The Land War (Irish: Cogadh na Talún)[1] was a period of agrarian agitation in rural Ireland (then wholly part of the United Kingdom) that began in 1879.

[7] Conflict between landlords and tenants arose from opposing viewpoints on such issues as land consolidation, security of tenure, transition from tillage to grazing, and the role of the market.

[12] During the Great Famine (1845–1849), the poorest cottiers and agricultural labourers died or were forced to emigrate, freeing up land that was purchased by larger farmers.

[13] In 1850, the Tenant Right League briefly dominated Irish politics with the demand for free sale, fixity of tenure, and fair rent.

[14] Although it never caught on with the poor smallholders in Connacht which it was intended to help,[15] the League spurred the creation of the Independent Irish Party.

[17] In 1878, the Irish-American Clan na Gael leader John Devoy offered Charles Stewart Parnell, then a rising star in the Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP), a deal which became known as the New Departure.

Davitt maintained that there was no formal agreement, while Devoy claimed that the IPP had promised not to act against the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and made other concessions in exchange for Irish-American support.

[20] The west of Ireland was hit by the 1879 famine, a combination of heavy rains, poor yields and low prices that brought widespread hunger and deprivation.

[24] Irish historian Paul Bew notes that five of the largest landlords in Connacht also refused to contribute any money to relief funds, despite collecting more than £80,000 annually in rent.

[7] According to historians such as William Vaughan and Phillip Bull, the serious agricultural recession combined with a unified nationalist leadership set the stage to produce a powerful and lasting popular movement.

[25] The Land War began on 20 April 1879 at a mass meeting in Irishtown, County Mayo organised by local and Dublin-based activists, led by Davitt and James Daly.

The main issue was rent, which was typically paid in the spring; due to the poor harvest tenants could not afford to pay and many had been threatened with eviction.

[29] Local Fenians organised meetings, at Claremorris on 25 May with 200 attendees and Knock on 1 June with a reported 20,000–30,000 turnout, in protest of the Church's position.

[40] Involvement of the clergy made it much more difficult for the British government to take action against the movement, which instilled "almost perfect unity" among Irish tenant farmers.

[54] Preceded by economic difficulties due to droughts in 1884 and 1887 as well as industrial depression in England causing shrinking markets,[55] the 1886–1891 Plan of Campaign was a more focused version of agitation and rent strikes.

These rent strikes targeted the most heavily indebted and financially insecure landlords, who faced a choice between immediate bankruptcy and accepting a lower income.

Given the extended franchise allowed in 1884, the IPP had to gain credibility with the larger number of new voters, choosing the most numerous Irish group: the low-to-middle-income rural electorate.

So did the government, and the Vatican issued a Papal Rescript followed by an encyclical "Saepe Nos" in 1888, condemning the activities of the Land League, particularly boycotting.

After the 1881 and 1885 Land Reform Acts (see below), many Tory press commentators described the Plan of Campaign as an opportunistic and cynical method of revenge following the division of the Liberal Party and the rejection of the first Irish Home Rule Bill in June 1886.

[59][60] Organised by the United Irish League and Laurence Ginnell,[61] the Ranch War involved cattle drives, public rallies, boycotting, and intimidation.

[69][71] In the Irish Free State, their grievances fueled the Fianna Fáil party and led to the Land Acts of 1923 and 1933, which caused the "dramatic redistribution" of large farms and estates to smallholders and the landless.

Despite the trappings of common-law procedure, American historian Donald Jordan emphasizes that the tribunals essentially were an extension of the local branch judging if its own rules had been violated.

The key provisions forbade paying rent without abatements, taking over land from which a tenant had been evicted, and purchasing their holding under the 1885 Ashbourne Act.

[80] Other forbidden actions included "participating in evictions, fraternizing with, or entering into, commerce with anyone who did; or working for, hiring, letting land from, or socializing with, boycotted person".

[81] Tribunals were typically led by the leaders of local chapters, holding open proceedings with a common law procedure.

"[92] Larger farmers and landlords were better able to cope with a boycott, by weathering temporary loss of income, hiring scabs, or ordering supplies by mail.

[101] Gladstone believed that escalating crimes were proof of the failure both of his government's policy of coercion and the Land League's No Rent strategy.

[103] British officials often claimed that the National League's effectiveness was due to the fear of violence from lawless elements if the litigant did not comply.

[104] Sociologist Samuel Clark argued that the threat of violence helped the Land League enforce its rulings and silence its enemies.

In fact, emigration and economic disadvantage continued apace,[110][111] while the greatest beneficiaries of land reform were the middle class of medium farmers.