This path was created by Amanda Lundeen.  The last update was by Erika Strandjord.

Star of the Sea : A Postcolonial/Postmodern Voyage into the Irish Famine

Policies and Famine Relief

“The good faith of the empire should be staked to prevent the scenes that have occurred in the west. Surely the government of the country will have to answer for the blood of the people if the relief provided by the legislature is not properly and largely administered.”
—Patrick McManus P. P. Louisburg in Freeman’s Journal, January 8th 1837
(qtd. in O’Grada 77).
 
At the same time as the famine grew worse in Ireland, there was also food scarcity and famines all over Europe. Therefore, there were limited amounts of supplies that needed to be shared amongst different nations. The crisis in Ireland started out as a series of potato crop failures; but due to the British exporting out all crops and failing to act, it turned into a full-fledged famine. By the time the British government realized it had gone too far, they had to put a relief plan together, and attempted through two different political administrations to curb the famine mortality. However, as the world watched the British government fail to help, they decided to take matters into their own hands. Go down this path and study the relief policies of the British government, and how the international society attempted to help the Irish famine situation.
 
Researcher/Writer: Ellen-Marie Pedersen
​Technical Designers: Derek Rachel and Amanda Lundeen

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