Workhouses of Ireland

Far worse than Dickensian horrors of Victorian society were the workhouses established by the English government in 1838 for the poor in Ireland who often chose to perish outside their walls, rather than enter another kind of death inside. This is an aspect of Irish society with which too few are acquainted. O'Connor's research covers the planning and construction of the workhouses, the daily deadly routine of life therein, the impact of the famine, the land clearances, and the emigration to Canada and the U.S.. An eye opening read.