- Paperback: 448 pages
- Publisher: HarperCollins; New Ed edition (4 Sep 2000)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0006386741
- ISBN-13: 978-0006386742
- Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 12.8 x 3.4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 163,043 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Review
Praise for Tony Geraghty’s Brixmis:
‘Geraghty is one of the few military writers who could have delivered this excellent book… filled with anecdotes, quotes from secret documents and official briefings that bring it alive and make it an exceptionally readable official history of one of the unsung heroes of the Cold War’
- James Adams, Sunday Times
‘Packed with dramatic accounts of spy-like things… fascinating revelations celebrate old-fashioned British pluck, amateurism, eccentricity and modesty. Its pages are rife with madcap and brilliant ideas for outwitting the
“opposition”’
- Thomas Blaikie, Spectator
‘Knocks spots off most fictional attempts to tackle the same subjects’
- Economist
Product Description
A full and definitive account of the war waged between Irish Republicans and England over three centuries by the bestselling author of ‘Who Dares Wins’, with emphasis on the latterday role of the special forces.
From the Battle of the Boyne in 1690 to the Downing Street Declaration of 1993, Britain and Ireland have been in mortal conflict over the sovereignty of the Emerald Isle. In ‘The Irish War’, bestselling author Tony Geraghty writes a full and compelling account of the tragic three-hundred-year war, tracing the path to today’s weary peace.
From his years of reporting the outbreak of the troubles in 1969 for the Sunday Times to the present, Tony Geraghty has covered every bloody twist and turn of the IRA and the Loyalist campaigns, but his unerring eye for detail took him back through the centuries to uncover the roots and causes of the grievances and feuds that have been so ruthlessly fought over in the past twenty-five years. The result is a powerful history of England’s ruthless aggression against her small Catholic neighbour and that tiny island’s utter determination to oust the bullying intruder. After the battles of the Boyne and Aughrim, deserted by the last of their officers and with inferior resources, the Irish reinvented the rules of warfare to their advantage. The battle cry of Sinn Fein – ‘Ourselves Alone’ – went up and a code of fighting that ignored the rules of war was let loose.
Tracing the roots and meaning of the terrible war that has been fought overtly and covertly for three hundred years, ‘The Irish War’ is essential reading for all those seeking to understand the relations between these two nations.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
military aspects of the conflict,
By
This review is from: The Irish War (Paperback)
I liked this book because the military and technological aspects of the conflicts between the british forces and the IRA are concentrated on ,not just the politics. The book has 4 parts. The first is a general overview of the political situation 1962 - 1998. The fourth part has chapters on irish history (and british involvement) from the 17th century to 1921(independence of southern ireland). Its the second and third parts i liked most. The second part has chapters on the british response to the IRA. Surveillance,human and technical, agent running,the SAS, links with loyalists etc. The third part is about the IRA. Chapters have information on IRA technology. Particularly interesting is the development of the IRA mortar. From the MARK 15 (latest one,THE BARRACKBUSTER, first used in 1993,right back to the MARK 2 first used in 1972. Contains diagrams of the use of the mortars also. RECOMMENDED)
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The book they want to ban,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Irish War (Hardcover)
The author has been charged under the Official Secrets Act and the Ministry of Defence are trying to stop the paperback coming out. Buy this book and support freedom of speech. See The New York Times 6.12.99 article by Anthony Lewis for the whole story.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Some fascinating insights - a great read,
By Pablo (Tafalla, Nafarroa) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Irish War (Paperback)
Tony Geraghty brings two areas of expertise to bear on the Irish War. One, he is an ex-Para, albeit (and probably better for the "balance" of the book) not one who served in Northern Ireland. This gives him insights into the military side of things that an ordinary historian might not have. It would also appear to be the reason why he has a network of British military connections which give an incredible range and depth to his portrayal of British military and intelligence operations. Two, Mr. Geraghty was a Sunday Times journalist on the ground in Northern Ireland in the late 60s and early 70s. The resulting book is a long way from a dour military history - rather it provides some fascinating insights into the war in question. Mr. Geraghty doesn't display much love for the IRA, and his empathy is generally with the British, but he earnestly seeks to explore the war and his partialities can thus be indulged.
The book is divided into four sections. The first is the history of the conflict from the 1960s to the 1990s complete with frontline reports and makes fascinating and informative reading. The second part alone makes the book worth buying. It provides fascinating insights into the development of forensic science and its role in guerrilla warfare. But its ensuing description of the war at an intelligence level is frankly superb. Stories of republicans sent on holiday after "winning" CornFlakes-type competitions, allowing their residences to be bugged in their absence, might seem the stuff of trashy spy novels, but it's not! Part three, an account of the development of weapons during the period, is apt to be too technical at times for the non-specialist and could thus be seen as a weak point. Part four is an overview of Irish history from 1690 to the twentieth century. The author's bias is clearly in evidence here but his debunking of many republican myths and martyrs does have its refreshing and challenging dimension. In sum, I think Tony Geraghty has made an important contribution to Irish history in this book, and has done so in a most entertaining way.
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