Lady Next Door

Harold Begbie (1871-1929) was born in Suffolk, England. Begbie was an Evangelical Protestant with tendencies towards theological modernism, who believed in social reform based on religious revivalism and individual regeneration. He was a well-known journalist in his time and published over a hundred books, but is now chiefly remembered for defending the existence of the Angel of Mons. Patrick Maume is a researcher with the Dictionary of Irish Biography, and the author of The Long Gestation: Irish Nationalist Life, 1891-1918 (Dublin: 1999). He has edited several titles in the Classics of Irish History series.

"It is a facsimile of the 1914 book, with an added introduction by Patrick Maume. What invaluable treasures this series has turned up." Books Ireland May 2006 "the series' editors must be highly commended ... a fascinating text and one that the author never had the opportunity to revise with the benefit of hindsight ... Ironically, the opinions of those he interviewed, and his own vision for Ireland, would prove to be largely redundant in the post-war era." Studies 2006 "Begbie's work varies from interesting to engrossing and complements Johnston's academic approach ... In [this] later volume, Patrick Maume's Introduction deftly draws together political, religious and social themes into a brilliant overview of the period. His portrayals pf the author and contributors add a fascinating breadth to the text." Irish Democrat 2006 "University College Dublin Press has now published over thirty 'Classics of Irish History'. These contemporary accounts by well known personalities of historical events and attitudes have an immediacy that conventional histories do not have. Introductions by modern historians provide additional historical background and, with hindsight, objectivity." Books Ireland Nov 2007 "Scholars of nineteenth-century Irish and Irish-American politics should reacquaint themselves with these classics, part of a long running and immensely useful series from University College Dublin Press. Patrick Maume has edited and written the introductions for no less than nine of the books in this series, lending them his breadth of knowledge and keen analysis that have made him one of the most learned and intellectually generous young scholars in the field." Irish Literary Supplement Fall 2008

• Introduction by Patrick Maume; THE LADY NEXT DOOR: Foreword; Preface; By Way of Introduction; The Bishop's Dream; The Life of a Town; Testimonies; A Quaker's Parlour; Fenian, Lawyer and Earl; Monumentum Aere Perennius; Petty Larcenies; A Case of Persecution; The Fine Flower; Because it is Always Dublin; The Dame; A Corner of Ulster; Hannah; At the Gate of Democracy; Manufactured Mortality. The Orange Capital; Babies; Maids of the Mill; Wealth; The Gospel of Mammon; Conclusions; Note: On the Sweating of Belfast.