He was educated at Queen's University Belfast, taking a BA in 1970 and his doctorate in 1976 on Townshend's viceroyalty in 1767-72. He was the first Naughton Fellow in Irish Studies in 1999. He also holds the Chair of Irish History at the University of Aberdeen. He was elected a member of the Royal Irish Academy in 1995 and has held several visiting professorships in the USA and Britain.