The Political-Economy of the Irish Famine: Some Perspectives

The Great Irish Famine or the Great Hunger was a tragedy that shook the foundation of Irish society and its consciousness. The most intriguing part is how the failure of a single crop wreaked havoc in Irish society and how unwise and inappropriate political and government decisions further compounded it. Ireland saw poverty, starvation, death, and migration of its people while being part of the wealthiest and the most vibrant parliamentary democracy at that time in the world. This paper examines various aspects, especially the political and economic aspects of the famine and the role of political and government decisions in exacerbating it.