Great Famine

Introduction & Top Questions
Cause of the Great Famine
Great Famine relief efforts
Death toll, emigration to America, and demographic effects

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images & Videos

The Irish flag with vertical green, white, and orange stripes, featuring a large green four-leaf clover in the center.

The Devastating Impact of Ireland's Great Potato Famine

Wood engraving showing a man taking the pulse of a sick Irish emigrant lying in a crowded ship's cabin, with other passengers resting on bunks and benches during the 1840s potato famine.

Choropleth map of Ireland showing county-level population changes from 1841 to 1851 during the Great Potato Famine. Most counties are shaded in red, orange, or yellow to indicate significant population decreases, especially in the west and south, while Dublin is shown in green to indicate a slight population increase.

At a Glance

Irish Potato Famine summary

Quizzes

Vikings. Viking warriors hold swords and shields. 9th c. AD seafaring warriors raided the coasts of Europe, burning, plundering and killing. Marauders or pirates came from Scandinavia, now Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. European History

European History

41 Questions from Britannica’s Most Popular World History Quizzes

The Irish Quiz

Related Questions

How did Phytophthora infestans reach Ireland in 1845?
How did Sir Robert Peel try to provide relief during the early years of the Great Famine?
How did cornmeal contribute to nutritional deficiencies during the Great Famine?
How did emigration continue to affect Ireland after the Great Famine ended?
How did late blight affect potato tubers as well as potato leaves?
How did late blight damage potato plants in Ireland?
How did the Great Famine change Ireland’s population between 1844 and 1851?
How did the Great Famine change landownership in Ireland?
How did the Great Famine influence Irish nationalism?
How many people died during the Great Famine in Ireland?
How many people emigrated from Ireland during the Great Famine?
How many people received food from soup kitchens in Ireland in 1847?
How many potatoes did a typical cottier family consume each day before the Great Famine?
How much did the British government spend on relief during the Great Famine?
How much of the Irish population relied heavily on potatoes before the Great Famine?
How quickly could late blight infect nearby potato plants?
What caused the potato crops to fail during the Great Famine?
What conditions limited the spread of Phytophthora infestans?
What kinds of British relief were offered during the Great Famine?
What reforms did Archbishop Paul Cullen introduce in Ireland after the Great Famine?
When did the Great Famine occur in Ireland?
Which organism caused the potato blight during the Great Famine?
Which parts of Ireland experienced the sharpest decline in small farmers and agricultural workers after the famine?
Who were John Mitchel and James Fintan Lalor in debates about the Great Famine?
Who were cottiers in 19th-century Ireland?
Why did Ireland continue exporting grain and meat to Britain during the Great Famine?
Why did cool and moist weather in 1845 worsen potato blight in Ireland?
Why did late blight spread so quickly through Ireland’s potato crops?
Why did more Irish farmland become pasture for sheep and cattle after the Great Famine?
Why had potatoes become the main food of many poor people in Ireland before the famine?
Why were Irish tenant farmers evicted during the Great Famine?
Why were tenant farmers in western Ireland especially vulnerable to the Great Famine?
What were the effects of the Great Famine?
How did the potato blight happen?
Who is Micheál Martin?
How did Micheál Martin become taoiseach?
What is St. Patrick the patron saint of?
Where was St. Patrick born?
What was St. Patrick’s early life like?
Did St. Patrick drive the snakes out of Ireland?
What is St. Patrick famous for?
What was found at the St. Mary’s Mother and Baby Home in Tuam?

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External Websites

National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - How Infecion Shaped Histtory: Lessons From The Irish Famine
EH.net - Irelandï¿½s Great Famine
ABC listen - Nightlife - Understanding the Irish Famine
History Ireland - Epidemic Diseases of the Great Famine
NPR - Potato Famine
Teach Democracy - The Potato Famine and Irish Immigration to America
University of Notre Dame - McGrath Institute for Church Life - The Irish Potato Famine
The Victorian Web - The Irish Famine
BBC News - Irish Famine: How Ulster was devastated by its impact
Ireland's Great Hunger Museum - Learn About the Great Hunger

Britannica Websites

Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students.

Irish Potato Famine - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)

Great Famine

famine, Ireland [1845–1849]

Also known as: Famine of 1845–1849, Great Irish Famine, Great Potato Famine, Irish Potato Famine(Show More)

Written by

Joel Mokyr

Joel Mokyr is Robert H. Strotz Professor of Arts and Sciences and Professor of Economics and History at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. He is the joint winner of the 2025 Nobel Prize for...

Joel Mokyr

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....

Britannica Editors

Last updated

Oct. 25, 2026 •History

Great Famine, famine that occurred in Ireland in 1845–49 when the potato crop failed in successive years. The crop failures were caused by late blight, a disease that destroys both the leaves and the edible roots, or tubers, of the potato plant. The causative agent of late blight is the water mold Phytophthora infestans. The Irish famine was the worst to occur in Europe in the 19th century. In the early 19th century, Ireland’s tenant...

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