to follow. And the author’s very biased pro-Ireland viewpoint was frustrating when I was seeking some sort of context or balance. Still, I did learn a few things. Perhaps enough to make me want to read a book about Ireland that will give me an actual history, and not this one-sided poetic nonsense.

[Donovan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An _excellent_ book for those wanting to get a broad overview of Irish history.

I read this about ten years ago. I picked it up and 'only put it down to eat'. If you have any Irish blood, it'll leaving you feeling like a nationalist.

[Alyosha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cool bit in here about early Irish Christians, and some hearsay surrounding the idea that James (yes, THE James, as in, "Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?", James) went as far as Ireland preaching the Gospel, and brought Irish disciples back with him.

[Jordan Maloney · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book presents a ton of information at a blistering pace. Some events that seem important are only given a handful of pages. The book also lacks citations and references.

[Tanya]

Used this for my thesis for my modern European history class

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started reading this book about 10 years ago, but never got past the first couple of chapters. I'm not sure why, but I think it had to do mainly with the author's stilted and grandiose language, making it seem more like a propaganda work (which it surely was, being written during the Irish Civil War) than a serious scholarly work. But with our return to Ireland for two weeks in 2008, I decided to give it another try.

The ancient part of the history is pretty engrossing--tales of Cuchulainn and Irish knights and poets and kings and bards, all told in a high style that makes ancient Ireland seem like a fairytale idyll. The part dealing with the Norman invasion and Cromwell is gripping too, but the author's (understandably) anti-English bias starts to get in the way of the narrative at this point. This only gets worse as we read about the Famine, the Land Bill years, and finally the Easter Rising and formation of the Irish Free State. For me, the last few chapters was a race to finish the story so I could get away from the jingoistic drumbeat of Irish moral superiority and victimhood (and I say this as a fan of most things Irish!).

As a work of propaganda, this book is progressively heavy-handed and quaint, an early version of the art that was perfected later in the 20th Century by Goebbels and Mikhailov. As a history it is suspect but sufficient to whet the reader's appetite for more balanced works on the subject. It's also a great primer on Irish poetry and literature.

[Kevin O'Brien · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you only ever read one book on the Irish history this would be an excellent choice. Originally written in 1921 as the Irish Uprising turned into the Irish Civil War, it was intended in part to explain just what all of the issues were. But it is also a work of a master storyteller, and if there is anything the Irish are known for it is story telling. McManus goes all the way back to the stories of the Tuatha De Danaan, a semi-mythical race of gods who invaded Ireland shortly after 2000 B.C. according to the annals. And then he traces the history forward, through the Druids of the centuries BC, St. Patrick and the Christianization of Ireland, and finally the horrible oppressions of the English. This is a book written as a story, not as a scholarly work of history, and is quite accessible. McManus wrote this in large part for Irish-Americans whom he found found woefully lacking in knowledge of Irish history.

I originally read this as physical book, but it is now available on Amazon as a Kindle book for only $.99. Kind of hard to go too far wrong at that price.

[Roy Orbitsun · Rating 1 out of 5]

With no index and no formal bibliography, this is no scholarly work, as it seemed to be styled by MacManus, and why I wanted to read it in the first place. But I was disappointed. It seems to be merely a personal effort by MacManus to praise Ireland, its history, people, and culture, but offers no supporting evidence to back up his assertions. The title is therefore correct, as far as it goes: it's just a story. There's no way to understand where fact ends and fiction begins in this book, and a lot of it seems very fanciful indeed. I stopped reading halfway through. If you're looking for a scholarly approach to the real story of Ireland, look elsewhere.

[✨Bean's Books✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very good read. The author presents their points in an easy-to-follow manner instead of listing years and numbers and droning on. MacManus instead writes the information in a narrative and this makes it a much better read in my opinion. It is very obvious that the author has researched all their information as their writing flows effortlessly from point to point. The information was great to read. I definitely learned a few new things about the Irish Race. I would definitely recommend this book to all who are interested in Celts, Ireland, or general history.

[Emer Mccarthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book which I return to frequently

[Jean Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you are interested in an objective history of Ireland this isn't it. But it is a very readable and impassionate story of Ireland and it's efforts to gain independence from British rule.

[Sean Hackbarth · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's an old history of Ireland–going through the 1916 Easter Uprising, so nothing about what happened during most of the 20th Century. Also, it's very slanted towards the Irish. There is nothing Britain could do right. Everything was about Irish oppression.

Yet the slant was refreshing. It helped establish a tone of pride that radiates throughout the book. Ireland has a long history involving not only tragedy and pain, but philosophy, art, religion, and culture.

Sure, it was a slog to get through, but get through it I did. It gave me a taste of the rich history the Irish possess.

[Janessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

DNF-ing at this point, but I read through the section I figured I would most enjoy (through Vikings and Cromwell). The writing is too dry for me to go further than the periods I am interested in. I did enjoy the first half for the most part, and I pulled bits and pieces that I found highly interesting, but this is an extremely dry history, good in small doses, but an investment I'm not willing to give to actually finish.

[gabhan odubhfaigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

right then

You aren’t finished seamy! Took me ages reading around this book and following the research. Well done. Although much of from the end of your book till today is covered in copious books, it would have been good to hear what you have to offer on the story of the Irish race to date. The part of the story of the Irish race post selling out the people of the north isn’t there. Good read all the same. Thanks.

[Brian Allen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a mix of both history and mythology. The author examines both Ancient and modern day Ireland. However, the author's style is not my favorite. It reads more like a collection of short stories regarding certain figures who lived, loved, fought and died than it does a historical text on Ireland.

[David Allan · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the first works I bought and read years ago. Contains more of folklore, social history and general impressions of the Irish than pure history. I enjoy all of MacManus' work. Known more for his fiction and storytelling than history, his breadth of knowledge of Irish culture and oral traditions come through in this book. Still get a twinge of joy anytime I pull it down from the shelf.

[John Monaghan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great reference book. I learned more about the history of Europe and the Isles than from any other source!

[Elise Chandler · Rating 3 out of 5]

I agree with another reviewer - the first third was AMAZING, and then, it just got repetitive...still, I am so glad I read it.