Edmund Curtis's remarkable survey of Ireland, from its earliest origins to the twentieth century, is a classic introduction to Ireland's fascinating history. Reaching from St Patrick's Mission in 432 to the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1922, this authoritative text explores the formative events of Ireland's past and encompasses the Norman invasion, Gaelic recovery, Cromwell's Settlement, the Act of Union, and the Great Famine. Lucid and scholarly, this all-embracing account unfolds the events of Ireland's history and the story of its people, through an examination of their political, religious, social, economic and cultural past. Ireland's unique history is revealed here through the 'moving forces, the deciding facts, and the men who mattered'. Featuring a chronology of key dates in Irish history and a guideline to the pronunciation of Irish names, this celebrated narrative now includes a new introduction by Sean Duffy.