What caused the increase of Irish immigration in the mid-1800s

The biggest reason why Irish immigration occurred was the Irish potato famine. Irish were very poor and they heavily relied on potatoes, their society was experiencing a lot of starvation and moving to America where there are more chances to work, produce food, and claim land is a great new way of life.

The reasons as to why Irish citizens immigrated was to escape religious and political persecution. The Irish Potato Famine was another reason for this because potatoes were the staple food at the time which forced peasants to leave Ireland.