Proclaiming a Republic: Ireland, 1916, and the National Collection is the beautifully illustrated book evolved from the National Museum of Ireland’s landmark exhibition, ‘Proclaiming a Republic: the 1916 Rising’, which will run until 2017. Many of the exhibited objects have never been on public display before; their detail, such as that of James Connolly’s blood-streaked undershirt, bring the world of Easter Week into real-time with startling clarity.

Now this monumental experience can be enjoyed by readers in this meticulous and vivid companion. Darragh Gannon’s expert contextualisation of the National Museum’s collection provides an unprecedented opportunity to view these astounding artefacts from 1916 up close and appraise the experience of the Rising and the other momentous events of that year in a completely new light.

All changed, changed utterly. This book challenges the traditional ‘villains’ to ‘heroes’ narrative and the extreme emphasis on the radicalising effect of the executions, profiling the layers of public opinion during Easter Week and charting the broader response of nationalist Ireland to martial law. Such marked critiques, of which there are many, are bolstered by the immediacy of hundreds of stunning illustrations, making Proclaiming a Republic a unique and compelling book that will remain essential to any assessment of 1916 for many years to come.