Sgt Charles Dorris from Belfast, County Antrim was killed following the D-Day landings in Normandy in 1944. His grandson's search to uncover the truth surrounding his death would eventually lead him on a voyage through Irish history and the British Empire. Uncovering what happened in Normandy would prove the easy part, trying to discover the family's roots would become a decade-long labour of love. 

Scanning through historical documents, thousands of parish records, collecting oral family history from all over the world, and travelling the leafy lanes of Ireland, he would trace the lives of most of the Dorris families of Ireland through four centuries and sometimes beyond. THousands of geneology records are merged to create their histories; encounters with the famous outlaw Ned Kelly, battles with the Maoiri in NZ, the Napoleonic Wars, the Irish rebellion. It tells the stories that would otherwise have been lost forever; RIC men and soldiers , IRA men and politicians, sheep stealing, robberies and even the occasional murder.  All their exploits, good and bad, have been gathered together to create an incredible resource for Dorris families and genealogists throughout the world. 

With Irish myths and long-held beliefs often challenged, the door is thrown open on the past, and the infamous characters and goings-on are brought back to life. Incredibly brave wives and mothers, blacksmiths, gardeners, farmers and weavers, their stories are all told. If your surname is Dorris (Duross, Dooris, Doris, Dourish, Doorish or Toorish) or anything similar, your family origins are probably to be found within these pages. With the historical evidence laid out, you are left to decide who really was Sgt Dorris, and who were the Dorrise of Ireland.