Starting in 1801, Ireland had been directly governed, under the Act of Union as part of the United Kingdom. In the 40 years after the union, British governments grappled with the problems of governing the country. One historian calculated that, between 1801 and 1845, there had been 114 commissions and 61 special committees enquiring into the state of Ireland. "Without exception their findings prophesied disaster. Ireland was on the verge of starvation, her population rapidly increasing, three-quarters of her labourers unemployed, housing conditions appalling and the standard of living unbelievably low". It was caused by monoculture because they only planted one main crop and let its disease infest all other potatoes in the Irish territory.