Ireland and Empire

3 credits

This course will investigate the relationship between Ireland and empire, both in how Irish people interacted with empire and in how historians have used concepts of empire to explain or analyze Irish history. The course starts with a discussion of the centuries-long British conquest of Ireland, continues with coverage of the "Green Atlantic" and Irish-Indian connections, examines the rise of Irish anti-imperial nationalism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and concludes with an analysis of the Irish role in decolonization. Students will engage with the complexity of Ireland's interactions with empire, from those Irish who traveled through and helped build various empires to those who resisted imperial powers in Ireland and around the globe.