The year 1849 is the fifth (and…

The year 1849 is the fifth (and final) year of devastating crop failures in Ireland, the potato crop again almost completely ruined by the blight.

All in all, the British government has spent about eight million pounds on relief, and some private relief funds have been raised as well.

The government's grudging and ineffective measures to relieve the famine's distress intensify the resentment of British rule among the Irish people.