Great Irish Famine redirects here. For the 1740–1741 famine, see Irish Famine (1740–1741). Page semi-protected Great Famine an Gorta Mór Skibbereen 1847 by Cork artist James Mahony (1810–1879), commissioned by Illustrated London News, 1847 Skibbereen 1847 by Cork artist James Mahony (1810–1879), commissioned by Illustrated London News, 1847 Country United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Location Ireland Period 1845–1852 Total deaths 1 million Observations Policy failure, potato blight, Corn Laws, British Anti-Popery Relief see below Impact on demographics Population fell by 20–25% due to mortality and emigration Consequences Permanent change in the countrys demographic, political and cultural landscape Website List of memorials to the Great Famine Preceded by Irish Famine (1740–1741) Succeeded by Irish Famine, 1879 (An Gorta Beag) In Ireland, the Great Famine (Irish: an Gorta Mór) was a period of mass starvation, disease and emigration between 1845 and 1852.[1] It is sometimes referred to, mostly outside Ireland, as the Irish Potato Famine because one-third of the population was then solely reliant on this cheap crop for a number of historical reasons.[2][3][4] During the famine approximately 1 million people died and a million more emigrated from Ireland,[5] causing the islands population to fall by between 20% and 25%.[6] The proximate cause of famine was a potato disease commonly known as potato blight.[7] Although the potato crop failed, the country was still producing and exporting more than enough grain crops to feed the population. Records show during the period Ireland was exporting approximately thirty to fifty shiploads per day of food produce. As a consequence of these exports and a number of other factors such as land acquisition, absentee landlords and the effect of the 1690 penal laws, the Great Famine today is viewed by a number of historical academics as a form of either direct or indirect genocide.[8] The famine was a watershed in the history of Ireland.[9] Its effects permanently changed the islands demographic, political and cultural landscape. For both the native Irish and those in the resulting diaspora, the famine entered folk memory[fn 1] and became a rallying point for various Home rule and United Ireland movements, as the whole island was then part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The massive famine soured the already strained relations between many of the Irish people and the British Crown, heightening Irish republicanism, which eventually led to Irish independence in the next century. Modern historians regard it as a dividing line in the Irish historical narrative, referring to the preceding period of Irish history as pre-Famine. According to legend,[75][76] in 1845, Ottoman Sultan Abdülmecid declared his intention to send £10,000 to Irish farmers, but Queen Victoria requested that the Sultan send only £1,000, because she herself had sent only £2,000. The Sultan is supposed to have sent the £1,000 along with three ships full of food. According to Abdullah Aymaz in an article in The Fountain magazine, the British administration tried to block the ships, but the food arrived secretly at Drogheda harbour and was left there by Ottoman sailors.[77][78] Shipping records relating to the port appear not to have survived. Newspaper reports suggest that ships from Thessaloniki in the Ottoman Empire sailed up the River Boyne in May 1847,[79] although it has also been claimed that the river was dry at the time. A letter in the Ottoman archives of Turkey, written by Irish notables explicitly thanks the Sultan for his help.[80]
Posted on: Fri, 21 Mar 2014 04:16:47 +0000
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