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To Hell or Barbados: The Ethnic Cleansing of Ireland
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Product Description
The story of 50,000 Irish who were transported as slaves to Barbados and Virginia in the 17th century is chronicled for the first time.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #422862 in Books
- Published on: 2001-12-31
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Binding: Paperback
- 248 pages
Customer Reviews
Excellent book that covers what the history books omit
Being an Irish history buff, one day I had come along an interesting bit of Irish history, about a time period during the slave trade years, where there was a great deal of Irish slaves. Yet, I could only find this information on websites with bibliographies of books that are rare or no longer existant. Yet, I had the fortunate luck of stumbling across this book here on Amazon.com. I must say, it was everything and more than I asked for. Detailed accounts of the invasion of Ireland by Cromwell and his forces, the brutal savagery and overall genocide committed by these men. The detailed accounts of how the slaves were sold on the auction block, how they were looked down upon by even the other slaves, since they were white.
I highly reccommend this book to any Irish history buffs like myself or any students doing a report on Irish history.
It is sad that the average American history book sums up Cromwell's attrocities as "Cromwell treated the Irish very poorly". This book brings to light the extent of the savagery done upon the Irish, and does great justice in explaining the time known as the Irish Holocaust.
Historical Account of Irish Slavery in 17th Century
The nonfiction book "To Hell or Barbados: The Ethnic Cleansing of Ireland" by Sean O'Callaghan describes a moment in history that very few know about. In the seventeenth century, Oliver Cromwell (who took over England) encouraged the mass slaughter and enslavement of Irish men, women, and children for various reasons, one being that the Protestant English regarded the Catholic Irish as inhuman and unchristian.
According to O'Callaghan, many Irish priests were hunted down like wolves and Irish soldiers exiled to Spain or France, while rebels and widows alike were forcibly sent to Barbados in the Caribbean as indentured servants or slaves. Over 50,000 people were sent to Barbados to work on the sugar plantations. This book chronicles what happened to them. Beatings, whippings, torture, rape, and humiliation were just some of the terrible indecencies that these people suffered because they were Catholic and Irish.
The book itself is short, well written, and easy to read. The narrative moves from Cromwell's battles in Ireland* to the treatment of the surviving Irish to exportation to the Caribbean and indentured servitude/white slavery to modern-day descendants of the Irish on Barbados. In between, you will get a detailed and informative account of life in the seventeenth century while at war in the UK and as plantation owners and slaves in the Caribbean. There is even a chapter on Irish buccaneers (pirates).
*Please note you may want to look up who Oliver Cromwell was before you read this, as the book jumps straight into the action without too much political/biographical background.
I read this book quickly. It was fascinating, yet horrifying and thoroughly depressing. It is also eye-opening history. I highly recommended it to anyone interested in Caribbean, Irish, or English history, as well as for those interested in the slave trade or religious conflicts.
How multigeneration hatred evolved in Ireland
The book was an eye opener. I thought I had an understanding of Irish history. I was astonished and outraged. The purpose of the book is to reveal the true outrages that caused the multigeneration enmity between the Irish and English and succeeds. No one can understand the present situation in No. Ireland without it.
The book was well referenced, even sighting English historical information to substanciate the truth. 50-100,000 Irish women sold into prostitution and slavery by the same English traders, god-fearing puritan's, who sold African's into slavery. No reference to this in modern history books.
I never knew that the Irish were made literal slaves by the English or the extent of the ethnic and religious hatred and the genocide perpetrated by the British against them. The slaughter and genocide perpetrated has been squelched in the press and media for centuries.
It leaves me with the question of what kind of a media do we have in the U.S. that has kept this imformation from us?
Numerous American's of many ethnic groups have told me that I was lying, it didn't happen just like the holocaust. I was dumb struck and had to bring in the book to prove it too them. It begs the question: What's with diversity in this country does if it only goes one way?
Its a book any one who believes in real diversity should read. You can't understand the present Irish situation between the IRA and the UDL without it.
EXCELLENT
