Michael Collins

Michael Collins

A Biography

Summary

'The unofficial voice of modern Irish history' Economist

When President of the Irish Republic Michael Collins signed the Anglo-Irish Treaty in December 1921, he remarked to Lord Birkenhead, 'I may have signed my actual death warrant.' In August 1922 at the height of the Irish Civil War, that prophecy came true - Collins was shot and killed by a fellow Irishman in a shocking political assassination.

So ended the life of the greatest of all Irish nationalists, but his visions and legacy lived on.

This authorative and comprehensive biography presents the life of a man who became a legend in his own lifetime, whose idealistic vigour and determination were matched only by his political realism and supreme organisational abilities. Coogan's biography provides a fascinating insight into a great political leader, whilst vividly portraying the political unrest in a divided Ireland, that can help to shape our understanding of Ireland's past, present and future.

'There have been several other lives of Collins, but none has assembled such wealth of detail' Independent on Sunday

Reviews

  • There have been several other lives of Collins, but none has assembled such wealth of detail
    Independent on Sunday

About the author

Tim Pat Coogan

Tim Pat Coogan, former editor of the Irish Press, is well known on both sides of the Atlantic for his journalism and especially for his books, which include Wherever Green is Worn, The Troubles, Michael Collins and De Valera.
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