The British State and the Ulster Crisis: From Wilson to Thatcher

It is widely argued that Britain has always followed a coherent imperialist strategy in Northern Ireland. Paul Bew and Henry Patterson take issue with this assumption in the first serious study of British policy towards Ulster over the past twenty years. They demonstrate, through a detailed examination of the twists and turns of successive governments, the fundamental incoherence of Britain’s approach in its oldest colony.

Simplified notions about the consistency of British policy have led t...