The Irish Land War started in 1878 and lasted until 1909. Prior to the Land War, in 1841, most people lived in tiny villages with fewer than 20 houses, and as population in these rural areas declined because of emigration, land ownership was concentrated into the hands of a few people. Many of these were absentee landlords, and by 1870, 50% of the island was owned by approximately 750 families.
Royal Irish Constabulary evict T. Birmingham from his house in Moyasta on the Vandeleur Estate in County Clare. Source: (Wikipedia/colorized).
The tenants and landlords ended up in conflict over a number of issues, including land consolidation and the transition from tillage to grazing. There was also tension between English law and Irish custom, as the English law protected absolute rights of the landlord, while Irish custom allowed the tenant an “interest” in the property. When William Gladstone passed the Landlord and Tenant (Ireland) Act in 1870 to protect departing tenants, landlords tried to evade provisions, which only increased tensions. At this time, agrarian crimes began to rise. Then, in the late 1870s, the west of Ireland was hit by famine. From 1877-1881, the potato crop collapsed, and poultry was devastated by a cholera epidemic. During the famine, heavy rains, poor yields, and low prices led to widespread hunger.
Royal Irish Constabulary evict T. Birmingham from his house in Moyasta on the Vandeleur Estate in County Clare. Source: (Wikipedia).
Organizing Began In April 1879
Destroying a house to evict the tenant. Source: (All That's Interesting/colorized).
On April 20, 1879, the Land War began at a meeting in Irishtown, County Mayo organized by activists who tried to mobilize an alliance of shopkeepers, tenant farmers, and clergy in favor of land reform. Approximately 7,000 to 13,000 people from all parts of Mayo as well as counties Roscommon and Galway attended. The main concern was rent, and because of the poor harvest, many could not afford to pay and so had been threatened with eviction. Local Fenians then organized meetings at Claremorris on May 25, in Knock on June 1, and Westport, County Mayo on June 8.
The Boycott Began
Source: (All That's Interesting).
The movement was non-sectarian at first, with Protestant tenants taking part as well. However, it shifted to provide energy to the nationalist cause. On August 16, 1879, the Land League of Mayo was founded, and they began to reach out to the Catholic hierarchy, and priests began to take leadership roles, presiding over two-thirds of the meetings through the end of 1879. By October 21, 1879, the Land League of Mayo was superseded by the Dublin-based Irish National Land League with Charles Stuart Parnell as the figurehead of the movement. The league adopted a vague slogan, “the land for the people,” to attract people across the political spectrum and with different goals. The League chose nonviolent methods, often using the boycott, or social ostracism, to protest landlords and those who opposed the League. Incidentally, the term “boycott” was coined after a man named Captain Boycott who refused to reduce his rent. Anyone who took a farm from someone who had been evicted was subject to being shunned by the boycott.
The No Rent Manifesto
Source: (Irish Central/colorized).
In 1881, Gladstone passed the Second Irish Land Act of 1881, which provided more security for tenant farmers as it paved the way for rent reductions, provided rent guarantees for 15-year periods, and in some cases, allowed for dual ownership rights to tenant farmers. However, it did not eliminate tenant evictions.
When Parnell and his lieutenants were jailed under the Irish Coercion Act, they issued the No Rent Manifesto, which called for a tenant-farmer rent strike. On October 20, the government began to work to suppress the Land League. Parnell moved to make a deal with the government in 1882, and the Land League entered into a settlement, the Kilmainham Treaty, which withdrew the manifesto. After Parnell and the other detainees were released from jail, they resurrected the still-suppressed Land League, proclaiming a new organization, the Irish National League. There was some progress in 1885 with the passage of the Ashbourne Act of 1885, which started the process of allowing tenant farmers to buy their freeholds.
Destroying Houses To Force Eviction
The Eviction at Dr. Tully's House. Source: (Wikipedia/colorized).
Droughts in 1884 and 1887 and industrial depression in England led the League to form the 1886-1891 Plan of Campaign. Tenants met to decide on fair rent; if the landlord refused the lower rent, the tenants would instead pay it to the Plan of Campaign fund. The tenants often refused to leave, and the police would arrive to force them out. The police resorted to methods like using a battering ram to get through the front door, knocking down walls, and burning the house to the ground. The tenants did their best to stand their ground and fight back.
The O'Halloran Sisters Fought Back
The O'Halloran Sisters. Source: (Irish Central/colorized).
In the case of the O’Hallorans, they were the tenants of John O’Callaghan who owned 4,482 acres of land in County Clare. The O’Halloran girls, Annie, Honoria, and Sarah and their brothers, Patrick and Frank, lived with their parents in Bodyke on land where their family had lived and tended for generations. Although the court ordered the rent to be reduced, the O’Hallorans still believed that the rent was too high. In June 1887, they got ready to resist eviction. They barricaded the doors and windows to stop the eviction, and the girls poured boiling water to scald the bailiffs. At one point, a policeman climbed in through an upstairs window, and Honoria managed to take his sword-bayonet from him. After the ensuing fight, all of the O’Hallorans ended up in jail, although they were eventually allowed to return to their home. In 1909, with Augustine Birrel’s Act of 1909, they were allowed to buy and own their land.
