Professor Richard English
Professor
School of History, Anthropology, Philosophy and Politics (HAPP), The Senator George J Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice
Professor Richard English is an internationally recognised historian, academic and author having conducted extensive research in Irish politics and history, political violence and terrorism.
His expertise lies in Irish history and conflict as well as the wider subject of international terrorism. In his more recent works, Professor English explores the response after 9/11 and its shortcomings, and argues that we cannot adequately respond to the practical challenge of terrorist violence around the world unless we are more honest about the precise nature of the phenomenon, and about explaining its true and complex causes.
Professor English is the author of eight books, including the award-winning studies Armed Struggle: The History of the IRA (2003) and Irish Freedom: The History of Nationalism in Ireland (2006). His most recent book, Does Terrorism Work? A History, was published in 2016 by Oxford University Press.
He has delivered invited lectures about his research in over twenty countries.
Fields
Conflict Transformation Global peace History Irish history Politics TerrorismAreas of Expertise
terrorism, political violence, Irish politics and history
Media Experience
Professor English is frequent media commentator on terrorism, political violence, Irish politics and history, including work for the BBC, CNN, ITN, SKY NEWS, NPR, RTE, the Irish Times, the Times Literary Supplement, Newsweek, the Guardian, and the Financial Times.
Notable coverage
- The big question: has terrorism ever achieved its aims?, History Extra, 03/08/2018
- Shifts in the republican movement and the 1998 turning point, The Detail, 30/03/2018
- Belfast Agreement reflects an astonishing journey by republicans, The Irish Times, 30/03/2018
Associated Research Centres / Projects
He is a Fellow of the British Academy (FBA), a Member of the Royal Irish Academy (MRIA), a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE), a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society (FRHistS), an Honorary Fellow of Keble College Oxford, and an Honorary Professor at the University of St Andrews.
Contact Information
For more information or to book an interview, email comms.office@qub.ac.uk
Academic Profile