Three Fs
Encyclopedia
The Three Fs were a series of demands first issued by the Tenant Right League
in their campaign for land reform
in Ireland
from the 1850s. They were,
Many historians argue that their absence contributed severely to the Great Irish Famine (1846-49), as it allowed the mass eviction of starving tenants. The Three Fs were campaigned for by a number of political movements, notably the Independent Irish Party
and later the Irish Parliamentary Party
during the Land War
. They were conceded by the British Government in a series of Irish Land Acts
enacted from the 1870s on, with essentially full implementation in the Land Act of 1881.
Tenant Right League
The Tenant Right League, established in 1850, was an organisation which aimed to secure reforms in the Irish land system. Formed by Charles Gavan Duffy and Frederick Lucas , it united for a time Protestant and Catholic tenants, Duffy calling his movement The League of North and South.The political...
in their campaign for land reform
Land reform
[Image:Jakarta farmers protest23.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Farmers protesting for Land Reform in Indonesia]Land reform involves the changing of laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution,...
in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
from the 1850s. They were,
- Fair rent — meaning rent control: for the first time in the United Kingdom, fair rent would be decided by land courts, and not by the landlords;
- Free sale — meaning a tenant could sell the interest in his holding to an incoming tenant without landlord interference;
- Fixity of tenureLand tenureLand tenure is the name given, particularly in common law systems, to the legal regime in which land is owned by an individual, who is said to "hold" the land . The sovereign monarch, known as The Crown, held land in its own right. All private owners are either its tenants or sub-tenants...
— meaning that a tenant could not be evicted if he had paid the rent.
Many historians argue that their absence contributed severely to the Great Irish Famine (1846-49), as it allowed the mass eviction of starving tenants. The Three Fs were campaigned for by a number of political movements, notably the Independent Irish Party
Independent Irish Party
The Independent Irish Party was an Irish political party founded in July 1852 by 40 Liberal Irish MPs who had been elected to the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is sometimes mentioned as the Irish Independent Opposition Party, and colloquially known as the...
and later the Irish Parliamentary Party
Irish Parliamentary Party
The Irish Parliamentary Party was formed in 1882 by Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish nationalist Members of Parliament elected to the House of Commons at...
during the Land War
Land War
The Land War in Irish history was a period of agrarian agitation in rural Ireland in the 1870s, 1880s and 1890s. The agitation was led by the Irish National Land League and was dedicated to bettering the position of tenant farmers and ultimately to a redistribution of land to tenants from...
. They were conceded by the British Government in a series of Irish Land Acts
Irish Land Acts
The Land Acts were a series of measures to deal with the question of peasant proprietorship of land in Ireland in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Five such acts were introduced by the government of the United Kingdom between 1870 and 1909...
enacted from the 1870s on, with essentially full implementation in the Land Act of 1881.