This book is the first ever collection of scholarly essays on the history of the Irish working class. It provides a comprehensive introduction to the involvement of Irish workers in political life and movements between 1830 and 1945. Fourteen leading Irish and international historians and political scientists trace the politicization of Irish workers during a period of considerable social and political turmoil. The contributions include both surveys covering the entire period and case studies that provide new perspectives on crucial historical movements and moments. This volume is a milestone in Irish labour and political historiography and an important contribution to the international literature on politics and the working class.

MAURA CRONIN Lecturer in History, Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, IRELAND RICHARD DUNPHY Senior Lecturer, Department of Politics, Dundee University, UK VINCENT GEOGHEGAN Professor of Political Theory, Queen's University, Belfast, UK CATHERINE HIRST Policy Officer, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Melbourne, AUSTRALIA CHRISTINE KINEALY Reader in History, University of Central Lancashire, UK CONOR KOSTICK Writer and Historian MARIA LUDDY Reader in History, University of Warwick, UK HENRY PATTERSON Professor of Politics, University of Ulster, UK FEARGHAL MCGARRY Lecturer, School of History, Queen's University, Belfast, UK EMMET O'CONNOR Senior Lecturer in Modern History, University of Ulster, UK GRAHAM WALKER Reader in Politics, Queen's University, Belfast, UK HELGA WOGGON Historian