Famines in Austrian Galicia
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Famines in Galicia were a common occurrence, particularly in the mid to late 19th century, as Galicia became heavily overpopulated. Triggered primarily by natural disasters such as floods and blights, famines, compounded by overpopulation, led to starvation, widespread malnutrition, epidemics,
poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...
, an average of 50,000 deaths a year, and from the 1870s to the beginning of
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, emigration.


Chronological occurrences

19th century saw the first famines in Galicia in the years 1804–1806 and 1811–1813. Another famine took place in 1832. 1844 saw the destruction of much of the grain and potato crop due to severe rains and resulting flooding. Skowronek notes that the resulting famine affected the next for years, up to 1848. 1845 saw potato blight according to Grodziski, although Kieniewicz writes that that year saw more flooding, with the blight in 1846. The famine of 1847 was partially caused by the unrest of the previous year (see Kraków uprising,
Galician slaughter The Galician Slaughter, also known as the Galician Rabacja, peasant uprising, Peasant Uprising of 1846 or the Szela uprising (german: Galizischer Bauernaufstand; pl, Rzeź galicyjska or ''Rabacja galicyjska''), was a two-month uprising of pov ...
). Significant famines would affect towns as well, as did the famine of 1847. The 1847 famine is estimated to have affected about 90% of the Galician population, and resulted in at least 227,000 deaths. 1848 saw continued famine, with about 140,000 deaths. There have been reports of
cannibalism Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is well documented, b ...
that year, though they have also been reported in other years of most severe famines. Although Skowronek notes that a famine ended in 1848, according to Frank another one occurred in 1849, through with only 40,000 deaths. 1850 saw another famine due to another potato blight. Frank notes famines that occurred in 1855, 1865, 1876 and 1889. Wolff lists a famine in 1880. Dunin-Wąsowicz lists periods of starvation for 1853–1854, 1865–1866, and 1871–1872. A large famine affected many Eastern European territories, including Galicia, as late as 1913.


Causes, contributing factors and results

The direct reasons for famines are often given as bad weather and blights (in particular potato blight); however there are also major social factors which caused famines in Galicia to be more likely, and to have more serious consequences than in many other parts of Europe. In the 19th century, most of Galicia was part of the
Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...
(later
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
), which acquired it through the
partitions of Poland The Partitions of Poland were three partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place toward the end of the 18th century and ended the existence of the state, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland and Lithuania for 12 ...
, and was its poorest province. Neither the mostly Polish large landowners, nor the Austrian imperial government, showed much interest in reform, such as
industrialization Industrialisation ( alternatively spelled industrialization) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive re-organisation of an econo ...
, which would upset the system in which Galicia was a provider of agricultural products for the rest of the Empire, and a market for inferior industrial goods, a situation profitable for both the governments and the landowners. The Austrian government treated Galicia as a colony that could be treated to another country, and overtaxed it rather than invested in it. The agricultural productivity of Galician peasants was one of the lowest in Europe, due to the use of primitive agricultural techniques, many little different from those used in the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
. The situation was compounded by the lack of good land and growing population, resulting in the steadily diminishing size of an individual peasant's plot. Over 70% of Galicia population lived off the land. In the second half of the 19th century, with only a marginal increase of arable land (about 7%), the population of peasants doubled. In 1899, 80% of the plots had less than 5
acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imp ...
s, and many were not able to grow enough food on their plots to support their families.
Overpopulation Overpopulation or overabundance is a phenomenon in which a species' population becomes larger than the carrying capacity of its environment. This may be caused by increased birth rates, lowered mortality rates, reduced predation or large scale m ...
in Galicia has been so severe that it has been described as the most overpopulated place in Europe, and compared to
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
and
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. As a result, Galician peasants have been too malnourished to work properly, and had little immunity to diseases such as
cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...
,
typhus Typhus, also known as typhus fever, is a group of infectious diseases that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus. Common symptoms include fever, headache, and a rash. Typically these begin one to two weeks after exposure. ...
,
smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...
and
syphilis Syphilis () is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium ''Treponema pallidum'' subspecies ''pallidum''. The signs and symptoms of syphilis vary depending in which of the four stages it presents (primary, secondary, latent, an ...
. Stauter-Halsted describes a vicious cycle in which Galician peasants worked "lethargically because
hey were Hey or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...
inadequately nourished and ot livingbetter because
hey Hey or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...
work too little." Frank quotes Szepanowski: "every resident of Galicia does one-quarter of a man's work and eats one-half of a man's food."
Norman Davies Ivor Norman Richard Davies (born 8 June 1939) is a Welsh-Polish historian, known for his publications on the history of Europe, Poland and the United Kingdom. He has a special interest in Central and Eastern Europe and is UNESCO Professor at ...
concurs, noting that the situation in Galicia was likely more desperate than in
Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
, and that Galicia was likely "the poorest province in Europe". The near constant famines in Galicia, resulting in 50,000 deaths a year, have been described as
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
. Responding to the poverty and lack of reform, many peasants chose to emigrate, to other parts of Austria, Europe, and the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.


See also

*
Poverty in Austrian Galicia Poverty in Austrian Galicia was extreme, particularly in the late 19th century. Reasons included the little interest in reforms on the part of major landowners and the Austrian government; population growth resulting in small peasant plots; inadequ ...
*
Galician slaughter The Galician Slaughter, also known as the Galician Rabacja, peasant uprising, Peasant Uprising of 1846 or the Szela uprising (german: Galizischer Bauernaufstand; pl, Rzeź galicyjska or ''Rabacja galicyjska''), was a two-month uprising of pov ...


Notes

a Although as shown by the analysis of late 1840s deaths in Zadoks, many death estimates sum those from hunger and disease. For example, Bodnar attributes the deaths to "typhus following the potato famine".


References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite book, author=John E. Bodnar, title=The ethnic experience in Pennsylvania, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iiWs1AMfWasC&pg=PA45, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=1973, publisher=Bucknell University Press, isbn=978-0-8387-1155-2, page=45 {{cite book, author=John E. Bodnar, title=The ethnic experience in Pennsylvania, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iiWs1AMfWasC&pg=PA48, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=1973, publisher=Bucknell University Press, isbn=978-0-8387-1155-2, page=48 {{cite book, author=Norman Davies, title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume II: 1795 to the Present, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9Tbed6iMNLEC&pg=PA106, accessdate=8 April 2013, date=24 February 2005, publisher=Oxford University Press, isbn=978-0-19-925340-1, pages=106–108 {{cite book, author=Alison Fleig Frank, title=Oil empire, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jNaFc1OdN-QC&pg=PA45, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=2005, publisher=Harvard University Press, isbn=978-0-674-03718-2, pages=43–44 {{cite book, author=Alison Fleig Frank, title=Oil empire, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jNaFc1OdN-QC&pg=PA45, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=2005, publisher=Harvard University Press, isbn=978-0-674-03718-2, pages=44–45 {{cite book, author=Alison Fleig Frank, title=Oil empire, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jNaFc1OdN-QC&pg=PA45, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=2005, publisher=Harvard University Press, isbn=978-0-674-03718-2, page=45 {{cite book, author=Alison Fleig Frank, title=Oil empire, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jNaFc1OdN-QC&pg=PA47, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=2005, publisher=Harvard University Press, isbn=978-0-674-03718-2, page=47 {{cite book, author=Richard Frucht, title=Eastern Europe: an introduction to the people, lands, and culture, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lVBB1a0rC70C&pg=PA53, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=2005, publisher=ABC-CLIO, isbn=978-1-57607-800-6, page=53 {{cite book, author=Stanisław Grodziski, title=W królestwie Galicji i Lodomerii, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vZQwAAAAMAAJ, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=1976, publisher=Wydawn. Literackie, page=175 {{cite book, author=Stefan Kieniewicz, title=Ruch chłopski w Galicji w 1846 roku, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q5s2AAAAMAAJ, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=1951, publisher=Zakład Narodowy imienia Ossolińskich, page=328 {{cite book, author=Ivan L. Rudnytsky, editor1=Andrei S. Markovits, editor2=Frank E. Sysyn, chapter=The Ukrainians in Galicia Under Austrian Rule, title=Nationalbuilding and the politics of nationalism: essays on Austrian Galicia, chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0II-Dy6KbzQC&pg=PA52, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=1982, publisher=Harvard University Press, isbn=978-0-674-60312-7, page=52, author1-link=Ivan L. Rudnytsky
*Also appears online in {{cite book , chapter=The Ukrainians in Galicia Under Austrian Rule , last1=Rudnytsky, first1=Ivan L. , title= Essays in Modern Ukrainian History , date= 1988 , publisher= Harvard University Press , location= Cambridge, Massachusetts , isbn= 9780916458195 , url=https://archive.org/details/essaysinmodernuk00rudn , author1-link=Ivan L. Rudnytsky, page=315
{{cite book, author=Maria Skowronek, title=Losy Polaków w XIX-XX w: studia ofiarowane prof. Stefanowi Kieniewiczowi w osiemdziesiątą rocznicę Jego urodzin, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bD9JAAAAIAAJ, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=1987, publisher=Państwowe Wydawn. Nauk., isbn=978-83-01-06985-8, page=61 {{cite book, author=Keely Stauter-Halsted, title=The Nation In The Village: The Genesis Of Peasant National Identity In Austrian Poland, 1848–1914, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g7Nwn-WzLC4C&pg=PA24, accessdate=4 April 2013, date=28 February 2005, publisher=Cornell University Press, isbn=978-0-8014-8996-9, pages=24–25 {{cite book, author=Keely Stauter-Halsted, title=The Nation In The Village: The Genesis Of Peasant National Identity In Austrian Poland, 1848–1914, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g7Nwn-WzLC4C&pg=PA26, accessdate=4 April 2013, date=28 February 2005, publisher=Cornell University Press, isbn=978-0-8014-8996-9, page=26 {{cite book, author=Keely Stauter-Halsted, title=The Nation In The Village: The Genesis Of Peasant National Identity In Austrian Poland, 1848–1914, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g7Nwn-WzLC4C&pg=PA27, accessdate=4 April 2013, date=28 February 2005, publisher=Cornell University Press, isbn=978-0-8014-8996-9, page=27 {{cite book, author=Cecylia Ziobro Thibault, title=Trapped in a Nightmare: The Story of an American Girl Growing Up in the Nazi Slave Labor Camps, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WZUJ81Pf-lcC&pg=PT12, accessdate=8 April 2013, date=10 May 2011, publisher=iUniverse, isbn=978-1-4620-1128-5, pages=12–13 {{cite book, author=Larry Wolff, title=The Idea of Galicia: History and Fantasy in Habsburg Political Culture, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tgjQYHn7BTkC&pg=PA256, accessdate=8 April 2013, date=9 January 2012, publisher=Stanford University Press, isbn=978-0-8047-7429-1, page=256 {{cite book , last1=Zadoks , first1=J.C. , authorlink=Jan Zadoks , title=On the political economy of plant disease epidemics. Capita selecta in historical epidemiology , year=2008 , publisher=Wageningen Academic Publishers , location=Wageningen , page=102 , isbn=9789086860869 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Iq9cyVB313QC&pg=PA102 , access-date=2022-05-08 {{cite book, author=Stefan L. Zaleski, title=General Demography of Poland, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MOFBAAAAYAAJ, accessdate=8 April 2013, year=1921, publisher=Committee for the Polish Encyclopaedic Publications, page=142 {{cite book, author=Israel Zinberg, title=Science of Judaism and Galician Haskalah, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VNWtFT00lhAC&pg=RA2-PA25, accessdate=4 April 2013, year=1977, publisher=KTAV Publishing House, Inc., isbn=978-0-87068-491-3, page=104 Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Galicia Economy of Austria-Hungary 19th-century famines 20th-century famines