Tory Mp Irish famine

How do you work that one out?

Wow if your great grand mother was of child bearing age during the famine, that would mean she was born between 1810 and 1830? Which would mean your grand mother was born between 1830 and 1850, and your mother or father between 1850 and perhaps 1890, soooo you’re what, aged between 115 and 155 years old. Wow, a true miracle!

I am 55 and my great grandmother was born in 1884, some 32 years after the end of the famine, but yes I’m sure your great grandmother lived and bore your grandparents between 1845 and 1852, that’s very believable

What constitutes as being onboard the victim train? Genuinely want to know. I can’t see anyone playing the victim, just wanting to understand the history and I think it’s important.

Especially seeing as the consequences of British colonialism are still being felt in Northern Ireland.
Imagine having to share a city with the man that killed your family, and having to bump in to him several times after knowing he was released from prison under the GFA, but also knowing that it was better than the alternative of having even more of your family killed.

It was not a genocide.

It depends upon how many hours they are expected to do in class for each subject over the year - an A level comprises a minimum of 180 hours per academic year, 360 for the course plus independent study, then there could be 4 A levels or an Extended Project Qualification, additional GCSEs or vocational qualifications, minimum requirements for outside school participation (eg, in A level PE or Music/Music theory/Drama), plus careers, PSHEE, core PE, etc.

A quick google of the tuition requirements for the Leaving Certificate/curriculum planning for JCT suggests it's 2-240-ish for subjects spread over three years instead.

I entirely agree with you but unfortunately too many of my fellow Irish people are fully on board the victim train

It's depth over breadth OP. English kids do up to 12 GCSEs. They still don't learn about Ireland.

I have not read the whole thread but famine is a misnomer, it was a genocide.

I’m Scottish. The whole highland clearances has become a bit of a political football to try and politicise young people against the English. Bad things happened but I don’t want a victim mentality about it. I’d caution Irish people to also resist it. Holds you back in my opinion. Understand your history but respect it not wear it.

https://curriculumonline.ie/getmedia/da556505-f5fb-4921-869f-e0983fd80e50/SCSEC20_History_syllabus_eng.pdf

The current Irish Leaving Cert history syllabus (pdf) in detail (47 pages of content).

The term "Irish Potato Famine" is also offensive. It was not a potato famine. While the potato crop failed, that was not the reason for the famine. It is referred to as The Great Famine in Ireland. The Irish famine would also be acceptable.

Sure we still have blight warning on Irish weather forecasts. There’s even a warning on todays weather!

It may seem like a long time ago to some but it was only my great grandmother eg who suffered directly from the Great Hunger, being evicted age 9 and living and starving under hedgerows in Mayo.

But there were awful consequences for her children who suffered from heart problems etc ( a result of her starvation while gestating them).They died variously between 21 and 35.

A third generation, their children, also suffered being orphaned at a very young age. It wasn't until her great grandchildren that the ravages of the hunger were not felt ( my generation ).

Not Irish people, but the impact of the potato on Irish history, the history of British politics from 1845 to 1922 and then from 1969 to the present (via NI) - and also on the history of the US and possibly Australia and to a lesser extent Canada, is profound.

Zero experience?

I don't think you understand much of the experience of Irish people of any generation living in the UK, and the impact of Britain's long and problematic relationship with Ireland on that experience.

The Irish were seen by the Victorian British as monkey-like creatures, not quite human, and completely lawless, feckless, superstitious, credulous, dirty, stupid, impoverished because of their own irresponsibility, prone to drunkenness, violence, and excessive fecundity.

This was a fairly typical British response to native peoples who had been conquered and subjugated, but especially to the Irish who inexplicably and stubbornly refused to be British, and who were regularly depicted in popular magazines and castigated in editorials as the opposite of the sober, clear-thinking, responsible, intelligent British heirs to the Roman imperial tradition - but importantly not the Roman church. You can look up Punch magazine for the stereotypes.

You mean 174 years ago. My granddad's dad survived it, so it feels kind of recent to me. Hunger and emigration from rural Ireland continued until the 1970s - so not isolated, and not 200 years ago.
However it was a silly clumsy thing to say anyway. In 1847 -51 seed potatoes were not (normally) eaten but planted to grow great big watery "Lumper" potatoes. The crop failure may have been exacerbated by overuse of a single high-yield variety which was susceptible to the blight. (Iiuc - I am not a botanist). Vulnerable varieties are banned / restricted to this day aiui.
The Scottish seed potato - and all seed potatoes suppliers - is vital to providing food for future generations. Potatoes are superfood. Let's focus on getting the right regulations and learning the right lessons from history.

Ok cool so in your opinion, when can we start making jokes about slaves? The holocaust?
Slaves must already be fair game seeing as that was before the Irish Famine and we only need to wait, what 100 years or so before it’s ok for MPs to make holocaust jokes?

Still not too soon in my opinion

You need to look up the definition of a famine and the coffin ships to America too.

Actually they often do only study three or four topics for GCSE/ A level. They do some topics in depth and others in breath. There is usually a mixture of UK and international history. For example they might study Germany 1890-1945; Conflict and tension in Asia 1950-1975; Health and the people 1000- present; Norman England 1066-1100.

This is all they will study for two years. They will come out knowing a lot about very selective bits of history depending on which topics their teacher has chosen, but very little else. A level is even more selective, just three topics.

When they are younger they will study some history but this is often chronological so unless you choose GCSE history. There are broad topics, Ireland and Home rule is optional within the ideas, political power, industry and empire section. Most topics are optional so it depends on the specific teacher and their interests as to what is covered.

Not saying it is right. They should be much more informed. Fortunately my dc are very well informed through their own independent studies but I would not rely on school to teach any specific parts of history.

I'm Irish and quite offended by it.