How the Irish Saved Civilization
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Short description|1995 nonfiction book by Thomas Cahill}}
{{Infobox book
| name = How the Irish Saved Civilization
| title_orig =
| translator =
| image = How the Irish Saved Civilization.jpg
| caption =
| author = Thomas Cahill
| illustrator =
| cover_artist =
| country = Ireland
| language = English
| series =
| subject = History of Ireland
| genre =
| publisher = Nan A. Talese
| release_date = 1995
| english_release_date =
| media_type =
| pages = 246
| isbn = 0-385-41848-5
| dewey= 941.501 20
| congress= DA930.5 .C34 1995
| oclc= 30700982
| preceded_by =
| followed_by =
}}
How the Irish Saved Civilization: The Untold Story of Ireland's Heroic Role from the Fall of Rome to the Rise of Medieval Europe is a non-fiction historical book written by Thomas Cahill.
Cahill argues a case for the Irish people's critical role in preserving Western Civilization from utter destruction by the Huns and the Germanic tribes (Visigoths, Franks, Angles, Saxons, Ostrogoths, etc.). The book presents Western history from the collapse of the Roman Empire and the pivotal role played by members of the clergy at the time. A particular focus is placed upon Saint Patrick. The book details his early struggles through slavery, mirroring much of the content in The Confession of Saint Patrick. Initial portions of the book examine Ireland before the arrivals of Patrick and Saint Augustine of Canterbury. Particular focus is placed upon Saint Columba, the monks he trained, and the monasteries he set up in the Hiberno-Scottish mission. These holy men, according to Cahill, "single-handedly refounded European civilization throughout the continent." (p. 4)
Publication and reception
How the Irish Saved Civilization was first published in March 1995 and appeared on the New York Times Bestseller List for almost two years.{{cite web|title=Thomas Cahill: About the Author|publisher=Random House|accessdate=2007-09-29|url=http://www.randomhouse.com/features/cahill/bio.html}}
It was favourably reviewed in many general-interest, quality newspapers and magazines.{{cite news |title=Who Saved Civilization? The Irish, That's Who! |first=Richard |last=Bernstein |date=April 5, 1995 |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/97/03/09/bsp/irish.html |quote=Scholars, perhaps, will now evaluate these claims. But whatever they may find, Mr. Cahills' book will remain an entirely engaging, delectable voyage into the distant past, a small treasure.}} However, it also provoked criticism from other reviewers, some of whom offered qualified praise or outright rejections of the main thesis, and some of whom perceived bias.{{cite journal |author=Lisa M. Bitel |title=How the Irish Saved Civilization: The Untold Story of Ireland's Heroic Role from the Fall of Rome to the Rise of Medieval Europe |work=The Catholic Historical Review |volume=83 |issue=2 |date=April 1997 |accessdate=2014-03-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140408105420/https://www.questia.com/library/journal/1P3-12513968/how-the-irish-saved-civilization-the-untold-story |archive-date=2014-04-08 |url=https://www.questia.com/library/journal/1P3-12513968/how-the-irish-saved-civilization-the-untold-story |url-status=dead |quote=I cannot begin here to list all the misread texts, over-simplified historical constructs, and biases of this book.}}{{cite magazine |first=Tim |last=Callahan |title=Rust On the Hinges of History: How Neither the Irish Nor the Jews Saved Civilization |work=Skeptic Magazine |volume=7 |issue=1 |url=https://www.skeptic.com/magazine/archives/7.1/ |url-access=subscription}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{wikiquote|Thomas Cahill#How the Irish Saved Civilization (1995)}}
- [http://www.catholicity.com/mccloskey/cahillreview.html How the Irish Saved Civilization] book review by Father John McCloskey @CatholiCity