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The Plot Against Ireland

The Forger, Spies, Conmen and Terrorists Who Conspired Against Irish Home Rule
Brief Description
In the late nineteenth century, the great Tory leader Lord Salisbury and his closest collaborators were haunted by the looming threat of Home Rule in Ireland. Salisbury, an anxious man obsessed by visions of social disintegration, was determined to undermine the legitimacy of what he saw... Read More
Format: Hardback
$5499
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The gripping story of the conspiracy between the Salisbury government and The Times newspaper to discredit the Irish Home Rule movement.

The gripping story of the conspiracy between the Salisbury government and The Times newspaper to discredit the Irish Home Rule movement.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

In the late nineteenth century, the great Tory leader Lord Salisbury and his closest collaborators were haunted by the looming threat of Home Rule in Ireland. Salisbury, an anxious man obsessed by visions of social disintegration, was determined to undermine the legitimacy of what he saw as a revolutionary project, one that would damage the prestige and integrity of the British Empire, then at its zenith. He was willing to tarnish the reputation of the Irish leadership by any means necessary.

Using blatant fabrication, espionage, and the help of The Times newspaper, the grandest members of the English political elite conspired to discredit the leader of the Irish Nationalist Party, Charles Parnell. By publishing forged letters, Parnell was accused of complicity in the horrific assassination of Lord Frederick Cavendish, Ireland's new Chief Secretary, and his colleague Thomas Burke, who were murdered as they walked unprotected in Dublin's Phoenix Park. Parnell was also linked to a plot to assassinate Queen Victoria.

Culminating in a government commission and major libel trial, this dramatic episode in British and Irish political history exposes the lengths an Empire will go to survive, and also confronts the difficult question of Parnell’s relationship to violence and Irish nationalism.

The Plot Against Ireland reconstructs these largely forgotten and almost incredible events in Myles Dungan’s mordantly witty narrative.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781035919611

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 13 August 2026

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Apollo

Illustration: 17 b&w illustrations

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 38.0mm

Width: 154.0mm

Height: 236.0mm

Weight: 620g

Pages: 400

About the Author

Myles Dungan is a broadcaster and historian. He presents The History Show on RTÉ Radio 1 and is an adjunct lecturer and Fulbright scholar in the School of History and Archives, University College, Dublin. He has also compiled and presented a number of award-winning historical documentaries. He is the author of numerous works on Irish and American history and holds a PhD from Trinity College, Dublin.

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  • The Plot Against Ireland
    Pre-order
    The Plot Against Ireland
    In the late nineteenth century, the great Tory leader Lord Salisbury and his closest collaborators were haunted by the looming threat of Home Rule in Ireland. Salisbury, an anxious man obsessed by visions of social disintegration, was determined to undermine the legitimacy of what he saw as a revolutionary project, one that would damage the prestige and integrity of the...
    Paperback
    $3999
    Pre-order
    Out 5 Jan 2027
  • Land Is All That Matters
    In eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Europe, everyone lived ‘off the land’ in one way or another. In Ireland, however, almost everyone lived ‘on the land’ as well. Agriculture was the only economic resource for the vast majority of the population outside the north-east of the country. Land was vital. But most of it was owned by a class of Protestant, English...
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