Amal Al-Sibai

Saudi Gazette

 

HISTORY will never forget the Great Famine of Ireland between 1845 and 1852, but many people have forgotten, or have never heard of, the Muslim response to the famine that struck the Irish people.



The Great Famine was a period of mass starvation, disease, and emigration; causing the country’s population to drop by 20%.



Imagine the scope of suffering. John Ranelagh wrote in his book ‘A Short History of Ireland’ that approximately 1 million people died hungry; from starvation or malnutrition related diseases. Another million people emigrated from Ireland; fleeing mainly to the United States, England, Canada, and Australia.



It is sometimes referred to as the Irish Potato Famine because at the time, one-third of the population was solely reliant on this cheap crop for their sustenance. The main cause of the famine was a potato disease commonly known as potato blight.



Potatoes were the staple food for farmers all year round. The large dependency on this single crop, and the lack of genetic variability among the plants in Ireland were two reasons why the potato blight had such devastating effects in Ireland, but less severe effects in other European countries that were also hit by the disease.



Some historians claim that the severity of the human suffering that was endured during the famine was actually exacerbated by certain unjustifiable tactics on the part of the British government. During the famine, while the Irish people were starving, Ireland was still exporting enormous quantities of other food crops to England.



Cormac O Grada points out in his book, ‘Black ’47 and Beyond’, “Although the potato crop failed, the country was still producing and exporting more than enough grain crops to feed the population. But that was a ‘money crop’ and not a ‘food crop’ and could not be interfered with. Up to 75% of Irish soil was devoted to wheat, oats, barley, and other crops that were grown for export and shipped abroad while the people starved.”



The massive famine further disrupted the already strained relations between many of the Irish people and the British crown, heightening Irish republicanism, which eventually led to Irish independence in the century following the famine. Many historians regard it as a dividing line in Irish history.



An influx of donations came in from around the globe to relieve some of the distress of the Irish people.



None from Ireland ever asked for charity during this period; it was England who sought charity on Ireland’s behalf. In Ireland none ever asked alms or favors of any kind from England or any other nation but it was England herself that begged for Ireland, wrote John Mitchel in ‘The Last Conquest of Ireland (Perhaps)’.



Calcutta is credited with making the first donations to the Irish. The money was raised by Irish soldiers serving there and Irish people employed by the East India Company. Pope Pius IX sent funds and Queen Victoria donated £2,000.



In addition, non-government organizations came to assistance, such as the British Relief Association which raised money in England, America, and Australia.



In an amazing gesture, a group of Native American Choctaws sent $710 to help the starving Irish men, women, and children.



According to legend, the ruler of the Islamic Ottoman State, Sultan Abdulmecid (Abdul-Majid), declared his intention to send £10,000 to Irish farmers, but Queen Victoria requested that the Sultan send only £1,000 because she had only sent £2,000.



The Sultan sent the £1,000 but he also sent 3 ships full of food for the Irish people. The British administration tried to block the ships, but the food arrived safely and secretly at Drogheda harbor and was left there by the Ottoman sailors.



A letter, which has survived in the Ottoman archives of Turkey, was written by Irish notables explicitly thanking the Sultan for his help. (Sources: ‘Potatoes, Providence and Philanthropy’ by Christine Kinealy and The Meaning of the Famine by Patrick O’Sullivan).



In commemoration of the Muslim Ottoman aid, Drogheda added the Ottoman crescent and star to its coat of arms. Their football club’s emblem retains this design until this day.



The generous charity from a Muslim ruler to a Christian nation was appreciated by the Irish society, and the Turkish-Irish friendship is a model of peace between different nations.