1. Life in Ireland, 1840s
1.1. Ruled by Britian
1.2. Most depended on agriculture
1.3. Three classes
1.3.1. Landlords
1.3.1.1. Many absentee
1.3.1.2. Big houses with servants
1.3.1.3. Rented to tenant farmers
1.3.1.4. Evicted tenants if they couldn't pay
1.3.2. Tenant farmers
1.3.2.1. Small farmers
1.3.2.1.1. 5 - 30 acres
1.3.2.1.2. Split land between sons
1.3.2.1.3. Land got very small soon
1.3.2.1.4. Low income, so they were poor
1.3.2.1.5. Potatoes and milk diet
1.3.2.2. Big farmers
1.3.2.2.1. 30 acres +
1.3.2.2.2. Grew wheat and barley, sold it
1.3.2.2.3. Hired labourers
1.3.2.2.4. Reared animals
1.3.2.2.5. Potatoes, vegetable, meat and milk
1.3.3. Cottiers
1.3.3.1. Rented an acre from a farmer
1.3.3.2. Paid rent through money and work
1.3.3.3. One room cabins
1.3.3.4. Largest class
2. Causes of the Famine
2.1. Rise in population
2.1.1. Average size of farms decreased
2.1.2. People became poorer
2.2. Subdivision
2.2.1. Farms got small
2.2.2. Low incomes
2.3. Dependency on potatoes
2.3.1. Cottiers only source of food
2.4. Potato blight
2.4.1. Devastated potato crop
3. Government Response
3.1. Maize
3.1.1. London first slow to respond
3.1.2. Robert Peel sent £100,000 worth of maize
3.1.3. Fed 1 million people
3.2. Public Works Scheme
3.2.1. Grants to build roads etc
3.2.2. Designed so money could be earned to buy food
3.2.3. People too weak to do work
3.3. Workhouses
3.3.1. Poor Law Act 1838
3.3.2. 130 Poor Law Unions
3.3.3. Farmers and landlords paid taxes to build workhouses
3.3.4. Families split up
3.3.5. Hard work for food
3.3.6. Diseases spread fast
3.4. Soup kitchens
3.4.1. Irish politicians pushed for this
3.4.2. Helped 3 million people
3.4.3. Set up outside workhouses
3.4.4. Paid by local ratepayers
3.5. Private charities
3.5.1. Quakers
3.5.1.1. Soup kitchens
3.5.1.2. Free food for the starving
3.5.2. Countries abroad
3.5.2.1. Newspaper reports spread awareness
3.5.2.2. 19 countries sent money
3.5.2.3. £400,000
4. Effects of the Famine
4.1. Fall in population
4.1.1. Emigration
4.1.2. Death
4.1.3. Continued after famine
4.2. End of subdivision
4.2.1. Eldest son got land now
4.2.2. Other kids went to city or emigrated
4.3. Decline in Irish language
4.3.1. Gaeltacht areas hit the hardest
4.3.2. People needed to speak English to emigrate
4.4. Emigration
4.4.1. Most to America
4.4.2. Coffin ships
4.4.2.1. Poor conditions
4.4.2.2. Not allowed to dock because of fever
4.4.2.3. Some sank
4.5. Bitter to the British
4.5.1. Blamed government
4.5.2. Ships left Ireland full of crops during famine
4.5.3. IRB etc set up to drive British out
4.6. Change in agriculture
4.6.1. Away from crop growing
4.6.2. Size of farms increased
4.6.3. More dairy (cow) farming