By the 1840s, Ireland was securely under British rule. The tide of nationalism that began on the European continent and the rise of the popular press had energized the nascent Irish nationalist movement, but London’s control was reasonably certain. Ireland itself was a land of contrasts: wealthy developed urban areas like Belfast and Dublin were comparable to major British cities, but millions still eked out difficult lives in the rural counties. The key to survival for this farming population was the potato. Potatoes were introduced from the Americas in the 16th century and their extremely high yield per acre made them an excellent staple food source. By 1845, Ireland was growing 15 million tons of potatoes per year and they provided most of the calorie intake for about 3 million people. Contrary to popular stereotypes, the Irish also grew many other crops like wheat, oats, barely, and peas, but potatoes were far and away the most important crop for the country. Enter Phytophthora Infestans, better known as potato blight. Originating in the potato’s homeland of America, blight is a fungal infection that thrives in damp environments and causes infected crops to wither away into inedible black mush. It entered Europe early in the 1840s where it ravaged potato crops in places like Belgium and Holland. However, when it reached the shores of Ireland in 1845, the effects would be apocalyptic. Famine Arrives Blight ravaged the 1845 potato crop. This first blight was somewhat sporadic and it took weeks for officials to realize the scale of the disaster. Overall, about 40% of the entire country’s potato crop was ruined. The effect was particularly bad in the eastern, southern, and central regions of Ireland, with many counties reporting that the vast majority of the potatoes were lost. Ireland had faced famines before, there’d been one between 1800 and 1801 and another from 1816 to 1818, but this crisis would be another beast entirely. Action was clearly needed and this responsibility fell upon the British government. However, in order to understand how the British responded, we need to cover a few things. #angortamor #history #irishhistory Music: Epidemic music Sources: David Ross, Ireland: History of a Nation, (2002) James S. Donnelly Jr, The Great Irish Potato Famine, (2001) Neil Hegarty, The Story of Ireland: A History of the Irish People, (2011) Ruth Dudley Edwards, It's time to get over the fact that the Great Famine was not genocide’, 4th October 2015, Independant.ie, https://www.independent.ie/opinion/its-time-to-get-over-the-fact-that-the-great-famine-was-not-genocide/31580188.html?regToken=st2.s.AcbHMkiVKA.i6veejCfrrfAXRjD7KVSF6GaTePPtb_ZyoTxICCSybgawl3_IeUp_oRidOqgXqLjHWwqsqo1WowS6jy4Trc9wveqhTYSSDQNboohQyDYx5oXxm9UIgbqP0s9cMgYXqk2.xs4Qz1pkXu4OSDodZQUteLasdMhTNlQAKz3DEmel-XryUv_xscenTPz1p62BReAyrnsrDkQeXlWLChaHjsAGUw.sc3 Tim Pat Coogan, The Famine Plot: England’s Role in Ireland’s Greatest Tragedy, (2012) Copyright © 2023 A Day In History. All rights reserved. DISCLAIMER: All materials in these videos are used for entertainment purposes and fall within the guidelines of fair use. No copyright infringement intended. If you are, or represent, the copyright owner of materials used in this video, and have an issue with the use of said material, please send an email to adayinhistory2021@gmail.com