Summary: 18th Century
Key dates:
In the 18th century many of the Irish landlords were absentee and therefore their estates were managed by middlemen. Sometimes there was more than one middleman and this meant that there was a huge increase in rents. These middlemen were known as squireens who lived in smaller mansions such as Derrymore House. They also copied the manners and customs of the rich landlords.
As far as the actual farming was concerned, the most important people were the tenant farmers who held between 20 and 50 acres. In Ulster they may have had as little as 10 acres because they supplemented their income with work for the linen trade. All tenants signed a lease for life, or 31 years, which could have been a burden when times were hard.
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