Under the editorship of Roy Foster, a team of distinguished Irish historians has produced a challenging assessment of Ireland's history, providing a lively and accessible synthesis of Irish history from pre-Christian times to the present-day troubles. Their approach stresses the ancient, rooted nature of Irish culture, but also looks beyond received ideas of Irish history to explore the patterns of fragmentation and change which have been characteristic of Ireland's past. The long-contested question of Irish identity and its relation to language is also examined, and the book is lavishly illustrated with over 200 pictures in colour and black and white.