Tag: Famine

Potato bed remnants in Mayo, Ireland from 1845–52

21/05/2022.Reading time 1 minute.

Land holdings were so small and of such poor quality that families could support themselves only through the planting of potatoes. To know why so many Irish families subsisted on such small plots of land, one must re-examine the ‘Penal Laws’ which were introduced in 1690 after the Catholic supporters of James II were defeated […]

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Ireland 1847

13/05/2022.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Asenath Nicholson “My bedroom overlooks the burying ground. I often arose to look into it, that some haggard father was bringing a dead child, latched to his back, and laying him on some tombstone, as had been done, and leaving it to the mercy of whoever might find it a grave.” Taken from The Truth […]

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An Irish Labourer on the Public Works in 1845–52 by Danny Howes

06/05/2022.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Accounts describe workers spending their final moments crawling along the roadside in the direction of their homes. Far from having their wants relieved, thousands of labourers had been effectively worked to death and the health of tens of thousands gravely affected. Taken from the book The Truth Behind The Irish Famine:72 paintings, 472 eyewitness quotes […]

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Ireland 1845–52

02/05/2022.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Opthalmia, an eye disease caused by lack of vitamin A, became prevalent causing blindness due to ulceration and keratomalacia, generally in one eye. It became common in workhouses and among children: 13,000 cases were recorded in 1849 and 27,000 in 1850. Taken from The Truth Behind The Irish Famine. 72 Paintings, 472 eyewitness quotes. http://www.jerrymulvihill.com

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Ireland 1845–52

22/04/2022.Reading time less than 1 minute.

The public works consisted of building roads, walls and bridges for a salary of 8 pence per day. This strenuous work program was introduced at a time when the people were starving and weak. The salary was not sufficient for the people to regain their health or feed their families. To make matters worse the […]

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A ‘Scalpeen in Ireland | 1845-52

02/04/2022.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Eyewitness quote by A. Nicholson: “This bed was made in the bog, within a few yards of the Atlantic Ocean, but sheltered from its spray by a bank, under which a narrow place had been dug, which partly covered him. Taken from The Truth Behind The Irish Famine. 72 paintings and 472 eyewitness quotes: http://www.jerrymulvihill.com

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Ireland 1845–52

25/03/2022.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Nearly two million people emigrated from Ireland to America, Australia, and 750,000 to Britain. The journey took three months from Ireland to America and some ships carried 600 passengers, double the legal number. It is estimated there may have been more than 80,000 deaths. Almost all the deceased were buried at sea. Taken from the […]

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An evicted village in Ireland 1845–52

19/03/2022.Reading time less than 1 minute.

It is estimated that, excluding peaceable surrenders, well over a quarter of a million people were evicted between 1845 and 1854. The total number of people who had to leave their holdings in this period is projected to be around half a million and 200,000 small holdings were obliterated. Taken from The Truth Behind The […]

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An old soup kitchen in Skibbereen, Cork

27/02/2022.Reading time 1 minute.

An old soup kitchen in Skibbereen, Cork | In 1847, with the world’s eyes now watching, the government made money available for loans to establish soup kitchens which fed 3 million people. This showed that Britain had the means and the power to exercise successful relief in Ireland, but the soup kitchens closed after 3 […]

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