The Irish Diaspora: Tales of Emigration, Exile and Imperialism

The compelling story of the great Irish pioneers who left their homeland and in the process profoundly influenced their adoptive countries. From the first voyages of Saint Brendan in the early sixth century, an estimated 10 million people have left the Irish shores for other countries, and today, more than 80 million people worldwide claim Irish descent. In the centuries after the fall of Rome, Irish missionaries carried the word of the Christian God throughout Europe, while soldiers and mariner