Chapter 575 The Last Christmas

Chapter 575 The Last Christmas

In 1845, there were 8.5 million Irish people on the island of Ireland. Five years after the famine, there were less than 6.5 million people left. After that, the population continued to decline, reaching a bottom of nearly 5 million.

Countless hungry people on Emerald Island are looking for all the food they can eat, and even grass roots and tree bark have disappeared wherever they go.

At the same time, almost every week, grain ships loaded with cattle, sheep, and wheat set off from the island of Ireland to the United Kingdom, and countless ships came from the United States to the island of Great Britain.

But at this time, the British government will dispatch two-thirds of its troops on the island of Ireland to escort these life-saving food to prevent any hungry people from approaching.

The Irish were only allowed into the docks when the grain ships were leaving.

A large number of hungry people even fought against their compatriots in order to board the slave ships. Even so, they might be thrown into the sea by the slave traders. After all, their choices were so many that there was no need to pity them at all.

The men and women who boarded the ship didn't care where they were going, as long as they could leave Ireland, their homeland, and the land that gave birth to and raised them.

December 25, 1844, Christmas.

The Jennings family spent a rare and happy Christmas, because just now Father Hans and Father Cloven knocked on their door and sent blessings, and also sent a grilled fish and a bottle of wine. , as well as some beans and dried vegetables.

However, the two priests did not stay too long and went to the next house with gifts.

But this did not hinder their family's good mood. After all, even if there was no grilled fish and wine, they still had potatoes and privately brewed whiskey.

At this time, the Irish were not qualified to privately brew wine, and wine must be taxed, otherwise it would be illegal, so they did not return gifts to the priests because they did not want people to get into unnecessary trouble.

Now that there are so many extra ingredients, the little ones are no longer sleepy and clamor for delicious food. The parents didn't want to spoil their children's interest, so they allowed them to eat.

The Jannis family is considered one of the relatively wealthy Irish people on Emerald Island, but their family does not have enough to eat every day.

Luxurious days like this are rare, so the man took his wife's hand and danced the dance they had danced when they were young. The brisk dance steps made them feel like they were back in their youth.

The man picked up his wife and walked towards their room.

Scathach Jennings poured red wine to his younger siblings while their parents weren't paying attention. A group of children smashed the bottle and quickly destroyed a bottle of red wine. They did not feel the effects of the alcohol.

So at the instigation of his younger brothers and sisters, Scathach poured the bottle of whiskey to everyone again.

Patrit had just attended the regular meeting of Young Ireland, and it was the time when his blood was boiling. Even the wind and snow could not suppress the blood in his heart.

However, as soon as he opened the door, he saw a mess of cups and plates. Scathach and her brothers and sisters were giggling under the bed. Their old dog was almost squeezed to death by several children and was screaming. Non-stop.

"What's going on with you? Are you possessed!?" Patrit was a little angry and confused as he tried to pull a few people out from under the bed.

As a result, every time he pulled one out, another one would crawl under the bed with a smile. At this time, his parents heard the noise and rushed back.

"Patrit, what are you doing!" the father yelled angrily, because this eldest son is the most careless guy. He only knows how to go to "drinking parties" with a group of idle guys all day long. Do you really think he is the same as the French?

They have wine and meat at their banquets, they have carriages when they go out, and they carry guns. And what about that so-called Young Ireland? It's said to be a cocktail party, but you can't even afford a bottle of wine, and you still want to fight against Britain and save the country?

The mother on the side felt more sorry for her son, half-kneeling beside Patrit to help him catch some "little troublemakers".

"Wine? How can you let them drink?" At this time, the mother finally realized that something was wrong. There was a strong smell of alcohol coming from the few little ghosts, which could explain their abnormal behavior.

"I didn't!" Patrit argued.

However, due to stereotypes, his parents felt that it was him who had done something good, so a meal of fried meat with a leather belt was inevitable. Scathach, who was holding an empty wine bottle next to him, burped and fell asleep.

In fact, the entire Queen Village and even southern Ireland are enjoying themselves because of Franz's so-called "sending warmth" operation.

Although these foods were nothing to Franz and the church, they were as warm as the sunshine in winter to the overly poor Irish people.

At this time, most Irish people had an annual income of less than three pounds. Compared with them, Silesian weavers were considered a wealthy class.

Almost no one owned their own land, and most people's property did not exceed 30 pounds, while a horse pulling a cart during the same period cost 35 pounds.

But this may be the last good Christmas they have before the famine ends.

Almost at the same time, a rare blizzard came to Western Europe. Spain and France were the hardest hit areas, and farmers suffered heavy losses.

But these did not attract the attention of the government and financiers, who were still celebrating one great victory after another.

The coalition forces of Morocco and Algeria were completely vulnerable to the French army, and the new mini bombs and dense fortresses were the nemesis of the nomads.

The Sultan of Morocco, Abdel Rahman, repeatedly sent people to sue France for peace, and the Algerian rebels also split within themselves. The day when France would fully occupy Northwest Africa seemed to be coming soon.

The French discovered a large amount of resources in the newly acquired North American colonies. These fertile and flat lands were very easy to develop, and the development costs could be recovered in just ten years.

Louis Philippe named the newly acquired land (Arizona and New Mexico) New Louisiana, seemingly to distinguish it from the old French colony of Louisiana.

But France's top leaders know that a new France will definitely appear on the North American continent in the future.

The titular Queen of Spain, Isabel II, was not yet a heavy tank of later generations, but a young girl longing for love. She completely inherited the beauty of her mother, Queen Regent Christiana, and the character of her father, the irascible King Fernando VII.

Although Isabel II has not yet ascended the throne, she often claims that she will execute all rebels and restores "tradition."

This is actually the influence of Sister Petheni, Father Clarit and his group. This group of conservatives instills so-called "orthodox" thinking in the Queen all day long, and makes her believe that the "divine right of kings" is actually destiny.

In fact, Isabel II and Carlos were both puppets of Spanish conservative forces. Both of them believed in religion and were miserably cheated by religious groups.

Guided by ultra-conservative ideas, Isabel II not only did not pity the people who were affected by the disaster, but also felt that it was a divine punishment that they must accept or even oppose any form of assistance.