National Famine Commemoration Day May 16th 2021
SONGS OF THE GREAT HUNGER
In the first chapter of our new book, The Tourmakeady Ambush 1921, it says “The Plunket’s came to Tourmakeady in 1831 when the first Baron Plunket, the bishop's father, built a shooting lodge on land purchased from a local landowner. In 1833 a member of the family acquired land from George Henry Moore at Gortfree and Tourmakeady Lodge was built. Thomas Plunket became Church of Ireland Bishop of the United Dioceses of Tuam, Killala and Achonry in 1839. He got actively involved in the proselytizing campaign - the Irish Church Mission Society. He was aided by his sister, Catherine … When Catherine set up the Protestant school, many tenants were threatened with eviction unless they agreed to send their children to her school. During the famine years Catherine ran a soup kitchen for those who turned Protestant. She was known as Cáit a Bhrotháin (Cate of the Soup) and the term Sooper was applied to those who changed their religion”.
The parents of the volunteers involved in the War of Independence were children of that Great Famine. The famine and its origins were a large factor in Ireland’s people rebelling to fight for self-government. Brendan Graham is perhaps Ireland’s best contemporary song writer. Brendan has captured in this series of contemporary songs the essence of the effect the Great Famine had on our ancestors. This program shares the music of Brendan Graham performed at famine commemoration events in Ireland, Australia, and Canada. Brendan Graham and Eileen Moore Quinn explore the historical experiences of Irish emigrant communities during the Great Hunger that inspired classic songs such as Ochón an Gorta Mór, Crucán na bPáiste, Orphan Girl, The Whitest Flower, and The Voice. Link to full website http://greatfaminevoices.ie/famine-heroes/
Zoom discussion on Songs of the Great Hunger
You can watch below a recording of the post-show discussion on Zoom with Brendan Graham, Dr. Jason King and Eileen Moore Quinn.
Click on image to play video
The Ballad that links the Great Famine with the War of Independence
Don Stiffe singing Skibbereen on the John Spillane presented "NA BAILÉID" on TG4. This ballad is one of the most moving songs of exile due to the Great Famine and the struggle for Independence.
Ireland's Great Hunger and the Irish Diaspora
Why did over a million people Irish people die of starvation and disease, and more than two million leave that country during roughly six years in the mid-1800s? The label "potato famine" doesn't begin to explain a crisis that was hundreds of years in the making, and one that happened in the midst of plenty. "Ireland's Great Hunger and The Irish Diaspora," narrated by actor Gabriel Byrne, explores the history, culture, and politics that lead to mass starvation, eviction, disease, and death in 19th century Ireland, and the lasting global legacy of that tragic event.
Please visit the full website at http://greatfaminevoices.ie/famine-heroes/