Irish Land Commission facts for kids
The Irish Land Commission was a special group set up by the British government in 1843. Its main job was to look into how land was used in Ireland. Later, in 1881, it started deciding how much rent farmers should pay. For about 100 years, this group was in charge of sharing out farmland across most of Ireland. It officially stopped existing in 1999.
Contents
Helping Farmers Buy Land
The Ashbourne Act of 1885 helped the Commission change its role. It became a group that helped farmers buy their land from big landowners. This was a response to the "Land War," a time of protests and arguments over land that began in 1879. The British Prime Minister, The Marquess of Salisbury, quickly passed this law. It provided money to help farmers become owners of their farms.
By 1920, the Commission had helped transfer ownership of a huge amount of land – about 13.5 million acres (55,000 square kilometers). In 1902, a meeting called the Land Conference led to the Land Purchase (Ireland) Act 1903. This law provided government money for farmers to buy their land. Farmers would then pay back this money over 68 years. The Land Commission managed this process. It also had to figure out fair prices for each land transfer.
A problem that came up by 1908 was whether the new owners could make enough money from their small farms. Many farms were too small to provide a good living. The goal was to create "peasant proprietors," meaning farmers who owned their small pieces of land. However, this often meant breaking up larger, more productive farms into smaller ones.
The Irish Land Act 1909 allowed the Commission to buy land even if the owner didn't want to sell it. This was called "compulsory purchase." By 1915, the British government had spent over £91 million on these land transfers. Farmers also invested more than £1.5 million.
When the Irish Free State was created in 1922, many all-Ireland offices were closed. This included the Land Commission. However, it was quickly set up again in the Irish Free State in 1923. The Land Commission's records for Northern Ireland were separated.
Land During the War of Independence
During the Irish War of Independence in the early 1920s, some farms were taken over. In June 1920, the Dáil, which was the parliament of the Irish Republic, decided something important. They agreed that no one should make final decisions about land claims until the war was over.
Changes in Northern Ireland
The Land Acts were changed in Northern Ireland in 1925. The Land Commission's work there finally ended in 1935. Some farmers who had not bought their land formed a group called the "Unbought Tenants' Association."
The Commission in the Irish Free State
The Land Commission was restarted in the Irish Free State in 1923. A new law allowed the government to buy land from non-Irish citizens, even if they didn't want to sell. Land that wasn't being farmed could also be bought by the government. This land was then divided among local families. However, some large estates remained if their owners could show they were actively farming the land.
From 1923, farmers continued to pay back their land loans. These payments, called "land annuities," went to the British government. By 1925, it was clear that many farmers had "uneconomic holdings." This meant their farms were too small to provide a decent living. Despite this, the government kept dividing larger landholdings.
The Land Act 1933 allowed the Irish Minister for Finance to use these annuity payments for local projects. This led to a trade dispute with Britain from 1933 to 1938. The issue was finally settled in 1938 with a single payment of £10 million to Britain.
The Land Commission was often seen as a champion for farmers who wanted to own their land. However, it also faced criticism. Dividing land into very small farms sometimes made it hard for farmers to earn enough money. Also, some beautiful old houses belonging to landowners were destroyed with government approval. As farming became more modern, the rules discouraged foreign investment in large farms. This sometimes reduced how much food was produced overall.
Later Changes and End of the Commission
From the 1940s, some politicians argued that larger farms should be encouraged. They felt that creating many new small farms often meant farmers didn't have enough money, skills, or interest. However, this idea was often opposed for social and political reasons.
Under the 1923 Act, busy farmers often had to rent extra land for short periods, usually 11 months. This was called the "conacre" system. If they rented for longer, the Land Commission might take over the land. By 1980, a lot of land in Ireland was rented this way. This showed a new problem: owning land didn't always mean you were the most active farmer. Modern farm machines also needed larger farms to be cost-effective.
The Lands Act 1965 tried to limit new foreign investment in farming. This was partly because Ireland was planning to join the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1973. The EEC allowed people from any member country to invest freely. This went against the Land Commission's goal of controlling who owned Irish land. By the early 1970s, many land purchases were by non-farmers.
By the 1980s, the Land Commission was part of the Department of Agriculture. In 1983, the Commission stopped buying land. This was the beginning of the end for its role in changing land ownership. Even so, land transfers still needed the Commission's approval into the 1990s.
The Land Commission was seen as a very large organization. In 1983, it had 750 employees. Its budget was £15 million, but £8 million of that was for administration costs, and only £7 million for buying or dividing land. Further land purchases were stopped that year. The people working for the Land Commission were moved to other related jobs.
The Irish Land Commission (Dissolution) Act 1992 gave the Minister for Agriculture the power to officially close the commission. The Minister, Michael O'Kennedy, explained that the law would:
- Officially dissolve the Land Commission.
- Stop the government's power to take over land, except by exchanging it.
- Move the legal powers of the commission to the President of the High Court.
- Transfer some of the commission's jobs to the Minister for Agriculture and Food. This included dealing with land already owned and controlling land purchases by people who didn't qualify.
- Transfer all land and property owned by the commission to the Minister, except for fishing rights, which went to the Central Fisheries Board.
- Pay money to the commission's members.
This law came into effect in 1999. Most of the remaining responsibilities and properties were given to the Minister for Agriculture and Food. Many important historical records are now kept at the National Archives of Ireland.
