Birthright: The True Story that Inspired - Hardcover

Ekirch, A. Roger

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0393066150 ISBN 13: 9780393066159

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company, 2010

Synopsis

For the first time, the remarkable story that inspired Robert Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped.

No saga of personal hardship so captivated the British public in the eighteenth century as the turbulent life of James Annesley, the presumptive heir of five aristocratic titles and scion of the mighty house of Annesley. Kidnapped at twelve years of age by his uncle, “Jemmy” was shipped from Dublin to America in 1728 as an indentured servant. Only after twelve more years did he at last escape, returning to Ireland to bring his blood rival, the Earl of Anglesea, to justice in one of the epic trials of the century.

How, in an age without DNA laboratories or fingerprint records, could a prodigal hope to prove his identity, let alone his legitimacy, after such a long absence―all the while defying accusations of being a “pretender,” the bastard son of a maidservant, plus repeated attempts on his life? Bursting with an improbable cast of characters, from a brave Dublin butcher and a wily Scot to the king of England, Birthright evokes in vivid detail the volatile world of Georgian Ireland―complete with its violence, debauchery, ancient rituals, and tenacious loyalties.

Drawing on exhaustive research in Ireland, the United Kingdom, and America―including an intensive investigation of court transcripts and innumerable, rarely seen legal depositions―A. Roger Ekirch brilliantly resurrects an extraordinary family drama of betrayal and loss, but also resilience, survival, and redemption. 26 illustrations; 3 maps

About this title

From the Back Cover:

Praise for Birthright

“This gripping book tells a remarkable true story. . . . Roger Ekirch expertly illumines eighteenth-century societies in the British colonies and the seedy underside of Georgian Dublin. His masterly, sympathetic and racy reconstruction of the adventures of Jemmy Annesley at last fleshes out the truth behind the tales told by Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson.”―Toby Barnard, University of Oxford

“An extraordinary work of history by one of America’s most imaginative historians, a true story more fascinating than fiction.”―Gordon S. Wood, professor of history emeritus, Brown University

About the Author:

A. Roger Ekirch is a professor of history at Virginia Tech and the award-winning author of At Day’s Close, Birthright, and American Sanctuary. He lives in Roanoke, Virginia.

About this edition

• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0393066150
• ISBN 13: 9780393066159
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 288