Massie - The complete idiots guide to Irish history and culture

Have you ever wondered:

• Whats the big deal about St. Patrick? What did he do that was so important?
• Why do they say there are no snakes in Ireland?
• Is there really a thing called the Blarney stone and can you actually kiss it?
• Was the Irish Potato Famine truly all that bad?
• Why doesnt Great Britain just pull out of Ireland and let it all be one united country?
• Whats with all the troubles over there between the Protestants and Catholics? Why cant they just get along?

If you have pondered a couple of these questions, you arent alone. Some of the answers are simple; others are deadly complex. Greater minds than yours or mine have wrestled with those last few problems and found no solutions. This book is intended to help you understand what it is to be Irish, both the glorious side of the culture and its centuries-old torments. The Irish are so much more than shamrocks and Guinness, St. Patrick Day parades and leprechauns.

Although it would be impossible to tell the complete story of an ancient people whose ancestors built stone passage graves older than Egypts pyramids in one book, I have included the highlights of Irish history and glimpses into Irish culture. Irelands story has more titillation than a supermarket tabloid; its replete with violence, sex, and high-powered political corruption. But it is also deadly serious. Because in Ireland, perhaps more than in many cultures, the past has become the present. Old wounds still ache, and the cruel cuts go deeper every day. Irish culture is Irish history; the two are inseparable. In this book, you take a journey through the mystical, magical, and infinitely practical world of the Irish, and youll feel right at home.

Part 1, Beyond Leprechauns, St. Patrick, and Shamrocks, introduces you to the Irish people themselves, their customs, their beliefs, their delightful idiosyncrasies, and their celebrations and witticisms. From their colorful Celtic roots to the geography of the Emerald Isle, youll see the influences that have made the Irish who they are.

In Part 2, The Story of Eire, you travel back to the days when the only inhabitants of Eires Land were the four-footed and winged types. Then youll watch as this Eden is invaded by men and paradise is lost. The Celts arrive and establish a civilization that is strangely pagan, yet amazingly civil. Ireland knows a bit of peace, even converting to Christianity through St. Patrick. But then the Vikings, invaders from the north, descend on the small island, and blood stains the green fields. The terror continues until a champion comes to Irelands rescue, Brian Boru, the only man who has ever ruled all of this rebellious island.

In Part 3, Invasions, Repression, and Hunger: You Cant Keep a Good Irishman Down, the British come to Ireland, invited by a disgruntled Irishman named Dermot MacMurrough, who isnt getting along with his neighbors and asks for military assistance. He gets it, along with centuries of British oppression. From the Norman kings to the Tudors, Ireland suffers under the dominion of such notorious rulers as Henry VIII, Elizabeth I, and Oliver Cromwell. Ireland reaches the depths of her miseries during the Great Hunger, the Irish Potato Famine of 18451848. The island would never be the same again. Her patriots, enflamed, stage one rebellion after another until the Irish Free State is born. Finally, Ireland rules itself, except for those Northern counties, where the troubles still rage.

In Part 4, Erins Hall of Fame, you meet Erins celebrities, whose talents range from great playwrights and authors (William Butler Yeats, Jonathan Swift, Oscar Wilde, George Bernard Shaw, James Joyce, Sean OCasey, and Frank McCourt to name a few) to skilled politicians, soldiers, and athletic champions. The sons and daughters of auld Erin have given us all a thousand reasons to be fiercely proud!

Part 5, Ireland and All It Has to Offer: A Story Still Tellin, shows that the Irish today preserve the customs of their predecessors, while creating traditions of their own. From the glorious handcrafts they produce, to the tourism industry, to the music of todays Irish bands and the flying feet of the Riverdance troupe, the Irish people display the beauty and fire of the Celtic spirit. The world is realizing what a marvelous thing it is to be Irish. We always knew!

To help you along, throughout this book youll find sidebars with extra information that you wont want to miss:

The author would like to thank some very special people who contributed so much to the writing of this book:

Amy Zavatto, a patient, kind, and astute editor, who has enough Irish blood to give her a lovely way with words.

The Irish Tourist Board for a hundred silly questions answered and a bevy of beautiful photographs.

Quirks Irish Gifts in Massapequa, New York, a delightful store full of charming people and gorgeous things that take your heart back to Ireland.

The best research librarians in the country, Linda Ferraro, Joan Traugott, and Celine Lieffr of the Amityville Public Library. I couldnt have done it without you ladies.

Bruce Hald, who graciously tolerated not seeing his coffee table for most of a year, as it was buried under Irish research materials.