The origins of the Northern Irish state are of great importance for the study of Irish history and Anglo-Irish relations, but this subject has never been tackled in great detail. In this diligent and detailed account, Follis makes up for this oversight. He examines the turbulent early years of Northern Ireland, looking at how its administration was established and how it survived in the face of widespread communal violence, near bankruptcy, and political uncertainty, exacerbated by problematical relations with the governments in Westminster and Dublin. The highly controversial subject matter is subject to careful analysis, and if a particular standpoint emerges at its conclusion, an expression of it is long overdue. This is an honest and extremely lucid piece of research on a subject of vital importance.