The Great Famine in Ireland

The British government’s list of reaction and repairs is not a favorable review of a government bent on a solution to a problem that was so immense that the entire world recognized the magnitude of the disaster. The continued reluctance to repeal the Corn Laws along with the disastrously deficient Public Works programs and Soup Kitchens were prime examples of too little too late. It would appear that the British Government legislated more to avoid the consequences of the Famine than they did to bring it to a halt.

Charges of intentional Genocide regarding the British government’s administration of the Great Famine are perhaps a bit too harsh. The “Late Blight” impacted potato crops thoroughly across Europe at the same period. Hindsight is a slippery slope. British government administration of Ireland was in itself underwritten with the devices that fueled the foundations of Irish society that led to the Great Famine. The response was arguably either late or little in light of the epic size of the problem. Britain was clearly aware that the Famine was enviable. They chose for reasons that seem to be rooted in a field of culpable negligence to do very little. One may argue the motivations but there is little doubt that the response was clearly deficient.