Ireland's Arctic Siege: The Big Freeze of 1947

by Kevin C. Kearns

The Irish winter of 1947 was the coldest and longest of the 20th Century. From shortly after Christmas to almost Easter, the country was gripped by snow and ice; transport ground to a halt. The normal supply of goods and services was suspended. All this happened in a country much poorer than modern Ireland. It was only two years after the end of the war. There was still rationing in Britain. The Irish economy was woefully underdeveloped. There was no central heating, and the distribution systems for coal and turf broke down. Even in relatively affluent middle class suburbs, people were reduced to breaking up furniture for kindling in an attempt to keep warm. In rural parts, the old and vulnerable were hopelessly isolated. People died. In time, the memory faded and it was just remembered as an exceptionally cold winter. Kevin Kearns gets behind the headlines to reveal in tremendous detail the hardship, depravation and loss of life that gripped a vulnerable country as a result of an extended period of freakishly cold weather.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Ireland

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

In 1947, Ireland was battered by blizzard after blizzard. Temperatures dropped to -17, winds howled. Roads were impassable, rations were put in place. That, alone, was terrifying - but the Summer of 1946 had been unnaturally wet, meaning that crops, hay and turf were in very short supply. The country needed to pull together or there would be another famine.

This is a really interesting read, esepcially given Ireland's recent weather events. It's hard to imagine the hardship, but the author uses news reports and eyewitness accounts to create a very bleak story. The strength and determination of the Irish people shines through - everyone helped as much as they could (except the Government, but that's a story in itself).

The only real issue I had with the book was that it was, for the most part, centered around events in Dublin. Dubliners will enjoy references to Switzers, Clerys, Arnotts, Brown Thomas, the Jacobs Biscuit Factory, Bewleys, and the numerous film showings at the Adelphi or performances at the Gaiety. There are brief mentions of other parts of the country, but then it's "meanwhile, back in Dublin" or "back to Dublin". I'm not sure I'd have picked it up if I knew that, I think some reference should have been made to the Capital in the title to make it clear that it wasn't actually an account of how the events of 1947 affected the country as a whole. For those of us born and bred in the West or Midlands, I felt that there wasn't a whole pile of information about what was happening in our counties.

Other than that, I'd recommend it if you have an interest in Dublin history or Irish weather phenomena.

[Bettie]

Blurb: On 19 January 1947 Ireland was invaded by a freakish anticyclonic weather phenomenon that lasted for two months. The arctic siege brought freezing temperatures of -14 Centigrade, a piercing east wind reaching 60-70 m.p.h., five major blizzards, and snowdrifts of 12 to 20 feet, some topping 50. Cars, buses, houses and entire villages were buried, roads were blocked, telephone and electricity lines felled and towns and farms isolated as food and fuel dwindled.

Tragically this happened amidst the worst fuel crisis in Ireland's history. People were forced to strip wood from their homes, and nearly half of all Dubliners were burning furniture to survive. By 19 February 1947 Dublin's death rate had more than doubled as the poor and elderly succumbed to hunger, cold and illness.

Kevin C. Kearns presents a graphic account of what was regarded as a near-biblical calamity of blizzards, freezing, hunger, floods and threatened famine. This is a vivid tale of suffering and courage, death and survival, of human resilience and real heroism, poignantly authenticated by the oral testimony of those who lived through the arctic siege.

[JC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Highly enjoyed this and took my time with it.

It is dense on social detail of Ireland at the time. Mostly focused on Dublin but the local history information is fantastic. It really puts you in the time.

I've read other works by this author which attracted me to this book. The one minor minor quibble is using Fahrenheit instead of Celsius

[Stephen Byrne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read nearly all the books by Kevin C. Kearns, for research and pleasure. Really enjoyable and fantastic to read the captured voices of the Irish especially old Dublin people.

[Michael Coyne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating winter of discontent in Ireland: a weather event that I honestly hadn't heard of. Not a brilliant book though. The prologue, which acts as a trailer that shows you the entire story, is baffling. Why is it necessary?

Secondly, though the present tense reporting style gives the tale momentum, it removes the hindsight of history. The short epilogue was insufficient. How did the crisis effect the public's opinions of politicians, after they seemingly did nothing all winter. Was it a major factor in the elections of 1948? Did the assistance the state received from the US and UK change our relationships with them at all? Th a questions are barely touched upon.

[Florence · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone with even a passing interest in Irish social history should read this. Using newspaper reports from the era, interviews with those who lived through it, the details are fascinating and bring home to us how harsh life was then for most ordinary Irish people

[Colm Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

This a very good book that uses the archives to portray the perilous situation we found ourselves in in 1947, a time when transport and communications left large swathes of people cut off from their neighbours for months at a time because of a freak system of weather.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite an extraordinary book about how a country was brought to it's knees by severe weather. I really enjoyed this book