Agriculture and the Integration of British Colonial Migrants in Early Modern Ireland

Abstract This article offers a critical re-examination of Early Modern migrations to Ireland and their effect on farming practices, c.1580–1660. During after the English conquest Ireland, tens eventually hundreds thousands settlers arrived from Britain. Focusing Munster lesser extent Ulster, I argue they were not greeted with an agricultural tabula rasa ripe for ‘improvement’. In contrast what Tudor writers claimed, some scholars today have assumed, cereal cultivation field enclosure already formed important elements in landscape. Changes clearly took place, but English, Welsh Scots also made remarkable adaptations by accepting local breeds livestock relying economically forms semi-mobile pastoralism that earlier had decried. Looking outside helps evaluate actions, since mobility was widespread contemporary European pastoralism, if anything contributed to, rather than conflicted with, commercialisation farming.