Figures in a Famine Landscape [Hardcover]

Figures in a Famine Landscapeis a ground-breaking study that follows a number of individuals involved in different public capacities in a particularly afflicted district of Ireland during the Great Famine. The thinking and actions of each had a major effect on the existences - and the survival - of scores of thousands of the destitute poor in Ireland at a crucial point in the country's history. Among these figures are an outspoken newspaper editor; two clergymen (one Catholic, one Protestant); two highly qualified and busy physicians; two landlords and an exterminating agent; a Board of Works official and a Poor Law inspector.

Taking an exhaustive approach to source material that includes private diaries, letters, official reports and correspondence, police files, parliamentary papers and a wealth of newspapers, in this enthralling study the author builds up an in-depth, almost microscopic picture of each individual, providing a unique and very human lens through which to view the Great Famine.

List of Illustrations
Preface

Maps
Introduction

1. Hurricane from the South West: John Busteed Knox

2. Intrepid Fire-Eater:Captain Edmond Wynne

3. The Poor Man's Magistrate: John Singleton

4. The Medical Gentleman: Patrick Maxwell Cullinan

5. The Reverend Sinecurist:Henry Murphy

6. The Exterminator General: Marcus Keane of Beech Park

7. Father Michael Meehan and the Little Ark

8. The Cabin Tumbling Warrior: Crofton Moore Vandeleur

9. The Most Charitable Officer: Captain A.E. Kennedy

10. The Famine Landscape

Notes

Bibliography
Index