God's Executioner: Oliver Cromwell and the Conquest of Ireland

Micheál Ó Siochrú

Faber & Faber, 2008 - Atrocities - 316 pages

Cromwell spent only nine months of his eventful life in Ireland, yet he stands accused there of war crimes, religious persecution and ethnic cleansing. The massacre of thousands of soldiers and civilians by the New Model Army at both Drogheda and Wexford in 1649 must rank among the greatest atrocities in Anglo-Irish history: a tale that makes decidedly uncomfortable reading for those keen to focus on Cromwell_s undoubted military and political achievements elsewhere.In a century of unrelenting, bloody warfare and religious persecution throughout Europe, Cromwell was, in many ways, a product of his times. As commander-in-chief of the army in Ireland, however, the responsibilities for the excesses of the military must be laid firmly at his door, while the harsh nature of the post-war settlement also bears his personal imprint. Cromwell was no monster, but he did commit monstrous acts. A warrior of Christ, somewhat like the crusaders of medieval Europe, he acted as God_s executioner, convinced throughout the horrors of the legitimacy of his cause, and striving to build a better world for the chosen few. He remains, therefore, a remarkably modern figure, somebody to be closely studied and understood, rather than simply revered or reviled.

What people are saying

Review: God's Executioner: Oliver Cromwell and the Conquest of Ireland

User Review  - Philip Taylor - Goodreads

3 stars = I liked it. This is a fine bit of Irish history. Cromwell's problems are highlighted but not in an anachronistic way. The author does not blame all of Ireland's current problems on Cromwell ...

Review: God's Executioner: Oliver Cromwell and the Conquest of Ireland

User Review  - Jay - Goodreads

I saw the two-part TV program based on this book on RTE while I was in Ireland; then while browsing in a bookstore in Sligo I saw the book and immediately bought it based on how impressed I was by the ...

Contents

• Ireland Independent: 22
• Prelude to Invasion: 52
• Cromwell at Drogheda and Wexford: 77

About the author

Michefl Ó Siochrú is a native of Dublin, lectures in history at Trinity College, Dublin and has written extensively on 17th-century Ireland. His publications include Confederate Ireland 1642-1649: A Constitutional and Political Analysis (Dublin, 1999) and Kingdoms in Crisis: Ireland in the 1640s (Dublin, 2001).

Bibliographic information

• Title: God's Executioner: Oliver Cromwell and the Conquest of Ireland
• Author: Micheál Ó Siochrú
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: Faber & Faber, 2008
• ISBN: 0571241212, 9780571241217
• Length: 316 pages