The first known settlements in Ireland began around 8000 BC, when mesolithic hunter-gatherers migrated from continental Europe. Few archaeological traces remain of this group but their descendants and later Neolithic arrivals, particularly from the Iberian Peninsula, were responsible for major Neolithic sites such as Newgrange. On the arrival of Saint Patrick and other Christian missionaries in the early to mid-5th century AD, Christianity began to subsume the indigenous Celtic religion, a process that was completed by the year 600.

From around AD 800, more than a century of Viking invasions wrought havoc upon the monastic culture and on the island's various regional dynasties, yet both of these institutions proved strong enough to survive and assimilate the invaders. The coming of Cambro-Norman mercenaries under Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, nicknamed Strongbow, in 1169 marked the beginning of more than 700 years of direct English, and, later, British involvement in Ireland. In 1177, Prince John Lackland was made Lord of Ireland by his father Henry II of England at the Council of Oxford. The Crown did not attempt to assert full control of the island until after Henry VIII's repudiation of papal authority over the Church in England and subsequent English Reformation, which failed in Ireland. Questions over the loyalty of Irish vassals provided the initial impetus for a series of Irish military campaigns between 1534 and 1691. This period was marked by a Crown policy of plantation, involving the arrival of thousands of English and Scottish Protestant settlers, and the consequent displacement of the pre-plantation Catholic landholders. As the military and political defeat of Gaelic Ireland became more pronounced in the early seventeenth century, sectarian conflict became a recurrent theme in Irish history.

Coordinates: 53°20′N 08°00′W / 53.333°N 8°W / 53.333; -8

Ireland (pronounced [ˈaɪrlənd] ( listen); Irish: Éire [ˈeːɾʲə] ( listen); Ulster Scots: Airlann or Airlan) is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth. To its east is the larger island of Great Britain, from which it is separated by the Irish Sea.

Politically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland, which covers just under five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom, which covers the remainder and is located in the northeast of the island. The population of Ireland is approximately 6.4 million. Just under 4.6 million live in the Republic of Ireland and just under 1.8 million live in Northern Ireland.

Relatively low-lying mountains surrounding a central plain epitomise Ireland's geography with several navigable rivers extending inland. The island has lush vegetation, a product of its mild but changeable oceanic climate, which avoids extremes in temperature. Thick woodlands covered the island until the 17th century. Today, it is one of the most deforested areas in Europe. There are twenty-six extant mammal species native to Ireland.

Frank Delaney (born October 24, 1942) is an Irish novelist, journalist and broadcaster. He's the author of New York Times best-seller "Ireland", the non-fiction book "Simple Courage: A True Story of Peril on the Sea", and many other works of fiction, non-fiction and collections. He was born in Tipperary, Ireland.

In 1970, Delaney began working as a newsreader for the Irish state radio and television network RTE. In the early 1970s he became a news reporter for the BBC in Dublin, and covered an intense period of violence known as The Troubles. After 5 years of reporting on the violence, he moved to London to work in Arts broadcasting. In 1978, he created the award-winning weekly show "Bookshelf" for BBC Radio Four, which covered books, writers and the business of publishing. Over the next five and a half years, he interviewed over 1400 authors including Anthony Burgess, John Updike, Margaret Atwood, Christopher Isherwood and Stephen King. On television, Delaney wrote and presented for Omnibus, the BBC weekly arts series. He served as the Literature Director of the Edinburgh Festival in 1980, and he hosted his own talk show "Frank Delaney" in the early 1980s, featuring an array of cultural and literary personalities. Afterward, he created and presented "Word of Mouth", the BBC's award winning show about language, as well as a variety of radio and television documentaries including specials on James Joyce, Robert Graves, Hemingway in Paris, and the Shakespeare Industry. He presented "The Book Show" on the Sky News satellite channel for many years.