The Irish Diaspora

Tales of Emigration, Exile and Imperialism

$39.99

Explore the lives of over forty men and women – great and otherwise – whose pioneering journeys beyond the Irish shore played a profound role in world history

Available

ISBN: 9780500022528 Category:

Turtle Bunbury

Description

The Irish have always been a travelling people. In the centuries after the fall of Rome, Irish missionaries carried the word of Christianity throughout Europe, while soldiers and mariners from across the land ventured overseas in all directions. Since 1800 an estimated 10 million people have left the Irish shores and today more than 80 million people worldwide claim Irish descent.

The advent of the British Empire ignited a slow but extraordinary exodus from Ireland. The pioneering explorers of the Tudor Age were soon overtaken in number by religious refugees, the ‘Wild Geese’ who opted to live outside of the Protestant state and to take their chances in the Spanish or French empires, or in America. The Irish played a pivotal role in the foundation of the United States of America, just as they would in the Civil War that followed eighty-five years later. The lives of Irish emigrants wove in and out of the major events of global history, including the Abbé Edgeworth, confessor to King Louis XVI at his execution during the French Revolution; Margaretta Eagar, governess to the daughters of Nicholas II, the last Tsar of Russia; and William Lamport, who travelled from County Wexford to Central America, and became Don Guillén, a martyr for Mexican independence.

Turtle Bunbury explores the lives of those men and women, great and otherwise, whose journeys – whether driven by faith, a desire for riches and adventure, or purely for survival – have left their mark on the world.

With 29 illustrations, 19 in colour

Additional information

Weight 700 g
Dimensions 16.6 x 24.1 cm
Publisher name Thames and Hudson Ltd
Publication date 11 May 2021
Number of pages 304
Format Hardback
Dimensions 16.6 x 24.1 cm
Weight 700 g

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Turtle Bunbury is an author, historian, public speaker and TV presenter based in Ireland. His previous book, Ireland's Forgotten Past, was described by Sebastian Barry, the Laureate for Irish Fiction, as 'a delicious and stirring atlas of Irishness'. His other books include The Irish Pub, Living in Sri Lanka and the award-winning Vanishing Ireland series. A frequent guest on Irish radio and TV, Turtle also appeared on the 2018 US series of Who Do You Think You Are?.