Lough Rynn: Lives and Times

The Earl lives in local memory as a notorious despot who represented the worst excesses of landlordism in Ireland during the 19^th century. Drawing on various primary and secondary sources, this book describes the Earl’s early family life, his management of the Lough Rynn estate, his role during and after the famine and his eventual assassination. In doing so it provides evidence to support the long-held characterisation of Lord Leitrim as a tyrannical landlord. However, it also provides a more balanced view of a man who set out to improve the land and the lives of those who lived on it but who ultimately destroyed and was destroyed because of his belief in his own omnipotence.

The book is, however, not just about one man, but rather about all the people who lived and died during an important period in Irish history.