Dublin foundation

Rutherfurd's epic style, famously exercised in his dramatic accounts of Sarum, Russia and London, makes this saga, set against the backdrop of the great events of Irish history, so readable and moving. With the help of some of the country's leading historians, Rutherfurd has unearthed many curious gems that overturn our traditionally perceived notions of Ireland's past: - actually slaves to the Irish the saint's name was held in such reverence that the Irish would only call themselves Gilpatrick, which means 'servant of Patrick'. conquer Christian Ireland in the Middle Ages. named after a small leper hospital that used to be there; Leopardstown racecourse is so-called because the land it is on also belonged to a leper hospital. English in Ireland, who were the strictest Catholics at that time.