The Irish famine: everything you wanted to know
HistoryExtra podcast
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What Caused the Potato Blight in Ireland?
A new form of disease that appeared in america, it seems, in 18 forty three. It travelled across to europe, we think, in guano, in manure. The potato had failed before, not by this particular form of disease. But what made the irish situation unique and so vulnerable was that in no other country in europe was there such a high dependence on potatoes. And that's why, when the disease appeared in ireland, people were very worried.
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