The Origins of the Present Troubles in Northern Ireland

Book excerpt: For quarter of a century now the British Army has been involved in a bloody and protracted conflict in Northern Ireland. This book looks at the roots of the current struggle and of British military intervention, setting both in the longer perspective of the Anglo-Irish Troubles. It is, however, more than a chronicle of military strategies and sectarian strife: it seeks to place the use of the army within the context of the wider British experience of dealing with political violence, and to address the broader issue of how democratic states have responded to both ethnic conflict and the threat of `internal' disorder