This exploration of Ireland during the reign of Queen Victoria is an excellent treatment of the topic. Rather than exploring politics or Ireland's relationship with England in depth, Maxwell focuses on the social and cultural life of Ireland during the period. Ireland's complex religious and sectarian dynamics are deftly explained, as is the experience and aftermath of the Great Famine. That said, my favorite aspects of the book are those that convey what might be called the texture everyday life in Victorian Ireland. The colorful—and sometimes confounding—figures who shaped that life make succinct but vivid appearances, as do the huge changes in technology that characterized the era and transformed its work, class system, and landscape. Maxwell, a former officer at the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, is an expert on Irish genealogy; Life in Victorian England displays his gift for placing individual lives in a broader context.

Ian Maxwell has written a very well researched book on the conditions and times during the reign of Queen Victoria, in Ireland. It was a great read jam packed with facts and I learned a lot to enhance my understanding of life at this time in Ireland. It was a time of severe hardship for the poor. The book portrays the time period very well with a good insight as to what the people had to go through.

In 1800 the Irish Parliament and the Parliament of Great Britain each passed an Act of Union which, from 1 January 1801, abolished the Irish legislature and merged the Kingdom of Ireland and the Kingdom of Great Britain.The British Administration in Ireland–known by metonymy as "Dublin Castle"–remained largely dominated by the Anglo-Irish establishment until its removal from Dublin in 1922.Ireland underwent major highs and lows economically during the 19th century.The worst of these was the Great Irish Famine (1845–1851).In the wake of the famine,many Irish peasant farmers and labourers either died or left the country.Those who remained waged a long campaign for better rights for tenant farmers and ultimately for land re-distribution.This period, known as the "Land War" in Ireland, had a nationalist as well as a social element.The economic problems of most Irish people were in part the result of the small size of their landholdings and a large increase in the population in the years before the famine. In particular, both the law and social tradition provided for subdivision of land, with all sons inheriting equal shares in a farm, meaning that farms became so small that only one crop, potatoes, could be grown in sufficient amounts to feed a family.Furthermore, many estates, from whom the small farmers rented, were poorly run by absentee landlords and in many cases heavily mortgaged.Enclosures of land had cattle grazing had contributed to the decrease in size in the plots of land available to tenants to raise their crops.The Irish National Land League, was formed to defend the interests of tenant farmers, at first demanding the "Three Fs"–Fair rent, Free sale and Fixity of tenure.After the Famine, the Irish language went into steep decline,when the first National Schools were set up in the country.These encouraged literacy, but classes were provided only in English, and the speaking of Irish was prohibited.Dublin was a city marked by extremes of poverty and wealth, being home to several tenement areas and possessing some of the worst slums anywhere in the British Empire, leading to the passage of Irish Poor Laws in 1838.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A very interesting look at life in Ireland during a period of severe hardship. Fascinating read.

I can appreciate the enthusiasm of the author and I was intrigued as to how Ireland would be portrayed during this period in British history. As a long time resident of Ireland,, I learned my History through the Irish education system and in adulthood I determined to view Irish history through English lens'. I found myself slightly offended by the narrative in this book however, it has a whiff of imperialism in my opinion which I confess may be just my own perception. But there is no doubt Maxwell loves his subject so I leave it to others to decide his veracity. Thanks to Pen & Sword and Netgalley for the chance to offer my opinion on this book.

This social history explores 19th-century Ireland during Queen Victoria's rule. It examines the changes in areas such as transportation and public welfare. It conveys the effects of religious divisions and the Great Famine. Offering insights into daily life, the book also reveals how Irish culture grappled with British rule.

This book does what it sets out to do. To me, it reads like a textbook without a narrative throughline. It's well researched and offers a great deal of information.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Very good well written book, I've read many on Victorian England and America but this was the first focusing on Ireland and its somewhat unique take on the Victorian Era.

There's not a lot of social history books about life in Ireland during Victoria reign. i found it well researched, interesting and made me learn something new
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

In Life in Victorian Era Ireland by Ian Maxwell I learned so much about Ireland what they did the day queen Victoria Head her coronation the differences between working men and women the differences between land lords in Ireland and that of their compatriots in England the relationship with the written word and on and on I found the about the esteem and money they spent on funerals and how even those who lived and rags wanted to be sent out in a grand outfit. The practices they had at funerals from the wailing women while the men joked around the salt on top of the deceased chess all of that was so very interesting. I learned about the Irish‘s relationship with fairies and I know I am leaving stuff out because there is so many interesting things in this book and although it wasn’t that long I read it all in one day. I love history inso this book was right up my alley and while I totally enjoyed and highly recommend it. I want to thank Pen and Sword History and Net Galley for my free ARC copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

I've been appreciating pen and sword's willingness to take a chance on publishing niche history books. This one is fascinating, but will only be of interest to a small group of historians. I found the shift from England to Ireland a refreshing read, and learned a lot of little known facets of daily life.

I'm a massive Victorian nerd and Ireland is my favourite place, so I was really excited for this read. It aims to offer a lot - politics, history, education, health, transportation, the Famine, emigration, religion, entertainment, social norms and customs, etc. a 7-decade time frame full of revolutionary developments and changes. Consequently it offers a good introduction/overview for those unfamiliar with Ireland in the Victorian period, but it's just too ambitious in scope to offer anything really new for those who are already knowledgeable about the topic.