ABSTRACT
The repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846 has tended to be linked inextricably with the onset of the potato famine in Ireland in 1845. This connection was made by contemporaries including the Duke of Wellington, who, in a memorable (if inaccurate) retort, declared ‘Rotten potatoes have done it all. They put Peel in his damned fright.’1 Yet, the connection between the ending of protection and the failure of the Irish potato crop is complex. The repeal of the Corn Laws, so far as Ireland was concerned, had more to do with the desire to bring about long-term agricultural and social restructuring, than with the short-term need to alleviate the food shortages. In this context, the traditional notion that the need for famine relief in Ireland was a trigger for repeal may be seen as a convenient political myth. In reality, the attempt to link repeal to the need for famine relief was an example of political opportunism and administrative pragmatism rather than a practical proposal intended to alleviate suffering in Ireland.
