Why Did Irelands Population Baloon In Early 1800's?

mikefoxo

http://www.grantonline.com/grant-family-genealogy/Records/population/population-ireland-1100-200.jpg

It's kind of strange how that curve on the graph just shoots up around 1800. I'm guessing there wasn't some leap forward in medicine or a huge drop in infant mortality. So what caused it? Was this unique to Ireland or did something similar happen in other European countries?

Manach

This population growth was European wide, though at slightly different periods. In part due to better weather, but mostly due to a better integrated transport system for food, breakthroughs in agri-tech and general peace after the Napoleonic wars. From a recent book on German history I read, similar trends were seen which in turn lead to both increase migration to America and political unrest.

Markcheese

Spuds and lack of a good local war...

tabbey

Between 1793 and 1816, the UK was at war almost continously.

Apart from weapons which were better made in England, which had iron and coal, the other requirements for war, men, horses and food, were produced in Ireland. The money generated from these brought a new confidence to rural Ireland.

Young men, tired of living under their fathers roofs, sought independence, starting new families with their wives from a younger age, leading to rapid reproduction and population explosion.

In spite of frequent lesser famines, it took the Great Famine to knock the confidence out of the Irish people, and commence 120 years of decline.

Snickers Man

Was the influx of cotton clothing, easier to wash than woollens, also a factor in general health improvement?

Good ol' slaves in the deep south were a blessing to us.

L1011

The potato that fecked it all up (the Lumper) being isolated was probably the single biggest cause. Could feed a much larger family on the same land

tabbey

L1011 wrote: »

The potato that fecked it all up (the Lumper) being isolated was probably the single biggest cause. Could feed a much larger family on the same land

The lumper was often the only crop that would grow on the worst land which the cottier was granted by the small farmer.

The unfortunate landless labourer was at the bottom of the social ladder, looked down on by even the smallest farmer.