How the Irish Saved Civilization (Hinges of History) (Paperback)

~ (Author) "On the last, cold day of December in the dying year we count as 406, the river Rhine froze solid, providing the natural bridge that..." (more)
Key Phrases: Middle Ages, Mac Roth, Book of Kells (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In this delightful and illuminating look into a crucial but little-known "hinge" of history, Thomas Cahill takes us to the "island of saints and scholars," the Ireland of St. Patrick and the Book of Kells. Here, far from the barbarian despoliation of the continent, monks and scribes laboriously, lovingly, even playfully preserved the West's written treasury. When stability returned in Europe, these Irish scholars were instrumental in spreading learning, becoming not only the conservators of civilization, but also the shapers of the medieval mind, putting their unique stamp on Western culture.

From Publishers Weekly

An account of the pivotal role played by Irish monks in transcribing and preserving Classical civilization during the Dark Ages.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Anchor; Anchor Books ed edition (February 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385418493
• ISBN-13: 978-0385418492
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (277 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #8,770 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #1 in	Books > History > Europe > Ireland > Medieval
  #9 in	Books > History > Ancient > Early Civilization

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

210 of 235 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars QUICKSAND THESIS., March 17, 2006

By	FACTS! - See all my reviews

Reviewers Spainiard and Ludicrous were 1000% right! Greek did not diappear on the continent. In the southern parts of Italy and Spain as well as much of the Balkans it was almost as widely spoken as Latin untill the 10th century. THIS FACT MAKES THIS BOOK A MERE FOOTNOTE. In fact Isidore of Seville had the largest library in western Europe untill the Arabs built theirs at Toledo in the 8th century. For Mr. Taylor 90% of all the Saints were NON-IRISH. Few people today worship them in Europe. Secondly, the alliance between the Roman church and the Franks built much of the Medieval world. The Irish had nothing to do with that. There is no EVIDENCE that they ever produced 1% as many books as the Italians, Jews, Greeks, Arabs, etc. That in itself should have dissuaded the publisher from printing this drek!

203 of 227 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars WRONG! TRY HUMILITY., March 27, 2006

By	Humility. - See all my reviews

Does any thinking person truly believe that the Romans and Greeks needed far more primitive peoples to preserve their HERITAGE? Guess again! There is a mountain of evidence that a wide variety of peoples were maintaining the Classical Heritage. The Armenians, both the pre-islamic and moslem Arabs, Jews, Franks, Goths, Britons, Welsh, and obviously the Italians and Greeks. The Armenians were the first Christian nation by 80AD. Clearly, the Irish saved nothing since all of these other groups were at work long before St. Patrick was ever born. "It is shocking how many of the positive reviewers Mr. Egolf, refuse to RECOGNIZE this fact! I'm half Scottish and I am keenly aware that Civilization in the Americas, Rome in the west to Japan in the east was doing great without the Scots. The Irish should have the same HUMILITY! This book is a sad Vanity Piece with no merit.

189 of 211 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Rusty Fiction., May 9, 2006

By	Slavic Critic (New Jersey) - See all my reviews

To all who have read this malarkey, and for those who intend to, I have a suggestion. First, read all the articles by Tim Callahan of Skeptic magazine. He is an authentic scholar who specializes in debunking revisionism and bigotry. Since he like Mr. Cahill is Irish the 3-5 star reviewers will not be able to condemn him for being anti-Irish. He makes certain, unlike Cahill that he has a mountain of proof-evidence to verify his thesis. I was so impressed with his methods that it truly surprised me that some people actually fell for this book. In fact he used every point that the 1-2 star reviewers mentioned, and more. I agree with him that the entire "Hinges Of History Series" largely lacks any in depth research. The first 3 chapters of this book is devoted to rehashing what most of us learned in grade school. The next 2 chapters are clearly the authors reinterpretations of the period. The rest of the book felt padded. What does Plato have to do with the title, or premise? Where are the footnotes and sources? That makes everything dubious at best. Also, Cahill did make Archie Bunker type remarks about other groups that have no place in our society, except in a very tasteless jokebook. Read Callahan first, or in place of this rusty fiction.