Pre-Famine Ireland: Social Structure

Book excerpt: This book describes the social and economic conditions in Ireland during the first half of the nineteenth century—that is up to and including the Great Famine. It is concerned about particular issues like the Catholic emancipation or the famine but looks at Irish society as a whole. Central and local government are described: the economy (agricultural and industrial), the churches, the educational system, the medicine, the arts, the music, and the sports. It aims at presenting, as complete a picture as possible, Ireland at the time.