Hamhung, on the east coast of North Korea, is the country’s second largest city and a major industrial centre and port. It is the capital of South Hamyong Province and has a population of nearly 800,000 or less than a third that of the capital, Pyongyang which lies some six to eight hours away by road and much more by train. It took me ten hours to get there as we had a couple of scheduled stops, and one unscheduled one, along the way. Continue reading “Hamhung – Overview Part A – Introduction and Background”
The Famine Pit and the Hanging Tree
“Within this famine pit lieth the unknown dead 1845-1850”
In 1836 a Poor Law Inquiry found that over one third of the people of Ireland depended on the potato as their main (almost only) source of food. The Potato Famine of 1845-49 brought inevitable results. Continue reading “The Famine Pit and the Hanging Tree”
Irvinestown Famine Graveyard
It is generally accepted that during the ten years, 1841 to 1851, Country Fermanagh lost over 40,000 people or 25% of her people due to a potato blight which lead to the famine (1845 to 1850) which reeked havoc throughout the island of Ireland. What is less clear is how many of the 40,000 died as a result of hunger or disease and how many emigrated. Of course thousands who might happily have emigrated perished, as they could not afford to leave their home areas. Continue reading “Irvinestown Famine Graveyard”
The Rambling Wombat 