The Four Nations: A History of the United Kingdom - Hardcover

Welsh, Frank

3

32 ratings by Goodreads

9780300093742: The Four Nations: A History of the United Kingdom

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0300093748 ISBN 13: 9780300093742

Publisher: Yale Univ Pr, 2003

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Even by comparison to the United States, the United Kingdom has had a brief and fractious history. Its existence as an undivided entity lasted only for a disputatious 125 years, and its future remains precarious. In The Four Nations, Frank Welsh offers a lively narrative history of the four component parts of the British Isles-England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Moving from the Roman period, which first defined many of the current internal boundaries, through the present day, Welsh describes the history of each nation, their interactions, and the impacts of crises ranging from the Norman Invasion to the Protestant Reformation to the two world wars of the twentieth century. Along the way, Welsh questions many cherished illusions and poses some awkward questions: To what extent were Scotland, Ireland, and Wales victims of predatory English aggression? How serious is the frequently invoked specter of national fragmentation? Filled with illuminating vignettes and provocative insights, The Four Nations is an accessible and comprehensive introduction to the troubled histories of the British Isles.

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Review:

"The Four Nations is a hugely enjoyable read, full of vigor and liveliness as well as provocative commentary. It informs and instructs in an accessible way that none of its rivals can match."

"A compelling and sometimes controversial account of how four kingdoms--England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales--became one.... [Welsh] constantly challenges received opinion and urban myths."

From the Back Cover:

It is often forgotten that by comparison with, for example, the United States, the history of the United Kingdom as an undivided entity has been quite short.

In 'The Four Nations' – England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland – Frank Welsh comprehensively describes the history of each constituent part of the British Isles, their interaction, and the effect of internal and external events from pre-Roman times to the present day. Along the way many commonly accepted views of history, as well as many cherished myths, are re-examined, and a number of awkward questions are posed.

Just how vulnerable is the history of the united Kingdom? What loyalty does it command? To what extent were Scotland, Wales and Ireland really the victims of predatory English aggression? Why is it necessary for the Queen to change her religion each time she passes Berwick-upon-Tweed? What will be the effect of the new assemblies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland? And how serious is the increasingly frequently evoked spectre of fragmentation?

Written with the gusto and accessibility that characterised Frank Welsh's acclaimed histories of South Africa and Hong Kong, and full of unexpected anomalies and provocative insights, 'The Four Nations'is an invaluable and comprehensive single-volume history of the component parts of the United Kingdom which will be enjoyed by readers of all ages and persuasions.

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