The Strokestown Estate in Co Roscommon is another example of the exploitation of the indigenous Irish and the effects of the Protestant "Ascendency." Originally a three hundred acre holding, the Mahon family, through skillful timing in declaring allegiance in the midst of the shifting fortunes of the English Crown, was able to increase their estate to three thousand acres. The estate is now home to the Irish National Famine Museum and the presentations certainly bring to vivid life the callous and cruel nature of the decisions made as people were turned out from their cottages and left to the brutal choice of the workhouse or certain death in the countryside. The local bishop of the Diocese of Elphin played a very strong advocacy role in trying to protect the people, including sending an extraordinarily detailed letter to the British authorities back in England, listing each individual head of household evicted by the Packenham Mahon family and the number of members in that family. Several hundred families, most in excess of 7 or 8 people - a few thousand people from just this one estate. This included at least 170 widows, with the bishop stating that most had perished in the harsh weather conditions. Both he and the Bishop of Tuam continued to agitate on behalf of the poor, sick, and destitute until silenced by the Vatican. Another shameful incident where the Church's leadership took sides with the rich and powerful rather than its own faithful.
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| Strokestown House |
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| Padraic reviewing the Strokestown Estate |
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