Comments by "John Brereton" (@johnbrereton5229) on "A Day In History" channel.

@geraldwalsh6489 Braveheart was not a documentary, it was only a Hollywood film made to entertain and was not historically accurate. Many of the characters portrayed and the scenes depicted were either invented or not contemporary its merely made for entertainment, its not historical.
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The 1845 'Irish Potatoe famine' was actual part of the Hungry Forties that raged all across Europe due to poor harvests , where many people across Europe died including in Britain. So It wasn't just in Ireland famine and not only did the British Government send ship loads of crops from North America and India to Ireland, they also set up soup kitchen and fed millions of hungry Irish people. In London a charity raised £52million and all this was distributed in Ireland by both Catholic and Anglican organisations. However, many people left Ireland at this time with the largest numbers coming to the British mainland, would they have really done this if Britain was responsible for their plight ? No of course not, though Irish nationalist will use any excuse to criticise Britain, and I speak as an Englishman with deep Irish roots. Many of my own ancestors left Ireland at this time coming to Britain and Canada never to return.
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@pix3lpancake Yes exactly, yet many people believe Hollywood and historical myths more than actual history, particularly as regards Scittish and Irish history. For example, in this thread someone has claimed that the English murdered half of irelands population???????? Yet the Irish population has been pretty stable for hundreds of years including during the so called 'Irish famine' which was in fact a European wide famine called the Hungry Forties and was caused by crop failures.
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@dogglebird4430 It's all nonsense, he is neither English nor did anyone kill half the Irish, their population has been pretty stable.
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@gallowglass2630 Irish people have been coming to Britain and settling by choice for centuries, not just during the famine. Also the vast majority spoke English in the 19th century not Irish, which had ceased to be a majority language at the end of the 18th century. Also the British charity relief was distributed by both Anglican and Catholics to stop any claims of impartiality, however as we see, these claims are still made. Nevertheless, millions of Irish were fed in the British Government soup kitchens. However, the grain that was delivered was unfamiliar to them and so much was unfortunately wasted. Nevertheless, with failing crops everywhere these were the only crops available. Though as I said, this was a Europe wide famine and affected all countries including GB itself where the corn laws inflated bread prices and caused much poverty and widespread rioting because the poor there couldn't afford to eat. Life in the 19th century was very hard, where ever and whatever country you lived in.
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@joshuavaughan2389 Ireland suffered worse because they relied too much on only one crop, the potatoe. However, much was done to prevent their suffering but this is often forgotten in the national sport of British bashing. Yet the Irish have been coming to live in Britain for centuries, not just during the famine.
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@boyzinthewood1 Unfortunately the Irish census records between 1812, 1821, 1831, 1841 and 1851 were destroyed during the Irish Civil war. Also the records for 1861, 1871 were destroyed on purpose by the Irish Government to prevent the 'gratification of curiosity' . Despite protestations by the staff at the Irish records office the 1881 and 1981 were also destroyed. Only the 1901 and 1911 records remain so its difficult to obtain accurate figures. Though its claimed that the population of Ireland in 1800 was 4.5 million and in 1900 4.4 million.
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@johnoneal1234 But only in your head !
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@noelfleming3567 Perhaps you could post a link to confirm this claim ? However there was no 'English Government' in the 19th century it was the British Government. The English Government ceased to exist when the Scottish Stuart dynasty abolished it and created Great Britain .
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@aligindahouse7777 As I said previously the acccurate population figures for Ireland are not known as the Irish government destroyed them and so the records no longer exist. However, if you accept the figures available as correct you will see that the population in 1700 was around 3million, in 1800 it was 4.4million, in 1900 4.5million and in 2000 5million, that's sounds very consistent and stable to me. The figure of 8million in 1845 is an outlier and inconsistent, yet people like to compare today's figure with that like that was the usual Irish population, why ? Because they can then use it to castigate and justify their hatred of the Brits 250 years after the famine which ravaged the whole of Europe, not just Ireland. Nevertheless, if we also accept the 8million figure you could also use it to show how well Ireland was under British rule when they doubled your population for the first time in its history. This feat has never been repeated since you became a Republic.
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The claim that the Irish population hasn't recovered is often made, but like many of these claims they don't stand up to scrutiny. The Irish population In 1800 was between 4- 5 million. In 1900 it was 4.5million and now in 2023 is over 5million. That sounds pretty robust and consistent to me .
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@pamelacole2756 British Prime Minister Robert Peel purchased £100,000 of Maize from America and shipped it to Ireland. When it arrived it needed to be milled and this was slow process due to the lack knowledge of milling maize at the Irish mills. Once it was milled and distributed the Irish were also unfamiliar in how to prepare it and many initially suffered from severe bowel conditions and it became known as Peels Brimstone. However, the Irish soon learnt how to prepare it properly and along with the Government soup kitchens which fed millions of people plus the £52million collected by British charities many Irish were saved from starvation. Though the famine was used by Nationalist to further Irish independence and many myths have grown up around it and are now today believed to be true.
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@esthermurphy3997 Nonsense! The Irish could grow what ever crops they liked, however the potatoes was their preferred crop and that was the problem when disease struck it.
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@esthermurphy3997 Many countries standardised they languages. It happened in France too, but you don't hear them still whingeing about it hundreds of years later.
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@Mikey13Morales Well spoken Mickey, if you live in the past you wont have any future.
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@SeanOCuinn. There was no 'English Government' ????? England had been abolished as a Sovereign state by the Scottish Stuart dynasty who ruled the whole island of Great Britain and which replaced it.
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@joprocter4573 So did the Irish Confederates .
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@HeatherGarcia-di9se 'They know so much more of our history than us' Whose are these Victor's who know so much more than 'us' ?
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@johnnotrealname8168 As I have explained many times, the population figures are not reliable as the Irish destroyed their census retuns leaving it open to exaggeration for political reasons. However, even if you dont accept them as genuine the suffering was still great. That's why Britain bought grain from the USA and India and delivered it to the Irish. Unfortunately the US maize was a crop the Irish were unfamiliar with and it took time to teach them how to prepare it. That's why the British Government opened soup kitchens and fed millions of Irish people. All this is all without the £52million collected throughout Britain from the rich and poor alike which was spent distributing food and clothing throughout Ireland. Nevertheless, today this is all forgotten and the British are blamed for what was a European wide crop failure known as the Hungry Forties that affected Britain as well.
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@MCKevin289 Was the famine all across Europe caused by the British too ??????? No, of course not ! The famine was caused by crop failure and didnt just affect Ireland, and who would leave crops to rot when people were starving ???? More anti British Myth nonsense ! Also the British didnt ignore the starving they set up soup kitchens feeding millions of Irish people and also donated £52million in relief funds which they also distrubuted. And all at a time when Britain itself was suffering with both crop failures and mass rioting due to the corn laws preventing the poor from buying basic food and bread. Just because your family returned to Ireland many others didn't and stayed in Britain where their decendents remain to this day.
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@SeanOCuinn. No, the British Government were no more responsible for the Irish famine as they were for the famine that spread all across Europe, including in Britain itself. You do realise that it wa so bad that it created Revolutions in Europe. Were the British responsible for that too ? Let's face it, you are a racist, as is anyone who spreads this fact free nonsense.
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@grlfcgombeenhunter2897 English people don't hate the Irish , they are after all family. Its only Irish Nationalist who whiped up anti English nonsense to further independence, yet now they have it, its become ingrained in their national myths.
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@reecereilly474 You know far less, but still comment.
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@johnnotrealname8168 Inaction??????? The British Government knew before the famine that Ireland was in a perilous state that's why they held 141 different inquiries and 61 special committees to decide how best to avoid the pending starvation of the Irish. This was all exacerbated by unemployment, appalling housing conditions and an increasing birth rate which all contributed to the outcome. The potatoes blight was just the last straw that broke the camels back. You can accuse the British Government of not being effective enough, but not of inaction and dont forget at the same time Britain was suffering from a financial crisis as well as many social problems themselves.
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@johnnotrealname8168 Though the new Whig government didn't do as well as the previous Tories. The British still provided more aid than anyone else and not just from the mainland but from across the Empire. Even poor labourers from Manchester and Liverpool donated to Irish aid which is surprising since at the same time they resented the influx of cheap Irish Labour. However, as they were poor themselves they knew the effects of poverty and starvation.
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@johnnotrealname8168 What's not true ? The British charity alone raised £52million which was all spent on providing aid and that's not including Britisg Government aid.
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@johnnotrealname8168 Obviously it wasnt enough and more could have been done, but the British still did far more than anyone else. Yet there is much made about the ,$170 donated by American indians and the $1000 donated by a Sultan but not the £millions donated by Britain, I wonder why ? Surely it's not because it's still used by Irish Nationalist to denigrate the British 200 years after their independence, surely not !.
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@johnnotrealname8168 Much is made of the $170 donated by American indians and the $1000 donated by a Sultan, yet the £52million donated by the British public and the £millions donated by the British Government was 'insufficient'. No doubt in Nationalists eyes no British help would ever be considered sufficient.
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@johnnotrealname8168 The British Givernment spent the equivalent of over £130million in Irish famine relief and were feeding around 3 million people a day at their soup kitchen. Yes the British Relief Association was a private enterprise and was supported by not only rich British aristocrats, but also the poor. Yet it's still the British who are castigated and blamed, but who they really mean is the English, despite their recorded generousity. The BRA was only active in 1847 because that was the worse year, after that it eased off somewhat. No doubt more could have been done, but it was the worlds first international crisis and yet the world still doesn't respond any better. Recently a similar crop failure and drought in Africa killed 10million despite the world producing 20% more food than we need. Whose to blame for this, no doubt some will still blame the British !
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@MichaelGibbons-uk2mc I already have, that's how I know what I'm talking about.
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@vincentmcdermott3412 Indeed, such high population figures show just how well the Irish were under British rule. Because despite being independent for over 100 years and being governed by the EU for 50 years Ireland has never before or since achieved the population figures it did under British rule.
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@edwardbrady5843 Everything I have said is factual and easily verifiable, but instead of doing that, you resort to childish insults and it's obvious why.
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@suchitagera6754 Yes I do ! We improved their transport systems, irrigation, food supplies and introduced medical treatments which stopped their history of famine for the first time in Indians history.
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@RoseMarieORourke Where did his ancestors go then ? Because the famine wasn't just in Ireland it was all over Europe and was known as the Hungry Forties.
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@JimMcCrudden-w6g Of course you can make estimates and that's exactly what we have been using here in this conversation. Have you not read this thread at all, or just picked out the bits that fuel your bigotry? Yes we know what the Choctow and others sent, but by far the biggest donations came from the British Government and British charities like the British Relief Assiciation who sent the equivalent of £52million to help the starving. This despite Britain experiencing the same crop failures as Ireland and the rest of Europe was at the time as well as a recesssion and social unrest.
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@maxsch8454 'We' are debating it here today, we didn't need to take part in history to debate it, it's what historians do all the time.
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@maxsch8454 Of course we are, no one today was alive hundreds of year ago ! That's so obvious, I wonder why you are even mentioning it ?
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@tauhidershadKUFNAFLORAN Many people support the Palestinians struggle for and end to their occupation. Especially here in England, have you not seen the massive marches every Saturday here for months ?
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@shy404usernotfound Immigration to the USA from Europe was fueled by poverty and the crop failures that fueled a period known as the 'Hungry Forties' that raged across Europe during the 1840s, the Irish potato famine was a part of this. Total immigration in 1820 was only 8,385 but from 1840-1850 it had reached a staggering 1, 713,000 which included 781,000 Irish, 435,000 Germans, 267,000 British and 77,000 French. The remaining Members of my own family left Ireland during this time and emigrated to Canada.
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@ourLiam40 You should take your own advice, them perhaps you wouldnt spout such racist bullshit !
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@GerardFleming-e7e I've actually studied the European Hungry Forties, which the 'Irish Potatoe Famine' was a part of. Unfortunately most if what is claimed about the British during this period is either complete lies or exaggerated by Irish nationalist to further their cause. This has been so successful that over 100 years after their successful campaign to leave the British state, it is still claimed and believed as a fact. However, the truth is far more nuanced.
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@GerardFleming-e7e I have never tried to 'manipulate'the population figures. What I have done is to investigate the official Irish population figures and what they revealed is that the claims are nonsense. Perhaps thats why you don't accept these official figures, because they don't say what you want them to say.
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@GerardFleming-e7e I think I have covered this all extensively in this very long thread, so just re-read it to answer your questions.
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