IELTS Reading Practice: The Irish Potato Famine (Full Answer Key & Translation)

History-themed topics are always a challenge in the IELTS Reading test due to archaic vocabulary and complex political contexts. The “Irish Potato Famine” reading passage is a classic study resource that helps you familiarize yourself with Matching Information and Summary Completion question types.

This article from ECE Language Center will help you conduct an in-depth analysis of this passage, enabling you to not only find the correct answers but also gain a clear understanding of the historical context behind it.

Reading Passage & Questions

Irish Potato Famine

A. Over 750,000 Irish people perished in the ten years that followed the Irish potato famine of 1845, including many who tried to immigrate to nations like the United States and Canada. One of Ireland’s primary issues before the potato disaster was overcrowding. The population of the nation was thought to be less than three million in the early 1500s, but by 1840 it had nearly tripled. The population increase was partly due to the abundant potato harvest, which includes practically all of the nutrients needed for human survival. However, the population of Ireland was cut in half within five years of the 1845 harvest failure. The dependency of the Irish on the potato crop, the British tenure system, and the insufficient English relief efforts were some of the factors that caused the population of the Irish to drastically decline.

B. Although the specific circumstances surrounding the potato’s first introduction to Europe are unknown, it is generally accepted that it did so on a Spanish ship some time in the 1600s. The belief that potatoes belonged to a botanical family of a dangerous breed persisted among Europeans for more than a century. Potatoes didn’t become a novelty item until Marie Antoinette had potato blossoms in her hair in the middle of the seventeenth century. When the potato’s nutritional significance was recognized in the late 1700s, European monarchs commanded that the vegetable be widely grown.

C. The vast majority of Irish people had grown to depend on the potato as their main food source by the year 1800. An Irish potato farmer would typically eat more than six pounds of potatoes every day. Families even fed their livestock potatoes that they had stockpiled for the winter. The unexpected potato blight of 1845 decimated the Irish because of this dependence. Researchers initially hypothesised that the blight was brought on by static electricity, railway smoke, or fumes from subsurface volcanoes; however, the real culprit was later identified as an airborne fungus that originated in Mexico. The disease not only wiped out the potato harvests, but it also affected all of the potatoes that were being stored at the time. Famine was killing their families, but the exhausted farmers had little left of their farming expertise to gather other crops. Those who succeeded in cultivating oats, wheat, and barley relied on the money earned from these exported crops to pay their rent in their rented residences.

D. Irish people experienced widespread famine as a result of the potato blight, but the British tenure system kept them in their predicament. The English had focused on their colonial land holdings after the Napoleonic Wars in 1815. British landowners understood that the easiest way to make money off of their properties was to extract the resources, export them, and charge high rents and taxes to anyone who wanted to live there. 95% of the Irish land, which was divided into five-acre allotment for people to live and farm on, was owned by Protestant landlords under the tenure system. However, the plots were continually divided into smaller parts as Ireland’s population increased. Living circumstances drastically deteriorated, forcing families to relocate to less productive terrain where essentially nothing but potatoes would grow.

E. Throughout the same colonisation era, the Penal Laws were also established to break the spirit of the Irish people. Irish peasants were denied fundamental human rights under the Penal Laws, including the freedom to speak their own native language, pursue particular economic opportunities, practise their religion, get education, and possess land. Despite the famine that was wreaking havoc on Ireland, landlords did nothing to help tenants who were unable to pay their rent. Between 1845 and 1847, landowners evicted almost 500,000 Irish tenants. Many of these individuals also had home fires and were imprisoned for unpaid rent.

F. The laissez-faire doctrine, which backed a strategy of nonintervention in the condition of the Irish, was endorsed by the majority of British officials in the 1840s. Sir Robert Peel, the former prime minister, was an outlier. He moved to remove the Corn Laws, which had been placed in place to shield British grain producers from the competition of foreign markets, out of compassion for the Irish. Peel was swiftly compelled to retire as a result of his rash decision, which cost him the favour of the British people. Lord John Russell, the new prime minister, gave full command of all relief operations in Ireland to Charles Trevelyan, his assistant. Trevelyan thought that Providence should be allowed to handle the Irish crisis. He even took action to shut food depots that were selling maize and to reroute shipments of grain that were already headed to Ireland on the justification that it would be dangerous to allow the Irish to grow dependent on other nations. A few relief initiatives, like soup kitchens and workhouses, were finally put into place; nevertheless, these were badly operated institutions that contributed to the spread of disease, tore families apart, and provided insufficient food supplies in light of the severity of Ireland’s food shortages.

G. The Irish potato famine still has many aftereffects that are visible today. There are people all over the world who are descended from those who left Ireland in the 1840s. In the Irish hills, a few of the houses that were removed by absentee landlords now stand empty. Many Irish dependents still harbour resentment toward the British for prioritising politics over people. Irish people are still plagued by the potato blight itself during specific planting seasons when the climate is conducive to the fungus’s growth.

Questions 1 – 5 (Matching Information)

The passage has seven paragraphs, A-G. Which paragraph contains the following information?

1. The British government’s stance on the potato famine

2. An explanation of Ireland’s land ownership structure

3. Early European perceptions of the potato

4. Justification for Irish farmers’ lack of legal protection

5. The significance of potatoes in Irish culture

Questions 6 – 10 (Matching Sentence Endings)

Complete each sentence with the correct ending A-L below.

6. Europeans first refused to consume potatoes.

7. European kings promoted potato cultivation.

8. The Irish were devastated by the potato blight.

9. Oat, wheat, and barley farmers didn’t consume these crops.

10. Many Irish farmers farmed unproductive land.

List of Endings:

A. Because they were unable to pay their farm rent.

B. Due to the air pollution created by railroad trains.

C. Because their primary food source was potatoes.

D. Because Charles Trevelyan assumed control of the relief effort.

E. Because they needed to pay the rent and needed the earnings.

F. Since they weren’t properly managed.

G. Since there wasn’t enough land to accommodate the growing population.

H. Because the British were against his efforts to aid the Irish.

I. For the reason that they thought potatoes were harmful.

J. Due to the British introduction of punitive laws.

K. Due to the discovery that potatoes are packed with nutrients.

L. Because Marie Antoinette decorated with potato blossoms.

Questions 11-13 (Summary Completion)

Complete the summary below. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

Peel was promptly forced to 11…..………… because of his imprudent decision. Trevelyan thought that Providence should be allowed to handle the Irish crisis. He even took action to shut 12…………… that were selling maize and to reroute shipments of grain that were already headed to Ireland on the justification that it would be dangerous to allow the Irish to grow dependent on other nations. Irish people are still plagued by the potato blight itself during specific planting seasons when the climate is conducive to the 13…………… growth.

Translation of the Irish Potato Famine passage

Paragraph A: Over 750,000 Irish people perished in the ten years following the 1845 Irish potato famine, including many who attempted to emigrate to countries like the United States and Canada. One of Ireland’s primary issues before the potato disaster was overpopulation. The nation’s population was estimated to be under three million in the early 1500s, but by 1840, it had nearly tripled. The population growth was partly due to the abundant potato harvest, a food source containing almost all the nutrients necessary for human survival. However, Ireland’s population was cut in half within five years of the 1845 crop failure. The Irish dependency on the potato, the British land tenure system, and insufficient English relief efforts were some of the factors that caused the Irish population to decline drastically.

Paragraph B: Although the specific circumstances surrounding the potato’s first introduction to Europe remain unknown, it is generally accepted that it arrived on a Spanish ship around the 1600s. The belief that potatoes belonged to a dangerous botanical family persisted among Europeans for over a century. Potatoes did not become a novelty item until Marie Antoinette wore potato blossoms in her hair in the mid-17th century. Once the nutritional significance of the potato was recognized in the late 1700s, European monarchs ordered its widespread cultivation.

Paragraph C: By 1800, the vast majority of the Irish population had become dependent on the potato as their primary food source. An Irish potato farmer would typically eat over six pounds of potatoes daily. Families even fed their livestock the potatoes they had stockpiled for winter. The unexpected potato blight of 1845 decimated the Irish because of this dependency. Researchers initially hypothesized that the blight was caused by static electricity, railway smoke, or fumes from subterranean volcanoes; however, the true culprit was later identified as an airborne fungus originating in Mexico. The disease not only wiped out potato harvests but also affected all potatoes in storage at the time. Famine was killing their families, but the exhausted farmers had little remaining agricultural expertise to gather other crops. Those who succeeded in growing oats, wheat, and barley relied on the money earned from these exported crops to pay their rent.

Paragraph D: The Irish experienced widespread famine due to the potato blight, but the British tenure system kept them in their predicament. The English had focused on their colonial landholdings following the Napoleonic Wars in 1815. British landowners understood that the easiest way to profit from their properties was to extract resources, export them, and charge high rents and taxes to anyone living there. 95% of Irish land, divided into five-acre allotments for people to live and farm on, was owned by Protestant landlords under the tenure system. However, these plots were continually subdivided as Ireland’s population increased. Living conditions deteriorated severely, forcing families to relocate to less productive terrain where essentially nothing but potatoes could grow.

Paragraph E: During the same colonization era, the Penal Laws were established to break the spirit of the Irish people. Irish peasants were denied fundamental human rights under these laws, including the freedom to speak their native language, pursue specific economic opportunities, practice their religion, receive an education, and own land. Despite the famine wreaking havoc on Ireland, landlords did nothing to help tenants unable to pay rent. Between 1845 and 1847, landowners evicted nearly 500,000 Irish tenants. Many of these individuals also had their homes burned and were imprisoned for unpaid rent.

Paragraph F: The laissez-faire doctrine, which supported a policy of non-intervention in the Irish situation, was endorsed by the majority of British officials in the 1840s. Sir Robert Peel, the former prime minister, was an exception. Out of compassion for the Irish, he moved to repeal the Corn Laws, which had been enacted to protect British grain producers from foreign market competition. Peel was swiftly forced to retire due to his rash decision, which cost him the favor of the British public. Lord John Russell, the new prime minister, gave full command of all relief operations in Ireland to his assistant, Charles Trevelyan. Trevelyan believed that Providence should be allowed to handle the Irish crisis. He even took action to close food depots selling maize and to reroute grain shipments already headed to Ireland, justifying this by claiming it would be dangerous to allow the Irish to become dependent on other nations. A few relief initiatives, such as soup kitchens and workhouses, were eventually implemented; however, these were poorly managed institutions that contributed to the spread of disease, tore families apart, and provided insufficient food supplies relative to the severity of Ireland’s food shortages.

Paragraph G: The Irish potato famine still has many visible aftereffects today. People all over the world are descendants of those who left Ireland in the 1840s. In the Irish hills, some houses cleared by absentee landlords now stand empty. Many Irish descendants still harbor resentment toward the British for prioritizing politics over people. The Irish are still plagued by the potato blight itself during specific planting seasons when the climate is conducive to the fungus’s growth.

Key Vocabulary Summary

Answers and Detailed Explanations

Questions 1-5 (Matching Information)

1. F

Explanation: Paragraph F mentions the “laissez-faire” doctrine (non-intervention) supported by most British officials, as well as the actions of Robert Peel and Charles Trevelyan.

2. D

Explanation: Paragraph D explains in detail: “95% of the Irish land… was owned by Protestant landlords under the tenure system.”

3. B

Explanation: Paragraph B mentions: “The belief that potatoes belonged to a botanical family of a dangerous breed persisted…”

4. E

Explanation: Paragraph E discusses the “Penal Laws,” which stripped farmers of their basic rights: “Irish peasants were denied fundamental human rights under the Penal Laws.”

5. C

Explanation: Paragraph C describes the dependency: “depend on the potato as their main food source,” noting that farmers ate six pounds a day and even fed them to livestock.

Questions 6-10 (Matching Sentence Endings)

6. I (For the reason that they thought potatoes were harmful)

Evidence: Paragraph B: “The belief that potatoes belonged to a botanical family of a dangerous breed persisted…”

7. K (Due to the discovery that potatoes are packed with nutrients)

Evidence: Paragraph B: “When the potato’s nutritional significance was recognized… European monarchs commanded that the vegetable be widely grown.”

8. C (Because their primary food source was potatoes)

Evidence: Paragraph C: “The unexpected potato blight of 1845 decimated the Irish because of this dependence.”

9. E (Because they needed to pay the rent and needed the earnings)

Evidence: Paragraph C: “relied on the money earned from these exported crops to pay their rent…”

10. G (Since there wasn’t enough land to accommodate the growing population)

Evidence: Paragraph D: “the plots were continually divided into smaller parts as Ireland’s population increased… forcing families to relocate to less productive terrain.”

Questions 11 – 13 (Summary Completion)

11. Retire

Evidence: Paragraph F: “Peel was swiftly compelled to retire as a result of his rash decision.”

12. Food depots

Evidence: Paragraph F: “He even took action to shut food depots that were selling maize…”

13. Fungus’s / Fungus

Evidence: Paragraph G (last sentence): “…when the climate is conducive to the fungus’s growth.”

The “Irish Potato Famine” reading passage provides deep insight into the history and social tragedies accompanying natural disasters. Through this passage, you have learned how to connect historical events (Matching Information) and identify cause-and-effect relationships (Sentence Endings) logically.

ECE Language Center hopes that with this translation and detailed explanation, you will feel more confident when facing history-themed reading passages in your upcoming IELTS exam. Don’t forget to thoroughly review the vocabulary related to policy and economics in the text!