Each essay both distils the current state of historical scholarship and assesses the directions that research is likely to take in future. All the contributions pay attention to the experiences of women as well as of men, and to regional and national variations across Britain and Ireland. Though engaged with cutting-edge theories, including postmodern and post-structuralist perspectives, the contributors avoid technical jargon and assume no prior expert knowledge.

The volume is written in a clear and energetic manner, and illustrated with maps and charts where appropriate. Guides to further reading allow readers to follow chosen avenues of investigation with confidence.