A History of Ireland in 250 Episodes

by Jonathan Bardon

Jonathan Bardon covers all the obvious things: the invasions, battles, development of towns and cities, the Reformation, the Georgian era, the Famine, rebellions and resistance, the difference of Ulster, partition, the twentieth century. What makes his book so valuable, however, are the quirky subjects he chooses to illustrate how history really works: the great winter freeze of 1740 and the famine that followed; crime and dueling; an emigrant voyage; evictions. These episodes get behind the historical headlines to give a glimpse of past realities that might otherwise be lost to view. The author has retained the original episodic structure of the radio programs. The result is a marvelous mosaic of the Irish past, delivered with clarity and narrative skill.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Ireland, Irish Literature, Ebooks, Audiobook, Historical

592 pages, Paperback

First published October 31, 2008

Reviews

[A. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Covers Ireland from pre-history to just before The Troubles. The author write for BBC NI, so one source of bias is how prominant NI/Ulster is in the book. The other biases might escape lay readers: (i) It chooses the view of the English/British state as what is legitimate. The parts on the middle ages talk a lot about the (English ruled) Kingdom of Ireland, and only that. At one point it mentions that Gaelic Ireland covered 1/3 the country, but it gets a fraction of the book. (ii) According to this, "history" is just a list of battles, of governments, of who's the king/prime minister. There is very little on religion, on language, on food, on music, on law (and law systems), on culture. Large non-military/government events get covered when the are too big to avoid (The Famine), otherwise, it's a long list of dates, along with what the upper class are doing.

It's lots of short chapters, so it's easy to read up on it as you go, and it does give you a good introduction to Irish history.

[MR J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Epic history of Ireland

As a Northern Irish Protestant, this book has been a relevation since I was not taught any Irish history at school. Bardon is an excellent narrative historian and this book never had a dull moment. Gripping stories. I feel I know myself better and where I fit into my country. This book is brilliant - read it.

[David Olmsted · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rare is the book covering such a broad range of time that is as good as this one. The author has a talent for picking out the key fact in Irish history. He ably mixes together long term economic and demographic trends with moving personal accounts which brings the history to life.

[Charles Berteau · Rating 4 out of 5]

As we often do, my wife and I pick up books on local history when vacationing somewhere. This year was no different, and this was one of the books I picked up while in Ireland earlier this year. During our trip, I realized how little I knew of Irish history beyond the Easter Rising and the Troubles, and a smidgen about Cromwell and King John. I grabbed this book as a way to digest the sweep of Irish history in small chunks, as it is organized in 2-3 page vignettes, originally commissioned as a series of radio broadcasts. On this front, the book did not disappoint - it was interesting and instructive, and indeed turned out to be easily digestible. The only flaw in this structure is that it was correspondingly easy for me to set aside, and so took a while to finish!

The book is basically chronological, commencing with the shaping of the landscape before the first people arrived on the island. Story after story, it builds until 1965, with an epilogue that briefly summarizes the 40-odd years from 1965 until 2008 (when the book was published). Almost without fail, each chapter was interesting. By definition, a book such as this one is not deep, but I felt it left me with a good grasp of themes, major events, and key people and organizations. And even at this level, it's a lot to sort out and keep track of!

I won't even attempt to summarize the complex history of this small island, with its stories of tragedy, oppression, stubbornness, and frequent heroism. The conquests, the rebellions, the intrigue, the starvation, the emigration, and the brave (if only occasional) peacemakers - they are here for the interested reader.

In particular, though, I found that the book brings focus on how Irish history is replete with examples of groups that build cohesion by identifying and working against the "other" - consistently on religious grounds, of course, but equally consistently against the "English". Completely understandable, as this is a typical theme of nationalist movements. But as one reads, one can't help but notice that, though the label "English" sticks as a cross-centuries term, its meaning blurs: those vilifying "the English" in 1916 had, no doubt, many drops of "English blood" running through their veins from hundreds of years earlier. And so the world goes.

I loved the book, and recommend it heartily! I believe, though, that it's available only in Ireland and England - US readers may not be able to find it, even if interested.

[Dónal Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredibly well structured history of Ireland, managing to cover a wide span of time while going into quite a lot of detail in some areas. Should be required reading for anyone from Ireland or Britain, or anybody who has an interest in the history of colonialism.

[Chrissy Shea Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the written version of a 2006-2007 radio show where the author was asked to create 240 five minute episodes to cover Irish history from its earliest time (Mesolithic and Neolithic Homo sapiens) to 1939. Ten additional episodes, a prologue and an epilogue were added to bring us through 2008.

I like that this history book (could be used in a classroom) is broken up into small “episodes.” Each episode could have been listened to, and now read, independently. So I can see using this breakdown as an easy way to assign sections, if I were a history teacher.

An expanded edition would be useful to cover the impact of Brexit on both parts of the island.

[Richard Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that ties in with the BBC Northern Ireland radio program brilliant.

[Simon Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1996, I took the short flight from East Midlands Airport to Dublin and spent a week divided between the Republic's capital and Galway. I had a great time but felt a nagging sense of shame at my lack of knowledge of the history of Ireland. I made a vague vow to myself to read up on the subject and finally, a mere twenty-five years later, I've kept my word. What's more, I chose a very good book to enlighten myself.

'A History of Ireland in 250 Episodes' doesn't start well, however. The early chapters are about various tribes invading and the battles which ensued, and although I realise the author had to include such events for the sake of completeness, I found it all rather confusing and, to be honest, a bit dull. Things pick up when the book reaches an era of history containing names I'm familiar with - the 17th century onwards, essentially - and I thoroughly enjoyed the final one hundred and fifty or so episodes.

Jonathan Bardon writes intelligently and clearly and includes plenty of contemporary accounts and quotes to colour his text. He also seems to cover a wide range of issues in a thorough manner. If and when I ever return to Ireland, I certainly won't be wandering around in a fog of ignorance again.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

A History of Ireland in 250 Episodes was originally written as a series of history episodes which aired on BBC Northern Ireland radio. The episodes are all self-contained and fairly short, although the book with all of its 250 episodes is a bit long. The book covers the first humans arriving in Ireland in the Ice Age and works its way up to the Troubles, the sectarian conflict between Protestants and Catholics. There is an additional Epilogue chapter that continues the story of Ireland, including the Celtic Tiger and economic growth of the 1980s and 1990s, as well as Ireland’s role in the European Union.

I enjoyed reading the book, even though it took me a while to get through it all. I am planning a trip to Ireland and have several other history, travel, and Irish cultural books that I am currently reading. Present day Ireland is still divided into two nations with the Republic of Ireland (Dublin) and Northern Ireland (Belfast) of the United Kingdom. I have read the comments that criticize the author from taking a Northern Ireland bias. I am trying to read several books to get several perspectives. If you are interested in Ireland, I can recommend this book.

[Logan Streondj · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellently written in a very approachable vivid and easy to read style, more history books should be written like this. While I learned a lot about Irish history some fun facts are that boycotts started with the ostracism of Captain Boycott. Also that most of the tension and bloodshed was a result of people not owning enough land to meet their basic needs -- mostly due to discriminatory laws which prevented Catholics from buying land.
Ireland separated as they had been abused by the English Protestants for centuries.

[Peter Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is quite a long, detailed account of the history of Ireland from the earliest of times right up to date. I expected it to be a bit too detailed for me to enjoy. But the chapters are delivered in 'bite-sized' pieces and they flow wonderfully without getting too bogged down. I really did enjoy it and recommend the book to everyone with even a passing interest in the island of Ireland.

[LuciaMaria · Rating 5 out of 5]

At last! All the fragments and stories I have heard through childhood have been collected and joined into a cohesive picture. At the age of 21 I FINALLY understand my history!
This book is fantastic. It ought to be the history curriculum for all Irish schools...and maybe required reading in England too!

[Liam Connolly]

Bought at Dublin airport a few years ago flying back from a work trip. Very interesting book with lots of primary sources to give an authentic voice to the story of Ireland. Focuses well on both North and Éire and gives honest views of some of the ups and downs in this nation's tale.

[Iseult · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative

Good read. Interesting and informative. Would have liked a bit more detail up to the turn of the century. Mostly finished in the 1960s and skimmed the next 40 years which would have made interesting reading. Otherwise we’ll written and engaging.

[Richard Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW. What a book. Cleverly written in small understandable episodes.
I was never taught anything about Ireland in school. This in itself is a tragedy.

I enjoyed the learning. Heavy at times. But now I am so much wiser.

A book every British person should read.

Thanks again.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Took longer than expected due to my inability to stick to reading one episode per day... Bite size chunks of surely as many bits of Irish history possible. And finishes with a lovely line in the epilogue.

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emgaging

The format of 250 episodes lent a kind of dramatic flow to the data presented without sensationalizing or compromising scholarship. I found myself caring about what I read - begining the book while on a resesrch tour of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

[Sam O’Brien · Rating 2 out of 5]

probably read about 1/2 the book skipping around to the “highlights.” feels so broad i became overwhelmed with facts spanning thousands of years, but the author didn’t spend enough time spent on historic moments to feel like you learned a sufficient amount

[Luke Brennan · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a miserable history, but well told.

[Rónán Ó · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great concise history to give a taste of each era in Irish history.

[James McMullan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enlightening history of Ireland

Easy to read, short bite sized chapters and an excellent insight into how the Ireland of today, both North and South have come to be.

[Jim Milway · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good solid summary of Irish history.

[Richard Gruner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good source Prehistory to WW2.

Well written narrative of the ongoing struggles of Irish Catholics and Protestants. Periods after WW2 less deeply covered. Scholarly without being pedantic.

[John Fenlon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent breakdown of Irish history into manageable chunks.

[Abby Schwartz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short story-chapters covering the main events in Irish History.

[Joanne Wood · Rating 4 out of 5]

History divided in to nice, bite-sized chunks. Great for reading when you have small pockets of spare time. I read it while waiting for my son to come out of school.
It was a subject I was woefully underinformed about and this was a very good way to catch up.

[Helene · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tiring epic for someone who is not a history buff. If you can hang in there, definitely gives a whole new meaning to everyday living in Ireland. I understand, for example, why they always "invite" you to do something instead of straightforwardly asking you to do this, that and the other, or to pay for something in the shop "when you're ready".

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good informational read. I liked the small chunks that let me read this in sections. Pretty surprised at many of the things, like the Vikings having a large immigrant population. Then all the Scots that came over. Other surprises included the constant fighting with the northern part (Ulster). Not too surprised about the Western areas (Concocht) being so impoverished.

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bardon is a great narrative historian. In 250 episodes (it was originally compiled for radio programs) he tells Ireland's long, sad tale.

having been taught by the author when at university I could virtually hear his passion for detail and quirky facts.

Loved it.

[Roy Lonergan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a useful book for snippets but not for a detailed reading.

That’s not a criticism. It’s a short book and it covers a period from the retreat of the ice sheet to the late twentieth century.

So the way to use it is for a short summary on a topic and a pointer to further reading.