Broken Archangel

The Tempestuous Lives of Roger Casement

Roland Philipps

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Paperback

Forthcoming
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English

Vintage
03 August 2025

Biography: historical, political & military; National liberation & independence, post-colonialism; Nationalism; Human rights; Political activism

The extraordinary life of Sir Roger Casement- a human rights pioneer, Irish nationalist, and queer martyr - a remarkable man who led a life ahead of his time

Celebrated reformer and proud Irish nationalist, romantic radical and vilified traitor, Roger Casement was a man of many, often contradictory, parts.

It was a life caught between fault lines. Casement exposed the horrors of the Belgian Congo on behalf of the British establishment, championing the colonially oppressed and pioneering modern human rights. He fought passionately for Irish independence, even as each step led towards martyrdom. And, desperate for love but forced to hide his sexuality, his deepest relationship became treacherously entangled in espionage and sabotage, isolating him and carrying him to an unmarked prison grave.

Masterfully drawing on his letters, diaries and new archival material, Broken Archangel uncovers the extraordinary life and legacy of Roger Casement - one of the 20th century's most complex and compelling individuals.

By: Roland Philipps
Imprint: Vintage
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 198mm, Width: 129mm, Spine: 35mm
Weight: 200g
ISBN: 9781529931532
ISBN 10: 1529931533
Pages: 400
Publication Date: 03 August 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Roland Philipps was a leading publisher for many years. A Spy Named Orphan, his first book, arose from lifelong connections to Donald Maclean and his story. It was longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize and shortlisted for the Slightly Foxed Best First Biography Prize 2018, was a Daily Mail Book of the Year and received widespread critical acclaim. His second book, Victoire, was published by The Bodley Head in 2021.

Reviews for Broken Archangel: The Tempestuous Lives of Roger Casement

Casement is the Odysseus of Roland Philipp's epic, Broken Archangel, and Philipps is a worthy chronicler. It is a book of meticulous sensitivity and research ... It is a model, in other words, for how to write a biography of a gay person who lived before widespread acceptance * Daily Telegraph * Philipps is sympathetic to his subject and a careful chronicler of diplomatic and intelligence intrigues … he makes a persuasive case that Casement was a fractured personality who embraced causes to fill an emotional void * Guardian * [An] extraordinary biography … Philipps [is] an accomplished biographer with a knack for getting under the skin of his subjects … There’s a wonderful immediacy to this portrait, as if Casement sits in the room with us, discussing his life, revealing his secrets * The Times * Remarkable ... Broken Archangel is an exceptionally well researched and psychologically shrewd portrait of his deeply lonely idealist * Irish Independent *Best Books of 2024* * The chief virtues of Broken Archangel are its compact size and energetic narrative. For the stranger to Casement’s life, this is the book to buy * Times Literary Supplement * [An] authoritative and impressively clear-sighted biography ... A vivid and striking portrait of this deeply conflicted man * Irish Independent * Vivid and compelling * Irish Times * Meticulous and sympathetic ... [a] fine book * Literary Review * [A] well-researched and engagingly narrated biography … For those looking for an accurate, fluidly written account of Casement in his own era, this biography is easy to recommend … [his] treason trial are ably transformed into a page-turning finale * History Today * Roland Philipps' calm, authoritative and sympathetic new account surely comes close to being definitive * The Tablet *