The humble potato once transformed Ireland—but not always for the better. In this video, we explore Ireland’s lesser-known first Great Famine of 1740–1741, known as Bliain an Áir or "The Year of the Slaughter." Triggered by a volcanic eruption on the other side of the world, this climate catastrophe decimated crops, sparked deadly famines, and plunged Ireland into chaos nearly a century before the more well-known Great Famine of the 1840s.
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Further Reading:
S. Engler, J Luterbacher, F. Mauelshagen, and J. Werner. “The Irish Famine of 1740-174: Causes and Effects. Climate of the Past Discussions. Published February 15, 2013. https://cp.copernicus.org/preprints/9/1013/2013/cpd-9-1013-2013-print.pdf
“Bliain an Áir: The forgotten famine of 1740-41.” WaterfordTreasures.com. https://www.waterfordtreasures.com/bliain-an-air-the-forgotten-famine-of-1740-41/
McWilliams, Brendan. “The Great Frost and Forgotten Famine.” IrishTimes.com. February 19, 2001. https://www.irishtimes.com/news/the-great-frost-and-forgotten-famine-1.282539
Farrington, John. “Ireland's lesser-known Famine, the history of the Year of the Slaughter.” IrishCentral.com. August 22, 2023. https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/ireland-famine-history-year-slaughter
“Irish Potato Famine: After the Famine” HistoryPlace.com. https://www.historyplace.com/worldhistory/famine/after.htm
Mulraney, Frances. “In forgotten famine of 1879 Irish Americans aided relief efforts.” IrishCentral.com. September 1, 2016. https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/the-forgotten-irish-famine-of-1879-aided-by-irish-americans
“On this Day, February 28, 1880.” Archive.NyTimes.com. https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/harp/0228.html
Cusack, Christopher. “A Forgotten Great Hunger.” the-TLS.co.uk. December 22/29, 2023. https://www.the-tls.co.uk/history/modern-history/the-land-war-in-ireland-laurence-m-geary-book-review-christopher-cusack
Credit:
Simple History Creator: Daniel Turner (B.A. (Hons) in History, University College London)
Video Directors: Anthony Barrett, Denis Blinov
Script: Robert De Graaf
Script Review: Denis Blinov
Narrator: Chris Kane (https://vocalforge.com)
Artists: ShyShelly, Arya Ahumada Lydisma
Animators: Kuldip Bheda, Krunal, Mani Kumar, Bharghavi
Editor: Alec Urbany
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Simple History Channel Manager: James Dowse