Countries of the world: "Ireland"

Part 6. Ireland.

l. What was the position of the native population of Ireland in the 19th century?

2.What terrible disaster did Ireland suffer in 1845, 1846 and 1847? How many people died from, hunger in these three years?

3.What country did many Irish emigrate to? How many Irish settled in the United States between 1841 and 1920?

In Ireland the struggle between Catholics and Protestants became a struggle for Irish freedom from English rule. The native Irish population, most of which were Catholics, was cruelly oppressed by Protestants, who were supported by the British government.

• In 1845, 1846 and 1847 lreland suffered the worst disaster in its entire history: for three years the potato crop failed. Potatoes were the main food of the poor. At the same time Ireland had enough wheat to feed the entire population, but it was grown by the Protestant landowners for export to England, so the Irish population did not get it. The situation was tragic. One and a half million people (about 20 per cent of the total Irish population) died from hunger in these three years

Many Irish emigrated. At least a million people left-during these years, and the emigration continued during the rest of the century because of the great poverty in Ireland. Most emigrants went to the United States of America. Between 1841 and 1920 almost five million Irish settled there.