100 years on, politicians still haven’t learnt from Ireland’s partition
We are still living with the wounds of the Irish Civil War. Charles Townshend's new book The Partition tells a story that is not over yet
25 April 2021 • 5:00am
January 1921: Sir Hamar Greenwood of the Royal Irish Constabulary inspects a group of Black and Tans
Credit: Topical Press Agency/Getty Images
One of the abiding problems with Anglo-Irish history is the tendency for authors to take sides. Normally the Irish writers side against the oppressive, colonial British. They cannot resist settling scores, and too often find it hard to challenge the orthodoxies that have become part of their national story. British writers, for their part, like to signal their virtue by stressing the heavy-handed behaviour of their forebears. Discerning the truth is easier said than done.