The Easter Rising [Hardcover]

Brian Barton (Author), Michael Foy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 2000

Opening with an evaluation of the roots of the Rising, the authors present pen portraits of the leaders and a thorough analysis of their motives, plans and objectives. They challenge the traditional interpretation that these leaders expected military failure, motivated by a desire to provide a "blood sacrifice" and hoping thereby to rejuvenate Irish nationalist sentiment. A detailed chronological account of the Rising itself recaptures the action in the key locations, giving insights into the actual experience of Easter Week for the rebels, the military personnel who opposed them, and the civilian population. The authors conclude their narrative by reviewing the British government's reaction to the Rising, analyzing the background to the declaration of martial law, and assessing the British military response. The book contains transcripts of the court martial trials of the executed rebel leaders, including the cases for the prosecution and defence, plus the testimonies of the witnesses. It graphically describes the execution process and - drawing on Sir John Maxwell's private papers - the justification given for imposing the death sentence in each case. Letter, diaries and recollections of participants and eyewitnesses, complement the wealth of archive information used.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Michael Foy is the author of Michael Collins's Intelligence War. Brian Barton is the author of The Secret Court Martial Records of the 1916 Easter Rising.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Sutton Pub Ltd; illustrated edition edition (February 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0750917067
• ISBN-13: 978-0750917063
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,670,330 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Invaluable!, March 7, 2006

By 

Andrew Scott "NY Irish" (NY, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Easter Rising (Hardcover)

Barton and Foy have produced one of the definitive sources on the Easter Uprising of 1916. This is an impartial and well-researched examination of the events and persons associated with this great event in Irish history. I can think of few other books that can rival Barton and Foy's Easter Rising for historical detail and broad scope- two things that are rarely done well together. For the history buff it is readable and interesting; the researcher will be pleased with the footnotes, detailed index and wonderful original testimony from participants that is not often found in the common sources. The authors do not seek to praise heroes, but to examine history- something they do quite well.