Ireland & All its Glory

Ireland’s Great Famine of 1845 is seen by some historians as a turning point in Ireland’s history. Famine had been common in Nineteenth Century Ireland and almost an occupational hazard of rural life in Ireland. But the Great Famine of 1845 eclipsed all others.
Ireland’s rural population had rapidly grown in the Nineteenth Century. This was because a large family was an insurance of continued sustenance in later life – children would take care of their parents. However, this also meant that large families needed large amounts of food and the land situation in Ireland was not geared to support families in this respect.

Potatoes were the staple diet of the rural population of Ireland. However, this crop was very vulnerable to disease and no cure existed in Ireland for the dreaded ‘potato blight’. Even if a cure had existed, the people on the land would not have been able to afford it.
In 1844, a new form of potato blight was identified in America. It basically turned a potato into a mushy mess that was completely inedible. The American blight was first identified in France and the Isle of Wight in 1845. The summer of 1845 was mild but very wet in Britain. It was almost the perfect weather conditions for the blight to spread. The blight is still with us and is called ‘Phytophthora Infestans’ – an air carried fungus.

The people of Ireland expected a good potato crop in 1845. The weather had appeared to be favourable and in many senses, the farming community of Ireland expected a bumper harvest. However, when it came to digging up the potatoes, all they got was a black gooey mess. In fact, the expected bumper crop turned out to be a disaster. There was a 50% loss of potatoes in this year. The rural community had no way of countering this. Each family grew what they needed for that year and few had any to keep for times of trouble. In fact, the problem got worse. The crop of 1846 was all but a total failure and there was a very poor harvest in 1847. Three disastrous years in succession presented Ireland with huge problems.

The advice given to those affected by the potato blight bordered on the absurd. One scientist advised people to get hold of chloric acid and manganese dioxide. This mixture should have been been added to salt and applied to the diseased area of the potato. Even if the farmers had the opportunity to obtain such chemicals, they would have produced chlorine gas used to poison troops in World War One!

The government in London initially decided to do nothing. The logic behind such a decision was that Ireland had suffered from potato famines before and would have the necessary knowledge on how best to get by in this case. However, by 1846 it was plain that this was no ‘ordinary’ famine. Sir Robert Peel, despite opposition from the Treasury, imported £100,000 worth of corn. By 1846, £3,500,000 worth of potatoes had been lost – therefore, the government’s initial aid was well below what was needed.

Peel believed that if this corn was released onto the Irish market in stages, it would keep down the price of other foods. This actually worked reasonably well but it also showed the lack of knowledge that existed in London with regards to Ireland. While Peel was at least doing something to help, he also had little knowledge of the country he was trying to help. The corn was welcomed as better than nothing. However, there were very few mills of any sort in Ireland, so simply grinding it down into flour was very difficult. Many people in Ireland became seriously ill by attempting to eat the corn without it having been ground down. As a result of this, the corn sent to Ireland by Peel became nicknamed “Peel’s Brimstone”.

The government also tried to help by establishing public work schemes and road building projects in an effort to create employment so that some families got some money. The government also established emergency fever hospitals in Ireland to care for those who could not afford any medical treatment.

So many Irish went to United States for better living and thats why so many Americans can relate to the Irish so many lost ancestors over the years but so many Americans know their history and that great great grandmother from Co Kerry.