-Caveat Lector-
The Irish Potato Famine: 1846-1851
by Bryan Emerson
What Happened?
In the early 1800's, the potato was an extremely important part of the diet
of the Irish people. The potato was presumably a gift from the "New World"
and probably reached Ireland via Spain around 1590. It was the most valuable
crop in the country. People depended on the potato for a source of food and
income. A large quantity of potatoes could be grown on a relatively small
plot, making it possible to feed many with only a small section of land. The
Irish economy was thriving as the 19th century rolled on, due primarily to
the English, who were controlling Ireland at the time. The English were the
primary consumer of Irish agricultural products, allowing the Irish economy
to prosper. But, as is the case with every period of prosperity, a severe
bust was looming in the future.
By 1841, the population of Ireland had increased from approximately 5 million
in 1800 to near 8 million. Over two-thirds of the Irish people were dependent
on agriculture as a source of income. The other one-third were in industry.
This business was not as prosperous because the Irish industrial system could
not compete with that of the British. The Irish people were careless in
establishing industry. They did not have any economic strategies, products,
or markets to compete with the rest of the world. They also did not have the
resources to support economic growth. This would prove costly for when the
main agricultural crop was destroyed, the Irish had nothing to fall back on.
The famine was first noted on September 9, 1845, when a fungus was
discovered to be destroying the potato crop. The English government
immediately began taking action to try and prevent a serious outbreak. Prime
Minister Sir Robert Peel purchased corn meal from the United States to give
the Irish people an alternate food source. As more and more Irish people were
put out of work by the destruction of crops, Peel implemented the Relief
Works, similar to FDR's Public Works Administration, in an effort to give the
Irish people a source of income in order to survive. The British government
also provided 365,000 pounds of sterling to the people in the form of loans.
The Irish government began to target the landlords of large farms as being
responsible for the famine and mass unemployment. The government forced the
landlords to pay higher rates in order to support the relief effort. In order
to be able to pay for these increased rates, the landlords had no choice but
to raise the fees to the agricultural work force. Because the majority of the
agricultural workers were out of business due to the failure of the potato
crop, they had no way to pay the increased fees. These people were evicted
from their homes and given no options. Many fell victim to famine fever
(typhus) while others chose another way out: leaving the country. It is
estimated that close to 1 million people died during the famine and as many
as 2 million more emigrated, primarily to North America.
The fungus that devastated the potato crop was discovered to be the
Phytophthora infestons fungus, presumably carried to Ireland from North
America. A slight climate variation in the late 1840's brought warm, wet
weather where the fungus was able to thrive. The irony of the situation is
that Ireland was producing plenty of food to feed the people. However, most
of the food being produced was too expensive for the peasants and others who
really needed it. It was being produced primarily for sale to England. In
order to feed themselves, the peasants were forced to sell their tools for
money to buy food. The next planting season, farmers often had no tools to
plant crops or even land to plant on. Driven to desperation by the
conditions, many farmers resorted to eating the foods intended for sale,
causing evictions by landlords.
The potato famine devestated the people of Ireland. It eliminated the major
food source and caused mass unemployment, starvation, and emigration. It is
estimated that in 1845, over 2 million acres of potatos were being farmed. In
1847, it had dropped to just over 300,000 acres. The famine decreased the
population from the 8 million that were present in 1841 to just over 5
million in 1851. As emigration continued, the reduction continued until the
Irish population was slightly above 1 million people at the turn of the
century.
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