Great Irish Potato Famine
1845-1852 · 19th Century
From 1845 to 1852, the water mold Phytophthora infestans destroyed successive potato crops across Ireland, eliminating the primary food source for much of the population. The blight ruined approximately half the 1845 crop and three-quarters of subsequent harvests through 1849. Approximately one million people died from starvation and related diseases including typhus. An estimated two million emigrated to the United States, Canada, England, and Australia. Ireland's population fell from 8.4 million in 1844 to 6.6 million by 1851.
Key Figures
Sir Charles TrevelyanSir Robert PeelLord John RussellDaniel O'Connell
Locations
County CorkCounty MayoDublinLondon
Topics
StarvationFamineIrelanddisease
Connected Events — 2 Connections
Potato Famine drove mass Irish immigration to America, creating the population base and grievances that fueled the Fenian Brotherhood Fenian Raids
The failed 1798 rebellion led to the Act of Union (1800), centralizing Irish governance in London and creating the political framework that enabled British officials to control famine response from Westminster rather than local Irish authorities Irish Rebellion
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