{"id":58197,"date":"2026-01-20T10:30:16","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T07:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.turkishairlines.com\/a-symbol-of-love-for-turkiye-at-the-heart-of-ireland-drogheda-united\/"},"modified":"2026-01-20T10:30:19","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T07:30:19","slug":"drogheda-united-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.turkishairlines.com\/en\/drogheda-united-story\/","title":{"rendered":"A symbol of love for T\u00fcrkiye at the heart of Ireland: Drogheda United"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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A dark chapter: The Great Famine and the hand reaching out from the Ottoman state<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Potato
Potato fields at the time of the great famine<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

period in Irish history, the years of the \u201cGreat Famine\u201d. At the time, a fungal disease (phytophthora infestans) infesting potato fields, the staple food of the Irish people, plunged the country into total catastrophe. Fields rotted, storehouses stood empty, and the streets filled with people driven by hunger. Thousands died of starvation, while others crossed the ocean aboard ships, migrating into uncertainty simply to survive. As this tragedy unfolded, Ireland, then a subject of the United Kingdom, was all but abandoned to its fate. Yet far away in Istanbul, the echo of this suffering proved strong enough to move a young sultan to action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Sultan Abd\u00fclmecid, the Ottoman ruler of the time, read reports at his palace detailing the profound suffering endured by the Irish people, he was deeply shaken. Still in his early twenties, the Sultan decided to send ten thousand pounds in financial aid to Ireland, a sum that was a fortune by the standards of the day. This generous gesture, however, triggered an unexpected diplomatic crisis. Queen Victoria of England, who ruled Ireland, had contributed only two thousand pounds to her own subjects. The prospect of a foreign ruler offering five times that amount was perceived as a loss of prestige for the British court, and British diplomats, as a matter of \u201ccourtesy,\u201d asked the Sultan to reduce his donation to one thousand pounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ships that defied the ban and a grueling route<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"The
The route taken by ships sailing from Istanbul to Drogheda<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Although Sultan Abd\u00fclmecid was obliged by protocol to limit the cash donation to one thousand pounds, he issued a clear order, saying, \u201cThe remaining amount will be sent as food and seed.\u201d Acting on the Sultan\u2019s command, three large ships loaded with provisions set sail from the ports of Istanbul and Thessaloniki, embarking on a grueling journey that would last for weeks. Barred from docking at Dublin Port, which was under strict British naval surveillance, the ships slipped northward in secrecy, thanks to the courage and strategic maneuvering of their captains. With great discretion, they reached the mouth of the River Boyne at the Port of Drogheda. When grain, corn, and seeds were delivered to the people of Drogheda, the city was swept by a festive mood. For the first time, the population glimpsed a true light of hope through the aid of these \u201cunknown\u201d friends who had come from thousands of kilometers away. In that moment, the name \u201cTurk\u201d was etched into the collective memory of the Irish people as a helping hand extended in the darkness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Widen your world.<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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