Binding: Hardback
Date Published: 03 Sep 2026
SIX PRISONERS. ONE WHALESHIP. A PLOT BOLD ENOUGH TO SHAKE THE BRITSH EMPIRE.
Catalpa tells the extraordinary true story of one of the most audacious operations in Irish history - the rescue of six Fenian prisoners who were transported to Fremantle Prison, Australia, the farthest edge of the world.
It is a tale driven by courage, obsession and improbable alliances. From meticulous planning by the steely minded John Devoy (the greatest of all the Fenians), to the selections of the ship and Yankee captain; the long voyage, first whaling then travelling to western Australia; with the thrilling escape in an open rowboat for 28 hours through surf and storm; the pursuit and the long sail across the oceans - culminating in the triumphant arrival of the prisoners in New York and ultimately freedom in America. Richly researched and vividly told, Michael Barry restores this forgotten epic to the centre of Irish history. It is a story of endurance and ingenuity, of diaspora and rebellion, and of how a handful of determined men fought against despair to achieve the unthinkable and defy an empire.