At 7.30 am on 1 July 1916, some 60,000 men climbed out of their trenches and walked across No-Man’s-Land and into the history books. The Battle of the Somme, which was to rage for another four-and-a-half months, would ultimately involve every Irish battalion on the Western Front. For some, such as the 36th (Ulster) Division which sustained some 5,000 casualties in just 24 hours, the slaughter left them so weakened that they had to be withdrawn. For others their participation went on for weeks before attrition took its toll.

Today, a century on, the Somme is at peace, and dotted across its now tranquil landscape are memorials to the Irish dead, many of whom lie in the cemeteries clustered around the original front lines. As WWI is commemorated throughout this ‘Decade of Centenaries’, author and journalist Steven Moore puts the contribution of the men of Ireland, north and south, unionist and nationalist, into context.

He takes the reader through the conflict, from the declaration of war in August 1914, to the Second Battle of the Somme and the final push to victory. The story then takes a sympathetic journey among many of the monuments and cemeteries, the tangible proof of Ireland’s part in the “war to end all wars”.

This book is an invaluable guide to those interested in local history and those visiting the battlefields for themselves.