September 1845
Irish famine

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Blight strikes Ireland's potato crop and devastates the harvest. As the potato is the staple diet of the working class and peasantry, many go hungry. The blight afflicts many European countries, pushing up the prices of imported food. Because of compulsory import tax, even bread is out of many people's reach.

The government is slow to intervene. Prime Minister Peel tries to abolish the Corn Laws in November, to get cheap food into Ireland, but is defeated. He finally succeeds in 1846 (see 1846 Repeal of the Corn Laws), but the import duty is phased out gradually, and the poor of Ireland continue to starve.

The harvests fail in successive years and when tenant farmers can't pay their rent, many are evicted. Tens of thousands of families are made homeless. The government offers some relief, but only to people who have less than a quarter of an acre of land. Between 1845 and 1849, more than a million Irish people die and another 1.5 million emigrate to England, the United States and Canada.

The devastation is so great that people cannot organise to protest effectively. The Young Ireland Group attempts an armed rising, but it is crushed and coercion (repressive policing) measures enforce calm.

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