1851 - 1855 AD 

                                                                                                                                 "End of the Great Famine - Irish Tenant League - Irish Fenians"

1851 AD The Census taken this year, recorded that there had been 132,433 people who had died in Co. Cork in Southern Munster alone, while 309,000 people were still in the "Poor Union Workhouse" situated throughout Ireland, with many more still trying to gain "entry" into there to have any chance of surviving, and many of the others had "emigrated."

      The population in Ireland was now at 6,552,385, down from 8,000,000 in 1841 AD, which would have by now due to natural growth been well over 9,000,000, and of these 2,000,000 were still speaking the Irish Gaelic language. In Co. Kilkenny in the south - west of Southern Leinster there were now 158,746 people still "surviving" there, which was actually a 22% "decline" in the population there over the last 10 years. Although the "Great Famine" was basically over, 2,500,000  people were gone from Ireland, either by the result of the "Great Famine" itself, the "Diseases" that followed on from that or the "forced" Emigration to survive, To add to this another 250,000 people were to "emigrate" from Ireland this year again, with future "emigration" to remain "high" until the end of this Century. For the next 40 years until 1891AD the population in Ireland would drop further to 4,700,000, which would be a 28% "decrease" overall, while the percentage of the "decreasing" numbers in the 4 Provinces in Ireland at this time was; 28.6% in the Connacht Province, 15.5% in the Leinster Province, 23.5% in the Munster Province, and 16% in the Ulster Province. Co. Cork in Southern Munster would see a 32% "decrease" in the population there to 649,000 people, while also up until 1891 AD 425,000 people would continue to "migrate" from there. There were 70,000 people still left in Co. Clare in the north - west of the Munster Province with around 200 people still leaving there every "week" during this year, while up until 1881 AD 100,000 people would continue to "emigrate" from there. By now 3/4 of the "emigrants" since 1846 AD had gone to the "United States of America," with the rest going to British North America and 19,000 to Australia.

     The number of individual land holdings in Ireland had also now fallen by "amalgamation" from a total of 690,000 in 1841 AD, to 570,000, with those holding onto smaller 1- 5 acre blocks down from 310,436 to only 88,083, with those holding onto 5 - 15 acres falling from 252,799 to 191,854, although those holding on to 15 - 30 acres had "increased" from 79,342 to 141,311, and those holding on to 30 plus acres had also increased from 48,625 to 149,000, which was due to the Land Lords in Ireland "clearing" their Estates of the great number of families under the previous legislation that had been put through in 1847 AD. Assistance had been "denied" to anyone who held a 1/4 of an acre, who were then forced to give up their "tenanted" land to try and avoid "starvation." The proportion of the population in Ireland who still could not read was 59.5% and the proportion of those who could not write was 35.7%.   

     From now on there was to be a "decline" in "agricultural tillage," as most of the Irish land was now to be used for "cattle grazing", and only in the "west" did any of the "small farmers" survive, as during the pre - Famine period early marriage had bought about increased subdivision of the land as there was no other prospects for "employment" due to the "economic" oppressions continually put in place by the British Imperial Conservative Governments under their "Immoral Union" and the continuall "drain of the money" to the Absentee - Land Lords in England (During the balance of the 19th Century AD only "one son" would inherit the use of the "tenant farm," usually "postponing" any chance of marriage until his father died, while the other sons and daughters had to turn to "emigration" to resolve their individual situations, which "lowered" the birth rate in Ireland. 400,000 acres in Ireland was now also put under Wheat until 1901 AD, while a further 2,000,000 acres went into grazing "pasture".  

      Overall Irish Illiteracy was 47 % with the ability to both read and write at around 33%, while among the 6.7 % of those in Scotland who were originally Irish born, 18 % were living in Dundee and Glasgow, and 733,866 men, women and children from Ireland had also "emigrated" to Britain. The emigrants from Ireland who had gone to America, were to form a strong "Irish Nationalist" agenda there, due to the previous Centuries of harsh treatment meted out to them in Ireland by the ongoing English and British Conservative Governments, and their continuing "oppression" that was still to occur in Ireland in the many years that still lie ahead.  

August 1st: The Land Lord's "tenants" in Ireland were now accepting 31 year leases or even longer automatically, and were also debarred from claiming "compensation" for disturbance or improvements, and the Land Lords could also still "object" to the purchaser, "prohibit" any public advertising to "sell" their tenancy, could "refuse" strangers any right to enter their Estates, or non - adjoining farmers, which all "diminished" the value of the departing "tenant farmer’s" interest in the land, that is if he could actually secure a sale. "Refusal "of the Land Lords to sanction the sale of a yearly tenancy was now also another of their grievances.

     The British Imperial Government's Ecclesiastical Titles Act, now created further "sectarian" strife as the non - Catholics in the Ulster Province were "uneasy" being connected with an association such as the "Irish Tenant League," which also included members of the Irish Catholic clergy, while Charles Gavan Duffy one of the "Young Irelanders," who was committed to Irish "democracy," was counting on turning it into an "Irish National" movement to secure self - government for Ireland and the Act was to also "revive the "fortunes" of the Ascendancy Episcopalian Church of England / Ireland who began to carry out missionary work among the population in Ireland in the Connacht Province quite successfully.

      Miss Jane Ross wrote down the "Derry Air" at Limavady in Co. Derry in the north - east of Ulster Province were it was being played by a passing fiddler.  

     Father Theobold Mathew of Temperance fame "refused" to be appointed a Bishop / supervisor.  

    The great house of Downhill in Ulster Province, which was previously built by the flamboyant Frederick Hervey the English Earl of Bristol and the Ascendancy Church of England Bishop in Derry, which originally cost 80,000 pounds to build, was destroyed by "fire."

   John O Donavan's "The Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland" up to 1616 AD were published this year.

1852 AD The British General Elections were held for the Westminster Parliament in England, but only one "Irish Tenant League" candidate from the Ulster Province was "successful," with even the progressive Land Lord there, William Crawford, "losing" his seat in Co. Down in the south - east of Ulster, while the Members who were supported by the "Irish Tenant Leagues" in the other Provinces were quite "successful."

     Brought forward from this year until 1869 AD in the British Westminster Parliament were to be a series of "Irish Land Bills" to try and correct the "rural" problems in Ireland, but the British Governments Lord Lieutenant in Ireland always made sure that any "concessions" to the "tenants" in Ireland were always "defeated," although two were to be passed for different reasons, and the "Irish Tenant Rights Party" then went into "decline" and there was now no real purpose for any "political action" in Ireland itself, but the "Constitutional Nationalists" still undaunted who wanted to bring about "reform" by "democratic" means for Ireland, with "no violence" involved, carried on with their just cause, but they had "no party" or "program" and therefore little "support." 

     There were now also further"stimulus" to come for further "rural agitation," as there were now moves made by the Land Lords to rescind the "deductions" they had been forced to make in previous "rent" for the "tenants" in Ireland.

   Cornelius O Brien, became the Liberal M.P. for Co. Clare in the north - west of the Munster Province again until 1857 AD, and a new Courthouse was built there at Lifford in Ennis.

    Isaac Butt, the son of an Ascendancy Church of England / Ireland clergyman, who was also a "Conservative" young barrister, had by now finally come to the realization that the British Imperial Conservative Governments really "neglected" and "mismanaged" Irish Affairs, and he became the M.P. for Harwich in the British Westminster Parliament and later on the M.P. for Youghal in Co. Cork in Southern Munster until 1865 AD.(He had previously made his debut in Irish politics in a "debate" against Daniel O Connell - the Liberator, over "Repeal of the Immoral Union" due to his "Conservative" outlook.

December: Stanley / Lord Derby who was now the British Imperial ConservativeTory Prime Minister in England was prepared to make "concessions," but the "Irish Tenant's League" would not "compromise," and they brought in their own Bill, which the British Imperial  Conservative Tory Government "refused" to accept, so they then joined in with their overall "Opposition," the Whigs, the Peelites, and the "Radicals," and brought down Lord Derby's Tory Government this year and Lord Aberdeen, was put in to replace him as the British Imperial Peelite Prime Minister until 1855 AD. John Sadleir and William Keogh who were two of the "Irish Tenant League" elected members in the Westminster Parliament went over to his side and also joined his Ministry, going against their previous "pledge" not to do so, and Lord Aberdeen just continued on in the same vein as Lord Derby had done previously anyway, and despite this they stayed in Government with him, which was to "split" the unity of the "Irish Tenant League" over the next 7 years, and because of this the Irish Tenant League's membership subsequently "declined." Those among them who still stayed loyal to the tenets of the "Irish Tenant League" maintained their "independent" "opposition," while they  continued to "push" the causes of the "tenant farmers" in Ireland in the Westminster Parliament in England.

     William Ewart Gladstone, a Scotsman who would prove to be an outstanding "Statesman," who was now the British Chancellor of the Exchequer in the British Imperial Conservative Peelite Government was to introduce separate "Income taxation" in Ireland for the first time, and Lord Clarendon the new British Lord Lieutenant to Ireland finally "overruled" Sir Charles Wood's / Viscount Halifax's "draconian" normal "Poor Rate."

     2/3rds of the 105 Irish M.P.s at this time, who were now in the British Westminster Parliament in England, were still to be from the "Landed Gentry" / Land Lord families. 

   Charles Gavan Duffy the "Young Irelander" now became the M.P. for New Ross in Co. Wexford in Southern Leinster until 1855 AD, and during this period he continued to push for "land reform" compensation and "eviction" protection for the Land Lords' "tenants" in Ireland and he was to have a Bill pass the British House of Commons twice, which was also "rejected" twice by the "unelected" British Ascendancy Conservative controlled House of Lords who always had "total veto" over any legislation in England, which always held back any chance of reform and advancement.  

   Terence Mac Manus, who had also been "transported" to Van Diemen's Land / Tasmania in Australia by the British Imperial Conservative Government for his part in the 1848 AD "Irish Uprising," escaped from there, just as his colleague Thomas Francis Meagher had previously done who had gone to "America" and joined the American Union Army where he became a General during the "American Civil War" and was appointed the Secretary - General of Montana before his untimely death.  

   A sign of the growing influence of the "Irish - American" population in "America" itself occurred, when the "first" St. Patrick's Day Parade was held this year in New York.

   The "Irish Tenant League" held a "Conference" in Dublin this year to promote their objectives further and increase their memebership once again to bring about "agricultural reform."

   Moore Hall situated on the east shore of Carra Loch in Co. Mayo south of the Ballintober Abbey in the mid - west of the Connacht Province was constructed this year, which would be eventually burnt down in 1923 AD, and it is now only a ruin and    George Bernard Moore the novelist was born there this year, who when he later died was interred on an island in the Loch.  

   Archbishop Paul Cullen persuaded John Newman the former Ascendancy Church of England Theologian from Oxford who had become a Catholic priest, to set up the Catholic University College in Dublin.       

   James Stephens the previous "United Irishman" and Jeremiah O Donovan of Rossa, were now once again openly espousing the cause of "Irish Independence" and this was to see the actual birth of the "Irish Fenians" who as the "Fenian Nationalists" vowed at this time to guard the shores of Ireland.    

1853 AD John Mitchell, another of the "Young Irelanders" from the 1848 AD "Irish Uprising," now also "escaped" from exile in Australia where he had also been "transported" by the British Imperial Conservative Government to Van Diemen's Land / Tasmania from Bermuda, to get him and his influence out of Ireland, forever, and he too made his way to America where he founded a newspaper in support of "Irish Independence" from the ongoing tyranny of the British Imperial Conservative Governments.

   F.E. O Connor from Co. Cork in the Munster Province was now the leader of the Chartists in England.

   Sir Samuel Ferguson now gave English readers stories from Ireland that were written in English, and George Petrie was to put together a collection of 1,000 Irish Airs. 

   The "Book of Armagh" previously under the charge of the Mac Moyre / Maor (Sons of the Keeper of the Book) Family since 1002 AD, which was now in the custody of the family of Arthur Brownlow was given up to the custody of the Trinity College in Dublin.

   The Belfast shipyards in Co. Antrim in the north - east of the Ulster Province were started this year, which later were taken over by Harland & Wolf where the Ascendancy would continue to prevail with 10,000 non - Catholics employed and only 200 Catholics and where the sectarianism "siege mentality" would be continued on to be utilized regardless of the human cost to "keep their wages down."

1853 AD - 1855 AD The outbreak of the Crimean War with Britain forcing the price of corn and butter up.

1854 AD There was now an "increase" in the economic situation existing in Ireland, as the remnants of the "Great Famine" finally withdrew altogether, and the time of the "Young Irelanders" was now also coming to an end, and Irish "tenant evictions" from off of the Land Lords' Estates were to "decline" and the Catholic Archbishop Paul Cullen now also began moves to try and encourage greater ties with Britain, as before his original appointment to Ireland he had been living in Rome for the previous 20 years where the general Catholic clergy were living in "horror" of the events carried out against them in the French Revolution, and he now withdrew the support previously given by the Catholic clergy to the "Irish Tenant's League." He did this in anticipation of "naively" believing that he could obtain "better relations" with the British Imperial Conservative Peelite Government for the benefit of the whole of the population in Ireland, just like so many "unfortunates" had tried before  him and another "Reform Bill" was brought forward.

   The Dublin Catholic University was opened in St. Stephen's Green in Dublin in Southern Leinster under the authority of the Pope with John Henry Newman the former English Prelate and Theologian as its first rector, but it had "no endowments" and its "degrees" were "not to be recognized" by the British Imperial Conservative Government.  

    300  Gold artefacts were unearthed this year by workmen at Mooghaun / Meghane in Co. Clare near the O Brien's Dromoland Castle in the north - west of the Munster Province, while they were laying the railway tracks to Ennis, which included gorgets, torcs and fibulae, and there was a probability that these gold pieces of art had been buried there from the ancient Mooghaun Fort, which is the "largest" stone ring fort of it's kind in Ireland, measuring 1500' x 1000' where it has existed for over 2,000 years situated now in the grounds of the Dromoland Castle.

     William Smith - O Brien, originally also from the Dromoland Castle, who had been a "supporting" Land Lord himself in Co. Tipperary in the north - east of the Munster Province, had also been "transported" to Australia for supporting the "tenant farmers" against the harsh measures of the Land Lords, and allthough he had received the "death penalty" for doing so his life had been "spared" due to his brother Lucius' Ascendancy Establishment connections and he was now finally to be released from British custody.

    Sir Horace Plunkett who was to pioneer the "Agricultural Co - Ops" in Ireland was born at Gloucestershire in England.

   William Ewart Gladstone, the Scottish M.P. who would play a "major role" in Irish reform, was still the British Peelite Chancellor of the Exchequer and he kept Ireland in line with the tax in Great Britain. 

     Renan, a Frenchman, commented at this time that, "The Celts were essentially feminine in temperament, shy, gentle, giving full reign to the play of sentiment and imagination, proud, loyal, and with a strong sense of justice, deeply committed to personal loyalties and to their Family to such an excessive degree that it had stifled all attempts to attain a more complex social and political organization." 

   Nathaniel Clements the second English Earl of Leitrim, "died," whose confiscated Estate was on the previous territory of the O Raghnalls / O Reynolds from the Gaelic Milesian Irian Conmaicne Magh Rein Muinter Eoluis / Eolais Sept on Lough Rynn at Mohill in Co. Leitrim in the north - west of the Connacht Province that had been confiscated by the English in 1621 AD and Sydney William Clements became the English third Earl of Leitrim who would finish up with 90,000 acres in 4 Counties who was against William Gladstone's attempt to bring in "land reform" in Ireland and he was to "clear" his vast Estates of the "tenants" and by 1870 AD was to be the most "infamous" Land Lord in Ireland.     

1854 AD - 1855 AD Finally cattle prices were "up" in Ireland, and 2/5ths of the cattle were previously existing on 1/3 of the Potato crop, but are by now fed on Grain, although they had been fed 5,000,000 tons of "Potatoes" from a 15,000,000 ton Potato crop, and the Land Lords' "tenant farmers"in Ireland were now also consuming Grain instead of "Potatoes."         

1855 AD Thomas Scott, a land agent, acting for the Land Lord, Thomas l. Cave, increased his rents on his " tenants" in Ireland on his confiscated Estate by 50 %, although he had purchased the land from the incumbent Audley Estate near Skibbereen in Co. Cork in Southern Munster.

     Up until now 1,000,000  people had "emigrated" from Ireland, and the "Potato" crop was only half of the size of the crop in 1844 AD prior to the "Great Famine," and from now up until 1879 AD there was to be 30  families in Ireland that were still to be "evicted" off of the Land Lords'Estates every year, although the Land Lords' remaining "tenants" became more secure, as the Land Lords wanted to avoid what they considered were the evils of long - leases to non - resident middlemen, and were now to give short leases to the "tenants" in Ireland instead, but also at the same time they introduced "Fines", which were in reality an "extra year’s rent" for granting them "longer" 21 - 31 year leases.

     Charles Gavin Duffy the "Young Irelander," was now in "total despair" of it all, and he "emigrated" to Australia, were he was to become the Premier of the State of Victoria and possibly the original true Father of Federation there, and was even to be "knighted" later on by the British Imperial Government in 1873 AD for his contribution to Australia.

   Alexander M. Sullivan took over as the editor of "The Nation" newspaper in Ireland, continuing to keep the "Irish Nationalist" cause to the fore for Irish self - government against all the odds, while James Stephens and John O Mahony who had also been involved in the "Irish Insurrection" of 1848 AD had eventually settled in Paris, were they had by now decided once again to push for an "Irish Revolution" as the only way to remove the "oppressive authority" of the British Imperial Government and the effects of their "Immoral Union",  from out of Ireland.  

    Timothy Healy was born this year at Bantry in Co. Cork in Southern Munster, who would also become strongly involved in Irish affairs.

    John "Black Jack" Fitz Gibbon the hard - line anti - Catholic, who was the main British Ascendancy Imperial Conservative Government "Placeman" in Ireland held another "inquiry" this year, to try and "stop" the increase of Irish Catholic advancement in Ireland.

   The Donnybrook Fair, which had been originally founded way back in 1204 AD was "suppressed" by the British Imperial Peelite Government's Dublin Castle (The Devill's 1/2 Acre) authorities.  

   William Ewart Gladstone, the Scotsman, who was the British Peelite Government's Chancellor of the Exchequer continued to keep Ireland in line with the tax in Great Britain, which saw Irish taxation rise by 2,000,000 pounds a year.

    O Brien the English Marquis of Thomond, died this year.

    James Edward Butler, became the English twenty first Earl of Ormonde until 1919 AD, who was the son of John the previous English twentieth Earl of Ormonde.

   Charlotte Bronte / O Prunty / Ua Proinntigh  who had been born in 1816 AD whose Irish Family originated in the east of the Ulster Province, died this year. 

   The English Earl of Aberdeen the Peelite British Imperial Prime Minister was out of office, and Viscount Palmerston / Henry Temple an Anglo Lord was in as the new British Liberal Prime Minister until 1858 AD.

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