i Hi lli;: m-' THE HISTORY OF IRELAND, FROM ITS INVASION UNDER HENRY II. TO ITS UNION WITH GREAT BRITAIN. mt. HISTORY OF IRELAND, FROM ITS INVASION UNDER. HENRY II. UNION WITH GREAT BRITAIN. BY FRANCIS FLO WD EN, ESQ.. IN TWO VOLUMES. VOL. 11. ^' Incorrupla fides nudaque Veritas." Hon. LONDON : SOLD BY T. EGERTON, WHITEHALL; LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, AND BROWN, PATERNOSTER-ROW • AND BOOKER, NEW BOND-STREET } LONDON: AND BY CHARt ES ARCHER, DAME-STREET, AND H. FITZP ATEICK, CAPEL-STREET, DUBLIN. 1812. Printed by R. Wilks, Chancery-lane, Fleel-street, Londc CONTENTS VOLUME IL BOOK IIL s60MPRlSING THE PERIOD BETWEEN THE COMPLE- TION OF THE liE VOLUTION OF 1688, AND TH-E DECLARATION OF IRISH INDEPENDENCE,, IN THE t'EAE 1782, CHAPTER I. Y'Jie Reigns of JViiUam and Mary, and Tf^lliam. p. I Revolution In England and Ireland different — Articles of Lime- rick not observed— WilHam not naturally intolerant — Differ- ences between William and his English parliament — Nego- ciation of the articles of Limerick — The articles contested from the pulpit — Sir Richard Cox's conduct in inference to the ar- ticles of Limerick — William had offered more favourable terms to the Irish — Effects of the revolution on the Irish — England usurps the right of legislating- for Ireland — Abj.^t state of the Irish catholics — Irish different from Erjglish v^higs — Lord Syd- ney convenes a parliament — Lord Siaaey reprhnands and pro- rogues the parliament — Sydney recalled . Changes in the go- vernment, and a new parliament convened — New session of parliament, in which Sir Charles Porter was conspicuous for liis probity — Inconsisterit conduct of government toward? Ireland — General substance of Mr. Molyneux's book— Conduct of the English parliament upou Molyneux's book— Overbear- ing condaict of the English parliament towards Ireland— a « « ' ^ i •C'^ CI VI CONTENTS, William thwarted by his English parliament — Parliamentary commi;?5!on for enquiring into the value of the forfeited estates — Coutest between the court and parliamentary interest bene- ficia) to Ireland — Yet Ireland suffers on both sides — ^The act of resumption serously affects King "William — Tolerant dis- position of William towards the Irish— Death of William. CHAP. II. The Reign of Ann* p» 3^ Accession of Ann — The Queen open to the ascendancy of each party — Act for preventing the growth of popery — Force of anti- catholic prejudice — Complaints of the violation of the articles of Limerick — Protestant dissenters petition against the sa- cramental test — The Irish persecuted by the Stuarts and their friends — ^The penal laws executed with severity against the catholics — Impolitic government of Ireland — The Irish house of commons inveterate against the catholics — The catholic* treated as common enemies by the Earl of Wharton — The Tories address the Queen against the presbyterians — Effects of the lords' address against the presbyterians — Address of the lords against the commons — Nature of the original protestant ascendancy in Ireland — Prevalence of the whigs in the com- mons, supported by the dissenters — Dissolation of parliament, and whigs still have a majority — The English parliament legislates for Ireland — Schism bill brought into the English house of commons by Sir William Windham — Strong protest of the lords against the schism bill — The court adverse to the dissenters — Violent struggles of parties in Ireland about tlie chancellor — Queen Ann indisposed to the Hanover succession —Her character and death, CHAP. m. y/ie Reign of George I. p. 67 Accession of George I, — Parliamervt of Ireland convened and passes several acts in favour of the Hanover succession — Ho- •curable testimony of Irish loyalty from the lords justices — Contents. Vu lostirrection in North Britain : Danger in England and secu- rUy in Ireland — Impolicy of treating the Irish catholics as enfemies — Partiality in favour of dissenters^— Difference be- tween the Irish and English peers upon the appellant jurisdiction •—Duke of Ormond heads an in\'asion from Spain — Indulg- ences to protestant dissenters — Harshness of the Duke of Grafton towards the catholics — Irish loyalty acted upon — Violent resolutions of the commons, and a bill in consequence- Three protestant parties in Ireland— The job of Wood's patent For halfpence— Death of George I. — Character of the reign of George L CHAP. IV. The Reign of George II. p. 87 Accession of George II. ; addressed by the catholics — Boulter's principle of governing— System of diiiding Ireland within itself — ^The catholics deprivedof the elective franchise — Internal dis- tresses of Ireland — Further rigour imposed on the catholics — Boulter's jealousy of any Irish influence — Distresses of Ireland under Primate Eoulter — Grievances of the dissenters — Govern- ment managed by Primate Poulter— Duke of Dors-^t's admi- nistration—Abolition of agistment tiihe — Boulter yields to the loss of the clergy rather than hazard the English interest — Administration of the Duke of Dc/onshire— Variance of English and Irish cabinet — Relaxation in favour of the ca- tholics—Their unshaken loyalty — Earl of Chesterfield ap- pointed lord-lieutenant — Lord Chesterfield meets the parli- ament—Address of thanks to the throne- Prudent and upright conduct of Lord Chesterfield— Addressed by the lords and commons — Reflections upon the short duration of Lord Ches- terfield's administration— Earl of Harrington lord-lieutenant — The patriotism of Mr. Lucas — Primate Stone enf.n.^sted with the management of the English interest in Ireland — Lord Clare's representation of Primate Stone's administration — Contest be- tween the Irish commons, and English cabinet, as to the appropriation of surplus — Nevil, a member of the house of a 4 ^m Contents. commons, foupd guilty of peculation— Duke of Dorset's seconii lieutenancy —Triumph of the patriots over the government and its arrogance— Memorial of the Earl of Kildare— Effect of Lord Kildare's memorial— Insincerity of many of the patriots— The patriots rally and carry an important question— Unsatisfactory answer to the commons— Administration of the Duke of Bed- ford favourable to the catholics — Private occurrences occasion national ferment— Alarm of French invasion and its conse- quences—The catholics address government on the alarm of invasion — Project of an union creates a disturbance — Threatened invasion of Conflans defeated by Hawke— Thurot's expedition against Ireland — Death and character of George II. Mr. Burke's portrait of George II. GHAP. V. The Reign of George 111. p. 13.5 FP.OM HIS ACCESSION TO THE THRONB TO THE DECLARATION OF IRISH INDEPENDENCE, IN 1/82. Accession of George III. and his speech to the parliament — Ori- gin of White Boys — Causes of the riots of the White Boys — Commission to enquire into the riots— The White Boys com- plain of tythes — Encrease of establishment and of lord lieute- nants's allowance — Other risings succeed the White Boys — Oak Boys — Steel Boys — Address to Mr.Pitt on his resignation — Failure of patriotic bills in the commons— The Earl of Ha- lifax succeeded by the Earl of Northumberland— Farther efforts of the patriots to regulate the pension list— First effort in favour of catholics fails through Primate Stone — Deaths of Primate Stone and Lord Shannon — The last lords justices in Ireland — The patriots renew their efforts — Ungracious answer to the address — Patriotism of Dr. Lucas — Lord Townshend succeeds Lord Hertford — The ancient system of governing Tre< land — Particular views of Lord Townshend's administration—' Lord Townshend's address in managing the system — An octen- nial bill obtained — New system of Lord Townshend — Aug- mentation of the army'- Lord Townshend's management of CONTENTS. IX ihe new system — Opposition of the commons encreases — .More alarming opposition of the commons — Lord-lieutenant's un- gracious answer, and parliament prorogued — Effects of these unusual prorogations — Lord-lieutenant's success in encreasing his party during the cessation — Lord Townshend meets the new parliament — Lord Townshend secures a sure majority of one-third of the house — Fiscal resources of Ireland inadequate to Lord Townshend's plan — The only two acts affecting the Roman catholics during Lord Townshend's government-*-Ad- ministration of Lord Harcourt — Absentee tax proposed by government and rejected — Lord Harcourt opens the doqjr to catholic rights — Analogies of Ireland to America — Effects of American rebellion upon Ireland — First step towards the Irish revolution of 1783 — Parliament dissolved — Distressed state of the nation — Alliance of France with the American colonists, and it's consequences upon Ireland — The Irish follows the liberal example of the British parliament towards the catholics— The application of the dissenters for indulgence remitted to another session — Mr. Gardiner's act— Message from the crown to ease Ireland of the payment of her troops ser\'ing out of the king- dom — The long recess gives rise to the volunteers — Mr. Grat- tan opposes the speech of the lord-lieutenant — Effects of the weak administration of Lord Buckinghamshire — State of Ire- land debated in the British house of lords — The affairs of Ire- land debated in the British house of commons — Change of feelings in the Irish commons — Resolution of the Irish com- mons brings the British parliament to grant the Irish proposi- tions — Effects of the Irish volunteers — Commons vote a longer money bill — Imprudent conduct of government to Ireland — Encrease of popular discontent — Close of the sessions — Ad- ministration of Lord Carlisle: Debate in the British commons — Lord Carlisle meets the parliament : its first proceedings — State of parties at this juncture in Ireland — Debate on mutiny bill — Mr. Yelverton moves for an address to the throne —Mr. Grattan's motion for an examination of the national expenses — Mr. Flood's motion for the explanation of Poyning's law — Mr. Gardiner introduces tlie subject of catholic relief — Mr. Gardiner gives notice of the heads of his bill — Con- duct and resolutions of the volunteers— First meeting of tiie t CONTENDS* volunteers — Substatice of the Dilngaiinohresolut'ionsmPeacd- able conclusion of the Dungapnon meeting — Mr. Gaidiner's bill in favour of the catholics — Mr. Grattan moves an address to the King on the legislative independence of Ireland — Mr. Flood's two resolution;? negatived — Mr. Gardiner's catholic bills •—Nature cf the opposition to the catholic bills— Declineof Lord .Carlisle's aclrninistr;^1 ion and his resignation — Last act of Mr. Eden — Appointment of the Duke of Portland, and Mr. Eden's conduct in the British commons — His Majesty sends a mes- sage to both houses of the British parliament concerning Ire- land — Mr. Fnx proposes thank-^ to his Majesty — Duke of Port-* lanJ meets the }.-»arliamen — Reflections Oii the versatility of the' Irish house of commons — Addresses voted to the Duke of Portland and Lord Carlisle — Adjournment of the Irish parlia- ment and proceedings of the British — Lord Carlisle supports Lcrd Shelburne's motions — DL.k.e of Portland meets the par- liament — Patriotic donation to Llenry Grattan— Mr. Flood's jealousy of Mr. Grattan — Mr. Flood's objection to simple repeal — Change in the British administration by the death of Lord Rockingham — Acts under the Duke of Portland's administra- tion — influence of tlie volunteers — Gracious reception of the delegates from the volunteers. BOOK IV. comprising the period of time from the establishment of the iri;.h legislative Independence in the year 1782^ to the UNION. CHAPTER I. ^dmhihiratlov of Earl Temple, p. 235 Lord Temple selected by Lord Shelburne to govern Ii*eland— Earl Temple begins to reform the departments of government- — Peace -with America — Proceedings of the British pailiament— CONTENTS. X* The coalition administration— Corporation of Dublin address the lord lieutenant : Knights of St, Patrick, instituted — la- tended settlement of New Geneva^ CHAP. II. Administration of the Earl of Noi'thington, p. 2^4? Dissolution of parliament, and its consequences — General me«t- ing of the delegates resolved on — State of the representation in parliament — New i>arliament meets — T' ai^ks voted to Lord Temple— Opposition to Lord Northington's administration — ■ Perseverance of opposition — National convention at Dublin — FurtJier proceedings in the commons — Lord Northington re- signs. CHAP. in. Administration of the Diihe of Rutland, p. 255 Expectations from the new administration — Duke of Rutland addressed — Bill for parliamentary reform lost — Causes of po- pular discontent — Parliament prorogued and popular discontents increased — Proceedings for parliamentary reform — Disunion of the volunteers and its consequences — Meeting of national congress — Second meeting of delegates — Session of 1/85: Irish propositions — rjlU brought into the Irish house of com- mons — Duke of Rutland meets the parli.iment— Resolution against the pension list — Ses'^ion of 1/8/ — Right-Boys — Cora plaints against pub'.ic expenditures ineffectual — Clause for demolishing the catholic chapels — Failure of pension and lithe bills — Heated contests on tlis riot act — Prorogation of parlia- ment—Death of the Duke of Rutland. CHAP. IV. Administration of the Marquis of Buckingham. p. 275 Marquis of Buckingham succeeds the Duke cf Rutlmd — Secret svstem of the new vicero— Economical scrutiny into ^1 tONTENtS. the departments — Peep-of-Day Boys and Defenders — King'* illness — Expectations that Ireland would follow the example of Great Britain — Association test for the new members of par- liament—Instructions from England to prepare Ireland for a limited regency — Marquis of Buckingham refuses to transmit the address — Turn in the house of comnr.ons — King's recovery formally announced to parliament — Return of the commons to their stations — Marquis of Buckingham's use of government influence — Lord Buckingham dissatisfied, retires to England. I CHAP. V. jid7m7miration of the Karl of Ifestnw? eland. p. ^93 Earl of Westmoreland succeeds the Marquis of Buckingham — Parliament meets : Ineffectual efforts of the patriots — Mr. Grattan's extraordinary charge against ministers — Further efforts of the opposition — Prorogation, aissolution, of the old, and convention of a new parliament— Lord Westmoreland seeks popularitj' — First session of the new parliament — Effects of French revolution on Ireland — Catholic committee — Divi- sion of the catholic body — United Irishmen of Belfast and Dublin — Popularity discouraged at the castle — Commencement of catholic relief — Parliament meets — Sir Hercules Langrishe moves the catholic bill — Mr. O'Hara presents a petition from the committee — Catholic bill — Petition of the catholic commit- tee and progress of the bill — Parliament prorogued — Catholic delegates — Alarm taken by the grand juries — Cautious con- duct of the catholic committee, and meeting of delegates- Irish national guard — Catholic petition presented to the throne —State of the nation at the opening of the session of I793 — Committee upon parliamentary reform — Government counte- nances several popular acts — Petition of the catholic bishops — Catholic bill passes the commons— Catholic bill passes the lords — Strong measures of government : Gun-powder and con- vention bill — Trial of Mr. Hamilton Rowan — Parliament convened and prorogued — Troubled state of the country — Dif- jfercnce between (be first and last United Irishmen — Intended CONTENTS. xili recai of Lord Westmoreiand< — System of dnpli'-ity in ^Tr. Pitt —Confidence of the Catholics — Cabinet intrigues against Loid I'itzwilliam. CHA?. VI. Adminisiration of Earl Fitzwilliam* p. 350 Lord Fitzwilliam assumes the government — Dismissals by Lord Fitzwilliam — Catholics' addresses to Lord Fitzwilliam — Lord Fitzwilliam meets the parliament — British Ministers oppose the measures of the viceroy— The two opponents of Lord Fitzwil- liam most hurt at his recal — Report of Lord Fjtz\7illiam*g removal and its effects— Catholics' address to Mr*^ Grattan— Lord Fitzwilliam leaves Ireland. CHAR VII. Administration of Earl Camden. p. 362 Appointment of Lord Camden — Catholic meeting in Francis- street — Admission of the young men of the college to the catholic meeting — Lord-lieutenant addressed — Motions made by oppo* sition — Parliament prorogued — En crease of Defenders and United flrishmen — Nature of the Irish Union — Test of the United Irishmen — Religious contest encouraged by govern- ment ; Orange-men — Lord Carhampton's strong measures- Parliament meets — Strong measures introduced by the attor- ney-general — Effects of the resolutions onj the house — Fer- ment out of parliament — ^Extension of the union — Arming of the union, and the people — Minister's partiality for Orange-men — Early meeting of parliament — French invasion — Report of the Prince of Wales' going over viceroy to Tre'and — Catholic question lost for the last time before the Irish parliament— Mr. Pelham disclaims popularity, and Mr. Grattan's reply — Earl Moira's motion in the British peers relative to Treland — Mr* Fox's motion in the British Commons — Message of his ex- cellency—General sense of the union— The report of the secret KiV CONTENTS. committee— Mr. W. B. Ponsonby's resolutions for parlia- mentary u-form — Gen. Lakes proclamation — Abatement of re- bellion in Ulster— Means of seducirg the people — Negociation y/lih the French Directory — Iiiternal effects of the union — Pro- rogation and dissolution of parliamf.nt — Lord Moira's motion in the British house of peers — Public diffidence in parliament- New parliament meets— Causes bringing forward the union- Lord Moiia's motion for conciliatory measures in the Irish peers -—Attack upon Dr. Hussey, tlie Catholic Bishop of Waterford— Mr. Arthur O'Counorj proprietor and editor of the Press news- paper — Mr. Arthur O'Connor arrested, tried, and acquitted in Ei gland— Orangemen and Defenders complained of — Sir R. Abercombie, commander in-chief — France promises succours and fai's— -New declaration and conduct of the Orangemen — Mischievous effects cf die Orange association — Discovery of the rebellion — Leinster delegates and others arrested— The insur- rection prematurely forced into explosion — General proclama- tion and free quarterings, and military execution — Catholic de- claration — Discovery and arrest of Lord Edward Fitzgerald- Insurrection formally announced to Parliament — Breaking out of the rebellion — Cautionary measures of government — Pro- gress of rtbellion disconcerted — Progress of the rebellion — • Blood) mcasLies of the rebels — Declaration of the Catholics — Contest becomes more ferocious on both sides — Reikis defeated atTarah — More outrages committed by the troops than the re- bels — Some of the rebels submit — Esitensionof the rebellion not- withstanding defeats — Insurrection of Wicklow and Wexford— Formal commencement of the insurrection of Wexford — Re- bels gain an advantage under Father Murphy — Deputation sent to the reJ els — Detachment from Gen, Fawcett surprised — Internal confusion at Wexford — Outrages of the runaway troops — Corey evacuated, and retreat to Arklow — Camp at Vinegar Hill- »Alternatesuccessesof the king's troops and rebels — Siege of New Ftoss — Massacre of ScuUabogue — Father Roche suc- ceeds Harvey in the command — Wicklow insurreciion—Batile of Arklow — Horrors in the town of Wexford- Atrocities of Dixon-— Exertions of the catholic clergy to prevent bloodshed aiid save the lives of the protestauts — Lord Kingsborough taken CONTENTS. Xf by the rebels — Consternation at Wexford on the approach of ihe army — Movements of the army — Battle of Vinegar Hill—- Wexford's ofter to surrender rejected— Wesford occupied by the king's troopsr-Capture of Father Philip Roche — Horrors of the County of Wexford — Arrival of Marquis CornwaUis— ? Jngurrection in IJlster — Insurgency ip the County of Ccjk. CHAP. VIII. Administration of Marquis CornwaUis. /).483 Marquis ComwalHs assumes the Government — Recall of General Jjake, and appoinime-it of General Hunter — First act of the change of system — Final dispersion cf the Wexford insurgents — Jnquisitorial court of Wexford — Dispersion and surrender of the out-standing insurgents— Terms of surrender {.roj -jed through Mr. Dobbs— Trial and execution of several rebel chief» — Some straggUng desperadoes infest the country — Royal mes- sage to parliament — Acts of attainder, amnesty, and indemni- Sfication — System of moderation introduced by Lord CornwaUis — Effects of false information — Humbert l?nds at Killala — Humbert puts General Lake to flight at Castlebar — Lord Corn- wallis marches against the enemy —Progress of the French ge- neral— The French surrender — Consequences of the rebellion — Prorogation of Parliament — Cause of Lord CornwaUis being dishked by the Orangemen — Trial and death of Mr. Theobald Wolfe Tone — Encrease of Orangism, and by what means- first attempt at incorporated union —New division of parties oa the union — Meeting of the bar against union — City of Dublin against union— National ferment about the union — Various re- solutions against union- Parliament meets — Union proposed and opposed in the lords — Debate in the commons, and a ma- jority of one for the imion— Second debate, in which the mi- nisters had a majority of Q against them — Union recommended by the king to the parliament — King's message taken into con- sideration by the British parliament — Mr. Pitt proposes resolu- tions respecting the union — A'^'^^^ss to accompany the resolu- XVI CONTENTS. tlons — Mr. Sheridan opposes the minister, and proposes two resolutions — Mr. Sheridan renews his motion respecting the con- sent of both parliaments — Mr. Sheridan proposes a substitute for union — Conference of the two houses upon the subject of union ' — Mr. Foster's popularity for opposing the union — Adjourn- ment of the Irish parliament, in order to follow up the resolu- tions of the British parliament — Exertions of the Anti-unionists in the country — Parliament meets after adjournment — Lord Cornwallis uses personal influence to forward the union — The measure brotight forward in the British house of lords — Ccmfer- ence with the Commons— Proceedings of the Irish parliament* Motion in favour of Mr, Judkin Fitzgerald — Regency Bill — General measures for and against union — Prorogation of parlia- ment^ and the lord-lieutenant's speech — Internal state of Ire- land— Eiforts to oppose the union— ^How the Catholics acted as to the union — Eflfects of the preparatory steps fer union — Con- •equences of the minister's majority — Meeting of parliament after adjournment — Message from the lord-lieu tepant about union — The plan carried in the peere — Debated in the com- mons — Irish parliament assents to the articles of union — Articles of union brought before the British parliament — CompenSition for Borough property —Union bill passed in the British parliament— Selection of the Union Members — Com- pletion of the union. TUB HISTORY OF IRELAND, FROM THE INVASION OF HENRY II, TO ITS mcORPORATE UNION IVITH GREAT BRITAIN BOOK III. OMPRISING THE PERIOD BETWEEN THE COMPLE- TION OF THE REVOLUTION OF 1688, AND THE DECLARATION OF IRISH INDEPENDENCE, IN THE YEAR 1782. CHAPTER I. The Reigns of PFilliam and Mary, and William* 1 HE revolution, which changed the dynasty, and i^i; ascertained some rights of the British people, which ° r f 5 Revolution had been infringed by the crown, is generally re- in England \ c ' . ^ andlreland ferred to by the date of its commencement m Eng- different. land in 1688. As to Ireland, it was not effected till the surrender of Limerick, which left William and Mary in possession of the whole kingdom. Ire- land did not pass from the hands of James by any VOL, n, B The Reipis of JVilUam and Mary, and fniliam. 1692. revolutionary measure, whether of abdication, invita- tion, or expulsion, but by force of arms. Hence Wil- liam's title arose by right of conquest. This revolution, such as it v^^as, opens to our view a new scene of Irish politics. Whatever civil advantages were gained or established by it in England, vainly do the Irish look up to it as the commencement or improvement of their constitutional liberty. Then, more than ever, v>'as Ireland treated as a conquered country, its independ- ence violated, its national consequence and dignity debased. It appears to have been the systematic policy of the British cabinet of that day, not only to trample on the rights of individuals, through their immediate governors, but to extinguish the very idea of an independent legislature in Ireland *. * Mr. Burke, viewing this situation of liis country as a states- man and a philosoplier, has left a masterly portrait of it. (Letter to Sir Her. Lang. p. 44.) •' By the total reduciion of the king- dom of Ireland in 169I, the ruin of the native Irish, and in a great measure too of the first races of the English, was completely ac- •omplished. The new interest was settled with as solid a stabi- lity as any thing in human aftaiis can look for. All the penal laws of that unparalleled code of oppression, which were made after the last event, were manifestly the effects of national hatred and scorn towards a conquered people, whom the victors delighted to trample upon, and were not at all afraid to provoke. They were not the effects of their fears, but of their security. They, who carried on this system looked to the irresistible force of Great Britain for their support in their acts of power. They were quite certain, that no complaints of ^e natives would be heard on this side of the water with any other sentiments than those of contempt and indignation. Their cries ser\ ed only to augment their torture. Machines, which could answer their purposes so well must be of an excellent con- not ob- served. The Reigns of IViUiam and Mary, and William, 2 Although the articles of Limerick had immediately ^^92. received the sanction of the great seal of England, they Articles of were soon infringed in the face of the Irish nation. ^'™^"'^^ Two months had not elapsed, when, according to the testimony of Harris *, the avowed encomiast of Wil- liam, the lords justices and General Ginckle endea- voured to render the first of those articles of as Httle force as possible, f " The justices of the peace, sheriffs, and other magistrates, presuming on their power in the country, did in an illegal manner dis- possess several of their majesties' subjects not only of trivance. Indeed at that time in England the double name of the complainants, Irish and Papists, (it would be hard to say singly which was the most odious) shut up the hearts of every one against them. Whi'.st that temper prevailed in all its force to a time with- in our memory, every measure was pleasing and popular, just in proportion, as it tended to harass and ruin a set of people, who were looked upon to be enemies to God and man ; and indeed as a race of bigotted savages, who were a disgrace to human nature itself." * Harris's Life of King William, p. 357* f Ibid. 350. " Capel, Lord Justice, in 1693, proceeded as far as it was in his power to infringe the articles of Li- merick. " It appears also from a letter of the Lords Jus- tices of the 19th of November, 169I, "■ that their lord- ships had received complaints from all parts of Ireland, of the ill- treatment of the Irish, wlio had submitted, had their majesties protection, or were included in articles : and that they were so extremely terrified with apprehensions of the continuance of that usage, that some thousands of them, who had quitted the Irish army, and went home with a resolution not to go to France, were then come back again, and pressed earnestly to go thi- ther, rather than stay in Ireland, where contrary to the public faith as well as law and justice, tbey were robbed of their sub- stance and abused in their persons." B2 4 The Reigns of JlllUam and Maryy and JVilliam. \6g2. tlieir goods and chattels, but of their lands and tene- ments, to the great disturbance of the peace of the kingdom, subversion of the law, and reproach of their majesties* government." William There is no question, but that Kino; William was not natur- i 7 o aiiyintoie- infinitely more tolerant in his principles and dispo- sition than the English and Irish protestants, who urged him to excesses of rigor and persecution against the conquered Irish. He abhorred the system ; but was forced to yield. Although he had been most anxious to secure the sovereignty of the British em- pire by the final subjugation of Ireland, yet he was too much of the warrior, not to esteem those most whopi he found it the most difficult to subdue. He did not, after having reduced Ireland by force of his own arms, consider it merely a conquest for the purposes of parliamentary appropriation. His Ma- jesty's mind had not yet been accustomed to the re- strictions, which the English constitution threw around the will of the sovereign. The tories flattered him more than the whigs, and he had throv/n himself into the arms of the former. Differences . The relative feelings of William and his English between . William parliament towards each other, and towards Ireland English are more illustrated by the address presented to the King by the English House of Commons, and his Majesty's unsatisfactory answer to itj than by a volume of detail. Sir Francis Brewster, and some other persons had been induced to give very strong evi- dence before the English House of Commons of the various abuses then practised by the government of TJie Reigns of JVilliam and Mary, and ffllliam, Ireland, upon which an address of the Commons to 1692. the throne was voted *. * This evidence is to be seen in (he journals of the English House of Commons for I692, p. 826 to S33. The following i& the address, with the King's answer. " We, your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Com- mons in parliament assembled, having taken into our serious con- sideration the state of your Majesty's kingdom of Ireland, find ourselves obliged by our duty to your Majesty, with all faithful- ness and zeal to your service, to lay before your Majesty the great abuses and mismanagement of the affairs of that kingdom. " By exposing your protestant subjects to the misery of fre« quarters, and the licentiousness of the soldiers to the great op- pression of tlie people ; which we conceive hath been occasioned chitfly by the want of that pay, which we did hope we had fully provided for. " By recruiting your Majesty's troops with Irish papists, and such persons, who were in open rebellion against you, to the great endangering and discouraging of your Majesty's good and loyal protestant subjects in that kingdom. *' By granting protections to the Irish papists, whereby pro- testants are hindered from their legal remedies, and the course ot law stopt. " By reversing outlawries for high treason against several re- bels in that kingdom, not within the articles of Limerick, to the great discontent of your protestant subjects there. "■ By letting the forfeited estates at under rates, to the preju- dice of your Majesty's revenue. <' By the great embezzlement of your Majesty's stores, in the towns and garrisons of tliat kingdom, left by the late King James, " And by the great embezzlements, which have been made in the forfeited estates and goods, which might have been employed for the safety and better preservation of your Majesty's kingdom. We crave leave to represent to your Majesty, that the addition to the articles of Limerick, after the same were finally agreed to and B 3 The Reigns of jniUam and Marjj, and William. Few parts of the history of Ireland have been more Ne-ociation <3istorted by misrepresentation, than the articles of Scfe/of" Limerick and Gal way. Sir Richard Cox, the courtly Limerick, historian of Ireland, bore a prominent part in the signed, and the. town thereupon surrendered, hath been a very great encouragement to tlie Irish papists, and a weakening to the Enghsh interest there. " Having thus, most gracious sovereign, out of our aftect'onafe zeal to your Majesty's service, with all humble submission to your great wisdom, laid before you the.se abuses and mismanagements in your kingdom cf Ireland, we most humbly beseech your jNIa- jastv for redress thereof. " That the soldiers may be paid their arrears, and the country what is due to them for quarters ; and that no Irish papist may ser\^e in your army there. *•■ An4 forasmuch as the reducing of Ireland hath been of great expense to tliis kingdom, we do also humbly beseech your Ma- jest}', that (according to the assurance your Majesty has been pleased to give us) no grant may be made of the forfeited estates in Ireland, tUl there be an opportuniiy of settling that matter in parliament, in such manner, as shall be thought most expe- dient. ** That the tme account of the escheats, and forfeited estates both real and personal, and stores left by the late King James, may be laid before the Commons in parliament, to the end that the said escheats, forfeitures, and stores, and the embezzlements thereof, may be enquired into. *' That no outlawries of any rebels in Ireland may be reversed, or pardons granted to them, but by the advice of your parliament j and that no protection may be granted to any Irish papist to stop the course of justice. " And as to the additfonal article, which opens so v/ide a pas- sage to the Irish papists, to come and repossess themselves cf the estates, which they had forfeited by their rebellion ; we most \i\imbly beseech your Majesty, that the articles of Limerick, with The Reig7is of fVilliam and Mary, and fVilUam. ' secret manoeuvring of this memorable transaction*. ^^9^, William and his allies were engaged in a war in Flanders against the French monarch. It was not possible, while the King's troops were diverted by the war in Ireland, that his Majesty should so suc- cessfully proceed in Flanders^ as was wished by his friends. The King, therefore, hoping to put a speedy end to the Irish war^ sent to the lords justices in- structions for a declaration, assuring the Irish of much more favourable and extensive conditions than they afterwards obtained by the ardcles of Lime- rick. His Majesty's instrucdons had been reduced into a proclaniadon, which was afterwards stiied the the said addition, may be laid before your Commons in parlia- ment, that the manner of obtaining the same may be inquired into ; to the end it vnzy appear by what means the said articles were so engaged ; and to what value the estates thereby obtained do amount. " Thus may it please your MaJMty, we your most dutiful and loyal subjects do lay these matters in all humility before you : and as your ]Majesty ha« been pleased to give us such gracious as- surances ot your readiness to comply with us, in any thing, that may tend to the peace and security of this kingdom, we doubt not of your Majesty's like grace and favour tc that of Ire- land 5 in the safety and preservation whereof, this your Majesty's kingdom is so much concerned." To which address his Majesty returned this prudent answer : *' Gentlemen, " I shall always have great consideration of what comes from the House of Commons ; and I shall take great care that what is amiss shall be remedied." * Sir James Ware* Writers of Ireland, by Harris. Dub. Ed. 3763, p. 2H> B 4 8 \a)'y%/ The Reigns of William and Mary^ and JVilliam, l^^ secret proclamation ; because, though printed, it never was published. The Lords Justices, finding Lime- rick reduced to a capitulation, smothered the prpcla- mation, of which they thought there would then be no need, and went in haste to the English camp, that they might hold the Irish to as hard terms as the King's affairs would admit of. Tliis they did ef- fectually, and put an end to a war, which had nearly destroyed the Idngdom. Soon after, a party sprang up, that loudly exclaimed against these articles. The most interested and intriguing of that party quarrelled with the articles for no other reason, but because they were disappointed in their expectations of raising great fortunes out of the forfeit ires by their interest or their money. These easily drew in the greater part of the protestantSj ignorant of the true motives, which induced the government to grant the articles, and full of resentment against the catholics, to engage on the popular side of the question. They thought no articles should be made with the Irish, but what would expose them to the severest events of war; and, therefore, when they understood, that the catho- lics in the Irish quarters were to enjoy their estates, and be received as subjects, with some privileges as to oaths and religion, they refrained not from censuring the Lords Justices, and the General, as if the King and kingdom had been betrayed ; and insisted, tliat the articles ought not to be observed ; and that it \va?, high treason even to capitulate with the King. On the other hand, the more moderate men thought it for his Majesty's honour, both abroad and at home. The Beigns of William and JSIary^ and PnUiam. that the articles should be observed strictly ; and in- deed the government always received instructions from the King to adhere strictly to them, for his word and honour ivere engaged^ ivh'ich he never 7uoiild forfeit. A different proceeding might have disobliged many of his allies. And even if liis honour had not been ■ concerned, it was thought sound policy to give the Irish the full benefit of their articles^ at least during the war. For the French soon discovered their errn; in having neglected Ireland so much, Vvhen so con- siderable a part of the natives was in arms to assist them ; and therefore projected a new invasion eveiy year, and, without doubt, wo.uld have been delighted to see the Irish exasperated by so gross a deceit of the government, as a breach of the articles w^ould have been. War was declared between the opposite parties from The articles ,. ,^,, rivTi 1 contested the pulpit. The Bishop or Meath was so vehement, fn.m the that the very next Sunday, after the lords justices re- turned from the camp, preaching before the govern- ment at Christchurch, he argued, that the peace ought not to be observed with a people so perfidious ; that, they kept neither articles nor oaths longer than was for their interest, and that therefore, these articles, which were intended for a security, would prove a snare, and would only enable the rebels to renew their jnsurrection. To obviate this doctrine, the Bishop of Kildare mounted the pulpit the following Sunday, and shewed the obhgation of keeping public faith, and withal spoke more favourably of the catholics than most protestants thought they descr\ ed. Though 10 The Reigns of JVlUiam and Mari/, and JVilUam, 1692 it were believed, that the fiist bishop intended not the direct breach of faith, but to have so strict a hand kept over the catholics, as might disable them from rebehing again : and though the latter bishop were well known to have no partiaUty to the catholics, nor to intend more, than to vindicate the government, both in making and observing the ar- ticles ; yet both were highly censured by the different parties: and the Bishop of I\Ieath's behaviour was so displeasing to the King, that he was discharged from the council, and the Bishop of Kildare, for his mo- deration, put in his place. The contest of the two bishops was moderated by the ingenious interference ot D,.an Synge, who preached from the same pulpit, where the ditlerence had been first propagated, on these words. Keep peace nitli all men, if it be pos- sible ; asserting, that the catholics were not to be trusted, but the articles were to be performed ; that they deserved no favour, yet they were entitled to justice, even for the sake of conscience and honour. ?;irRichaid Sir Rlchard Cox w^as, through the whole affair, Cos's con- ^ dLict in fe- in the secret of e;overnment ; and although he had, fererce to >_ . o the articles uDon Ms owH authority, suppressed the first and ef Limerick. ^ J ■> i r more favourable articles, yet he too well knew the feelings of his sovereign to attempt to suppress or wave the second, or less favourable articles, which were known to and approved of by William. Sir Richard Cox's ambition was to attain the great seal of Ireland, to which he had no other prospect of ar- riving but by the personal favour of h.'s sovereign. With this view he curbed his own disposition, which The Reigns of William and Mary, and JJ'lUlam. 1 1 was decidedly hostile to any concession to the catho- 1692. lies, and upon all open occasions was, during the life of William, a professed supporter of the articles of Limerick*. Being thoroughly sensible that the con- cessions made bv the open articles of Limerick fell very short of those contained in the secret proclamation. Sir Richard Cox, in proportion as h? valued himself for having procured terms so much less disadvantafTeous to Enfrland than those which William, by the advice of his council, had consented to grant, was anxious to suppress from the knowledge of the public the loss which the Irish had suffered by his manoeuvre, lest disappointment and despair might throw them again into resistance, and so deprive the King of the advantages he proposed to himself by transporting his army to Flanders. The v/hole mass of the printed proclamations, containing the more fa- vourable articles, which were on the eve of being published and circulated, was cautiouslv destroved. The particulars of these suppressed articles have not reached posterity. There are, however, accounts of the proposals made in the preceding month of July to the Irish shortly before the decisive battle of Aghrim , which, if not precisely the same as vvere comprised in the suppressed proclamation, cannot be supposed, in * " In the case of the Galway-men be made so eloquent a speech, insisling so strongly on the heinousness of breaking public faith, on the in_iratit.ude it would cany with it to their great deliverer, as well as to the good General, who had granted those conditions, that he brovight the rest of the commissioners to his opinion, and saved the estates of the claimants." H^ir. ubi sup'a. 1 2 The Reikis of JVllliam and Mary^ and William, iGf)2. the short space of three months, to have been much altered. Ihat battle was fought on the 12th of July, and the articles of Limerick were signed on the 3d of the ensuing October. William William was touched with the fate of a gallant nation, had offered . . . _, . nioreiavor- that had inadc itself a victim to l^'rench promises, and able terms »o the Irish, had been insidiously encouraged to resistance by France, for the purpose of advancing the French con- quests in the Netherlands by means of a diversion, which employed 40,000 of the best troops of the grand alliance oF Augsburgh. He was naturally anxious to lind himself at the head of the confederate army •with so strong a remforcement. In this anxiety he offered to Tyrconnel the following terms for the Irish cathol/cs : 1 . The free exercise of their relioion. o 2. Half the churches of the kingdom. 3. Half the tmployments civil and military, if they pleased. 4. The moiety of their ancient properties. These pro- posals, though they were to have, been sanctioned by an English act of parliament, were rejected with uni- versal contempt *. •* See the before-mentioned letter to Dean Swift from Sir Charles Wogan, a nephew of the Duke of Tyrconnel, to whom the proposals were mane. He was a man of information and consi- derable talent: was bred to arms, and followed the fortunes of his • sovereign into exile. He was well received at most of the courts of Europe, and trom the correspondence between him and Dean Sw ift, he appears to have bien holdeii in respect and esteem by the Dean. The oft'cr of these concessions by ^^'lllinm to the Irish catholics affords a volume of observation and instruction upon the important question of catiiolic emancipation 5 which lias been repeatedly brought before the parliament of the united kingdom;, The Reigns of JVHliam and Manj, and JfTdiam. 13 Of such slight Importance in the eyes of the Eng- l^S'^- lish were the articles of Lirnerick, (such even as they Effects of ' ttie revolu- and rejected by great majorities, upon the prt^tence of its being a violation of the coronation oath, an extinction of the established rcHgion, and an infraction of the constitution. The reader will bear in remembrance, that William, on the i3th of February, ]6S9, took the same coronation oath with his present Majesty; that it then bore the same meaning, and induced the same obliga- tions as at present. That the conscience of King William was then in the hands of Serjeant Maynard, Sir Anthony Keck, and Sir Wilaam Rawlinson : and his cabinet composed of persons, to whose constitutional spirit and experience posterity has ever since looked up with veneration. That William himself, who came over to preserve the liberties of church and state, and restore the constitution to its purity, was little likely (so soon at least) to counteract the ends for which he had been placed on the British throne. Yet he was advised, and as far as depended on him, con- ceded to the Irish infinitely more than has ever been asked by the petitioners for emancipation. Not only was he ready to grant th« free exercise of their religion, but half the churches of Ireland. The petitioners ask for no particle of the emoluments of the esta- blishment. William offered half ihe employments civil and mili- tary : the petitioners ask, that his Majesty may not be restrained from appointing or calling into employment such persons, whose signal merits may be conducive to the honour and welfare of their king and countr}'. Eventually ore appointment might not be made in half a century. The petitioners for emancipation neither ask nor expect to be restored to any of the inheritances of iheir ancestors ; William proposed and agreed to give ihem a moiety of their ancient properties. The concession and confirmation of these boons to the Irish, so. far exceeding- the extent of the petition for emancipation, pro- ceeded from the King, who must be presumed thoroughly advised by his great Whig counsellors, who at that time rather coerced. than directed his Majesty's conduct, particularly in all that re- garded Ireland, It would be a sony compliment, either to cur tion on the liish. The Reigns of William and JSlarij, and JFiUiarn. ultimately were), that both government and parlia- ment seemed to assume merit for the undisguised in- fraction of them. Reduced, as they had been, below the original intent and actual proposal of Wil- liam to the Irish, still were they boasted of by the friends of James, as the most advantageous terms of capitulation recorded in the annals of vi^ar ; and for that very reason they were condemned by the Irish great delivere'-, or to the great political characters, who brought about and scllled the revolution to assume, that these proposals U't re made with a direct view of ensnaring the Irish into terms, with a reserved intention of violating them after they had been ovvQ granted. The Irish, however, mistrusted and rejected them. Ti>nen Danans el dona ferentes Sir Charles Wogan, in the above- mentioned letter, thus speaks to Dean Swift of the feelings of his exiled countrymen, upon this rejection, at the distance of thirty vear-i trom the trdns:icii;in, when tliose young ardent minds, that had b'^rne a part in that urfortunate warfare in Ireland, had at- tained the maturity and exfjerience of threescore years : " Yet the exiles, in the midst of their hard usage abroad, could not be brought to repent of their obstinacy. Whenever I pressed them upon the matt( r, their answer was generally to this purpose: If F.riglund can break her public Jail h in regaid of the wretched ar- tii les of Limerick, by keeping up a perpetual tenor and persecution over that parcel of miserable, unarmed peasantry and dastard geri" try we have left at home, tcithnnt any other apology or pretence for ■'U, but her rvan ton fears and jealousies : JVhat could have been ex- pCiteil bif the men oj true vigour and spirit, if they had remained in their country, but a cruel tvar under greater disadvantages, or $n h an universal massacre as our fathers have often been threnttned u-itii by the confederate rebels of Great Britain ? Ad quod nonfuit responsum. Yet their liberty and glory is but the price of their blood } and-*even at that expense, they have only purchased & more honourable haicL.'ama." The Reigns of JViUiam and Mary^ and IfU/iam. protestants, and some of the more violent Whigs in England, as dishonourable to the arms of William and unjust to his friends in Ireland. In no sense could the revolution of 1688 be termed any thing else as to the Irish but a mere conquest, and a conquest of the harshest nature, inasmuch as it was not followed up by a pariicipation of civil rights and liberties by the conquerors and conquered, but acted upon as a I new ground for imposing additional severities upon ^ the former grievances of the vanquished. " It was / (as Mr. Burke observed, in defiance of the principles :;»f our revolution) the establishment of the power of •le smaller number, at the expense of the civil liber- ties and properties of the far greater, and at the ex- / \pense of the civil liberties of the whole.'* / Upon the circumstances of a g-reat nation's reco- / _ ^ ^ ^ England vering from the agonies of a long and bloody contest, usurps th« it might have been expected, that some things should si-^i^tins^-f ^ Ireland. have been necessarily attempted by the executive, before the legislative power could be conveniently assembled to ratify and confirm them. But although Ireland, as an independent kingdom, claimed, under William, the same rights, which it had enjoyed under his predeces- sors, yet the parliament of England, at this time, usurped the absolute right of legislating for Ireland, in as uncontrouled a manner, as if Ireland had no parliament of its own. Thus, in the year 1G91, be- fore William had convened an Insh parliament, the English parliament passed an act to alter the laws of Ireland, upon the most essential and fundamental lights of the subject, by excluding the Roman Catho, 16 The Reigns of IVilUaTn and Mary, and JJiUlam. iCx)2. lies, who then composed the decided majority of the " ' nation, from a seat in either liouse of parliament** And when a mere protectant parliament had been convened in the year 1G92, so little satisfied with it was the parliament of England, that it continued its legislative encroachments, by enacting whatever laws it thought proper for regulating and settling the legal, civil, military, and ecclesiastical departments in Ireland, for checking their commerce and disposing i of their property. ' Ab'ect state ^he catholics beinsr thus shut out of parliament, ^ of the Iri'^h ^^ ciuhoUcs. were no longer seen in the field of politics. They were never brought under the consideration of government. but as objects of some additional severity. Thei^ penal code was sharpened. The bulk of the natioiy , had a physical not a political existence. In the higher orders, the progress of the reformation had latterly been m.uch extended. The English, now domiciliated in Ireland, were from plantations, forfeitures, and other causes surprizingly multiplied. The Irish pro- testants and the resident English, whose grand struggle in the former reigns had been to acquire an ascend- ancy over the old nartive catholic Interest of the cour- try, now began to consider themselves an independent nation. Although the revolution did not let in the Iiish immediately to those civil rights and liberties Viz. 3 William and JMary, c. ii. An Act for Abrogating the Oath of Supremacy in Ire'and, and appobiting other Oaths. It must also be remarked, that the lllh section of tliis act contains an exception of persons comprised in the articles of Limerick, uhich amounts to a lesrislative recogmtion of them. The Reigns of JVilUam and Mary, and JVilliam, 17, which It imparted or secured to England, yet it en- kindled a spirit of freedom, which disposed many of those, who partook of the state to insist upon the constitutional rights of Irishmen ; a claim new to an Irish parliament I The supporters of the Whioj interest in Ireland dif- Irish differ- ^ ^ " ^ ^ rent from fered from those who forwarded the revolution in English Whigs, England in principle, in action, and in views. The Irish Whigs of that day were the relicks of the Oli- verian party, avowing no other principle than that of retaining monopoly of power in the few over the 'bulk of the nation, and acting thereon with an arbi- trary severity, which riveted the physical power of the country in resistless thraldom. It is important to trace the workings of these Whigs of 1649 upon the Irish nation, and to discriminate between their political conduct towards their country, and that of another prorestant party, which has from time to time endear voured to set up the genuine principles of the English revolution, against the systematic abuse of them by it's protestant opponents in Ireland*. Of the former de- scription were the persons! whom the King appointed the first lords-justices. They \ "^ discovered an arbi- trary spirit, and great partiality in the dispensation of * Out of this ground of difference arises the modern distinctiou between the true constitutional Whig and Orangeman of Trehind.. to which, in the proper time and order, I must draw the attention of my reader. f They were Lord Viscount Sydney,, Sir Charles Porter, and Thomas Coningsby, Esq. * Sommerv. Hist, vol, I. p. 486. VOL. IL C T jpt^ IS The Reigns of tVUliam and Mary, and iVllUam, 1692. justice: the trial of crimes was often conducted in a *-*^^^' summary way, and without regard to the essential forms of law : evidence was suppressed with the con- nivance of the judges: the principal transgressors were acquitted, whilst those who acted under their direction and influence suffered the extreme vengeance of the laws. But in no case did the management of the justices appear more iniquitous and oppressive, than in regard to the Irish forfeitures. The most beneficial leases were not only retained for themselves and their friends, but in the competition for estates and farms, the lowest bidders were sometimes preferred, which unavoidably led to the suspicion of secret compensa- tion being made them for flagrant breach of trust. These misdemeanours, and the grievances occasioned by them, produced complaints and disafFections, which were made the groand of specific charges, presented to the legislature in both kingdoms. Enquiries were instituted ; Important discoveries were made ; but the extreme Intrrcacy and tediousness of this business, the private concerns of the parties in England, and the in- dustry of powerful individuals, who were not them- selves free from all accession \.o the guilt alleged, prevented any effectual redress of public abuses, and the punishment of state delinquents." Lord Syd- Lord Sydney, having been created lord-lieutenant, veiiesapar- immediately Issued writs and convened a parliament; the primary object of which was to raise supplies to discharge the debts contracted during the war. There had been no parliament in Ireland, (except that which sat under James) for the last twcnty-six years: and The Reigns of IVilliam and Mary, and JVilliam. 19 although the parliament of England had undertaken 1S9^» to legislate for Ireland on the most miportant matters of state, yet had it not proceeded to the extent of raising money directly upon the people of Ireland. The Irish parliament could not be insensible of the encroachments made on their independence ; they felt their consequence, and manifested by their conduct their resentment against the measures of government. The commons consented to grant a sum not exceed- ing 70,000/- pleading the inability of the people froni the calamities of the late wars to encrease the grant. They considered it to be their indisputable right to determine in the first instance both the sum and the manner of raising every supply granted to the crown.' In violation of this privilege, two money-bills, which, had not originated with them, had been transmitted from England, and laid before the house of commons. To resent this encroachment upon their privileges, they rejected one of them, and from the extreme urgency of the case alone consented to pass the other ; but not without having entered veiy pointed resolutions upon their journals in support of their rights*. His excellency was highly enraged at these resolu- lordSyj- tions, and in his speech upon proroguing the parlia- mands and ment sererely reprimanded them for having, in theparha^ contravention of the design of their meeting, unduti- fuUy and ungratefully invaded their Majesties prero- * II Journ. 28. 2Ist of October, \6g2. These resolutbnfi are to be seen in my Hist, Review, vol. T. p. 200. C 2 2^ The Reigns of tFilliam and Marij, and JViUiam, l^^' gative. The commons requested permission to send commissioners to England, m order to lay a full and impartial statement of their conduct before their Ma- jesties ; when they were tauntingly assured by the lord-lieutenant, that thei/ might go to England to beg their Majesties* pardon for their seditious and riotous assemblies. The lord-lieutenant, in justification of his conduct, procured the opinion of the judges against the right which the commons claimed of origin • ating money-bills in their house. This unexpected and ungracious prorogation created general discon- tent: several bills of importance remained to be per- fected, and several grievances to be redressed. Sydney became unpopular ; and government found it prudent to recall him. Sydney re- UpoH the rcmoval of Loi'd Sydney, the govern- Changesin mcnt w^as vcstcd in three justices. Lord Capel, Sir the govern- ment, and a Cyril Wyche, and Mr. Buncombe. Difference of new parlia- . . t j> • i •» • , . i mem con- prm^ipJe disunited their government, which shortly after v/as concentered in Lord Capel, as lord-deputy. He best knew the disposition and wishes of the Eng- lish cabinet, and warmly espoused the interest of the English settlers, and as eagerly opposed the claims of the Lish under the articles of Limerick. Sir Cyril Wyche and Mr. Duncombe, regardless of court-fa- vour, sought impartially to give full efiect to the articles of Limerick, upon wuich the court-party and the protestants in general looked with a jealous eye, as prejudicial to their interest. The inflexibility of Wyche and Duncombe soon worked their removal : and the accommodating zeal of Capel enabled him to vened. his probity. The Reigns of Ullliam cmd Mary^ and JVilliam, 21 displace all those, who thwarted his designs. Several l^^ changes were made ill the administration, and a new parh'ament was convened. The business of this session was at first undls- Newsession turbed, and the supplies, which had been required, ment, in were quietly granted. Several penal statutes were chariesPor- - . , . . • 1 r ter was con- enacted, without any opposition, against the catno- spicuousfor lies * ; some of which were in direct contravention to the articles of Limerick. Yet a law was made in this parliament for the confirmation of these very articles!; but which in fact was an abridgment, rather than a con- firmation of them in several Instances;];. Notwith- standing the tide of courtly prejudice against the tend- * Such were. An Act to restrain foreign Education, 7 William and Mary, c. iv. An Act for the better securing the Government, by disarming Papists, 7 William and Mary, c. v. An Act for ba- nishing all Papists exercising any Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction, and all Regulars of the Popish Clerg}' out of the Kingdom, 9 William III. c. i. An Act to prevent Protestants intermarrying with Papists^ Q William, c. iii. An Act to prevent Papists being Solicitors, 10 William, c. xiii. f An Act for the Confirmation of Articles, made at the Sur- render of the City of Limerick, 9 William III. c ii. X Whilst this bill was pending, a petition was presented by Mr. Cahusac and some few, on behalf of themselves and others com- prised in the articles of Limerick, setting forth, that in the bill there were several clauses, that would frustrate the petitioners of the benefit of the same : and, if passed into a law, would turn to the ruin of some, and the prejudice of all persons entitled to the benefit of the said articles, and praying to be heard by counsel to the said matters : which having been presented and read, it was unanimously resolved, that the said petition should be rejected. II Journ. Com. p. 194. q3 23 The Reigns of William and Mary, and William, 1695. encY and observance of these articles. Sir Charles Porter, the chancellor, nobly dared to stand up m support of them. This conduct of the chancellor brought upon him the whole vengeance of the castle. The lord-deputy is reported, with the assistance of his friends and creatures, to have procured a charge to be fabricated against him, accusing him of designs hostile to government. In support of the accusation, a motion was made in the House of Com- I mons, but on being heard in his own justification, he was most honourably acquitted. inconsist- However strenuous in the cause of freedom our an- duct of cestors may have been at the revolution, the unbiassed OoTcrn- . . ^ , . . . , . mcnt to- mind questions the purity or their patriotism, when it lapd. contemplates the English parliament and government opposing that very liberty iirireland, which they so warmly espoused in England. The fermentation of the two kingdoms became alarming. It was no longer a contest between a conqueror and an op- pressed people reclaiming their natural, civil, or re- ligious rights. The bulk of the nation was so dispi- rited and reduced under their sufferings, that their feeble moans were scarcely heard on their own shores, much less across St. George's Channel : they existed only as the passive objects of persecution. 'I he con- flict was with that very protestant ascendancy in Ire- land, which it had been the primary policy of the Eng- lish cabinet for the last century to establish, and which now only had been effectually accomplished. It was impossible that civil liberty should make the progress \X did in England, and that Ireland should be inQr^ T^ie Reigns ofJFHliam and Mary, and JVilliam^^ S'a than Insensible of its blessings. The Irish legisla- 1^98. ture was called upon to surrender and renounce those very rights, which the English parliament had so gloriously asserted. Mr. Molyneux, one of the mem- bers for the university of Dublin, was the most for* ward in the cause of Irish patriotism. In 1698, he pub- lished his famous book, intituled The Cause of Ire- land's being hound by Acts of Parliament in England stated, which greatly encreased his reputation, influ-^ ence, and popularity, within and without the parlia- ment of Ireland. This book was written In a stmin of independent General discussion and spirited assertion, to which Ireland had o" m^."mq. hitherto been a stranger. The author considered how b'cTok!'^ * Ireland originally became annexed to the crown of England ; how far this connection was founded in con- quest; what were the true and lawful rights of the conquerors over the conquered ; and whether those rights, whatever they might be, extended to posterity indefinitely ; particularly, what concessions had been made to Ireland ; and what were the opinions of the learned, who had handled the subject. He closed with strong inferences in support of the perfect and reci? procal independence of each kingdom. * The English House of Commons took up the Conduct of gauntlet with a high hand : a committee was appointed pa^amen? to examine Mr. Molyneux's book, and to report such neux'fb°oob passages as they should find denying the authority Qf the parliament of England, and also what proceed- * Speech of the Earl of Clare, p. 23. C 4 2-i The Reigns of William and Mary ^ and JFiUiam, ^^W 3698. ings had taken place in Ireland, that might have oc- casioned the said pamphlet. On the 22d of June, 1698, the committee reported the obnoxious passages, and stated, that on enquiry into the proceedings in Ireland, which might have occasioned the pamphlet, they found in a bill transmitted under the great seal of Ireland, during the late parliament there, intituled, "" A bill for the better security of her Majesty's person and govern- ment," that the whole of an act passed in England for abrogating the oath of supremacy in Ireland, and ap- pointing other oaths, had been re-enacted with some al- terations ; and that in the same bill, the crown of Ire- land was stiled the imperial crown of Ireland. Upon this report, the House resolved, nemine contradicente, *■' that the book published by Mr. Molyneux was of dangerous tendency to the crown and people of Eng- land, by denying the authority of the King and par- liament of England to bind the kingdom and people of Ireland, and the subordination and dependance that Ireland had and ought to have upon England as being united and annexed to the imperial crown of Eng- land." They resolved also, '' that the bill lately trans- mitted from Ireland, whereby an act of parliament made in England expressly to bind Ireland is pre- tended to be re-enacted, had given occasion and en- couragement to forming and publishing the dangerous positions contained in the said book.". The house in a body presented an address to the King, enlarging in terms of great indignation on the book and its pernicious assertions, and on the dangerous tendency of the proceedings of the Irish parliament j besyech-. TJie Reigns of Jniliam and Marij, and JVilUam, 25 Ing his Majesty "to exert his royal prudence to prevent ifios. their being drawn into example, and to take all necessary care, that the laws, which directed and restrained the parliament of Ireland in their act- ings, should not be evaded j" and concluding with an assurance of their ready concurrence and assistance in a parliamentary way, to preserve and maintain the dependance and subordination of Ireland to the Impe- rial crown of England. The King answered, " that he would take care, that what was complained of should be prevented and redressed as the Commons dtsired." Thus were the parliaments of the two coun- tries at issue. It has been the fate of Ireland to experience more ovcrbenr- harshness from the English government, than any other oAhe Eng- part of the British empire : on none has the hand of mcnt to- the conqueror pressed so heavily. The inflexible ad- laud. herence of the Irish to their old rehgion has been gene- rally, not without some reason, assigned as the cause of it. Yet singular it is, that under a sovereign, who was called over by the nation as the assertor and protector of their rights and liberties, and under the first Irish parliament, which consisted purely of protestant mem- bers, the absolute paramount sovereignty of England was more loftily claimed and sternly exerted, than at any subsequent period. The laws, by which the English legislature prohibited the exportation of wool and woollen manufactures from Ireland, upon pain of confiscation, imprisonment, and trans- portation, and by which no acquittal in that kingdom of any oiFcnce against these statutes was allowed 26 1693. William thvyarted by hishng- lis-h pailia- meat. The Reirptsof IViU'iam and Mary, and iniliam, to be pleaded in bar of any indictment upon them within the kingdom of England, were considered as grievous usurpations upon the independent constitu- tional * rights of Ireland. The English parliament's interference also with the Irish forfeitures created a new and most inveterate ground of jealousy and ran- cour between the two legislatures. Although William had been called to the British throne for the avowed purpose of protecting the civil rights and liberties of the nation,yet no monarch was ever more thwarted by his parliament in his views and inclina- tions towards his subjects. It might be unfair to charge him with the odium of several public measures, which the violence of party compelled him to yield to. The strong measure of withholding the royal assent from bills, that had passed the two Houses of Parliament, could not be expected from William, who so pecu- liarly held his crown by parliamentary tenure. On no occasion were his feelings so severely wounded by the impenous ascendancy of his English parliament, as on passing the act for resuming the forfeited estates ia Ireland. "William had exercised his discretion in making grants of the forfeited lands in Ireland to several^ who had either deserved well of their country * It evidently contradicts the first principles of our constitu- tional jurisprudence, that a free subject, after having been tried upon a penal stalute in his own country, and acquitted, should be dragged to a foieign land, to undergo a second trial for the same offence, without the advantage of a jury of his countrymen and peers, and probably without witnesses for his defence, or re-, gources for his support. The Reigns of TVilliam and Mary, and JVilUam. 27 or had acquired interest at court. The commons of 1^598. England were jealous of the King's favours^ and charged his Majesty with the breach of promise, that he would not grant away any of those lands, but per- mit them to be sold for the use of the public^ in order to clear the heavy expenses of the late war. They accordingly resolved to set aside the seventy-six grants he had made. By act of the English parliament*^ a commission of Pariiamciit- aiy coin seven persons was instituted to enquire into the value nii^sion for of the forfeited estates, which had been disposed of, into the va - and into the reasons upon which they had been forfei e which appear in the journals of parliament. Multiplied instances occurred almost every session of the abuse and perversion of power by magistrates and justices of the peace : the frauds of contractors, and the monstrous cruelties inflicted by officers in the recruiting service, which exhibit a complexion of manners little re- moved from barbarism." f Thus Curry speaks of The Act to prevent the further Growth of Popery, vol. II. page 234. "" A penal statute, through which there runs such a vein of ingenious cruelty, that it seems to be dictated rather by some praetor of Dioclesian, than by a British or Irish nobleman." % Lords' Journ, p. 85; Burnett confirms this statement of the 42 The Reipi of Amu 3/04. year*, they assured her Majesty of their unshaken fide- lity to her person,, crown, and government : and as they were inseparably annexed to the Imperial crown of England, so were they resolved to oppose all at- tempts that might be made by Scotland, or any other nation whatsoever, to divide them from it, or defeat the succession in the protestant Hne, as Hmited by several acts of parliament J. The penal Durinsf the whole reiern of Oueen Ann the penal laws exe- o o r^ i cuted with j^ws Were executed with unrelenting severity against seventy o jo against the ^athujics. Lords. " The Commons, (says he) offered this bill to the Duke of Ormond, pressing him with more than usnal vehemence to inter- cede so effectually, that it might be returned back under the great seal of England. It came over warmly recommended by the Duke of Oimond," Hist. vol. II. page 214. * Ibid, page 9I, t The connection of matter, rather than the order of time, points out under what species of influence Ireland has from time ,to time been oppressed. Although strong symptoms of disaffection or disloyalty appeared in Scotland in the year 1704, to which the address of the Lords Referred, yet no history has charged the Irish with having been concerned in them, or even in the subsetjuent re- bellions of 17 15 or of 17-15. Yet upon the breaking out of that in 1715, the Commons of Ireland, in their address to the crown on that occasion, expressed that " it was with the utmost concern they found, that this country (Ireland) had given birth to Jaiues Duke of Ormond, a person, wl:o in despite of his allegiance and the obligations of repeated oaths, had been one of the chief authors and fomenters of that wicked and tmnatural rebellion." No terms can be too strong to express the hypocritical and traitorous conduct of this debased nobleman. Although it be ditticult to account for the wanton and malicious cfiiehy, with which he riveted the galling yoke of persecution qu The Reign of Ann. 4$ • the catholics. It was the current, though unwise J^^^ policy of that day, to consider the Roman Catholics as enemies to the crown and government of the realm. The Earl of Pembroke, lord-lieutenant in 1706, recommended to the Irish parliament to provide for the security of the realm a^^ainst their foreign and^ domestic enemies, meaning by the latter, the body o- Catholics : for he subjoined, that he was commanded - to inform them, that her Majesty, considering the num- ber of Papists in Ireland, would be ghJ of an expe- dient to strengthen the interest of her Protestant subjects in that kingdom. It was impoliiic and dangerous to treat any portion of the population as enemies j and the surest method of making or keeping them hostile. The resistance of so much provocation to rebellion, as such a principle when acted upon must have produced, is a marked test of the steady loyalty and peaceful demeanour of the Irish Catholics from the revolution to the accession of his present Majesty, under whom they first had the happiness of being con- sidered no longer as enemies. The parliament of England seemed at this period to impolitic government of Ireland, the necks of his unoffending countrymen, by encouraging that ferocious act of Ann, yet he rendered justice to their fidelity by not even attempting to turn the influence of the landlord over a numerous tenantry, or of the governor over thi de- pendants of the castle, to the desperate purpose of shaking their well-known and tried loyalty. An honourable, though forced tes- timony of the steady allegiance of the Irish nation, in which not z single arm was publickly raised in favour of the Stuarts against the Panoyer jiuccession^ 44 The Reign of Ann. i;o;. The Irish house of commons inveterate against the catholics. consider the permanent debility of Ireland as their best security for her connection with the British crown, and the Irish parliament to rest the security of the colony upon maintaining a perpetual and impassable barrier against the ancient inhabitants of the country. The executive government was committed nominally to a viceroy, but essentially to lords-justices, selected from the principal state-officers of the country^, who were entrusted with the conduct of what w^as called the king's business, but which^ with more propriety, might have been called the business of the lords-justices. The viceroy came to Ireland for a few months only in two years, and returned to England perfectly satisfied with his mission, if he did not leave the concerns of the English government worse than he found them : and the lords-justices in his absence were entrusted implicitly with the means of consolidating an aristo- cratic influence, which made them the necessary in- struments of the English government*. In 1707, the commons voted an address of congra- tulation to her Majesty, on the union of her Majesty's kingdoms of England and Scotland, and on the same day presented an address to the Earl of Pem- broke, their lieutenant, in which they thankfully acknowledged the benefits they enjoyed in that happy opportunity of meeting under his excellency's govern- ment, to enact such laws as were yet wanting to strengthen the protestant interest of the kingdom. And they assured his excellency, that they were met Vid. Lord Clare's Speech on the Ujalon, p. 6. The Reign of Ann, 45 with firm resolutions to Improve that opportunity to the 1709. utmost of their power, to disappoint the designs of those, who endeavoured to give advantage to their com- mon enemy, by creating misunderstandings amongst Protestants*. When the Earl of Wharton prorogued the parlia- Thecatho- ment on the 30th of March, 1709, he told them, t as common that he made no question, but that they< understood the Eari of too well the true Interest of the protestant religion in that kingdom, not to endeavour to make all such Protestants as easy as they could, who were willing to contribute what they could to defend the whole against the common enemy. It was not the law then passed ^, nor any law that the wit of man could frame, would secure them against Popery, whilst they continued di- vided amongst themselves. It being demonstrable, that unless there were a firm friendship and confidence amongst the Protestants of that kingdom, It would be impossible for them either to be happy or to be safe. And he was directed to declare to them, as her Ma- jesty's fixed resolution, that as her Majesty would al- ways maintain and support the church, as by law- established, so It was her royal will and intention, that the dissenters should not be persecuted nor molested in the exercise of their religion. The dissenters were originally displeased, and had petitioned against the 2 Com, Journ. p. 494. •f 2 Journ. Lords, p. 31 6. % An act for explaining and amending an act, intituled An Act to prevent the further Growth of Popery, 46 The Reign of Ann* '^709. clause for the sacramental test; and now the act, in which it Was introduced, was explained and amended, wfthout any attention to their interest. The Lord- li^utenant * substituted fair promises and specious words for that substantial relief, which they ex- pected. He had the address to keep the Dis- senters quiet, in the delusive expectation of be^ iiig eased of this galling restriction In a future sesiiion, when it might be done with less umbrage to the Catholics. The cordial sympathy of this House of Commons, with their profligate governor t, is a melancholy illustration of the estrangement of * Thomas Earl of Wharton was a man of notorious profligacy* but of great address, and no inconsiderable share of talent. The likeness of his portrait, left us by Swift, has never been questioned, though considered by some as too strongly tinctured with party^ prejudice. It was however taken from life, and with the advan* tage of personal intimacy. " He had itr/oibed his fathers princi- ples in government he was a rigid Presbyterian^ but dropped his religion, and took up no other in its stead : excepting that circum- stance, he is a firm Pre-ibyterian. He contracted sach large debts, that his brethren were forced, out of mere justice^to leave Ireland at his mercy, where he bad only time to set himself right. He is very useful in parliament, being a ready speaker, and content to employ his gift upon such occasions, where those, who conceive tliey have ahy remainder of reputation or modesty are ashamed to appear.'' History of the Four last Years of Queen Ann. •{• Dean Swift, even before the death of this nobleman, said of him : " He has sunk his fortune by endeavouring to ruin one kingdom, and hath raised it by going fir in the ruin of another. His administration of Ireland was looked upon as a sufiicient ground to impeach him at least forhigh crimes and misdemeanors : yet he has gained by the government of that kingdom under two The Reign of Ann. 47 the parliament from the welfare of the Irish peo- ^iTi^ pie. In August, 1709, the commons presented a most obsequious address to the Lord-lieutenant, in which they assured him, " that they gratefully acknow- ledged her Majesty's more particular care of them, in appointing his excellency their chief governor, whose equal and impartial administration gave them just reason to hope, and earnestly wish his long continu- ance in the government *.*' The prevalence of the Tory party in the last four J^-^^T^ years of Queen Ann, lets in the broadest day-light Qucea •^ ^ ' . , . against the upon the real grounds of alarm and insecurity, which Presbyter the English cabinet entertained for the fate of Ireland. They viewed the Increasing influence of the Presby- terians with such dread and jealousy, that on the 7ili of November, 1711, the lords spiritual and temporal presented an address to her Majesty, In which they complained of the Earl of Wharton's having abused her Majesty's name, in ordering nolle proscquis to stop proceedings against one Fleming and others, for disturbing the peace of the town of Drogheda, by setting up a meeting-house, where there had been none for the last twenty-eight years. They represented to her Majesty, that those unjust complainers of perse- cution, whilst themselves enjoyed ease and security, had exercised great severities towards their conform- ing neighbours, by denying them common offices of humanity, and by threatening and actually ruining j^ars 45,000 1. by the most favotirable computation, half in the regular way, and half in the prudential." * 2 Comm. Journ. p. 63!, ^8 The Reign of Ann. 3711. several, who In compliance with their conscience had left their sect. They complained, that the episcopal order had been by them stiled anti-scrip- tural, the holy and religious worship of the establish- ed church superstitions and idolatrous j and that the legislature itself had been censured by a bold author of their's, who had published, in print, that tiie Sacramental Test is only an engine to advance a state faction and to debase religion to serve mean and unworthy purposes. They represented, that amidst repeated provocations, they had been still easy, and had endeavoured by gentle usage to melt them down into a more soft and complying temper ; but that all their attempts had proved unsuccessful : that they had returned evil for good ; that forbearance had encreased their rage and obstinacy ; and that the northern Pres- byteries had, in their zeal for proselytism, sent mis- sionaries into several parts of the country, where they had no call nor any congregations to support them : that by the abuse of the allowance of 1 200 1. per ann. ( granted to them by her Majesty for charitable pur- poses) and other means schism, which had formerly been confined to the North, had then spread itself into many parts of the kingdom. So that they should not be just In their duty to their sovereign or coun- try, if they did not acquaint her Majesty with the dan- ger they apprehended from those great advances, which Presbvtery and Fanaticism had made, which if not checked, they doubted not would in time end in the destruction of the constitution both in church and state. They submitted therefore to her Majesty's wis- The ^eign of Ann, 49 dom, whether it were not proper to put a stop to those i/H' growing evils, by withdrawing her Majesty^s bounty of 1 200 1. per annum. This address fully accounts for the introduction and Effects of the non-repeal of the Sacramental Test, notwithstand- address ing the strong partiality and bias of the commons, the presbyte- lord-lieutenant Wharton, and other leading whig characters for the Protestant dissenters of that day. The sentiments, which the tory ministry now publicly avowed, had long influenced the British government. Insincerity and timidity are generally inseparable. The Oueen, and many after her example, professed whig principles from policy not conviction. When the tories had overturned the whig administration, the reserve was thrown off, and they expressed their real senti- ments in unequivocal language. Although the tories commanded a decided ma- Address jority in the peers, yet the whigs still retained a against the small majority in the commons. Hence those par- liamentary differences, so virulently referred to in the lords' address to the Queen, on the 9th of Novem- ber, iTll*. They alleged, that sincere veneration for her Majesty 'r. royal person and prerogative, and tender regard for the peace and tranquillity of the kingdom, could alone prevail on them thus long to forget the high indignities offered to their house by * 2 Lords' Journ. p. 415. This is given rather at length as the most authentic historical document of the political spirit of the prevailing Protestant parties in Ireland. The Catholic* Were now reduced so low, as to have no political exist- ence. VOL. II. E 50 The Reign of Ann, 17' I. the commons, and to submit their private injuries to her Majesty's more public concerns, lest their just resent- ment, which the commons by their behaviour had so industriously provoked, might obstruct her Majesty's affairs, and thus render effectual the malicious designs of evil-minded men. They complained, that the com- mons had treated them in a manner wholly unknown to former parliaments, and had addressed them in lan- guage more indecent, more opprobrious, than had been used by another House of Connnons, at a tim^e when they voted the House of Lords useless. That however justly her Majesty might approve the conduct of the College of Dublin, in the late revolution, still they humbly conceived, that her Majesty did not extend her bounty to them, to promote (in general) revolution principles . Principles, which as explained by the pamphlets and libels publicly avowed and cele- brated by men olfactions and seditious tempers, and particularly in a sermon preached on the 30th of Ja- nuary, dedicated to that very House of Commons, without censure or animadversion^ did in a great mea- sure maintain and justify the execrable murder of King Charles the First, and on which might be founded any rebellion against her Majesty and her successors. They insisted upon their right of construing the words and terms used by the commons in their address, viz. That the commons having in their vote mentioned the steady adherence of the provost and fellows of the college to the late revolution, as one considera- tion of their application for the 5C001. since granted by her Majesty, the subsequent motive mentioned in The Reign of Anfi, St that vote, viz for the encoura2:ement of sound revo- I7it« iution principles, could not in good reason or gram- mar be referred to the late revolution ; since ad- herence to the late revolution was a distinct motive of itself. And it was the known nature of principles, to be as well the rule and guide of future, as of past actions. They disclaimed every intention of misrepre- senting the commons to her Majesty for their own actions ; they v/ere to be judged by God and her Ma^ jesty. But for themselves, they did most solemnly assure her Majesty, they were heartily thankful to Almighty God for the late happy revolution, acknow* ledging the necessity and justice of it ; and that they would at the utmost hazard and expense of their lives and fortunes, defend, support, and maintain her Ma- jesty's sacred person and government, her just pre- rogative in the choice of her ministers, the church of Ireland, as by law established, and the succession of the cfown in the illustrious house of Hanover* against the Pretender, and all those, who designed re- volutions either in church or state, against all her Ma- jesty's enemies abroad, and agahist all Papists, Jabo= biteSj and Republicans at home. That protestant ascendancy, which the policy of Nature of , T 1 r 1 • • • 1 1 ^^^ original James I. had lorced mto existence, in order to make Frotes(ant head against the Catholics, who then composed the in Ireland, country-party, was under his successor industriously strengthened by Stafford and Ormond, with the like view of bearing down the Catholics as the com- mon enemy. It was generally infected with the puri- tanical fanaticism of that day. However these meo E 2 5$ The Reign of Ann. lYiS. might have been disrelished in England both by James Charles, they were found fit instruments for crush- ing the Catholics in Ireland, where hatred of popery commanded favor and impunity. In the days of Charles the First this spirit preceded the breaking out of Cromwell's rebellion ; in the days of Charles the Second, it survived the restoration of monarchy ; under him, mider William and Mary, under Ann were remunerations voted by parliament to the de- scendants of Cromwellian rebels, for the forward zeal and services of their ancestors in that rebellious cause *. Prevalence The whig party in the House of Commons still Whigs in maintained its majority against the tory administration, monsrsup- ^t was Supported by all the influence of the dissenters, the Dissen- who were then very numerousf. The spirit of party gained daily violence : yet all the political differences which then distracted the kingdom existed between Protestant and Protestant. Although the Catholics * In the j'ear 1800, the Earl of Clare declared in the House of Peers, that " the civil war of l64l was a rebellion against the crown of England, (not so of the Irish against the crown of Ire- land), and the complete reduction of the Irish rebels by Cromwell redounded essentially to the advantage of the British empire." These sentiments bespeak not a constitutional or even a loyal spirit. t In every Christian country, different denominations of Chris- tians have at times swerved from, as well as observed, their civil duties, Presbyterians have evinced firm loyalty tomonarchs, and Catholics to republics. Every society of Christians lays claim to Evangelical perfection ; each holds Christianity practicable under every lawful form of government. The Reign of Ann, 53 interfered with neither party, they suffered by the oc- ^7i3. casional excesses of both. The Duke of Shrewsbury, a tory in principle, had long espoused through policy the cause of the whigs ; and as converts are generally severe to the party they have abandoned, his Grace when lord-lieutenant was unfavourable to the Catho- licSj whose religion he had renounced. He was un- usually splendid in celebrating the anniversary of King William, and vehement in promoting the Protestant succession. By a dissolution of parliament the ministry hoped Dissolution .... / r ofParlia- to gam a majority in the commons, as they had secured ment, and • • 111, 1. ' 1 • Ml Whigs stiJl It m the lords : but on the return, tne whigs still have a retained a small majority. This they availed them- selves of by voting a most severe address * to the Queen against Sir Constantine Phipps f, the chancel- * 2 Journ. Comm. p. 770- t The private demeanor and official conduct of Sir Constantin® Phipps conlinned all the unfavourable preposessions against him, which the whigs in Ireland had conceived from his zeal and acti- vity in defence of Dr. Sacheverell. He associated only with tories and churchmen, and was entertained by the nobility and gentle- men of that description with the most magnificent hospitality j he received the congratulations and thanks of the clergy as the patron of their order, and the champion of the rights of the church. Under the auspices of such a judge, every legal check upon the licentiousness of the party which he patronisedj was suspended. The most malignant attacks upon the dissenters daily issued from the press, and even those publications, which had been condemned in England for their seditious tendency, were reprinted and dis- persed without any reprehension from the Irish mhiisters. IMf. Higgins, a clergyman, who had been put out of the commission of E 3 54 The Reign of Aim, 1713. lor, who had distinguished himself amongst the tories by his intimacy with Dr. Sacheverell, whose trial had afforded a nctible triumph to the whigs of England. The Queen's answer to another address of the com* mons, dated from Windsor on the 13th of December, 1713, shewed how httle congenial with the dispositions of the court these efforts of the commons were. She told them, that * the best w^ay of preserving their religious and civil rights, and securing the Protestant succession, as well as the best proof they could give of their real concern for them, was to proceed with una- nimity and temper in supplying the necessary occasions of government, and in establishing peace at home, by discountenancing the restless endeavours of those factious spirits, who attempted to sow jealousies^ the peace by the late chancellor Cox, on account of his indecent and turbulent behaviour, uas now restored to his sent by Sir Con- stantine Phipps, On the very day of resuming his authority, he gave such otfence to his colleagues by his insolent and unguarded expressions, that he was presented by the grand jury of the county of Dublin, as a sower of sedition and groundless jealousies among her Majesty's Protestant subjects 5 but he was acquitted by the lord-heutenant and privy-council, to the great joy of the high church-party. (Annals Ann, p. I92-3.) Mr, Higggins had been a coadjutor of Dr. Sacheverell in Eng- land, and rivalled him in the vehemence, with which he declaimed upon the danger of the church, and the treachery of the ministers. (Cunningham, vol. ii. p, 275.) He was the author of several severe tracts against the dissenters, and was supposed to have drawn up a narrative concerning the conspiracy of the Protestants in Westmeath, which contained reflections injurious to all the whig gentlemen in Ireland. * * 2 Journ. Coram, p- 771. The Re/'nn of Ann. S5 -and raise groundless fears in the minds of her 1/13. people. In so much diffidence and contempt did the British The Fna;- parliament hold that of Ireland during this Queen's ment legis- reign, that in every matter, which was considered of Ireland, importance to the British empire they expressly le- gislated for Ireland, as if Ireland had no parliament of her own. Thus did the British legislature direct the sale of the estates of Irish rebels, and disqualify Catholics from purchasing them ; thus did it avoid leases made to Papists ; augment small vicarages, and confirm grants made to the Archbishop of Dublin: it permitted Ireland to export linen to the plantations ; prohibited the importation of that commodity from Scotland ; and appointed the town of New Ross, in the county of Wexfordj the port for exporting wool from Ireland to England. In the Schism Bill, which Sir William Windham gchism biu brought into the house of commons in Enoland, in the |^'^""'sht m- o o ' to the jtng* year 1 7 J 4^ the interference of the Bridsh legislature |,'f ^^""^^ with Ireland was the most remarkable. This bill, which ^°"fr^y ' Sir Wni. was aimed by the Tory party at the total suppression Windham. of the Disenters, was warmly opposed by the Whigs, in both Houses. Into that bill the following clause was introduced : that " where law is the same, the remedy and means for enforcing the execution of the law should be the same ; be it therefore enacted, by the authority aforesaid, that all and every the reme- dies, provisions, and clauses, in and by this act given, made, and enacted, shall extend, and be deemed, con- strued, and adjudged to extend to Ireland, in as full E 4 56 The Reign of Ami, 1714. and effectual manner, as if Ireland had been expressly named and mentioned in all and every the clauses of this act.'* Considering the intolerant quality of the act, it was the policy of the tory administration to introduce it with as few objectionable clauses as posr. sible, expecting naturally a warm opposition to it. It was chiefly opposed on the third reading ; in which opposition Sir Joseph Jekill was prominently forward ; he insisted, that it tended to raise as great a persecu- tion against their protestant brethren, as the primitive Christians ever suffered from the Heathen Emperors, particularly Julian the apost9.te *, It passed the com- mons by a majority of 237 voices against 126, with- out the clause affecting Ireland. This was proposed by the Earl of Anglesea, when the bill was in the committee of the lords, which, after some debate, was carried in the affirmative by the majority of one voice, fin the report made by the Archbishop of York four days after, several severe speeches were made against the clause, particularly by the Duke of Shrewsbury, who returned from Ireland during the debate. The clause was carried by 51 votes against 51 ; and on the next day the bill was carried by a majority of 3 votes, viz. of 77 against 72 J. • Chand. Deb. vol. V. p. 135. t Deb. Lords, vol. II. p. J3S. 4: The minister commanded a much larger majority in the Eng- lish commons than in the lords. For this reason the Queen was advised to call twelve persons up to the house of peers, who were in derision called by the opposite party the college of the twelve TIlc Reign of Ann, 57 A very strong protest was entered by thirty-four of I7i4- the leading Whig party, the last part of which relates Strong pio- to Ireland. *^ The miseries (said they) we apprehend Lords u- gaiiist the here, are greatly enhanced by extending this bill to Schism biiL Ireland, where the consequences of it may be fatal ; for since the number of Papists in that kingdom far exceeds the Protestants of all denominations together; and that the Dissenters are to be treated as enemies, or at least as persons dangerous to that church and state, who have always in all times joined, and still would join with the members of tliat church against the com- mon enemy of their religion ; and since the army there is very much reduced, the Protestants thus unneces- sarily divided seem to us to be exposed to the danger apostles. " It was upon these motives (said Swift, Hist. p. 44.) that the treasurer advised her Majesty to create twelve new lords, and thereby disable the sting of faction for the rest of her life- time: this promotion was so ordered, that a third part were of those on whom, or their posterity, the peerage would naturally devolve ; and the rest w^ere those,, whose merit, birth, and fortune could admit of no exception." In the reasons pjo and con. giveii by Swift, we clearly see the opposite spirits of the politicians of that day : the Whigs complained of the ill example set to wicked princes, who might as well create one hundred as twelve peers, which would ensure the command of the House of Lords, ai\d thus endanger our liberties. The Tories insisted, that in our constitution the prince holding the balance of power between the nobility and people, ouglit to be able to remove from one scale into the other, so as to bring both to an equilibrium ; and that tliQ- Whigs had been for above twenty years corrupting the nobility with republican principles, which nothing but the royal prero-» gative could hinder from overspreading us crs. 58 The Bcipi of Jim. ^71 ■^. of another massacre, and the protectant religion In ■• danger of being extirpated *." It must be presumed, | that the ministers of that day were as anxious, that this bill against the dissenters should be extended to Ire- land, as they were certain, that a similar bill would not have passed the Irish parliament. 8uch were the forced means resorted to by the last ministry of Oueen Ann, to effectuate their intentions upon Ireland re- specting the dissenters. The court What the opinion and disposition of the court then adverse to ,,.,,. . . ,. (- , the dissent- Vv^crc as to t!ie Irisli dissenters is mamrest from the language of Mr. Bromley, principal secretary of state, on the third reading of the Schism Bill: he said, " the dissenters were equally dangerous both to church and state ; and if the memibers, who spoke in their behalf, would have this bill drop, he would readily consent to it, provided another bill were brought in to incapaci- tate them either to sit in that house, or to vote in elections of members of parliament!." The collision of the opposite parties in parliament was at that time extremely violent. The Whigs charged the Tories and the whole court-party with an intent to break through the order of the protestant succession, in fa- vour of the Pretender ; to tliese views they attributed every measure as to the grand object of all their wishes, and all their intrigues. On the other hand, the Tories * D"b. Lords, vol. in. p 430. The whole prolcit, containing strong reasons against intolerancy, is givtii in the Appendix to my Historical lleview. No. LIII. t Chand. Deb. vol. V. p. 135. - The Reign of Ann. 59 complained of the factious opposition of the Whigs; J 7 '4. and the most sensible of theii- advocates * has declared, that " the designs of that aspiring party at that time were not otherwise to be compassed, than by under- taking any thing, that would humble and mortify the churcht/' In Ireland, the number of those, who rook an active violent .... r 1 J u strusdes of interest m tne pohticai events or the day was much parties in II 7 • -!-> 1 1 1 1 • • 1 Ireland smaller than m England ; but their violence \^as about the „„ p, ^ , chancellor. proportionably greater. Ihe utmost eliorts or the British cabinet were unable to reduce the ascendancy of the old protestant interest in the Irish commons : it * Swift's History of the last foiar Years of the Queen, p, 250. This was said on the occasion of the lords having passed the bill fo^,continuing the Act to make Affirmation in lieu of Oaths (surely a reasonable one, and the law now is so), which the commons would not permit to be read even a first litne. About this time. Swift shewed his zeal against the Whigs by publishing The Puh- lic Spirit of the Whigs, and his Preface to Dr. Burnet's Introduc- tion to the History of the Preformation. t Some time previous to the passing of the Schism Bill, the minister had acquired in the commons a very large accession of strength from a set of members, who, under the style of the Oc- toLcr Cluh, had formed themselves into a body, with a view to re- vive a new country-party in parliament, which might, as in former times, oppose the court in any proceedings they should dislike. The whole body consisted of about 200, and they unexceptionably professed what are commonly called high church principles, upon which account they were irrecoucileable enemies to the late mi- nistry, and all its adherents ; and the grand object of their meet- ings was to devise methods to spur on those in power to make quicker dispatch in removing all the Whig leaven from the em- ployments they still possessed. The Reign- of Amu became a' trial of strength between the two houses., The influence of the crown preponderated in the lords ot Ireland, as it did in the commons of England. The commons presented an address to her Majesty, humbly beseeching her to remove the chancellor, Sir Constaatine Phipps, from his place, for the peace and safety of her protestant subjects. The lords, on the other hand, made a warm representation to the queen in favour of the chancellor ; they entered minutely into the charges preferred against him, and assured her Majesty, that they were strengthened m their opinion of his having acquitted himself with honour and integrity, from the further enquiries they had since made, and they concluded with strong assurances of unanimity and temper in the dispatch of public business, and in establishing the peace of that king- dom, by discountenancing the restless endeavours of those factious spirits, who attempted to sow jealousies and raise groundless fears in the minds of her Ma- jesty's people. The queen's answer to the address of the commons was a mere echo of the address of tlie lords, vvdiich plainly shewed how strongly her Majesty sided with the latter against the former. Both houses of convocation warmly espoused the cause of the chan- cellor: they wished her Majesty might never want a servant of equal courage, uprightness, and abilities, and that church and nation might never be without such a friend for the suppression of vice, schism, and faction, and for the support of the royal prerogative as well as the rights and hberties of the subject. The lords had also presented an address to the queen, to jusdfy and The Reign of Amu 61 ckar the chancellor of the reproaches and calumnies 1/ '-^^ of one Nuttal, who had traduced him as having been a promoter of the dissentions, that had lately hap- pened in that kingdom : to which her Majesty an- swered, that she had always looked upon the lord- . chancellor as a faithful servant to th^ crown, a true Tover of the constitution in church and state, and was therefore extremely pleased to find, that the lords con- curred in the same opinion of him. Many circumstances concur to prove, that the queen Queen Ann indisposed herself was indisposed to the Hanover succession, and to the Ha- nover sue- that the great object of her last ministry was to recon- cession cile the nation to a favourable reception of her brother. The Whigs were indefatigable in thwarting those mea- sures, which the ministers durst never avow, though most anxious to carry. The Queen was indecisive, and wanted firmness to carry any important resolution into eft'ect. Whatever harsh measures were forced upon her by the Whigs (in England), such as the attainder of her brother, the proclamation of a re- ward of 50,000 1, for apprehending him, and the several declarations in support of the Hanover suc- cession, are reported to have preyed strongly upon her mind*, as did also the failure of Leslie's mis- * Tlie secret intentions and views of the Inst ministry of Queen Ann have never been hitherto clearly laid open. The whole transaction, however, of the Duke of Cambridge's obtaining his writ of summons to parliament, loudly speaks the disinclinaiion of the Queen to that favourite measure of the zealots for the Ha- nover succession. It certainly was not flatttJ'ing to the feelings of the Queen, that a prince of the house of Hanover should be pro- vided with a residence, revenue, and proper gtlicers in England,. 6^ The Reign of Ann. V«»'V~V> 11^ sion to Lorniin,, in ordei' to convert her brother Jair,(,> to the protestant faith : as it was well understood, thai the horror of popery was the only objection, which a and enjoy a seat in the British smatp, where his influence with those, who were ever ready to adore the risin^^ sun mis^hr power- fiily resist tiie interest of the crown. This, it was urged by the Ciuf^en's friends, was setting her coffin before her eyes. The duke had s nt over the following petition to tlie Queen: The Humble Pelition of George Augustus Duke of Camhidgc, Sheweth, That your Majestv having of your great goodnes^j created your petitioner a duke and peer of Great Britain, ai d itl being the constitution, that every peer iiath a right and privilege to sit and vote in parliament, your petitioner humbly prays yout'< Majesty to g ant him his writ of summons to call him to sit and vote in the present parliament. Tliis petition was signed on the l/ih of March, 1/13-4, and on the nth of the following April, Baron Schutz, envoy extraor- dinary from the court of Hai over, cojivened a meeting of the most ze.'.lous Whigs, lords and gentlemen at Lord Halifax's house in Westminster; where it was artfully concerted, that the baron should not present the petition to the Queen, apprehending that her Majesty might have denied the writ, or delayed or eluded the petitioner : and therefore they advised the baron to apply to the lord-chancellor Harcourt, and demand o'f him the writ of summons, as being the proper officer to cause the same to be made out and delivered; for which proceeding this reason w.-.s then given : that if the lord- chancellor refused to deliver the writ, the house of lords, then sitting, had a jurisdicliou and power to enquire into, and immediately censure the denial, and to order the writ to be made out and delivered. But the sudden transport and joy of those lords so convened caused them to forget, that Earon Schutz might have done both, viz. if the Queen were averse, he might immediately resort to the lord- chancellor, and rpake the dem.iud. Tlie Reign of Ann. Q3 g^eat part of the nation had to his bemg called to sue- iri4. ceed his sister. Cir:uiiistanced however as the Pre- tender was, his cause was abetted by many in England, However, the lords ad\:'ed the baron to keep his orders strictly secret, and to appear at court ih; r.ext day, when the lords were to wait on and present to the Queen their address about the procla- mation, arid the removing the Pretender out of Lorrain ; and to apply himself to the lord-chancell being Sunday, tlie Ibth of April, 1/14, to be forbidden the court, and injunctions to be laid on all her ministers not to have any intercourse or correspondence with him : and the ministers al- leged as an excuse for this outrage, that the baron had de- manded the writ of the lord-chancellor, without having first ac- quainted her Majesty with his orders, or applied to her for it. It appears probable, that the ministers applied at this time to France for assistance, and received an agreeable answer j but at that time the Fiench King was engaged in the arduous negotia- tions at Rastadt, for concluding peace with the Emperor. The uro-ency of the case was, that if the Duke of Cambridge .should forthwith land, as he might, and as the people expected, the ministers' measures would be first entirely disconcerted, and then the French assistance would come unseasonably. The ministers, in order to remove their fears, and to obviate the disappointment. 77ze first opened to her, and to have had her permission ; and that therefore nothing could be more dangerous to tlie right of succession in his line than such a proceeding." From the complexion of these transactions it will be readily admitted, that the Queen must have been dis- gusted wi'h the indelicate and compulsory means used by the Whigs of that day, to ensure the Hanover succession during her life. The workings of nature on behalf of her brother, upon whose head they had forced her to proclaim a reward, together with the many thwarting and humiliating instances of opposition to her will from the Whig party, render it more than probable, that she either originally was, or that she became at last insin- cere in her professions, promises, and exertions to promote the' establishment. VOL. II, F 6 The Re'tgn of Ann* 1714. of the Irish parliament to harass and oppress the ca- tholics with penal statutes. Now, for the first time, their loyalty was above suspicion : and a Stuart passed by an opportunity of punishing them. The queen died on the 1st of August, 17i4» C C7 J CHAPTER III. 'The Reign of George L Upon the demise of Queen Ann, the Tory party 1714. preponderated in the landed interest of England ; the ac ,s.s,on Whigs possessed a majority in the privy-council. The ^ " ' Tories were without a head, dispirited, distracted, and consequently irresolute. The Whigs acted in concert and with energy. They brought into ac- tion the principles they had always avowed, and seated the Elector of Hanover on the thrones of Great Bri- tain and Ireland, He was proclaimed and acknow- ledged King without opposition* The Tories, as * Viz. By the Act of Settlement, as George the First, son of Ernest Augustus, Elector of Brunswick, and Sophia, grand-daugh- ter of King James the First. The author of Lord Chesterfield's Memoirs relates, that Lord Harcourt often declared, (and Bishop Pearce frequently mentioned it), that Atterbury, Bishop of Ro- chester, came to him and to Lord Bolingbroke on the death of Queen Ann, and said, nothing remained but to proclaim King James. He fiarther offered (if they would give him a guard) to put on his lawn sleeves, and head the procession. Or, as Lord Orford has retailed it, (Remin. 291.) to proclaim the Pretender at Charing-Cross, in pontificalilus, George was pioclaimed in England on the 1st of August, 1714, a few hours after the Queen had expired. A similar proclamation was published in Dublin on the 6th of August, about seven o'clock in the evening, asd on the next day another proclamation issued, signed also by the F 2 68 'X%e Reign of George 1. ^715. tj^ey iia(j every reason to expect, were dismissed from his councils, and the whole management of public affairs was committed to the Whigs. Parliament The parliament of Ireland convened in November, ol Ireland ^ convened, 1715, was prominently conspicuous in manifesting several acts their zeal for the Hanover succession, and the Whiff in tavour of , _ _ the Hano- administration. They passed acts for recognizine the vcrsucces- . _ "^ o o sion. King's title ; for the security of his person and govern- ment ; for setting a price ( 50,000 /. ) upon the Pre- tender's head, and for attainting the Duke of Ormond : and they voted the supplies without murmur or oppo- sition. The commons, during the last Tory admini- stration, had brought in a bill to attaint the Pretender : and it was generally believed, that her Majesty had prorogued the parliament, with the direct view of pre- venting that bill from passing against her brother : and that, with a similar intent to facilitate his access to the throne^, she had disbanded the greatest part of the army, who were protestants in Ireland. They eagerly, therefore, seized an opportunity so favourable for in- gratiating themselves with his Majesty, and for justify- ing that conduct, which had been reprobated as turbu- lent and factious by the late government. A very strong address was presented by the commons to the King, that his Majesty would be pleased, for the se- curity of his government, and the protestant interest of Ireland, to remove the Earl of Anglesey from his councils and service in that kingdom *. Lord- primate and Sir Constantine Phipps, chancellor/ for disarming all papists and suspected personSj and seizing their houses. * Vide vol. HI. Journ. Comm. p. 67. This address is founded The Reign of George I. 69 Notwithstanding the recruiting for the service of ^7A5. the Pretender were one of the principal grounds for Honourable •i-r>i-i toiiiiiiony the commons address agamst the Earl ot Anglesey, otinshioy- yet so fully convinced was the ministry of that day of the loids- the unquestionable loyalty of the Irish nation, that the lords-justices*, in their speech to the parliament, ren- dered it the most honourable testimony, in saying, " that it was with no small satisfaction, that they ob- served the calm, which that kingdom (formerly the seat of so many rebellions) then enjoyed, whilst the traitorous enemies to the King and our happy esta- blishment, discouraged by their early and steady zeal for the protestant succession, had thought fit to change the place of action, and attempt elsewhere to disturb his Majesty's government." Nor was this the sooth- ing art of adulation, but the cordial effusion of active confidence : for the lords-justices added, that his Ma- jesty had ordered an addition to be made to each com- pany of the militia, till such time as he could replace those regiments, which the necessity of his affairs had obliged him then to draw from Ireland to suppress on the fact of the recruiting service for the Pretender having been permitted with inapunity in Dublin, It throws strong light upon the history of those days, and is to be seen in the Appendix to my Historical Review, No. LIV. I have also, in the first volume of that work, p. 238, given a letter of Dean Swift to Archbishop King, in which the patriotic Dean very clearly distinguishes be^ tween the Tory and the Jacobite. * Viz. The Duke of Grafton and the Earl of Galway. The speech w^s delivered by the Duke of Grafton ^ for which vide JI, Lords' Journ. 453. I 3 "70 7%e Reign of George I. 1715. the rebels In Great Britain, wherein their safety was ^'"'^ equally concerned with that of his other subjects. insurrec- Whilst rebellion was openly making alarming pro- North Bri- gress in North Britain under the Earl of Mar, at the gerinEng- head of 10,000 Scotch presbyterians, and no part of cu^ntyTn^^' South Britain was secure from the' attempts of the friends of a catholic pretender to the throne, catholic Ireland was the only part of the British empire for which government felt secure, and therefore drew from it the usual sources of national defence to give strength to protestant Britain. Although malice were not yet saturated in calumniating the Irish, they escaped the charge of guilt in the rebellion of 17^5. Yet t^ose very lords- justices, who "bore such honourable testimony to the tried loyalty of the Irish catholics, rnost inconsistently treated them as an hostile and divided people. ^' We must recommend to you (said they in their speech to the commons) in the present conjuncture, such unanimity in your resolutions, as may once rriore put an end to all other distinctions in Ireland, but that of proife5^<7?2?; and /)ereunto ; and that the Bri'.ihh parliament had of right lull power to make laws to bind the people and the kingdom of Ireland, and that the hou#3 of lords of Irabnd had not any appci-- fant juribdictico> Tke Reign of George I, 75 thoUc IMajesty. He w's provided with declarations ^/'iP* in the name of the Spanish monarch, importing, that tor many good reasons he had sent part of his land and sea forces into England and Scotland to act as auxiliaries to King James. The Duke of Ormond sailed from Cadiz and had proceeded as far as Cape Finisterre, when the fleet was overtaken and dispersed by a storm, which entirely defeated the intended ex- pedition *• *, In the year 1719, the parliament passed an Act for indulgences exemptmg the rrotestant dissenters or that kingdom dsiciuers. from certain penalties, to which they were (in common i with the Catholics ) then subject !• And the preani- I ble of the act sets forth, that " the gi'anting some case \ and indulgence to the Protestant dissenters in tlie I exercise of religion^, might be an effectual means to unite his Majesty's Protestant subjects in interest and affection." The Duke of Bolton, in his speech on the • day that the bill passed, not very warrantably mis- * In justice to the unshaken loyalty of Ireland, it should be recollected, that at this time the tenantry on the Ormond pro- perty was the most numerous iii Ireland ; the bulk of that natioiv was of the same religion as the Pretender; Irvland lay more-con- tiguous to Spain than Great Britain, and was less provided for defence against invasion. Yet so sternly loyal to the House of Hanover were the Irish Catholics, even at this early period after the accession of the present illustrious family to the throne, that not even the intriguing Alberoui, the Spanish Monarch, the Ca- tholic Pretender, or his enthusiastic and then desperate supporter (Drmond,' durst even attempt to seduce them from iheir allegiance and civil duty. f 6th Geo- c. Y, 76 The Reign of George I. 1720. quoted the words of the statute, in order to take off the sting, which the marked partiality for the few to the exclusion of the many necessarily imported. He recommended to them in the words of one of those excellent bills passed that day, an union in interest and affection amongst all his Majesty* s subjects. Unfortunately for the people of Ireland the words of the statute were operative and lasting : those of the lord- lieutenant insidious, false, and transient. The speech of the Lieutenant acquired instant circulation ; the people read what they never experienced ; and they smarted under what they never read. Harshness The Dukc of Graftou, in closing the next session of the Duke - . -r r of Grafton of parliament, manifested a degree of harshness to- towards the ^ r> ^ ^' 1- 1 • 1 • • 1 * catholics, wards the Catholics, little responsive to their tried steadiness to the new family on the throne. He recommended * to the parliament to put the laws in i execution^ and to keep a watchful eye over the Pa- pists, since he had reason to beheve, that the number of Popish priests was daily encreasing in that king- dom, and far exceeded what by the indulgence of the law was allowed. Irish loyalty The same noble Duke in opening the session of acted upon. -, ^ 1 ^' ^ • 1 1 723, rendered to the Cathohcs, perhaps an inad- vertent, certainly not an unimportant eulogy, upon the actual confidence placed in their loyalty in the '. very acme of alarm and danger. The traitorous projects (said his Grace) " that were near ripe for execution the last year, made it advisable to call for * 3 Journ. Com, p. 314. » the Reign of George L 11 six regiments of foot from Ireland, and as the scene of 1723. blood and confusion, that was then opening in Great Britain, must have soon reached this country, his Ma- jesty could not more effectually shew his tender re- gard for his subjects, than by ordering that seasonable reinforcement for securing peace in that part of his Majesty's dominions.'* It is singular, that in the very speech, which proved that the catholics were so little Suspected of disaffection to the government, as to make it advisable and safe to send six regiments from * catholic Ireland, for the defence of protestant Bri- tain, his Grace added *, " I cannot but think it a matter deserving your serious attention, to provide some laws for the further strengthening of the pro- testant interest of this kingdom, particularly for pre- venting more effectually the eluding of those in being against popish priests, it being too notorious, that the number of such is of late greatly encreas'ed." In consonance with the repeated recommendations violent re- ,-,.,,,. , . , solutions of or this lord'lieutenantj the commons came to eight the com- . , . , . . , IT I • t 1 nions,anda Violent 7 resolutions against the catholics, which passed bin in con- without a dissentient voice, and thereupon leave was *^'^"^"'^'" given to bring in heads of a bill for explaining and amending the acts to prevent the further growth of popery, and for strengthening the protestant interest in that kingdom. Heads of a bill were accordingly *3 Journ. Com. p. 314. t 3 Journ. p. 36, 2d of October, I723. They mzy be seen in my Historical RevieWj vol. I. p, 252, '3 The Reign of George L J723. prepared, with a clause for castrating every catholic clergyman that should be found in the realm. The bill, thps surcharged with this Gothic barbarism, was presented on the 15th of November, 1723, to the lord-lieutenant by the comrnond at the castle, and they most earnestly requefjted his Grace fa recommend the same in the most effectual man.ncr to his Majestijy humbly hoping from his Maresty's gcodness and his Grace's zeal for his service and the protectant interest of that kingdom, that the same might be obtained to pass into a law*. It was transmitted to England, and for the honour of humanity there suppressed with becoming indignationf. The lord-lieutenant, on pro- rO'^uing the parliament, consoled them for the loss of their favourite bill, by attributing its failure to thei? having brought" it in at so advanced a period of the session : recommending to them again a more vigor- ous execution of the penal laws against the catholics, ■and assuring them, that he would contribute his part towards the prevention of the growing evil (of popery), by giving proper directions, that henceforward such * 3 Jovun. Com. p- 3G6. His Grace returned the following answer. " I have so much at heart a matter which I recom- tnended to the consideration of parliament at the beginning of this session, that the house of commons may depend upon a due regard oh my part to what is desired." + Some Irish historians attribute tlie failure of this bill to the humane interposition of Cardinal Fleury with Mr. Walpok. Yet guvely there needed no Gallic interference for tlie darauation of a Jaw of such savage turpitude* Ttie llHgn of George L 79" persons only should be put into the Gommission of the J 723, peace as had distinguished themselves by their fide- lity to his Majesty, and by their steady adherence to the protesfant interest*. The latter part of this reign Was a notable cera for Three pro. ... r • • tesrant par- a new division of parties m Ireland. The old revolu- ties in irs- land. tionary party, which affected Whiggism and had de- scended from and retained the spirit and principles of the Oliverians, was the most numerous in the commons. The old Tories had an ascendancy in the lords. The third party wished well to their country, and successfully adapted to its government all the genuine Whig principles, upon which the liberty of England had been so firmly estabhshed ; but tho practical application of which had been first made to Ireland by the patriotic efforts of Mr. IMoIyneuxf. * 3 Jonru. Com. p. 389. ■|- Lord Clare's speech on the union Is a carious repository of some modern opinions upon the necessity of an English or pro- testant ascendancy in Ireland : (p. 13.) *' It is a melancholy truth, that from that day, (James I.) all have clung to the popish religion, as a common bond of union, and an hereditary pledge of aninrwsity to British settlers and the British ration. What alternative then remained to the King for retaining this country under the dominion of his crown ? In the modern re- volutionary phrase, the physical consequence of the count-y was arrayed against the English colony and the English gm'ern- ment. He was therefore driven to the necessity of treating the old inhabitants as a conquer-ed people, and governing their coun- try as an English province, or of fortifying his protestant colony by investing them with the artificial power of a separate govern- iJiSJji." Prinaatc Boulter, who, from the year 1/24 to the yc;?r 80 The Reign of George J. 1723. These three parties were all protestants. How widely soever they differed from each other, they all united 1742, was the main spring of the English politics and the in- strument of the British cabinet in Ireland, gave (o the Duke of Newcastle the following caution against Swift. (Vol. I. p. 62, Boulter's Let.) " The general report is, that Dean Swift designs for England in a little time } and we do not question his en- deavours to misrepresent his Majesty's friends here, wherever he finds an opportunity : but he is so known, as well as the disturbances he has been the fomenter of in this kingdom, that we are under no fear of his being able to disserve any of his Majesty's faithful servants, by any thing that is known to come from him." Swift supported the natural interests of Ireland against the Dissenters and Whig party, who, in his ideas, endea- voured to monopolize the political influence of the country, and against the power of the Biitish cabinet, whose system it was to keep Ireland in a state of abject subserviency. " Therefore," said he, in his State of Ireland, " it is too well known, that we are forced to obey some laws we never consented to ; which is a condition I must not call by its true uncontroled name, for fear of Lord Chief Justice Whitshed's ghost, with his lihertas et natale solum written for a motto on his coach, as it stood at the door of the court, whilst he was perjuring himself to betray both." Swift was a true patriot, and had rendered himself particularly obnoxious to government, by publishing his Drapier's Letters, and other pa- triotic works in defence of his oppressed country, but especially by his proposal for the universal use of Irish manufactures, in clothes and furniture of houses, utterly rejecting and renouncing every thing wearable that came from England: on account of which publication, a prosecution was set on foot against Waters the printer, by the express command of the lord-lieutenant, who sent to the Lord Chief Justice Whiished before the trial, informing him, that a most seditious, factious, and virulent libel had been published, with a design of setting the two kingdoms at variance ; and therefore that the printer should be prosecuted with all the The Reign of George /. 81 In one common principle of opposing the catholics, as 1723. the common enemy. The most remote tendency to favour them would, at that time, have been construed ^m overt attempt to bring back, the Pretender. The catholics, broken down by oppression, scarcely claimed their rights of existence, and were occasionally made the passive instruments of the three other parties, ac- cording to the exigencies of their several temporary severity of the h\v. The lord- chief-justice's zeal on snch an oc- casion wanted no spur. He out-ran his commission, by indecently declaring towards the commencement of the trial, that the au- thor's intention -.va-: to bring in the Pretender. Government had offered a reward of 300 Z. for the discovery ol the author of these letters : but so popular and interesting to Ireland was the subject of fhem, that no one was ba e enougl: to betray him. This firmness in the cause brought on the prosecution of the printer, whom the j ury acquitted. Yet so determmately was the chief-justice bent upon procuring a verdict for the crown, that he kept the jury out eleven hours, and sent them nine times out of court, until at last he wea- ried them into a special verdict. The profligacy of this courtly judge is alluded to by the primate in a letter to the Duke of New- castle, Cuol I. p. 112.) which accounts for his lordship's anxiety to be removed to the common pleas, where he would be placed out of the occasion of executing again such commands of govern- ment. " My Lord Chief Jastice Witshed has been with me to desire he may be recommended to siicceed Lord Chief Justice Vv'"yndhanj. He represents, that he has with great zeal and fide* lity served his Majeity, and made himself many enemies by so doing, and would hope for this favour as a reward of his services. I must da him the justice to say, that he has certainly served big Majesty with great zeal and alTection, and has drawn on himself the anger of the Jacobites by so doing, and other discontented persons here, by discountenancing seditious writings in the affair of the halfpence." VOL. 11. G e^ The Reign of George 7. i?24. projects: and were too often made objects of new rigour and {>ersecutio!i, for the sole purpose of with- drawing the attention of their opponents from mea- sures, which the particular parties wished to carry or oppose. Primate Boulter always affected to term the patriotic party ike discontented, and not unfrequently the king's enemies : and of their successful opposition to the measures of those, whom his grace termed the King*s servants, (consequently his friends) he loudly- complained.^ The job of In no instance were the exertions of the patriots tenTfor^^ ^cre brilliantly successful, than in opposing Mr. a i^ence. ^qq j>g patent for coiniug halfpence, which they con- sidered as an infamous job*. There had not been for many years a coinage of copper in Ireland ^ the low: medium of halfpence and farthings had become very scarce ; and the deficiency was found to be attended with great inconveniency. Applications were made in isain to England for a new coinage.- What was refused, * Frimate Boulter, wfthin a fortnight after his arrival in Dub"- lin, informed the Duke of Newcastle, that " they were iu a very bad state, and the people so poisoned with apprehensions of Wood's halfpence, that he did not: see there could be any hopes of justice against any person tor seditious writings, if he did bvit mix soinething about Wood in them. All sorts were deterniin- ately set against them. Pamphlets and the discourses of some people of weight ran very mnch upon the independency of Ire- land ; which,, in their present state, was a very popular notion. That though all people were equally set against Wood, yet many of the madnes-ses were supposed to come from papists mixing with and setting on others, with whom they formei ly lir.d no manner of correspondence." The. Reign of George L 83 to the voice of the Irish nation, \\^as granted to the In- 1724. trigues of William Wood. He obtained a patent for coining copper halfpence and farthings for the use of Ireland, to the amount of 108,000/, They were cast of such base alloy, that the whole mass was not worth SOOO/. Of this base coin he poured an immense in- fusion into Ireland. Brass multiplied beyond example: was not only used in change, but attempted to be forced in payments. The Irish nation took the alarm, and made it a national cause : and it may be said to have been the firsts in which all parties in Ireland had ever come to issue v^ith the British cabinet. The Irish parliament, in an address to the throne, told the Kinc;, they were called upon by their country to re- preseat the ill consequences to the kingdom likely to result from Wood's patent : that the prospect, which it presented to view was the diminution of the reve- nue and the ruin of trade. An application from the. privy-council of Ireland to the King spoke the same language : and addresses to the like effect from most of the city corporations throughout the kingdoms were handed up to the throne. At the quarter-ses- sion the country gentlemen and magistrates unani- mously declared against it. And the grand jury of the county of Dublin presented all persons, who at-» tempted to impose upon the people of Ireland the base coin, as enemies to government, and to the safety, peace, and welfare of his Majesty's subjects. It was not to be expected, that an individual speculator, who could raise an interest with the British cabinet more G 2 $4i The Ixeign of George J. 1725. powerful than the united voice* of the whole peop! " that the whole kingdom was in the utmost ferment about the coming dections. I can safely aj^peal (said his Grace) to your Excellency for my having to the best of my power served his late Majesty, and sup- ported the English interest here." * Qn tlie 20th of July, 1 727, the prima'e wrote to Lord Car- teret : " I hear this day,, that the address yesterday presented by some Roman Catholics, occasions great heats and divisions amoni' those of that religion here." (Vol. L p. 188.) That the constant 'fiew of this prelate was the maintenance of an English ascend- ancy, and to keep down the native influence of Ireland, appears /rom the whole tenor of his correspondence. His editor assures us, that these letters will ever remain the most authentic history of Ireland, for the space of time, in which they were written ; viz. from 1724 to 17^2, during v/hich his Grace was thirteen times one of the lords-justices. 00 The Beign of George IL 1727. gust, 1727, he assured the lord-lieutenant, that the elections luould generalbj go well. System of I.ord Carteret, whose administration lasted from dividing Ireland 1725 to 1731, hss had the credit of leniency and within it- ■ _ •' ^ «^if- humanity, from having discountenanced the execution of the penal laws against the catholics. He certainly had the policy not publicly to aggravate the evil of famine by religious persecution. Yet no real friend to Ireland could have coalesced with Primate Boulter in the systematic support of an English interest, by dividing Ireland within itself*. Fearful of an ef- fectual opposition to a measure of such unjust severity, though of the highest political import, not a syllable in the speech from the throne bore allusion to it : no heads of any bill transmitted imported new penalties against the catholics : on the contrary, the lord-lieu- tenant's speech recommended expressly the considera- tion of such laws, as might be necessary to be made for the encouragement of manufactures and the eme ployment of the poor j and now for the first time the lord- lieutenant spoke of '' f the gracious instances of his majesty's concern for the happiness of his people, * This is verified by the primate's words, in his letter to the Duke of Newcastle, on the IQth of January, 1724 : " I find, by tny own and other inquiries, that the people of every religion, country, and party here, are alike set against Wood's halfpence, and that their agreement in this has had a most unhappy influence on the state of this nation, by bringing on intimacies between Papists and Jacobites and the Whigs, who before had no correspondency with them." i 3 Journ. Com. p. -163. 77/ e Rcign of George 11. 91 'and the good opinion he had always had of the loyalty 1727- and affection of his subjects of Ireland ;''' dropping the invidious restriction of his Majesty's protection, grace, and favour to his protestant subjects. Many of the catholics began now to consider them- The ca^Vio- 1 T • 1 n T * 1 - 7 rrf Sheriffs and other Officers in electing and returning such Members. Sect, viiw * The catholics in Gahvay having successfully opposed Lord . Clanrickard's Interest, he prevailed on the minister of that day to introduce this clause, to deprive them of their franchise. He was the first protestant of his family and a staunch supporter of the English interest. On the same day (yth of February, 1727), Dr. Trotter leported from the committee of the whole bouse, that they had gone through and agreed to the bill with some amendments (viz. the disfranchising clause) which were also read and agreed to, and Dr. Trotter was ('irected to attend the lord-lieutenant with the said heads of the bill to be transmitted into Great Britain in due form. 3 Journ. Com. p. 522. With such ease was a nation jdisfranchised by an unconstitutional mi- nister ! The Reign of George II, 9S which ended in May, 1728, went over without oppo- 1729. sition : insomuch, that the lord-lieutenant, in closing the session, took an opportunity of observing *, that all the public bills transirritted from thence had been re- turned under the great seal of Great Britain ; which distinguishing instance of his Majesty's regard for the parliament of Ireland, was one of the happy effects of that remarkable application and unanimity^ which had appeared in all their proceedings. Ireland was entirely ruled by the principles of an Further ri- gour impos- English interest under Primate Boulter, who con- cd on the catholU's. sidered it strengthened by every additional pressure on the catholics. In the year 1733, an act was made for t preventing papists practising as solicitors j which was the only branch of the law they were then per- mitted to practice, At the close of the session, the . * 3 Journ. Com. p. 57O, + 7 Geo. II. c. 5. Whilst this bill was pending, some ca- tholics of Dublin and Cork set on foot a subscription to defray the expenses of opposing it : when one Hennesy, an interdicted priest, gave information, that this collection was made for the purpose of bringing in popery and the Pretender, Upon which the papers of these gentlemen were seized, aad submitted to the insptclion of the house of commons : and it appears from their printed report, that the wliole sum collected had not exceeded 5/.; the committee however resolved, that it appeared to them, that und-r colour of opposing heads of bills, great sums of money had been collected and rais. d, and a fund established by the popish inhabitants of the kingdom, through the influence of their ckrgy, highly detrimental to the /.rutestant Interest, and of imminent dan- ger to the present hap[)y establishment : and therefore they resolv- ed futther, that an humble address should be presented to ihe lord- lieuttiiant to issue his proclamation to all magistrates to put the 94f , The Reign of George If. i7^9' lord-lleuteiiant set forth, in the most glowing terrris of congratulatory solace, *•' the many signal marks of his Majesty's goodness, \Vho had nothing more at heart than the interest and prosperity of his p&ople*.'* He alluded to some of tlie most popular acts, such as the regulations rtiade for /uture elections (by abolishing the right of voting in four-Jifths of the nation), the erecting of churches, and augmenting the maintenance of the clergy, for preserving and strengthening the proicstant interest of the kingdom* Boulter's Primate Boulter f was as zt.alous to prevent the a^nVwIh growth of any Irish influence in Ireland, as of popery. On this ground he complained to the lord-lieutenant and Duke of Newcastle of the appointment of Mr. Allen Broderick, the chancellor's son j, to be a corn- laws against popery into execution. Car, St. of ih: Catholics of Ireland, p. 2.07. This circumstance goes to piove^ that the clause for disfranchising the whole body of catholics was not in the heads of the bill, but furtiv^ely introduced to avoid opposiiion : or it is more tfian probable^ that ihey would have instituted a collection to oppose a bill, that affected every individual of the body in so important a pcint, rather than a b.U, which could not have af- fected thiee score of theie body. * 3 Jonrn. Com. p. 5/0. f Primate Boulter's letters have disclosed more of the internal movements of the cabinet, than modtrn statesmen would wish to discover. In hl'^, letter to the Duke of Newcastle, three days after this session closed (vol. I. p. 242), he complains of the opposition of the bishop of Elphin (Theophilus Bolton promoted to the see of Cashell in 1729) whose view was to make himself considerable enough to h: bou^tU off. One part of the push he now made was to get all the lay lords here to confederate "■ against the bishops, u.-hn must always le depended upon for doing tlic kings business.'^ X Allen Broderick (afterwards Lord Viscount Middleton) being The Reign of George It, 9'3 missioner of the customs in England. This was op- 1 730. posed by the primate. " We are," says he, " appre- hensive it may give too much spirit to the Brodericks here, and be made use of by them to engage others to obstruct the King's business in parliament." The Earl of Clanrickarde had conformed to the established religioa in the days of Queen Ann. He had made an application to the King to be restored to alF, that had been forfeited by his ancestors^ who had at all times been conspicuous for their loyalty and attachment to their sovereign ; and the measure had been gra- ciously assented to by his Majesty. But the reversion of so much landed influence into the hands of an Irish family, though protestaat, was considered, by the English interest in Ireland to contravene their system. Bo-uker procured an opposition in the com- mons, which completely defeated the benevolent in- tentions of the King. Yet, artfully to avoid wounding the feelings of the noble lordj by pointing at his par- ticular case, they formed a resolution upon a broad principle, " that the reversal of outlavv^ries of persons: attainted of treason for the rebellions of 1641 or 168&, is greatly prejudicial to the protestant interest in this kingdom, and dangerous to his Majesty's person and the succession established in his royal house." They accordingly voted an address to his Majesty, setting forth the dangerous consequences of such misplaced a staunch Whig, was appointed soon after the accesion, viZ'. 1st Oct. 171-I, to succeed Sir Constantine Phipps, the noted Tory chancellor of Ireland:, He held the seals till the 1st of June, 96 Tlie Reign of George 11. mate Buul ter. 1731. indulgence, which had the effect of withholding his Majesty's benevolence *. Distresses -^^ the management of the EngHsh Interest in Ire- underFri- ^"^^"^^ ^iid been conmiitted to Primate Boulter, al- though Lord Carteret continued lord-lieutenant till the year 1731, yet the kingdom was entirely go- verned by his Grace. Notwithstanding the catho- lics had been additionally aggrieved bv new penal laws, v\ hich gave the death-blow to their civil exist- ence, his greatest difficulty arose from the protest- ams of the north f . The primate, in his private, and therefore more sincere communications with the Duke ot Newcastle, gave a most melancholy account of the state of the nation; complained of American agents seducing the people with prospects of happier establishments across the Atlantic ; that 3100 had. in the preceding summer, been shipped off tor the West-Indies, Voluntarily encountering new miseries, to avoid the oppression they suffered at home. Ike luorst icas, that it ql/ected only protestantSi ami * Tlie address is to be sern in my Hisloricnl Review, vol. I. 2/'/. It displays no very pure idea ( f tlie loyalty of the addressers who tell their sovereign, that nothing can so cliectually make them ready to support and defend his right and title to the crown, as tlie enjoymmt of the forfeited estates of the pHpists. The address imporcs more of intimidation than attachment. The answer be- speaks a compliance of compulsion, not of inclination. ■\ The north was the most industrious, manufacturing, and optrlent part of ihe kingdom, consequently the best suited to resist or avoid the distress and oppression, whicli the more wretched and innpoveribhed parts of the kingdom were unable to avert. i The Reign of George 11, 97 reigned chiefly in the North*', His Grace sent to the I73i. lord-lieutenant the representation of the gentlemen of the North, and the opinion of their lawyers, as to what could be done by law to hinder people from going abroad : but that in those matters he should do no- thing fwithout directions from his Majesty. Whaterer could be done by law, it would be dangerous forcibly to hinder a number of needy people from quitting ihem. The distresses in the North were productive of tumults at Limerick, Cork, Waterford, Clonmel, and other places in the South, under pretence of preventing their corn from going to the North. The populace had broken open warehouses and cellars, and set what price they pleased on provisions. Many causes, besides scarcity of corn, co-operated Grievances . .of the dis- m producing discontents and consequent emigra- semers. tions from the North. The dissenting ministers presented a memorial of several grievances of their brethren, chiefly relating to the oppr-^ssion of the ecclesiastical courts about tithes, the whole of which his Grace denied or justified in a special letter to the Bishop of London ;|;. They also complained of the * Sect, vol.1. 201. • f It has unfortunately been too frequent a practice of servants of the crown to push systems of unsound or corrupt policy to such a height, that they have been unable to check the evil conse- quences of their own conduct! The responsibility is then shifted from their own shoulders upon the king, whose personal inter- ference cannot, by our constitution, cover the responsibility of his ministers. X Vide the letter iu the Appendix to my Historical Review, No. LVI, vol.. 11. H SS 7 %e Reign of George I J. 1731 Sv^ sacramental test ; in relation to which his Grace told them, the laws were the same in England. The other grievances, which they mentioned w^ere the raising of the rents unreasonably, the oppression of the justices of the peace, senechals, and other officers in the coun- try. The primate himself was sensible of much dis- content arising from the debts of the nation having been very much encreased within the last few years *. Govern- Lord Carteret was succeeded in the lieutenancy by ment ma- naged by the Duke of Dorset, They were both men of amiable Pritnatc . t, i • Boulter, private character. But their governments were entire- ly managed by the primate, in order to support an English interest in opposition to the native interest of Ireland. Under this prelate's management the patriots acquired so much strength, as to command a majority in the commons on a most important question. During the late administration the court-party had moved in the commons, that the fund, Vv^hich had been provid- ed for ths payment of the national debt and interest, should be granted to his Majesty, his heirs^ and suc- ^ cessors for ever, redeemable by parliament. The patriots insisted, that it was unconstitutional and in- consistent with tffe public safety to grant it for a longer term than from session to session. An attempt was made by the court-party to vest it in the crown by continuing the supplies for twenty-one years; but they lost the question by a single vote f. * The progress of the national debt, and of the financial re- sources of Ireland, may be seen at large in my Historical Review, vol. I. p. 278, &c. f This patriotic question was carried by the voice of Colonel Dorset's ad- ministra- tion. I'he Reign of George 11. 99 The Duke of Dorset, who was naturally humane, ^^ss. was the first lord-lieutenant for several years, who in Du^eof addressing parliament, did not recommend from the throne to provide further severities against the catho- lics. He told them * that he should leave it to their consideration, whether any further laws might b? necessary to prevent the growth of popery. At the opening of the parhament in 173:ij he called upon them to secure a f Jirm tinion amongst all protest- ants, luho have one common interest, and the same common enemy. This appears to have been pre- paratory to a measure of toleration, in favour of the protestant dissenters, which the Duke of Dorset had it in his instructions to propose. Boulter disap- proving of the repeal of the test in favour of the dis- senters, so exaggerated the threatened opoosition to k, as to induce the British minister to drop the mea- sure \. When the Duke of Dorset was about to Tottenham, member for New Ross, who had ridden post to (own to be present at the debate, and arrived immediately before the house divided. The great supporter of the patriots at this time in Ireland, was Mr. Henry Boyle. Mr. Conolly, the speaker of the house of commons, died in 173O. Sir Ra ph Gore succeeded him : but he did not fill the chair two years. Upon his death, in lT32, Mr. Boyle was elected to the honourable situation, which he filled with dignity and uprightness for many years. Sir Robert Walpole, though he ever looked upon Mr. Boyle with an envious eye, yet generally spoke of him in his facetious manner, as the J^ing of the Irish Commons. * 4 Journ. Com. p. 9. f 4 Journ. Com. p. 70* X That the reader may judge of the primate's earnestness to second these instructions from England, )\Q- is referred to hi? H 2 100 The Reign of George U. 1735. quit the government of Ireland^, he paid an honourable testimony to its loyalty *. " I think myself happy," said he, " that on return to his Majesty's royal pre- sencCj I can justly represent his people of Ireland, as most dutiful, loyal^ and affectionate subjects/' Abolition For two ycars was the government of Ireland In of flfflSt- aacnt-tithe. the hands of lords-justices headed by Primate Boul- . ter. In 1735, the Duke of Dorset returned as lord- lieutenant. During his second viceroyalty an event happened, which, though seldom noticed, has been productive of the largest portion of the latter infelicity of Ireland. It furnishes an awful lesson to ministers, that timidity and insincerity are ever pregnant with the worst of consequences. An English ascendancy in Ireland was the idol, to which Primate Boulter rendered the whole system of his politics subservient. This he did not openly avow : but gave it the more specious denomination of protestant ascendancy : by which delusion he drew the greater part of the dissent- ers to second him in the one, who would have opposed him in the other. Every insincere or factious measure iseasily analyzed into a principle of self-interest. The majority of the commons was disposed to depress the catholics : and still more inclined to evade payment of taxes to the state, or tithes to the church. They availed themselves of the power, and passed reso- lutions, formed upon the forced and confused peti- Grace's account of the transaction to the Duke of Newcastle, on the 18th Dec. 1733, in my Histqfical Review, p. 382. * 4 Journ. Com. p. 152, The Reign of George IL 101 tions of several protestant Innd-owners, who threat- 1736. ened to emigrate to America^ rather than pay tithe of agistment for barren cattle, that *the demand of tithe of agistment was new, grievous, and burthensome to the landlords and tenants ; and that the other ec- clesiastical dues and emoluments without that tithe, were an honourable and plentiful provision for the clergy of that kingdom. Upon these resolutions^ they engrafted a motion, which they carried by a great majority f, that " the commencing suits upon these new demands must impair the protestant interest by driving many useful hands out of this kingdom ; must disable those, that remain to support his Majesty's establishment ; and occasion popery and infidelity to gain ground by the contest, that must necessarily arise between the laity and the clergy.*' Boulter, in his communications with the English Boulter cabinet J complained of this violent defalcation from theioss°(rf the clergy's profits. But he sacrificed even clerical lat'he/thaa emolument to th^ vicious system of keeping up an Kn"hsh in- unnatural, unjust, and unwise ascendancy of the few over the bulk of the nation. So far was that demand new or illegal, that between the years 1722 and 1735, forty-two suits had been instituted in the Exchequer for the recovery of agistment-tithe ; and in each of * 4Cora. Journ.-219. f Viz. 110 to 50. lb. X Vide several letters on this subject to the Bishop of London, iSthMay, 1736, and 10th May, 1737, to Sir Robert Walpole, gth Aug. 1737, and al. H 3 ^he Reign of Creorge It. them, that went to a decree, the tithe was established. The primate permitted this resolution of the com- mons to pass upon the countty for law, and thereby threw the payment of the most profitable tithe, from the richest land and the most opulent occupiers, upon the most barren soil and indigent cottiers. It was in the first instance a discouragement to tillage^ and an effectual check to honest industry and labour. It has ever since been an unceasing source of distress, tur- bulence, and riot *; * An identity of spirit In the government of Ireland, has con- tinued this dekisive principle, so pernicious to the established clergy, so indulgent to the class of occupiers the best able to pay, so oppressive to the part oi the community the least able to bear the payment of any tithe, and so dangerous to the state, which is constitutionally bounden to maintain an established clergy. It will be a painful duty in the sequel to trace several most serious evils to the present pernicious system of tithing, as the events shall chronologically occur. It will not however be laid to the ac- count of historical anachronism, if a circumstance be now referred tOj which falls not within the scope of this history, in illustration of wha; it is the duty of the historisn to retail. Since the union in 1801, which closes the period of this history, frequent notices and promist^s aud menaces haA'e been made in the imperial p.irlia- meiit of motions t > improve the system of tithrs in Ireland. In this session of parliament ( I8O9), the Chancrllor uf the Exchequer has owned, that th^^ difficulty of effectually improving the system of t'thing has baffled his powers, and he must permit this session to pass like the last, without any proposal to heal ihe grievance, which he allows to exist. The party of the Ascendancy (call it English, Protestant, or any thing but Irish has retained from the days of Boulter an influence^ which candour must allow has not been raised out of Irish patriotism. That party liaving devoted itself to the union, in the immediate contemplation l.'he Reign of George IL 103 The Duke of Dorset was succeeded in the lieute- ^737. nancy by the Duke of Devonshire, whose administration Admini- , stration of was the longest and most quiet of any, smce the ac- the Duke of Devon- shire. of which measure, and under conviction, that the imperial par- liament never would convert the abused resolutions of the house of commons into the unchangeable law of the land, did in the year 1800, byway of prevention, pass an act to quiet and bar all claims of tithe-agistment for dry and barren cattle, (40 Geo. III. c. 23.), by which no such claim was allowed, or permitted to be prosecuted in any court civil or ecclesiastical, unless such agistment-tithe had been usually received within the last ten years. Thus vi-as a real abuse of the resolutions of the house of commons, in 1735 made to supersede the law of the land, which no intermediate lapse of time could have extinguished; and the church's right to the agistment-tithe of the fkst grazing country in the known world, divested out of the rightful owners, for no other purpose than of gratifying a party, which had long occupied the power and profits of the state, to the oppression of the country at large. So lately as in the Lent Assizes for 1808, the grand jury of the most protestant county in Ireland (Armagh) considered the abuse of the present system of tithing as actually endangering the loyalty of the .country. They accordingly came to the following resojution. " We, the Grand Jury of the county of Armagh, assembled at Lent Assizes, 1808, see with much concern the exorbitant de- mands made by some of the clergy, and their proctors, in certain parishes in this county, in collecting of tithe, to the very great oppression of their parishioners, and tending, at this time in par- ticular, to detach the minds of his Majesty's subjects from their loyalty, and attachment to the happy constitution of this country." *' Eesolved, that our representatives be instructed to further with their decided support any measure, that may be brought forward in the imperial parliament for modifying and placing in some more equitable mode the payment of the clergy in this country." H 4 104 The Reign of George 11. 1738. cession of the Hanover family. His Grace was wholly devoted to the councils and influence of the primate, who died in that administration *. No lord-Heutenant, since the first Duke of Ormond, displayed such pomp, state, and luxury, as the Duke of Devonshire : no one ever applied so much of his personal patrimony to the gratification or advantage of the Irish nation: and upon the whole, his Heiitenancy, without being bril- liant, had the negative merit of not having been turbu- lent. As persecution was agreeable neither to George the Second, nor to his favourite minister Sir Robert Walpole, the catholics of Ireland enjoyed some few years of relative indulgence, which was ill relished by the primate f. In his ideas it had produced so much insolence in that body, and so general a disposition amongst protestants and papists to insult magistrates for doing their duty^ that they thought it proper, for preserving the peace of the country, to prosecute any person indifferently^ that demanded satisfaction of any magistrate for putting the laws into execution \, * 4 Journ. Com. p. 152. f The editor of Boulter's Letters assures ns, that such a raalig-' nant spirit had been raised about this period by Dean Swifr and the Irish bankers, that it was thought proper to lodge at the primate's house an extraordinary guard of soldiers : and, by a singular com- bination of hew rogeneous interests, the primate attributed an op- position to the English cabinet in Ireland to the art of the Dean, the management of the bankers, and the whole popish party there. X lietter to the Duke of Devonshire, vol. 11. p. 227- What idea is to be lorrned of the government of that country, in which the cabinet. The Reign of George II. 1 03 The cries against popery at this time arose prin- ^7^9- cipally from self-interest. Lord Clancarty had ob- Variance oi tamed the consent of the British cabmet, that a bill aid Irish should be brought into the Irish parliament to reverse his attainder for having adhered to King James in 1688. His forfeited estates v^^ere, according to Pri- mate Boulter, then of the annual value of 60,000/. The report of that measure, and reflection upon the consequences of such a precedent threw the protest- ant landholders into the greatest alarm and fermenta- tion *. It sharpened the edge of the law, and in- creased the acrimony of the Irish government against the catholics, notwithstanding their unshaken loyalty and exemplary conduct. This appears from the re- solutions of the commons at the end of the year 1739t ; which were stronger than those affecting Lord Clanrickarde : an evident proof, that there was a powerful interest in Ireland not in unison with the British cabinet. The former prevailed on this occasion as on many others, and the attainder of Lord Clan- carty was not reversed |. first minister of national justice makes a desperate and forced threat of administering it indifferently Jbr the peace of the conn' try? * 2 Boulter, p. 152, •f 1 Journ. Com. p. 336. These resolutions are given in my Historical Revi vv, vol. I. 2S8. ^ This nobleman sensibly resented the irresolution of the Eng- lish ministry in not carrying into effect their promises and engage- paents for passing this measure. On this account M'Allister says, (Let. p. 15), " Lord Clancarty considering himself ill used ^y the ministry of England, readily attended the summons of 206 *I he Reign of George IL kZ^ 1'he personal feelings of the Sovereign, the political i^^favour°of ^iews of the English ministry, and the humane dis- lics "rheir positioH of the Duke of Devonshire produced some icTai^'*^" relaxation in the execution of the laws against the ca- tholics. The British government, in defiance of those very laws, condescended to recruit both the army and navy in Ireland, though with more secrecy, than the recruiting service for the old Pretender had been carried on in the last years of Queen Ann, In the year 1745, under the administration of Mr. Pelham, who had succeeded Sir Robert Walpole, the British government was greatly embarrassed by the loss of the noted battle of Fontenoy, and ^he simultaneous land- ing of the young chevalier in the North or Scotland. There then existed a corps of British Jacobites, con- sisting of seven regiments of Irish, and two of Scots*, in the pay of the French monarch, who considered themselves as auxiliary troops of James Stuart, whom they acknowledged as the rightful monarch of these realms. Although frequent intercourse must have subsisted between those, who served the exiled prince the old chevalier to prepare for the intended invasion of Great Britain in 1^45. He sought any occasion for procuring to himself the prospect of possessing that great fortune, and would have joined the Grand Turk or Cham of Tartary to obtain it." * The six Irish regiments of foot, were Dillon, Clare, Berwick, Roscommon, Lally, Bulkely ; and Fiizjames's horse : the Scots, were the Royal Scots hoise, and Ogilvie's foot. Three of these regiments were at the battle of Fontenoy, and claimed the merit of turning the fortune of that day in favour of the French : on which occasion, George the Second is reported to have said, with unusual emotion, cursed be the laws, which deprive me of such subjects. The tieign of George II. iOt at St. Germain's or in this brigade, and their relatives ^7^5- in Ireland, yet so pure was the loyalty of the great body of Irish in this moment of trial, that not even a suspicion of their rising in the cause of the Pretender was harboured or acted upon. ' ) Fortunately for Ireland, the Earl of Chesterfield* was Earl of ..... ^ Chesterfield appointed to the lieutenancy in this critical moment. No- appointed thing could exceed the coolness, moderation, and wis- nam. dom of his conduct on this trying occasionj. He had for- • * Before this prudent governor had assumed the reins of the Irish governnient, the usual means of alarming and irritating the public mind from the senate, bench, and pulpit had been so ef- fectually pursued, that upon the report of Marshal Saxe's inten- tion to make a descent upon England, a serious proposal had been niade in council, that as the papists had begun tlie massacre on the protestants in 1641, it was but just and reasonable in that critical juncture to retaliate in like manner upon the papists. Al- though this barbarous proposal were indignantly rejected by that honourable assembly, to which it was proposed, yet was it the en- thusiastic conviction of some of the lower orders of the protestant inhabitants of EiVirgan, that such a horrid conspiracy was actually entered into : although it were by providential accident prevented from the discovery of a respectable merchant of Dublin, who hap- pened to be there upon his commercial concerns. f Every act of this excellent governor differed from those of all his predecessors, and unfortunately too of most of his succes- sors. Before he left England, he chose for principal secretary, Mr. Lyddel, who was, as he says in a letter to his son, a very genteel pretty young fellow, but not a man of business : which circum- stance determined his choice. His lordship told him, " Sir, you will receive the emoluments of your place, but I will do the bu- siness myself, being determined to have no first minister." His lordship owed his appointment, not to court favour, ( George the 108 The Reign of George II. ^1/45.^ tunately been entrusted with a plenitude of discretion : and the gratitude of the Irish for the judicious and prudent use of his extraordinary powers^ has not even to this day been effaced from the lowest of their pea- santry. Gratitude has ever a strong hold upon the Irish nation. It required indeed the eminent sagacity and address of that nobleman, to baffle the efforts and importunities of the violent party in Ireland^ with which they daily assailed the castle, and demanded rigour and severity against the catholics, as the just tribute to the protestant interest, and ihe only means of supporting the establishment. By the temperate wisdom of this government during the rebellion in Great Britain *, not a single Irish Catholic, lay or clerical, was engaged, or even accused of being en- gaged, in that cause f . Second disliked him much) but to state necessity. He had ex- perience, sense, and principle, and he acted up to them. * The Pretender landed in the summer of ] 745, on one of the Hebrides^, and on the jgth of August, the Marquis of TuUi- bardine erected his standard at Glensinnan : on the l6th day of April, 1/46, the battle of Culloden was won by the Duke of Cumberland, which properly put an end to that rebellion. f This fact is fully proved by Dr. Curry, (vol. II. p. 26l, Duh. Ed. 1793.) " In the year 1762, upon a debate in the house of lords about the expediency of raising five regiments of these catholics, for the service of the King of Portugal, Doctor Stone (then primate), in an answer to some common-place objections against the good faith and loyalty of these people, which were re- vived with virulence on that occasion, declared publicly in the house of lords, that in the year 1747^ after that rebellion was The Reign of George II. 109 When Lord Chesterfield met the parliament on the 1746, 8th of October, his speech to them bespoke the wis- ^ _ ^ , Lord Ches- dom of his conduct : he addressed himself to a feeling terficid meets the people, with the authority of a ruler, and with the af- parliament. fection of a father. * On the same day, both lords and commons re- Address of solved on an address of thanks to his Majesty, for the throne. placing over them, at that critical juncture, a governor of such eminent abilities and distinguished merit. The earl of Chesterfield, confiding in the steady Prudent . , , . and upright loyalty of the Irish people, instead of increasmg, as conduct of Lord Ches- terfield, entirely suppressed, happening to be in England, he had an op- portunity of perusing all the papers of the rebels and their cor- respondents, which were seized in the custody of Murray, the Pretender's secretary ; and that after having spent much time, and taken great pains in examining them (not without some share of the then common suspicion, that there might be some private understanding and intercourse between them and the Irish catho- lics) he could not discover the least trace, hint, or intimation of such intercourse or correspondence in them, or of any of the let- ters favouring, or abetting, or having been so much as made ac- quainted with the designs or proceedings of these rebels j and what he said he wondered at most of all was, that in all his re- searches, he had not met with any passage in any of these papers, from which he could infer, that either their holy father the pope, or any of his cardinals, bishops, or other dignitaries of that church, or any of the Irish clergy, had, either directly or indirectly, encou- raged, aided, or approved of the commencing or carrying on of that rebellion." The like honourable testimony of Irish loyalty on this occasion appears in the charge given to the grand juries of the city and county of Dublin, by the Lord Chief Justice Marlay, for which see my Hist. Review, vol. I. p. 294. * 3 Lords' Journ. p- 59I. 110 The Reign of George J I. ^ 746. he was importunately advised^ the army by 4000 men, | sent four battalions t > the assistance of the Duke of Cumberland, and encouraged volunteer associations to form in different parts of the kingdom for the de- , fence of their country. These battalions he replaced ] by additional companies to the regiments. -already j on the establishment, without increasing the expen- diture of the nation, the influence of the crown, or his own patronage or emolument. The supply asked for was small : it was raised with ease, and expended with economy : a considerable saving out of it was - applied to the improvement of the harbour of Cork. He rested the support of his measures upon their rectitude, and chastely abstained from gaining friends by the customary modes of reversionary grants. He opened to :he catholics their places of worship, re- leased their priests out of prison, and allowed them the undisturbed exercise of their religious duties. 1 This great statesman well knew, that the Irish above all other people, were to be gained and secured by confidence, kindness, and liberality- 1 hus protestants and catholics, whigs and tories, courtiers and pa- triots, convinced of the rectitude of his measures, united in contributing to render his government agree- able and efficient. Neither in nor out of parliament was a single measure of this excellent governor op? posed or disrelished. Addressed The lords and commons, in several addresses t© and c^om- ^ the lord-licuteuant, expressed their sense of his Ma- jesty's favour and goodness towards Ireland in sparing from his councils in Great Britain a person of his mons. The Reign of George II. Ill excellency's known and tried abilities for the good »7^^. and advantage of their nation. The commons were more tardy in expressing ^heir sentiments to the vice- roy, though their address, which was made on the 5th of April, 174G, were more pointed, as being founded in the happy experience, and not in the an- ticipated confidence of his administration. The Earl ' of Chesterfield had the satisfaction oP seeing all his attempts to serve the kingdom he was sent to govern, ■ requited by the most peaceful demeanour and enthu- siastic gratitude of the Irish nation. He was univer- sally admired on his arrival, beloved during his stay, and regretted upon his departure. To perpetuate his virtues and the gratitude of the nation, his bust was placed in the castle of Dublin at the public expense. The short administration of the earl of Chesterfield Reflections furnishes reflections highly important to the welfare of short dura • the Irish nation. It was a practical demonstration or Chester- the utility of a system of liberality, not only ro Ireland, mimstra^ but to the whole British empire. It was conclusive evidence, that Great Britain well knew how at any- time to ensure the happiness of her sister kingdom, though unwilling at most times to promote it. Fear drove Great Britain to do justice to Ireland for some months of danger. So thriftily did Great Britain deal out this transient justice to Ireland, that she appeared to count reluctantly the hours of its enjoyment. On the 19th of August, 1745, the standard of rebellion was formally erected in the Highlands of Scotland : a courier was dispatched to hasten the return of the King, who was then in Hanover : he arrived in Lon- tion. 112 The Reign of George 11. ^746, don before the end of August: on the 3 1st day of August, the Earl of Chesterfield was appointed lord- lieutenant and chief governor of Ireland. On the 1 6th of April, 1746, the defeat of the Pretender at Culloden by the Duke of Cumberland put an end to the rebellion ; on the ninth day after that event, Ire- land was deprived of her favourite viceroy ; for on the 25th of April, 1746, Primate Hoadiey, Lord- chancellor Newport, and Mr. Boyle, the speaker of the house of commons, were appointed lords-justices, and vainly did Ireland sigh for the return of her short- lived felicity. Great Britain was out of danger ; and Ireland could securely be put again under its former regime. In order effectually to cut off all hopes of the return of Lord Chesterfield to Ireland, on the 13th of September the Earl of Harrington was ap- pointed the new lord-lieutenant. EariofHar- This is the period of Irish history, at which Mr. ringtonlord- i t^ i- i • t i lieutenant. Burke observed*, " the English m Ireland began to be domiciliated, and to recollect, that they had a coun- try.'* The English interest at first by faint and almost insensible degrees, but at length openly and avow- edly, became an independent Irish interest, full as independent, as it could ever have been, if it had con- tinued in the persons of the native Irish. The new lord-lieutenant, when he met the parHament in Octo- ber, 1747, particularly comphmented them on his Ma- jesty's continuance of his paternal regard and affection to a dutiful and loyal people; and recommended a * Letter to Lang. p. 45. The Reign of George 11. US Continuance of the same good conduct and vigilance^ ^747. which, under God, had prevented the communication df so dangerous an infection (i. e. the Scotch rebellion) to that kingdom. The agitation of a political question about this time The patriot, brought into notice Mr. Lucas, a medical gentleman, Lucas, from Cork, who, on a vacancy in the representadon of the city of Dublin, proposed himself on the patriotic in-» terest. He had for some time attacked the abuses, by which the commons had been deprived of the 'power of chusing the city magistrates, and that power had been placed in the board of aldermen, subject to the appro- bation of the lord -lieutenant. This question raised a flaming contest for civil liberty between the patriots and government*. Mr. James Digges Latouche, who had formerly been an intimate friend of Mr. Lucas, and strongly united with him in political principles, on this occasion abandoned them, and propos d himself as a candidate for the city of Dublin, in opposition to Mr. Lucas, then the popular idol of such of the na- tion, as took the liveliest concern in the politics of the day. The firmness and perspicuity of his speeches to the different corporations, his f>olitical publications, the popularity of his subject, and (^perhaps) the justice of his arguments, alarmed the Irish government, which had been little used to such opposition. They deter- mined to crush him by the hand of power. Certain passages were collected from his writings, and made * The particulars of the several publications and nature of this civil discord may be seen in my Historical Review, vol. I. p. 302* et seq. VOL. II. I 114 The Reign of George IT. H^ the founda/ion of a charge brought against him before parliament. The rights of the commons, which with particular attention he had laboured to vindicate and ascertain, had been one of the subjects of his free dis- cussicn. Instead of protecting him in reward of this service, so essential to Ireland, the majority of that house listened to the charge, voted him an enemy to his country, and addressed the lord-lieutenant to order him to be prosecuted by his Majesty's attorney-gem^- ral*. The favour of the public was not sufficient to defend him against the hand of power. To avoid the storm, Mr. Lucas fled from Ireland. After he had spent some time in banishment, the turn of for- tune placed him once more in an honourable situation. The exertions of his friends rose superior to the influ- ence, by which he had been oppressed. Upon a new vacancy;, he returned to Dublin, and was elected one of the representatives of that city in parliament. The purest patriotism and the firmest and most disinter- ested exertions in behalf of the constitution, invariably distinguished his conduct in and out of parliament to the day of his death. Primate The Spirit of civil freedom had now become so trusted with prevalent in Ireland, that the English interest could the manage- , , . , • i i • r -t ment of the no longer be carried on with that systematic racihty, terl.t in lie'- With which it had been managed by Primate Boulter. iand. * Mr. Lucas's writings or arguments are collected in two closely printed volumes in octavo. A very explicit and candid profession of his political faith, is comprised in his Address to the Earl of Harrington, on the 3d of October, 1/49, which is to be seen in the Appendix, No, LVIl. to my Historical Review. The Reign of George II. J 15 Upon the death df Primate Hoadley*, in 1747* the 174/. person, to whom this interest was committed was George Stone, then Bishop of Derry. He had ingra- tiated himself with the castle by a most zealous oppo- > sition to the Irish interest. Immediately upon his translation to the see of Armagh, he was put at the head of the' commission, with the chancellor and speaker as lords-justices. 1 his prelate was a man of talent, of a lofty and arrogant disposition; resolute and determined ; a thorough-paced courtier ; and too determinately devoted to politics to be attentive to his pastoral duties f. At the head of those, who opposed * He succeeded Boulter in 1741. •f Primate Stone was lavish of favours to his creatures, and had therefore many supporters : he was too haughty and dictatorial not to have many enemies. His grandfather had been gaoler at Win- chester : his perquisites in that situation had enabled his son (the primate's father) to become a banker: he was a nonjuror, and his chief customers were the Jacobites. He was in tlxe flower of youth when promoted to the primacy ; to which none before him had been raised till on the decline of life. His person was un- commonly hmdsome ; whence he was called the ieaidy of Holi- ness. He was inordinate in his ambition, intemperate in his passion?, and inexorable in his resentments. Like his predecessor BoiJter, he was invested with the arduous charge of marshalling the English interest, or, according to tlie more specious phrase^ of doing the King's (in fact the minister's) busi?iess. His entertain- ments had all the attractions of the most voluptuous refinemento His courtesy, affability, and hospitality gained him many abettors, and his efFo;ts to gain proselytes in parliament were indefatigable. Yet the number of his enemies is a strong presumption^ that the charges against him were not altogether groundlesriate it. The patriots, ranged under the speakei^s i748. banner, insisted that no such assent was necessary, and beat their politica:! adversaries by a small majority. Heads of a bill for the appropriation passed the com- mons without taking notice of the King's previous as- sent to it. They were rejected by the crown, and the surplus was applied by the royal authority, without the intervention of parliament. But the commons took effectual care, that the question should not occur a second time, by appropriating every future surplus to their private use, under the specious pretence of local public improvements. Wind-mills and water-mills, and canals, and bridges, and spinning jennies, were provided at the public expense ; and the parliamen- tary patrons of these great national objects were en^ trusted with full discretionary powers over the money granted to complete them. From this system of local improvement, a double advantage arose to the Irish aristocracy: it kept their followers steady in the ranks, and by reducing the crown to the necessity of calling for the supplies, made the political v services of the leaders necessary for the support of the King's govern^ ment. But the precedent was fatal, and a system has gradually been built upon it, which would beat down the most powerful nation of the earth." It had been the invariable usage, as it was the duty Contest be- , ^ tween the of the commons, since the revolution, to superintend Irish com- mons and the expenditure of the annual supplies, and to dispose English ca- ^ _ . binet, as to of the surplus without the consent of the sovereign : the appro- ... priation of accordingly in the year 1749 they prepared a bill with surplus. 118 The Reign of George Jin 1749, a preamble, reGommending, without any reference to the royal consent, " that this unapplied residue on the 25th of March should be paid in discharge of part of the national debt.'^ This assumption cf right in the commons to apply the unappropriated surplus wirhout the previous consent of the crown, gave great offence to the British cabinet, which instructed the Duke of Dorset, who had returned lord- lieutenant, to assure the parliament*, that he was commanded by the King to acquaint them, that his Majesty, ever attentive to the ease and happiness of his subjects, would gra- (ciously consent to and recommend such appropriation. , This declaration alarmed the commons, as an attempt upon their privileges. In their address of thanks, which is usually but an echo of the King's speech, they studiously omitted to notice the consent of the crown j as they also did in the preamble of the bill for appro- priating 120,000/. surplus in discharge of the national debt. This omission was resented by the English mi- nistry, as a direct attack upon the prerogative. I'hc bill was sent back amended by the insertion of his Majesty's consent, as well as his recommendation. They then passed it even without debate. Fevii, a The patriots in the Commons grew daily more member of . r 1 - i 1 ■ i 1 r the house tenacious oi their duty, and had been tor some time nions.found engaged in investigating the embezzlement of public lula'Jon.''^" money by Mr, Nevil, one of thtir own house, sur- veyor and engineer general, who was found guilty of * 5 JourD. Com. p. pi. The Reign of George II. 1 1^ the grossest peculation, embezzlement, and fraud in 1/51. his management of and contracts for the barracks*. Such abuses had been long complained of; but till the patriots had acquired sufficient strength to raise an effectual opposition to the Anglo- Irish government, all addresses, remonstrances, and efforts for redress had but aggravated the evil, whilst the state delin- quents were shielded by that factitious majority, which it was the boasted poHcy of those times to support, under the appellation of an English interest. Having succeeded in convicting Mr. Nevil to the extent of their chargef, they reserved themselves to make fresh head against this encroachment of the crown upon their own privileges and right of raising and applying the surplus of the national revenue. The Duke of Dorset was sent a second time to Duke of , r T 1 1 • • Dorset's se- assume the government or JreJand, m expectation, condiicqtc- that the popularity he had gained in his first admini- ^^"'^^' stration, would enable him to stem the progress of patriotism, which more perhaps from the popularity of Lucas, and the disgrace of Nevil, than from its intrinsic powers had become highly alarming to the English cabinet. That nobleman was remarkable for his suavity of manners ; when formerly governor, he had not a personal enemy, and was really friendly to the welfare of Ireland. Upon his second arrival, bte * For the different reports and resolutions against liiin, vide 5 Com. Journ. passim. . " ' • f Mr, Nevil was afterwards expelled the house, and his name ordered to be expunged out of the list. 5 Journ. Com. p. 165. I 4 ] 20 The Reign of George II, 1752. was received with the joy and gratitude of a nation, which had long regretted his absence. The change of the public disposition towards his grace was as sudden, as his devotion to the English interest was determined. Primate Stone, at whose nod the whole Irish government moved, was execrated by the coun- try at large ; Lord George Sackville, the lord- lieu- tenant's son and secretary, gave general offence to the nation by the loftiness of his carriage : he was disdainful and impetuous : and though eloquent, was often petulant and generally sarcastic in his languagCc The patriots complained loudly^ that under these two, namely, an English Archbishop, (no very staunch model of morality or virtue) and a young supercilious boy, giddy and intoxicated with power, the Irish nation w^as governed without control. The duke was considered as the mere passive tool of government. Though he had no enemies to his person, he found a host against his government. Triumph of Again was the contest about the right of appropri- the i alriots . ° , r i . ^^ ^ over the go- ating the surplus of the revenue revived, and the vernmerit r • ^ and its ar- former expenments resorted to. The bill containing 4 the amendments from England^ which imported the Royal consent, went to the votes *, and was rejected * The violent proceedings, which followed this rejectio.n of the bill, threw the nation into a flame. The degraded members of the patriots exahed by their disgrace, became the idols of the people^ and were worshipped as martyrs for the liberties of their country. In this temper it was hazardous to suffer the commons, who had been adjourned for a few days, to meet. The parliament was suddenly prorogued, and several bills equally necessary to the crown as to thr The Reign of George II. 121 ;by a majority of five voices. The success of their 17*^3. endeavours was celebrated with the most extravagant rejoicings, as a triumph of patriotism over the arts of ministerial corruption ; and on the other hand, all the servants of the crown, who had joined the popular cry on this occasion, were dismissed from their em- ployments. The rejection of the bill was a great disappointment to the credit: ji . of the public, and the circulation of cash suffered a general stagjnation. In this contest for constitutional rights, the Earl of Memorial - of the Earl Kildare was prominently conspicuous. He as well as ofKiidare. the most considerable men of fortune in Ireland, who were not under some special tie or obligation to go- verment, sided with the patriots. It was industriously circulated from the.castle, that the majority of the house of commons was a Popish and Jacobitical party^ subject, fell to the ground. The primate, who was considered as the author of all these measures, despairing to gain the affections of the people, determined to awe them into submission by others still more violent. He urged the Duke of Dorset to remove from their employments not only all, who opposed him, but those, whom he suspected to have any connection with the opposite party. The duke hadnot vigor of mind for such an undertaking. He dread- ed the tumults of the people. Every shout of the mob threw him into panics j and this being known, (hey left him not one mo- ment's repose. To rid himself of importunities, he promised the primate, that upon his return to England, he would do every thing he could desire. The duke under the protection of a mili- tary guard and of a mob hired and made drunk for the purpose by a man, who was largely rewarded for that service by a pension on the public establishment, made his escape out of the kingdom. The primate, who was continued in the government, in vain em- ployed menace and promise to break the party. 1 22 The Reign of George IT. 3756. endeavouring to destroy the royal prerogatives, in or- der to pave the way to his majesty's expulsion from the throne. Such undoubtedly were they represented to the English ministry. Under these circumstances, the Earl of Kildare presented with his own hand a most spirited memorial* to the king, in which, after referring to the hereditary loyalty of his family from the days of Henry II. he assured his majesty, that he was the rather induced to lay that memorial at his feet, as it was on good presumption surmised, that all access to his royal ear was shut up, and his liege sub- jects debarred the liberty of complaining : that as no notice had been taken of several remonstrances lately made by his majesty's liege subjects, it was humbly presumed^ that such remonstrances had been stopped in their progress to the royal ear : that he ventured on that bold step at the request of thousands : that in general the face of his loyal kingdom of Ireland wore discontent : a discontent not coloured from ca- price or faction, but purely founded on ministerial abuse. This strong, though necessary measure of the Earl of Kildare gave great offence and some alarm to the British cabinet, though they affected to treat it as an act of folly and temerity, which nothing but the extreme mildness of government v. ould permit to pass unpunished.! f^*'''^^^°^ -The distressed situation of Ireland roused that illus- dare's Me- ni'^i'^l- « It may be seen in the Appendix to my Hist. Rev. No. LVIII. t This is manifested by the correspondence between the Duke of Dorset and Lord Holderness, whose letters may be seen in my Historical Review, vol. I, 315. The Reign of George II. ' 123 trious patriot, who reflected honour on nobility, to 1/56. appeal to the sovereign to open the channel of com- munication between his Majesty and his Irish subjects, which had been so long obstructed by the machinations of corrupt ministers. If the measure were without a precedent, so was the occasion ihat made it necessary. The good of the country was at once its motive and its justification ; and the rage and violence it excited evinced the shock it was to the English interest. It did not however lose its effect upon the king. The popular clamour became so loud, that government was terrified into a change of measures. The speaker of the house of commons was promoted to the dig- nity of an earl*: and several other patriots accepted of lucrative employments. Primate Stone, who had been the chief fomenter of the late disturbances, was by his majesty's command strucken off the list of privy counsellors, and most of those, who, by his intrigues had been displaced for voting for the money bill, were reinstated with honor. The Marquis of Hartington, afterwards Duke of Devonshire, went over as lord- lieutenant. Upon his return to England in 1756, Lord Chancellor Jocelyn and the Farls of Kildare and Bes- borough were appointed lord-justices. Much of the popular ferment now subsided, and the kingdom once more resumed the appearance of tranquillity. The cause of patriotism was strengthened, not in<;inrerity of many of the Patriots. * Viz. Of Sliannon : he had also a pension of 20OO1. per ann. for 31 years. There was much intrigue in bringing about these changes in Ireland, which mny be seen in my Historical Review, vol.1. 314. &:c. 1 24 The Reign of George II. 1756. established by the late appointments. A trial of self- interest proved several i them recreant from the cause of freedom, in which they had recently enlisted. The commons, in a committee of -the whole house, took into consideration the heads of a most wholesome bill to secure the freedom of parliament, by vacating the seats of such iijt,mbers, as should accept of any pen- sion or civil office of profit from the crown : which upon a division was negatived by a majority of 26*. The patriots The patriots rallied successfully upon a most imr carryanim- portaut question, namely, whether the representative ques^tion. body of the nation should .be deprived by any mini- sterial influence from carrying national grievances up to the throne ? On this occasion the firm zeal of Mr. John Ponsonby, the speaker, cannot be over- rated. Unsatisfac- Several strong resolutions of the committee ap- to7he'cJ^- pointed to inspect the public accounts of the nation "^°"^' were reported to the house, which resolved, that the house, with its speaker, should attend the lord-Heute- nant, with the resolutions, and desire his grace would be pleased to lay them before his Majesty as the sense of that house. When his excellency was attended by * 3 Journ. Com. p. 38. On the day of this debate a list of the pensions granted upon the civil establishment of Ireland was according to order given in to the house : it amounted to 44j393l. 15s. and is to be seen in the appendix to that volume of the - Journals CCXCVI. In this list of pensioners are to be read many of the first names of Ireland, many foreigners, and few or no me- ritorious servants of the public. The Countess of Yarmouth stood upon it for 40001. The Reign of George II, 125 the speaker to know when the resolutions would be laid ^7^7- before his Majesty, the following unsatisfactory answer was given. " The matter contained ii^ those resolutions is of so high a nature, that I cannot suddenly deter- mine, whether it be proper for me to transmit them to his Majesty." On the speaker's reporting the answer, Mr. Secretary moved, that it should be entered in the journal of the house as expHcit and satisfactory. After debate^ and the question put, Mr. Secretary appre- hending a majority against the motion, withdrew it, which prevented a division. But upon the grand debate for suppressing the resolutions, and preventing national grievances being laid before the throne^ the question was carried against the minister by a majority of twenty-one. I'he house having been afterwards assured that the lord-lieutenant would forthwith trans- mit their resolutions to his Majesty^ they proceeded to business j and passed the money bill unanimously on the same day.* The Duke of Bedford^ who was appointed lord- Administra- lieutenant in the year 1757, was the first chief go- oukeo/ % vernor of Ireland, who openly professed a favourable voumbie*^^© disposition to the Catholics. To him must be allowed {|J.^ ^**^' the credit of having restored suspended animation to the members of that paralyzed body. Heads of a registery bill, prepared under the late administration of Ireland, which was intended as a severe penal law * As matter of historical curiosity a list of the gentlemen who divided upon these resolutions, which was one of the first triumphs of Patriotism in Ireland, is given in the Appendix, No» JilX. t9 my Historical Review^ currciices DCCdsion national fer- ment. 126 The Reign of George 11, irsp. upon the Catholics, were handed about, and created nmch alarm in that body *. Their fears drove them to consultation, and consultation animated them to action : a common sense of the existing and fear of additional severities taught them, that the surest means of preventing fresh laws from being enacted would be to make some vigorous exertion for the repeal of those, by which they were most galled. They held fre- quent meetings, in which there was much diversity of opinion. They failed from want of concert among themselves. Private oc- Souie incidental occurrences gave rise to much public menace^ and some additional severity in exe- cuting the laws. A young lady of the name of Toole being strongly importuned by some of her relations to conform to the established religion, had taken refuge in the house t)f a Mr. Saul, a catholic merchant in Dublin. 1 he affair was taken up with a high hand. Mr. Saul was prosecuted, and publicly assured from the bench, that the laws did not presume a Papist to exist in the kingdom, nor coidd tliey breathe ivithout the coJinitruice: of government f. The publication about * Mr. Charles O'Connor of Ballenagare, the celebrated Irish scholar and antiquary, \vas one of the most active of the Catholics. His letter to Dr. Curry on this occasion, which is to be seen in the Appendix to my Histojical Review, No. LXL will let the reader into the spirit of the sense and feeling of the gentlemen of that persuasion at that period. The nature and result of their conduct may be seen in my Historical Review, 320, &c. f Mr. Saul's letter to Mr. O'Connor upon this subject, dated November ttie 15tU, 1/59, g^^'^ ''" interesting account of this The Re/gn of George 11. 127 the same time of Dr. Curry's Historical Memoirs of 17-29. tJie Irish Rebellion of iGJ-l"" though anonymously, awakened the attention of all, and sharp^med the ri- gour of many towards the catholics. So little had the public been then accustomed to the voice of truth upon these subjects, that the book, though dispassion- ate and unanswerable, raised an alarming ferii.ent in the minds of most of the Protestants. When the Duke of Bedford met the parliament in Alarm of ' French in- 1 759, he apprized them, that by a letter from Mr. vasmn, and "' its C'lnse- Secretary Pitt, written by his Majesty's express com- qucnccs. mand, it appeared that France, following up her plan of invasion, would, if able to elude the British squa- dron, make Ireland their first object. He had there- fore but to animate the loyal people of Ireland to exert their well-known zeal and spirit in support of his Majesty's government, and in defence of all that was dear to them. The commons assured his grace that the house would make good whatever expense should be necessarily incurred by pursuing the most speedy and effectual means to frustrate and defeat the transaction, and of its consequences to Mr. Saul, whom it drove out of the kingdom. His family has been ever since settled in France. The letter is in my Historical Review, Appendix, No. LXIII. The original is in Mr. O'Connor's collection, and now probably in the library of Stowe with the rest of that collection. * The Memoirs were published with great secrecy and caution. The motives and reasons for their publication will best appear from the correspondence between Dr. Curry and Mr Charles O'Connor upon the subject, in the Appendix to my Historical Review, No. LXIV. The original letters once were in the O'Con- nor collection. i 28 ^lie Reign of George 11. ^759. attempts of the enemy. The first impressions dt this communication produced such distractions among thd people, as had nearly proved fatal to the public credit. In the first transports of popular fear, there was such an extraordinary run upon the banks of Dublin, that several considerable bankers were obliged to stop pay- ment. Circulation was suspended for a time. When the lord-Heutenant, the members of both houses of parliament, the lord mayor, aldermen, merchants, and principal traders of Dublin, by prudently engaging in an association to support public credit, by taking bankers notes in payment^ revived it, and saved the nation from bankruptcy. The catho- Amongst Other delusive motives, which at this time govern- actuated che unwise councils of Versailles, in hazard- jfie'aiarm ing this rash invasion of Ireland, were the false hopes o invasion, j^^jj^j^ ^^j. ^^ them by some of the expatriated Irish in the service of France, that an invading army would have been immediately joined by the physical force of the country. On the first alarm however of invasion Mr. O'Connor and Dr. Curry called a meeting of the Catholic committee, for the purpose of making a ten- der of their allegiance to government. Mr. O'Connor drew up the form of an address on 1st of December, 1759; and on the ensuing day, at a meeting of the most respectable merchants in Dublin^, it was signed by about 300 persons, and presented to the speaker of the house of commons, to be forwarded by him to the lord-lieutenant. It was received without observation, and laid on the table. No direct answer was given from the castle. Some days elapsed in mysterious The Reign of George II. 129 silence. On the 10th of December his grace gave a 1759. most gracious answer to the address^ which appeared ' ' in the Dublin Gazette on the l'5th of December, 1 759.* Thfe speaker sent for Mr. Anthony M'Der^ mott as the delegate from the catholic body, and hav- ing by Older read the address, the speaker replied, ,that he counted it a favour done him to be put in the way of serving so respectable a body, as that of the gentlemen^ who had signed that loyal address. The acceptance of this addres? was the re-admission of the catholic body over the threshold of their constitutional rights t. Immediately upon the circulation of the gra- cious acceptance of this address, the catholics poured in addresses upon the castle^ from every quarter of the kingdom, expressive of their loyalty and zeal for their king and country. It has been credibly asserted, that one strong motive P'°J^*^! °^ for this favourable disposition to the catholics was to creates a ^ ^ _ ^ distuibance dispose that body to an Union with Great Britain, which had then been crudely thought of. It was the • The address and the Duke of Bedford's answer are to be seen in the Appendix to my Historical Review, No. LXV, t Notwithstanding the successful result of this address, it is to be remarked, that a most determined, and not altogether temperate dissension of the Catholic body took place, upon its propriely. The clergy, nobility, and landed interest were anti-addressers: their fears or hopes, or expectancies from the castle convinced them, that as Catholics were not subjects in the eye of the law, it would be presumption to address ; and they only could express their obedience by letter. Fortunately for Ireland, this pusillani- ' mous delicacy of the anti-addressers was overruled by the sound sense and policy of Mr. O'Connor and Dr. Curry. VOL. II. K 130 The Reign of George IL ^759. obvious interest of the managers of the Irish Govern- ment then to oppose it^ and they secretly instigated the mob against it, without appearing to take any part in the opposition. The measure was effectually strangled in embryo. The people was then taught or pcrmitied to view prospectively in union, the deprivation of its par- liament and independency, and the probable subjection to the same taxes that were levied in England. These notions inflamed the populace to such a degree, that they assembled in a prodigious multitude, broke into the house of lordsj insulted the peers, seated an old woman on the throne, and searched for the Journals^ which, had they been found, would have been com- mitted to the flames. They compelled the members of both houses, whom they met in the streets, to take an oath, that they would never consent to such an union, or give any vote contrary to the true interest of Ireland. Divers coaches belonging to obnoxious per- sons were destroyed, and their horses killed ; a gibbet was erected for one gentleman in particular, who nar- rowly escaped the ungovernable rage of the mob. A body of horse and infantry was drawn out. The multitude at night dispersed of itself. Next day ad- dresses to the lord-lieutenant were agreed to by both houses, and a committee of enquiry appointed, that the ringleaders of the tumult might be discovered and brought to condign punishment. Some members of the house of commons attempted to throw these out- rages, like all other national evils, upon the catholics*. * The Duke of Bedford made tlie most honourable amends to the catholics he could on die occasion, by directing Mr. Jgija The Reign of George 11, 131 The grand embarkation designed for Ireland was to 1759, bave been from Vannes in Lower Britanny To Threatcnsd cover it, a fleet was fitted out at Brest, commanded Conflans by M. de Conflans. The execution of this scheme Hawke. was delayed by Sir Edward Hawke, who had blocked up that harbour with twenty-three ships of the line for several months. The British fleet having been blown off its station in November, Conflans em- braced the opportunity, and sailed with twenty-one large ships and four frigates. Hawke pursued and came up with the French fleet, which he completely defeated in Ouiberon bay, in the midst of a storm, in the darkness of the night, and on a rocky shore. In the autumn of this year, a marauding squadron Thurofsex- by way of causing a diversion, sailed under the com- against irp- mand of an enterprising officer, Thurot, from Dunkirk, for the North of Ireland. It consisted originally of five ships, carrying about twelve hundred land forces. The reputation acquired by M. Thurot, as captain of a privateer, raised him to the command of this expe- dition. Adverse winds drove the squadron to Got- tenburgh. Two of the ships were separated from the rest by the violence of the storm, and returned to France. The remaining three arrived off Carrickfer- gus in February, 1760;, and there landed their forces Ponsonbyj the speaker, to read from tbe chair his answer to their address ; which w'as an approbation of their past conduct, and an assurance of his tiiture favour and protection as long as they continued in it. It is remarkable, that no trace of this whole transaction is to be found in the journals of the cojsimons. K 2 132 The Reign of George II. 37*9' reduced to six hundred men. That town^ not havine any regular force to defend it, was obliged to ca- pitulate, ihe country rallied with great loyalty and zeal, and \vere advancing in a body of about 3000 men, when on the 5rh day after their landing, the Fren^ ihat power was to be transferred, should be endowed JZf^* with the qualities most likely to ingratiate him with the Irish nation j convivial ease, humour, liberality, and valour. The majority in the commons grew .daily less tractable by those, who had the management of the English interest, than it formerly had been. Three or four grandees had such an influence in the commons, that their coalition commanded a majority on any question*. Formerly the principals used to stipulate with each new lord -lieutenant, whose office was biennial, and residence but for six months^ upon what terms, they would carry the king's business through the house: so that they might not impro- perly be called undertakers. They provided, that the disposal of all court favors, whether places, pensions, or preferments, should pass through their hands, in order to ke^p their suite in an absolute state of dependance and vassalage. AH applications were made by the leader, who claimed as a right the pri- vilege of gratifying his friends in proportion to their numbers. Whenever such demands were not com- plied with, then were the measures of government sure to be crossed and obstructed : and the session of parliament became a constant struggle for power between the heads of parties. This evil had been seen and lamented by Lord Chesterfield. His resolu- tion and preparatory steps for undermining it probably contributed to his recal on the cessation of danger, ♦ Dr. Camb, Phil. Surv. p. 57. 154 The Reign of George III. 1767' Particular views of Lord Towns- hend's ad- ministra- tion. Lord Towns- hend's ad- dress in managing the system. which his wisdom alone was thought competent to avert. The primary object of Lord Townshend's admi- nistration was to break up the monopolizing system of the oligarchy. He in part succeeded, but by means ruinous to the country. The subalterns were not to be detached from their chiefs, but by similar, though more powerful means, than those, by which they had been enlisted under their banners. The streams of favor became not only multiplied, but enlarged ; consequently the source of remuneration was the sooner exhausted. Every individual looked up di- rectly to the fountain head. The innovation provoked the deserted few to resentment : but they were bereft of their consequence, when left to their individual exertions *. They took refuge under the shelter of patriotism, and inveighed against the venality of the system^ because it had taken a new direction. The bulk of the nation, and some, though very few of their representatives in parliament, were earnest, firm, and implacable against it. The arduous task, which Lord Townshend had assjumed was not to be effected by a coup de main : * Under various pretences these gentlemen endeavoured to spirit up the people to adopt their resentments, and affected to take refuge in the arms of patriotism. The contest produced a series of political letters, replete with wit and humour, inferior perhaps to nothing of the kind, except the letters of Junius. They have been collected and published in an octavo volume, under th" title of Baratariava. The Reign of George HI. ^'^^ forces so engaged, marshalled, and commanded, were ^7^7- not to be dislodged by a sudden charge : regular and cautious approaches were to be made : it was requisite, that the chief governor should be first popular, then powerful, before he could be success- ful. His lordship to those convivial fascinations, to which the Irish are eminently sensible, superadd- ed as many personal favors, as his fiscal resources admitted*. He judiciously countenanced the cry for septennial parHaments j in which the patriots an- ticipated the cure of gross venality by the return of their power and controul over their representatives. Government indeed felt^that they could not decently withhold from Ireland what England had so long en- joyed f- Dr. Lucas had several times failed in his endeavours An octen- to procure a bill for limiting the duration of parlia- obtained ment. Now however a septennial bill was trans- mitted, and returned altered into an octennial one. There appears to have been some unf;\ir manoeuvring * To break up the mischievous system of the Irish Oligarchy, Lord Townshend not only employed the means furnished by go- vernment, but had the singular merit of having sacrificed his own patrimony, to the service of the state The allowance of 16OOOI. per ann., sufficed not to maintain that Establishment, which his zeal, for the public service, and the liberality of his own disposition pointed out as necessary. This nobleman during his vice-royalty, contracted a heavy debt ; which his aci the present marquis is now selling apart of the family estate to discharge. f The British parliaments have continuance for seven years, unless sooner dissolved by the K ng, by 1 Geo. I, c- 38, iS6 The Reign of George III, 1767 - in the British cabinet, in order by a side wind to de- prive the Irish of that, which they durst not openly refuse them. Jit the same time a transmiss was made of another popular bill for the independance of the judges, in which the English cabinet had also inserted some alteration. It was expected, that the pertinacity of the Irish commons for their privilege would have induced them to reject any bill, into which an altera- tion had been introduced. The English cabinet was deceived : the Irish commons waved the objection as to the limitation bill, in order to make sure at last of what they had so long tried in vain to procure : they considered, that by objecting on this very account to the judges' bill, they kept up the claim to their privilege : for although this latter bill had been par- ticularly recommended in the speech of the lord- lieutenant, it was on account of alterations inserted in it in England, upon the report of the committee ap- pointed to compare the bill with the heads of the bill, unanimously rejected *. New sys- The return of the octennial bill was followed by a tem of Lord Towns- grateful address to the throne : and when the royal assent was given, the people took the horses from the Lord Lieutenant's coach, and drew him to the castle •wdth enthusiastic exultation f . His excel- * Vid. 8 Journ. Com. p. 27 0. t Dr. Campbell, five years from that time observedj (p. 58.) " Notwithstanding that deed were so pleasing to the people, yet they then began to think, that that favorite law was of no other The Reign of George II L 157 iency's* popularity was not lasting. By dividing the channel of favour into a multitude of streams, the gentlemen of the house of commons were taught to look up to the lord-lieutenant, not only as the source, but as the actual dispenser of every boon. Not even a commission in the revenue of 40/. a year, could be disposed of but through him. Thus were the old undertakers given to understand, that there was ano- ther way of doing business, than through them. It was not without violence on both sides, that Lord Townshend effected his purpose. The immediate suf- ferers termed this alteration in the system of govern- ing an innovation, which they artfully taught the people to resent^ as a national grievance. Early in the first session, the attention of parliament Augmenta- tion of the was drawn to the consideration of the army upon the army. Irish establishment. A message was sent to the com- mons from his excellency intimating, that his Majesty thought it necessary^ that his army upon the Irish esta- blishment should be augmented to 15,235 men. In consequence of this message, a committee was ap- pointed to enquire into the state of the military esta- blishment, and also into the application of the money granted for its support from 25th March, 1751. The result of that enquiry brought to light great miscon- duct and abuse in the military departments. The unusual interval of sixteen months between the Ld.Towni. hend's ma- nagement use, than to increase the value of boroughs ; a single seat in one of the new of which then sold for 2000). at least. " system. * Ibid. ] 58 The Reign of George III. 1769. dissolution of the old and the meeting of the new par- """"•^ liament was sedulously employed by the lord-lieutenant in forming the particular arrangements with the new members for can ying on the work of government, upon the new system of the immediate influence of the chief governor: and considering the length of possession, the nature of the power, the struggle of the former holders to retain it, and their personal weight and influence upon their dependents, his efforts were upon the whole successful for a first essay. On the 1 7th of October, 1 769, the lord-lieutenant met the new parliament. Mr. John Ponsonby was unani- mously elected speaker. Lord Townshend, whose spe- cial mission was to create a new junto in support of the English interest, independent of their former leaders, had not so matured his plan, as to have ensured the whole game. He had not altered the nature, but only raised the price of accommodation. As in the old, so in the new system some cases appear to have been reserved out of the general bargain. Such form- erly had been the reservation of a right to vote for limited parliaments. Such now was the right to resist the claim of the English council to originate money bills in the British cabinet, in lieu of the Irish house of commons. The matter was brought fairly to Issue between them ; the commons refused to pass the money bill, and came to an unanimous reso- lution, that the said bill was rejected because it did not take its rise in that house. 7 he lord -lieutenant protested against this right of tlie commons, and Tht Reign of George in. 159 endeavoured, but in vain, to enter his protest upon 1769. their Journals *. The house would not submit to « this encroachment upon their privileges. The lords were less inflexible, and after much opposition and debate, his excellency's protest was solemnly record- ed on the Journals of the house of peersf. Only two bills passed in this singular and short session of parliament The commons were dissatisfied with the papers ordered by the lord-li^^utenant to be submitted to them : and a motion was made by way of amendment to the address, with a view to procure them +. Upon which a division took place of forty-seven for, and sixty- five against the motion. This was the first trial of the strength of the lord-lieutenant's newly marshalled phalanx. It was not upon any of the ex- cepted questions j and he was far from being satisfied with his victory. He deferred further experiment, till he had more fully secured his men. § Once more was the money bill rejected by ninety- ^pp been referred, to enquire into the state of the pensions. The ministerial party, apprised of his excellency's in- tention to prorogue the parliament within the week, and sensible, that the subject of pensions was too green a wound to be probed in that temper of the house, moved to adjourn the further consideration of the report till after the holidays. On this tender subject many of the ministerialists, who had quitted their ranks on the former questions, fell back accord- ing to their engagements, and outvoted the patriots by a majority of nine. The patriots resolved to address his excellency to inform them, whether it were his in- tention to prorogue the parliament sooner than usual, 1'he lord-lieutenant once more failed in doing the King's business. Upon a division on the main ques- tion the minister was opposed by 106, and supported only by 73t. On the very next day. Sir George Macartney, lord-iieute, the secretar}', reported to the house his excellency's graJousan- , . , . I , •• . swer, and answer, which was neither ambiguous nor gracious parliament On the 26th of December his excellency put an end p™^°2"® * to the session, on which occasion the speaker, Mr. John Ponsonby^ at the bar of the house of peers, made * Joum. Comm. vol. VIII. p. 353. f lb. p. 353. VOJL. 11, M jiatioas 162 The Reign of George III. 1771. a very spirited speech*. His excellency made a very pointed speech to the commons, setting forth his rea- sons for protesting against their conduct, which they gave orders to their clerk not to enter on their Jour- nals. The parliament was prorogued to the 20th of March, 1770, and by five successive proclamations it was prorogued ultimately to the 26th of February, 1771, for the dispatch of business. Effects of This measure of depriving the nation of the benefit these unu- _ . . • • r i_ sua! proro- of their representatives, because a majority of them had stood up firmly for their privileges, coupled with the effect produced by some angry expressions of the secretary in debate, threw the public mind into an irritatioHj which was not confined to Ireland. A motion was made in the British house of commons, by the Hon. Boyle Walsingham f, on the late extraordinary prorogation of the Irish parliament, for an address to his Majesty, to give directions to lay before that house a copy of all instructions to the lord-lieutenant relating to the late sudden prorogation of the Irish parliament, at a time when affairs of the greatest national import- * It is remarkable, that the Journals of the lords take no notice of the speaker's speech to the lord-liuetenant ; that ap- pears only in the Journals of the commons (vol. VIII. p, 354.) and the Journals of the commons make no mention of the lord- lieutenant's speech to the commons : that appears in the vol. IV. of the lords' Jonrnals, p. 538, the whole of which, with the pro- ceedings and protest, are to be seen in the Appendix, No. LXI. of my Historical Review. t Parliam. Deb. vol. V. p. 309. The Keign of George II L 16$ ance to that kingdom were depending, together with ^771. the papers, on which the instructions were fourfded, and his answers ; and likewise a copy of a message re- lative to the augmentation of the forces. The motion was seconded by the Right Hon. George Grenville, who maintained;, that the late prorogation was most unconstitutional. Lord North justified the prorogation and augmentation, and negatived the question, by a division of 178 against 66. During this extraordinary cessation of parliament^ Lord-Hemc- , . naxit's suc- the lord-lieutenant redoubled his efforts to complete cess in en- 1. r ' . . r . ,. . creasing his nis operose system or ensunng a majority or mdivi- party during the CCSS&'* duals. He gained several of the opposite party ; at tioa. the head of whom shone conspicuous, the great guoU' dam patriot, Mr. Sexton Pery. With this accession offeree the lord^lieutenant faced LordTown- send meets the parliament in full confidence. Addresses were voted the new 1111 parliaraeat, as usual to his Majesty and the lord-lieutenant. In their address to the King, the commons returned thanks to his Majesty for continuing Lord Townsend in the government. The address was carried by 1 S2 against 107. In consequence thereof the speaker, Mr. John Ponsonby, wrote a spirited letter, which was commu- nicated to the house by the clerk, intimating, that as such thanks seemed to convey a censure of their pro- ceedings, and a relinquishment of the privileges of the commons, his respect to them must prevent his being the instrument of delivering such an address j and he requested them to elect another speaker, who might not think such conduct inconsistent with his honour. The commons thereupon elected Edmond Sexton M 2 1 64 The Reign of George HI. 1771. Pery, Esq. speaker. He had a majority of four votes. Mr. J. Porisonby was as much applauded by the people for his spirit and principle, as Mr. Pery was reviled and execrated. Lord Town- Xhe patriots would submit to nothing without a di- send secures " a sure ma- vision, and upon each they gradually decreased ; in third of the SO much, that the lord-lieutenant might, on every oc- house. ^ ' ... casion, command a sure majority of one-third of the whole house. The patriots, however, resolved to leave upon their Journals a faithful portrait of their suffering and degraded country; and therefore moved an address to his Majesty, particularly expressive of their' sense of the abuse of government authority and influence. They took great offence at the words con- tained in the address of thanks for his excellency's jz/^i and prudent administration. In the lords similar ob- jections were taken to their address, which thanked his Majesty for continuing Lord Townsend in the govern- ment, whose justice and integrity were particularly com- mended. The address was opposed by fifteen lords, who, in their protest, handed down to posterity the real grounds of their opposition to Lord Townsend*s administration*. Fiscal re- The national debt of Ireland was heavily accumu- ireiand in- latcd during the administration of Lord Townsend. LoSown- Yet, after the experience, which two years and a quar- span. ^^^ j^^^ given him, of the inadequacy of the fiscal re- sources of that kingdoi 1 to answer his new plan of * The address of the commons and protest of the lords are in- teresting, and may be seen in my Historical Review, vol. L p. 407, 408, 409, 410, and in it's Appendix, No- LXII. The Reign of George III. 165 keeping up the English interest, he feared to call for 1772. any supplies, alleging in his speech to parliament, on the 26th of February, 1771, that with very strict eco- nomy, the duties granted last session would be suffi- cient to answer the expenses of his Majesty's govern- ment, without further supply. But when he met the parhament in October, 1771, he told them, that it was with concern, that he must ask a sum of money to discharge the arrears already incurred on his Ma- jesty's establishments*. The remainder of Lord Townsend's administration The only . , r 1 • • TT- 1 two acts af» went over without further opposition. His natural fectingthe , '11 1 r ^ 1 Roman ca- humamty and benevolence sortened as much as pos- thoiics dur- sible the rigour of the popery laws. Having been so TownTend-s successful in proselytizing for the state by pensions, ment?" he applied his specific to the evangelizing for the church, by adding 10/. to the SO/, yearly allowed by the 8th of Ann, to every popish priest, who should be- come protestant. For, as the act recites, it had been found by experience, that the former provision of 30/. per ami. ivas in no respect a sufficient encouragement for popish priests to become converts ; therefore 40/. per ann. were in future allowed them, to be levied on the * Strong objections have been made to the unconstitutional sys- tem of Lord Townsend's administration, both in and out of par- liament. He had so completed his system of managing the house of commons, that he could on all occasions secure a majority of one- third : and by such majority did he cany the question on seven- teen different divisions, on* the two first days of the session. Many of these questions turned upon mere matters of fact, which the patriots charged him with having designedly misrepresented^ in order to deceive the people. M 3 J 66 The Reign of George III ^77'2" inhabitants of the district, wherein the convert last resided. This act for the encouragement of converts to the protestant religion was counterbalanced by another act made in the same session, supposed to be favourable to the catholics, and which, in times of less liberality, had been repeatedly rejected, as tending to encourage popery. This was An Act to encourage the reclaiming of unprofitable Bogs * ; by which a catholic might be at liberty to take a lease of fifty plantation acres of bog, with one half an acre of arable land ad- joining, if the depth of the bog from the surface, when reclaimed, were four feet at least. Every effort to counteract the system so successfully established by this lord-lieutenant became not only negatively fruit- less, but positively mischievous, by increasing the evil and extending the infection. As this governor had so completely succeeded in establishing a systematic management of parliament, it was judiciciously ob- served in the year 1775, that his successor. Lord Uarcourt, then found the parliament of Ireland as obsequious as that of Great Britain. i Administra- When Lord Harcourt assumed the government in ition of Lord , Harcourt. Qctober, 1772, he had little to do, but to continue the system, under which his predecessor had with so much perseverance and charge established the new English interest. Lord Clare J has observed, that Lord Harcourt was chosen as a man of amiable cha«; * 11 and 12 Geo, III. c. xxj. t Camb. Phil. Surv. p ig. I CJare uli supra. The Reign of George III, 1 6' racter, easy disposition, and of no other ambition, than 1/73. to move by direction, and thus acquire the approba- tion of his immediate employers. He had been nearly twelve months in Ireland before he met the parliament, on the 1 2th of October, 1773. His excellency's speech was a mere pledge faithfully to apply and fru- gally to administer the supplies. The first stand made by the patriots, was upon an alarm at the intention of government, in laying the accounts before the house, to hold back several of the documents, which would bring to light the means used in the late administra- tion to ensure a majority to do the King*s business. To * a motion made for their production, an amend- ment was proposed, by adding the words, as far as there are materials for that purpose. The amend- ment was carried by 88 against 52, Thus was It left in the discretion of the government to bring forward or hold back what materials they chose. The most acceptable act of the present session was the repeal of that unconstitutional one for the trial of offenders out of their own counties, passed In Lord Townsend*s ad- ministration. The objections taken by the patriots to Lord Townsend's new system of securing a parlia- mentary majority were confirmed and aggravated by the necessity his successor was under of providing for the discharge of an arrear of 265,000/. and imposing an additional burthen of 100,000/. a year. Lord Harcourt's administration at first promised so Absentee much intention to promote the real interest of Ireland, posed by govern- ment and rejected. * Journ. Com. vol. IX. p. l6. M 4 168 The Reign of George III. i/T'i- that It met with the support of several popular cha- racters, which afterwards opposed It, when they found it conducted upon the principles and plan of Lord Townsend. Lord Harcourt had the exclusive merit of having proposed an absentee tax, to be paid by all persons, who should not actually reside in that king- dom for the space of six months in each year. This measure, though highly desirable, could not so de- cently be pressed by the representatives of the Eng« lish government, as left to the freedom of the Irish parliament, whose interest it more immediately con- cerned. It was not made a government c^uestion, and most of the servants of the crown voted against it. Considering the powerful interest made against the tax by the most considerable land -owners on both sides of the water, the small majority, by which it was rejected^ is rather to be wondered at; there being 102 for and 122 against the measure*. Lord Har- To the further credit of Lord Harcoun's admi- court opens the door to nlstratlon must be laid the merit of having opened the catholic ... . rights. door of civil liberty, through which the great body of the Irish was afterwards admitted to some of the rights of subjects. The British ministry began about this time to be alarmed at the too deeply rooted dis- contents of the king's American subjects. The con- stitutional maxim, no representation, no taxation, * The correspondence between Lord Nortli and some of the chief land owners resident in England, who opposed the measure, will fully and fairly display the grounds of its failure. These were the Duke of Devonshire, Lords Besborough, Ossory, Rock- ingham, and Milton, Vid. my Historical Review, p. 423^ The Reign of George 111. 169 was carried into action on the other side of the At- 1/74. lantic^ and the fatal and the ill-advised resistance end- ed in the avulsion of that bright western gem from the imperial diadem. Lord North clearly saw the inver- sion of many constitutional maxims, when brought practically to bear upon the bulk of the Irish nation. He instructed the lord-lieutenant to endeavour to en- gage the affections of the catholics by gradual relaxa- tions of the penal code. * Leave v*-as given to bring in the heads of a bill to secure the repayment of money, lent by papists to protestants on mortgages ; and that it might be understood to be a government measure of grace, Mr. Mason, Sir Lucius O'Bryen, and Mr. Langrishe, determined supporters of govern- ment, were ordered to bring it in. f On the preceding day leave had been given to bring iii heads of a bill to enable papists to take leases for lives of lands. But nei- ther of these bills at that time proceeded. The easy mind of Lord Harcourt was persuaded, that their pass- ing would create disturbances in parliament, and inter- rupt that quiet majority, which he had it strongly in command to keep up. The British ministry sent posi- tive orders, that some act of the legislature should be passed in that session of a conciliatory tendency to the cathohcs. Leave was given to bring in a bill to en- able his majesty's subjects of whatever persuasion to testify their allegiance upon oath J ; and as the bill re- * Comm, Journ. p. 28. t 9 Com. Journ. p. 27. X Com. Journ. p. 114. Mr- Robert French, and Sir Lucius O'Bryen, two ministerial members, were ordered to bring it in. 170 The Reign of George 111. 1/7-1- mitted no part of the then existing code of severity, but purported merely a permission to the catholics of expressing their allegiance to their sovereign, which before they had not, it passed both houses without ob- Ftruction or opposition*. It gratified the catholics, inasmuch as it was a formal recognition, that they were subjects ; and to this recognition they looked up as to the comer-stone of their future emancipation. Ana'.ogies Qn oDeninjr the session in October, 1775, the lord- ot Ireland i c toAmenca. lieutenant referred to son-.e acts, which the British legislature had passed during the recess of the Irish parliament, for the encouragement of Irish agriculture and commerce. Such were the extension of the ad- vantages of British fisheries to Ireland : the allowing the importation of rape-seed into Great Britain from Ireland, and a bountv granted by Great Britain upon the importation of flax into Ireland. Hence arose several debates in the British house of commons, in one of which a very improvident and unequivocal declara- tion was made by Mr. Rigby f, that the parliament of Great Britain had a right to tax Ireland in all cases whatsoever as ivell as y^merica. F.Tects of The diifcrences between America and her mother American reSeiiion couRtry had ROW broken into open war. Most of the upon Ire land. * g Journ. Com. p. l60. 13 and 11 Geo III. c xxxv. For the form of this oaih or test, vide Appendix, No. LXIII. to mr Historical Review. ■f He had been Secretary to the Duke of Bedford, nnd then <'nioved the sinecure, as in those days was the office of Master of the Rolls in Ireland- The Reign of George III. 171 leading members of the Whig-party in both countries 1775. (which furnished that administration, which put an end to the American war) opposed the war upon prin- ciple : they inveighed against the unconstitutional ex- actions of the ministr)'-, and in their debates fell little short of justifying the American rebellion. The ana- logy between America and Ireland v/as too close to pass unnoticed ; and the defection of the American colonies produced strong effects upon Ireland. The exportation of Irish linen for America had been very considerable ; but now^ this great source of national wealth was totally shut up, by an extraordinary stretch of prerogative. Under the pretext of preventing the Americans from being supplied with provisions from Ireland, an enibargo was laid on the exportation of provisions from Ireland, which in prejudicing that king- dom^ served only to favor the adventures of British contractors. This embargo, combined with other causes, produced the most melancholy effects. Wool and black cattle fell considerably in value, as did also land. The tenants in many places were unable to pay the rents, and public credit was almost extinct. The patriots made several ineffectual attempts to brinor ministers to the relief of their suffering countrv. l"he ministry proposed to withdraw 4000 troops out of the establishment, though not to be paid by Ireland, whilst they were not employed in that kingdom. To this the Irish objected not. But to the surprize and embarrass- ment of government, a proposition for introducinof 4000 foreign troops, though protestants, into that kino-dom V/as negatived by nearly as large a majority, as that by 172 The Reign of George III. \^w>^ 1775. which government questions were usually carried ; namely, by 106 against G8. The house followed up their vote with a strong address to his excellency, as- suring him, that by their exertions they would render such aid unnecessaVy for the defence of the realm*. * g Journ. Com. p. 243. To his Excellency, Simon, Earl Harcourt, Lord- Lieutenant Ge- neral and General Governor of Ireland. The humble address of the Knights, Citizens, and Burgesses ui parliament as- sembled. " May it flease your Excellency, " We his majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the commons of Ireland, in parliament assembled, dreply impressed with a sense of the many blessings we enjoy under his majesty's government, humbly request, that your excellency will be pleased to assure his majesty of our zeal at all times for the support of his just rights, and for the honor and safety of the British empire. That your excellency will be pleased to express the ready and cheerful concurrence of his majesty's faithful commons in sending out of this kingdom a force not exceeding 4000 men, part of the troops upon this establishment appointed to remain in this king- dom for its defence. That your excellency will be pleased to assure his majesty, that we acknowledge his paternal regard to the ease and relief of this country, manifested in his majesty's most gra- cious intention, that such part of his army as may be sent out of this kingdom during the present exigency, shall not be continued a charge upon this establishment, so long as they shall remain out of this kingdom. That your excellency will be pleased to return his majesty our most grateful thanks for his gracious declaration, that his majesty hath nothing more at heart than the security and pro- tection of his people of Ireland, of which his majesty has given a signal proof, by his offer, if it shall be the desire of parliament, to replace such forces as may be sent out of this kingdom, by an equal number of Protestant troops, the charge thereof to be de- The Reign of George III, ^TS This conduct of the Irish commons may be consider- ^l^ ed the first step taken by the representatives of the ^"''^^' ^''^i', ^ J I towards the Irish people towards attainincr that state of civil h- ff'^^ f^^^°- ^ ^ o lution of berty, which was obtained by the nation in what Mr. i^s-- Burke called their revolution of 1782. The patriots having been supported on some national questions by several on the opposite side of the house, moved several addresses and resolutions strongly descriptive of the oppressed and distracted state of the country, which although they did not carry, yet they perpe- tuated their sense and feelings upon the subject by re- cording them on the journals. They particularly complained, that their real grievances were not fairly represented to his majesty, and they boldly assured his excellency^ that the representation of them to the King was an indispensable duty incumbent upon him^, because the measures, which had perplexed their ra- venues, increased their debt;, and insulted their coun- try, though they must suppose not agreeable to his excellency's sentiments, had all taken place under his administration. Such analogy existed between the frayed without any expense to this kingdom. And we entreat your excellency, that you will be pleased to assure his majesty, that, fully sensible of his majesty's benevolent attention to his faithful coramons, after mature deliberation, they have agreed not to dasire that the 4000 troops, which may be sent out of this kingdom in the present exigency, should be replaced, as mentioned m your excellency's message j confiding in the vigilance and care of government, and trusting, that with its assistance, his majesty's loyal people of Ireland may be able so to exert themselves, as to make such aid at this juncture unnecessary." 174 The Reign of George HI, 1776. cases of Ireland and America, that it became fashion- able both in and out of parliament to draw the pa- rallel. The American war never was popular either in Great Britain or Ireland. In the latter, the people assumed the cause of America from sympathy ; in the former they abetted it upon principle. Goveni- ment was seriously alarmed at the honorable light, in which the American struggle was generally viewed *, * The American dispute very particularly attracted the consi- deration ot the citizens of Dublin. In 17/5, the Earl of Ef- fingham, whose regiment was ordered to act against the colonies, resigned his command. The city of Dublin, at the Midsummer CjUarter assembly, voted him public thanks, " for having consistent* ly with the principles of a true Englishman refused to drav/ his sword against the lives and liberties of his fellow-subjects in Ame- rica." Soon after an address of thanks, in fuller terms, was pre- sented to him from the guild of merchants of Dublin : the latter also presented an address of thanks to the several peers, who (as ihey said) " in support of the constitution, and in opposition to a. weak and wicked administration, protested against the Ame= lican Restraining Bills." They afterwards came to other resolu- t-ous, which they prefaced witli pointed strictures on those, who in any wise promoted the acts then carrying on in America, as well on account of the injured inhabitants of that country, as of their own brave countrymen, sent on the unnatural errand of killing their fellow- subjects. They resolved, That it was the duty of every good citizen to " exert his utmost abilities to al- lay the unhappy disputes, that then disturbed the British empire. And that whoever should refuse his consent to a dutiful petition to the king, tendiag to undeceive his majesty, and by which it could be hoped that the efilision of one drop of subject blood might be prevented, was nut a friend to tht British constitution." These sym- pathies of the citizens of Dublin with the cause of America, were recommend- ment of her . , i i i r i_ • troops mg, on that account, that the charge or the regiments ofth^lchig- on the Irish establishment then serving out of that *""' kingdom should be paid by Great Britain. This pro- * In the affairs of Ireland Mr. Burke ever evinced the most accurate historical knowledge, an unbiassed judgment, and even to the last a most constitutional spirit. t 11 Pari. Deb. p. 17?. The Reign of George III. 183 iiuced a debate very interesting to the welfare of Ire- ^779 land *. Several questions of the liighest import- ance to that country were warmly debated in both houses during the session, but were defeated by large majorities. The Irish were highly exasperated, that the British had abandoned their cause. Their discon- tents became alarming. Associations were entered iijto against the importation of British commodities, aiid for the encouragement of Irish manufactures. At Dublin they published resolutions, that the unjust, illiberal, and impolitic opposition given by many self- interested people of Great Britain, to the proposed en- couragement of the trade and commerce of this king- dom, originated in avarice and ingratitude. And thai they would not impcjrt or use any goods or wares from Great Britain, till she entertained sentiments of respect and affection for her fellow-subjects of Ireland. Si- milar resolutions passed at Waterford, and generally throughout the kingdom. In consequence of which the manufactures of Ireland began to revive, and the demand for British goods to decrease. This produced a disposition in Great Britain to attend, for the first time, to the complaints of Ireland. It was the unwise policy of government not to con. The long , ,, r T 1 1 • t- • ." fecess gives vene the parliament or Ireland m the pressure oi its nsetothc , , . • r^ Ti • ' volunteers national distress. The mnustry m Great Britain was frequently called upon by the opposition to account * The substance of these debates very intimately aftects the si- tuation of Ireland at that period, and may be seen in my Histoxi- cal Review, p. 467 to 484. N 4 1 8 i l^ie Reign of George III. 1779- for that extraordinary conduct. No answer was given. The unusual length of the recess, the refusal of the British parliament to afford redress, and the want of an Irish parliament to apply to, gave rise to the exer- tions of those native energies, to which an oppressed and injured people never fails in extremity to resort. During this recess the system of volunteering took its rise, and had made considerable progress before the parliament met on the 12ih of October, 1779. Mr.Grattan Mr. Grattan* opposed the speech, as containing speech of " nothing explicit, nothing satisfactory. Were the people lieutenant, of Ireland undeserving the notice of the British mi- nisters ? It was plain they had nothing to expect, since applications from the people, backed even by the officers of thecr own, were not attended to. Ireland then had nothing to depend upon but her own spirit ; no redress of grievances, no extension of trade, but from the efforts of her people ! and would it be safe * This being the first occasion of referring to Mr. Grattan in this History, the author seizes the opportunity of observing, that the compendious form of this work precludes the possibihty of giving even a faint idea of the stupendous powers of his oratoiy, which is better calculated to command the admiration of the latest posterity than that of any modern orator. His speeches ofteii surpass the finest pieces of ancient Greece and Rome, Ireland may proudly boast of having in him produced the sublimesf orator and most virtuous patriot of latter ages. The Historical Review, from this period to its close, contains ample extracts from his speeches, as the most just and striking representation of the great national features, which characterised the last thirty years of the history of Ireland, To them the author most confidently refers his reader. The Reign of George III. 185 there or elsewhere, to oppose these efforts ? The dis- ^779- tresses of Ireland were twofold, the beggary of the people, and the bankruptcy of the state. He moved an amendment, which strongly painted the distressed situation of the country, and that the only resource left to support their expiring trade, was to open a free export trade, and let his Majesty's Irish subjects enjoy their natiyal birthright. Not only the leading patriots on this occasion, but several of the servants of the crown*, were for the amendment. Mr. Prime Ser- jeant (Hussey Burgh t) after expatiating oa the neces- sity of immediately laying the state of their distresses at the foot qf the throne, moved, in lieu of Mr. Grat- tan's amendment, " that it is not by temporary expe- dients, but by a free trade alone, that this nation is now to be saved from impending ruin;" which was unanimously assented to. The distresses of Ireland and the impotency of go- Effects &i vernment produced the most important change of dis- admTrStra- tionof Lord Bucking- * The Rt. Hon. Henry Flood declared for the amendment, and ^'^™^^''■^• entered largely into a justification of his political conduct, which, he saidj had unfortunately been much misrepresented ; that the office he held tpas the unsolicited gift of his sovereign, which he had received with gratitude, and held with lipnour : that when the time should come, when he could no longer do so, he would gladly throw the bracelet into the common caldron. f The talents and amiable attainments of this gentleman gave some plausibility and confidence to the weak, though not harsh, administration of Lord Buckinghamshire. There was pitiful finesse in the ministerialists taking out of the hands of Mr. Grat- tan this nscessary amendment, in order to substitute another of like tendency. 1 86 The Reign of George III. ^779- position, sentiment, and acdon in the people. The British fleets had become mferior to the combined forces « of the enemy : their coasts were insulted, those of Ire- land wholly unprotected : the military establishment drained to recruit the regiments in America, had not left 5000 forces in that kingdom to defend the sea- ports from the crews of single vessels. Hence arose the necessity of volunteers arming in defence of their abandoned country. Government affrighted at the situation, into which they had thrown or permitted the country to be thrown, delivered out to the people 16,000 stand of arms, thereby encouraging and in- creasing the number of volunteers, without any stipu- lation, regulation, or authority for organizing or sub- jecting them to subordination. Th^ commercial face of the country exhibited a still more desponding view: her vessels taken u ithin sight of her ports : her trade shackled in almost every branch by British restrictions : an embargo on the exports of her provision trade : her linens lying upon her merchants' hands : her imports and her absentees swallowing up all her cur- rency: and slight or no returns to supply an exhausted treasury. This complicated wretchedness of the coun- try once more dissolved the ministerial phalanx, and impenously called some of it's staunchest supporters to quit their ranks, and vote for 2. free trade. The nation poured forth its gratitude to parliament \ which in it's turn paid it's tribute of thanks to the volun- teers, who now amounted to 42,000 men. This formidable body, armed and organized by no other authority, than the great law of self-defence, was The Reign of George III, 1 87 liever even questioned by the Irish government or i779' parliament as to the legality 'of their commission or delegation. Government had so wasted its vigour, that it could not raise its arm in self-defence. During this debate the populace assembled round the par- liament house, and with full impunity menaced the members, and demanded oaths of them to support the measure, committing several acts of outrage and intimidation*-. About a month after the Irish parliament had been state of ire land debated convened, Lord' Shelburne moved in the British house in the Bri- tish house of lords, that his Majesty might be addressed to take of lords. into reconsideration the two motions for procuring re- lief to Ireland, which in the preceding session had been rejected by large majorities, and that his Majesty would be pleased to direct effectual redress to his suffering people. His lordship forcibly represented Ireland so imperiously shut out*from all prospect of justice or relief, that she must perish, or work out her own sal- vation. She was then united as one man to rescue herself from approaching destruction. The people had armed themselves, and the numbers armed exceeded * To this juncture did the late Lord Clare refer in his memorable speech on the Union (p. 29), when he said, " The imbecility of Lord Buckinghamshire's government had arrayed the volunteer army, and the address to his Majesty voted in 1779 ^V th^ com- mons, dtrnanding ajree trade as the right of Ire/and, was followed instantly by a resolution of thanks to that army for their array." When t!:e speaker carried up the address to the lord-lieutenant, the streeis from the parliament-house to the castle, were lined by the Dublm volunteers, commanded by the Duke of Leinster, drawn np in their arms and uniform. 18S The Reign of George III. ^779' forty thousand, and were daily augmenting. This formidable body was not composed of mercenaries, who had little or no interest in the issue, but of the nobility, gentry, merchants, citizens^ and respectable yeomanry : men able and willing to devote their time^ and part of their property, to the defence of the whole, and the protection and security of their country. The government had been abdicated, and the people re- sumed the powers vested in them ; and in so doing, were fully authorized by every principle of the con- stitution, and every motive of self-preservation ; and whenever they should again delegate this inherent power, they firmly and wisely determined to have it so regulated, and placed upon so large and liberal a basis, that they should not be liable to suffer under the same oppressions in time to come; nor feel the fatal effects and compHcated evils of mal-administra- tion ; of calamity without hopes of redress ; or of iron-handed power without protection. Both houses of the Irish parliament had declared, that nothing but granting the kingdom " a free trade," could save it from certain ruin : a declaration conveyed through its proper constitutional organs, both houses of parliament, to his Majesty, against which there was but one dissenting voice in the houses*, and not a second in the king- dom. His lordship closed with moving a strong reso- * Viz. Lord -chancellor LifFord ; to whom it is but justice to observe, that he honestly stated his reason for dissenting, " that he could never join in a vote of thanks as a peer of parliament, or a lawyer, to any set of men, be their motives ever so laudable or patriotic^ who were acting in a military capacity against law.'* The Reign of George III. 1 89 lution, importing, that it was highly criminal in his ^779- Majesty's ministers to have neglected taking effectual measures for the relief of Ireland^, and suffered the discontents of that kingdom to rise to such an height^ as evidently to endanger the constitutional connection between the two kingdoms, and to create new embar- rassments to the public councils, by disunion and dif- fidence, in a moment when real unanimity, grounded upon mutual coniidence and affection, was confessedly essential to the preservation of what was left of the British empire. The Earl of E^ilsborough* admitted, that Ireland was entitled to a free trade with equal taxes ; and he thought himself warranted in recom- mending to his Majesty, and proposing to parliament, to grant it ; which he hoped, would give perfect satisfaction and content to both nations Earl Gower f, in this debate, with manly firmness, avowed, that all his efforts for the relief of Ireland had proved unfruitful. He had presided, he said, for some vears at the council table^ and had seen such things pass there of late, that no man of honour or conscience could any longer sit there. The times were such as called upon every man to speak out : the situ- ations of the two kingdoms required sincerity and ac« tivity in council. Lord Cambden, and several other lords, spoke warmly in favour of Ireland ; but the question was negadved by a majority of 82 against 37. * The grandfather of the present Marquis of Downshire. t The father of the present Marquis of Stafford. 190 The Reign of George III. i779. The affairs of Ireland debated in the British house of commons. The same subject was debated with more warmth in the British house c^ commons, than in the peers, but with the hke effect. Lord Upper Ossory* moved, by way of resolution, the substance of what had been moved by Lord Shelbume in the peers. In neither house of the British parliament were the desperate distress and calamity of Ireland even doubted : all were of accord as to the existence of the evil : the only differences were, who had created, and wlip had countenanced or fomented, who had negatively or positively given continmmce to it. and how was it then to be remedied!. * 15 Pari. Debates,, p. ou. f The volunteer uncommissioned army of Ireland waa so ex- traerdinary a phenomenon, that the reader may be gratified with the opinion of a great departed statesman upon it. In the debate on Lord Ossorj's motion, Mr- Fox was firm and explicit (15 Pari. Deb. p. 129). " The Irish associations had been called ille- gal J legal or illegal he declared he entirely approved of them. He approved of that manly determination, whicii, in the dernier resort, flies to arms in order to obtain deliverance. When tlie last particle of good faith in men is exhausted, they will seek in them- selves the m.eans of redress ; they will recur to first principles, to the spirit as well as letter of the constitution, and they can never fail in such resources, though the law may literally condemn such a departure from its general and unqualified rules : truth, justice, and pr.bhc virtue, accompanied with prudence and judgment, will ever bear up good men in a good cause, that of private protection. God knew, that he sincerely lamented the cause, which pro- duced this sad, he could not but say, this perplexing and humi- liating alternative. H« most heartily lamented, that any cause had been administered, which seemed to justify violence or resistance ; he dreaded the consequences, however justifiable in their origin. The Reign vf George Ul, 191 In the Irish senate the voice of patriotism reached ^779- even the ministerial side of the house. They spiritedly ^han e of resolved to grant the supply only for six months. fheSfsh" This short money bill was transmitted to England, commons, where, however mortifying to the ministers, it was re- luctantly passed. 1 he house, likewise, unanimously entered into several resolutions to promote the com- merce of Ireland. So determined was the Irish house of commons to Resolution assert their rights, and bring the British government commons " and parliament into a full recognition of them, that British pa^r- they carried, by a majority of 170 to 4-7 *, a resolution, grantThe° that at -this time it vvould be inexpedient to grant new sidons.^"^ taxes. Immediately after this unequivocal test of the disposition of the Irish house of commons was known in England, the British house of commons being in a committee on the aifairs of Ireland, Lord North opened his three propositions relative to the allowing Ireland a free export of wool, woollens, and wool flocks, a free exportation of glass, and all kinds of glass manu- factures, and a freedom of trade with the British plan- tations on certain conditions, the basis of which was to be an equality of taxes and customs upon an equal and or moderately or judiciously conducted : bat whatever the effects might be, be was ready to acknowledge, that such a power was inherent in men j as men and citizens it was a sacred trust in their hands, as a defence against the possible or actual abuse of power, political treachery, and the arts and intrigues of govern- ment 5 and when all other means failed, resistance, he should ever hold, as perfectly justifiable." * 10 Com. Tourn. p. 34. 192 The Reign of George III. 1779- unrestrained trade. The minister stated the propriety and justice, as well as the necessity, of affording relief to Ireland, and expatiated on the mutual and respective interests of both countries. Bills founded on the two first propositions were brought in, passed both houses with the utmost facility, and received the royal assent before the recess. The third being more complex in its nature, was suffered to lie over during the approach- ing holidays in its state of an open proposition, to af- ford time for consideration in England, and to acquire knowledge of the effect, which the measure was likely to produce in Ireland. Effects of In this alarming: crisis, Ireland looked for redress the Irish ° volunteers, more to the armed associations, than to parliament. Hitherto, these bodies had acted only in detached companies. They now formed themselves into bat- talions on a system of regular communication. For some time had the original cause of the volunteers arming in self-defence against a foreign enemy been sunk into the more interesting object of asserting their constitutional independent rights, and procuring a free and open trade for their country. In the year 1778, the armed associations in Ireland amounted to 30,000 men : they had been regularly increasing from that period : they clad and armed themselves voluntarily ; they cheerfully learned the use of arms^ and freely submitted to the severest discipline: but their tran- scendant attention was to instil into each other an uni- formity of poHtical sentiment and determination not to quit their arms, till they should have accomplished the complete liberation of their country from the sove- ^he Reign of George Hi. 3-eignty of the British p^lrliament. In the beginning of the year 1780, they entered upon the plan of gene- ral organization : they appointed reviews for the en- suing summel- ; and chose their exercising officers and reviewing generals. Thus was laid the foundation oi Irish union. They openly declared their opinions upon the state of public affairs ; the neVvspapers teemed with resolutions of the different corps, all in unison declar- ing, that Ireland was an independent kingdom, and fully entitled to all the uncontrouled rights, privileges^ and immunities of a free constimtion : that no power on earth but the king, lords, and commons of Ireland could make laws to bipd them : and that they were ready with their lives and fortunes to resist the usurpa- tions and encroachments of any foreign legislature. The government, ind their parhamentary majority^ were alarnled at, and consequently inimical to the propositions. Mr. Grattan however, on the 19th of April, 1780, after a most animated speech, movedj that the hovise should resolve and enter on its Jour^ nals. That no power on earthy sctve the King, lords, and commons of Ireland, had a right to make laws for Ireland. After a most interesting debate, that lasted till six o'clock in the morning, in which every man but one, acknowledged its truth, either expressly, or by not opposing it, Mr. Flood, who well knev/ that the miilisterial members were committed to negative the motion, if it came to a division, recommended, that no question should be put, and no appearance of the business entered on the Journals j to which Mr^ Grattan consented. VOL, li. o 194- The Reign of George II L 1780. Upon the appearance of some sincerity in the Brltisli Commons cabinet and parliament^ the Irish house of commons money bill, proceeded to take into serious consideration^, the regu- lations necessary to place the commerce of the king- dom on a footing of stability. The supplies were granted for a year and a half longer; and 260,000/. were ordered to be raised by treasury bills, or by a lottery, as the lord-lieutenant should direct*. On presenting the money bills, Mr. Pery, the speakerf, made a speech to the lord-lieutenant, which was highly satisfactory to all parties, ''^'"^^"f J^ he general joy upon the prospect of a free trade, ," -eruient ^^s but of short duratiou. Uoon maturer considera- to Ireland. ^ * tion, the commercial interest in Ireland was dissatisfied with the proposed system of equalizing the duties be- tween the sister kingdoms ; ani the British ministry most imprudently inflamed a nation with arms in her hands, determined to assert her undefeasible rights. 1 he bill for punishing mutiny and desertion in the army for a limited time, had been transmitted, as usual, and was returned with the most alarming alteration from the English privy-council : it was made perpetual : material alterations were also made in one of the commercial bills relating to the article of sugars. Discontent ran through the kingdom. The borough of Newrey presented a petition to the commons against both alterations. Several other petitions were also pre- * This was the first time, that the mischievous expedient of a lottery was resorted lo in Ireland. •f 10 Journ. Com. p, 142. The Reign of George ITL 1 9S sented to the like purport. Government, however, 1780. in defiance of the struggle of the patriots, passed the altered mutiny bill by a majority of C9 against 25, Against these proceedings in parliament the mer- chants* corps of volunteers, convened at the Royal Exchange, Dublin, passed very strong resolutions, which were printed in the public papers. Similar re- solutions were entered into by many other volunteer bodies. The language holden by the popular prints, be- Encreaseof spoke, as well as increased the general discontent, content, ''^ The most popular prints were most obnoxious to government. The house of commons passed a vote of censure against the printers and publishers of these papers *, and addressed the lord-lieute* nant to give orders for effectually prosecuting them, and also the authors and contrivers of certain ar- ticles contained in them. This vote of censure was indirectly aimed by the ministry at the volunteer corps, whose influence had become so alarming to government, that it was found prudent not to cast direct censure upon any of them. The people were on one hand encouraged by popular publications to insist upon their independence ; on the other they were goaded into irritation, by the determined opposi= tion given to it in parliament. They were incensed- at Mr. Grattan's resolution against foreign legislation not having found admission into the Journals; provoked at Mr, Yelverton^s failure in procuring a modification of * 10 Journ. Com. p, 1^5, O 2 session. 196 The Reign of George II T. 1/80, Poynmg*s law: and rrrifated at the ineffectual effort of Mr. Forbes, to procure a bill for the independence of the judges. They were desperate in the conviction, that a majority in their own parliament had been purchased with the wealth of Ireland, to negative every question tending to promote their national independence. Close of the 'j^jjg scssiou had been protracted to an unusual length; when, on the 2d of September, 1780, I-ord Buckinghamshire put an end to it, by a most gracious speech fiom the throne. He had on the preceding day been addressed in a very adulatory style by the commons; and the return of the incense appears upon the face of his address to both houses of parliament*. Thus ended a session, that had promised in its open- ing the brightest prospects to Ireland. The disap- pointed people felt, and expressed their resentment. It was Lord Buckinghamshire's fate to be disapproved of by the ministers of England, as well as to have dis- satisfied the people of Ireland. The volunteers had intimidated the British ministry. They condemned Lord Buckinghamshire for effects, which it was not in his power to prevent ; and which, in fact, were to be immediately traced to their own dilatory, irresolute, and pernicious councils. Lord Buckinghamshire was recalled, and Lord Carlislef appointed in his stead on the 23d of December, J780. * The. speech is to be seen in my Hist. Revie\V, vol. I. p. 5ig. i" Lord Carhsle took over with him as secretary, his protege and friend Mr. Eden, (now Lord Auckland) who had pubhshed several letters upon political subjects to his patron ; and amongst others, one on The Repi estntaiions of Ireland rejecting a free The Reign of George III, 1 97 *lii February, 178L on Mr. Jenkinson's motion in I/81. the British house of conimons, for the further consi- Ad.ninis- tia.'on of deration of the report on the IMutiny Bill, Mr. Fox LordCar- ^ , lisle. De- moved for its recominitinen^f. and he prefaced his bate in the British CUITKUUnS. Trade, of which Mr. Dobbs, (in his History of Irish 4ff(iirs, p. 42.) writes thus : " From a letter written by Mr. Eden, the secre- tary to Lord Carlisle, on tlie subject of liish affairs, and which had been answered bv Counsellor Richard Sheridan, we had no great reason to rejoice in this change." * i Pari. Deb. p. 522. t 1 Pari. Deb. p. 433. Mr. Jenkinson, secretary at war, informed the house, that there were some alterations made in the Mutiny Act, two of which being material, he thought it right to state what they were, as no alteration ought to be made in an act of so much importance, without the concurrence of the house. The first alteration was the total omission of the word " Ireland," in the act 5 an omission, which the learned gentleman appointed to draw up and prepare the bill had judged proper, because the Irish legislature had last year introduced clauses in their Mutiny Act, tending to govern and regulate the management of the quartering cf soldiers, and other matters relative to military discipline, when at a distance from the capital ; the continuing to extend the Bri- tish Mutiny Act to Ireland was therefore no longer necessary. Sir George Yonge said, that what the secretary at war had drop- ped concerning the omission of the word " Ireland" in the bill, appeared to him to be of very serious importance, and required very mature consideration before it was agreed to. If it were in- tended, th3t this country should give up all claim to legislation over Ireland, he thought it would be better to declare such an inten- tion, and do it at once. He could never approve of the idea of giving it up bit by bit, by incidentr-.l acts of parliair^ent. He therefore wished the house would not hastily settle the question, but go into it, examine it with the attention due to its importance^ and make a solemn decision upon the subjec;. O 3 198 T.he Reign of George III, 1781. motion by a speech replete with that genuine consti- tutional doctrine^ for which he was always superemi- nently distinguished. He emphatically warned the honourable gentleman, that prudence ought at all times to be consulted in measures of dignitv, and that they ought not to assert powers of authority at a season, when from weakness they were not able to support their claim. To agitate a question of su- premacy over the sister kingdom, when that kingdom was disposed to resist the principle, could but be dangerous, v/hen the country was involved in cala- mity, and threatened wi h decisive ruin. The weak- ness of administration, in refusing h t calm and sober request?, had forced America to combat these powers ; and in Ireland they had not been quesdoned, till re- lief had been denied to her manifest grievanceSo lie complained of a conspiracy to give a mutiny bill of their own to Ireland, in return for a grant from Ireland of a perpetual army to the crown : a thing wholly unwarranted by the constitution. It was alarming, that in the Irish mutiny bill, the pre- amble, which recited the declaration of rights equally applicable to both countries was omitted, because the words. Whereas it is illegal in the croivn to keep ct ■standing army in times of peace, were in direct con- tradiction to the bill, which had been granted. Their associations had done more in a moment^ than all the effects of friendship in their favour. All false reason- ing had vanished ; all little partial motives of resistance had ceased j local considerations died away instantly. The Reign of George III, 199 and the noble lord in the blue ribbon, who had shewn i78i« himself the last man to listen to supplication, was the first man to give way to force. * In October, 1781, the Earl of Carlisle met the Lord Car- lisle TlCCtS parliament, when after the common place recommen- the pariia- dations of the charter schools, linen trade, tillage, firstpmcccd- fisheries, and general commerce of the country, his '"^^' excellency assured them, that his majesty ardently wished the happiness of his people of Ireland, in whose affection and loyalty he placed the firmest re- liance. It had now become notorious, that govern- ment wished to check and disarm the volunteers, but were frightened into acquiescence ; they had re- luctantly distributed amongst them 16,000 stand of arms, and they were now compelled to court the power they could not control. In the debate upon the address Mr. Grattan took notice of the extreme caution, with which the address avoided mentioning the word volun- teer ; that wholesome and salutary appellation, v.'hich he wished to familiarise to the royal car. Mr O'Neil then moved, that the thanks of the house should be given to all the volunteers of Ireland, for their un- remitted exertions, and for their loyal and spirited declarations on the late expected invasion, which, with the exception of Mr. Fitzgibbonf, and Mr. Scott |, who afterwards withdrew their objections, passed with the most hearty and unanimous good will. Mr. Brad- * 10 Journ. Comm. p. 210, \ Afterwards Earl of Clare. X Then attorney-general, and afterwards Lord Clonmel. o 4 200 The Reign of George III, 1781. street, the recorder of Dublin, a staunch patriot, moved * for leave to bring in heads of an Habeas Corpus Bill, observing, that the liberty of Ireland was insecure until an Habeas Corpus Act should take place, as in England. Sir Lucius O'Bryen called the attention of the house to their freedom of trade with Portugal, where goods of Irish manufacture had been stopped, and were not permitted to be sold, which subject Mr. Yelvertonf complained had been design- edly omitted in the speech. On the subsequent day, Mr. Yqlverton gave notice, that immediately after the recess, he should move the house for leave to bring in heads of a bill to regulate the transmission of bills from that kingdom to England. At that time, their constitution was the consdtution of England in- verted. Bills originated with the British minister ; and with that bouse it only remained to register, or reject them. Such was the miserable state of Ireland, and in that state it would remain, as long as a monster, unknown to the constitution, a British attorney-ge- neral, through the influence of a law of Poyning's, had power to alter their bills. The mischief of this had been recently manifested in an altered sugar bill, which had nearly annihilated their trade to the West-Indies. State of The activity of the Castle to ensure a majority in parties at , , . this June parliament endeavoured to keep pace with the in- jure in ire- . . . i i j Wad. crease or patriotism without. X he people had arms, knew their use, and had resolved not to quit them, * 1 Pari. Debates, p. 10. \ i\fterw3;:4s Lord Ayonmore, TJie Reign of George IIL 201 tin they had attained the object of their wishes, i78i. a free and independent constitution. Administration confiding in its numbtr, set all ihe patriots at defiance. They beheld miriisters with indignation, and considered them in fact the only enemy, they had to encounter in Ireland. Mr. Eden was a man of information and talent, and conducted the business of parliament videly different from his predecessor in that ofEce. Yet such was then the prejudice against every thing British, that scarcely a debate occurred, in which severe reflections were not thrown on the lord-lieutenant and iiis secretary's partiality for England. During Lord Carlisle's admininistration, the numbers of the two parties in the house of commons continued nearly as they had been left by his predecessor. Some of the leading men of each party shifted sides. Early in the session * , Mr. Flood declared, that the fate of the na- tion depended on the motion then before the house (for going into the consideration of the Portugal trade) : that they should not trust any minister, that counte- nanced a perpetual mutiny bill : and that they would be execrated by posterity, if they abandoned that mo- tion !• On the other hand, Mr. George Fonsonby declared, that as he saw the rninister acting obviously for the interest of Ireland, he thought it his duty to support him ; and he would ever assist him while he acted upon the same principle. But the debate, which brought forth Mr. Flood in full opposition to * Viz. on the 1st of Nov. 1/81 — 1 Pari. Debates, p. 30. t It was negatived by a majority of 117 agmnst 44. 1 Pari. Pebates, p. 30. 200 The Reign of George III. 1781. g^j.gg.he minister, was on the supplies^ which involved the j^Q, question upon the state of the nation *. ^^ On the 13th of November, 1781, Mr. Grattau J. made a motion for bringing in heads of a bill to ex- plain, amend, and limit an act to prevent mutiny and desertion in the army j which was seconded by Mr. Flood. On this occasion some few of the more inde- pendent members of the ministerial party sided with the opposition; the division being 77 for and 133 against the motion. Mr. Eden said, as a servant of the public, he was determined, at all times, to guard against the en- thusiasm of the day, whatever it might be. He had found the mutiny law recently established by large majorities ; the execution of it had passed immediately through his hands, almost from its commencement ; and he had found it full of expediency, and void of mischief. He would therefore resist the motion. Mr. Yd- Upon receipt of the melancholy news of the sur- ■verton moves for render of Lord Cornwallis's army to the French £n address ...,»■ -it i r m America^ Mr. Yelverton, arter a very impressive speech f, moved, for an address to express their loyalty and attachment to his majesty's royal person, family, and government, and to assure his majesty that they held it to be their indispensable duty, as it was their hearty inclination to support his majesty to to the throne . * Mr. Flood's conduct, personal feeling, and mucli of his speech on the loss of his place, and in reply to observations on his change, may be seen. Historical Review, p. 537, '^'c- vol. I. f 1 Pari. Deb. p. 124. This speech of INIr. Yelverton is fraught with that patriotic and constitutional spirit, which on all nations! subjects he never failed to display. The Reign of George III 203 the utmost of their abilities, and to restore the bless^ ^z^^- ings of a lasting and honorable peace. Several friends of Mr. Yelverton's conceiving, that his motion might commit them in an approbation of the American war, declined supporting it : the question however was carried by a majority of 167 against 37. Ou the 7th of December Mr. Grattan belne; called Mr. Grat- "^ tan's mo- to by the house, rose to state to them the financial ''O" f'^r an ■' cxamma- situation of the country; but previously intreated tie" of the '' '' national them not to give a rakers ear to a subject necessary expences, for their consideration, though painful to their pati- ence. He stated their debt, including annuities, at 2,667,600/. ; which he observed had not been accu- mulated by directing the artillery of their arms against a foreign enemy, but by directing the artillery of the treasury against their constitution ; it was a debt of patronage and prostitution. After a minute investi- gation into, and a severe invective against every spe- cies of venality, unaccountable waste, and ill-directed profusion, he moved for a committee to examine the expences of the nation, and to consider of such re- trenchments as should seem necessary. Mr. Foster undertook the bold task of refuting every position of Mr. Grattan. On the 1 1 th of December, * Mr. Flood entered Mr. Flood's , . , . r T^ • • 1 • -, motion for ppon the important subject or roymng s law, with the expia- nation of Poynir.g's * V^.rX. Debates, p. 153. Mr. Flood's speech on this important '^^^* law to Ireland, is a most solid and explicit statement of the nature, spirit, and operation of it j and the best historical clue to the de- velopment of the many political miiioeuvrtrs carried on under its sanction. His argument is fully given, Hist, Review, vol. 1. 500, ^c. 204 The Reign of George. IIL 1/81. great erudition and eloquence. He concluded with ob« serving, that the law was not in fault ; the vile inter- " preter only was to be blamed. An interpreter (the Eng- lish attorney-general), placed between the king and people : a monster unknown to the constitution, whose office was to stifle the voice of the people, and to pre- vent the king from hearing ; to render the people dumb, and the king deaf. In order therefore to re- store the constitution to its native vigour, and to ob- viate the evil effects of misinterpretation, he moved two resolutions, viz. That a committee be appointed to examine the precedents and records that day pro- duced, and such others, as might be necessary to explain Poyning's law. If that were granted, he would follow it with a declaration from the report of that conmiittee, w^hat the lav/ of Poyning, and what the constitution of that country actually were. The Provost answered Mr. Flood in a very learned and temperate speech. The attorney-general opposed him with more than his usual vehemence. At a late hour Mr. Flood's first resolution was negatived, by a ma- jority of 139 against 67. Mr.Gardi- Mr, Luke Gardiner*, from his observations on the ner intro- • • r i duces the Spirit 01 tolcration throughout the continent, lamented subject of , T , , . , catholic re- that Ireland was the most intolerant country in all Eu- lief. . , rope, which he considered as a high disgrace to the re- formed religion. fOn the 13th of December, 1781, a conversation took place on the heads of a bill for givino- * Afterwards I,ord Mountjoy, t 1 P^ri. Deb. p. 175. The Reign of George IlL 205 further relief to his Majesty's subjects of Ireland pro- 1/82. fessing the Roman Catholic religion, when Mr. Gar- diner said, that he was taking the utmost pains to bring it forward in such a shape, as would render it accept- able to every gentleman in the house, as in a case of such great importance unanimity was earnestly to be desired. Several objections were taken to the time, to the nature of the concession, and to the inflamed state of the pubhc mind. It went no further than conversation. The house of commons met for the last time before their adjournment on Christmas-day, when Mr. Gardiner observed, that as many members had expressed their anxiety to know the purport of his intended bill for the relief of the Roman Catholics, and as the house had given no orders for printing it, he would have it printed and distributed at his own expence, that gentlemen might have an opportunity of maturely considering it during the recess. On that occasion Mr. Grattan observed, that it was allowed on all sides, that some indulgence should be granted to the Roman Catholics. He wished the house to do it handsomely, for the merits and sufferings of the Roman Catholics claimed it from them. They were not to be judged by their creed, as understood by their adversaries : their actions proved them dutiful and loyal. On 31st of January, 1782, Mr. Gardiner gave no- Mr. Gardi- tice of his intention to bring in heads of a bill for the ticeofWr relief of the Roman Catholics in Ireland *. The Hon. bfu. ' ° » 1 Pari. Deb. p. 199. 20{j The Reign of George III, 1782. John Burke opposed the Introduction of a bill, that would abolish all the restraints, which the wisdom of their ancestors had laid upon that people. Leave was given however, without further opposition, to bring them in. On the 5i\\ '"f February, Mr. Gar- diner being indisposed, Mr. Dillon presented heads of a bill for the relief of the Roman Catholics, which brought on a debate, in \>'h"ch s vera) other Lad- ing members of the house declared their sentiments in favour of them. But on th order of the day for going into, the bill, a c n^ ersation took place upon the propriety of its being then committed, when the house, which was uncommonly crowded with strangers, v^-as appalled by Mr. Fitzgibbon's apprizing them*, that till that morning he had never considered the bill as dangerous ; but on reading it over care- fully, the first clause struck him as a repeal of the Act of Settlement, the Act of Forfeiture, and the Act of Resumption; that if so, it must destroy the new titles under the Popery ' laws, and entangle the whole kingdom in a maze of confusion. He there- fore intreated the friends of the bill to agree with him in putting it off, till those doubts should be done away ; or till that clause could be modified, so as to grant relief to the catholics without injuring the per- sons holding under the new titles. Even the attor- ney-general consented to commit the bill, to shew the people, that the house was sincere, and fully resolved to give them the utmost, that could safely be * 1 Pari. Deb. p. 241. The Reign of George ItL 207 granted. The house then went into a committee, 1782. when the bill was read, and the further consideration of it adjourned to a near day. Mr. Fitzgibbon aban- doned his opinion, which liad given the alarm. The great body of the people had arms in their ^°(5""|."J^!;,.j. hands, and freedom in their hearts ; they were rising^ *'°"5 "^^ '^^ ' 'JO volunteers, gradually into the use of arms, were organized into discipline, and united in one common object, the de- termination to attain legislative independence. The officers of the southern battalion of Lord Charlemont's Armagh regiment, took the lead, and gave move- ment to the important measures of the volunteer army : they met and came to * resolutions, which * As Ireland owes so mnch to the VolanteerSj the reader ma}' be desirous to know the nature and spirit of their first public meeting. The following resokitions gave rise to all their future operations. *' First Ulster Regiment, commanded by the Earl of Charleraont. *' At a full m-eeting, hoklen at Armagh, on Friday, the 2Sth day of December, 1/81, of the officers and delegates of the southern battalion of the said regiment, consisting of eleven companies, pursuant to adjocrnment. " Francis Evans, Esq. in the chair. The following resolutions were unanimously agreed to, and ordered to be printed in all the newspapers published within the province of Ulster, and in the Volunteer Journal of tlie City of Dublin. " Resolved, That with the utmost concern, we behold the little attention paid to the constitutional rights of this kingdom, by the majority of those, whose diily it is to establish and preseiTe the same. " Resohed, That to avert the impending danger from, the na- tion, and to restore the constiiution to its original purity, the rao.st vigorous and effectual methods must be puisued, to root out cor- ruption and court influence from the legislative body- 208 The Reign of George III 1782. they published throughout the province of Ulster atid in Dublin* First meet- The meetinfT, in consequenee of this requisition,' iroiuinetrs. was ottc of the tnost important transactions in the modern annals of Ireland. As soon as this bold call appeared, the Castle took the alarm. Captain Evans was the ostensible man, but to take him up might bring things to immediate extremities; to take no notice of it might be dangerous ; a middle course was determined on^ and every possible means were used to suppress the meeting : the words of the requisition were animadverted on ; and many, even of the best friends of Ireland, wished no meeting had been called. As the awful 15th day of February, 1782, approach- " ResoIveJ, That to open a path towards the attainrag this de- sirable point, it is absohitely requisite that a meeting be held in the most central town in the province of Ulster, which we con- ceive to be Dungannon, to which said meeting every volunteer association of the said province is most earnestly requested to send- delegates, then and tlierc to deliberate on the present alarming situation of public ali'iirs, and to determine on, and publish to their country what ni.iy be the result of said meeting. " Resolved, That as many real and lasting advantages may ari'-:e to this kingdom, from said intended meeting being held, before the present session of parliament is much larthcr advanced, Friday,' the J 5th day of February next, at ten o'clock in the forenoon, is hereby appointed for said meeting, at Dungannon as aforesaid. " Resolved, That as at said m-eeting, it is highly probable the idea of forming brigades^ will be agitated and considered, the several corps of volwiteers who send delegates to said meeting, are requested to vest in them a power to associate with some one of such brigades as may be then formed. " FaAUcis Evans, Chairman." The Reign of George Ul. 209 Sd, men of every description manifested their deep 1782. Goncern m the event. The administration was con- sidered by them all to have treated the demands of the people with scorn : and they charged the parlia- ment with having leagued with administration against them. They had arms in their hands, but no chain of correspondence, which could alone give efficacy to their resolves. Thus circumstanced, a meeting was formed, attended by Lord Charleiiipnt, Mr, Flood, Mr.' Grattan, Mr. Stewart (member for Tyrone), and iMr. Dobbs, a barrist^r^ at which were passed the farnouf) resolutions of Dungannon. They were fA in aumber, and their general substance as follows. That whereas it had been asserted, that volun- Substance , , , . < . , , of theDun- teers, as such, could not with propriety depate or gannon re- publish their opinions on political subjects, or on the conduct of parHament, or public men; they re- solved that a citizen, by learning the use of arms, did not abandon any of his civil rights. ihat a claim of any body of men, other than the king, lords, and com- mons of Ireland, to make laws to bind that king- dom, was unconstitutional, illegal, and a grievance. That the powers exercised by the privy council of both kingdoms, under colour or pretence of the law of Poynings, were unconstitutional and a griev- ance. That the ports of Ireland were by right open to all foreign countries not at war with the king. That a mutiny bill not hmited in point of duration from session to session v/as unconstitutional. That the independence of the judges was as essential to the jimpartial administration of justice in Ireland, as ip VOL. y P 210 The Reign of George lit, 1782. England. That the minority in parliament, who had- supported their constitutional rights, were entitled to thanks. That four members from each county of the province of Ulster be appointed a committee, till the next general meeting, to act for the volunteer corps there represented, and to communicate with other volunteer associations. That they would not con- sume any wine of the growth of Portugal, until their exports should be received in the kingdom of Portugal, as the manufactures of part of the British empire. That they held the right of private judgment in mat- ters of religion, to be equally sacred in others, as in themselves. And therefore, as men, and as Irishmen, as Christians, and as Protestants, they rejoiced in the relaxation of the penal laws against their Roman Ca- tholic fellow-subjects*, * The short and spirited address of the volunteers to the mi- nority in parliament^ deserves to be lianded down to the latest posterity. *• To the Right Honorable and Honorable the Minority in both Houses of Parliament. " My Lords and Gentlemen, " We thank you for your noble and spirited, though hitherto ineffectual efforts, in defence of the great constitutional and commercial rights of your country. Go on ! the almost unanimous voice of the people is with you ; and in a free country the voice of the people must prevail. We know our duty to our sovereign, and are loyal. We know our duty to ourselves, and are resolved to be free. We seek for our rights, and no more than The Reign of George III. 2 1 1 Thus ended the business of that memorable day. i782. The meeting was in the church. The country rejoiced Peaceable 1 1 «. r 1 1- • . conclusion at the temper and nrmness or the proceedmgs : its of the Dun- enemies were disappointed. To divide and conquer, SS^g. had been too long the odious policy of the castle ; that of Dungannon, was to unite and be victorious. These resolutions were erected as the standard, to which all the volunteers repaired. Committees of correspondence were formed, and the national com- mittee crowned the business. Within five days after the passing of the Dungan- Mr. Gardi- noii resolutions, when the Roman Catholic Bill was "nfavJrof in the committee*, Mr. Gardiner observed, that he thoHcs. was happy tar find that liberal spirit of toleration, which had originated in that house, so widely dif- fused throughout the kingdom. The delegates at Dungannon had proved, that the people of the north were as forward to grant toleration, as the catholics could be to receive it. He hoped to obtain the una- nimous approbation of the house ; and had therefore divided the indulgencies, which he thought ought to be granted to Roman Catholics, into five heads. The first, and that, which he then intended to propose to the committee, respected their enjoyment of property : the second, the free exercise of religion: the thirds our rights ; and, in so just a pursuit, we should doubt the beings of a Providence, if we doubted of success. " Signed by order, " William IrviNB, Chairman." * Viz. on the 2dth of February, i;82. I Pari. Debates, p. 148. ^2 212 The Reign of George III. 1782. education: the fourth, marriage : and the fifth, which. ^"""""^ from the disposition of the committee, he did not then think expedient to agitate, regarded self-defence. The attorney-general, and some other leading men in the commons, opposed the bill. Even Mr. Flood ob- jected to catholics acquiring any po.ver in the state, which he contended they would by the ability of pos- sessing freehold land, which carried with it an influ- ence in elections for members of parliament. The liberal and enlightened mind of Mr. Grattan was for the removal of every disability, that deprived the ca- tholic of his full participation of the constitution. He spoke highly of the constitutional principles of the catholic body. Nor should it be mentioned as a reproach to them, that they fought under the banner of King James^ when it was recollected, that before they entered the field, they extorted from him a Magna Charta, a British constitution. He should be ashamed of giving freedom to but six hundred thousand of his countrymen, when he could extend it to millions. Fortunately for the catholics, Mr. Gardiner's bill was not made a government question, or it would pro- bably have fallen before the same majority, which had uniformly opposed eveiy constitutional question, brought before them since the commencement of the American war. The nearer the fatal ministry of Lord North drew to its dissolution, the more violent were its agonizing struggles against the patriotic efforts of Ireland to obtain a free and independent constituotin. Mi Grattan Within the octave of the great civic festival at Dun- Sdless w gannon. Mr. Grattan, as the herald and oracle of his The Reign of George III. 213 armed countrymen, moved in the house of com- J78. mons *, for an address to the King, " To assure the King his majesty with unfeigned attachment to his person gisiative in- and government, that the people of Ireland were a Ireland, iree people ; the crown of Ireland a distinct kingdom, with a parliament of her own ; and that with one voice they protested against the interposition of any other parliament in its legislation. That the claim of the British parliament, to legislate for Irehnd, was use- less to England, cruel to Ireland, and without any foundation in law. That impressed with a high sense * of the justice of the British character, and in reliance on * On the 22(1 of February, 1782, 1 Pari. Deb. p. 266. He ushered in his motion with a brilliant speech, in which he referred by historical allusion to America, and the weakness of the admi- nistration, which occasioned its loss to Great Britain. A pecu- liar excellency of that great man's oratory is, that it applies as forcibly to existing circumstances, as to those which immediately occasioned the exertion of his stupendous powers, 'i How futile and absurd are all the arguments, that teem on this occasion from the government press ? I am for tranquillity ; it is for honorable tranquillity ; but when I see an administration, unable to make a blow against an enemy, tyrannize over Ireland, I am bound to exert every power to oppose it. " Ireland is in strength ; she has acquired that strength by the weakness of Britain : for Ireland was saved, when America was lost : when England conquered, Ireland was coerced ; when she was defeated, Ireland was relieved j and when Charles-town was taken, the mutiny and sugar bills were altered. Have you not all of you, when you heard of a defeat, at J:he same instant, condoled with England, and congratulated Ireland ? " If England were for a moment awake to her own interastSj she would come forward, and invite us to her arms, by doing away every cause of jealousy." P 3 214 • The Beign of George HI. 1782. his majesty's paternal care, they had set forth their right and sentiments, without prescribing any mode to his majesty, and threw themselves on his royal wis- dom/' Mr, Brownlow seconded the motion, remarking that the people knew their rights ; and it was need- less for government to pretend to oppose what must at last be obtained. The attorney-general opposed the address by moving to have it put off to the first of August; which motion was carried by 137 against 68. Mr. Flood's As government affected, that the late division aeainsi two resolu- ° " tions nega- the address did not involve the question of right in tived. _ ^ ^ ^ Q : Great Britain to bind Ireland by legislative acts, the patriots returned to the charge ; but by a similar ma- jority the ministry negatived * Mr. Flood's two self- evident resolutions ; That the members of that house were the only representatives of the people of Ireland. And that the consent of the commons was indispen- sably necessary to render any statute binding, nel^.^ca-'^'" The heads of the Roman Catholic bills in their thohc bills, progress through the committee occasioned several warm debates. The first of them, intituled, An Act for the further Relief of his Majesty* s Subjects of this Kingdom professing the Roman Catholic I eligion\^ taking notice that the continuance of several of the Popery laws was unnecessary, and injurious to Ire- land, enabled catholics to take, hold, and dispose of lands and hereditaments in the same manner as * 1 Pari. Debates, p. 279. The division was 137 against 7Q. \ 21 and 22 Geo. III. c, 24. The Reign of George II L 215 Protestants : (except advowsons and manors, and ^782. boroughs returning members for parliament.) It re- moved several penalties from such of the clergy, as should have taken the oath of allegiance and been re- gistered; and repealed several of the most noxious parts of the acts of Ann and Geo. I. and Geo. IL *. The second bill bespoke it's purport upon the face of it's title t ; An Act to alloiv Persons professing the Popish Religion to teach School in this Kingdom, and for the regulating the Education of Papists, and also to repeal Parts of certain Laivs relative to the . Guardianship of their Children. When Mr. Gardi- ner proposed his third bill, which was for establishing intermarriages between Protestants and Roman Ca- tholics, the house divided upon it, and the bill was negatived by a majority of eight {. * Such as the power given to a magistrate to fine and imprison every papist refusing to appear and declare upon oath when and where he had last heard mass, who celebrated and assisted at it, and the residence of any popish ecclesiastic : such as prohibited a papist to have a horse of the value of 5/. under certain penalties, and which enabled the chief governor to seize all their horses upon any invasion or intestine war likely to happen : such as en- abled the grand jury to present the reimbursing of all robberies and depredations of privateers in time of war upon the real and personal estate of the catholics within the county : such as sub- jected every catholic to certain penalties, who did not provide a protestant watchman to watch in his turn : and such as subjected to certain penalties every catholic, who should take or purchase a house in Limerick or Galway, or the suburbs thereof t 21 and 22 Geo. III. c. 62. X 10 Journ. Com. p. 317- P 4 216 The Reign of George 111. 1782. The great opposition proceeded from the Arch- Nature of bishop of CashelFs interest. Several, who held places the oppo- sition to the under government, were also adverse. Government catholic 11 bills. gave neither countenance nor support, though some supporters of government favoured the measure. These bills w^ere viewed in very opposite lights by different descriptions of persons. Some considered them as ruinous to the protestant ascendancy in Ire- landj and therefore opposed them in every stage : others considered them too liberal, although some en- couragement ought to be given to the long tried and then much wanted fidelity of the catholics. A third class inclined to grant even more, than these bills im- ported 5 though they still maintained, that the Irish catholics v/pre to be kept in a civil subordination to the privileged order of protestants. And a fourth un^ equivocally declared, that national justice and policy demanded the complete emancipation of the catholics, and a perfect civil amalgamation of the whole Irish people*. Decline of Althouffh these and some other bills did not re- Lord Car- . "^ lisie'sad- ceive the royal assent during the vice-royalty of Lord ministra- ^ •' tion and his resigna- tion. * Mr. Burke in a letter to a peer of Ireland upon this bill (printed in London^ 1785) says, " To look at the bill, in the ab- stract, it is neither more nor Jess than a renewed act of universal, unmitigated, indispensable, exceptionless disqualification. One would imagine, that a bill inflicting such a multitude of incapa- cities, bad followed on the heels of a conquest, made by a very fierce enemy, tinder the impression of recent animosity and re- sentment. No man, on reading that bill, could imagine he was reading an act of amnesty and indulgence. It has surely much more the air of a table of proscriptions, than an act of grace. '' The Reign of George 111. *2 1 1 Carlisle, yet having been brought forward under him, 17S2. they may be considered as acts of his administration. Such also was the bill* for establishing a national bank of Ireland, with some other beneficial bills of re- gulation. v\s the Irish administration was but a sub- ordinate part of that of Great Britain, it was natural, that the lord-lieutenant and his secretary should carry matters with a less high hand, when once they per- ceived the opposition of Great Britain gaining ground, and hastening the downfal of that ill-fated f ministry, which had weakened the British empire by the loss of her American colonies, the useless sacrifice of one hundred thousand lives, and the accumulation of above a hundred millions of national debt; One of the last acts of Mr. Eden's, in the commons, Last act of , . . r \ ' ^iT • Mr. Eden. was the communication or his Majesty s answer to their address relative to the affairs of Portugal. Lord Carlisle foreseeing in the change of ministry a total change of principles and measures with reference to Ireland, and having received no fresh instructions or support from the British cabinet, wished only to carry some of the then pending bills up to the lords ; and jon the 14th of March, 1782, adjourned the parliament to the 1 6th of April. By that time a general change * 21 and 22 Geo. III. c. xvi. + The first unequivocal Symptom of the downfal of Lord North's administration, was the resignation of Lord George Germaine. The unpopularity, treatment, and conduct of the American secretary^ and several important circumstances relative to the change of that administration, may be seen in iny Historical Review, vol. 1. p. 584, &c. 218 The Reign of George TIL 1782. having taken place in the British ministry, Mr. Edeii went to London with Lord Carlisle's resignation of the lieutenancy, desiring only time to make some necessary arrangements, and to close the session of parliament. Appoint- On the 14th of Aprils the Duke of Portland arrived mentofthe ^ ^ * _ Duke of in Dublin, and immediately took upon himself the Portland, ' ^ . -, . and Mr. government of Ireland. Mr. Eden, speedily after his Eden's con- duct in the arrival in England, laid before the British parliament*, commons, a view of Ireland during the two last years ; acquainted the house with the measures^ which (he said) were then forming, for rendering it totally independent of the British legislature ; and concluded with moving for leave to bring in a bill to repeal so much of the act of the 6th of George I. as asserted a right in the King and parliament of Great Britain to make laws to bind that kingdom. The precipitation, with which a business of such magnitude and importance was thus attempted to be forced on the house^ without previous communication with any of his Majesty's ministers, or knowledge of their intentions, was severely cen- sured, and the more especially as it appeared, that the right honourable gentleman had refused to give any * The debate upon the situation of Ireland on the 8th of April, 1782, in the British house of commons, was so illustrative of the ancient system of governing Ireland j so explanatory of the views and motives of the British cabinet, in the different measures they imposed upon that kingdom, that the reader may be gratified iq learning, from the mouths of the actors themselves, a complete nar- rative of this great revolution in the kingdom of Ireland. In the Appendix to my Historical Review, No. LXVIII. the whole debate is given. The Reign of George ILL 2 1 9 official information to government relative to the state -^782^- of the country he had just left. Mr. Eden, though loudly called on to withdraw his motion, persisted in urging its necessity; and in vindication of his own conduct, stated, that the reason of his refusing to have any communication with his Majesty's present servants, was the great want of attention to the Earl of Carlisle, which they had shewn in the mode of appointing his successor, and in his removal from the lord-lieutenancy of the East Riding of Yorkshire. This apology served rather to increase the displeasure of the house ; a mo- tion of censure on his conduct was threatened; and it was with great difficulty he was at last brought to comply with the general wish of the house by with- drawing his motion. Mr. Fox informed the house in the course of this debate, that the ministers of the crown, during the short time they had been in office, had holden three or four councils, solely on the affairs of Ireland ; and that he hoped very soon, perhaps within the next four-and-twenty hours, to lay some preparatory measure before them. On the very next day, viz. April 9th, 1782*, Mr. HisMajesty Secretary Fox communicated the following message sage to both , , houses of to the house : the British parliament '' GEORGE R. Sn?'^ '* His Majesty being concerned to find, that discontents and jealousies are prevailing among * 7 Pari. Debates, p. 24. And on the same day, the first of their meeting, a message to the like effect was delivered to the lords, and addresses were unanimously voted by both houses. 320 llie Reign of George lit. 1782. his loyal subjects in Ireland, upon matters of great weight and importance, earnestly recommends to this house, to take the same into their most serious consi- deration, in order to such a final adjustment as may give mutual satisfaction to both kingdoms. G. R." M. Fox Mn Secretary Fox expressed in strong terms the thanks to sincere wishes of his Majesty^s ministers to secure the jesty. " peace and welfare of Ireland. The hasty step proposed by Mr. Eden would have been unwise and impolitic. It was the duty of government to conclude an arrange- ment for posterity, as well as for the present day : and in quieting the existing jealousies, to establish such a principle of relation and constitution, as should prevent future discontents from arising. He believed it would be easy for the King's ministers to do as theii predecessors had done : to patch up a temporary cessation of claims^ and leave to those^ who were to come after them, all the clangers of an unsettled constitution, for the mean advantage of clearing themselves from difficulties^ which they had not the courage to meet with fairness. He then moved an address to return his Majesty thanks for his most gracious message ; and to assure his Ma- jesty, that the house, feeling with his Majesty the deepest concern,, that discontents and jealousies should have arisen among his Majesty's loyal subjects in Ire- landj wouldj without delay, take the same into their most serious consideration, in order to such a final adjustment, as might give mutual satisfaction to both kingdoms, portund The Duke of Portland, on his arrival in Dublin, Mdiatnent. "^^^ received with excessive demonstrations of joy« TJw Reign of George 111. 22 1 When the parliament met according to adjournment, 1782. on the 16th of April, the galleries and bar of the house of commons were crowded, and expectation was raised to enthusiasm. As soon as the speaker had taken the chair, Mr. John Hely Hutchinson, his Majesty's prin- cipal secretary of state, rose, and announced to the house, that he was charged by the lord-lieutenant to communicate to them a message from his Majesty, oi the same tenor as that, which had been communicated to both houses of the British parliament. He addressed them, not as an officer of the crown, but as a gentle- man of the country. He spoke determinately in favour of the legislative independence of Ireland. In men- tioning Mr. Grattan in terms most honourable, but not exceeding his deserts, he said, he would ever live in the hearts of his countrymen. The present age and posterity would be indebted to him for the greatest of all obligations, and would (but he hoped at a great distance of time) inscribe on his tomb, that he had re- deemed the liberties of his country. Mr. George Ponsonby moved an address to his Ma- Motion of jesty, thanking him for his most gracious message, and the King. assuring him, that his faithful commons would imme- diately proceed upon the great objects he had recom- mended to their consideration. Mr. Grattan, after a speech of unusual brilliancy, moved an amendment to -the address *, which imported a repeal of the 6th of * He said he had nothing to add, but to admire by what steady •rirtue, the people had asserted their own rights. He was not very old, and yet he remembered Ireland a child. He had watched her growth 5 from infancy she grew to arms: from arras to li,- 222 The Reign of George 111, 1732. George I. including a restoration of the appellant ju risdiction to the lords of Ireland, an abolition of the unconstitutional power of privy-councils, and a repeal of the mutiny bill. The judges* bill he refrained from mentioning, as he had heard it was returned. His motion was unanimously agreed to. Reflections The short space of six weeks had scarcely elapsed, on the ver- ^ ^ ^ ^ satiiity of sincc the house of commons had triumphantly boasted the Irish * ■' house of berty. She was not now afraid of the French ; she was not now afraid of the English ; she was not now afraid of herself. Her sons were no longer an arbitrary gentry ; a ruined commonalty 5 protestants oppressing catholics ; catholics groaning under oppres- sion : she was now an united land. This house agreeing with the voice of the nation, passed the popery bill, and by so doing got more than it gave, yet found ad- vantages from generosity, and grew rich in the act of charity. Ye gave not : but ye formed an alliance between the protestant and the catholic powers, for the security of Ireland. What signi- fies it, that three hundred men in the house of commons — what signifies it, that one hundred men in the house of peers — assert their country's liberty, if unsupported by the people ? But there is not a man in Ireland ; tliere is not a grand jury ; there is not an association j there is not a corps of volunteers ; there is not a meet- ing of their delegates, which does not maintain the independence of the Irish constitution, and pledge themselves to support the parliament in fixing that constitution on its rightful basis. Not leng ago the meeting at Dungannon was considered as a very alarming measure : but I thought otherwise ; I approved of it, and considered the meeting of Dungannon as an original transac- tion. As such only it was matter of surprise. What more ex- traordinary transaction, than the attainment of Magna Charta? That was not attained in parliament, but by the barons, armed, and in the field. A great original transaction is not founded in pre- cedent, it contains in itself both reason and precedent j therevo* lution h«^iK>^ precedent. The Reign of George 111. 223 of their steady adherence to the dictates of the British 17S2. cabinet, in rejecting every effort of the patriots to at- tain that constitutional Hberty, which they had been labouring for years to secure. The versatility of that majority in supporting the propositions, which they had before rejected, is a political phenomenon of cu- rious observation. The ministerial members of inde- pendent fortune rose in succession to purify their past conduct from any interested or corrupt motive. Even Mr. Fitzgibbon defied the house to charge him with ever having asserted the supremacy af the British par- liament ; though he confessed he had voted with mi- nisters against the declaration of rightSy as judging it then improper to be moved. This gentleman spoke a new language in the face of his country*, that as the nation was then committed to obtain a restoration of their rights, it behoved every mem to steindjirm, A congratulatoi*y address to the Duke of Portland Addresses , . voted to the was proposed by Mr. O'Neil, and unanimously voted. Duke of Mr. Fitzgibbon then observed, that as the suddenness and Lord , ... Carlisle. or Lord Carlisle's departure had rendered it impossible to convey to him the opinion entertained of his admi- nistration in the way of address, he should move a resolution of that tendency ; which was seconded by Mr. Daly Mr. Grattan^ v/ho had opposed most of his measures, felt himself called upon to resist it ; but the resolution was carried without a division. On the 4th of May, 1782, the house adjourned for Adjoum- three weeks, in order to give time for the determination Irish par- liament, and pro- ceedings of » 1 Pari. Deb. p, 342, the British, 224 The Reign of George III. '782. of the British ministry in respect to their claim for a declaration of rights. On this occasion a con- versation ensued, in which Mr. Fitzgibbon and Mr. Scott *^ spoke on the independent rights of Ireland, which they had hitherto invariably opposed, with as much enthusiasm, as the most high-flying patriot under the late administration. The situation of Ireland was fairly brought under the consideration of his Majesty's servants! by accord, on the same day (May 17, 1782) in both houses of the British parliament^ by the Earl of Shelburne in the peers^ and by Mr. Fox in the commons. After a most liberal, * i. e. Lord Clare and liord ClonmeU . f We are informed by Lord Clare (Sp. 33.) that on the 6th of May the Duke of Portland wrote to Lord Shelburne, " recom- mending to the British cabinet concession of all the points de- manded by the Irish addresses," but " stating his perfect confi- dence in the readiness of the Lish parliament to co-operate in the most effectual measures either with the King's confidential ser- vants, or by commissioners to be appointed, or through the me- dium of the chief governor, to settle the precise limits of the in»- dependence, which was required, the consideration, which should be given for the protection expected, and the proportion, which it would be proper for tliPir. to contribute toward? the general sup- port of the empire, in pursuance of the declaration contained in the concluding paragraph of their own address. The regulation of txade would make a very necessary article of the treaty." This communication was made by the Duke of Portland before the claims of Ireland had been therefoie brought into discussion in the British parliament ; and demonstrates that the British Cabinet was aware of the readiness on the part of Ireland to settle every question of imperial policy or regulation, which might thereaftei arise, or be brought before the British parliament. The Reign of George III. 225 instructive, and constitutional speech from each of ^782. these accomplished orators and statesmen, were pro- posed the following motions. First, '' That it was the opinion of that house, that the act of the 6th of George I. intitutled. An Act for the letter securing the Dependency of Irehvid iipo-n the Crown of Great Briiain, ought to be repealed.'* Second, " That it was the opinion of that house, that it was indispensable to the interests and happiness of boih kingdoms, that the connection between theni should be established by mutual consent, upon a sohd and permanent footing, and that an humble address should be presented to his Majesty, that his Majesty would be graciously pleased to take such measures as his Majesty in his royal wisdom should think most conducive to that important end." The Earl of Carlisle, in an elegant speech, though Lofd Car- recalled from his government m no flattering manner, ports the . - motions. most liberally expressed his approbation of the mo- tions. He bore ample testimony to the zeal and loy- alty oF the Irish, and particularly stated the honour- able conduct of the volunteers, and the liberal offers made of their service, when Ireland was threatened with invasion. Lord Loughborough, alone in the peers, no one in the commons, opposed the motions. On the 27th of May, 1782, the parliament of Ire- i^^'^eof •'' ' ^ , ^ Portland land met according to adjournment, when his grace meets the the Duke of Portland, in a gracious speech from the throne*, expressed his satisfaciion at assuring the • Pali. Debates, p. 355. VOL. 11, (2 226 7 Ad' Jieigii of Gcor^,e IlL 17S2. Ivi-ih parl-amcnt, that the British legislature had coH-* ciirred in a rtsolation to remove the causes of their discontents and jealousies, and had united in a desire to gratify every wish expressed in their late addressed to the throne. After the speech had been read, Mr. Grattan*, with his usual eloquence, bore testimony to the candid and unqualified manner, in which Great Britain had given up in. tolo every claim to authority over Ireland, and that unconditionally; which must 'for ever remove suspicion, and put an end to all future questions. They had recovered a constitation, and their business v/as to maintain it. He recommended, that they should make an unconditional grant to Eng- land of 100,030/. for raising 20,000 Irish seamen for the British navy; which were afterwards voted. He then moved an address devoid of all fulsome panegyric, and containing nothing but the truth. Mr. Brownlow se- conded the motion. Almost the whole house rose suc- cessively to make public profession of their joy and gra-> titude on the happy event. Two gentlemen only dif- fered upon the propriety of the following words in the address, viz. That (here will no longer exist any consti- tutional cjiiestion between the two nations, that can in- terrupt their harnio>/i/. The house divided upon the words objected to; when thciC were for the address as it stood 211, aiid only two against it, viz. Mr. Walsh and Sir Samuel Bradstreetf, the Recorder of Dublin. * 1 P:irl. Debates, p. 855, f Although these gentlemen, whose genuine patriotism was- never questioned, were the only two of (lie whole house of com- mons in Ireland, who were of opinion^ that any constitutional The Reign of George III. 227 No sooner had this motion been disposed of, than '782. M'". B:ijiiai, aiter havinc: congratulated his country, P^itriotic ■" _ _ o o J donation to Great Britain, his iVIajesty, and his ministers, for hav- HcnryGrat- , . tan- ing obtained the greatest of all poUtical blessings, calJed upon the house to confer some signal mark of a great and grateful nation upon their illustrious bene- factor Mr Grafan, whose efforts in procuring them these blessings had been timed and conducted with so • much wisdom ; and considering this great and good man as the father of his regenerated country, he fur- ther called upon them to look upon him as the special inscrument, which benign Providence had used to con- vert the oppression and bondage of their country intd freedom and independence. He therefore gave notice, that on the morrov^r, after the grant to his Majesty should have been settled ^ and a proper thanksgiving offered to Eleaven for the recovery of their rights, he would move, that the house should resolve itself into a com- mittee to take into consideration what sum they should grant for the purchasing an estate, and building a suit- able mansion for their illustrious benefactor Henry Grattan, Esq. and his heirs for ever, in testimony of question between the two nations was still outstanding j yet Mr. tlood and some few others afterwards adopted that opinion, and Lord Clare, with a view to the Union, quoted a correspondence between Lord Shelburne and the Duke of Portland, to prove that {he transaciions of I7S2 bciwer n Great Brita'.n and Ireland were not considered as final, though evidently so treated by Mr. Grat- tan and the rest of both houses of parliament. Considerable ex- tracts from these letters are to be seen in my Historical Revie^^^ tol. L p. Gil. Q2 tan. 228 The Ktign of George II L 1782. their gratitude for the unequalled service he had done for the kingdom of Ireland. This was afterwards fixed at the sum of SZ ,000/.* in the committee, which resolution the house unanimously agreed to, and re- solved, that an address should be presented to the lord- lieutenant, to lay before his Majesty, the humble desire of that house, that he would direct such sum so to be laid out in testimony of the gratitude of the nation for Mr. Grattan's eminent and unequalled services, and that the house would make good the same. Mr.FiootTs A day of general thanksgiving was proclaimed, and jealousy of ^ , . , . r r Mr. Grat- lor the uioment happmess pervaded every part or the kingdom. It was, however, but short-lived. Within three days after Mr. Bagnal's motion, Mr. f Mont- gomery called the attention of the house to Mr. Flood, who had relinquished the most lucrative office of the state, rather than desert the constitution of Ireland : and as he knew the present administration intended to raise its glorv by acting on the most hberal principles of freedom, h.^ gave notice, of his intention to move an address to his Maj-^sty, for restoring Mr. Flood to the office he lately held and in this he hoped for the concurrence of the minister. He would not, he said, move for any pecuniary reward, as he knew the Right Hon. gentleman in question vv'as above receiving alms from his country. Colonel Fitzpatrick observed, that * Viz. on the 27lh of May, 1782. Q Journ. Com. p. 357. Mr. Bagnal's speech on this occasion is to be seen in my Ilista- rical Review, vol. I. p. 6l2, &:c. t 1 Pari. Deb. p. 381. on the 30th of May, 1782. The Peign of George III. '229 the place of Mr. Flood was filled by Sir George ^7S^- Yonge ; whose ill offices to Ireland were severely pointed at by Mr. Walsh. Colonel Fitzpatrick main- tained the impropriety of breaking in upon the discre- tionary exercise of the prerogative ; and suggested, that the regular method would be to move first for an address to remove Sir George Yonge from his employ- ment*. Mr, Flood was dissatisfied with Mr. Yelver- ton*s bill for the modification of Poynings' lav/, to which he moved an amendment, which he supported with great powers, though it were not carried. The grand opposition, which Mr. Flood and his fev/ Mr. Flood's adherents in the commons made to the proceedings to s;m-jie then going forward to accomplish the demands of the Irish parliament, was grounded upon a suggestion of the duplicity of Great Britain, v^hich still retained the full principle of her right to legislate for every part of the empire. A simple repeal, he insisted, without an express renunciation of the right, would leave Ireland precisely where she was. That without some positive renunciation of the right to legislate internally and Vj,. * To tins Mr. MtMitgomrry observed, that if the crown had been misinformed, and led to bestow an honourable employment upon an unworthy- object, it would be right to nndtceive it. and address the King to bestow it on one, that was deserving of it. On the 1st of June he declared, that i.Ir. Flood knew nothing of his application, or he would not have permi'.ted it to have been made: but nlthough he sliould defer his motion, he still insisted, that it was most disErraceful in the late administnition to displace, and in the present to permit a gentleman to suffer ih^^ loss of 3500Z. per ann. for his attachment to the cor.iuuuion and inte- rests of his country. o 3 030 Tf^(^ Reign of George II f 1782. externally on the part of Great Britain, their vvoHk would be but half done, and Ireland migaL again ba enslaved by the first corrupt minis, er, who should choose to avail himself of the unsuspecting and too liberal conduct of Ireland. Mr. Flood's doctrines gained more proselytes out of doors than in prrha- ment. Mr. Grattan, and by far the greater part of the house confided implicitly in the good taith qf Great Britain, and contended, that the simple repeal went the whole length of their own demands. Both Mr. Yelverton and Mr. Grattan declared, that if they could be convinced, that the simple repeal was insuf- ficient, they would most cordially join Mr. Flood in his motion. Never was contest more fiercely fought, than this between the two rival patriots, Messrs. Flood and Grattan. It ended on the division of the house upon Mr. Flood's motion on the 1 9th of July, I 782*, for leave to bring in the heads of a bill for declaring the sole and exclusive right of the Irish parliament to make laws in all cases whatsoever internal and exter- nal for the kingdom of Ireland. Change in The death of the Marquis of Rockingham had oc- tlie British ^ " administra- casioned dissentious in the British cabinet, which tion by the death of obliged Mr. Fox, Lord John Cavendish, Mr. Burke, Lord Rock- ° ... . ingham. and Others of his friends to resign. Mr. Fox would not submit to remain in a cabinet, in which he, and his friends, who had come in and acted uniformly upon an open principle, were outvoted ; he had de- * 9 Journ. Com, p. 3/3. The Journals merely say, It passod in the negative. Mr. Dobbs says in his history, p. 121, " that the minority on that day consisted only of six." The Reign of George HI. 231 dared before the death of the marquis, that If certain 1782. measures were earned in the cabinet, he should resign ; and as they had been carried since his death, he did resign, disdaining to be responsible for measures he disapproved of, or to lend his name to a system, in which he had no share. In the new arrangement of Lord Shelburne's administration, which took place on the 1 '3th of July, 1 7S2, Lord Temple* was fixed upon to succeed the Duke of Portland in the viceregency of Ireland. Every possible dispatch was therefore given to the parliamentary business in Ireland, in order that the Duke of Portland might close the session, and as far as conveniently could be, adjust all the arrange- ments then pending between the two kingdoms re- specting her legislative independence and commercial freedom. Lord Shelburne, who was the head of the new administration, had been fully as explicit, open, and liberal in his speech to the lords, with reference to Ireland, as Mr. Fox, in his speech to the commons. It was therefore generally presumed, that the change in the British administration would cause no alteration in the system of concession to that kingdom. The more beneficial acts, which passed under the Acts un.Jar -r^, r-min !•• • i\T-r«i> *'^^ Duke Duke or Portland s administration, were Mr. Lden s of pjrt- act for establishing the national bank ; an Act, ministra- '^ for better securing the liberty of the subject," com- monly called the Habcris Corpus act, similar to the English act ; the repeal of the act requirhig the sa- cramental test, by which dissenting protestants were * Now Marquis of Buckingtiam, Q 4 222 The Reign of George III, ir82. excluded from offices of trust under the crown; the repeal of the perpetual mutiny bill ; and the act for the independence of the judges. An act was also passed to render the manner of conforming from the Popish to the Protestant religion more easy and expeditious. Another for sparing to his Majesty, to be d^-av-n out of this kingdom whenever he should think ht, a force not exceeding JOOO men (part of the troops appointed to be kept therein for its defence). On the 27th of July, 1 782, the lord-lieutenant concluded the session. Continuing ^hc voluntecrs had now too Ion? been enured mftnence of the vo- to arms, as well as to the acitation of political sub- luntecrs. ^^ ^ , ^ jects, not to partake of the spirit of enthusiasm, with which the questions of simple repeal and renunciation wTre contended for in parliament : frequent appeals to them were made by persons in parliament ; and the volunteers assumed a consequence little short of legislative control. Provincial meetings v/ere called to take into consideration addresses suitable to the occasion. Some meetings explicitly avowed their intent to canvass the proceedings of their representa- tives in parliament. 'A spirit of dissent had created discontent ; and the immediate object of their consi- deration was, whether there existed or not just cause of complaint. At their first meeting nothing was agreed upon : at their next a resolution w^as unani- mously carried in favour of the simple repeal. Ac a future meeting, an address to his majesty was de- icrmmed on to express the opinion of 306 companies of volunteers in favour of the simple repeal. It passed tinanimously, and with loud applause. Captain Pol- The Reign of George IJL lock then moved an address to the Duke of Portland, *. which was carried unanimously ; as was also an ad- dress to Lord Charlemont, appointing him general of the volunteers of Ulster. An address to Mr. G rattan, expressing the highest satisfaction at the vote of 50,000/. ; a resolution moved by Colonel Knox, for assisting in raising the 20,000 seamen ; and another for erecting a monument at Dungannon, in which Lord Charlemont and Mr. G rattan were particularly to be distinguished, were also carried unanimously. The gentlemen, v/ho were appointed to present the Gracious address tQ his majesty, sailed for England. Lord ofthcddc- Shelburne treated them with the greatest politeness ; thevoiua- and his Majesty was pleased most graciously to receive their address, and every mark of attention was paid through them to the volunteers of Ulster. But scarcely had their addresses been presented^ when the packets from Ireland announced the dissatisfac- tion of two corps in the town of Belfast, which had been represented at Dungannon ; their delegates were vilified and traduced in the news-papers : even Mr. C rattan became the object of abuse. The Belfast re- view was approaching ; those who were dissatisfied de- termined there to make their stand. The 3 J st of July exhibited a volunteer encampment of near three thou- sand men, and the volunteer garrison of upvv'ards of one thousand, all completely clothed, armed, and accoutred. Anonymous papers in thou;^ands were dispersed through the camp and garrison. Every private was taught, that he was competent to legislate, and con- sequently to express his sentiments on the most specu- The Reign of George III. latlve points. Declaration, renunciation, simple re- peal, legal security, better securit}', and bill of rights^ were all before them, and they were to instruct their delegates on these important points. The delegates assembled on the Sd of August, Colonel Stewart was unanimously called to the chair. Major Dobbs, as exercising officer^ moved an address to the Reviewing General, Lord Charlemont, in which he inserted a clause of their being fully satisfied with the simple repeal. A debate commenced, whether it should not be expunged j at the end of eleven hours a division took place, when there appeared for . expunging 3!, again':t it 2'). The address thus altered, passed una- nimously. By the exertions of a wise and liberal ad- ministration were the liberties of Ireland restored ; peace, unity, and content diffused through a revived nation, and the prosperity and glory of the British empire encreased by adding strength, vigor, and feli- city to that important part of it. THE HISTORY OF IRELAND, c5c. i^. BOOK IV. COMPRISING THE PERIOD OF TIME FROM THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE IRISH LEGISLATIVE INDEPENDENCE KV THE YEAR 1782 TO THE UNION. CHAPTER I. Aclministraiion of Earl Temple. 1/S2. To the Rockingham administration * did Ireland owe i,oni Ttm- her independence in 1782. In this, Lord Shtlburne £/ Loni'^^ hi ^ 1 • ^ ^ TT • u „ Shelhurne ad taken a prominent part, riavmg, however, upon to iroveru Lord Rockingham's death contrived to be placed at the ^"^ '"' ' head of the administration, he selected Earl Temple * The advantage of a Whig administration is, that their prin- ciples are known j and afford a pledge to the public, that they will act up to them. The most flattering eulogy of Whiggism, is the short duration of the several Whig admiuislrationSj which ^iG The Reign of George J 1 1. >7S2. as the fittest person to undertake the crovcrnment of independent Ireland. He had intermarried with the only child of Earl Nugent, who had been brought up in the religion of her ancestors, and upon whom her father* had on the marriage settled the bulk of his large domains in Ireland. Lord Nugent had on every oc- casion, both in public and private, proved himself a sincere and warm lover of his country. The grati- tude of the Irish to his son-in-law, the character and accomplishments of the new viceroy, and the virtues of his amiable consort, all tended to ensure him a most cordial welcome. He succeeded the Duke of Portland^ v;ho remained to finish the business of the session, on the l.jth of September, 1782, and was received with public expressions of joy and satis- faction. ijiriTcm- During the short period 'of Lord Temple's continu- To'^Teror'm ance in the government of Ireland, his chief attention nientrof ' appears to have been directed to the establishment of fnent?" a system of economy throughout the different dcpart- inents ; a reformation supereminently necessary. The have been f(-rirjed dnving tlie pre?ent reign. Tliey have never been called in, but on desperate emergencies. Their refusal to bend their principles to general command-;, or some uncondi- tioned pledge, has constantly furnished a pretence for their quick removal. * The late Earl Nugent had been educated in the Roman Ca- tholic religion 3 he conformed to the established religion in his youth, and some few years before his doalh^ lie returned to that^ which he had abandoned. Administration of Earl Temple. OQ? short-lived ainiinistration of Lord Shelburne, of 17^2. which Lord Templj was a principal support, deter- mined his viceregency on the 3d of June^ 17S3. He was in power long enough to have brought upon him- self the resentful opposition of all the subaltern de- pendants upon the Castle, v/ho dreaded a scrutiny into their abuses ; and not long enough for the nation to have felt the happy effects of so laudable an investi- gation. During the Rockingham administration a termination Peace w^h was put to the contest between Great Britain and the American colonies by a resolution of the British house of commons in February, 1782, to address his majesty against the further prosecution of offensive war on the continent of North America, and for the restoration of the blessings of peace ; which was concluded by Lord Shelburne's administration. The solemn termi- nation of this unfortunate war spread joy through the Irish nation, and reconciled it in part to the sudden change of that administration, under which they had obtained their independence. The questions of simple repeal and positive declaration or renunciation of rights was kept up by the armed bodies of volunteers with greater heat, than they had been agitated in parlia- ment. Oa the 19th of December, 1782, in the British Pro^ecd- house of commons. Colonel Fitzpatrick called the at- ^f'^'*^ p^'- teniion of government to a ciicumstance, which had given alarm to the people of Ireland : the decision of an Irish cause in the court of King's Bench in Eng- land, notwithstanding the declaration of Irish inde- 2S8 The Reign of George III i763, pcndence had put an end to all appeals. Mr. Secre-^ tary Townshend explained this to have arisen from the cause having been in the court for eighteen months, and the judges were bound to decide upon it. The question of renunciation or simple repeal was fre- quently spoken to in the house. On the 22d of January, 1783 % Mr. Secretary Townshend brought tke business of Ireland before the house of com- mons, under the greatest anxiety to give Ireland every satisfacrion, that justice demanded, and was consistent with the dignity of Great Britain. lie wished, that his motion might pass unanimously, that the people of Ireland might see, that England meant fairly, when she set out by removing the causes of their jealousies and discontents. He then moved for leave to bring in a bill For remoilng and prevent'nig all doubts^ ivhick have arisen, or may arise, concerning the exclusive rights of the parliament and courts of Ireland in matters of legislation and judicature, and for preventing amj writ of error, or appeal, from anij of his majestfs courts in that kingdom, from being received, heard, and adjudged, in any of his majesty's courts ill the kingdom of Great Britain]'. Mr. W. GrenvilleJ (Secretary to Lord Temple) seconded the motion ; he rejoiced that government had brought on the business ; he would not say how jealousies had been excited in Ireland, but jealousies did exist there 5 * 9 Pari. Debates, p. 138. f 23 Geo. lit. c 28. X The present Lord Grenvillc- ^4ih}ii>i'istralion of Earl Temple, 2S9 tind the late transaction in the court of King's Bench \7^^. ■^^•r-t^ m England, had in no small degree contributed to spread them wider. He meant not to impeach the measures or intention of those gentlemen, who had ]nanagcd the business last se^^sion on the part of Ire- laud. Lord Beauchamp w^s the most strenuous in the house for the inefficacy of the simple repeal. Colonel Fitzpatrick and Mr. Fox would not object to the Secretary's motion, although they saw no neces- sity for the bill ; it was therefore moved for and car- ried unanimously. In the discussion of the preliminary articles of The coai?- ^ ticu ;utm!- peace, which were annoufipced by Mr. Secretary Towns- uistration. hend on the 23d" of January, 1783, was formed the memorable coalition between Lord North and Mr. Fox. Several of the friends of both these gentlemen vehemently reprobated the terms of Lord Shelburne's peace. They had viol;:ally opposed each other on the question of the American war : but that being now ger to rest, they found no longer any grouncis of diflerence, and therefore united for the common good of their coun- try. On the 212d of February, the coalesced parties brought all their forces to bear upon the ministry. Af- ter a heated debate, they carried by a majority of 1 7 the following question* : '* That the concessions made to the * 9 Pari. Debate's, p. 369. The house sat till p:iit three in the - morning ; the ayes were 207, the noes I90. In consequence of this censure passed on the peace by the House of Commons, the Earl of Shelburne quilted his office of first commissioner of the treasury ; and the chancellor of the excliequer declared publici/ 240 The Beign of George tlL 1783. adversaries of Great Britain, by the provisional treaty and preliminary aracles were greater, than they were en'iibd to, eititr trom the actual situation of their respective p ^Rses. ions, or from their comparative stren-:rh." In coiisequefice of this defeat, the Secre- tary if State moved, that the house should adjourn to a near d.iVj in order to afford time for con-pletin;:; the new minis: {; via! arrangements. This Lord Nugent opp. .^ed on acco jnt of th" Irish bill then pendhig. He should lameni, if his countrymen v/ere not con- vinced, that the people of England had with one voice agreed to its passing without prejudice or bias from ministerial influence. In the house of peers, Lord Thurlow avowed, that he had advised the noble lord, who had moved the hrst reading of the bill, not to move the second, but to let it remain till his majesty's ministers should choose to take it up : observing, that the bill had been concerted with the advice of the lord-lieutenant of Ireland ; a man of great abilities, wisdom, and integrity : and consider- ing v/hat a stake he had in both countries, too in the house, that he only held his place till a successor should be appointed to fill it. A ministerial interregnum ensued, which lusted till the beginning of April 3 during which time the ki;"g- dom remained in a state of great disorder, without any responsible government at home, the finances neglected, the military estab'ish- ments unreduced, and the negotiations with foreign powers, which the critical conjuncture of affairs rendered peculiailv imporiaut, entirely at a stand. Various causes were assigned for the i xtaor- dinary delay in. the appo ntment of a new administiation. They may be seen in my Historical Review, vol. II. p. 11. Admimstration of Earl Temple. 241 much attention could not be paid to his sugges- '783, tions. For these reasons, he anxiously hoped the noble lord would remain, wh.ere he had conducted himself in his high capacity, so much to his own honor, and to the interests of both kingdoms. After a very heated debate, and personal reflections from the Duke of Chandos and Lord Radnor upon the new ministers having seized on the reins of government by force, and outraged royalty by peremptory condi- tions, the bill was committed without a dissenting voice. Although this bill produced many debates, it never went to one division. Whilst the British senate was employed in securing Corpora- 1 • 1 . . . , . lion of freedom to Ireland, and dunng the mmisterial inter- Dublin ad- 11 • • rr-.? dress the regnum, Ireland was not wnolly mactive. The cor- lord-iieute- poration of the City of Dublin presented an aifec- Knights of St Patrick tionate address to the lord-lieutenant ; which was as instituted, affectionately answered. In order to gratify the public feeling, by giving additional lustre to the national consequence, letters-patent were passed for creating a society, or brotherhood, to be called. Knights of the Illustrious Order of St. Patrick, of which his majesty, his heirs, and successors, were appointed to be sove- reigns ; and the lord-lieutenant for the time being to officiate as grand master. Fifteen of the prime nobility were appointed knights companions of the order: and on the lith of March, (the festival of St. Patrick), they were installed with great order and magnificence. Disputes and dissentions had for some time sub- intended _ ^ _ settlement -sisted between the aiistocratic and democratic parties of New Geneva, VOL. II. R 2i2 The Reign of George TIL \^v%^ J^^ in the republic of Geneva, which had finally termrt nated in favor of the former, through the interference of the kings of France and Sardinia, and the cantons of Zuric and Berne. In consequence of whichj many of the democratic party resolved to quit a country. In the government of which their weight and autho- rity had been extinguished. They turned their eyea Vpon Ireland, and sent commissioners to Dublin, to consult and treat with that government in re- lation to their reception into the kingdom. The commissioners received marked attention from the people, (then alive to every sympathy for civil liber-; ty), and more especially from the volunteers in the pro- vince of Leinster, into several corps of which they were admitted. Government manifested an avidity to receive these democratic emigrants little consistent v-ith policy or foresight. They fixed upon a place for their residence at Passage, near to the confluence of the rivers Barrow and Suir, in the county of Waterford, in which a very considerable tract of land was shortly to revert to government ; and this it was re- solved should be appropriated and granted in fee to these Genevese settlers, and the place named Neiu Geneva. The fundamental terms insisted upon by the Genevese^ were, that they should be represented in •parliament, and be governed by their own laws. These conditions having been rejected, and some material disagreements having happened between the parties on leading points, all further procedure In the business was stopped. Some of the Genevese however transported themselves into Ireland, This measure of government Administratiov. of Earl Temple. 243 fortunately proved abortive. It never could have i/^s. been advantageous to levy the sum of 50,000/. * upon a distressed country, to purchase the probable introduction of turbulence and discontent, with a thousand self-exiled martyrs to democracy, from the Antibazllican school of Geneva. Although the coali- tion administration had taken place from the begin- ning of April, yet Lord Temple did not quit the go- vernment till the Sd of June, 178S, when he was succeeded by the Earl of Northington. * This was the sura voted. R 2 I78c CHAPTER II. Administration nf the Earl oj Norihington. The reports of an immediate dissolution of parlia- ofpariia- mcnt, which in fact took place on the 1 5th of July, ii'sconse- 1783, had thrown the whole nation into a new poli- q ence . ^.^^j, ^^^^^^ 'Yh.e volunteers assumed to themselves the whole merit, without allowing any to their repre- sentatives, of having acquired the constitution of Great Britain. They considered it a disgrace to quit their arms, whilst any benefit to their country could be obtained by them. They bent their thoughts to the improvement of the state of the representation of the people in parliament, as the only remaining object wanted to complete their civil liberty. They \^ ere en- couraged in this pursuit by the addresses of the county of York and some other counties to the commons in England, as well as bv the persevering efforts of the Duke of Richmond, Mr. Pitt, and other then popular members, to bring about a reform in the representa- tion of the people of Great Britain. Committees of correspondence were instituted with the most forward and zealous advocates for reform in England, and the letters received from them were circulated with avidity throughout Ireland*. * These letters were from the Duke of Richmond, Ui'. Price, Mr. Wyvil, Dr. John Jebb, Lord Effingham, Mr. Cartwright, and others. Administration of the Earl of Northington. 24 5 On the 1st of July, 1783, at a meeting of the dele- 1783. gates from forty-five companies of the province of General Ulster, assembled at Lisburne in pursuance of a pub- the deie- ,. ... . , . , rr-i gates re- lic requisition, it was resolved unanimously, Inat a solved on general meeting of the volunteer delegates of the pro- vince of Ulster, on the subject of a more equal repre- sentation of the people in parliament, should be held at Dungannon, on the 8th day of Septem? ber. Many spirited resolutions and addresses vi^ere published. The eve of a dissolution, the speculations upon the state of th* ^ *■ representa- new elections, and the successful efforts of the patriots tion in par- liament. in the people's cause, had worked up the elated minds of the volunteers to an enthusiasm for parliamentary reform little short of that, which they had before evinced for free trade and legislative independence. The state and constitution of their house of commons was fully and fairly set before their eyes. It consisted of three hundred members ; sixty-four of them were sent by the counties, the remainder by cities and bo- roughs. The sixty-four from counties were in some measure, in the option of the people, and about as many more from the cities and boroughs might, by extraordinary exertions of the people, be freely chosen. Upon that calculation, the people by possibility might send one hundred and twenty-eight members to parlia- ment. The other close boroughs sent the remainder one hundred and seventy-two. These were the pro- perty of some few lords and commoners ; and being the majority, the house of commons, as it stood, was consequently the representative of an aristocracy. The R 3 M6 The Reign of George III. 1783. * several resolutions made in contemplation of and at the convention of Dungannon were emphatically expressive of the necessity of reform, and were circulated with unabating industry. Newpariia- When the new parliament met, Lord Northington mentmetts. ^ ... . congratulated them upon their being in full possession and enjoyment of those constitutional and commercial advantages, which had been so firmly established by their last parliament. It was judiciously contrived by government, that a motion should be made for the thanks of that house to the volunteers, for their spirited endeavours to provide for the protection of their coun- try, and for their ready and frequent assistance of the civil magistrate in enforcing the due execution of the laws. This being unanimously carried, prevented any other motion, likely to have been dictated by the in- temperance of son^e volunteer member, that might have attributed very difl'erent effects to the armed as- sociations, as very difierent effects were unquestionably produced by them. ThavAs On the second day of the session, Mr. Gardiner voud to i.ordTeni- Hiovcd a votc of thanks to the late c-overnor Lord Temple. He had received addresses of thanks from every county in that kingdom, for his conduct as chief governor, and nothing but the sanction of that house was necessary to render the thanks of the j>eopIe universal. Mr. CufTef seconded the motion, as * The several addresses, resokuions, and letters upon the sub- ject of reform, are to be seen in my Historicai Review, vol. II.. ■p. 33 to 43. t Now Lord Tyrawley^ :Adminlstration of the Earl of Korihington, 24? having been witness to the many anxious days 1/83. and nights he had spent in preparing plans for the welfare of Ireland, which his short stay prevented from being carried into execution*. fSir Henry Cavendish moved for retrenching^ the Opposition •' _ O to Lord government expences, which brought on a most Northing- violent debate, and a division, which ascertained nistration. the force of the opposition to the administration of Lord Northington. Mr. Flood warmly supported his friend's motion j but recommended an amendment to extend the retrenchments to the military establishment. Sir Edward Newnham charged the British ministry with having taken the royal closet by assault;, under the pretence of economy, and lessening the undue in- fluence of the crown ; they had deceived the people : for in Ireland their substitutes proved the tiiends of prodigality, and enemies to economy: in power their actions were the reverse of what their professions had been when out. Government resisted the motion as premature, till the national accounts had been gone into. The debate became so personal and over-heated between^ the two rival patriots, Messrs. Flood and Grattan., that they were both ordered into custody, in order to prevent any mischievous consequences from their un- happy difference];. Twenty-seven divided for the mo- tion, and eighty-four against it. * Only Uiree gentlemen stood forth in the invidious light of opposing this vote of thanks. They had all three been charged as public defaulters, or as debtors to the King. f 11 Journ. Cora. p. 35. % Their speeches on this occasion brought to Ught majiy intei- R 4 , 'J48 The Reign of George III, 1783. So unwearied was the present opposition, at the Persever- head of which stood Mr. Flood, in pressing military ance of op- position, and other retrenchments, that they omitted no oppor- tunity during the session of bringing them forward, but always with the like failure of success. Their party consisted of about one-sixth of the house, and as usual, few or none were moved from their ranks by eloquence, argument, or reason. When Mr. Foster had reported the resolutions from the committee of supply. Sir Edward Newnham proposed the granting of the supplies for six months, when Mr. Grattan ob- served, that the question had been already debated and decided ; yet let but parliamentary reform be tacked to the money bill, and he would agree to it. The spirit of the people was with the opposition. Government was sensible, that the volunteers had per- formed their function, and wished therefore to disband them with prudence and effect. When the protecting duties were brought before the house, they were not supported by government in the way, which the half- starved unemployed manufacturers expected : they had been taught to consider them essentially necessary for the support of trade : they flocked round the par- liament-house in anxious expectation of the protecting duties being established in their favour. Government took offence at the concourse of people crowding the avenues to the house, and considered the assemblage brought thither by opposition to intimidate. The oppo- esting traits of Irish government. They are given in the Appen- dix to my Historical Review, No. LXX. Administration of the Earl of Northington. 249 sitlon insisted, that the people came thither as supplicants 1 7 83 . not as rioters. When they were dispersed, many of them declared they were set on by those, who wished to op- pose the measures of government. The opposition called for acts instead of professions of economy. Government was pursuing the speediest measures for disbanding the volunteers. Opposition, look- ing to the attainment of further advantages, con- sidered their influence as necessary to procure the future, as it had been effectual in acquiring the past. The next popular question urged was a reform in National i- ^ i- o convention the representation of the people. In consequence of ^^ Dublin, the resolutions of the Dungannon meeting, delegates were appointed to form a national convention, v/hich assembled at Dublin on the 10th of November, when the Earl of Charlemont was nominated their chairman. They entered info resolutions on the subject, and re- - quested Mr. Flood to introduce a bill for that purpose. Government was seriously alarmed, and the council had actually determined on arresting the chairman and secretary of the meeting ; but considering this measure hazardous, they contrived to divide the opinion of the assembly respecting the extension of certain privileges to Roman Catholics. The com» mon interest being thus disunited, the efforts of the convention became less formidable, and all means were devised to decry them in parliament. When *Mr. Flood moved for leave to bring in a bill for the * 2 Pari. Deb. p. 353, &c. 250 The Reign of George III, J783. niore equal representation of the people in parliament, he was fn-mly opposed by the attorney-general ; be- cause it originated with an armed body, which, al- though they had the glory of having preserved the domestic peace of their country, and rendered it for- midable to foreign enemies, were now forming them- selves into a debating society, and with the bayonetj were forcing the question^ whether that house, or the convention, were the representatives of the people, and whether parliament or the volunteers were to be obeyed. Mr. Flood supported the cause of reform with resistless eloquence. He maintained, that the bill was not the order of any other assembly. No appearance of hostility or control appeared in the application. The volunteers had not lined the streets, or drawn up before the house. They had given theif opinion with all humbleness and deference to the re- presentatives, and begged them to take it up. They' had prostrated themselves at the feet of parliament. Scarcely a member, who had ever opened his mouth in the house, was silent on this important occasion. Several, who admitted the necessity of reform, voted against it under the circumstance of the sitting of a national convention of delegates, who had previously agitated the question, and were waiting the result of its discussion In parliament. Towards the close of the debate, Mr. Grattati spoke for a short time, de- claring himself decidedly the friend of a parliamentary reform. He recomm.ended union between parliament and the illustrious body of volunteers, vvhich it should be the study of his life to preserve. Upon a division^. administration of the Ear! of Northingtoyu 251 49 were for receiving the bill, and 158 against it. i/83; Then Mr. Attorney-general moved, That it wds be- come necessary to declare, that the house would main- tain its just rights and privileges against all encroach- ments whatsoever, Vv'hich resolution was carried by 150 against 68. Mr. Conolly closed the business, by a motion, which was carried unanimously, for address- ing his Majesty, on their perfect satisfaction in his go- vernment and their present happy constitution ; which it was their determined resolution to support with their lives and fortunes. Mr. Flood *, immediately after this debate^ went over to England, apparently dissatis- fied with the failure of his party. . Mr. D, Browne moved an address to his Majesty, further upon the deranged state of the finances and the neces- in the com- sary retrenchments in every department of govern- * As Mr. Flood was one of the most brilliant characters of the latter days of Ireland, from which he appears to haye retired in disgust, it may be agreeable to the reader to have his portrait; from the masterly pen of his rival, Mr. Grattan. (Answer to Lord Clare's Speech, p. 33). " Mr. Flood, my rival, as the pamphlet calls him — and I should be unworthy the character of his rival, if in his grave I did not do him justice — he had his faults; but lie had great powers ; great public effect ; he persuaded tlie old, l^Jnspired the young 3 the castle vanished before him j on a snviU subject he was miserable ; put into his hand a distaff, and, like Hercules, iie made sad v/ork of it; but give him the thun- derbolt, and he had the arm of a Jupiter ; he misjudged, when he transferred himself to the English parliament ; he forgot that he was a tree of the forest, too old and too great to be transplanted at fifty 5 and his seat in the British parliament, is a caution to the friends of union to stay at home^ and make thq country of their birth the seat of their action." 252 The Reign of George III 1783. ment. It was violently opposed by the attorney-gene-* ral upon the ground, that a committee had been appointed to take into consideration the only plan practicable, viz. a reduction of the civil establishment; and the house had already passed a resolution for all practicable retrenchments. After a long and very heated debate, in which Mr. Corry bore the most prominent share, the order of the day was carried without a division. In consequence of the commons having tacked some clauses to the money bills sent up to the lords, the house of peers, on the 4th of December, 1783, came to two strong resolutions, which on the next day they ordered to be added to the standing orders of their house. The first* was, that all grants for the encouragement of particular manufactures, arts^, and inventions, or for the con- struction or carrying on of any public or other works, ought to be made in separate acts, and that the prac- tice of annexing such grants to bills of aid or supply, for the support of his Majesty's government; was un= parliamentary, and tended to the destruction of the constitution. The second was, that their house would reject any money bill, to which such clauses should be annexed. Mr. Curran took up this matter as an in- sult and injury offered to the dignity and rights of the house of commons ; and gave notice, that on the 16th of December he should bring it before them ; and on that day, in a very thin house, he entered fully upon the subject, observing, that the resolution he intended * 5 Lords' Journals, p. 409, Administration of the Earl of Northington. 253 io propose, was only to vindicate the privilege of that i784, house originating money bills in their own manner from the encroachments of a neighbouring assembly, which had lately, by certain resolutions, invaded that right. The motion was supported by 1 1 against 58. Nearly as soon as the projected changes in the British cabinet* could be known in Ireland, the parliament was adjourned to the 2 )th of January. The money bills were in the mean time passed. Immediately upon the change of ministry in P-ng- Lord North land, Lord Northington sent in his resignation ; it signs. was accepted on the 7th of January, though his sus- cesser, the Duke of Rurland, were only appointed on the 24rh of February, 1784. The house of commons met, according to adjournment, on the 20th of Ja- nuary, when the attorney-general moved a further ad- journment, which was opposed by Sir Lucius O'Bryenj who saw no reason, why they should adjourn on ac- count, of a squabble for places, when the extreme dis- tress of their country called their attention. The ad- journment, however, was carried by a large majority. After the attorney-general had officially announced the appointment of the Duke of Rutland, Mr. Wil- liam Brabazon Ponsonby moved a vote of thanks to * The stupendous effects of putting the British empire for nearly twenty years under the influence of Mr. Pitt, are viewed in the opposite extremes, according to the prevalence of political bias. The singular interference of a great personage during the debate in the lords upon Mr. Fox's East India Bill, and several interesting circumstances attending the consequent change of ad- ministration, together with the new appointments, are to be seen in my Historical Review, vol. II. p. 71, &c. 254 The Reign of George IIL 17S4. Lord Northington^ which produced rather an angry debate. The opposition objected to it, conceiving the address to import oblique censure on the volunteers, and an absolute rejection of parliamentary reform. The late ministerial party urged in its favor the lord- lieutenant's patriotic refusal of an additional allovi^ance of 4000/. per ann. and the unprecedented merit of not having added to the public debt. 1 he period of eight months* viceregency, they contended, had not afforded an opportunity of reaping the fruits of the plans he had so wisely laid for the benefit of the country. The vote of thanks passed without amend- ment by a majority of 44. C ^55 3 CHAPTER III. Adminhtral'ion of the Duhe of Rutland, 1784. With this governor commenced the system of Mr. Expccta- Pitt*s administration, which ended in incorporated union tiu newad- of Ireland with Great Britain. This period of Lish his- tion. tory is peculiarly interesting, Inasmuch as it discloses the means, by which England exercised its influence over that kingdom with more effect and less disguise, than before she had acquired a constitution and legislative independence. The opponents of the Rockingham administration were extravagantly elated upon the new appointments, for in the names of Pitt, Richmond, and Rutland, they read three of the staunchest friends of parliamentary reform : laying their immediate failure to carry this favourite pleasure, as well as those of a reduction in the army establishment, retrench- ment of the expenditures in the civil departments^ and protecting duties * , to the insincerity of the short- lived administration of the Whigs, they anticipated the instantaneous and zealous co-operation of their opponents and successors, in completing the civil li- berty of Ireland. * i. e. For protecting their own manufactures and enforcing the consumption of them at home, by laying heavy and prohi- bitory duties on the like manufactures imported from foreigu countries. 256 The Reign of George 111. 1784. When the house met, accordinsr to adjournment, Oukeof ^ congratulatory address was unanimously voted to Rutland ^j^g Duke of Rutland. On one day thirteen petitions addressed. J ^ from counties and populous boroughs were presented to the house of commons by their respective represen- tatives, praying a reform in the state of the representa- tion of die people in parliament. The nation was now in the height of a political fever: etated with what they had obtained ; soured by disappointment at being refused what they were taught to believe was Gtill wanting to complete their freedom. The undis- guised attempts both of parliament and government to discredit and dissolve the volunteers ; the failure of the opposition to procure a reduction of the mi- iitary establishment at the return of peace, all tended to foment jealousies between the citizen and the soldier*. iSiilforpar- Mr. Flood had no sooner returned from England^ reform lost, than he moved for leave to bring in a bill for a more equal representation of the people in parliament. It was vehemently urged by Mr. Flood, and supported, though less warmly, by Mr. Grattan. The numbers * Every circumstance tending to alienate the minds of the citizens from the soldiery is, in our constitution, of more than ordinary con.sequence, A riot had lately happened at Island Bridge, where the outrages of the soldiery had exceeded the rules of military discipline, or even common humanity. This exasper- ated the populace In retaliation, they had recourse to the barbarous prac'ace of hougliing the soldiers, whenever the}^ found them straggling and off tlieir g\iard. This induced General Lut- trell to bring in a bill to give better protection to soldiers, and others, against the barbarous practice of houghing. Administration of the Duke of Rutland, 257 slon were " S.3 for reform, and 159 against it. Thus 1784. was the spirit of the new administration soon discover- ed to be hostile to the popular wish for reform. The rejection of this and some other popular measures sharpened the animosity of the people even to outrage several of the members in the house of commons.* . The severity, with which the house of commons Causes of censured the publishers of some popular newspapers, discontent, and the lord mayor of Dublin, for not preventing their circulation and calling in the military, added fuel to the discontents of the populace, which at last amounted to a tumultuous rising in Dublin. This unruly spirit of discontent was further fomented by the unpopularity of Sir John Blaquiere's paving bill*, against which the house would neither hear counsel at their bar nor receive the petition from the inhabitants at large. In this licentious disposition of the public mind, Mr. Foster who had been marked as an object of ob- loquy in the newspapers, brought in a bill for restrain- ing the liberty of the press j which was the only remain- ing subject of importance, agitated in parliament during the session. It met with some opposldon, though the provbions of it went no further, than to make known the * The Recorder reprobated the bill, as a system of unexam- pled tyranny and oppression. It placed, he said, in the hands of a set of low persons, (tor commissioners acting for 150/. a year could be no other) a power to fine and torment with all the in- solence of authority, every citizen of Dublin. It gave them power to raise taxes^ and to borrow money ; to sum.mon whomso- ever they thought proper before their tribunal j and upon neglect or disobedience, to impose a fine of 40 /. XOL. II. S * 2j;8 The Reign of George IIL 1784. real name of the printer or proprietor of" every news^ paper. It was however disrelished by the people. Their irritation was also increased by the house of commons having ordered their Serjeant at Arms to take the publishers and printers of the offensive news- ' papers out of the custody of the civil power, and commit them over to military escorts, under which they were more severely treated^ than they could have been by the civil power. These illegal stretches of power were censured in parliament, and produced in that ferment of the public mind the worst of consequences. The proposal or a vote of thanks to the new lord- lieutenant, occasioned heated debates in the commons; and the failure of Mr. Flood*s reform bill, and other popular measures did not ingratiate him with the peo- ple out of doors. Pafiiament The first time the Duke of Rutland personally ad- prorogued, 1 1 1 !• • • • T » and popular drcsscd the parliament was m prorogumg it on the 4th increased, of May, 1784. The difficulties of the session were greater without, than within the walls of the senate. Appeals were made by some of the members to the armed associations when the session was over, upon the questions lost in parliament. The discontent and violence of the people increased. The populace fre- quently assembled, and committed outrages, even to the American fashion of " tarring and feathering." More serious consequences were prevented by calling out the military. Froceed- A principal objection to the introduction of Mr. pa'Jiia-'^ Flood's bill for a parliamentary reform was, that it ori- SmT ginated with an armed body. The sheriffs and chief *H .Administration of the Duke of Rutland. 259 magistrates were therefore called upon to convene the i784, inhabitants of their respective counties, fully to discuss that measure ; and a meeting was convened at Dublin on the 7th of June, 1784, where the high sheriffs pre- sided, and at which strong resolutions* were agreed to. A very animated address from the committee to the people of Ireland was published, and a petition or re- monstrance from the freemen, freeholders, and inha- bitants of the city of Dublin to the throne, to forward parliamentary reform, and correct many other abuses, was presented to the lord-lieutenant -bv the high sheriffs, with an address to his excellency requesting it might be transmitted j to which his excellency an- swered, that in complying with their request, he should not fail to convey his entire disapprobation of it, as casting unjust reflections upon the lav^s and par- liament of Ireland, and tending to weaken the autho- rity of both. These proceedings of the city of Dublin were seconded by other parts of the kingdorti ; but their object was frustrated by the interposition of go- vernment. Prosecutions by information were com- menced against different persons, by whom such aggre- gate meetings had been assembled, and Mr. Reily, the high sheriff of the county of Dublin, was sentenced to fine and imprisonment by the Court of King's Bench, Notwithstanding their repeated defeats, such was the credulous enthusiasm of the majoiity of these advo- * They are to be seen, together with the address of the com- niittee to the people of Ireland, and the petition to the throne^ in my Historical Review, vol. II. p. g6 to 103. S 2 260 The Reign of George IIL 1784. Disunion of the vo- lunteers, and its con- quences. cates for reform, that even after the angry answer of the lord-lieutenant, they could not be persuaded, that either his grace or his reforming colleague, Mr. Pitt, had renounced their principles. On the 8th of July, a petition to the king was conveyed to Mr. Pitt by the inhabitants of Belfast, nearly of the same tenor with that of the citizens of Dublin. In September following, Mr. Pitt by his answer convinced them, how httle earnest the new administrations were to pro- mote the reform, which before they came into power they had espoused. He admitted himself still a friend to reform, but*on grounds very diiferent from those adopted in their petition. That what was there pro- posed, he considered as tending to produce still greater evils, than any which the friends of reform were de- sirous to remedy. The cause of reform received a severe blow from the disunion of the volunteers, on the subject of ad- mitting the Roman Catholics to the rights of election. In an address presented by the Ulster corps to their general, the Earl of Charlemont, they hinted at the necessity of calling in the aid of the catholics; to which he objected, not from illiberal pftjudice, for he was full of good will towards that respectable body, but because it would fatally clog and impede the prosecu- tion of their favourite purpose. The thanks of the corporation of the city of Dublin were voted him for his conduct on that occasion. The meeting of a na-^ tional congress was a measure of too alarming a nature, not to attract the serious attention of government. The attorney-general menaced the sheriff, who had Administration of the Duke of Rutland. 261 called the meeting for electing delegates. On the 1784. other hand, strong resolutions v/ere agreed to upon the right of assembling for redress of grievances. Government from denouncing threats, proceeded to punishments. The high sheriff for the county of Dublin, was proceeded against by attachment from the couit of King's Bench. He was again fined and imprisoned. This mode of legal process, which pre- cluded the functions of a jury, met with slight opposi- tion on account of the new division of the volunteers into parties. Informations were also moved for, and attachments granted against the printers and pub- lishers of newspapers for inserting the resolutions, and against the magistrates for signing them. This was one of the first essays of Mr. Pitt's system of preparing the public for strong measures, by creating internal disunion and alarm. The severity of government deterred not the na- Meeting of . c • • • national tional congress from meeting according to appoint- congress. ment, although several of its most respectable mem- bers absented themselves. They adjourned, after hav- ing passed the' resolutions agreed upon at the previous meeting, with a-n exhortation to perseverance in ef- fecting the great and necessary confirmation of the constitution. The link of unanimity having been once severed, the fall of- the armed associations into dif- ference and contention was more rapid, than had been their progress to union. The divisions of the volun- teers were encouraged by government ; and for that purpose discords and turbulence v/ere ratlier counte- nanced than checked in many counties, particularly s 3 262 , The Reign of George III 1/84. upon the delicate and important expedient of admitting the catholics to the elective franchise : a question, which was artfully connected With the now declining cause of parliamentary reform. The desire of disunit- ing the volunteers begot inattention to the grievances of the distressed peasantry of the south. Once more the White Boijs committed depredations with impunity, particularly about Kilkenny *. Second As the Unanimity of the volunteers diminished, their meeting of , . . delegates. spiHt and exeriious abated. On the 2d of January, 178.5, a second meeting of the delegates was had at Dublin, at which were present the representatives of twenty-seven counties, and of most of the cities and con- siderable towns of the kingdom, amounting in the whole to more than 200 persons. Their proceedings were less animated. In general terms, they left the mode of redress to the consideration of parliament. The British parliament sat to the S.'Jth of August, 1784, and met again on the 25th of January, 1785^ when his majesty particularly recommended to them the settlement of all differences with Ireland. The parliament of Ire- land met about the same time, and went through the usual formalities of a speech from, and thanks to the lord-lieutenant, to which Lord Edward Fitzgerald, Sir Edward Crofton, and other friends of reform, ob- * A stop was put to their disturbances by the efforts of the Kev. D. Troy, then the Homan Cathohc bishop of Ossory, and the clergy of his diocese. His Pastoral Letter, or Circular Ex- hortation, may be seen in the Appendix to my Historical Review No. LXXIV. on which occasion a letter of thanks was written to bim by command of his excellency. m Administration of the Duke of Rutland. , 26S jected on account of the words ^firmness and modera- 1785. tion, which seemed to countenance the illegality of the attachments resorted to by government in lieu of trials by jury. His majesty's answer to the addresses, which was communicated to the commons on the 4th of !February, 1785, spoke a very determined language against the attempts of the delegates to dictate to, and overawe the parliament, and increased the popular discontent. The session of 1785, in each kingdom, lasted seveti Session of . . . 1785. Irish months. Both parliaments were chiefly occupied in proposi- i . lions. the commercial arrangements between Great Britain and Ireland. Previous to the meeting of parliament on the 20th of January, the British cabinet, in con- cert with commissioners appointed on the part of Ire- land, had formed the plan, which Mr. Orde laid be- fore the house of commons, in the form of eleven propositions *. After much debating and considerable opposition, they passed the commons, with an address to the throne ; and on the 1 2th of February, the reso- lutions and address were sent to the lords, and una- nimously agreed to. On the 22d of the month, the eleven resolutions agreed to by the lords and com- mons of Ireland were read in a committee of the British house of commons, when Mr. Pitt opened the business with much earnestness and apparent sympa- thy for the degraded state of Ireland. Lamenting that from the revolution almost to that day, the system * For these propositions and the various proceedings in both t)arliaments upon them, see my Historical Review, vol, II, p. 142 to 156. S 4 264 The Reign of George II L » 1785. had been that of debarring Ireland from the enjoy- ment and use of her own resources ; to make the kingdom completely subservient to the interests and opulence of Great Britain, without suffering her to share in the bounties of nature, in the industry of her citizens, or making them contribute to the general in- terests and strength of the empire. It was at once harsh and unjust, and it was as impolitic as it' was op- pressive. He reprobated the state of thraldom, in which that country had been systematically kept ever since the revolution. Commercial jealousies in Eng- land raised great opposition, and petitions were poured in from all quarters against the Irish propo- sitions. Mr. Pitt, deterred from his original design, brought forward a new set of twenty propositions. The long and interesting debates upon these proposi- tions were closed by a very moving speech of Lord Townshend, whose long residence in Ireland superemi- nently qualified him to represent faithfully the state of that country. If he had expressed any degree of pre- ference for Ireland, he begged their lordships would impute it to the veneration he bore it, and the obliga- tion he owed for its partiality to his failings j he was naturally, he hoped, the advocate of the oppressed and meritorious ; he knew the Irish to be generous and untemporising friends, and who disdained to be behind hand in reciprocity. The propositions, with some amendments, were carried in the lords, by 84 against SO. After a warm debate, the amendments made by the lords were agreed to in the commons. Mr. Pitt then brought in a bill founded upon them, which was « Administration of tlie Duke of Rutland, 265 read a first time on the 2d of August: and w?s '736. followed up by an address to his PVIajesty, voted by both houses of parliament, wherein they acquaint- ed him with what they had done, and that it re- mained for the parliament of Ireland to judge and decide thereupon. On the ] 2ih of Aug-ust Mr. Secretary Orde broue^ht BiUbrougM . into ihc m a bill, which was a mere transcript of that moved insh house by the English minister. After a most animated mons. debate, which lasted eighteen hours, the house di- vided, when there appeared for leave to bring in the bill, 127, against it 108. Such a division in the first stage of the business was equivalent to a defeat : and Mr. Orde having moved the first reading of the bill, declared he did not intend to make any further pro- gress in the business during that session*. In order to preclude a motion of censure framed by Mr. Flood, the secretary moved an adjournmeiir, which was car- ried without a division. Public illuminations testified the joy excited by the sudden termination of this ex- traordinary business, which ended to the great disap- pointment of the ministry in both kingdon:s. It never was resumed in either parliament. Mr. Pitt's conduct in attempting to fetter the commerce of Ireland, from deference to or fear of the commercial interests of Great Britain, produced a renovation of that spirit, * The grounds, upon which the Irish resisted these proposi- tions, were that they went to resti let the commerce of the couu= try^ and subject it to the legislative contvoul nf the Biitish par- liament. This was a reserved case, out of the new terras of par- liamentary management. 2o6 The Reign of George HI. 1/86. which had formerly produced a non-importation reso- lution in Ireland* Some tumultuous efforts to carry it into effect were checked by the strong arm of go- vernment. Previous to the recess Mr. Pery resigned the Speaker's chair, to which Mr. Foster* was chosen without much oppositions Duke of When the Duke of Rutland met the parliament in Rutland _ ^ ^ meets the January, 1786, he hinted in his speech a wish to re- parlianicnt. _ ' vive the commercial propositions. The subject, how- ever^ was too unpopular to be proceeded on. A police bill was another fcivourite object of govern- ment, strongly recommended to the attention of par- liament. It was veliemently opposed by the patriots. Mr. Conolly took a leading part against it. He ob- served, that under the pretence of pohce^ it went to take away constitution. It was treated by opposition as a most unconstitutional job, a mere bill of patronage for ministerial purposes. Among many petitions against the bill, one was presented from the freeholders of the county of Dublin, by Sir Edward Newnham, which the attorney-general moved to have rejected, as an insult to the house. It was rejected by 1 1 8 against Sir Edward Newnham and Colonel Sharman only. Resolution Mr. Conolly and some other gentlemen of great pension list, landed property in the country, who had been much in the habit of supporting government, now appeared to have taken a decided part in the opposition to the Duke of Rutland's administration. The grand attack * This situation he retained, till the Irish house of commons was annihilated by that very administiatioUj which he supported with iadisciiminate tenacity till the measure was resolved on. jdchninistration of the Duke of Rutland. 267 made by the patriots this session, was upon the pen- 1786, sion list* A question ever sure to be popular. Mr. Forbes, after an animated speech, moved, that the present application and amount of pensions on the civil establishment were a grievance to the nation, and demanded redress. The motion, after an interest- ing debate, was lost by a majority of 134 against 78. Mr. Grattan gave great offence to the treasury bench, by causing the whole list to be read aloud by the clerk, and closing the debate with these strong words, If I should vole, that pensions are not a grievance, 1 should vote an impudent, an insolent, and a public lie *. From the prorogation of parliament the popularity of the Duke of Rutland fell into the contrary spirit of discontent and asperity against him. The city of Dublin, during the recess, was a scene of tumult and disorder. In order to check the enforcing of the non importation compacts, centinels were placed throughout the city to " prevent or give notice of the first appearance of riot, and the garrison was kept in constant readiness for action. The lord-lieutenant, whose manners were na- turally adapted to. win the favour of the Irish, was re- ceived so rudely at the theatre as to have narrowly escaped the personal outrage of the populace. When the parliament met in January, 1787, the Session of lord lieutenant applied to them for their assistance, in the effectual vindication of the laws and protection of * d Pari. Deb. Some very strong and sublime parts of the speeches of Mr. Curran and others, on this motion, may be seen in ray Historical Review, vol. II. p. 147, 26^ The Reign of George J 11. 17^7- society, which could only be ensured by their special support of the established church and the respectable situation of its ministers. This referred to the riots of a new set of disturbers in Munster, called Eight- Bot/s, from their leader or instigator Captain Right. Mr. Conolly wished to make distinction between the chief governor, whom he knew to be an honest man, and the administration, a .gainst which he made the most serious charge*. Adverting to the proclamations lately issued, stating, that the whole south was in arms, he asked, '.vhy government did not suppress these tur- bulences in their infancy ? If they were not exagge- rated, government was censurable for not having pre- vented them: if they w^ere so, they were more criminal for having created ill founded alarmsf. Ri-ht-Boys. When the house v/as In a committee upon that part of his excellency's speech, which related to the commotions in the south, the attorney-general (Fitz- gibbon) submitted a curious narrative of facts, which » 7 Pari. Dpb. p 21. f No misconduct of government is mo'-e fraught with malevo- lence and mischief, than that of creating false alarms, with a view of engrafting strong measures upon the timidity of the public. This appears to have b';(^:i a favonrite tactic tiiroughout the whole sys- tem of Mr. Pitt's pcilitical career. The unprejudiced eye may, from this first essay und^^r his administration, trace the gradual workings of the disasters, into which the latter part of it forced this ill-fated kingdom. The actual state. of universal tumult and rising was asserted by ministerial members, and absolutely denied by others resident in the proclaimed counties. DitTerences of opi- nion between political opponents is conceivable ; but contradiction ©f notorious facts amongst gentlemen is unaccountable. Administration of the Duke of Rutland, 269 he said had come to his knowledge respecting the 17^7- proceedings of the insurgents*. They proceeded from parish to parish swearing in the inhabitants. The first object of their reformation was tithes ; they swore not to give more than a certain price per acre ; not to tal^e them from the minister at a greater price ; not to assist or allow him to be assisted in dra\Aing the tithe, and to permit no proctor. They next took upon them to prevent the collection of parish cesses; then to no- minate parish clerks, and in some cases cm*ates ; to say what church should or should not be repaired ; and in one case they threatened to burn a new church, if the old one were not given for a mass house. At last they proceeded to regulate the price of lands, to raise the price of labour, and to oppose the collection of hearth-money and other taxes. In all their proceedings they shewed the greatest address, with a degree of caution and circumspection, which was the more alarming, as it demonstrated system and de- sign. He was well acquainted with Munster, and it was impossible for human wretchedness to exceed that of the miserable peasantry in that province. He knew, that the unhappy tenantry were ground to powder by relentless landlords!. Their miseries were intolerable, but they did not originate with the clergy ; nor could the legislature stand by an5. Mr. Grattan, equally anxious to check the Iawlessn;:ss, and relieve the distresses of the poor, brought forward the subject of tithes*, in a general resolution, which was negatived without a division. Mr. Orde objected to take the subject under consi- deration. Even some of Mr. Grattan's friends con- ceived the motion out of season. It was urged, that to pay any regard to a people in a state of resistance, would be derogatory from the dignity of parliament. He laughed at such language ; there could never be a time, when it Vv'^as improper for the legislature to do justice. Heated con- The bill for the better execution of the laws, and tests on the ^ . , , Riot Act. the better preservation of the peace withm the coun- ties at large was vehemently opposed by several of the patriots, as if intended to be followed up with a gene- ral police bill. It was also particularly objected to^ as deviating from the English Riot Actj. * He made a most eloquent and impressive speech on this oc- casion, which may be seen in my Historical Review, vol. II. p. 3 6-i, &c. j 7 Pari. Deb. p. 445. The opposition urged the indecency, of bringing on a matter of such importance in so thin a house, where tnost of those present were aids-de-camp, searchers, pack-* ers, gnugers, placemen of all descriptions, and pensioners. Tha bill would create thirty-two additional judges, annul six hundred magistrates, raioC an army of tliree thousand soldiers, under the name of constables, and change the administration of the justice of the country. It had but two objects ; to increase the patronage of the crown, and to overawe the people. On the further progress' of this bill, Mr. Fitz^ibbon taur.ted Administration of the Duke of Rutland. 273 Two other subjects occupied the attention of parlia- ^787- ment during^ the session : the consideration of the Prorogation . .^ . P of parlia- commercial treaty with France, and a favourite plan of menu education, which Mr. Orde had been preparing for two years, and now submitted to the house. It was neither relished nor supported according to his expec- tations. The parliament was prorogued on the 28tli of May, with the usual thanks for the supplies, pro* mises of economy, and a recommendation to the people to be peaceable. In the discussion of the treaty of navigation and commerce with the French king, Mr. Flood, who had been now transplanted into the British senate, made an eloquent speech, in which he was combated by Mr. William Grenville upon the rejec- tion of the Irish propositions^ who now admitted them to have been an offer from the British govern- ment, though when first brought forward, he had re-* presented them as coming from Ireland. On this oc- casion Mr. Flood, perhaps the most violent asserter of Irish independence, admitted a political necessity for a controlling superiority in the British parliament, whose indispensable duty it was, in every great national mea- sure, to look to the general interests of the empire, and to see, that no injurious consequences followed to the opposition bench with their silence, as if proceeding from in- ability and ignorance, which was highly resented by Mr. John O'Neile; who warned ministry to desist from that overbearing ex- ultation, with which tliey carried questions by rank m?ijorities, and insolently attempted to run down country gentlemen from standing up in support of iheir oppressed countrymen. The attor- ney-general made a full npology. VOL. II. T 274 The Reign of George III. 1757. the peculiar interests of any part of it. But, as Ire- land claimed no such controlling right over Great Britain, the independenc? of Ireland was not absolute, because not perfectly reciprocal. Dea- ^f The Diike cf Ruzland died in October, 17S7. He o: xvu^and, vvaS calculatcd to coramand the anections of the Irish ; being open, free, liberal, and convivial. Too much addicted to the pleasurable indulgences of youth, he committed the managjment of the public business to those about him. Under him the expences of driving the state equipage through the beaten track increased in an alarming degree. Many, who had most strena- ouily opposed his administration, rendered willing tri- bute to his amiable qualiiies. The eiTors of his go- vcrnraent were attributed to his advisers, and the majority of that house, which hud constaatly support- c-d them. C 275 ] CHAPTER IV. Administration of the Marquis of Buckingham. irss. Upon ihe death of the Duke of Rutland, Mr. Pitt Marquis of • r . Bucking- selected the Marquis of Buckingham as the fittest per- ham suc- n~ t • r cetds ihc son to eive enect to.ms svstem of government over Duke of this part of the British empire. When in Januar)', 1788, his excellency met th^ parliam.ent, his speech bespoke entire approbaiion of the Duke of Rutland's administration, and called upon the house to pursue the same measures. The address was therefore oppos- ed, by Mr. Parsons, who indignantly spurned the insult of summoning the house to sanction the abomi- nations of the late administration If, said he, the press be not liberated, attachments discontinued, and the police and riot act be not abandoned, it is evidently the intention of ministers by fomeniing dis- content and turbulence to goad the country into re- bellion. Upon INIr. Secretary's* bringing in a bill for reco xithr?. vering a just compensation for tithes withholden in the years 178G and 17b7, Mr. Grattan moved for a committee to enquire, whether any just cause of dis- content existed amongst the people ot the province of Munster, or of the counties of Kilkenny or Carlow, on account of tiihc, or the collection of tithes; and if any, • Mr. Fitzherbert, afierwardi Lord St HJen'i. T 2 \ 276 The Reign of George HI, 178S. to report the samCj together with their opinion there- upon*. It was negatived by 121 against 49. Stifling enquiry was a favourite maxim of Mr. Pitt's school. Secret sys- '^^\^q ^^^^ vicerov affectecl to conceal, even from his tern ot the ■' ' new vice- filends, the plan and principles of his administration !• As hr as could be collected, it was generally con- cluded, that the late system was to be follovved up : consequently the same system of opposition was ad- hered to. Notwithstanding the new lord-lieutenant's ' attack upon the subaltern officers of the revenue, and domestic restrictions at the Castle, the gentlemen of the opposidon did not give him credit for any econo- mical reform in the original dispensation of the public money. Mr. Forbes was zealous, though unsuccessful, in his efforts against the pension list and other Govern- ment extravagances. The attempts of the patriots to enforce economy were baffled by singular logic. The house had, it was observed, given credit to the * 8 Pari, Deb. p. 1Q2. The system of tithes in Ireland still ca)ls loudly for reform. Mr. Grattan's wonderful speech upon that i;«portant subject will be found in the Appendix to my Historical Review, No. LXXVIII. It is a master-piece of eloquence and reasoning. t Amongst the proselytes^ that went over to Lord Buckingham was Mr. Longfield, who had considerable parliamentary interest; he and the frieoda he introduced had uniformly opposed the late administration: amongst these was Mr. Cuiran, who could not h>";nd his principles to the pliancy of his friend, or take a subordi- nate part in supporting an administration, whose intended mea- sures were made a secret : he therefore purchased a seat in a vacant borough, and offered it to Mr. Longfield for any person, whose principles were at his command. yfdmimstratiou of the Marquis of Buchingham. 277 present government for their intentions of economy; iTS3. they were therefore laid under restrictions never imposed on any other government. The most vio- lent attack upon the minister, during this session of parliament, was Mr. Forbes's motion for an address to the crown, in order to leave to posterity, on the face of the Journals, the grievances, under which the people laboured in the year J788*. The minister carried the question of adjournment by 103 against 40. Mr. Qonolly's motion for the repeal of the hearth-tax was rejected even without a division. Mr. Dennis Browne referred to an assertion of the lord-lieutenant in conversation, that he had rather put his right hand into the fire, than grant a pension to any person, which every honest man should not approve of. Sir Henry Cavendish, though staunchly devoted to that administration, remarked, that doubling the pen- sions of members might be avoided, " for he, that had 400/. a year for his vote, would not refuse voting, though he were to be refused 400/. a year moref." The feelings of the people without were in strict uni- son with the sentiments of the patriots within the walls of parliament ; and the lord-lieutenant finding himself pressed by the weight of talent, influence, and popu- larity of those, who had ranged themselves in opposi- tion to his measures, got rid of them by an early- prorogation. This afforded him an opportunity of * The detail of grievances, together with the addiesSj are to be seen in my Historical Review, vol. II. p. 18S, &c. t S Pari. Deb. p. -655, T 3 278 The BeJgn of George III. 17S8. nttending more minutely to his favourite system of economical reform. Economical Animated v/itti a laudable indignation against the scrutiny into , . the depart- rapacious and bare-faced practices of the clerks, and other subaltern officers in the different departments of governm-ent^ his excellency sc'zed all* their keys, ex- amined himself their papers and accounts, subjected them to the most rigorous scrutiny, and demanded instant payment of outstanding balances. An univer- sal panic seized the whole ; many defaulters fled the country^ one cut his throat, and some few rely- ing on the sympathies and countenance of their imme- diate superiors in office, stood the brun': of enquiry, and either eluded by dexterity or softened by false promises the anger of their indignant governor. Some were ultimately dismissed wiih disgrace. In these secondary departments nothing was so minute, which the scrutinizing eye of his excellency would not descend to inspect. The profligacy of oflicial profu- sion was incredible: peculation reigned in every de- partment, where public money was handled, or public property disposeable : the public accounts were wound up yearly with formidable balances in the hands of collectors, treasurers, and paymasters, or arrears due by former great officers^ who had received their employments v.-ithout security, or had been dis- carded lor misconduct, or were dcad^ or had fled, or had become bankru}it. Such was the inveteracy of * When Mr, Corry >s'as made suivejor of ti>e ordnance, his flrst act was, to lock up and seal the desks of the several clerks, vho were dismissed instantly. Administration of the Marquis of Buckingham. 279 this disease, that each preceding viceroy, on close >."68. inspection, had been afraid to touch it ; until the "^"^ Maiquis of Buckingham, with more courage ven- tured to develop the dark workings of these ofi^- cial peculators. In the ordnance and treasury, the grossest frauds pervaded almost every department. The public SLores were plundered v/:rh impuniiy in open day. Thi arms, ammunition, and mflitary accoutrements, condemned as useless, were stolen out at one gate, and bought in at the other, and charged anew to the public accour.t. Journeymen armourers, who worked in the arsenal, seldom went home to their meals without conveying away a musjvet, a sword, or brace of pistols, as lawiul perquisites, and sanctioned by the connivance of their superiors. Clerks in suborduiate departments, with salaries not exceed- ing iOO/. per annum, kept handsome houses in town and country, with splendid establishments ; some of them became purchasers of loans and lotteries: all exhibited signs of redundant opulence. In the course of the year 17SB, the county of Ar- PeepofOay "' . . . Bov> and magh was disturbed by the increased animosity and Ddindcis. outrages of the Peep of-Day Boys, and Defenders, They had been a ivancing \\\ numbers, system, and ferocity, ever since the year I7B5, when near a thousand men on both sides met ior a rec;ular engagement. Originally they were all presbyte- rians ; but in process of time some Rouian catho- lics having enlisted on one side, it was contrived by the party, which they opposed^ to denominate them T 4 280 The Reign of George III. 1788^ Papists J and the opposite banners were distin- guished by the inflammable appellations of Protes- tant and Catholic. The protestants taking advantage of the laws against papists having arms, paid their an- tagonists early domiciliary visits to search for arms, in which they were often guilty of the most wanton out-- rages; thence they acquired the appellation of Peep-t of-Day Boys, whilst the others assumed that of De- fenders. Hence the fatal origin of defenderism. In this year recourse was had to the raising or some vo- lunteer corps, under pretext of streiigthening the arm of the magistrate. These volunteer corps, which ad- mitted no catholic, sided with the Peeprof-Day Boys, and increased the acrimony and bloodshed. The De- fenders were charged with openly sending challenges both to the Peep-of-Day Boys and the volunteers to meet them inthe field. The fact was, that the defenders certainly did look upon them both as one common ene- my combined to defeat and oppress them : whilst, there- fore, this open hostility between the two parties subsisted and rankled under the daily festering sore of religious acrimony, the defenders, who knew themselves armed against law, though in self-defence against the Peep- of-Day Boys, became the more anxious to bring the contest to a trial of strength, rather than remain victims to the repeated outrages of their domiciliary visits, or other attempts to disarm them. Thus a private squabble between two peasants gradually swelled into a village brawl, and ended in the religious v/ar of a whole district. Administration of the Marquis of Buc/iingham. 281 In the autumn of this year, it was the will of Hea- i7f'9- ven to visit the British empire with a most distressful King's iii- calaiiiily. A circumstance, which placed Ireland in a more peculiar delicacy of situation than any other part of the empire. The King had been attacked in the course of the summer with an illness, which, in No- vember, settled in a dehrium, which wholly incapaci- tated his Majesty from performing the functions of the executive. Under these embarrassing circumstances, and in detiance of a most powerful opposition, Mr. Pitt had the address and influence to lay down and suc- cessfully put in train, a system of provisional regency, during the uncertain duration of his Ixlajesty's incapa- city, fettered and clogged with restrictions and limita- tions, which it was forcibly urged, were industriously calculated to produce a weak government with a strong opposition. All the princes of the blood, who were then of age, indignantly disclaimed any active interference in the business. It was evidently the intention, and probably the ex- Expecta- r 1 T» • • 1 • • ^ 1 1 tions that pectation or the British minister, that the two houses Ireland of the Irish parliament should follow the example of lowtheex- those of Great Britain. This national calamity had GTe^E'ri. hov/ever too recently followed the declaration of Irish legislative independence, to ground any reasonable hopes in the British cabinet, that the parliament of Ireland would be dictated to by a British convention. Many grounds of anxiety, mistrust, and alarm, with reference to the conduct of the Irish on this- ' trying occasion, agitated both the cabinets. The unpopularity of the Marquis of Buckingham: the 282 The Reign of George HI. 1789. real congeniality of principle in the bulk of the in- dependent liish with that party, which had given them independence in 1782, and now opposed the galling and humiliating fetters -about to be rivcttod on the regent: the sympathy ol the true Irish character, with the native prowess, generosity, and magnani- mity of the p;'iiice : the national dif-gust, contempt, and detestation of anv thinn- mean, sordid, and sus- picious : and above all, the brilliant and impor- tant occasion of exercising their national inde- pendence in ascertaining and estabhshirig the consti- tutional boundaries of the royal authority in the per- son of their favourite prince These considerations deterred them from convening the Irish parliament. Associa- Amongst the first impressions, wliich the farnl news of tion test for i • -n/r • ^ » • • • i • /• the new "IS IViajesty s mcapacity to exercise the executive tunc- parliament, t'ons Qi government producfd upon the greatest part of the Irish nalion, was the ilartering expectation of soon seeing an end of the administration, which they considered systematically inimical to their welfare. To a change of ministers, they naiurally attached a dis- solution of parliament. As soon therefore, as the nature of his Majesty's illne?s was made known, meet- ings were had throughout the kirgdora, and associa- tions formed preparatory to an expected elccl-ion. A common test was agretd upon to be tendered, and sworn to by every candidate, and thj associated elect- ors bound themselves to each other (generally by * oath), to vote for no m.an, who should refuse to sub- scribe, and swear to the test : the purport of which was : ] °. To vote for a per centage tax upon the Administration of the Marquis of Buchin^iiam. 283 property of all absentees. 2°. For a settlement or i/Sp. commutation of" tithes. S". For the restoration ot the sail-clofh mauLuVxturc. 4^ For a bill to limit the pension list, (with a X>F. B. that it then exceeded that of England by 8C00/.) 5". For a reform in the popular representation in parliament. Gthly. For pro- tecting duties. From England the most unlimiied discretion and iT^truc- i-) tions from imperative instructioi-.s were received at the castle, to Ensiand ^ to prepare procure a recoraidon, that whomever G; eat Britain Ireland for y o ^ H limited should appoint as regent, he should, ipso facto^ be re- regency. ceived in Ireland with all the restrictions and limita- tions imposed by Great Brirain ; with peremptory orders to convene the parliament the instant his excellency could answer for a majority to carry such a recognition. More than the ordinary means of lure and threat were used to secure a major- ity. Yet inasmuch as the Leinster, the Shannon, the Tyrone, and most oiher independent interests in Ireland determinately opposed Mr. Pitt's plan of re- gency, it was previously known, that government would be left in a minority. 1 hey therefore deferred convening the pariiamer.t to the ^ih of Febiuary, when the whole plan had been settled, and submitted to by the Prince in Englaad*. On the great day of contest upon the regency, Mr. Grattan and Mr. Fitz- * In the convers-.tions' upon this subj::ct, the characler and conduct of the Marquis of Bnckingha;n, \vt re 'iitely canvassed by the different mem'tiers, under ihe conviction, that !}is govern- ment would be of very short duration. See Kistorical Heview, vol. II. 230. 284 The Reign of George III, 1789. gibbon took the lead on the opposite sides. Mr. Fitzgibbon stated the plan of the castle to be limita- tion and a bill. Mr. Grattan after a most luminous and constitutional speech;, moved that an humble ad- dress be presented to his royal highness to take upon himself the government of this realni, during the con- tinuation of his Majesty's present indispositionj and no longer, and under the style and title of Prince Regent of Ireland, in the name of his Majesty to exercise and administer, according to the laws and constitution of this kingdom, all regal powers, jurisdiction, and pre- rogatives to the crown and govei-nment thereof be- longing. Mr. Fitzherbert and several former sup- porters of government, supported the address against the dictates of the castle, l^rlr. Fitzgibbon displayed extraordinary firmness and talent in opposing so povi^erful and confident a majority. The motion passed without a division. Not so in the lords, there it was warmly debated. The address, upon the motion of the Earl of Charlemont, was carried by a majority of 19 *. * 6 Lords, Jour. p. 233. The contents, with the proxies, being A5, and the non contents 2(5, a protest was entered by most of the minority, which see in Appendix to the Historical Review, No. LXXX. The address was as follows. To His Royal Highness George Prince of Wales. The humble Address of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and Commons in Parliament assembled. " May it please youk Royal Highness, " We, his Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the lords spiritual and temporal, and the commons of Ireland in Administration of the Marquis of Buckingham, 285 "When both houses waited upon the lord-lieutenant 1789- with their address, requesting him to transmit it to his Marquis of ^ ^ Bucking- royal highness, his excellency refused to comply j re- ham re- • • 1 r 1 fuses to turnmg for answer, that under the mipressions he felt transmit of his official duty, and of the oath he had taken, he dress. did not consider himself warranted to lay before the prince an address, purporting to invest his royal high- ness with powers to take upon him the government of that realm, before he should be enabled bylaw so todo; and therefore he Vvas obliged to decline transmitting j^rliament assembled, beg leave to approach your royal highness with hearts full of the most loyal and aft'ectionate attachment to the person and government of your royal father, to express the deepest ar.d most grateful sense of the numerous blessings which we have enjoyed under that illustrious house, whose accession to the throne of these realms has established civil and constitutional liberty, upon a basis wliich we trust will never be shaken ; and at the same time to condole with your royal higlmess upon the grievous malady with which it has pleased Heaven to afflict the best f)f S'jvereigns. " We have, however, the consolation of reflecting, that this severe calamity hatli not been visited upon us until the virtues of your royal highness have been so matured, as to enable your royal highness to discharge the duties of an important trust, for the per- formance wliereof, the eyes of all his Majesty's subjects of both kingdoms are directed to your royal highness. " We therefore beg leave humbly to request, that your royal higluiess will be pleased to take upon you the government of this realm during the continuation of his Majesty's present indisposi- tion, and no longer ; and under the stile and title of Prince Regent of Ireland, in the name of and on behalf of his Majesty, to exercise and administer according to the laws and constitution of tills kingdom, all regal powers, jurisdiction, and prerogatives to the crown and go^ernment thereof belonging." 286 The Reign of George III 1/S9- their address to Great Britain. Upon this Mr. Grattan afterwards moved, that his excellency having thougbit proper to decline transmitting the address, a competent number of mem.bers should be appointed to present it to his royal highness. This motion vas carried by a majcritv of ISO against 74?' The lords appointed the Duke of Leinster and Lord Charlemont, ard the commons Messrs. Conolly, J. O'Neil, W. B. Po'nsonby;, and J. Stewart^ commis- sioners to present the address to the Prince of Wales. Mr. Brown low proposed a short money bill, in order to prevent the lord-lieutenant from exercising his righf of proroguing or dissolving the parliament : which the attorney- general observed, reminded him of Lord Townshend's proroguing the parliament. Lie recol- lected when next they met, they voted him an address of thanks^ which address cost the nation half a million of money. He hoped never again to see h^lf a mil- lion of the people's money employed to procure an address from their representatives*. The committee * The singular coincidence of a falling and rising power acting upon a body of 300 men, at no time famed for niflexibllity, running a race of ingratitude fo; past and avidity for future favors, extracted trutlis, which might otherwise have lain for centuries smothered under theconcordatum of interest, secrecy, and combi- nation. Mr. Fitzgibbon (no man knew better) admitted, that Lord Townshend had pa'd or granted so much to purchase that majority in parliament, by which he governed to the end of his administration. Of this avowal, or boast, or taunt, or threat of pailiamentary venality from the mouih of the attorney general, we have the pointed evidence of Mr. Giattan, (Answer to Lord Clare's speech, 1800. p. 18). " Haifa million, or more, was jidministration of the Marquis of Buckingham, 287 of the two houses of parliament arrived in London ^789- on the 2.5th of February, 1789, and the day follow- ing '.resented their addiess to the Prince of Wales at Carlton-house. As the convalescent state of his Ma- jesty's health was at that time apparent, his royal high- ness, alter returning his v/armest thanks for the address, and expressing the satisfaction he received from the proof it afforded of rh.^ir loyal and affectionate attach- ment to the person and government of the King, ac- quainted them with the fortunate change^ that had taken place. Within a few days^ he hoped, that the j'-.y^ul event of his Majesty's resuming his govern- m nt, would enable him to give them a final answer, and make it only necessary for him to repeat those sentiments of gratitude and affection to the loyal and generous people of Ireland, which he felt indelibly imprinted on his heart. The happy turn in h's Majesty's health worked a Turn in th* stupendous chalige in the marshalling of the house of commons. commons. As the late gloomy prospect of a change in the Irish admmistration had driveu many gentlemen to the opposition benches, Mr. Grattan, willing to expended some years ago to break a?i opposition ; the same, or a griiuler sum may Le necessary noiv : so said the principal servant of the cro\t'n. The hoase heard him: I heard him : he said it standing on his le_s to an astonished and an indignant nation , and he said it in the iTiost extensive sense of bribery and corruption. The tiireat was proceeded on ; the peerage was sold ; the caitiffs of coiruption were every where j in the lobby, in the street, on the steps, and at the door of every parliamentary leader, whose thresholds were worn by the members of the then administration, ofFsring titles to some, amnesty to others, and corruption to all." 288 The Reign of George lit. 1/89. King's re- covery, formally announced Jo parlia- ment. Return of the com- mons to ttieir sta- tions. avail himself of the earliest fruits of their conversion^ successively brought forward all the subjects of popu- lar complaint : namely, a new police bill, a p^yision bill, a place bill, a responsibility bill, and an absentee bill. Each was lost by gradually increased majorities. The first of these divisions was of 115 in favor of ministry and 106 against it. The debates upon these several questions were more personal and virulent * than any before known in that house. On the J 4th of March, his excellency announced the happy event of his Majesty's recovery in a speech from the throne, which Mr. Grattan congratulated the house, was so worded, and the address upon it so properly moved and seconded, as to call for the most cordial unanimity. When Mr. Conolly on the 20th of March communicated to the house of commons the Prince of Wales' answer to the address of both houses of parliament, Lord Henry Fitzgerald moved an address of thanks to his royal highness for his gra- cious answer ; to which the attorney-general objected. No one supporting the objection, it was withdrawn, and the motion was carried unanimously. His Majesty returned a most gracious answer to the address of the Irish Parliament ; and his excellency appointed a day of public thanksgiving to Almighty God, for the signal inter[)osition of his good providence. The ferment occasioned in the commons by the late alarm had nearly subsided : the re-establishment * The particulars of a violent attack upon Mr, Grattan by Mr. Parsons, and Mr. Grnitan's retort, may be seen in Historical Review^ vol. II. p. 25(5. Administration of the Marquis of Euchingham. 289 V^V^' of the old system, and the disappearance of any Im- 1789. mediate change in administration, had brought back most of the fugitives to their station, and upon a divi- sion on the place bill, there were only 93 for, and 148 against it. Then Sir Henry Cavendish, chairman of the committee on the police accounts, delivered in their report*, upon which they had come to two re- solutions : 1st, That it had appeared to them, that the police establishment had been attended with unneces- sary patronage, waste, and dissipation. 2d, That it was their opinion, that the peace and protection of the city of Dublin might be more effectually maintained at a less expence, and that the present system of the police establishment ought to be changed. On the motion of the attorney-general the report was rejected by 132 against 78 f. The subject most interesting to Ireland, which occupied parliament during the re- mainder of the session, was that of tithes. Mr. Grattan upon presenting a bill to appoint commis- sioners for the purpose of enquiring into the state of tithes in the different provinces, and to report a plan for ascertaining the same, followed it up with an ela- borate and eloquent speech |. The house adjourned from the 8th to the 25th of May, on which day the lord-lieutenant prorogued the parliament, and made * 9 Par, Deb. p. 3g4. This report, which is singularly- curious, ig to be seen in the Appendix to my Historical Review, No. LXXXII. f 9 Par. Deb. p. 424. X It may be seen in the Appendix to my Historical Review, No. LXXXIII. 9 Par. Deb. p. 4(54. VOL. II. U fluence. 290 The Reign of George IIL I78g. a speech of a general nature, without a word of re- ^^'^^ ference to any of the extraordinary circumstances of the session. Marquis of No viceroy ever enjoyed a smaller share of popu- ham's use larity in Ireland, than the Marquis of Buckingham. of govern- , . , . . , t merit in- A determined opposition was the consequence. In spite of his boasted principles of economy, he re- sorted to the late ruinous system of purchasing votes by retail, in order to break through the formidable opposition to his measures. No bounds, no reserve, no decency, were kept in this new canvass for parlia- mentary influence : the market was overt, and the prices of boroughs, and of pieces of boroughs, and of votes and titles, and of peerages, were brought to as regular a standard as bullion at the mint. Not a peerage, not an honor, not a place, not a pension was disposed of but immediately by government for par- liamentary interest, influence, or engagements, vary- ing by gradation from the price of a close borough to a vote upon a single question. Every place, office, or emolument, that could be resumed by government, was granted upon new terms for future services. The Duke of Leinster, Mr. G. Ponsonby, Mr. Fitzherbert*, and every person holding place, office, or pension at pleasure, were displaced or deprived for having joined in the address to the Prince of Wales. A creation of eight peerages took place, and numerous new appoint- * During a short recess the Hon. Mr. Hobart, (the present Earl of Buckinghamshire) was appointed Secretary in lieu of Mr. Fitzherbert, (afterwards Lord St. Helens), who gave a rare c$» ample of sacrificing place to principle. 'Administra tion of the Marquis of Buckingham, 291 ments Were made. It was objected to the Marquis of 1789. Buckingham's administration, that notwithstanding his professions of economizing he had increased the pen- sion Hst by 1 3,000/. per annum, and by splitting places, reviving dormant employments, and encreasing sala- ries, had burthened the nation with an additional per- petuity of 2800/. per annum. The public thanks- giving for the King's recovery was celebrated by a most superb gala at the castle; but none of those gen- tlemen were invited to partake of it, who had voted for the address. A marked sign of reprobation v^ put on their heads : and so strongly was the spirit of party kept up, that in the list of toasts drunk after dinner at the castle, the Prince of Wales and Duke of York were purposely omitted *. The extraordinary zeal of the attorney -general on the late occasions, in, support of government, was rewarded with the great seal of Ireland, which had become vacant by the death of Lord Lifford. He was the first Irish chancellor ap- pointed by England. -^" The Marquis of Buckingham grew daily more and Lord Buek. • /- 1 • 1 1 • • •' • T 1 1 TT 1 1 inghamdis- more dissatisfied with his situation m Ireland. He had satisfied, - ... , . , , retires to regained a majority in parliament, but he never more Engiandfl * In England some persons had rather unwarrantably repre- sented Mr. Pitt to have said, during the debate on the regency, that he had as much right to be regent, as his Royal Highness. At this national festival, the Marquis of Buckingham offered that minister to the notice and gratitude of the kingdom of Ireland, next to the King and Queen, iiot only in priority but in exclusion of the Prince of Wales, by proposing the health of Mr. Pitt, the friend of Ireland, with three times three. Trivial circumstances often disclose designs of magnitude. U 2 292 The Reign of George IIL 1789. experienced that popularity, which had hailed his first appointment under Lord Shelburne. The spirit of party ran so high, and the chief governor felt so sensibly his want of popularity, that in the month of June he took shipping * for England, and never more returned to Ireland. On the 30th of June, 1789, the new chancellor Fitzgibbon and Mr. Foster the speaker were sworn in lords-justices. * His excellency took shipping from Mr. Lee's villa at the Black Rock. It was observed by Mr. Charles O'Neale, in a de- bate, 10 P. D. p. 118, that if he had not taken a back-^irs departure from that 'kingdom, he would in all probabihty have been greeted on his retreat in a very diflerent manner from what he had been on his arrival in Ireland. His opponents gave out, that his excellency was secretly conveyed on board a ship. His iriends assert, that his health was so impaired by the fatigues of a troublesome government, that he was conveyed in a litter upon men's shoulders to the ship, in which he took his passage. The bad state of his health must have naturally induced him to avoid publicity and bustle in his departure, which hie opponents might have misconstrued into conscious privacy and absconding. Whether the character and conduct of Lord Buckingham were not congenial with the then predominant feelings of the Irish people, or that the system of Mr. Pitt's government, which tliat nobleman most zealously supported, was not acceptable to them ; certain it is, that his excellency's departure from Ireland created little regret or sorrow throughout the kingdom. [ 29S 3 1/90. CHAPTER V. Administration of the Earl of JVestm or eland. The Earl of Westmoreland succeeded the Marquis Eari of 01 Buckingham m the government or Ireland. It was land suc- observed by some of the opposition, that the change Marquis of was but a continuance of the former administration, ham. under a less unpopular head : the secretary and most other servants of the crown were continued in office. Strong effects were produced by the establishment of a Whig club in Ireland, in imitation of that of England. It was a frequent theme of panegyric to Mr. Grattan, and of invective to Mr. Fitzgibbon. The heads of most of the great families were members of it, and it contributed not lightly to give popularity to the lead- ing objects of their institution, which it was the uni- form policy of Mr. Pitt's system to counteract. The administration of the Marquis of Buckingham formed an eventful era in the modern history of Ireland. Thence evidently is traced the commencement of those popular workings, which ended in the explosion of 1798. Parties are at issue upon the effects of the system. The Whigs contend, that the people were goaded into rebellion by it's impolicy and atrocity ; the friends of Mr. Pitt lay the salvation of the country to it's wisdom and firmness. Facts bespeak their owa consequences. When the poor in Munster, from th^ u 3 2 94 TAe Reig7i of George III. 1790. failure of Mr. Grattan's motion for their relief, despaired of redress, fresh disturbances broke out, and the military force was consequently encreased. In the north, the Peep-of-Day Boys had acquired an ascendancy over the Defenders. Their enmity was wickedly fomented by the upper orders, for the purpose of breaking up that union of protestants and catholics, which had been effected by their serving together in the volunteer corps. In Ar- magh, the most protestant county of Ireland, the De- fenders were goaded into a more systematic resistance, by the encreasing frequency and atrocity of the domi- ciliary visits for disarming them, under pretext of the > law*s disabling catholics from bearing arms : but which these Defenders, who were mostly catholics, now found necessary for self-defence. Government sent down some troops of horse, which secured tranquillity, whilst they remained on the spot. The contests were so se- rious, that In the absence of the troops, fifty of a side have fallen in a day. The Defenders organized and strengthened themselves. * They afterwards became more formidable j but were never aggressors, till they Were compelled to emigrate from their own district. Pariiamfnt Tord Westmoreland met the parliament on the 2 1st effectual Jfl of January, 1790. The whole of this session was a patriots. Series of violent though fruitless struggles for the great points, which the patriots contended they were entitled to by the constitution, and had pledged them- selves to their country to persevere in pressing upon * The oath and rules of the Defenders are to be seen in vol. IIi, Historical Review, p. 2/6. Administration of the Earl of JPestmoreland* 295 the government till granted. When the address was 1790. moved, *Mr. Grattan strongly marked his disappro- '"'^^ bation of the measures of the late administration; they had been ill governed. He pressed upon the in- crease of the pension list, and the expences of the ordnancef. He moved. That the resolutions of that • 10 Pari. Deb. p. ?. f Mr. Grattan's oratory is not only sublime, but historically io- structive, (10 Pari. Deb. p. 15). " Such has been the conduct of your reformer. This was the man 3 you remember his entry into the capital, trampling on the hearse of the Duke of Rutland, and seated in a triumphal car, drawn by public credulity ; on one side fallacious hope, and on the other many-mouthed profession ; a figure with two faces, one turned to the treasury, and the other presented to the people ; and with a double tongue, speaking con- tradictory languages. *' This minister alights ; justice looks up to him with empty hopes, and peculation faints with idle alarms ; he finds the city a prey to an unconstitutional police — he continues it ; he finds the country overburthened with a shameful pension list — he increase* it J he finds the house of commons swarming with placemen— he multiplies them ; he finds the salary of the secretary increased to prevent a pension — he grants a pension ; he finds the kingdom drained by absentee employments, and by compensations to buy them home — he gives the best reversion in the country to an ab- sentee, his brother ! He finds the government at different times had disgraced itself by creating sinecures, to gratify corrupt afFection— he makes two commissioners of the rolls, and gives one of them to another brother ; he finds the second council to the commis- sioners put down because useless — he revives it ; he finds th*? boards of accounts and stamps annexed by public compact — he divides them; he finds three resolutions, declaring, that seven com- missioners arc sufficient — he makes nine ] he finds the country U 4 296 The Reign of George III, 1700. house against increasing the number of the commis- sioners of the revenue and dividing of the boards, be laid before his Majesty, with an humble address, that his Majesty would order to be laid before them the particulars of the representations, in consequence of which two new commissioners of the customs had been added, notwithstanding the resolutions of that house ; and also that his Majesty would communicate the names of the persons concerned in recommending that measure. The motion was vehemently opposed by government, and negatived upon a division, by 135, 80 only having voted for it. The like fate at- tended the motion of Mr. Curran, for the particulars of the causes, consideration, and representations, in consequence of which the boards of stamps and ac- counts had been divided, with an increase of salary to the ofEcers ; and a communication of the names of the persons, who had recommended that measure. Thus also failed Mr. Forbes's efforts for a place bill and a pension bill. Each debate grew warmer than the preceding. The opposition upbraided the treasury benches with being bought and hired to vote against their convictions and the welfare of their country ; they taunted them with the want of ability, honour, and honesty. The attorney-general charged his op- ponents with imperious turbulence and overbearing, to attain that power, v/hich they envied in others. On has suffered by some peculations in the ordnance — he increases the salaries of officeS;, and gives the places to members ^ to mem- bers of parliament," Administration of the Earl of JVcstmnreJand, 297 this occasion tlie opposition increased by twelve. In i70O. the like proportion was outvoted Mr. George Pon- sonby's motion for disclosing the names of those, who had abused the confidence placed in them^, by advising the growth of public expence, by many new and in- creased salaries^, annexed to offices granted to mem- bers of that house, no fewer in number than fourteen. The perseverance and powerful talents, with which Mr. Grattan kept up an aggressive warfare during the whole of this session, rendered him personally ob- noxious in proportion as he was formidable to the castle interest. At the close of a very severe debate, Mr. Grattan Mr. Grat. gave particular offence to government by a novel mode ordinary of arraigning the ministers. He then read the follow- against mx~ ing paper. " We charge them publicly, in the face of their country, with making corrupt agreements for the sale of peerages, for doing which, we say they are impeachable ; we charge them with corrupt agree- ments for the disposal of the money arising from the sale, to purchase for the servants of the castle seats in the assembly of the people; for doing which we say they are impeachable ; we charge them with com- mitting these offences, not in one, nor in two, but in many instances ; for which complication of offences, we say they are impeachable ; guilty of a systematic endeavour to undermine the constitution in violation of the laws of the land. We pledge ourselves, to con- vict them. We dare them to go into an enquiry. We do Dot affect to treat them as other than public male- factors. We speak to them in a style of the most lusters. 298 The Reign of George III ^^^' mortifying and humiliating defiance. We pronounce them to be public criminals. Will they dare to deny the charge ? I call upon, and dare the ostensible mem- ber to rise in his place, and say on his honour, that he does not believe such corrupt agreements have taken place. I wait for a specific answer." After some pause, Mr. Secretary Hobart* replied, that the ques- tion related to the exercise of his Majesty's undoubted prerogative, and it would ill become him, upon the investigation of an individual, to say what were the reasons, which had induced his Majesty to bestow upon any person those honours, which the crown alone could constitutionally confer. f. Further cf- The Strongest opposition of the session ("viz. 96") forts of th€ . . •pposition. was upon Mr. Forbes' moving the place bill to be read a second time, when he asserted, without contradiction, that no less than one hundred and four persons, hold- ing places or pensions, were members of that house ; and that since the last session no less than fourteen new places had been created, and bestowed upon members. An interesting debate took phce upon the illegality of issuing fiats for levying unascer- tained damages. The last contest of the session was upon Mr. Curran's long pfomised motion, for an ad- dress to the throne upon general grievances. After a very pointed detail of the several grievances, abuses, and corruptions, of which the country then com- * The present Earl of Buckinghamshire. t This reply of the secretary gave little satisfiiction to the oppo* siiion benches, and still less to the people out of doors. jidministration of the Earl of JVestmoreland. 299 plained, the address specified, that his Majesty's faith- ^^^ ful commons had been informed, that in order to defeat a resistance made in parliament to the will of the minister, great portions of public money had been expended by government in places, pensions, or sala- ries, to induce individuals to betray the community for such corrupt considerations. That the particular sums so expended had been specified and confessed ; and that such a corrupt and desperate practice alarmed them the more, because it had not transpired as a crime to be punished, but had been openly avowed as an instrument of government to be again resorted to. That such exercise of influence had not only been confessed, but defended on a principle most offensive to the feelings, and derogatory from the condition of liis Majesty's subjects of Ireland. That when they sought the same securities and provisions for the liber» ties of the people, which Great Britain had adopted against the corrupt influence of the minister, they had been told, that such provisions, however proper in Great Britain, were not calculated for the meridian of Ireland ; for that the government in that country should be stronger than the government in Great Britain, and of course the influence and authority of the people of Ireland comparatively weaker in the balance of the constitution. That such wild and un- constitutional distinction, construing the people of Ire- land out of the benefit of equal liberty, to introduce among them a superior degree of corruption and pro- fligacy, called from his Majesty's faithful commons of Ireland the warmest protestations, and they did 500 The Reign of George III. ^79^' protest against it accordingly. The address was ne- gatived by the usual majority, which had been kept steady in their ranks. This last attack was made not with any prospect of success, but only with a view of transmitting to posterity the real grounds of opposing that system of government, by recording them in the form of an address on the Journals. Proroga- Xlic parliament was prorogued on the .5th and dis- tion, disso- . lution, of solved on the 8th of April, 1790. The new parlia- the old, and convention meut was summoned to meet on the 20th of May, of a new _ , , parliament, but before that time was further prorogued to the 10th of July, when it met for dispatch of business. The session lasted only 14 days^, during which nothing oc- curred worthy of notice. The purpose of convening the new parliament was to obtain a vote of credit, which passed for 200,000/. The parliament was then prorogued, and did not meet for the dispatch of busi- ness, till the 20th of January, 1791. Lord West- DuHng the recess Mr. Secretary liobart went to Eng- morelar.d seeks popu- land to conccrt the plan of the next parliamentary cam- paign with the British cabinet. It was determined, that the Irish government should unexceptionably pursue the principles and system of Lord Buckingham's admi- nistration ; the secretary therefore had much consulta- tion wiih that nobleman. Lord Westmoreland in the mean time omitted no means of acquiring popularity ; he visited most of the nobility through the kingdom. His excellency and his lady on all solemn occasions appeared cfed in Irish manufactures. He generally en- deavoured to render himself affable and accessible *. * He gratified the people of Dablin in paitictilarj by permitting [Administration of the Earl of JVestmor eland. SOI The business of the first session of the new parlla- JToi. nient differed little from that of the last. The patriots First sts- rather lost strength by the new election. Their num- new patiia- bers at no time during the sessioji exceeded fourscore. But their resolution was more determined than ever. Mr. George Ponsonby in replying to Mr. Cook*, as- sured him, that nothing but the hand of death or suc- cess should ever induce them to give up their pursuits. All the former subjects of popular complaint were again brought forward with like failure. The mi- nority complained, that the administration did not mean to meet the questions of diiference between them by reason and argument, but by that very corruption and influence they were warring against, dead major- ities. The great strength of the patriots' oratory was employed upon the charge of selling the peerage, and prostituting the price of it to the purchase of seats in parliament. The ministerial members complained of the reiteration of the old charges without new argu- ments to support them ; and insisted that general fame, surmise, and assertion^ were no grr :nds fcr pro- ceedings in that house. On no oc'^'^'.n did Mr. Grattan exert himself more than on his motion for an Irish East India trade. It was however only support- ed by S6 against 147. The political fever of the continent in 1791 became Fffcc^s of by relation alarming to the British empire, and particu. voSonTa Ireland, tlie performance of a favourite piece, the Beggars' Opera, which ia the more austere government of Lord Buckingham had beea prohibited. , f 11 Pad. Deb. p. 3S4, 302 The Rc'ign of George IIL 179^ larly to Ireland. A country, which had so lately suc- ceeded in a struggle for civil hberty, naturally sympa- thised with France and Poland, which were engaging in a like cause. But the very mention of civil freedom thenceforth became obnoxious to government. Even the customary commemoration of our own revolution in 1688, was attempted to be damped. The word //- berli/ carried with it suspicion, often reprobation. It was the most successful and wicked feature of Mr, Pitt*s system to hold out the real Whigs, who continued to op- pose his measures upon principle, as factious disturbers of the constitution, with a view to introduce the new fangled principles of revolutionary doctrines. Such was the general panic, such the real or assumed execra- tion of every thing, that had a tendency to democracy, that comparatively few of the higher orders dared avow those principles, which two years before they boasted of professing. Mr. Burke, by his book on the French revolution* worked a stupendous change in the public * The political change of the public mind about this period, was evidently productive of the most unprecedented system of strong and coercive measures, known since the Revolution within the British empire. A very decided majority both within and without the parliament of Great Britain favoured that system : in Ireland the people more generally resisted its introduction and influence. Mr. Burke had the merit, if merit it were, of causing the great defection from the Whig Party : he and his friends, who went over to government on that occasion, were the most forward and zealous in holding out the dwindled phalanx of opposition, as enemies to their country and constitu- tion. The fervor of the new converts for proselytizing their old associates was unbounded ; the old leaders of the court party tri- umphantly indulged in the easy decomposition of their opponent* uidmhiistration of the Earl of JFastmoreland, SOS mind. The alteration of political sentipxient in Ireland i/pi. did not however keep pace with that of Great Britain. The defection from the ranks of opposition in parlia- ment wjs comparatively trivial. The general disposi- tion of the people to civil liberty was sharpened by the increase of coercion and intimidation. Some ill-minded and artful demagogues availed themselves of the popu- lar fever, v/hich had never totally abated from the year 1782. The pernicious doctrines of Mr. Payne, artfully mixed up with popular truisms, were circulated at the lowest price, distributed gratis, and imbibed with in- satiable avidity : the castle-gates were trebly barred against concession and indulgence ; and every effort to attain them at a time so critically awful, was pro- nounced hostile, and a future bar, even to seasonable application. The spiritual guardians of the great body of the Irish people, circulated pastoral instructions through their dioceses, to dehort their congregations from imbibing the pernicious doctrines so sedulously attempted to be spread amongst them, and to enforce subordination, peace, and loyalty in their conduct. On the 11th February, 1791, a meeting was con- Catholic committee. both concurred in stamping the few, who steaaiiy retained their principles, with all the odium, contempt, and malevolence, that in- genuity could fix to the new terms, Jacobins and Democrats. Thenceforth a new and sable tinge was thrown upon every attempt in parliament to urge any popular measure, that wouTd lately have been considered patriotic and constitutional. It is not a little re- markable, that the first time Mr. Burke publicly avowed his new creed, and seceded from the opposition, was on Mr. flood's mo- tion in the British house of commons for enquiring; into the state of the popular representation in parliament. 30^ The Reign of George III. ^79*' vened at Dublin of the general committee of the Ca- tholics of Ireland, at which the different resolutions and instructions from various parts of the kingdom were read. They came to the unanimous resolu- tion of applying for such relief, as the wisdom and justice of parliament might grant ; and they hoped to be restored, at least, to some of the rights and pri- vileges, -which had been wisely granted to others^ who dissented from the established church ; that they might be thus enabled to promote, in conjunction with the rest of their fellow-subjects, the present and future happiness and strength of their country. It was im- possible, that the disposition to civil hberty, which from the first institution of the volunteers had per- vaded Ireland, should have remained inactive upon the great mass of the community, who were catholics. So little prominent however were they as a body, in bringing forward their own claims, that it had been frequently questioned at public meetings in then orth, whether on that account they were sincere in the cause of liberty. Division of The anti-gallic influenza, which in Great Britain tlie catholic *" ^ • • i body. had produced such convulsive effects upon political, social, and domestic order, planted discord in the catho- lic body in Ireland. About threescore of the principal country gentlemen, In conjunction with the Earl of Fiiigal, Lord Kenmare, and some of the dignified and other clergy, had that year seceded from the com- mittee, under an apprehension of it's being too closely connected with the patriots of the North, and not wholly unfriendly to the principles of the French Adnilnistraiion of the Earl of TVestmoreland, 305 revolution. Hence the Catholic body was divided into l/Pi. an aristocratic and a democratic party. Such at least was it represented to the public. The division was maintained with considerable acrimony. The Hon. Simon Butler j, Theobald Wolfe Tone, and Todd Jones, zealous friends of freedom, proffered their services to the catholic committee, and published in their own names^ some very aJDle and strong arguriielits for the repeal of all restrictive laws against the catholics. These publications contained language more bold and decisive than had hitherto ever been adopted in urging the claims of that body^ Some also of theJr own body followed the example of these protestant gentlemen, aiid publicly spoke a language, which had before iiever come from the mouth or pen of any one of that persua- sion In Ireland. Nothing could be more offensive to frovernmcnt than this connexion between the CathoHcs and the Dissenters. The first petition prepared by the committee never was presented to parliarnent. They entered also into some resolutions, which reflected not tenderly upon the seceders*. In the month of June, 1791, a paper was ch-culated Vnited »_.,,. .. 11* r •• Irishmen. m Dublm, contauimg the design or an association to of Belfast be called the Society of United Irishmen at Belfast : lin. a plan of the society was published in the Nortkera Star in October following. In the same month the Roman Catholics published a declaration of their tenets and claims, in order to remove prejudices^ and * This petition and the resolutions are to be seen in the Hh* {orlcal Heview, vol. II. p. 324, &c. VOL. II. X 306 The Reign of George III. 1791' spirit up the exertions of their friends in their cause*. In the ensuing month of November, a similar society of United Irishmen was established at Dublin : their declaration was the same as that of Belfast : but a test was annexed to itf. To this society Mr. James Napper Tandy was secretary, and Mr. Simon Butler, chairman. It was now the fixed, perhaps improvident system of the castle to involve all societies, clubs, and associations, in one common anathema of faction and sedition. Popuiaiity Everv attention to popular character was art offence discou- "' * * raged at the of j^q mean Standard at the castle. When Lord castle. Charlemont sailed for England, the Whig Club, and all the volunteer corps in Dublin attended him under arms to the water-side, and paid him the like honours on his return. In the course of the summer this nobleman found himself under the necessity of resign- ing the government of the county df Armagh. A con- fidential honor, which his ancestors had uninterrupt- edly enjoyed from the days of Elizabeth. He consi- dered the joint appointment of another nobleman with himself in that government^ as an offence and insult. His * This declaration was made on the 21st of October, 179J# and may be seen in the Appendix to the Historical Review, No. LXXXIV. •j- It is requisite to shew, that these first societies of United Irishmen differed from those that afterwards entered into the re- bellion. Here nothing was secret, nothing ambiguous, nothing inconsistent with the duty of a loyal subject. Their test and con- stitution are to be seen ia the Appendix to the Historical Review^ No. LXXXV, Administration of the Earl of Westmoreland. S07 lordship's predilections for the dissenters wereparticu* ^/'93- larly obnoxious to government : for the efforts of the northern dissenters in the cause of liberty were in* finitely more dreaded by government, than the claims of catholic emancipation. The anniversary com* memoration of the French revolution was celebrated on the 1 4th of Julyj by the inhabitants and neighbour- hood of Belfast. All the armed corps of volunteers attended. These public acts of the protestants in the north gave heinous offence to government, and Messrs. Tone, Simon Butler, and Todd Joneis, wefe the avowed friends and advocates of the catholic committee. Some of the catholic gentlemen of landed property, who dis- approved of these societies, seceded formally from the catholic committee ; and on the 27th of December, 1791, presented to the lord- lieutenant a petition or ad- dress, which went no farther than a general expression of submissiveness and respect to government, throwing themselves and their body upon their humanity and wisdom*. Three days after, the United Irishmen of Dublin published a circular letter, containing a decla- ration of their political sentiments, and their testf, and animadverting severely upon the 64 addressers. The year 1792 opened scenes peculiarly important Com- rnence- to Ireland. The whole catholic body on different "lent of . catholic re* lief, * A copy cf the address, with the names of tbo?!e v/ho subscribed it, is to be seen in the Appendix to Historical Review, No. LXXXVL It higi;ly displeased the opposite party, and many severe things were said upon the Q-l addressers. It was called the *leern"6synary address. t For ihU declaration, vide Appendix, No, LXXXVII. X 2 ■ 308 The Retgn of George III. 1792. grouncis, was now worked up to a lively expectation ^**''*^ of relief. The addressers superadded to the equitable grounds of their claims, the submissiveness and re* spect of their application, and their confidence in the humanity and generosity of ministers. The peti* tioners relied more on the dry force of truth and equity, than on the liberality or justice of govern- ment. The late political change in the public mind had been mainly produced by the writings of Messrs. Burke and Payne : between these two extremes, no middle post was tenable* In order, therefore, to purge themselves of that levelling democracy^ which was so peculiarly obnoxious to government, the ca* tholicG ommittee chose for their counsel and agent the son of Mr. Burke ; conceiving, that he would give no advice, concur in no measure, abet no step, with- out the privity, direction^ and approbation of his father : and it was no unfair conclusion on the part of the generality of the catholic body, that whatever was backed and supported by Mr. Burke*, could not ♦ It had been concerted, and It wjis srtofl after Well known, that ^Ir„ Burke's particular friend. Sir Hercules LangrishCi was to bring forward the Roman Catholic bill. Mr. Burke on that occasion ivrcte a very able letter, or rather a most constitutional essay, on the subject to his friend. This letter is of material importance to the history of the progress of Catholic emancipation. Sir Her- cules Langrishe was the man fixed upon by government to bring forward the subject of their claims. He had formerly been fa- vorable to them : but his sentiments had been latterly somewhat altered by the fashiooable cry against all popular claims, and his fear of opposing the system of the castle, wh'ch had ever been the polar star of his political navijjation. In the Historical Re- Administration of the Earl of fVestmoreland, 309 be urged or claimed upon French principles. The 1792. great object of political attention in the year 1792, was the question of opening some constitutional rights to the catholics. The transactions of this year have been misrepresented. Although it be notorious, that no member of opposition brought forward or moved any thing on behalf of the catholics during the session, (except the presentation of petitions) and that the bill brought in by Sir Hercules Langrishe, an invariable supporter of government, had been fully approved of by government before it was presented : yet has the Earl of Clare in the most e^xtraordinary manner de- clared, that " *with respect to the old code of the Popery laws, there could not be a doubt, that it ought to have been repealed. It was impossible, that any country could continue to exist under a code, by which a majority of its inhabitants was cut off from the rights of property. But in the relaxation of these laws there was a fatal error. It should have been taken up systematically by the ministers of the crown, and not left in the hands of every individual, who chose to take possession of it, as an engine of power or popu- larity. This, however was done.'* The catholics, anxious to be relieved from the hardships they had so long laboured under, could not be insensible of the unaccustomed sympathy and liberahty of any of their Protestant countrymen. They did not weigh to a view, vol. II. p. 333, &c. may be seen Mr, R. Burke's defence of the pelitioners against the addressers : and a full refutation of ihp charges thrown upon the conduct of the committee. * Speech of the EarJ of Clare, on the 10th of February, ISOQ. X 3 310 The lieign of George UL 1792. scruple those diiferences, by which the religious tenets of the established church and the Dissenters varied from their own ; nor did they open old accounts to discover, whether the asperity of puritanical rigor had been softened by the assumption of Protestant ascendancy. Whoever, upon the broad basis of con- stitutional freedom avowed the principle of their emancipation was naturally received with cordiality. Although the catholics were not generally admitted into the different societies lately instituted for pro- moting the popular objects of civil freedom and re- form, yet it was morally impossible, that many ca- tholic individuals should not have sympathized with their protestant brethren in forwarding them. Nothing however had been attempted by them as a body to- wards their attainment. Their exertions were exclu- sively confined to the relaxation of the penal code. Parliament On the 1 9th of January, 1792, the parliament was opened in the usual manner. Mr. Grattan ob- jected to that pa t of the address, which went to thank his Majesty, for continuing in the govern- ment of that country a lord- lieutenant, whose mea- sures he had found it necessary to resist, and who had uniformly opposed every measure urged for the good of their country. Ten years^ said he, had elapsed since they had recovered their constitution, and three since they had lost it. Their present mini- sters had made two attempts on their liberties; the first had failed, the second had succeeded. They could remem.ber the propositions : the people of Ire- land would not consent to be governed by the British parliament j an expedient was devised j let the Irish meets. Administration of the Earl of IFestmoreiand. Sll parliament govern the people of Ireland, and Britain 179*2. govern the Irish parliament. This measure was de- feated by the influence principally of that part of the aristocracy, who refused to go through the bill, and who had been dismissed. They, who made the at- tempt had been advanced and rewarded. The path of public treachery in a principal country leads to the block ; but in a nation, governed like a province, to the helm. The second attempt was their modelling of the parliament in 1789, by the expenditure of the interest of half a million to buy the house of com- mons ; the sale of the peerage, and the purchase of seats in the commons j the formation of a stock-purse by the minister to monopolize boroughs, and buy up representations. That new practice, whereby the minister of the crown became the common borough- broker of the kingdom, constituted an offence so mul- titudinous, and in all its parts so criminal, as to call for radical reformation, and exemplary punishment ; whether the persons concerned were Lord Buck- ingham or his secretary, or those, who became the. objects of his promotion, because they had been the ministers of his vices. It was a conspiracy against the fundamental laws of the land, and sought to establish, and had established, in the place of a limited mo- narchy, a corrupt despotism. The chancellor of the Exchequer answered, that the right honorable gen- tleman had merely recapitulated the old invectives of many sessions ; they had been already refuted, and if they were brought forward in the course of that ses- sion^ they would be refuted again. X 4 312 The Reign of George III, 1793. ->^ On the 35th of January, 1792, Sir H. Lantrrishe Sir Hercules . . , '^ Langrishe rosCj accordlnff to notice, to brin? forward some re- moves the . . catholic bill, solutions in favour of thp catholics. He prefaced h^s motion by a w^rm and able, though veiy guarded speech. He went through all the conces- sions made to them by the legislature. He con- fessed his ardour had been checked by the general circulation of wild principles of democracy, with which some attempts had been made to connect the cause of the catholics. He had then, however, the happiness to assert from authority, what he had long learned from experience: that not a sentiment of that ten- dency was entertained by the catholic body; none such belonged to them ; they renounced them ; they utterly disclaimed them. There was not a class of his Majesty's subjeqts more attached than they were to the monarchy and hereditary succession, more obedient to the laws, or more devoted to the king ^nd constitu- tion, as by law established. It was under such cori- viction^ that he addressed tliem with confidence for a further repeal of the laws affecting the Roman Catho- lics, to that extent^ which their wisdom and hberality should lead them to think expedient. What that ex- tent should be, appeared to him the only question, that could divide the opinion of parliament on the subject. 1st. He would give them the practice and profes- sion of the law, as a reasonable provision, and appli- cation of their talents to their own country. 2dly. He would restore to them education, entire and unrestrained ; because a state of ignorance was a state of barbarity. That would be accomplished by Administration of the Earl of JVcstmoreland, 31 5 taking off the necessity for a license, as enjoined by 1/92. ahe act of 1781% "^-^y^, 3dly. He would draw closer the bonds of inter- course and affection, by allowing intermarriage, re- pealing that cruel statute, which served to betray female credulity, and basrardiae the children of a virtuous mother. 4thly. He would remove those obstructions to arts and manufactures, that limited the number of appren- tices, which were so necessary to assist and promote trade. He then movedj, '' That leave be given to bring in a bill for removing certain restraints and dis- abilities, under which his Majesty's Roman Catholic subjects labour from statutes at present in force.*' Mr. Hobart seconded the motion, without making any Qbseryation. Leave was given to bring in the bill, and a committee appointed to prepare the same, with- .out a dissenting voice. No sooner had this leave been given, than Mr. MrCHar* O Hara jifter haymg expressed his hearty concur- petition rence in what h^d been done, suggested, that in order committee. to have the subject fully before the house, it was desiriable, that they should know exactly the par- ticulars, in which the Roman Catholics desired relief : and they might easily draw the line by the new act of parliament so strongly, as to preclude any expectation of change, at least, for many years to pome. Those considerations (he said) had induced hirn to hsten to the desire of a very particular friend of his, to lay a petition containing such a statement before the house. A friend, who was not of the Roman Catholic persua- S14 The Reign of George III, w%'v/ ^7ff2. sion, but one, to whom he would not willingly refuse any thing he could ask, had desired him, as a personal favour, to present it. Though he did not know the petitioners, he knew the integrity of his friend, who told him they were altogether worth upwards of a million, which he mentioned to shew, that they were considerable individuals, whose sentiments might be supposed to coincide with the greater part at least of the Roman Catholics. However, though he presented the petition, he requested not to be considered as its particular patron ; for he had agreed to present it upon the terms only of reserving to himself the full liberty of discussing every part of it, and condemning or approving, as he might think proper. Under these circumstances, he ventured to ofl'er the petition to the house ; and the rather, because to petition parliament was a matter of right in the subject ; and a member could hardly refuse to present a petition, if required by no improper description of men ; but more particu- larly, because the petition brought informadon before the house, which might be useful in framing the bill. The petitioners, after stating the particulars, in "which they hoped for relief, promised to acquiesce in whatever relief parliament might think proper to give them*. The solicitor-general said, the petidon. * Whilst Mr. Sheridan was observing, that it was a very odd way of introducing a petition, to state that it came not from any particular body of men, but from an intimate acquaintance, Mr. R. Burke, the gentleman alluded to by Mr. O'Hara, having in- cautiously ventured into the body of the house behind the speaker's. Administration of the Earl of Ifestmoreland, 315 in its present state of abandonment, could be no ^792. object of notice : he therefore moved the question of adjournment. Mr. D. Brown was for receiving the petition. However, Mr. O'Hara withdrew it for the present, because he could not say he had seen the petitioners sign it : he should present it another day*. The catholic committee anxious to act in full con- Catholic . . bill. cert with Sir Hercules Langrishe, as he was well known to do nothing without the privity and appro- bation of government, entered into somef unanimous resolutions calculated to counteract the effects of the misrepresentations and calumnies of their enemies. On the same day. Sir Hercules Langrishe \ intro- duced his bill for the relief of the Roman Catholics ; it was read and ordered to be printed. Four days after, Mr. John O'Neil presented a petition from Bel- fast signed by more than six hundred persons of chair, to speak with Mr. O'Hara, there arose a general cry of " into custody !" He instantly withdrew. * Mr. Grattan, feeUng that this treatment of a petition signed by so considerable a portion of the community, was rather insult- ing, closed a very impressive speech in the following words : What you give to the Roman Catholics, give it liberally : what you refuse, refuse decently : whatever you do, do it with discre- tion : whatever you say, let it be the language of decency and good manners. f These resolutions may be seen in vol. 11. of Historical Review, p. 358. X 12 Pari. Debates, p. 58. 31 6 The Reign of George J If. i79'2* respectability; praying that the legislature would re-* peal all penal and restrictive laws against catholics, and put them on the same footing with their protest-, ant fellow-subjects. On the 11th of February, before the catholic bill committed for that day, was called on, Mr. Stewart made a motion, which was seconded by Mr. George Ponsonby, beseeching his Majesty to take into his consideration the situation of the presbyterian ministers of the province of Ulster, and to make such further provision for them, as in his wisdom and bounty he should think fit ; and that the house would make good the same. Sir Edward Newenham and others bore testimony to the loyalty and virtues of the protestant dissenters. As par-? liament was about granting favors to the catho- lics, they could not refuse justice to the presbyte- rians. Petition of The g?eat body of the catholics was little satis- the catholic commitiee, fied with the conccssions contained in the bill of and progress ^. ^t it oi the bill. Sjr Hercules J^angrishe. They were convinced, that this bill had been substituted for another, of more extensive concession, which had been intended and would have been obtained, but for the arts of some designing, and the credulity of some honest men. "Whilst the bill was in progress, the catholic committee prepared a petition, calculated to meet the objections raised against their proceeding. It was signed by fifty of the most respectable catho- lic commercial characters in Dublin, on behalf of themselves and their brethren throughout the king- AdminUtrdtiGn of the Earl of tP'estmoreland. doHi*. It was presented by Mf. Egan, and was or- dered to lie on the table. When the catholic bill was debated, all cautiously confined their ideas of indulgence to the points of the bill : and many took that opportunity of pledging themselves nev^r to gi'ant the elective fmnchise as a concession in- * 12 Pari. Deb. p. 125. " To the Right Hon. the Knights, Citizen.'?, and Burgesses, Ih Parliament assembled. *' The Petition of the undersigned Roman Catholics, on behalf of themselves and the Roman Catholics of Ireland, " HUMBI.Y SHEWETH, " That ns the house has thought it expedient to direct their attention to the situation of the Roman Catholics of Ireland, and to a further relaxation of the penal statutes still subsisting against them^ they beg leave, with all humility, to come before the house with the most heartfelt assurance of the wisdom and justice of par- liament, which is at all times desirous most graciously to attend to the petitions of the people ; they therefore humbly presume to submit to the house their entreaty, that they should take into their consideration whether the removal of some of the civil in' capacities, under which they labour, and the restoration of the petitioners to some share in the elective franchise, which they enjoyed long after the revolution, will not tend to strengthen the protestant state, add new vigour to industry, and afford pro- tection and happiness to the catholics of Ireland ; that the peti- tioners refer with confidence to their conduct for a century pa«t< to prove their uniform loyalty and submission to the laws, and te corroborate their solemn declaration, that if they obtain from the justice and benignity of parliament, such relaxation from ceitain incapacities, and a participation in that franchise, which will raise them to the rank of freemen, their gratitude must be proportioned to the benefit, and that enjoying some share in the happy cxsnsti- tution of Ireland, they will exert thetfiselvcs with additional sca^ in its conservation," 318 The Reign of George III 1791' compatible with the protestant ascendancy. Mr. Grattan, though instructed to oppose the bill by his constituents, the corporation of Dublin, would not sacrifice the rights and interests of three millions to the caprice or prejudice of some individuals. The house resolved itself into a committee on the bill after midnight, and Mr. Secretary Hobart, not wishing to precipitate matters suggested, that the chairman should report progress, and leave was given to sit again on the 20th of February. On that day Mr. David La Touche moved, that the petition of the catholic committee should be rejected, and after a violent debate it was re- jected by 208 against 23. The petition from Belfast was rejected by a larger majority. The bill passed without further opposition. The state of parties in the house of commons was much the same, as it had been In the two preceding sessions. Mr. George Ponsonby, after a warm debate on the East India bill, renewed his profession, that he never would vote with any ad- ministration, until that and the other measures, to which he and the other gentlemen, with whom he acted were pledged, should have been obtained. The other patriotic bills were again brought forward and again rejected*. An interesting and heated debate arose out of Mr. Browne's motion to repeal an act of the last session for appointing a weigh-master for the city of Corkf. After prefacing his motion by animadverting on the conduct of administration in * 15 Com, Journ. p. 87. t 12 Pari. Deb. p.2;o. Administration of the Earl of IFestmoreJand, 5i9 ^^-■/"H^ pursuing that dangerous and unconstitutional system, 1792. which they had laid down and strictly adhered to, of creating influence, he severely reprobated the appoint- ment made by government to the office of vveigh-mas- ter of Cork, which had been divided into three parts, and bestowed on members of parliament, for the pur- pose of creating parliamentary influence. The office had been \aolentIy taken from the corporation of Cork. The minister opposed the motion, on the ground of its being an insult on the crown. Colonel Hutcliinson""^' said, he never should cease to claim the common law- right of the corporation of Cork, whilst he had a seat within those walls. The corruptions of ministers were not to divest private rights. And Mr. George Pon- sonby observed, that before this grant, administration had already one hundred and ten placemen and pen- sioners, and that was sufficient to carry any measure they might want, without creating such additional in- fluence. Never was this gentleman more animated against the system of government then prevailing, than on this occasion. He laid open to the house the whole train of negociations for f proselytizing for the Marquis of Buckingham's administration. * Now Lord Hutchinson. f He was one of the persons dismissed from office at that time; yet he received a message from Lord Buckingham, through the attorney-general (afterwards Earl Clare), " that if he would consent to support his administration, he should not only hold any office, but receive any favour government had it in their power to bestow." His answer was, '' that he was ready at all times to serve the king's government, but his own consistency- neyer would permit him to support a lord-lieutenant, on whose 320 The Reign of George III. i;oi2. When the money bills were carried tip to the lords, J^ariiamrnt the Speaker addressed the lord-lieutenant, in an adu- prorogue , j^^^j.^ speech. Strongly inculcating the necessity of keeping up the protestant ascendancy, and \vith it the continuance of the many blessings the kingdom then enjoyed. After an adjournment for about one month the parliament was prorogued on the 1 3th of April ; when his excellency assured both houses of parliament, "■ that he had his Majesty's commands to expi'ess his approbation of the wisdom, that had-'guided their pro- ceedings during the present session, especially in the liberal indulgences they had afforded to their Roman Catholic brethren.'* It thus appeared how much more liberally the British cabinet was disposed tO' the catho- lics, than the Irish government, whose sentiments Mr. Foster spoke. Several members complained of the influence of the British cabinet over the deliberations of the Irish senate* Such of the protes'tants, as wished the Irish to become a people, atnd to enjoy the freedom of the British constitution, scouted the cry of protestant ascendancy, adopting the axiom of M*. Grattan, that the Irish protestant would never hefree^ until the Irish catholic should cease to be a slave. The catholic committee now felt the happy effects of se- curing, through their agent, the countenance and sup- conduct he had voted a parJinmcntary censure. Jf other gentle- men thought the interests of the country were belter supportell by meanly fawn'ng on a lord-lieutenant, than by a manly dis* charge of duty, let them pursue that mode. He never wowld.'*— < For more of this curious transaction, see Historical Review, roK II. p. 367- Administration of the Earl of PVesl7nnreland, 321 port of Mr. Burke, whose influence upon the British 1792- cabinet kept pace with his opposition to the French revolution. Previous to any further application to the legisia- cathoUc ^ ^1 • 11 - 1 • delegates. ture the committee resolved to give to their country the utmost satisfaction upon all topics of their faith, connected, however remotely, with the principles of good order and government. For this purpose they published a declaration * of their tenets, which was signed generally by the catholics of all descriptions through the kingdom, clergy and laity. It re- ceived the warm approbation of their supporters, and imposed silence on many of their opponents. Hav- ing thus endeavoured to clear the way by the removal of prejudice, they felt it incumbent upon them, ia. order to induce the two houses of parliament to afford relief to four millions of loyal and peaceable subjects, to satisfy them of the unequivocal sense of all the ca- tholics of Ireland, which could only be fairly collected and fully expressed by delegation f ; the committee therefore devised and circulated a plan, to ascertain by these means the sentiments of every individual of their body in Ireland. Immediately on the appearance of this plan, a ge- Aiarrn ^^ neral outcry was raised against it. Sedition, tumult, grandjuncs. conspiracy, and treason were echoed from county to county, from grand jury to grand jury. Some legis- • This declaration is to be seen in the Appendix to Historical Review, No. LXXXVIII. t This plan of delegation is also to be seen in the same Ap- pendix, No.LXXXIX. VOL. II. Y 322 The Reign of George Til. 1792. lators high in the confidence of their sovereign, and armed with the influence of station and office, presided at those meetings, and were indecently forward in ar- raigning measures, upon the merits of which in another place and in another function they were finally to de- termine. The exaggerated and alarming language of most of the grand juries imported, that the catholics of Ireland were on the eve of a general insurrection, ready to hurl the King from his throne, and tear the whole frame of the constitution to pieces. They vied with each other, which should most acrimoniously re- probate the inflammatory and dangerous publication. Some of the grand juries went the length of falsely asserting, that " the last session of parliament left the Roman catholics in no wise different from their pro- testant fellow-subjects, save only in the exercise of political power." Some of the grand juries indig- nantly rejected the proposals made to them of reso- lutions injurious to their catholic brethren. Agents were publicly employed to tamper with every grand jury during the summer assizes. Nothing could tend more directly to foment disunion. Counter-re- solutions, answers, and replies, addresses, and pro- testations, were circulated in the public papers * from some grand jurymen, and from many different bodies ♦ The columns of the dally newspapers were filled w ith charges, defences, and recriminations, which fatally proved the extensive influence and unwearied exertions of that part of protestant Ire- land> which laboured to retain possession of the political power, which it had for centuries enjoyed. Specimens are to be seen in the Appendbt to Historical Review, No. XC. Adm'mistrdti&n of the Earl of Westmoreland* S23 df catholics. Bold and severe publications appeared i/^P^; during the course of the summer, not only from in- dividuals of the catholic body, but from the friends of their cause amongst the prbtestants. In order to bring into view all the penalties and .disabilities, to which the body remained still subject, after the puny relief of the pompous bill of Sir Hercules Langrishe, Mr. Simon Butler published, by order of the Society of the United Irishmen at Belfast, a Digest of the Popery Laws. A formal vindication of the conduct and prin- ciples of the Roman Catholics of Ireland from the charges made against them by certain late grand juries, and othel* interested bodies in that country j was published by order of the committee*. * In this work they sum up a recapitulation of the grievances by which they were still affected ; and then conclude : " Such is the situation of three millions of good and faithful subjects in their native land ! Excluded from every trust, power, or emolument of the state, civil or military ; excluded from all the benefits of the constitution in all its parts j excluded from all corporate rights, and immunities ; expelled from grand juries, restrained in petit juries ; excluded from every direction, from every trust, from every incorporated society, from every establishment, occasional or rixed, instituted for public defence, public police, public morals, or public convenience ; from the Bench, from the Bank, from the Exchange, from the University, from the College of Physi- cians, &c. Such is the state, which the corporation of Dublin have thought proper to assert, differs in no respect from that of the proteiianls, save only in the exercise of political power} and the host of grand juries consider as essential to the existence of ike constitution, to the permanency of ^he connection with Eng- land, and the continuation of the throne in his Majesty's Royal House. Y 2 324 The Reign of George 111. 1792. The catholic commitiee became obnoxious to go-*^ Cautious vernment in proportion to the sympathy and connec- the catholic tion, which It was supposed existed between them comiiiittee. md meet-' and the Society of United Irishmen and other political' gates. clubs recently instituted for promoting civil freedom. It was natural for persons staggering under oppression cordially to grasp every hand, that held out relief*. After the severe summer campaign, in which the ca- tholics had to encounter so much obloquy from grand juries and other meetings of protestants, which were generally considered to have been packed and sti- mulated to their resolutions by the chancellor, the speaker of the house of commons, and other monopo- lizers of the civil power of the state ; they found it necessary to remove fresh imputations against their civil conduct in applying for redress of grievances. They therefore procured and circulated the opinions of Mr. Simon Butler and Mr. Burston, both King's counsel, upon the legality of the circular letter signed Edward Byrne, and their other proceedings. Upon the strength of these opinions,- the catholics proceeded to choose delegates for each district throughout the kingdom : the elections were quickly completed with- * Few or none of these political societies admitted catholic members. The whig club would not even permit the catholic question to be agitated amongst them. Had it been true, as it is fashionable with all the modern traducers of the Irish na- tion to assert, that there was as much treason in Dublin in I'^QI, as 5n the year 1 798, and that these political societies were the hot-beds of rebellion, it evidently follows, that the catholics, wha were excluded from them, were not the authors or fomenters of that rebellion. Administration of the Earl of Westuioreland, S25 out disturbance. The first meeting of the delegates 1792. was in Taylor's-hall, Back-lane*, Dublin, on the 2d of December, 1792. Other circumstances occurred fh the course of this Irish na- tional guard. year, which tended to alarm government. The na- tional guard, a new military body, was arrayed and -disciplined in Dublin. They wore green uniforms, •with buttons engraved with a harp, under a cap of liberty, instead of a crown. They affected to address each other by the appellation of citizen, in imitation of the French, They were in high favour with the populace, who cordially greeted them whenever they appeared on parade. To prevent a general insurrec- 'tion the magistrates patrolled the streets with bodies of horse each night ; rumours of conspiracies and as- sassinations vi^ere set afloat, which either never existed or were prevented by the timely interposition of go- vernment. Amongst other events of the year 1792, that tended to inflame the public mind, was the ex- tension of Defenderism. Until that time the De- fenders had not been seen beyond the counties of Armagh and Louth : now they suddenly appeared in bodies in the county of Meath, particularly in those parts which adjoin to Cavan. 1 here, and in the adjacent parts, resided numerous tribes of pres- byterians, called by the common people Scots. Be- tween these, and the lower order of catholics, there had prevailed for many years an hereditary animosity^ and it is bird to say on which side ignorance and * Whence in derision it was called the Back-lane parliament. ' y 3 326 The Reign of George III. 1792- religious prejudice preponderated. The Defender^ ^""^ were now the aggressors : their plan was to procure arms, and to deprive all those of arms, who were not engaged in their caule. They began with the presby- terians^ and not in the most courteous manner. The Scots wiere joined by their brethren of Cavan. Their fury against the aggressors, who were mostly catho- lics, fell indiscriminately against all of that persuasions- Atrocities were committed on both sides. The Peep- of-Day Boys prevailed ; and they over-ran the coun* try, pillaged, plundered^ and burned, without requir- ing any mark of guilt but religion. Their proceed- ings, if not encouraged^ were at least connived at^ until the Earl of Bellamont restrained those of Cavan 5 and their brethi'en of Meath, finding themselves aban- doned by the great strength of their p:irty, became quiet. The catholics, though openly and severely pointed at during these transactions, never complain- ed of the outrages of the Scots, lest their complaints might seem to encourage the unprincipled wretches, who had disturbed the peace of the country. The Duke of Leinster, and many of the leading men of the opposition, became members of a newly-instituted society of the friends of the constitution, liberty, and peace*. Several of the catholic committee sympa- • The spirit of this association appears from their declaration, which every member was obliged to subscribe ; and which passed whilst the Duke of Leinster was in the chair, on the 27th of December, 1792. " I solemnly promise and declare, that I will, by all lawful means, promote a radical and effectual reform m the representation of the people in pariiament, including per- Administration of the Earl of JVestmoreland. 327' thizing with their patriotic countrymen, were nearly 1792, as anxious for carrying that great national object, as their own emancipation. It was for a time doubted, whether they should address the parliament on the subject of reform, as catholics or as Irishmen. hi the course of the summer a conciliatory coali- Cathoiia tion had been effected between the committee and presented most of the sixty-four addressers. Convinced, that throne, his Majesty's ministers in England were disposed to favor their pretensions, the catholics determined to act with internal union, firmness, and moderation. They framed a petition* to the King, modestly repre- senting their grievances. It was signed by Dr. Troy and Dr. Moylan, on behalf of themselves and the other Roman Catholic prelates and clergy of Ireland, and by the several delegates for the different districts which they respectively represented. They then chose five delegates to present it to his Majesty ; namely. Sir Thomas French, Mr. Byrne, Mr. Keogh, Mr. Deve- reux, and Mr. Bellew. They went by short seas ; and in passing through Belfast were waited upon by sons of all religious persuasions j and that I will unceasingly pursue that object, until it shall have been unequivocally obtained : and, seriously apprehending the dangerous consequences of certain levelling tenets, and seditious principles, which have lately been disseminated, I do further declare, that I will resist all attempts to introduce any new form of government into this country, or in any manner to subvert or impair our constitution, consisting of king, lords and commons." * This petition is to be seen in the Appendix to Historical Review, No. XCV. with a list of the names of the delegate* who signed it. y4» 328 The Reign of George III ^793^ the most respectable inhabitants. On their departure, the populace took their horses from their carriages and dragged them through the town amidst the liveliest shouts of joy and wishes for their success. On the 2d of January, 1793, the delegates were in= troduced by Mr. Dundas, and had the honor of pre- senting their petition to his Majesty, who was pleased most graciously to receive it. Without loss of time they returned to Dubhn the welcome heralds of the benign countenance of the father of his people. State of the Since Ireland had gained a constitution, no year was nation at o 'J the opening gQ pregnant with great events to that kingdom as the of the ses- rob o sion^of ygai- 1793. The parliament met on the lOth of Ja- nuary, and when the lord-lieutenant, after lamenting the spirit of discontent, that had manifested itself in different parts of the kingdom, and having stated the ambitious and aggressive views of France, assured the parliament, that he had it in particular command from his Majesty, to recommend it (o them to apply them- selves to the consideration of such measures as might be most likely to strengthen and cement a general union of sentiment am_ong all classes and descriptions of his Majesty's subjects, in support of the establishe4 constitution. With this view his Majesty trusted, that the situation of his Majesty's catholic subjects would engage their serious attention, and in the considera- tion of this subject, he relied on the wisdom and li- berality of his parliament. Mr. John O'Neil, in sup- porting the address, congratulated his country, that the loyalty and good conduct of the people were ra- pidly removing the prejudices of the constituent body j Administration of the Earl oj fVestmor eland. 32S and there could be no doubt, that his Majesty's re- ^7^93 commendation would have infinite weight, not only with parliament, but with all ranks of persons. He doubted not^ but that they would manifest by the strongest expressions their affectionate attachment to the King, who lived in the hearts of his people. But Mr. Grattan* observed, that the part of the address which related to his Majesty, was cold and impolitic. His in- terposition to heal their religious animosities was an act of distinguished wisdom : as such it should be marked ; particularly at a time, when attempts had been made on the thrones of princes : at such a time he would mark to the catholics the King; as the deliverer of his people. He would distinguish him from his ministers. He would mark that monarch, who had rescued his people from the hands of those mniisters, that how- ♦ In this debate Mr. Grattan spoke with more than his usual strength, " The persons, who opposed our liberty in 1/82, were made our ministers. Afterwards the country forgave them : but they never forgave the country. They attempted to put down the constitution ; but now they have put down the government we told them so, we admonished them, we told them their driving •would not do. Don't they remember how in 1790, we warned them. They said, we were severe. I am sure we were pro- phetic. In 1791^ we repeated our admonition : told them, that a government of clerks would not do that the government of the treasury would not do. That Ireland would not be long governed by the trade of parliament. We mentioned this, when Lord Buckingham ran away, and Lord Westmoreland succeeded to his office. We told them, that a nation, which had rescued her li- berties from the giant of Old England, would not long bear to be trodden on by the violence of a few pigmies, whom the caprice of a court bad appointed ministers." lefuini. gSO The Reign of Gcor<^e III. 1793. ever they might abhor their proceedings, they should if necessary, unite, to rally in support of the throne, keeping pure of leaning to any French politics ; or any wishes in favor of that nation, now on the eve of a war with a country, with which they v/ere by the crown, by the law, by interest, and by every political tie for ever to be connected. He then moved an amendment, which after a long debate he wiihdrew : but renewed it on the next day,, when it was una- nimously carried*. Committee The peculiarity of this session w'as the accession liamentary of govenimcnt to many of the great questions, which they had before most pertinaciously resisted. Mr. Grattan so far succeeded upon the subject of reform, as to have procured- a committee to enquire whether any, and what abuses had taken place in the state of the representation. Tliis was considered by the gen- tlemen of the opposition a matter of triumph : it was an admission of the principle ; it created con- fidence within, and afforded joy and satisfaction to the people without f. * '•' We admire the wisdom, which at so critical a seasoh has prompted your Majesty to come forward to take a leading part in healing the animosities of your people, on account of religion; wc shall take into our immediate consideration the subject graciously recommended from the throne ; and at a time ^hen doctrines pernicious to freedc>in and dangerous to monarchical government are propagated in foreign countries, we shall not fail to impress your Majesty's catholic subjects with a sense of the singular and eternal obligation they owe to the throne, and to your Majesty's royal person and family." f No stronger mark of the popular sympathy on this lubjeGt Administratioi of the Earl of Westmoreland. 3Sl On the 15th January, Mr. Secretary Hobart an- 1793. nounced his intention of taking into consideration q^^,^^^, that part of the lord-lieutenant's speech, relating to the J^^IJ^ceT''" catholics. He also intimated his intention of easing the p^Y^Tlctj' poor of the hearth-tax. Upon Mr. Grattan's express^ ing his intention to bring forward a libel bill, like that of Great Britain, Mr. Hobart avowed^ that the attorney-general had.it also in contemplation. Leave was given to Mr. Forbes to bring in a responsibility bill and a pension bill, and to Mr. Grattan to bring in a bill for the improvement of barren land. Thus passed one week in the Irish parliament without a symptom of opposition. In order to give time to digest the weight of important matter before the house they adjourned for some days. On the 4th of February, 1793, Mr. Secretary Peiitionof Hobart presented to the house a petition of certain bishops- can be adduced, tlian the resolution of the catholic sub- committee upon their dissolution, after the act had been passed, which gave them their tlective franchise. It most earnestly exhorted the catholics of Ireland to co-operate with their proteslant brethren in all legal and constitutional means to carry into effect that great measure recognised by the wisdom of parliament, and so essential to the freedom, happiness, and prosperity of Ireland, a reform in the representation of the people in the commons house. As the catholics had by that act obtained a footing within the threshold of the constitution, they wished no longer to represent themselves to government as a distinct set of his Majesty's subjects : but as Irishmen cordially sympathizing with their countrymen in their efforts to secure the full benefit of a free consiitution, to wliicli they considered reform essential. Government rejoiced at tlje dissolution of this committee, but was highly offended at their offering to interfere with the civil concerns of the nation. (Vide MzQnQ\QVi'% pieces of Irish history, 70, New-York, ISO/.) 332 The Keign of George III. 1793. Roman Catholic bishops of Ireland, and others, on behalf of themselves and their fellow-subjects of the same persuasion, which was read, and ordered to lie on the table *. Then Mr. Hobart said, he was aware, that many of those gentlemen whom he most respected, were not likely to concur in the measures he should propose ; but in that point he trusted, that he differed from them for the real advantage of the country. He was also aware, that in the last session of parliament a petition for the very measure he should now propose had been rejected, and that he himself had voted for that rejection ; but the sentiments of the country on that subject had materially altered since that time : the opinion of the country was not then ripe for such a measure. The circumstances of the present time would justify a material alteration in the sentiments of that house. The conduct of the Roman Catholics had proved, they were perfectly attached to the consti= tution ; and at that particular period, every man who was attached to the constitution should receive en- couragement. He then went through the several ob- jects of the intended bill, reasoning upon eachf. He * 15 Com. Jour. p. 141. The petition is to be seen in Hii- torical Review, vol. II. p. 408. f When Mr. Hobart touclied upon the army and navy, he ex- pressly said, (he then spoke as the minister of the crown) that it was in the contemplation of the government of England to admit Roman Catholics to bear commissions in these departments of the state : and that in due time measures for the same purpose would be proposed there, when a communication with the English go- vernment should have been had upon that point. This pledge to the public has been never redeemed. The opening of the British Administration of the Earl of fVestmoreland. '3SS" assured the house of his Majesty's paternal anxiety to ^793. meet the wishes of his Irish people. He trusted there* fore, that he acted for the good of the country, by forwarding such measures, as would best carry into effect his Majesty's gracious recommendation to par- liament. In this spirit had government come to the resolution of easing the lower classes by repealing the hearth-tax, and manifesting a disposition to accede to every measure, that tended to promote the happiness of the kingdom. He then moved for leave to bring in a bill for the further relief of his Majesty's subjects professing the Roman Catholic religion. The motion was seconded by Sir Hercules Langrishe : and most vehemently opposed by Dr. Duigenan, who in a long speech collected together whatever the acrimonious bigotry of the last two centuries had heaped together against the catholics, and retailed it with enthusiastic bitterness. He and Mr. Ogle were the only two upon the division, who opposed the bringing in of the bill. Lord Hilsborough obtained leave to bring in a bill to establish a militia, nearly on the same plan as that of England. The whole number of men he proposed to be 16,000, upon a rough estimate of 500 for each county. Mr. Grattan never lost an opportunity of bringing the subject of reform before parliament. The 9th of February, 1793, proved a considerable check upon the confidence, which the opposition had, during the first week of the session, placed in the sincerity army and navy to his Majesty's cathoHc subjects never has been brought forward, but has b;"eii coustautly opposed by the very men^ who then held it out as a national pledge. ■ssi The Reign of George III, 1793. Catholic bill passes the com- mons. of administration. When, according to order, the house had resolved itself into a committee to enquire into the state of the representation of the people in parliament, * Mr. Grattan made a most im.pressive speech; observing, with his peculiar energy, that in 1782, the question was. Whether Ireland should be governed by the parliament of another country : the present was. Whether she should enjoy a par- liament of her own. He followed up his speech with three general self-evident resolutions, which the chancellor of the exchequer got rid of by urging the danger of teaching the public to despise the pre- sent system before a better was provided. The ulti- mate division upon reform was 137 against 48. Thenceforth stood revived the old system of opposi- tion, and the hope of coalition in that great national question vanished. On the next day Mr. Hobart informed the house, that he vv^as directed by his excellency to deliver to them a message, importing that the persons exercising the powers of government in France, had without pre- vious notice directed acts of hostility to be committed against the persons and property of his majesty's subjects, and calling upon their co-operation in the cause. After Mr. Secretary had delivered this message, and the house had addressed the lord- lieutenant for his gracious com- munication, Mr. Hobart presented the catholic bill, which passed without a division. On the 22d of Fe- bruary, it was read a second time, and produced a warm 13 Pari. Debases. Administration of the Earl of JVestmoreland. 33; debate. The question was carried in die affirmative^ ^79' against only one negative : and the bill was committed for the Monday following with three negatives. Of all supporters of catholic emancipation, Mr. Grattan* was the most consistent, zealous, and persevering. His sentiments svrayed many opinions in the nation ; they also created discontent and opposition in another part of the community. He wished the bill under their consideration had gone further. He could v/ish, that It had given the Roman Catholics the privileges of other dissenters. Sure, he was, that was the only sound policy. He thought hovv-ever the bill deserved thanks, because it contained much, and also because it led to much more ; but the mover would have dis- covered more sense, if he had then given to the ca- tholics the whole, and had settled with them for ever. When the bill was in the committee, Mr. George Knox moved, that the committee might be em- powered to receive a clause to admit catholics to sit and vote in the house of com.mons. Major Doyle seconded the motion, v/hich was strongly supported by Mr. Daly, CoL Hutchinson, Mr. M. Smith, Mr. John O'Neile, Mr. Hardy, and other gentlemen liberally * Mr. Grattan not only persuaded by eloquence, but irstructed by historical informaiion. He iliubtrated the subject by his state- ment of the Irish brigade in the service of France, the number of the northern dissenters fighting against England in America, and the services of real Irishmen in the navy and array of Great Bri- tain, even in brepch of the I'w. He emphatically observed, tliat if they wished never to meet Irishmen in arms in other countries, they ought to give them a better condition at hume, Historical Review, vol. It. p. 410. 336 The Reign of George III. 1793. Catholic bill passes the lords. disposed to their catholic countrymen ^ it was however rejected upon a division by 163 against 69. When the catholic bill had passed its second read- ing in the lords, the Bishop of Killala * expressed his ready and most cheerful assent to a bill for the relief of his long oppressed and loyal catholic brethren. It was no part of protestantism to persecute cathohcs : and without justice to the catholic, there could be no security for the protestant establishment ; as a friend^ therefore, to the permanency of that establishment, to the prosperity of the country, and the justice due to his catholic brethren, he should cheerfully vote for the committal. Many lords delivered their sentiments upon this important subject. None so vehemently as the Archbishop of Cashell, and the lord-chancellor. His lordship concluded a bitter invective against the cathohcs, with a reflection, which gives strong room to believe, that the committee of the lords received that tint of crimination, which is so visible in their report, from his lordship's influence and suggestions!. He mentioned the powers assumed by the popish con- vention of levying taxes upon their community for defraying the expenses of their claims and proceed- ings, which, were they fair, just, and open, required no such support. In further innovation he foresaw * Dr. Law, a brother of Lord Ellenborough. t On the other hand Lord Portarlington, who was one of that committee, observed, that if he had not been fully convinced, from the evidence there adduced, that the catholic body had no concern in the disturbances of the defenders, he should not so cheerfully vole for the committal of the bill. Administration of the Earl of IVestmoreland. S37 a total separation from England, or an union with her : ^793. each to be equally dreaded. In the debate, which took place upon the clause, enabling catholics to accept mili- tary e'r;ployments, Lord Farnham argued, that until a similar law should have passed in England, catholic of- ficers could not attend their regiments, if ordered on duty into that kingdom. His lordship was, therefore, for amending the clause, by wording it so, that a Roman Catholic should not be eligible to a military commis- sion in Ireland, until the principle were adopted by a similar law of England, which would render the catholic eligible to military service in any part of the British em- pire, w herever exigency might call him. The chancellor opposed the principle of that amendment. The clause meiely went to enable catholics to accept a military employment ; but it could not be supposed his Ma- jesty would appoint a man to such a post, until the laws of the empire should fully qualify him to act in every part of it. It was more than probable, a similar law to this would be adopted in England, before the lapse of two months, and on this ground the amend- ment would be wholly unnecessary. The Duke of Leinster opposed the amendment as unnecessary, and wished to have the loyalty and prowess of the Irish, catholic attached to the service of his country. Lord Bellamont supported the amendment, as tending to accelerate a law in England, similar to the present. Upon those grounds the amendment was v.rithdrawn*^ and the bill passed, \ s* Fourteen years have elapsed since Lord Clare's assumption of a similar law being passed in England. None iuch has yet passed, VOL. n, Z m The Rcisrn of George HI. irp3. NotwJthstandintT government had consented to seve- Strtncnua ^'A ^f the pop'jlar mea*;iP'rF; being brouo^'ht forward, sures of g;o vernmcnt : Gunpf'fvder vernmcnt: Y^'t thcv Carried with a high hand two very strong mea- andaniven- surcs : the gunpowder bill*, and the convention bill. The general motive, which induced the minister to propose the convention billf was to prevent the pre- valence of the successful example of the catholic con- vention. The particular motive was to prevent the intended national convention at Athlone. Mr. Grat- tan objected, that it Vv^as a false declaration of law, and deprived the subject of his constitutional right of peti- tioning against grievances, by rendering the previous mea=;ure of consultation and deliberation criminal : and because the words and tendency of the bill went re- The Grenville administration was sacrificed to their attempt to re- deem this pledge of the Britisli government. * 33 Geo. Ill c. 2. Mr. Grattan thus spoke of this bill: " On the same plan of uncuhtitutional and scandalous influence did they sell the j>eerage to procure seats in the commons for the dependency and the dishonour of both houses of parliament : and having from this conduct, aggravated by a most unseemlv and unbecoming intemperance of manner and incontinence of lan- guage, lost the confidence of the country, and greatiy agitated the same, they then proceeded to a system of coercion, to support their plans of corruption, and to drngoon the prople. as they had bonght the parliament. They began that svsttm by an act, which tended, in a qualified manner, to d'sarm his Majesty's subjects, under certain regubtions, named a gunpowder bill, and had prin- cipally in view to put down the Irish volunteers." t 33 Geo. III. c. 29. An Act to prevent the Election or Ap- pointment of unlawful Assemblies, under prttence of preparing or presenting public Petitions or other Addresses to his Majesty or the Pailiamejnt. AdmiJiistration of the Earl of Westmoreland, 339 trospectively to declare, that all conventions and dele- 1/93. gations, that had existed in that kingdom, ^vere illegal. '"^'^^ He objected not to the enacting part, which, had it been properly framed, would have operated prospect- ively by way of inhibition against future conventions and delegations*. All the popular bills urged by the opposinon since the last parliament were passed, except parliamentary reform. It is hardly credible, that the people, who had been so long crying out for the re- form of parliament against the aristocracy and the go- vernment, should not urge it when both gave it upf. This im.portant session Vv-as put an end to on the 16th of August, when his excellency opened his speech * When this bill xyas in committee^ Mr. Grattan observed, (13 Pari. Debates, p. 54d"', *' Tiiis bill is said t<.- be an ex- pedient to restore peace j why, then, is it a reflection? Why do the preamble and the declaration prononnce every man, who has been a delegate, all the volunteers, the di, Legates at Dun- gannon, the delegates of the convention, the comm rtte of the lawyers corps, and the corps, that appointed that committee j tlie committee of the catholics, their late convention, and all the ca- tholics, who appointed that convention ; that is, the whole catholie body, oflenders j men guilty of an unlawful assembly, and at this moment liable to be prosecuted ? For so much has the bill in ob- ject, not the peace of the country, but reflections on great bodies, and the gratification of spleen at the expense ot the constitution, by voting false doctrine into law, and the brightest passages of your history into unlawful assemblies," t They did just with regard to reform, what they had formerly done with regaid to the absentee tax. " A misire-is, (said Mr. Flood), which the people of Ireland sought with a lover's ap- petite, was, when brought to their embraces, rfpudiated with a ^over's inconstancy." z 2 tiO The Reign of George HI. J793. from the throne with these words : " The wisdom and liberality, with which you attended to his Majesty's recommendation in favom' of his Roman Catholic sub- jects, are highly pleasing to the King." Although several excellent laws were passed in the year 1793, yet the administration did not gain popularity by them. The leading measure of grace, which affected the great bulk of the people, was attributed to the personal in- terference of the sovereign over the heads and against the wishes of those, who had the preceding year re- jected their application for less favour with indigna- tion and insult. The passing of the act so empha- tically calculated to destroy the odious distinctions between Irishmen of different religious persuasions, altered the laws^but crushed not the spirit, which kept them up. Great dif^culties at first prevailed in raising the different regiments of militia; for although catho- lics were rendered capable of serving in them, no catholic officers were appointed. This marked exclu- sion in teeth of the act, diffused general diffidence, and it was found necessary to appoint several catholic officers, before the militia corps could be completed*. The legislative concessions made to the catholics of Ireland, in submispion to the royal recommendation^ were strongly counteracted by the exclusive distinc- * A still stronger instance of predominant bigotry occurred ai the quarterly meeting of the guild of merchants in Dublin j when the application of thirty Roman catholic merchants to be admitted iiito the guild was rejected upon the ballot, by 0/ against 63: But it was remarkable, that of those 67, 42 were pensioners, place- ftieiv er custom-house officers. Administration of ihe Earl of Westmoreland. 341 Vi^-y'*/ tions publicly kept up in corporations, and by anony- *793« mous charges and slanders circulated against them. The catholics met these anonymous attacks^, with fresh re- solutions and avowals of their loyalty and affection to tije King and constitution*. The growth and pro- gress of defenderism were most unwarrantably charged on the entire body of catholics. The murder of the Reverend Mr. Butler, a respectable magistrate, and chaplain to the Bishop of Meath, and a rising in the neighbourhood of Athboy, which was dispersed in the course of the day, were attempted to be fixed upon them, and were most iniquitously converted into the grounds of falsely charging and imprisoning Mi'. Fay and some other highly respectable gentlemen of the catholic persui*sion, who Vv^ere tried and acquitted, notwithstanding the false testimony of one Lynch and other wretches, raked out of gaols, and suborned to swear away their livesf. In order to counteract these attempts to calumniate and criminate the body of the catholics, by identifying the cause of Roman catholics, united Irishme , defenderSj French levellers, and sworn enemies to the constitution, the cathohc bishops presented au address to his excellency in De- cember, 1793, to be transmitted to his Majesty, ex- pressive of their unshaken loyalty and grateful affection to his Majesty's person and government. And in Fe- bruary, 17^1', they presented a very impressive me- * The resolntioDs of the inliabit:ints of the town and neigh- bourhood of \Vt;xfo;d, are givMi in the Ilibtoricai il.vi^w, p. 430!. ■f These iniquitous transactions are rallicr fully nanuted iu mj Historical llevicw, vol. 11. p. -^38, &c, z 3 342 The Reign of George HI. 1794^ morial to the Earl of Westmoreland, to obtain his Majesty's license to found and endow seminaries for the education of their clergy within their native king- don^ *. Trial of Mr. The Confident boldness, with w^hich the popular so- Rowan, cieties had lately expressed their political sentiments, induced government to adopt a system of strong mea- sures. An information was filed against Mr. A. Ha- milton Rowan for distributing fa seditious libel. After a trial of about ten hours, he was found guilty. A motion for a new trial was argued for p;ix days, and at last discharged. He was S':ntenced to pay a fine of 500/. to be imprisoned for tw^o years, and to find se- curity for his good behaviour for seven years, himself in 2000/. and two sureties in 1000/. each. l"he ver- dict and judgment gave .great dissatisfaction to the * These addresses are to be seen in my Historical Review, vol. II. p. 4^3, This address of the prelates to the lord-lieutenant was not relished by the general body of the laity. It appeared too adulatory to the system of government : it put an end to a plan of education, which had been for some time in negociation betv.'een the clergy and laity; and thenceforth checked the confidence, that had latterly subsisted between them. The gentlemen ;^Dr. Ryan, Pr. Macneven, and Mr. Lyons), who had negociated with the prelates, were desired to dtsist from their labours, as an arrange- ment had taken place for a plan of catholic education toTje con- ducted solely by the bishops, under the auspices of government and the sanction of parliament. (Pieces of Irish Hiatoryj p. 7-4), t This gentleman was universally beloved and respected by all who knew him. He was secretary to the Society of United Irish- men at Dublin. Their Address to the Volunteers of Ireland, (which may be seen in my Historical Review, vol. II. p. 448), signed by Mr. Hamilton Rowan, was the libel complained of. Administration of the Earl of JVestvirreJand. 343 popular party. They loudly complained of the judge 1/94. and jury acting under court influence. The parliament was conven d on the 2}i:t oi'Jaiiu- Parliament J TV T 1 convLiied ary ; and Mr. ron>oriby*s relorm bill, wliich was lost a^d pro .... . ro^ucd. upon a division of 142 against 44, was the only object ol- interest brought before them. The 2,:th of March put an end to that jejune se.^sion. The gentlemen of the opposition, and particularly Mr. Grattan, gave great offence to the United Irishmen, by reprobatiag in debate the system of universal suffrage and annual parliaments. Ten days after the debate tliey published an address, severely reflecting upon the failing off of Mr. Grattan, and the minority in parliament. Popular discontent and turbulence increased through- Tr<,uMed out the kingdom. Dcfend.rism spread rapidly ; the country. Right Boys gained confidence, and the United Irish- men assumed a tone of political language, that shocked even some steady supporters of constitutional freedom, and gave too plausible a handle to their enemies to fasten upon them intentions and views, which that so- ciety then had not. The defenders were of the lowest orders of society ; enemies of course to all t!iat pos- sessed propel ty and cliaracter. In Longford, the no- bility, clergy, and freeholders obtain* d permission from the viceroy to levy money by subscripiioii for raising and maintaining a body of horse for their de- fence. Meetings and resolutions for the like purpose became frequent in other parrs. Mr. Hamilton Rowan's escape out of prison on- the \?X of May, 17134, made a deep, though very oppoi^iie impression Z 4 ^44 The Eeign of George II h 1794. tipon different parts of the nation One fhousand pounds reward was offered for apprehending him. About the same time, the Reverend Mr Jackson*, a prote.stant clergyman, was committed to Newgate on a charge of high treason. The rejecition of the ques* tion of reform tended powerfudy to increase the po» pular discontent. The people at large were all for reform: some for universal suffrage, most, for a tem- perate improvement of the state of popular representa* tion. 1 he two great objects of political attention were parliamentary reform and catholic emancipat on. Most persons out of parliament were common advocates for both, each tending to promote and improve the other. Difference AbouC this time the term or title of Uftiled Irishmen first'an'iiast bccame peculiarly obnoxious. It ought not, how^ irishnieiv cvcr, to be coufounded, as it often is, with the guilt of the latter rebellious members of the Irish union. They were separate and distinct societies : their prin- ciples, objects, and engagements were different. The one was extinct, before the other existed. The lead- ing traits of the latter were separation from Great Bii- tain and republicanism. And up to this time, nei- ther of those objects had been a subject of discus- sion, debate, or even conversation in the first society. Their views and actions were simply comiiiensurate with their test. I'he very spirit and terras of their * This gentl. man had a delegation from France to enquire into and report the spirit ana resources of the nation to resist inva^^ion. He confided his S'=^ciet to Mr. Cockayne, his attorney, who accom- panied him to Irelajjd, and informed against him. jidmhiistration of the Earl of Ifestmoreland. 84-5 1794. union offended the friends of protestant ascendancy ' ^^^ and unequal representation. They never presumed an attempt beyond parHamentary reform. So turbulent w^as the state of the country, that the intended British cabinet found it necessary to remove the Earl Lor.i West- of Westmoreland from the government, and to ahan- "'"^^ don the system of coercion. The extraordinaiy ac- cession of a very large part of the Rockingham party* to the minister, in July, J 7^4, was an event, which Mr, Poiisonby said in the Irish house of commonst would never have taken place, had not the Duke of Portland received ample authority to reform the abuses which existed in the Irish government. ; When the Duke and his friends were enticed iuto the coal.tion wkh Mr. Pitt, it had been made a pre- vious condition^ that the entire management of Ireland should be comfuitced to his grace. And so far did Mr. Pitt appear sincere in tiiese terms, that, on the very day, on which the Duke ot Portland kissed hands, which was in July, 17^4, he declared the deter- minauon of the British cabinet, to bring forward the qutstion of catholic emancipation in the next session ot parliament. The lieutenancy was soon after pressed upon Lord Fitzwilliam by the Duke of Portland, who declined going thither in person, with ciirections for making such arrangements, as would enable him to restore tranquillity and order to the country, and re- * The parti«-ibrs of this npgocialion, anJ its consfquent chsnges, are to be seen at large in my historical llcviewj p. 4d5j &c. t 15 Pari. Deb p. 184. ■^ Lord Filzwiiliani's lettfer to Lord Carlisle. 346 The Reign of George III. .J/'9'*- concile the people to its G^overnment. Mr. Pitt, in breaking up the Rockingham party, sought more to weaken his opponents,, than to strengthen administra- tion by the accession of character and talent. Not- withstanding these arrangements with his new associ- ates, Mr. Pitt assured Lord Westmoreland, in August^ that he should not be removed. Finingit, however, impracticable to retain him in that situation, he ac- tually fixed upon Lord Camdtn, in the course of the autumn, as his successor These circimi- stances demonstrate, that Lord Fitzwiliiam and Ireland were made the sport of cabinet intrigue. That his lord-hip v as sent to take posS:\ssion of a government, which he v/as not intended to conti- nue in ; that he was permitted to raise expictations in the Irish nation, Vv'liich were not to be re alized ; and that he was encouraged to bring forward, as a measure of government, what it had been preconcerted should be opposed by its whole force. System of The incidents of this peiiod were so important to Mr. p!tu'" the interests of Leland, tnat she still has to lanjent their baleful consequtnces. Lvery instance of nnrjisr terial duplicity entails more misery upon posterity, than upon the existing generation. iVir. Pitt, know- ing the real views and mo lives of his new friends, in insisting upon the government of Ireland, to be the complete emancipation of that enthraikd country, tlie necessity oi which his own wii,dom pointed out, as- sured them, that his fullest convictions kept pace with their plans for the w elfare of tiiat country. It was ge- nerally beheved in Ireland, not only by the catholics. ^ddministration of the Enrl of IVestmoreland. 347 who had novv coalesced into a complete union amongst ^79^' themselves, but by the old political Friends of the Duke o[ Portland, that a full and complete emancipation was intended ; and his grace's opinions at that time coin- cided with triose of his Irish friends. In order to the set- tIet3ie]U of ilie new arrangements, Mr. Ponsonby and Mr. Grattan were sent lor to England, and frequently consulted by Mr. Pitt*. The particular marshalling of the treasury bench was settled by Sir John Parneli and Mr. Pitt. By the eflects of the late convention bill, the catho- confikncc lies were prevented from meeting by delegation. They Ihonl-s *' frequently, however^ assembled in the course of the summer, for the purpose of forwarding the general plan, in which they were unanimous, of total emanci- pation, and equalization with their protestant fellow subjects. These meetings were necessarily more nu- merous, than they would have been by delegation, and save sreat umbraee to the Irish povernment. Their confidence had arisen to conviction, that what had in the preceding session been lost by a vast majoiity, * Mr. Grattan has said, (answer to Lord Clare, '2-1), " In the session of 1/94, tlie catholic subject was not nirn ioned ; but in summtr, o:i a clian;^e being made in the Briti.li cabinj't, being in- fo:med by some of the learned persons therein, liiat the aciminis- trationof the Irish department was to belong to tlum, and that they sent for us to adopt our nieasnres, 1 stated the catholic eman- cipation to be one of them." This jjointedly contradicts the noto- rious falsehood of Lord Clare's assertion, that the cathohcs *' would have continued contented and quiet, if they had not been brought forward as an engine of faction, on a change in the Irish government, i/g;." (^Cl. Sp. 06.) 348 The Reign of George III. i79^- would, when backed by government, be cp-rried with unanimity. The catholics of Dublin took the lead, and by unanimous assent resolved to commit their cause to the talents, zeal^ and long-tried sincerity of Mr. Gr^ttan : and resolutions to that effect were ac- cordingly published *. Their exaniple was followed bv most districts in the nation. Cabinet in- The latter end of the vear 1794 v/as a busv scene trigues ^ ^ - _ "' _ against of intrip-ue. Mr. Pitt had several objects in consenting Ttiiiiam. to the new arrangements : first, to flatter, then de- grade his proselytes. He knew the confidence, which the Irish would place in the new administration, and t!ie readiness, with which they would vote the ex- traordinary supphes (1,700,000/.) for carrying on a war, to which his new colleagues were more sanguinely addicted than himself. Mr. Beresford^ who foresaw that in the change of the Irish government, a blow was aimed at the power and authority, which he had exercised successively over every viceroy, from Lord Townshend to Lord Westmoreland, transported him- self to England, and there, both with Ya^ majesty and Mr. Pitt, so eficctually urged the merits of himself and family, as to have fully preconcerted his own con- tinuance in office, the miscarriage of the tatliolic ques- tion, and the immediate recal of the new lord lieute- nant, vh:n the supplies should have been voted. With these assurances, he re. turned to Irehmd, where he was most actively eirployed, in conjuncfion witiL .Lord Fitzgibbon and Mr. Foster, in preparing to * These resolutions are to be seen Hist. Rev. vol. II. p. 169. Administration of the Earl of JVestmoreland. 349 counteract all the plans intended by the new admini- ^J^\ stration, for the benefit of that country. Such was the reception, which Mr. Pitt had insidiously pre- pared for Lord Fitzwilliam, when he was deputed to the government of Ireland. That Lord Fitz- william went over with a plenitude of power from the British cabinet to carry the measure of catholic emancipation, stands roundly asserted by that noble- man himself, and by Lord Milton, Mr. Ponsonby, and Mr. Grattan. It was contradicted by Lord West- moreland*, who said, in the British house of peers, that Mr. Pitchad assured him, " that Earl Fitzwilliam had no authority whatever from ministers in this coun- try, for taking the steps he did on the catholic ques- tion : they were taken not only without their author- ity, but with their positive disapprobation " Lord Fitzwilliam took possession of his government on the 4 th of January, 1795. * 41 Par. Deb. p. 352. t 350 ] CIlAPTEil VI. Adniiiiistraiion of Earl FitzwiUiam. '"P-'j- Alth(^ugh Lord FitzwiUiam had coalesced with Mr. Pitt on the necessity of the war with France, and Lo'd Fit?- the general call to make head against the pruriency of sum'eTtht^ democracy, he siill retained all those valuable pi'inci- ment"' P^^s, and estimable qualities, which so peculiarly sig- nalized his late uncle, the Marquis of Rockingham, ■and the principal supporters of his party. Alike ho- nourable and inllexible in his public and private deal- ings, he was a stranger to that system of pliancy and insincerity, which Mr.Pitt required of his creatures and colleagues. He played not the intriguing courtier, but the honest minister, performing upon public princi- ples his public duty, equally regardless of the favour of the court and people. He had no sooner arrived at his seat of government, than he put his hand earnestly to the work, irisensible of the preconcerted oppo- sition of Mr. Pitt to the whole of his system. Yet had not the Duke of Portland and Mr. Pitt con- curred with his lordship in the policy and necessity of relieving the catholics from every remaining disqualifi- cation, he tells us*j he never would have undertaken t.he p-overiimcnt. Before his departure from England, * Letter to Lord Carlisleo ^idnii}nstration of Earl Filziviltiam. 251 it lui'i been resolved, th.at if the catholics should ap- ^''^\ pear d: tf'rMUn:d to siir the business, and bring it be- fore parliament, he was to ^ive it a handsome support on the put of gcn'ernmerit. Three days after his laniling, he transmitted the result of his observations to the Briii^-h cabinet : and during the first fortnight not a negative idea was communicated to him from England. The first pubhc acts of Lord Fitzwilliam's govern- Dismissals ment, were some dismissals from offices, which ere- FUzwii- ated general apprehensions through all the departments oi' the castle*. He made proposals to the British mi- nisters for the removal of the attorney and solicitor general, upon large provisions : it having been previ- ously arranged with Mr. Pitt and the Duke of Port- land, that they were to be succeeded by Messrs. Pon- sonby and Curran. He rdso removed Mr. Beresford, whom he found filling a situation greater than that of the lord-lieutenant ; sensible that any connection with a person under universal heavy suspicions, would be subjecting his government to all the opprobrium and unpopularity of Mr. Beresford's mal-administration ; nor would becloud the dawn of his administration, by leaving in such power and authority, so much im- puted malversation; though in point of income, he left * One of the';als in his favour, and thinks a retreat upon 1200/. a year an inadequate recompenc? for the magnitude and injportaxiee of his services." SSS. The Reign of George III. 3/03. him as well as he had ever been. Mr. 3eresford,hiS family and friends then ^vere in the full enjoyment of more emolument, than ever had been accumulated in that country upon any one family. Catholic The address of the catholics of Dublin w^s pre*- Loraritz- sented to his excellency on the 7 th of January*, an4 was foil >wed up bv numerous others ; they were all of one tendency, and received similar answers. It was truly observed, that the catholics* gratitude for the late concessions, appeared less prominent in their addresses, than their confidence and expectation of their extension. i.oHFitr. On the 22d of January, 1795, Earl Fitzwilliam William meets the met the parliament, and in his speech alluded to the Parltametu. , . . - eventful situation of the British empire, and called upon them to lend their aid to its support in those ex- traordinary circumstances. Immediately after the speech had beeii read, Mr. Grattan moved the ad- dress*, which he supported by a brilliant speech, which explicitly pledged the principles of the new lieutenant's government to the Irish nation. Mr. Du- * Lord Clare gave a. most malicious and distorted representa- tion of the loyal act of a respectable body of subjects, evidently calcidated to throw a suspicion of treason upon the catholic body. {Lord dare's speech, p, 66.) " An address to Lord Fitzwilliam in the name of their body was voted, and at the front of the com- mittee, appointed to greet ihe king's representative under the auspices of his self-avowed mini<4ter, stand the names of Dr Wil- liam James M'Ntven, Mr John Sweetman, and Mr. Richard M'^Ccrmick, all of ihem si-lf- convicted tiaitors." •f As tills gentleman had not accepted of any place, I^rd Clare called him tije self-avoweu niinUter of Lord Fitzwilliam. Administration of Earl Fiizivill'iam. 353 <^^^^^ (query alone reprobated the war with pointed severity. ^fl£ The motion for the address was carried without a di- vision ; as was also the motion of Mr. Conoliy f r an address* to the lord lieutenant. The unanimity of the whole catholic body, for an immediate application to parliament, for the unqualified repeal of the whole penal code was too formidable to be damped or dis- appointed. Lord Fitzwilliam judged, it could not be postponed without danger. Mr. Grattan, who com- manded the confidence of the catholics, and ol the lord lieutenant, on the 24th of January, presented a peti- tion of the catholics of the city of Dublin, to be re- stored to the full enjoyment of the constitution, by a repeal of all the penal laws still affecting the catholics of Ireland. It was ordered to lie on the table, which was soon laden with similar petitions from every dis- tinct body of catholics throughout the realm. On the 12th of February, 1795, Mr. Grattan obtained leave to bring in the bill, Vrhieh was opposed only by Dr. Duigcnan, Mr. Ogle, and Colonel Blaquieref, * The speeches of Lord Fitzwilliam ar.d Mr. Grattan, and the different addresses, art- to be seen in my Hist. Rev. Vol. II. p. 478, &c. f Letter to Lord Carlisle. It rarely happens, that such mys- terious and dark transactions, as this government oppositioa to the open and avowed measures of the king's ostensible ministers are fairly brought to light. The Irish nation and the public are highly indebted to the candour and independence of this distin- guished nobleman, for having disclosed the truth in his invaluable letter to Lord Carlisle. It defies cavil, doubt, atid contradiciion« and must hand down the nob'e and patriotic writer to the love and venera'ion of the latest poiterity. VOL. U. 2 A 354 The Reign of George IIL 179s. As there appeared a rising Impatience among the ca» tholics, after the delivery of their petitions, his excel- lency apprehended, that the measure might be trans- ferred from the hands of Mr. Grattan to those of some other, over whom he might have no controul ; and he considered, that delay would be attended with a certainty of the most alarming and fatal con- sequences. British mi- O^ the 1 4th of February, Lord Milton communi- poses the cated to the house his majesty's gracious answer to Sc viceToy! ^^^'^^ address, which pointedly noticed, that the fa- vourable sentiments they had expressed of Lord Fitz- william were pleasing to his majesty, as they con- firmed those impressiuiis, which recommended him to his majesty's choice for the government of Ireland. This confirmation of the royal choice of the viceroy, was communicated to the house of commons on the very day, which brought tidings, that the British minis- ter was adverse to the important measure, which the lord lieutenant was thus publicly pursuing. The ex- traordinary joy of the catholics on the occasion of leave to bring in their bill, was suddenly damped by this inexplicable intelligence. Earl Fitzwilliam had been permitted to quit England with a plenitude of discretion over the caLholic question, and had acted for above a month upon it in Ireland without a sug- gestion of difference of opinion in the British cabinet from him upon the subject. On the 9th of February, Mr. Pitt wrote to Lord Fitzwilliam, to expostulate on the dismissal of Mr. Beresford ; and also on the nego- Administration of Earl Fitzwilliam. . 355 ciatlon with Messrs. Wolfe and Toler *. That formed ^795. the whole matter of his letter, and to that alone he confined his remonstrances : so far was he from find- ing any fault with the measures hitherto pursued, which he was thoroughly apprized of, that he con- cluded his letter by apologizing Jbr interrupting his attention from the many important considerations of a different nature^ to ivhich all their minds ought to he directed. This evident allusion to the question of ca- tholic emancipation, ascertains the real cause of Mr. Pitt's determination to recal Lord Fitzwilliam ; and justifies his lordship's assertion, that the catholic question entered for nothing into the real cause of his recal, but that it was solely owing to the dismissal of Mr. Beresford. On the 1 7th of February, Mr. Gray- don moved for a committee to inquire into the expendi- tures of the revenue for twenty years past, the num- ber of additional ofEcers appointed in each year, with the names of the persons, and salary annexed to each office. The motion was carried against the single ne- gative of Colonel Blaquiere. The resolutions of the British cabinet were not instantly followed up by the recal of the viceroy. The determination was known, to many, though publicly avowed by none. Sir Lawrence Parsons, who with Mr. Duquerry had The two ... 1 i_ opponents Stood alone m opposition to the government upon the ot Lord . , , .t. 1 Fitzwilliam question of war*, noticed the prevailmg rumour, that most hurt at his icc^L * The attorney and solicitor general j afterwards ' Lord Kihvar- den and Lord Norbnry. X5 Par. Deb, 133. 2 A 2 -^^■<— i—> " p fi w « .• -^ --M^rtiMkBMkrfHttB^^dltfMHC-:^'- -.^^^--^^^ 356 The Reign of George lit 179-''- their viceroy was about to be recalled. If it arose from any new restriction on his wishes to realize the professions of his administration, or to fill his high station with honour, his resignation reflected the high- est lustre on the dignity of his nature and the purity of his principles ; but as he still hoped measures had not proceeded to that Icn:j,th, which must deprive the country, in so critical a juncture, of the auspices of a nobleman, who came the harbinger and the hostage of her political salvation, he moved for an address to his excellercy to implore his continuance amongst them. Mr. Duqiiery seconded the motion. He and the ho- nourable baronet had differed from gentlemen on the other side of the house respectirg the ruinous war ; but if, after voting the enormous supply of \,1C0X)00l. to save, if possible, the empire from destruction, they were to be deprived of the administration of that no- bleman, to whom the people looked up with confid- ence, he feared the great and salutary measures of reform, retrenchment, and responsibility would vanish, and the cjitholics of Ireland^ instead of the accomplish- ment of their hopes, would have the gate of the castle slapped in their faces, and be refused the blessings of the constitution. He severely animadverted upon Mr. Pitt's conduct, who, not satisfied with having involved • the empire in a disastrous v/ar, intended to complete the mischief, by risking the internal peace of Ireland, making the friends of that country Ihe dupes of his fraud and artifice, in order to swindle the nation out of lj700,00()/. to support the war, on the faith of mea- sures, which he intt;iided should be refused. Qn ^Administration of Earl Fi'zjvilliam. 357 the 2d of March, Sir Lawrence Parsons moved for a ^79^- three months* money bill, wnich Mr. Conolly proposed to compromise, and the house divided, 24 for and 14(j against Sir Lawrence Parsons' modon. Mr Co- nolly then proposed three resolutions. *' 1. That his excellency Earl Fitzwilliam had, by his conduct since his arrival in that kingdom, merited the thanks of that house and the confidence of the people, 2. That to prorogue the parliament before the grievances, of which the people complained, were redressed, would be highly inexpedient. 3. That the foie^^oing resolu- tions be laid before his majesty." The first of these resolutions was carried unanimously ; the two other, at the instance of Lord Milton and Mr. Grattan*, were vi'ith drawn. On the ]Oth of March, the house adjourned to the 24th, when the money bills were cariied up to the lords, and the house then further ad- journed to the ISth of April, in order to allow time for the new arrangements. 1 he report of Karl Fitzwilliam's intended removal Report of Load Fitz- was no sooner cr*^dited, than an universal despond- wiiham's ency, m some nisiances bordenng on desperation, and its ef- _ -. , „ , fects. seized the nation. Meetings were rormcd to convey to their beloved governor^ their high sense of his vir- tue and patriotism, and their indignanon at his and their country's enemies. The spirit of discontent was not confined to the Cdtholics. The dissenters, and as many of the protestants of the establishment, as had not an interest in that monopoly of power, which Lord * 15 Pari. Deb. p. 142. 2 a3 058 , The Reign of George III, J 795. Fitzwilllam had so openly attacked and so fearfully alarmed, felt the irresistible eftecL All good Irishmen beheld with sorrow and indignation the reconciliation of all parties, interests, and religions defeated, the cup of national union dashed from their eager lips, and the spirit of discord let loose upon the kingdom with an enlarged commission to enflame, aggravate, and destroy. The catholics of Dubhn took the lead*, and deputed three of their body to present a petition to the king at the levee, praying on behalf of their body, that his majesty would be graciously pleased to con- tinue his excellency in the government of Ireland. On the 5th of March^ the Duke of Leinster, in the house of lords, rose at a late hour, and, after pre- facing what he was about to propose with a warm and affectionate eulogy upon the character of Lord Fitzwilliam, moved the following resolution, " that his excellency Earl Fitzwilliam since his arrival in that kingdom,, had, by his publia conduct, merited the thanks of that house, and the confidence of the coun- try." Lord Dillon opposed the motion : upon whicli a warm debate ensued ; but with a slight amendment, the resolution passed. The ferment in the country was greatly increased by the rumours then afloat con-r cerning the extraordinary movements in the cabinets orboth kingdoms. Catholics' On the 27th of February, 1 795, the catholics of Mr. GraN Dublin appointed two gentlemen of their body to pre- lan. * The resolutions of this meeting are given in m/ Hist. Rey . vol. II. T). 503. Administration of Earl Fitziviliiam, sent an address to Mr. Grattan, which fully spoke their feelings and sentiments of the political posture of affairs : to which they received an immediate answer, which has been more censured by the enemies, and applauded by the friends of that gentleman, than any thing, that ever came from his mouth*. * Mr. Grattan's reply to that address is too pointed and appro- priate to existing circumstances not to submit parts of it to the reader. " In supporting you, I support the protestnnt : we have but one interest and one honour ; and whoever gives privileges to you, gives vigour to all. The protestant already begins to perceive it. A late attack rallied the scattered spirits of the country from the folly of religious schism to the recol!ecnon of national honour j and a nation's feuds are lost in a nation's resentment. Your emanci- pation will pass, .ely on it; your emancipation must pass: it may be death to one viceroy ; it will be the peace-ofFering of an- other ; and the laurel may be torn from the dead brow of one go- vernor, to be crafiily converted into the olive of his successor. " Let me aJvise you by no means to postpone the consideration of your fortunes till after the war: rather let Britain receive the benefits of your zeal during the exigency which demands it ; and you yourselves, while you are figh.ing to preserve the blessings of a constitution, have really and bona fide those blessings. " My wish is, that you may be free now ; there is no other policy, which is not low and little : let us at cnce instantly embrace and greatly emancipate. " On this principle I mean to introduce your bill, with your permission, immediately after the recess. *• His excellency, Lord Fitzwi liam, may boast that he offered to the empire the :iffecti(jns of millions, a better aid to the war than his enemies can furnish, who have fortcited those atFeciions, and put themselves in their place. " So decidedly have the measures of Ireland served the empire, that those, who were concerned in them, might appeal from the cabals of the British cabinet to the seme of the British nation. I 360 The Reign of George III. ^795 Addresses and resolutions were daily multiplied Lord Fitz- fi-oni difFfjrent bodies of catholics, who not content William ^ , . leaves Ire- vvith having addressed his Majesty, his viceregent, and Und. parliament, now addressed particular characters of extraordinary influence or supposed power in the country, as the last resort in their despondency j calling upon their exertions to prevent the threatened catastrophe, All was fruitless. On the 2fA\i of ^now of no cause afforded for the displeasure of the British cabi- net j but if services done to Ireland ore ciimcs, vhicli cannot be atoned for by exertions for the empire, I iMUist lament the gloomy prospects of both kingdoms, and receive a d scharge Irom the ser- vice of government as the only honour an Englisti minister catJ confer on an Irish subject. "■ I conceive the continuance of Lord Fitzwilliam is necessary for the prosperity of this kingdom: his firm integrity i-^^ forint^d to correct, his mild manners to reconcile and las private example to discountenance a pr;.gress of vuh:,arand lapid pnllulion : if he i.>- to. retire, I condole with my country — f-r mystlf, the pangs on that occasion, I should feel on rendering up my small portion of mini- sterial breath would be little, were it not for the gloomy prospects afforded by those dreadful guardians, which are likely to succeed. I tremble at the return to power of your old task-master ; that com- bination which galled the country M'ith its tyranny, insulted her by its manners, exhausted her by its rapacity, and slandered her by its malice : should such a combination at once, inflamed as it paust be now by the favour of the British court, and by the repro- bation of the Irish people, return to power, I have no hesitation to, say, that ihey will extinguish Ireland, or Ireland must remove them; it is not your case only, but that of the nation. 1 find the country already committed in the struggle j I beg to be committed along with her, and to abide the issues of her fortunes. What- soever shall be the event, I will adhere to her interests to the last pioment of my life." Jtdministration of Earl Fitzwilliam. 361 March, 1795, Lord Fitzwilliam took his departure ^79^. from Ireland, when the resentment, grief, and indig- nation of the public were most strongly marked. It was a day of general gloom : the shops were shut ; no business of any kind was transacted, and the whole city put on mourning. His coach was drawn to the water-side by some of the most respectable citizens^ jind cordial sorrow appeared on every countenance. I 362 ] 1795. CHAPTER Til. .Administration of Earl Camden, mcmof' Earl Camd&n, who before the appointment of* i^ordCam- jjj^ inimediatc predecessor had been destined by Mr. Pitt to fill the situation of viceroy, as the best calcu- lated to continue the system of Lords Buckingham and Westmoreland, arrived in Dublin, five days after Lord Fitzwilliam had le t it. Mr. Pitt's two grand ob- jects had been carried by the unprecedented vote of 1,700,000/. towards carrying on the war, and the degradation and further division of the proselytes he had enticed from the Rockingham party. So much displeasure appeared on Lord Camden's arrival, that it was found necessary to call out the military to pre- vent outrage. Catholic Still the rage for meetings continued. On the 9th of meeting in . _ '_ Francis- April the catholics met in their chapel in Francis- street, in Dublin, to receive the report of the dele- gates, who had presented their petition at St. James's : when Mr. Keogh reported, that In execution of their mission they had on the 13th of March presented their petition to his Pvlajesty, and hat! received what was generally termed a gracious reception. That they had afterwards felt It their duty to request an audience with the Duke of Portland, the secretary of state for the home department, to receive such information as street. Administration of Earl Camden. 363 he should think fit to impart relative to his Majesty's i795- determination on the subject of their address. That his grace decHned giving any information whatever, save that his Majesty had imparted his pleasure thereon to the lord- lieutenant, and that he was the proper channel, through which that information should pass. Here their mission was determined. Mr. Keogh spoke strongly upon the critical situation of affairs. The failure of their wishes would, he hoped, rouse the Irish legislature to a sense of its own dignity. It shtwed, that the internal regulations of Ireland, to which alone an Irish parliament was competent, were to be pre- viously adjusted by a British cabinet. A very ani- mated debate ensued ; in which the speakers emulated (each other in enhancing the advantages of an imion of Irishmen of every description. And now for the first time they spoke of and deprecated an union v.ith Great Britain, to which they saw the present system of measures was obviously directed. Whilst this debate was going on, a large party of Admi-jsion the young men of the college* came into the chapel, y^une: men < i the col- le£;e -o the * " It has been ihe constant custom with the'University of meetm"-. Dublin, to present addresses ot congratulation to every newly ax- rived chief governor: that day was appointed for presenting their offering to Lord Camdm. While the procession wns on its way, the .students, as if with one consent, broke utF, and left the Prevost and Fellows to make what appenvance betore his excel- lency they might think fit, while they themselves turned into a coffee-house, at the Ca « tie gate ; and there prepared an address to Mr, Gmttan- approving of his public character and conduct. This they presented directly, and having done so, they repaired ^o Francis-street chapel, where the catholics were a3sen)bled. 364 The Reign of George III. \^j^ and were most honorably received. The freedom of speech used by the gentlemen, who took part in this debate, gave heinous offence at the castle. Lord-lieu- On the ISth of Aoril, 1795, Lord Cole moved a tenant ad- * Pressed. congratulatory address to the lord-Jieutenant on his arrival to take on him the government of the kingdom, which was carried without a division. Mr. Grattan however said, he felt himself much more strongly incHned to condole with the country on the recal of Lord Fitzwilliam, than to congratulate it on the ap- pointment of Lord Camden. He afterwards moved for a committee to enquire into the state of the nation^ on which occasion he confidently asserted what he knew was generally known, that the Duke of Portland had declared*, " he accepted office principally with a view to reform the abuses in the government of Ireland ; that the system of that government was execrable : so execrable, as to threaten not only Ireland with the greatest misfortune, but ultimately the empire ; that his grace would have gone in person, if he had not found a second self in Lord Fitzwilliani, his nearest They entered while Mr. Keogh was speaking _; and that ready as well as able orator instantly seized the incident, and hallowed the omen. They were received with the most marked respect and affection ; the catholics taking that opportunity of shewing, that the language of union and brotherly love, which they were utter- ing, only expressed the sentiments nearest their hearts." Pieces of Irish History, p. 114. The address to Mr. Grattan and his answer are very interesting, and may be seen in ray Historical Review, p. 5/2. * 15 Pari. Deb. p. l65. Admimstration of Earl Camden, S65 and dearest friend, whom he persuaded to accept the ^795. Irish government, and to whom he committed the im- portant office of reforming the manifold abuses in that government. That the removals were stipulated for by that part of the British cabinet : and catholic emancipation v/as not only the concession of that quarter of the cabinet, but its precise engagement.'* This fiist division under Lord Camden of 48 for, and 158 against the motion, shewed the strength of government in the house. The 4th of May, ll'dS, brought on the important debate on the second read- ing of the Roman CathoUc bill for their total eman- cipation. The solicitor- general moved, that it should be rejected. The motion was seconded by Lord Kingsborough, who spoke violently against the bill. Almost every gentleman, who had before spoken in parliament, took part in the debate. Mr. Arthur O'Connor made one of the most brilliant speeches ever heard in the Irish parliament in support of it*. It was now for the first time urged, that if the bill should pass, the King would infringe his coronation oath. This formed the chief novelty of argument. Never v/as there a more heated debate in parlia- jnent, Although it were made a government ques^ tion, some of their usual (more independent) sup» * This speech first raised him into note : he was brought into parhament by his uncle. Lord Longueville, who was a supporter of administration. His lordship was so offended with the speech of his nephew, that the next morning he sent for him, and desired him to resign his seat, which accordingly he did. S65 The Reign of George III, J795, porters, left them on this occasion, and at the half-past ten o*clock of the morning of the 5th of May, the house divided, 155 for rejecting the bill and 84 against it. Thus was an end put to the fond and confident expectation, vvith which the great bulk of the Irish nation had been encouraged io look to their emanci- pation. Motions Sir Lawrence Parsons on the 1 Sth of May, moved made by . ^ . . . , . , opposition, a resolution, of which he had long given notice, which was debated with more personal acrimony than any question throughout the session. The resolution was, *" that John Earl of Westmoreland, by authorizing such a number of regular troops to be sent out of this country, as left the remainder considerably less than the number appointed by law for the defence thereof, had been guiity of a violation of the compact entered into with the crown, and of dispensing with the law of the land." It was met by the question for adjourn- ment, which after midnight w^as carried by a majority of S3 against 2'3. The only question of notice, that occurred during the remainder of the session, was Mr. Curran's motion for an address to the crown, seconded by Mr. Grattan : this was also defeated by the ques- tion of adjournment without a division. fT-he address was intended as a recorded publication of the senti- * 15 Parliamentary Debates, p. 37O. t The address is in the Historical Review, vol. II. p 526; where also may be seen an account of the conduct of the British parliament upon the singular recall ot Lord Fitzwilliam. Administration of Earl Camden, 367 ments, and justification to posterity of the conduct of *^^ the gentlemen of opposition during that session of par- liament. On the 5th of June, 1795, the parliament was pro- ^J^J^^^J rogued with the usual formalities. The lord-lieut> nant*s speech from the throne expressed his Majesty's acknowledgments for the very liberal 'supplies, and commended the benevolent relief of the poor from the tax of hearth-money ; the wise foundation of a college for the education of the catholic clergy ; and the satisfactory arrangement of issuing money from the treasury. During the summer the defenders rapidly encreased. Encreascof Severe outrages were committed upon the primate. The and Uniced ° ... Irishmen. chancellor was wounded in his carriage on the head by a stone. The house of Mr. John Claudius Beresford was assailed. The chancellor and all the Beresfords were particularly obnoxious at this time, from their decided opposition to parliamentary reform and catholic eman- cipation ; and from their having been prominently active in procuring the removal of Lord Fitzwilliam. The British cabinet replaced those persons, whom the people, at that time, looked upon as their greatest ene- mies, and they resumed their situations with redoubled . propensity to strong measures. Henceforv/ard the po- pular societies began to settle into a system of myste- rious secrecy. The secret committee of the lords de- clared, that *" the attainment of what are called par- liamentary reform and catholic emancipation were and * 7 Lords' Jourral, p. 5S0. union. 363 The Reign of George IIL 1795. continued to be holdenout by them merely as a pretence for their associations, and with a view to seduce per- sons, who were not apprized of their traitorous designs, to unite with them." Some leading heads of these socieUes, whose real views were to separate Ireland from Great Britain, took advantage of the critical mo- ment, and converted this increased austerity of govern- ment into a most powerful engine for forwarding theif traitorous designs. N'ature of Three members of the executive of the Irish Union^ the Irish Messrs. O'Connor, Emmett, and Dr. M'Neven, whilst in prison, wrote a detailed memoir of its origin and progress, and delivered it in to the Irish government ; in which they say, " The first of these societies, as we best recollect, in the year 1795, in order to se- cure co-operation and uniformity of action, organ- ized a system of committees, baronial, county, and provincial, and even national ; but it was long before the skeleton of this organization was filled up. While the formation of these societies was in agitation, the friends of hberty were gradually, but with a timid step, advancing towards republicanism; they began to be convinced, that it would be as easy to obtain a revoludon as a reform, so obstinately was the latter resiited; and as the conviction impressed itself on their minds, they were inclined not to give up the struggle, but to extend their views ; it was for this reason, that in their test the words are, an equal re- presentation of all the people of Ireland, without in- serdng the word parliament. This test embraced both the repubhcan and the reformer, and left to future cir- Administration of Ear! Camden. 3G9" cumstances to decide, to which point the common 1795 strength should be directed j but still the whole body, we are convinced, would rejoice to stop short at re- form. Another consideration, however, led the minds of reflecting united Irishmen to look towards a repub- lic and separatron from England ; this was the war with France ; they clearly perceived, that their strength was not likely to become speedily equal to wresting from the English and the borough interest in Ireland even a reform ; foreign assistance would therefore per- haps become necessary ; but foreign assistance could only be hoped for in proportion as the object, to which it would be applied was important to the party giving it. A reform in the Irish parliament was no object to the French : a separation of Ireland from England was •a mighty one indeed. Thus they reasoned : shall we, between two objects, confine ourselves to the least valu- able, even though it be equally difficult to be obtained, if we consider the relationof Ireland with the rest of Europe. " Whatever progress the united system had made among the catholics throughout the kingdom, until after the recal of Lord Fitzwilliam, notwithstanding many resolutions, which had appeared from them, manifesting a growing spirit, they were considered as entertaining an habitual spirit for monarchy, but also as being less attached than the presbyterians to politi- cal liberty. There were, however, certain men among them, who rejoiced at the rejection of their claims, because it gave them an opportunity of pointing out that the adversaries of reform were their adversaries ; yoL. li. 2 B 370 The Reign of George II L 179-j* and that these two objects could never be separated with any chance of success to either. They used the recal of that nobleman, and the rejection of his mea- sures, to cement together in political union the catho- lic and presbyteiian masses. "The modern societies, for their protection against informers and prosecution, had introduced into their test a clause of secrecy. They did more: they changed the engagement of their predecessors into an oath ; and mutual confidence encreased, when re^ ligion was called in aid of mutual security." Test cf the Froui reflection and experience, the people became irrshmcn. coHvinced, that no system but that of union could succeed ; they therefore formed themselves into affili- ated societies, and adopted the following solemn test : *' In the awful presence of God, I, A. B. do volunta- rily declare, that I will persevere in endeavouring to form a brotherhood of affection among Irishm.en of every religious persuasion ; and that I will also perse- vere in my endeavours to obtain an equal, full, and adequate representation of all the people in Ireland. I do further declare, that neither hopes, fears, re- wards, or punishments shall ever induce me, directly .or indirectly, to inform of, or give evidence against, any member or members of this or similar societies, for any act or expression of their's done or made, col- lectively or individually, in or out of this society, in pursuance of this obligation.'* In the course of this year united societies were formed in most parts of th^ Jtingdom. Administration of End Camden. S7l Government became alarmed. Agents were sent ^79^. to Armagh, to turn the ferocity and fanaticism of the Religious Peep-of-Day Boys into a religious contest with the couraged 11. 1 . . 1 r 1 -I 1 -tr' ^y govern- catiiolics under an nnposmg zeal for church and Kmg. ment. Personal animosity was artfully converted into reli- Men° gious rancour : and for the specious purpose of taking off the stigma of delinquency, the appellation of Peep- of-Day Boys was changed into that of Orange Men. At first no person of consequence appeared in it : the first lodge was formed on the 21st of September, 1795. Like the United Irishmen, they were soon af- filiated, and their numbers increased. They pretended to support the constitution in the spirit of William the Prince of Orange. Their practices were intolerant and exterminating. * Their original test was said to havq been : " In the awful presence of Almighty God, I, A. B. do solemnly swear, that I will, to the utmost of my power, support the King and the present go- vernment ; and I do further swear, that I will use my utmost exertions to exterminate all the catholics of the kingdom of Ireland.'* The great increase of the Orange institution did not take place till the ensuing year. * This form of test is what is generally believed to have been ill use 3moDgstJ,t/^ Orangemen : but the author has no authentic document for it. , It is so stated in a pamphlet published in 17Q7> called, A View of the present State of Ireland, by an Observer, said to have been written by Mr. A. O'Connor. They were said to have had 3 secret test, which they called their Purple Oath, The secret committee of the lords in I/fjS asked Mr. A. O'Con- nor, if government had any thing to do with their Oa//i of Exier- mination, which presupposes thera to have had cne. 2 B 2 Sf72 The Reign of George IIL ' 1 79^» The boldness of the defenders in the summer of 1 795' Lord Cir- assumcd a most formidable appearance. So far were strong mea- they from being countenanced by the catholics, that their most open outrages were attempted agamst some catholic magistrates in the county of Kildare, where they appeared in bodies of several hundreds. Lord Car- hampton, impatient or dissatisfied at the law's delay, undertook to exert a vigour beyond it. He emptied all the prisons of their tenants, and without form of trial sent them, and every one he chose to suspect of disaffection, on his own authority, to serve on board the fleet. Above 1300 were thus transported from their homes during the summer. The measure was as highly applauded by government, as it was severely reprobated by the opposition. In the summer assizes of this year several defenders were tried and found guilty of high treason ; and the animosity of the De- fenders and Peep-of-Day Boys was renewed in the county of Armagh, to such a degree, that on the 2 1 st of September, the battle of the Diamond, so called from the village of that name, was fought, in which the defenders, though greatly kiperror in number, were worsted with considerable slaughter. From this defeat of the defenders, are to be traced the increased rancour and ferocity of their opponents^ who had formed themselves into clubs of Orangemen, and thereby having increased their strength, meditated the extermination of the whole race of catholics out of the county of Armagh. Parliament When the parliament met on the 21st of January, 1796, the lord- lieutenant after having alluded to th^ Administration of Earl Camden, 373 general affairs of the continent, and noticed some 17Q<5. domestic occurrences, and prepared them for a heavy loan, adverted to those secret and treasonable associa- tions, the dangerous extent and malignity of which had in some degree been disclosed on several trials, and to the disturbances, which had taken place in some^ parts of the kingdom, and called upon their prudence and wisdom to devise such measures as, together with a continuance of those exertions, and the additional powers, which, by the advice of the privy council, he had thought it necessary to establish in different counties, would prevent the return of similar ex- cesses. Upon the motion for an address, Mr. GrattaQ objected only to that part of the address, which expressed a confidence in the present administra- tion. The people of Ireland were loyal to their Sovereign, for which they had been treated with in- solence and contumely. The system of the admini- stration for several years had been profligate and cor- rupt. The hornets of government had been sent out to the different grand juries, in order to procure addresses and resolutions to wall out the catholics from the con- stitution, as the English had formerly walled out the Scotch, and the Chinese the Tartars. The British cabinet, during the administration of Lord Fitzwilliam, had broken faith with Ireland. He reprobated the conduct of Lord Westmoreland in granting the rever- sion of every capital employment in the kingdom, after his successor had been appointed ; said that during his administration, fourteen new employments had been created, and thirteen reversions granted away. The 2 B 3 374 The Reign of George III. 'i^79^' conduct of the British cabinet towards their country was influenced by false witnesses against Ireland ; by bad viceroys, who had acted in their administration unfavorably to Ireland ; and if not by viceroys^ the British cabinet was influenced by clerks, by spies, and by runners. Fourteen only supported his amend- ment, ao-ainst 122. Strong " The attorney-general besides bringing in two bills, measures . ' . , i i • j introduced tor preventing msurrections, tumults, and riots, and by the at- . . . . •, i torney-se- lor indemmrying magistrates acting against the law, moved the following resolutions : 1. " Resolved, That the spirit of conspiracy and outrage, which has appeared in certain parts of this kingdom, and has shewn itself in various attempts to assassinate magistrates, to murder witnesses, to plunder houses, and seize by force the arms of his Majesty's peaceable subjects, requires, that more ef- fectual powers should be given to the magistracy. 2. '' Resolved, That (in such parts of this kingdom, as the said spirit has shewn itself^ or to which there may be cause to apprehend its being extended) it will be necessary, that the magistracy should have enlarged powers of searching for arms, ammunition, and wea- pons of offence, and of seizing or securing the same^ for the preservation of the peace, and the safety of the lives and properties of his Majesty's peaceable and loyal subjects. 3. " Resolved,' Thii\. from the many attacks, which have been made on the houses of individuals, by large bodies of armed insurgents, for the purpose of taking arms and money by force, and murdering those, who Admmutrat'ion of Earl Camden, Jvid the spirit to inforce the laws, or give information against oftenders, it will be necessary, that the magis- tracy should have enlarged powers, to prevent such bodies hereafter from assembling or meeting, either to plan or execute such horrid purposes. 4. " Resolved^ That it will be necessary to give the magistracy further pov;ers with respect to vagabonds, idle and disorderly persons, and person-s. hable to be deemed so, or who have no lawful trade, or any honest means to obtain a livelihood," These resolutions were ushered In by a minute de- Effects of •' the Resolu- tail of the outrages committed during the four preced- tions on th« ing years by the Defenders; without reference to the atrocities committed during the same period by the Peep-of-Day Boys. Of those outrages, Mr. Grattan gave a minute detail. Their object was the extermi- nation of all the catholics of that county ; it was a persecution conceived in the bitterness of bigotry, and carried on with ferocious barbarity by a banditti, who called themselves Orange Boys, or Protestant Boys, committing massacre in the name of God, and exer- cising despotic power in the name of liberty. They formed themselves into a committee, tried the catho- lics, and sent them either on board a tender or to a recruiting ofncer as deserters. They gave them short notices to quit their dwellings, in the laconic words, " Hell or Connaught j" and they followed them by punctual execution of the horrid threat. The mea- sure proposed was defective j it was a partial descrip- tion of the outrages of the kingdom, and a partial re- medy : it proposed to suspend the operation of the 2 B 4 ^76 The Reign of George HI. 1796. constitution, with a view to produce peace, leaving at the same time, in one great county, violence and insurrection in a state of triumph. About 800 catho • He families of Armagh were forced by a violent mob, and a supine magistracy, to abandon their dwellings, ^nd carry themselves and farniiies, and tales of vs^oe, to their brethren in the other parts of the kingdom, and spread the flames of discontent, and spirit of reta- liation. The evil was greatly aggravated by the ma- gistrates of the county of Armagh, several of whom refused to take the examination of the injured catho- tholics. By some of those very magistrates they had been cruelly persecuted ; others would hear them only out of the window, and some actually turned them from their doors with threats. These circum- stances produced a very spirited and proper letter, or address, from Lord Gosford, which, by some oh the treasury bench, was com.plained of as incautious*. Their argument for not taking particular notice of the county of Armagh was, that the existing laws were sufficient to punish the crimes, by which that country was convulsed ; whereas the enormities there com- mitted were emphatically admitted by Lord Gosford, the governor, to extend beyond the reach of the law. On the 24th of March the money bills were pre- sented, and on the 15th of April the parliament was prorogued. * For this letter, which is a most valuable piece of unimpeach- able evidence of the spirit and nature of the persecutions then go- ing forw^vd in Armagh, vide Appen. to my Hist. Rev. No, XCIX. A\. open and avowed Society of United Irishmen*. Arming of t With a view of behig prepared as much as pos- the union, and the people. * In the memoir of O'Connor, Emmett, and M'Neven, they say (p. 9), " None of us were members of the united system until September or October, in the year 1/05." Mr. T. W. Tone had fled the country in 1795, upon suspicion of being implicated in the treason of the Rev. Mr. Jackson, who was found guilty of high treason on the 23d of April, 1795. When he was called up to receive sentence, he died in court of the poison he had pre- viously taken. Mr. Hamilton Rowan about the same time escaped out of prison to the continent. Mr. Napper Tandy having been indicted for high treason about the same time, was proceeding to take his trial at Dundalk j when he was met about twelve miles from that town by his attorney, who apprizing him of the dead weight of evidence against him, returned to Dublin, and fled to the crntinent. t Report of the Secret Committee XVII. Com. Journals, DCCCXXIX. An account of the military organization is to be seen Historical Review, p. 568. Administration of Eari Camden, 381 §ible to co-operate with the enemy then expected, and ^79^- in order to counteract the effect of the armed associa- tions of yeomanry^ established in October, 1796, direc- tions were issued by the leaders of the societies, to form themselves into military bodies, and to be pro- vided with arms and ammunition. These directions were so effectually obeyed, that the numbers of armed men in the province of Ulster alone amounted nearly to one hundred thousand, ready to take the field on the arrival of the enemy or whenever they might receive orders to that effect from their superior ofBcers. The arming of this society was not originally intend- ed : but was only introduced after the passing the in- surrection and indemnity acts, when the people began to be more than ever carried towards resistance, and were extremely irritated by the indemnified violations of law in the north*. The whole number of the united body now consisted of 500,000 men. About the end of the year 1796, the United Irishmen grew much more outrageous and fonnidable throughout the province of Ulster. But the charge of their hold- ing regular committees of assassination is false. Some private murders, and the survivors of the most ob- noxious characters, to whom members of the union had constant access, would refute the charge of any such organised system of bloodshed, had it not been formally denied and disclaimed by the gentlemen, who gave in a very correct memoir of the rise and progress of the union. The public fever advanced with the season. Many outrages of the defenders were punished by the * Memoir IX, S82 The Reign of George J 1 1. 1796. military in a most unwarrantable manner upon innocent untried persons, without charge or trial. Upon mere suspicion or absence of a landlord, they burned houses, maimed, and sometimes murdered the natives, for merelyv-inhabiting the districts, into which they were sent. Terrible is the consequence of protecting crime. At the assizes of Armagh, Colonel Sparrow was tried and found guilty of murdering a Mr. Lucas ; upon his receiving sentence, he produced his Majesty's par- don to the court, and was instantly liberated. This greatly irritated the people : as did the encouragement given by government to Orangemen, in allowing them two guineas per man, for arms and accoutrements. In the autumn of this year government encouraged the formation of armed corps of yeomanry, which were at first strongly disrelished and opposed by many ; and the catholics not being generally admitted into these corps, resented their rejection as an invidious distinction, tending to question their loyalty and sin- cerity in their country's cause. They accordingly > s "waited on Mr. Pelham, the secretary, for leave to raise a catholic corps, but were told, that if they chose they might join the corps then raising by their pro- testant fellow -subjects. Some few did ; but the shy- ness and reluctance, with which catholics were ad- mitted into the protestant corps of yeomanry, kept most from joining them. The dread of a French in- vasion was the ostensible reason for embodying these corps. Nothing so much reconciled them to the public, as the formation of the lawyer's corps. At a general meeting of the bar, -on the 14th of Septem- Administration of Earl Camden. SS5 ber, 1796, it was resolved, that they held It expedient, 170*5 with the permission of government, to form an armed association for the defence of* the kingdom. It was objected to the administration, that whilst M'nisfcr'a •" partiality they proclaimed the houghing of a bullock in the for Orange] south, they smothered in silence the murder and pro- scription of hundreds of human beings in the north : that no statute, proclamation, or resolutions of public bodies, had specified or punished the crimes of the Orangemen in Armagh, no perpetrators of them had been , punished, not a single magistrate had been. - stricken out of the commission, though many wer^ known to have connived at and encouraged those out- rages : and that several were rewarded by commands in the yeomanry corps, and otherv/ise favored by go- vernment. An invitation from the county and borough, of Armagh to Mr. Pelham and Dr. Duigenan, to re- present them in the ensuing parliament, riveted in the minds of the great mass of the people the firmest con- viction, that the impunity of these fanatic extermi- nators of Armagh found countenance, support, and favor from the seat of civil and ecclesiastical power. The congenial opposition given by Mr. Pelham and Dr. Duigenan to the question of catholic emancipa- tion, recommended them to Armagh. The contrary spirit of toleration endeared Colonel (now Lord) Hutchinson* to the city of Cork. I * In his address to the electors of Cork on the 6th of Octoher, 179^^ amongst other matters, this gentleman;, whose gallant con- duct his sovereign has since rewarded with a peerage, thus accost- ed, his constituents after the usuil introductory compliments. S84f The Reign of George IIL 179G- The parliament met on the 13th of October, 1796, Earl meet- ^^en the lord-Heutenant informed them^ that his Ma- ing of par- jgsty had required their attendance thus early in conse- quence of the enemy's threatening a descent upon that kingdom, which he confided in the spirit, loyalty, and zeal of his faithful people of Ireland to repel : now for the first time he took tender notice of the disturbances of Armagh. * " I have however to lament, that in one " It would be ridiculous in me to make you a vain display, and an idle pageantry of my loyalty, which no man has ever presumed to doubt or deny. Brought up in the army almost from my in- fancy, and now a general officer in the King's service, I must be loyal from duty, interest, affection, habit, and feeling ; it would be too late for me to desert that cause, for which I have fought, and for which I am ready to die. " I love and revere our glorious constitution ; I have studied and endeavoured to comprehend its principles, and have yet to learn, that they tend to exclusion or intolerance. Sure I am, that the representation of all freehold property is the basis, upon which it is erected j and that every departure from this its vital principle, is a violation of that constitution, which will be most applauded by those, who understand it best. To unite all sects in one com- mon comprehension, to consolidate the nation, in order to give security to the people, strength to the empire, and dignity to the crown, has ever been the first object of my political life. These were my sentimertts open and avowed long before I had the honor of representing you in parliament. Your own experience ha& proved, that they were not founded in error ; you must have uni- formly observed, that the prosperity of the country has increased in direct proportion with the relaxation of the penal code ; and y«u must be convinced, that the circumstances of the times, and the situation of surrounding Europe, imperiously require thf. ainion of all the inhabitants of this island." * 17 Jour. Com. p. 9. I Administration of Earl Camden. 385 part of the country good order has not yet been en .^79Q- tirely restored ; and that in other districts a treasonable system of secret confederation, by the administering of illegal oaths, still continues, although no means within the reach of government have been left untried to coun- teract it." *Mr. G rattan objected to the speech. It con- tained no reconciling matter. After a brilliant speech, he moved the following amendment : " To represent to his Majesty, that the most effectual method for strengthening tbfe country and promoting unanimity was to take such measures, and to enact such laws, as to ensure to all his Majesty's subjects the blessings and privileges of the constitution, without any distinc- * tion of reiigion." The amendment was only sup- ported by 12 against 149. When the house was in a committee for suspending the Habeas Corpus Act, Mr. George Ponsonby observed, that w^re he to stand alone, he should exert his utmost powers to resist the measure. After a long and intemperate debate, 7 only voted with Mr. Ponsonby, and 137 with the minister. The preparations of the French for a descent upon French in- Ireland had been spoken of throughout Great Britain " and Ireland during the whole of the autumn, with a familiarity, that bred discredit in the people and neglect in the government. The armament consisted of twenty- five ships of the line, including the seven that composed the squadron of Admiral Richery, who was to join it with all speed, fifteen stout frigates, besides * 17 Pari. Deb. p. 3. VOL. II. 2 C 5Sr> The Reign of George til '7P^- sloops and transports for an army of 25,000 men, to be commanded by General Hoche, an officer of dis- tinguished ability. On going out of Brest, on the 1 8th of December, some of the largest ships struck upon the rocks at the mouth of the harbour, some were lost, and others rendered unfit for service. The day afrer its departure, a violent storm arose, which dis- persed the fleet, and damaged many more of the ships. This tempestuous weather lasted during the whole time of the expedidon. . On the 24th, Admiral Bouvet, commander in chief of the French fleet, anchored with seven ships of the line, and ten others, in Bantry Bay. In order to reconnoitre the country, a boat was dis- patched towards shore ; but it was immediately cap- tured, and multitudes appeared on the beach in readi- ness to oppose a landing. After lying some days in this bav, the storminess of the weather increased, and receiving no intelligence of General Hoche and his stafl', vv'ho were in a frigate, that parted from the fleet in the gale of wind, the French admiral determined to quit his position, and return to France. The land- ofScers insisted on landing the troops ; but, as Ge- neral Hoche was absent, he refused to comply with their representations, and set sail for Brest, where he arrived on the last day of December. The other di- visions of his fleet had also the good fortune to reach that harbour, with the loss upon the whole of five ships, two of the line, and three frigates. Ireland, notwithstanding the superiority of the British fleet, WoS sixteen days at the mercy of the enemy, and saved from attack only by the elements. For it is shamefully ^Administration of Earl Camden, 387 notorious, that no preparation was made by land or J 796. -sea to resist the invasion, on behalf of either the British or Irish cabinet. The people were loyal, because left to themselves. Nothing could exceed the consterna^ tion, which the report of the arrival of the French fleet off Bantry Bay created in the capital, except the loyalty and zeal of all ranks of people to go out and meet the enemy. The improvidence of government in not pre- paring against the 'expected attempt of the enemy was vehemently, though ineffectually, urged by the op- position in the house of commons* The^ peasantry vied with each other hi clearing the roads, and ad- ministering to the troops whatever comforts their scanty means and bountiful hearts enabled them. The fortuitous failure of the French invasion fur- Report of nished a strong test of the loyal disposition of the Irish of v/aies' "- . going over people ; and gave rise to reports, that measures or con- viceroy to .... lieland. ciiiation towards Ireland had been resolved on by the British cabinet. Catholic emancipation and temperate reform were once more confidentially spoken of: and Lord Camden, whose administration was pledged to resist those two questions^ it was generally expected would immediately resign. These flattering prospects were encouraged by a further report, that the Prince of Wales had offered his services to the King to go to Ireland in quality of lord lieutenant, and to exert all his popularity with that nation, in restoring it to tran- * .This matter was afterwards brought on, and very warmly debated in both houses of the British parliament : but with the like failure. An ample report of their proceedings may be £^e(i ip Ji'storicnl R^sview, vol. II. p. 599, Sec, 2 c 2 5S8 The Reign of George Itl. "^79^' quillity. His royal highness had proposed to take with him Earl Moira as command'ar in chief, with a splendid establishment worthy of the dignity of the people, whose royal sovereign he was to represent. The prince had at this time entered cordially into the true political situation of that kingdom ; and in order that no mistake might even be pretended, relative to his Royal Highness's sentiments upon the Irish nation, he delivered a paper to the minister, drawn up in the most concise, energetic, and constitutional language, expressive of his disposition and judgment in favor of a system of conciliation. The British minister receiv- ed the proposition with all the respect, which the pa- triotism, judgment, and virtue of the exalted character who made It, deserved. It was the subject for a time of most Important discussion : but the power of the Irish junto prevailed : the system of coercion prepon- derated : and the offer even of the heir-apparent to the erown to attempt the conciliation of the Irish people was rejected. Both the British and Irish ministers appeared to dread the opportunity, which Ireland would then have of testifying their predilection and admira- tion of that illustrious prince ; and the occasion, which such an appointment would afford to his Royal High- ness of displaying his affection for the people of Ire- land, in a mild system of measures, politic at all times, necessary at that time, and supereminently congenial with his own disposition and sentiments. Catholic jvii-. Grattan on the 17th of Februarv, 1797, Intro- lost for the duccd the question of catholic emancipation. To his last time ^ ■ before the old arffumcnts he added new light and strenc^th : he Irish par- '^ O O Jiament Administration of Earl Camden. 389 :discussed all our continental alliances lost, crained, or 1797. retained : ridiculed the idea of popish tenets entering into the grounds of their formation or abandonment. He investigated the principles, pretext, and method of raising the Irish brigade of 6000 catholcs, under ca- tholic and French officers. He calculated the numeri- cal and physical advantages, which the British navy and army received from Ireland ; and concluded by moving the following resolution : * " That the admis- sibility of persons professing the Roman Catholic re- ligion to seats in parliament is consistent with the safety of the crown, and the connection of Great Bri- tain with Ireland." The resolution was seconded by Mr. G. Ponsonby. Mr. Knox, Sir B. Roche, Sir Frederick Flood, Sir Hercules Langrishe, and several other members, who agreed with the principle of the resolution, voted against it, merely because they then thought it unseasonable to discuss the question. Dr. Duigenan launched into a diffuse and infuriated phi- lippic against popery, abused all his catholic country- men, and treated Mr. Byrne and Mr. Keogh as noto- rious traitors. The resolution was negatived upon a division of 143 against 19. This was the last time the question of catholic emancipation was brought before the Irish parliament. In the debate upon a resolution moved by Sir L. Mr Peiham disclaims Parsons for encreasmg the yeomanry to 50,000, popularity, . . . _ _ and Mr. better to secure the country against invasion, Mr.orattan's rcplv* Peiham said, that in hearing the honorable baronet, * 17 Pari. Deb, p, 80. 2 C 3 S90 The Reign of George 111. J797- he had fancied himself in one of the circles in Ger- many, where different parties bid for the people. lie assured the house, that were the French to come again, such measures had been concerted with Great Britain, that a large body of troops would in a few hours be in Ireland. That it was absurd to suppose, the British minister would not be interested for the safety of Ireland. Mr. Grattan rephed to Mr. Pelham, with great animation. " The English servant of the English minister said, What ! would you have me bid for the people ? He would say to that English deputy of that English minister, if he would not bid for the people, he might go about his business. If he would not bid for the people, the monster of demo- cracy, which had conquered Spain, Holland, Ger- many, and Italy, by bidding for the people, would bid for the people of Ireland. The bidding of the minister would then come too late. He had asked, who could be more interested for the safety of Ireland, than the British minister ? He would answer, Ireland herself." Earl On the 21st of March Earl Moira Introduced his motion in promlsed motion into the British house of peers, by a peers reiat- vcry Instructlve and eloquent speech : it became the iand° ^^' niore interesting, as that noble lord was known re- cently to have come from Ireland, so that his judg- ment could not be misled from seeing the real state of that kingdom, nor his candor and loyalty be suspect- ed of misrepresenting it. After adverting to the de- licacy of agitating questions, in which independent legislatures, and their respective rights and privileges Admimslralion of Earl Camden, S9l Were involved, he observed, that if it appeared, that ir97- the counsellors, more immediately about his Majesty's person had not given that advice, which was calcu- lated to insure the happiness and prosperity of Ireland, it was the duty of ihcir lordships to approach the throne with advice more Vv'ise and salutary. But it might be said,, what influence could such an address carry v.'ith it, to change the councils, by which Ireland x<2,s go- verned ? To prove the influence of the British ca- binet, he appealed to a recent fact ; he meant the recal of Earl Fitzwilliam^ at a time when all Ireland concurred in the measures, which he pursued, when that country gave the fairest prospect of tranquillity, and the surest pledge of assistance and support to Britain, in the arduous circumstances in which she was placed. It was by temper, equity, and good faith, that the distractions of the Irish were to be appeased, and their affections concihated. No good could be expected from a prosecution of the present system. He was confident, however, that the adoption of mea- sures, calculated to impress the people with confidence in government, would quickly call forth that fond affection of the inhabitants of Ireland to this country, which circumstances might cloud but could not extin- guish ; inspire that zeal so necessary in the present moment ; and fui-nish those resources, which were re- quisite for the critical situation, in which the empire was placed, and the arduous contest in which it was engaged. On these grounds he rested his motion, *' That an humble address be presented to his Majesty, praying, that he would be graciously pleased to inter- 2 c 4 392 ^ The Reign of George III. 1797- pose his paternal and beneficent interference to allay the discontents, which at present subsist in his king- dom of Ireland, and which threaten the dearest in- terests of the British empire." Lord Grenville and the rest of the ministers vel>emently opposed the mo- tion After a very interesting debate, the motion was rejected by 72 against 20. Mr. Fox's Two ddys after this discussion in the house of peers, motum in the British the subject was introduced into the house of commons Commons. by Mr. Fox, in a speech, which eminently displayed his liberality and constitutional information. He moved, " That an humble address be presented to his Majesty, that his Majesty will be graciously pleased to take into his royal consideration, the disturbed state of his kingdom of Ireland, and to adopt such healing and lenient measures^ as may appear to his Majesty's wisdoni best :Calculated to restore tranquillity, and to conciliate the affections of all descriptions of his Ma- jesty's subjects, in that kingdom, to his Majesty's per- son and government." 1 he motion was seconded by Sir Francis Burdett ; and strongly opposed by Mr. Pitt and his party. It was negatived upon a division of 2^0 against 84. The proceedings in the British parliament relative to the state of Ireland gave such offence to Dr. Duigenan, that on the SOth of March he gave ilodce, that after the recess, he should bring forward a motion tending to refute the lying and mahcious assertions made by Mr. Fox in the parlia- ment of Great Britain. Message Some days after, Mr. Secretary Pel ham presented cdkncy!' ^ niessage from his excellency, intimating the impos- Administi'atiori of Earl Camden, 393 sibility of raising the sum of 3,395,697/. granted to ^797. his Majesty upon the terms mentioned in the resolu- tion of that house on the 1st of March *, and recom- mending such measures, as should be most prudent to carry the intention of that salutary resolution into effectf. He also made to the house some days after a -more important communication, "^thar two committees of United Irishmen in Belfast, had been arrested, and their papers seized ; which contained matter of so much importance to the public welfare, that his excel- lency had directed them to be laid before the house of commons, for their consideration. That he should in the mean time pursue those measures, which had received their sanction and approbation, with unre- mitting vigour, and employ the force entrusted to him in the most efficient manner for the protection of his Majesty's faithful subjects against all treasonable de- signs, and for bringing to condign punishment those^ who were endeavouring to overturn the constitution, and betray that country into the hands of her ene- mies." Upon which Mr. Pelham proposed to refer them to a committee of secrecy. Mr. Grattan would never agree to commit the people of Ireland to the mercy of a secret committee, which would put their lives and fortunes into the hands of ministers, v.'hose misconduct was the subject of general complaint in both countries, and whose measures, whether parliamentary or military, tended equally to increase the calamities of * 1 7 Pari. Debates, p. 466. t Ibid. p. 4/7. 30 i The Rei pi of George III. 1 797. the people. ]Mr. Felhani's motion for a secret committee was carried : t he commiitee was ordered to consist of 15*. An adjournment of some weeks took place to accommodate those members, (many they were) whose professional dudes called them on the circuits. Ar- magh, which had been for years the centre of religi- ous acrimony^ had by the progress of the union lost a great part of its ferocity. Genei-! So little then was that bond of union considered sense of the . y^-on.. treasonable, that at the Armagh assizes, w-hen the spirit and tendency of it were brought before the court on the trial of Hanlon and Kogher, who were charr^sd with having tendered an unlawful oath or engagement to become one of an unlawful, wicked, and seditious society, called United Irishmen^ the pri- soners were acquitted ; the counsel not only defended, but commended the institution. The judge thought the obligation illegal under the late act of parlia- mentf. The failure of these two government prose- * Tbe method of appointing ihe coonrriitee was, for each mem- ber to give ia bis list of 15. The persons appointed were Mr. Pelbara, Mr. D. La Touche, Mr. Ogle, Mr. J. C. Beresford, Mr. J. Stewart, Mr, J. Foster, Mr. Commissioner Beresford, Lord Castlereagb, Mr. Solicitor Genttal, Mr. Prime Seijeant, Mr. Attorney General, Mr. Maxwell, Mr. Alexander, Mr. D. Browne, Lord Boyle f Of 2S United Irishmen, then in jail, two trials only were brought forward. In one of ihem, a soldier, suborned to prosecute Doghertv, was, \ipon his acquittal, put into the dock id his place, to abide bis trial for perjury. The grand jury found a bill against him, and he remained in custody to take his tiial. Mr. Curran •a-d, in defence of the United Irishmea ; That he was delighted AdmhiistraLlm of Earl Camden, 305 cutlons, and their backwardness in bringing anv more 1797- to trial, aHbrded a triumph to the popular party, either in the rectitude or strength of their cause. When Mr. Pelham cominumcated the report of the The report of :hc secret secret committee to the house, on the ]Cth of May, committee, which was ordered to be printed, he observed, that what then transpired must convince every man, that it was not legislation, which should be resorted to, to repress this daring and dark conspiracy, but those strong measures, which the executive govern- ment had already adopted, with the approbation of that house. The committee observed, * that the United Irishmen made a pretext of reform and eman- cipation, to cover a design to subvert instead of amend- ing the constitution, to confiscate property and extin- guish the possessors of it ; and this they inferred from the circumstance of those two objects not havinor been. mentioned m their papers as the end of their institu- tion. In corroboration of which opinion, they tran- scribed a paper called the Donaghadee Resolutions in which it was emphatically stated " to have been the opinion of the best statesmen, philosophers, and divines, that all power originates with the people ; to find, after so many of ibera had been immured in dungeons, without trial, that at length the subject had come fairly before th« world, and instead of its being a s}sLera of organised treason and murder, it proved to be a great bond of national union, fjunded upon the most acknowledged principles of law, and every sacred obligation due to our country and Creator. * 17 Farl. Deb. p. 522. Such a report was to be expected firom tliC persons, who composed Uiat committee. 39^ The Reign of George lU, i797' that when tyrants usurp power, or governors legili- mately con£titu;ecl degenerate ir.to tyrants, it becomes the right and the duty of the people to take up arms to wrest that power from the hands, which abuse it. and restore it to those, to whom it of right belongs." Mr. w. B. Mr. W. B. Ponsonby was urgently pressed by go- resoiutions vernmeut not to bring forward the question of parlia- for parlia- . " , ^ . f. mentary mentarv reform, in the moment of so ala'*mxing a fer- reform. ^ . . ... ment of the public mmd. He deemed it mdr^pc-nsably necessary then, above all times, to agitate and adopt that measure as the only efficient means of ensuring the restoraiion of peace, confidence, and prosperity to the country. 1 he galleries had overflowed at an early hour, and the speaker took the chair precisely at four o'clock, when Lord Castlereagh pre-occupied the at- tention of the house by moving, that the address of the ' lords on the subject of the treasonable papers should be then taken into con-^ideration. He proposed an ad- dress to the throne, in which the house was to thank his Majesty for the measures, which had been already taken lor restoring the due observation of the laws, and recommended the adoption of the most severe measures (or the complete suppression of those dan- gerous disorders. Mr. Smith moved (though respect- fully) an amendment, that his Majesty would use conciliatory measures to remove every pretext of dis- content from the well-disposed, as well as mcaF.ures of coercion for the prevention and punishment of con- spiracy and treason ; urging the necessity ot correct- ing abuses, as well as adopting strong laws to j epress disafTection. Mr. W. B. Ponsonby v^-as resolved to Administration of Earl Camden. 397 avoid the hackneyed plea of no specific plan of reform ^^^ being proposed, when he brought forv/ard the question of parliamentary reform. He first read, then moved the following resolutions : " 1 . That it is indispensably nececsary to a funda- " mental reform of the representation, that all dis- '* abilities, on account of religion, be for ever abolish- " ed ; and that catholics shall be admitted into the " legislature, and all the great offices of state, in the *' same extent^, &c. as protest^ants now are. " 2. That it is the indispensable right of the people " of Ireland to be fully and fairly r. presented in par- ** liament. " 3. That in order that the people may be fully " enabled to exercise that right, the privilege of re- " turning members for cities, boroughs, &c. in the '* present form shall cease; that each county be divided " into districts, consisting of 6000 houses each, each " district to return two members to parliament. " 4. That all persons possessing freehold property " to the amount of 40s. per annum; all possessed of " leasehold interests, of the annual value of ; ** all possessed of a house, of the value of ; all " who have resided for a certain number of years in . " any great city or town, following a trade ; and all " who shall be free of any city, &c. by birth, mar- " riage, or servitude, shall vote for members of par- *' liament. " 5. That seats in parliament shall endure for " number of years." Mr. Pelham thought the question ought not to be 398 The Reign of George III. ^797' agitated, whilst a part of the country was in a state of rebellion ; he therefore moved an adjournment, which OX five o'clock in the morning was carried by 170 a^^ainst 30 who w€re for reform*. * In this debate ATnGrattan spoke in a more impressive manner than usual. Taking up the language of the report,uhich referred to the alarm of government at the number of proselytes procured by the two popular subjects — parliamentary reform, and Catholic emancij)ation, he said, " It appears then, that they have recruit- ed by these topics, and have spread their influence, notwithstand- ing your svstem of coercion every-where ; that notwithstanding your convention bill of 1793, this corfvention has grown ; that not- withstanding your gunpowder act, it has armed and increased its military stores under that act j that notwithstanding your insur- rection act, and another bill to disarm, it has greatly added to its magazines j and that notwithstanding the suspension of the habeas corpus bill, and General Lake's proclamation, it has multiplied its proselytes. I should have asked, had I been on the secret committee, whether the number of united Irishmen had not in- creased very much since General Lake's proclamation, and by General Lake's proclamation. It appears, I say, from that re- port, that jast as your system of coercion advanced, the L^nited Irishmen advanced; that the measures you took to coerce, stfengthened ; to disper.;e, collected; to disarm, arm.ed ; to jiender then] weak and odious, made them popular and powerful : where- as, on the other hand, you liave loaded parliament and govern- njent w^itb the odium of an oppressive system, and with the further odium of rejecting these two popular tcpics, which ycu allow are the most likely to gain the heart of the nation, and be the beloved fjbjects of the people," Mr. Grattau closed his speech and the .debate with these words : " We have offered you Our measure ; yon will reject it : we deprecate ycur's ; you will persevere : having 11) hopes left to persuade or dissuade, and having discharged our duty, ive shall iroulle you no more, and after this day shall not a.tle?:d ihc Hause of Commons."' 1/ Pari. Deb, p. 5^0. Administration of Earl Camden. 399 The extreme rigour of military government was en- ^797' forced by General Lake in the northern district, in the Cen. Lake's execution of which barbarons outrages were com- oon. mitted by the military, which tended to exasperate the minds of the people, already too highly inflamed. Not only some women and children were murdered, but the houses of several respectable persons were pil- laged and demolished, upon the bare suspicion of their being United Irishmen. Great discontent was created by a proclamation of General Lake*^ made in conse- quence of a letter written to him by Mr. Pelham. It was greatly enflamed by the following circumstance. The newspaper called the Morning Star, published at Belfast, was the only paper into which the publications in favor of liberty could find their way. The pro- prietors of it had been committed to Newgate under the suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act. The per- son, who then conducted the paper having been re- quired, refused to insert a paragraph in it, which re- flected on the loyalty of the people of Belfast : the next morning a detachment of the military iifucd very orderly from the barracks^, attacked the printing ofEce, and utterly demolished every part of it f. Other out- rages were convi^iitted by the military on the inhabit- * Both this letter and the proclamaiion may be seen in the Ap- pendix, No CIV. f It is credibly reported, that after the destruction of the Morn- ing Star Printing Office, the commanding-officer, under whose eye this outrage was committed, exclaimfd in triumph, " We may now do as we please, for as the Star is demolished, no other paper dares to publish any act we may do." 400 The Reign of George IIL ster ^797* ants of Belfast : the house of Cunningham Gregg, Esq. was destroyed with impunity, and without any pretext or provocation. The harshness of this military despotism drove many to desperation, who had till then been loyally and peaceably disposed. ofRlbTi!"* '^h.e report of the secret committee was soon after lion in ui- followed by a proclamation, offering pardon, with cer- tain exceptions, to all guilty persons wlio should sur- render within the period of a month, and give security for their future good behaviour. The effect of thic measure was immediately felt ; the arms of the dis- affected were collected in great numbers ; the loyal were encouraged to declare themselves ; such as had been misled, came in crowds to take the benefit of the proclamation of pardon, which v/as now extended for another month ; outrage ceased, and public confid- ence was so far restored throughout Ulster in the course of the months of July and August, that the laws were administered with effect in the different counties during the summer circuit : the manufac- turing industry of the country was restored to its usual vigor during the remainder of the year : and dur- ing and subsequent to the summer assizes, the civil authority was found fully adequate to the preservation of the public peace, and all military interference was generally discontinued from that period. Henceforward also the inferior societies of United Irishmen, in general, discontinued their meet- ings ; the people applied themselves to their ordinary occupations ; and though some of the higher commit- tees were kept alive by some of the more active leaders. Administration of Earl Camden, 401 were apprehensive, that the enemy might be discou- ^797. raged from any further plan of invasion, by the loyal disposition manifested throughout Munster and Con- naught on their former attempt, yet they persisted in sending emissaries into the south and virest^ where their success in forming new societies and administering the oaths of the union, was very visible in the course of some few months. Here they revived the old grievance of tithes, and stimulated the senseless rabble to resort to the ancient practice of burning corn, and houghing cattle. With a view to excite the resentment of the general Merfhs of population of Leinster, Munster, and Connaughtj re- the^p'cSpie* ports of general massacres were circulated amongst the catholic peasantry. This fabrication, however extravagant," was among the means, by which the leaders of the rebellion endeavoured to prepare the people by disaffection to unite with the enemy in case of a future landing, and to dispose the enemy to take advantage of the discontents of the people, whilst they were in actual fermentation. None of these deluded people knew the game^ which their leaders were playing. The design of separation and independence was still cautiously suppressed from the low members of the union. In the summer of 1 797, Mr. Lewins acted as the Negociation . . . with the •accredited minister of the Irish Union to negociate with French . , Directory. the French Directory, and the court of Spam, for men, arms, and money. Yet was the executive of the union decidedly against a greater force being sent to Ireland, than might enable them to subvert the government, VOL, II. 2 Bi 402 The Reigii of George III, ^797' and retain the power of the country in their own hands. The French on the other hand shewed a de- cided disinclination at all times to send any force to Ireland, except such as from its magnitude might not only give them hopes of subduing the kingdom, but of retaining it as a French conquest. It is a remarkable circumstance, that the memoir to the French Directory, with which Dr, M'Neven was charged, should have fallen into the hands of govern- ment. It proves their vigilance, or the perfidy of the Irish traitors, or of their French allies. Messrs. O'Connor, Emmett, and M'Neven tell us in the me- moir (p. 21.) (they were nearly petrified at their first examination to see it lie on the table before them), that government had some hoiv or other obtained their original memoir, to which they therefore refer, per- haps with more accuracy under that circumstance, than they might otherwise have done *. It sets forth with tolerable correctness the state of the country. It is lamentable to find, that the strongest incentive to instant invasion, was the assurance given to the enemy of the tyranny and oppression of the Irish government. The demands of the party by their first agent went to a force not exceeding ten thousand, nor less than five thousand, with forty thousand stand of arms, and a proportionate supply of artillery, ammu- nition, engineers, experienced officers, &c. But a larger supply of arms was solicited by a second mes- * For the full substance of that important document, see Hist. , Rev. vol. II. p. 63a Administration of Earl Camden, 403 senger, on account of the growing number of their 1797. adherents, and of the disarming of the north. Above ten thousand stand of arms and as many pikes had been then surrendered to the King's troops, in Ulster. A second memoir was presented to the French Directory *, urging them not to postpone the invasion, and assuring them, that so favorable a disposition, as then existed in the Irish mind, was in no future contingency to be ex- pected. A confidential person was sent over by the French Directory to collect information respecting the state of Ireland, who was met in London by Lord Edward Fitzgerald. In consequence of their com- munications, the Directory ordered great preparations both on the Texel and at Brest, for the invasion of Ireland ; and in the beginning of October, the ap- proach of the enemy was announced to the societies as at hand. The troops were actually on board, com- manded by General Daendells, but were suddenly disembarked. The Dutch fleets contrary to the opi- nion of their own admiral, was, at the mandate of the French government, obliged to put to sea, which led to the memorable victory off Camperdowne, gained by Lord Duncan. * The negociation for peace was then going on at Lisle. It was candidly told to this agent, that the Directory did not think the Eng- lish cabinet sincere, but that if France could get the terms she had a right to expect, the Directory -would make peace. After the rupture of the negociation, and Lord Malmesbury's return to England, assurances were given, that the French government would send a new expedition to Ireland, and that they would never abandon her, till she was separated from Great Britain: and these assurances were afterwards renewed. 2 D 2 .^vw 404 The Reign oj George HI. ^797- It \v;is reported by the secret committee, that In the Internal Spring aiid summer of 1797, the mass of the people rfJccts of . . ^ the union, ill the provinccs of Lemster, Munster and Con- naught was not infected with the union: and that in the north tranqiiiiiity was fast returniag. The United Irishmen of the north were chiefly presbyterians and other protestaTxts : there were comparatively lew ca*- tholics amongst them. With so nmch circumspection were matters managed by the artful northerns, that the heaviest consequences of the union were thrown upon other parts of the kingdom. The system of coercion, induced several counties, corporations^ and districts to apply to the sheriifs (most refused) *to convene * These transactions are strongly represented in the petition of the Irish Whig Club to his Majesty, generally ascribed to the pen of Mr. Grattan, p. 9. " I'hat minister, who determines to enslave the people, must renounce his project or wade through their blood. The people accordingly in the spring of 1797 reaorted to the constitutional ways of petition, and applied to the different sheriffs to summon their counties, and on refusal by the sheriffs, (a dangerous courtly artifice to stop the prayers of the people from reaching the throne) (hey summoned themselves. What was the consequence?. The petitioners were (we beg to represent to his Majesty) confounded with rebels, and the enemies of his ministers were represented as the enemies of his person ; the petitioners were answered by fresh troops from England and Scot- land ; in some instances the meelitigs were dispersed by the army, and in others were deterred by the threat of military force ; and thus did his Majesty's ministers ratify the justice of the petitions against them^ by adding this great and impeachable offence to all their other transgressions ; and thus did his Majesty's ministers reduce Ireland to the state of a miserable province, tvhose mhiisters hud stopped totally and ahsolutpfy the utterance of the people in parliament by corruption, in the nation hy a convmlion hiU,_ and in the counties Lv the army'' Administration of Earl Camden. 405 iTieetings, in order to prepare addresses to the throne ^797- for the removal of his Majesty's ministers. These efforts of the people at large were no measures of the leaders of the union. They always considered the ministers as promoters of their views, by creating dis- affection and discontent amongst the people : they exerted themselves in forwarding the resistance to the petitions of the people, and triumphed in their failure and rejection. The business of the union did not proceed during the remainder of the year 1797 with the same rapidity, that it had from the middle of the year 1796. For,* as the committee reported, the steps then taken, as mentioned in the proclamation, had an almost immediate effect in repressing the auda- city of the rebels and restoring tranquillity. The loyal inhabitants were enabled in many places to return in safety to their houses j murders became less fre- quent ; in many counties, particularly in Kildare and Tipperary, the people, sensible of the madness and wickedness of their conduct, began openly to acknow- ledge their crimes, surrender their arms, and point out their leaders and seducers ; a submission, which invariably obtained for them pardon and protection. After various adjournments, during which no busi- Prorogation - 1 1 1 r T 1 anddissola- ness of moment was transacted, on the so. or July, tion ot p»r- 1797, the parliament was prorogaea t, and dissolved by proclamation on the 11th of July, The result of * 17 Jour. Com. Appendix DCCCXXXIII. * His excellency's speech is to be seen in Historical Review, vol. II. p. 636. 2 D 3 406 The Reign of George III. ^797- the summer circuits was unsatisfactory both to govern- ment and the people. An unusual number of of- fenders at most of the assizes was found guilty : but in the northern counties, where many had been con- fined for the greater part of the year upon the charge of being United Irishmen, they were mostly acquitted, when brought to trial. At Antrim, after several of them had been put on their trial and acquitted, Mr. Mark Beresford produced a warrant filled with the names of all the prisoners and several other obnoxious persons charged with high treason, by virtue of which the commission of gaol delivery was superseded, and those unfortunate wretches, who with a fond hope had looked up to their day of trial, as that of their deli- very, were remanded back to goal without any trial, and thence removed to a military prison in Belfast. The acerbity of this measure created much irritation, and its Illegality was declared by the King's Bench in the next Michaelmas term *. Towards the close of the year 1797, the union rather abated. One un- equivocal symptom of it's decline was the renova- tion of dissentlon between the dissenters and the catholics in the north. Sir Richard Musgravef re- ports, that most of the presbyterians separated from the papists in the year 1 797 ; some from " principle, * In B. 1^. 20th Nov. 1797* For the proceedings in the case of Thomas Huson, and eleven other prisoners, who had been brought up hy Habeas Corpus from the Artillery Barracks at Belfast, to have the l.egalily of their detentionby General Lake and Colonel Barber examined by the court, vide Historical RevieWj vol. II. p. 639, f Memoir, p. ig4. Administration of Earl Camden. 407 ^ome because they doubted the sincerity of persons in 1 797' that order : and others foreseeing, that the plot must fail and end in their destruction, took advantage of the proclamation of the 17th of May, and renounced their associates. Numbers withdrew because they doubted of success without foreign assistance. The presbyterians of the counties of Down and Antrim, where they are very numerous, and where they are warmly attached to the union from pure republican principles, thought they could succeed without the papists." Certain it is, that the northern unionists generally held back from this time : the protestants of Ulster were originally Scotch, and still retained much of that guarded policy, which so peculiarly charac- terizes the inhabitants of North Britain. From the autumn of 1797 the catholics first in the north and afterwards successively throughout the kingdom pub- lished * addresses and resolutions expressive of their horror of the principles of the United Irishmen, and pledging their loyalty and zeal in defence and support of the king and constitution. The northern addresses admitted the fact, and lamented, that many of the catholic body had been seduced into the union, and they deprecated the attempts, which were made to create dissention amongst persons of different religions. This example was followed by the generality of the dissenters. If addresses were tests of loyalty, his Majesty had not more loyal subjects throughout * Some of these are to be seen in Ihe Appendix to Historical Review, No. CVII. 2 D 4 408 The Reign of George IIL 1797- the British empire, than the Irish at the close of 1797. ^ Scarcely a parish throughout the kingdom, scarcely I a dissenting meeting-house, from which an address of 1 loyalty was not issued signed by the priest or minister of the flock. Lord So critically alarming^ for some time had the situa- Moira's , •' " • • i • t' l motion in tion of Ireland appeared to that inflexible patriot. Earl the British ^^ ^ house of Moira, that on the 22d of November, 1797, he re- peers. newed his application to the British house of lords, hoping to interest them in favor of the Irish people, and induce them to recommend measures of lenity and con- ciliation. He opened a very interesting, instructive, and eloquent speech, by taking a general view of the situa- tion of the British empire, and lamented, that the pro- spective view of his country, which he had given in the last session, had been more than realized. His lord- ship* was ready to excuse Lord Camden, who acted by an overbearing impulse of others, who were driving the country to ruin. He would retail, but mention * The testimony, which the noble earl here gave of the per- sonal feelings and sentiments of the lord lieutenant, are confirmed by the general report and belief, that his excellency had for some time been disgusted with the imperious overbearing, and relent- less ferocity of the majority of the Irish cabinet : that having in vain attempted to assuage their rage for severity, he had so secretly negociated his recal, that the actual appointment of his successor was the first suspicion those gentlemen had of a change. The British minister, though iate, found the necessity of a firmer go- verncr, who should neither be seduced nor intimidated into the sanguinaiy syblem of provocation, which had brought the country to that dire calamity, under which it then laboured. 4 Pari, Reg. p. 238. ^Administration of Earl Camden. 409 ho names. His lordship made a most moving narrative J/^97- of acts of atrocity and oppression, adding that, from prudential motives he wished to draw a veil over more aggravated facts, which he could have stated, and which he was prepared to attest before the privy coun- cil, or at their lordships' bar. These facts were well known in Ireland, but they could not be made public through the channel of the newspapers, for fear of that summary mode of punishment, which had been practised towards the Northern Star, when a party of troops in open day, (and in a town where the general's head-quarters were), went and destroyed all the offices and property belonging to that paper. It was thus authenticated accounts were suppressed. His lord- ship concluded, with entreating the house to take into serious consideration their present measures, which, instead of removing discontents, had increased the number of the discontented. The moment of con- ciliation was not yet passed ; but if the system were not changed, he was convinced Ireland would not remain connected with this country five years longer. Lord Grenville insisted, that his Majesty's government was so far from wishing to keep up a system of coer- cion, that he confidently appealed to the house, whe- ther it had ever abandoned measures of concession or conciliation ? No public man, placed in so critical a situation as Lord Camden, had ever displayed more exemplary moderation in the discharge of a painful duty. If severe measures had been adopted, the cir- cumstances of the country had required it ; and if any partial abuses existed, they had only to lament them. The qutstion was, would their lordships interpose on 410 The Reign of George III. 1797. the present occasion, and tell the parliament of Ire- land, and the Irish magistracy, that we were more careful of the interest and happiness of their people, than they themselves were ; and that the English ' military were not to obey the Irish laws, but arbitrary instructions of the British parliament ? Earl Moira replied, that no sentiment had fallen from him to that effect. He had not reprobated the troops in Ireland for obeying the law, but the conduct of the executive government, which was repugnant to the feelings of the Irish people, inconsistent with the British charac- ter^ and highly injurious to the real interests of both countries. The chancellor justified all acts of rigor, by the existence of an horrid conspiracy in Ireland, and by the printed list * of the individuals marked for * As this proscribed list was never acted upon, and the indi- viduals named in it never found it necessary to resort to any ex- traordinary caution, or means of self-preservation ; as secrecy wa» the baneful principle of the union, and as such a publication would have defeated the horrid project, had it ever been really formed, much credit must be given to Lord Moira's reply to the chancellor on this point. As to the paper, to which the noble and learned lord, and the noble secretary had alluded, concerning the names of persons marked out for future assassination, he confessed, he suspected it to be an invention to justify or to support the measures, which had been adopted in Ireland, and of which he had already complained. He suspected this the more, because no printer of a newspaper could have had it from any authentic source : for no man concerned in a conspiracy for assas- sination, would communicate the intention of himself and col- leagues. He wished to gpeak of assassins as he felt, with the greatest indignation and abhorrence ; but he must also add, that he believed, that they originated in Ireland from private malice and revenge, and would do so from any party, wliich happened to be pr«- Administration of Earl Camden, 41 1 assassination, which he held in his hand. The debate ^797. was put an end to by a motion for adjournment. That the public had lost or renounced all con- J^uWicdif- * fiderce in fidence in parliament, is evident from the apathy and parliament. coolness, with which the elections went over in the au- tumn. The people felt no interest in the return of parti- cular members, having been so repeatedly foiled in all their efforts to obtain the two objects of their wishes, parliamentary reform, and catholic emancipation. Mr. Grattan encreased and confirmed this apathy of the people, by declining to accept a seat in the new parlia- - meat. Lord Edward Fitzgerald, who had hitherto artfully concealed his traitorous designs, and by his amiable manners and conduct had fascinated most of his acquaintance into unqualified confidence, publicly alleged his reasons'* for declining to offer himself to the consideration of the citizens of Dublin^, as it once had been his design. By adopting the sentiments of Mr. Grattan, he sought to disguise his treason under the shield of the sublimest virtue and patriotism. dominant, while the present dreadful system continued. It was not by a general system of terror, that assassination was to be defeated. * In the Appendix to Historical Review, No. CVJlI. may be seen Mr. Grattan's speech to a meeting of freemen and free- holders of the city of Dublin, assembled at the Exchange on the 20th of July, 1797' And also Lord Ed vard Fitzgerald's address to the citizens of Dublia. About this time Dr. Duigenan pub- lished a scurrilous and bitter answer to Mr. Grattan's addr -ss to his fellow-citizens of Dublin. Upon its appearance, Mr. Giattan wrote the following note to Dr, Duigenan : " Mr, Grattan has seen a very gross, a very unprovoked, and a very ludicrous performance written against him, and signed Patrick Duigenan, 412 The Reign of George III. cw Parli inentraeets 5798. The new parliament met according to proclama- Nc^Pariia- tion on the 9th of January, 1798 : Mr. Foster was re- elected speaker: and on the 15th his excellency deli- vered a speech from the throne*. The Earl of Bective, in a maiden speech, disclaimed every idea of vexatious opposition ; but he could not agree to that part of the address, which approved of the measures of ad- ministration. He reprobated the system of coercion ; thought Ireland was only to be reclaimed by timely concession ; and strongly recommended catholic emancipation and temperate reform. The chancellor, with great warmth insisted, that these objections were but catch-words for revolt and rebellion. What did the noble lord mean by using the phrase, " imparting to the Roman Catholic body the blessings of the con- stitution ?'* There was not a Roman CathoHc in Ire- land, to whom the benefits of its constitution were not 'Mr. G. don't explain his public conduct to individuals. '* The statute-book and the journals of the house of commons are open. " Were he to make his public conduct a subject of explanation, it would not be to such a person as Dr. D. *' But as the above mentioned attack mixes In its folly much personal rudeness, Mr. G. judges it not wholly beneath hira to take some sort of notice of it ; and he is sorry to be forced to observe, that the author has departed from the manners and language of a gentleman, and has thought proper to «dopt a strain so false, so vile, and so disgusting, as to render Dr. D. a , too and ludicrous to give an affront, or to make an apology. " Mr. Grattan remains in Dublin for three days, and is to bs heard of at Kearn's hotel, Kildare-street.'' * It may be seen. Hist. Rev. vol. II. p. 650. Administratian of Earl Camden* 413 extended as amply as to the noble lord, or any other i/98- peer, who heard him. The government of Ireland had, by measures necessarily strong, at length quieted that part of the country, in which the conspiracy ori- ginated. These measures were, to Ids knowledge, ex- torted from the 7whleman ivho governed that country: they had been successful, and the state of the north at that day was a proof of their wisdom. The county (Limerick), from which he had lately returned, and which had formerly been a loyal, industrious county, was infested by emissaries from the north, excking the peasantry to insurrection. Emancipation and reform were not the means, which they employed for the seduction of the peasant. The suppression of tythes, the abolition of taxes, and exemption from the pay- ment of rent, were the rewards they promised. Eman- cipation and refornf were only used to delude the better classes. The address v.'as carried without a di- vision. In the commons Mr. Smith moved, by way of amendment to the address, a clause to recommend such nieasures, as were likely to conciliate the people, and unite them against the common enemy. No serious opposition was attempted after the secession of the Whig party. Various causes combined to force the union to an causes earlier issue, than was origmally intended. Their forward the Gallic friends had long neglected them, and gone by every opportunity of succouring th»m with effect. The activity of government had encreased : the greatest and most respectable part of the population Unicn. 414 'The Reign of George III. 17&8. of the kingdom had in their addresses given fresh pled3;es of their loyalty, and renounced and repro- bated the now avowed principles of the union. The leaders, therefore, perceiving their party on the de- cline, resolved upon a desperate effort. In the month of February a military committee was appointed by the executive council of the rebels ; detailed instruc- lion*?' were issued to the adjutant- generals ; and thanks were voted to the several colonels for their assiduity in embodying and organizing the people. In the mean time, the Iriph executive prepared a dispatch for the French Director v^ pressing, in the most earnest terms, for the promised succours ; but it was found impossible to convey it to France. In the months of February and March, many parts of Leinster and Munster were in the actual possession of the United Irishmen, and other parts were secretly under their controul. Nocturnal insurrections were frequent. The town of Cahir, in the county of Tipperary, was invested, in open day, by a party of SOO men, chiefly cavalry. They searched for arms, and evacuated it without further molestation. Murders and other atrocities drove many of the loyal inhabitants of the counties of Cork, Limerick, Tipperary, Kilkenny, CarloWj King's County, Queen's County, Kildare, and Wicklow, into garrison towns for safety. Lord Earl Moira, on the 1 9th of February, submitted a motion for motion to the Iilsh house of lords, for conciliatory tory niea- mcasurcs. He travelled over the same ground as iriih Peers! he had In the British house of peers. The chan- Administration of Earl Camden. 41 5 cellor, in a speech of four horurs, violently opposed 179S. the motion. With great assurance he asserted, that the system of" government had been a system of conciliation ; that in no place had the experi- ment been so fairly tried as in Ireland ; in none had it so completely failed. He here passed some severe and indecent reflections on the respectable Bishop of Down, v.'ho had promoted a petition to his Majesty in favour of conciliatory measures. Lord Moira in reply admitted, that a conspiracy did exist, which he attributed to the severe and un- constitutional measures of government, particularly the fatal recal of Earl Eitzwilliam. The motion was negatived by a large majority. The parliament con- tinued indeed to sit, and to do business ; but so little interest did the public take in the debates, that the galleries were wholly deserted, and scarcely sufficient members attended to make up the house. On the 27th of February, a motion of the chancellor ^^tack of exchequer, for payment of 20,000l. to the college XseJ!ihc of Maynooth, was vehemently opposed by Dr. Duige- g^hoilof nan, who took that opportunity of inveighing with '^*'=^^'*'"^' great bitterness against the character of Dr. Hussey, the catholic bishop of Waterford. This prelate had \n the preceding year published a pastoral letter to his clergy, in which he exhorted them to attend to the spiritual duties of the flock committed to their care. He condemned the practice of catholic parents educating their children in the charter-schools, and catholic soldiers attending the protestant service at church. He stated the catholic body to constitute 416 The Reign of George IIL irsS' • nine-tenths of the nation at large, and ninety-nine in the hundred in his own diocese. His spirit of inde- pendence and freedom of language offended the castle, and alarmed some of the more timid of his brethren*. Mr. Arthur Towards the end of February, Mr. O'Donnel moved O Con I J or, ■' Proprietor for a Committee to enquire into the nature and ten- ana Editor * of the Press deucv of a ncwspaper called The Press, which had Newspaper. ^ _ been set up by the United Irishmen, in order to repair the loss they had sustained by the military demolition of the Northern Star ; its intemperate language had subjected it to a prosecution ; the publisher was im- prisoned, and the paper in danger of being suppressed. In this crisis Mr. A. O'Connor announced himself the proprietor and editor. He had lately been elected member of the Irish Directory, in conjunction with Lord Edward Fitzgerald, Mr. Oliver Bond, Dr. M*Neven, and counsellor Emmet. Strong suspicions * Few ecclesiastics ever possessed more extensive knowledge, profane and ecclesiastical, than Dr. Hussey. Ke Lad long en- joyed the good opinion and peculiar confidence of the British ministry, as well as the favor of several foreign courts, particialarly that of Spain. Upon his first entrance into his pastoral function, his great object was to impress his flock with a dignified sense of their religion, and to establish a free, unchecked, and open exer- cise of it, after the legislature had given it toleration. He fre- quently ofEcIaled to the catholics in the militia reg'unents, which were encamped at Lehawnstown • he incurred much di:>plcasure at the castle from having lodged a strong remonstrance against the punishments inflicted upon some catholic soldiers for having dis- obeyed orders, by refusing to attend the protestant service when their regiments were ordered to chuich. The pastoral letfer is to be seen in the Appendix to my Hist. Rev. No. CIX. togf thcr with some interesting letters of Mr. Edmund Burke to this prelate. Administration of Earl Camden. 417' /ell upon Mr. O'Connor, and also upon his brother. ^793. Mr. Roger O'Connor was apprehended, and lodged in Cork gaol, on a charge of high treason, from which he was liberated at the spring .assizes, from a total want of evidence against him. In the beginning of the year 1798, Mr. Arthur Mr. Anhur 0>^-, , , . , . . . O'Connor Connor came to iLngland, with an mtention, as it arrested, afterwards appeared, of proceeding to France, in con- a.qu'iue"din junction with John Einns, a member of the London '"^ ^"' ' Corresponding Society, James Coigtev, an Irish priest, and a person of the name of Allen. In the latter end of February they went to Margate, intending to hire a vessel to convey them to France. Some circum- stances in their conduct exciting suspicion, they were all apprehended, and first committed prisoners to the tovv^er, afterwards to Maidstone gaol. There they were tried by a special commission on the 21st and 22d of May, and all of them acquitted, except Coig- ley, on v/hom had been found a treasonable and most ' absurd paper, purporting to be an address from " the Secret Committee of England to the Executive Directory of France." Coigley was condemned and executed; and Mr. O'Connor and Binns, after their acquittal, were detained on another charge of treason. In the mean time, and in consequence of the motion of Mr. O'Donnel, an act had passed the Irish parliament, authorizing grand juries to present any newspapers, containing seditious or li- bellous matter, as a nuisance ; and also authoriz- ing the magistrates, on such presentation, to suppress the paper^ and seize and destroy the printing materials, '2 E 4 1 S The Ecign of George II L ■5793. kc. The paper called The Press was therefore sup- pressed, and some of its principal supporters taken into custody ; but no discovery of importance resulted from that transaction. Oiaiigeraen In the debates upon the abuses of the press, both «iid De- ^ T fenders the Defenders and Orangemen were alternately com- complaincd r \ • '^ •• t ut of. planied of by the opposite parlies m parliament. Mr. Pelham assured the house, that no drsturbances then existed between the Orangemen and the catholics. Both parties admitted,, that they had been decetved by the United Irishmen. Neither the Orangemen nor Defenders deserved the epithet rebellious. That ap- plied to the United Irishmen alone. On the 5th of March, ] 798, "Sir Lawrence Parsons brought forward his promised motion for a coniftiittee to enquire into the state of the country, and to suggest such measures as were likely to conciiiate the popular mind. This, was the longest and most interesting debate of the session. At five o'clock in the morning the house- divided, when 19 voted for, and 156 against the motion. sirR. Aber- In all the debatcR in parliament, whenever the abuses crombie, command- and outrages of the army were mentioned thev were et-iii-chief. •' never contradicted, but palliated or justified by the treasury bench. They were the natural effusions of a loyal army in a rebel country. The courts of lav/ were open to redress, and none should complain, who refused to seek it. Insulting solace! To remit cottagers, labourers, and farmers to the legal right, without the means of prosecuting either civilly or criminally. The British cabinet had most judiciouslly appointed the gal- Administration of Earl Camden. 419 lant Sir Ralph Abercrombie commander-in-chief In Ire- i/QQ* land, well knowing, that he would require the duties j without debasing the character of the soldier. Soon after his arrival he found himself under the necessity of publishing in general orders*j that the army was in a state of licentiousness, which rendered it formidable to every one but the enemy. The liberal and genuine spirit of the British soldier, so prominent on the face of these orders, was repugnant to the coercive system of the Irish ministry. The inflexible firmness of that gallant veteran was not to be subdued by extortion^ fear, or adulation. Corrupt influence prevailed, and he was forced to resign. The effect of a principal part of Sir Ralph Abercrombie's orders was defeated by Mr. Pelham's letter of the 3d of March, I 798, in which he informs the officers, that his excellency au- thorized them to employ force against any persons assembled in arms, or not in arms, without waiting for the sanction of the civil authority, if in their opi- nion the peace of the realm, and the safety of his ma- jesty's subjects might be endangered by v^'aiting for such authority. The parliament in the mean-while prepared the money and some other pressing bills without opposition, which received the royal assent on the 24th of March. The leaders of the Union were promised^ that sue- France pro- mises suc- cours should be sent from France in April j but they cours,and never arrived. The French, indeed, conHded so little in their new allies, that in all their communica- * The order bears date the 26th of FebruarVj 1798, and is to be found in my Hist, Rev. vol. II. p 663. 2 £2 The Reign of George III. tlons they never informed the rebel directory of the place^ where they meant to land, or (except in the first) the force they meant to bring. However, Messrs. O'Connor, M'Neven, and Emmett have observed in their memoir*, that the French never would abandon the plan of separating Ireland from England, so long as the discontents of the people would induce them to support an invasion. The resignation of General Abercrombie was the fatal moment of renovating and extending the reign of terrorism, Mr. Pelhamf re- * Memoir 23. There appears no well-founded reason for ques- tioning the truth of that memorial, Fas est et ab hoste doceri. " Let us then (say they), whilst Ireland is yet our country, be in- dulged in a few remarks, which we deem extremely important to its future prosperity ; now that we have given these full and faith- ful details of the past, we cannot be suspected of any but pure dis- interested motives in w-hat we are about to say, ere we leave it for ever. The parts we have acted Iiave enabled us to gain the most intimate knowledge of the dispositions and hearts of our country- men. From that knowledge we speak, when we declare our deepest conviction, that the penal laws^ which have followed in Buch doleful and rapid succession, the house burnings, arbitrary imprisonments^ and free quarters, and above all, the tortures to extort confessions, neither have had, nor can have, any other effect but exciting the most lively rancour in the hearts of almost all the people of Ireland, against those of their countrymen, who. have had recourse to such measures for maintaining their power, and against the connexion with Great Britain, whose men, and \^hose, aid had been poured in to assist them." i- In the Hist. Rev. vol. 11. p. 66/ , it is stated, that Mr. Pelham (nowEarl Chichester) had retired from office in disgust at the sys- tem. But the author has been assured, by authority from his lordship, that this was an erroneous statement : that he approved of the system and all the measures of government at that time ; and was most re- v^'W/ Administration of Earl Camden. 421 luctantly resigned his situation from ill health, and 1/98. was succeeded by Lord Castlereagh, who brought with him into office full as much fervor for the sys- tem as his predecessor*. luctantly compelled by a severe illness to withdraw his services in forwarding them. * The system at this time (5th April, l/P.S,) has been thus strongly etcr.cd. (Pet, W. C. p. 12. ) " Here we perceive and lament the efFects of inveteracy, conceived by his Majesty's mi- nisters against the Irish. Irntalle and quellahle, devoted to superstition, deaf to law, and hostile to property ; such was the picture, which at different times his ministers in Ireland have painted of his people, with a latent view to flatter the English by the degradation of the Irish, and by such sycophantsbip and ma- lice, they have persuaded themselves to consider* their fellow sub- jects as a different species of human creature, fair objects of reli- gious proscription and political 'incapacities, but not of moral relationship, or moral ol)ligation ; accordingly they have afforded indemnity for the rich, and new pains and penalties for the people } " they have given felonious descriptions of his Majesty's subjects, and have easily persuaded themselves to exercise felonious prac- tices against their lives and properties ; they have become as bar- barous as their system, and as savage as their own description of their countrymen and their equals j and now it seems they have communicated to the British minister, at once their deleterious maxims and their foul expressions, and he too indufges and wantons in villainous discourses against the people of Ireland, sounding the horrid trumpet of carnage and separation. Thus the language of the ministers becomes an encouragement to the army to murder the Irish. "We leave these scenes 3 they are dreadful j a minis' ry in league with the abettors of the Orange-boys and at war with the people 5 a people unable to procure a hearing in either country, while the loquacity of their enemies besieges the throne." 2e3 422 The Feign of George III 1798. The rcadoption of the system of coercion was pe- Newdecia- c^^i^-rly coiigcnial with the spirit of the Orange boys, tionsand Under the countenance of p;overnment they now as-^ ooi'.duct of o / theOrange- gmngfj a tone of affording protection ; and in order to do away the odium they had incurred by their past conduct with the mass of people, who were Catholics, some of their leaders published an address strongly dis- claiming all the imputations and charges of their ene- mies, and expressive of the most purified loyalty.* In this public fever the opposite parties availed them- selves alternately of the advantage of misrepresenting their antagonists. Mi'^chiev- The mischief of the association of Orangemen con- o u s c fTt* c 1 5 • of the sisted in the principle of national disunion, which it Oranse as- . ,, i i- 1 • • r-^i sociation. essentially went to establish m perpetuity. Ihey wei-e all Protestants, and their regulations precluded the admission of Catholics among them. As they now avowed their sole object vi^as to preserve public order, and make head against the United Irishmen and all other enemies to the state, the exclusion of the Ca- tholics from their society was considered by the gene- rality of the people (however it may have been really intended by the Orangemen) an indirect charge or open intimation, that the Catholics made comrnon cause with the United Irishmen, and abetted those princi- ples, to combat which the Orangemen professed to * The form of tlieir address is to be seen in Hibt. Rev. vol, II. 670. It was signed, Thomas Verner, Edward Ball, John Claudius Beresford, William James, Isaac Dejoncourt. Admimstradon of Earl Camden, 423 have united. In fact where such a society exists, re- ^79^. Iigious distinctions can never subside.'' Notwithstanding the system were now pushed to Discovery unprecedented severity, the discovery of the designs bciiion. ' of the conspirators was not the result of any measure of government. It was procured from the infidehty to their cause of one Thomas Reynolds, a silk-inercer of Dublin, and a Catholic, who had so completely wound himself into the confidence of Lord Edward Fitzgerald and Mr. Oliver Bond, that in the year 1797 he was appointed a colonel, then treasurer and representative of the county of Kildare, and at * Notwithstanding the adempts to clear the principles of the Orange confederacy from the charges ofcrueUy, it is incontest- able from the examination of Mr. O'Connor, that government had no doubt of their oath of extermination. ( Mtm. p. 51) Committee. Government had nothing to do with the Orange system, nor their extermination. O'Connor. You, my Lord i^Castlereagh) from the station you fill, must be sensible, that the executive of any country has it in it's power to collect a vast mass of information, and you must know from the secret nature, and zeal of the union, that its exe- cutive must have the most minute infortnation of every act in the Irish government. As one of the executive, it came to my know* ledge, that considerable sums of money were expended through- out the nation, in endeavouring to extend the Orange system, and that the oath of extermination was administered ; when these facts are coupled, not only with general impuiiiiy, whirh has been uniformly extended towards the acts of this internal as- sociation, but the marked encouragwuent its members have re- ceived from government, I find it impo&^>ible to exculpate the government from being the parent and protectur of tiiese sworn extirpators. 2e4 424 The Reign of George III. ^79^- last, delegate for the province of Leinster. This man having settled his terms with Mr. Cope, a Dublin merchant, and having received five hun- dred guineas in hand, gave information that the Lein- ster delegates were to meet at Mr. Oliver Bond*s on the 12ih of Llarch, to concert measures for an imme- diate insurrection. The Le.n- In consequence of this, IVIr. Justice Swan, attended gates ar.d by twelve seijeants in coloured clothes, arrested the rested. Leinster delegates, thirteen in number, while sit- ting in ]Mr. Bond's house. They seized several of their papers, which led to the full discovery of the in- tended insurrection : and on the same day IMessrs. Emmett, I\rNeven, Bond, Sweetman, Henry JacksoUj and Hugh Jackson were taken into custody, and war- rants were granted against Lord Edward Vitzgerald and Messrs. M'Cormick and Sampson, who having notice made their escape. The insar- The leaders did not intend to brinor forward the iu- rectirn f re- _ _ *-' mptuTP'y surrcciion till the French should come to their assist- foi. ed into expiosioa. ance, and meant in ihe mean time to continue to increase their numbers, and to add to their stock of arins : but in the spring of 1798^ the loyalty of the people was GO strongly marked, that the chief con- spLrators perceiving their cause was losing ground, had ixo aliemarive bur to hazard a general rising, or ^randoii ihcir hopes. To prev-^'ut despondency a- v-'-nr^^i -he members of th° union on the occasicn of eiV it^'id seizure, a hand bill was circulated Mua industry, and had considerable eifect in keeplno- Adminktration of Earl Camden. 425 up their spirits*. Upon the seizure of the delegates 1/9*. a new directory was chosen, which soon experienced the fate of the former. Their proceedings were dis- closed by another informer ; a Captain Armstrong, of the King's County Militia^, who had pretended to en- * In order to shew the feelings, confidence, and resolution of the rebels at this period the form of this haud-bill is given. " For us the '' keen but momentary anxiety occasioned by the situation of our *' invaluable friends, subsided^ on learning all the circumstances '* of the case, into a calm tranquillity, a consoling conviction of " mind, that they are as safe as innocence can make them now ; ** and to these sentiments were quickly adde-d a redoubled energ-y, " a ten- fold activity of exertion, which has already pr luced the " hapfMest effects. The organization of the capital is perfect- No " vacancies existing, arrangements have been made, and are still ** making, to secure for our oppressed brethren, whose trials* ap- " proach, th^jbenefit of legal defence, and the centineis, whom *' you have appointed to watch over your interests, stand firm at *' their posts, vigilant of events, and prompt to give you liotice " and advice, which, on every ocbasion at all requiring it, rely on ** receiving. This recital. Irishmen, is meant to * In illustration of the nature of that system, which Lord Clare, its grand projector and supporter, boasted had been extorted frorti Lord Camden, we select one out of numerous examples, which took place in the country, in which his lordship's property and influenc<= principally lay. Every incident of it has been or can be verified upon oath. Mr. Francis Arthur was an eminent merchant at L'merick, When the French attempted to land at Eantry, under the direction of General Smith, he raised and trained at great expense a corps of yeomen artillery, of which he had ever since had the com- mand. The corps was disbanded on the 15th of May, 1798, without any alleged reason or j revious notice. On Thursday the 24th of Miy, w hen thf^ accounts arrived at Limerick, of the re- bellion having b)-oken out on the preceding day in Kildare, a gen- tleman in Mr. Arthur's hearing observed, that it was fortunate, the spirit of reb Uion hnd not reached Limerick. Thai is not the case, remarked Colonel Cockell. On Tuesday ne^t, persons mill le taken up, which will astonish the public. On the intermediate Saturday f 26!h May) Captain Liddell superintending a flagellation at Limerick, took that opportunity of proclaiming 200 guineas reward for any person, who would inform against any of the artil» lery corps. On Tuesday the 2c)th, according to Colonel Cock- ell's prediction, Mr. Francis Arthur was apprehended in his own ^ Administration of Earl Camden, 44-7 ment, and whipping of numbers of suspected' persons : I7(»3. these yeomen, bi-ing protestants, and mostly Orange- bouse by the recorder of Limerick, under an order froni General Morrison. All his k^ys, papers, and prnpc;rty were seized, and his wife and family driven out of the house, which was inims- diately filled with soldiers. Mr. Arthur was conducted to prison by the sheriff, Generil Morrison, and a large party of horse and foot, without any warrant. Limerick not being then proclaimed, and confined to a small garret, out of ih? window of which if he looked, the centinel had orders to fire at him. The wealher was sultry, and ?>Ir. Arthur was relused permission to break a pane of the window for admission of air. He applied for leave to be visited by Mr, Thwaytes, a medical gentleman in the staff; it was refused. Mrs Arthur sent her servant witji some whey to her husband : the servant was recognized by Mr. Sheriff Lloyd» and sent home after a severe beating. All the information he could acquire from Colonel Cockell wa«r, that he was charged by a person who had never seeji him : it was uncertain, whether he would be tried at Limerick or Dublin, but that no counseJ would be allowed him. After languishing in his cell, under severe ilhiess, debarred from the use of pen, ink, and paper, and all human intercourse but the turnkey for shove thre^ weeks, on the 22d day of June, ;il nine o'clock at night, he ree^eivefd notice, (h it he was (o appear on the next morning to take his trial. Then for the first time, the President informed Mr. Arthur, that he stood charged with having aided and assisted the rebellion. Jo. By of- fering money for the use of Lord Edward Fitzgerald, after notice of his rebellious purposes. 2o. Employing one Higgins to raise men in the west. 3". Having firelocks and pikes concealed iu hogsheads. The only witness brought to substantiate the first charge was William Maume, a low person then actiially under conviction and sentence of transportation for life to Botany Bay, for treasonable practices. In his progress to Waterford for this purpose, he was stopped by an order of government, and imme- diately taken into the protection and management of Mr. Thomas Judkin Fitzgerald, sheriff of Tipperary, and Colonel Foster of 448 The Reign of George UL ^799. men, acted with a spirit ill fitted to allay religious hatred, or reclaim the disaffected. To excite irrita- the Louth militia. Maume from his arrival at Limerick, was handsomely maintained and permitted to go at large. His evidence was prevaricating and inconsistent. The two witnesses to the 2d and 3d charges, having nothing but hearsay evidence to offer, and declaring their utter ignorance of Mr. Arthur, made no impression on the court. The court declared the prosecution closed on Saturday, and ordered the prisoner back to his confine- ment under a double guard, with orders to prepare for his defence on the Monday j but he was not allowed in the intermediate time to speak or communicate with any human being, not even the turnkey. On Sunday the prisoner was visited by Colonel Cock- ell, who refused his pressing entreaties for an extension of time, ^ and the means of aid, assistance, or counsel. On the opening of y the court on Monday morning, Maume was called in by the Pie- gident, who without any sug gest ion, told the court, that Maume was now cooler and would corS^nis evidence of Saturday. He was called in, and prevaricated stilra^fcr. And when a letter written by himself to Mr, Peppard, was produced, acknowledging he had never seen Mr, Arthur in his life, he answered in confusion to the President, Youhiow, Sir, that it was hut lateli^thai Igave informa- tion against Air. Arthur, and that I did not wish to do it. Between the close of the prosecution on Saturday and the open- ing of the defence on Monday, Mrs. Arihur and her friends pro- cured some material witnesses from Charleville and other places } and ten of his witnesses, all respectable inhabitants of Limeriek, had engaged a room in the hotel, adjoining to the court-house, to be at hand to answer the call of the court. The Rev. Avril Hill gave in a paper to the President, and the court declared there was a revolutionary committee sitting in the adjoining tavern : on which the Judge Advocate was dispatched to take them into custody. Centinels were placed in the front and rear of the house, with orders to let none escape till the breaking up of the coarr. They seized all the papers and written documents, which had been procured for the prisoners, and they were kept by tlie JidminisLratio'ii of Earl Camden. 449 tlon by floggings, stranglings, iaiprisoninems, and a 1798- variety of insults, more especially without redundant Ptesident. Mr. SlierifF Lloyd conipla'ned that some other of the prisonf^r's witnesses were in waiting, and is-iucd orders ihit all papers and coramunications relating to the prisoner should be first given into coart. AH Mr. Arthur's friends were forcib^/ kept out of court ; and with the utmost dilficuity, some of tlis first characters in Limerick prevailed on ih^ sheritf to permit Mr. Arthur's father to be present at the trial of his son. The greatest part o( j\L-. Arthur's witnesses having been krpt out of cou;(, the defence was closed on the same day The prisoner was remanded, and a sentinel with a drawn bayonet quartered upon him in his nar- row cell. His trunks nlso were taken from him. At nine o'clock on that night. Colonel Cocked brought him the following sentence of the court-martial. You are to be trajis/jorled io Budviy Bay J'or life, to be sent off to-murruw moining at six o'clock, to pait a Jine of 50001. io the King fort hivith, or your entire prol)eriy will be corjiscated. When thertrial was over Mr. Artl-jur's witnesses, who had not been examined, were called in, and severely rebuked by the President as a revolutionary com- mittee. Hare, a permanent sergeant, who had received Maume into his care and management, and who had deposed that Manme had written the letter from Genefcjl Morrison's apartments to Mr. Peppard, which the sherilT declared had saved Mr.Artl.ar's life, was committed to jail without any charge or warrant, and on the neit morning was tried aiid found guilty by the same court-mariial of a breach ot trust, in having permitted Mauine to wri «• .iiat ieirer to Mr. Peppard. As Mr, SherilT Lloyd was conducting Hare to prison , to which he was cornmitted as well as dismisstd from the ol'-ce of permanent sergeant, he told him explicitly, that that severe sentence was not passed upon him for having permiltcd Mjun^e to write the letter, but because he had appcircd too s.iugrine in favor ot the prisoner. Hare justified his obligatior. of cbcyi\g tl;e sum. mons : observing. th.U had he r.ot appen-ful, tie man wmI! have been hanged, To^le swe he uould was the sheriij's r-ily .; an I had you remained at home, the court would have ovtrlooki-d i!. An VOL. II. 2 G 450 The Reign of George HI. 17.95. means of coercion was a fatal delusion of the drivers of the system. application was made by Hare's son, ihrougli Lord M.iUhew, fof theiiberatiou of his favher ; which was acceded to. But Colonel Cockell admonished the yoang man, that his father's was a seri- ous breach of trust and grievous offence ; for the letter he had per- mitted to be written by Maumc h;id s.ived Mr. Arthur's life. On the 20[h of June Lord Cornwailis arrived in Dublin j and it acci- dentally happened, that a young gentleman of the name of Gor- man, a nephew of Mi. A;t:hur, lat.ly arrived frcn London, being unknown to any of those, who had undertaken to keep the court clear of Mr. Arthur's friends, was present at the trial on Saturday. Anticipating the result of the proceedings, he set off for Dublin, where on the next morning he presented a petition to Lord Corn- waliis, stating the circumstances, and praying, that if sentence, should be given against the prisoner, the execution of it might be respited, till his excellency should have revised the minutes of the court-mariiai. This prayer -^s granted. It also occasioned a general order from Lord Cortiwallis. that in future no sentence of a cou.i-martial should be summarily executed, as was then usual, without the confirmation of tliC' lord-lieutenant. On Tuesday morning, ^Tr. Gorman being informed, that General Morrison was determined to exact the fine of 50001. from his uncle, waited on lilai to remonstrate against the' manifest infraction of his exceU Itncy's commands, to which General Morrison laconically replied, •• 1 have received Lord Catlereagh's letter respecting Mr. Arthur, and shall use my discretion for the contents. I order the money to be paid." Accordingly the collector of his Majesty's revenr.e took a bag fvom Mr. Aithui's desk, containing JOOO guineas in specie, and compelled his father instantly to make up the remain- der. Notwithstanding the remonstrances of General Morrison to Lord Caitlerengh's communicaiion of his excellency's remission of • the fcentence, Lord Cornwailis sent a peremptory order, that Mr. Arthur's fine should be repaid to him, and he be allowed to go to Grent I'ritain, or any other part of his Majesty's dominions. Though the ordorfor^Mr. Aithur's acquittal and delivery bore date Admimstratlon of PmvI Camden, 451 *rhe insurrection in the counties of Wicklow and ^798. Wexford assumed an appearance unusually ferocious, insurrcc- ^ ^ ^ ti'jn of Wicklow Ihe 30th of Jane, l^pS, yet was he kept in close confinement till and VVcx- theSth of July, when, for thr first time, Mr, Arlhur wa.s made ac- quainted with his exceilenL-y's order for the repayment of his fine and [lis libenition, through Colonel Cockell, by order of General Morrison. Colonel Cockell said to Mr. Arthur, You must go lo your house in a hand-chair, the curtail drawn about you. You are not to stir out of your house, and in l-i hours you are to quit Li' vierick. Mr. Arthur was called upon to give security tor his quit- \ng Limerick within that time. But no such condition having been imposed upon liim by his exccllencv, no one was found com- petent to take his recognizance. The limitation of time, though not required by his excellency. Was as^ain enforcedj and Colonel Cockell observed, half an hour more or less will not be talicn notice of. Mr. Arthur set off for Dublin, on the Jih of July, where he remaineil till . October j constantly urging llie lord- lieutenant to reverse the sentence of the court-m.irtial, and allow h'm to prosecute Manme for perjury, that he might be in possession of formal and authentic ULCumenls, to clear and justify his own characier. Mr. Cooke and Mr. Taylor, the under secretaries, ns wei! as Lord Ca-llereagh, threw every dif- ficulty in his way. The eviJence of Maumc tiiey alleged was notoriously known to be false. He was already sentenced to Bo- tany Bay for life, aiid the necessary deiay of prosecuting Maume in a civil court would break in upon Mr, Arthur's wisliei to go to England, Gov. rrmient flid not, however, scruple in the interme- diate time to employ this, perjured miscreant to give evidence at Cork against some persons there under military ]irosecutions Mr, Arthur was still naturally anxious for every justificative document that he could procure. He piessed to have copies of his excel- lency's diiierent orders for respiting the sentence of the court- martial, liberating him, and re^>>iying the fine. Lie was assured, that all ihese orders had been ve;bil !I ! and that bis excellency could do nothing more for him. Mr. Cooke to put an end to Mr. 2 G 2 452. ^ The Reign of George HI. 1798 In the ceunty of Wexford there had long subsisted" a rivalry bordering on rancour, between the pratestants Arthur's further irrrportmiHy, wrote ta him the following letter on the 10th of Octobrr, l/pS. Sir, Castle, 10th Oct. 179S. 1 examined William Maume, wliose evidence I am clear is false ; he will be sent off and transported, and iliere cannot be any objection to your going whither you think mo>t eljgjbie. As f;ir as I can give testimony to your character, I shall ever do it by say- ing, that I think it by no means implicated from any thing asserted by Maume ; and I certainly never heard any aspersion upon you from any one else. I arn, &c. To Francis Arthur, Esq. E, COOKE. Maume in the me;;n while wa§ daily seen walking the streets of Cork. In January, 1799, ^^^ advertised his intention of publish- ing the whole of Mr. Arthur's trial, and all the means used to in- duce him (Maume) to give false evidence against him. He was. histantly arrested, and thenceforth confined to the barracks (though in an officer's apartments) where he was fretjuently visit- ed by Mr. .Tudkin Fitzgerald. Thence he was sent on board the Minerva transport, bound for Botany Bay. Despairing now of his pardon, and repenting, or pretending to repent, of his having borne firse testimony against Mr. Arthur, he swore to, and signed a full and minute avowal of all the falsities he had given in cv'dence against Mr. Arthur, in order to criminate him capitally. This was done in the presence of Joseph Salkeld, the master, and PJenry Harrison, the mate of the ship Minerva ; Thomas Holmes, Esq. late captain of the 54th, Kilner Brazier, Esq. late sheriffof Cork, and Arthur Arthur, and Peter Arthur, Esqrs. merchants of Cork. JMr. Arthur's last resort to do himself justice was to obtain the consent of the castle, to publish in the newspapers the letters of Messrs. Cooke and Taylor, This was refused on the pretext of the temper of the times. The most inventive novelist cauld Administration of Earl Camden, 453 and catholics. The county of Wicklow was one of i798. the most thriving districts in the kingdom. There persons of different religions, in the middle and inferior ranks, Jived together in habits of cordiality. The gentlemen of landed interest in the county of Wex- ford had always been noted for their antipathy against catholics, and their representatives in parliament had uniformly opposed every mitigation of the popery laws. In these circumstances may be traced something of a predisposing cause to insurrection ; but none such existed with respect to the county of Wicklow. The circumstance which brought forward the insurrection in the county of Wexford was the introduction of the Orange system by the North Cork militia. There Colonel Lord Kingsborough encouraged his men, who were mostly Orangemen, to wear medals and orange ribbons triumphantly pendent from their bosoms. Be- fore their arrival in April there were but few actual Orangemen in that county ; but soon after most of the protestants became open and sworn Orangemen. Reports were artfully circulated, that the armed pro- testants intended to massacre and expel the catholics, as they had from Armagh. This alarm was so preva- lent, that on many occasions all the inhabitants for an extent of thirty miles deserted their houses, and slept in the open fields*. Many joined the association be- hardly have combined a chain of circumstances so peculiarly illustrative of the coercive system, under which Ireland now laboured. * This fact was proved at the summer assizes of Wexford, 1798, before Lord Yelverton. 2 C 3 434 The Reign of George III. i/S"?' cause they had no alternative ; the armed corps generally considered every catholic a rebel ; who re- , ceived no credit much less merit for any act of loyalty. After the corps had been put on permanent duty, and the officers and magistrates had begun to torture and barn houses, multitudes of these people became fugi- tives from fear or actual want of dwellings : many from being exasperated at the sufferings of their acquaint- ance, friends, and kindred. Common suiferings brought these persons together and ionned the rebel- lion of Wicklow and Wexford. Most of the atroci- ties committed in that rebellion were acts of retaliation. The rebeiiion in these two counties was more a sud- den gust of revenge, than a preconcerted design, formal The general insurrection in the county of Wexford ]^no'ilhl "vvas occasioned on the 27th of May, by the unpro- commence- pier tkm'^of'^" yoked aggression of some yeomen, who entered and Wexford. burnt the catholic chapel of Boolavogue, in the parish of Kilcormick. Immediately Father John Murphy, the parish priest, at the head of some of his parish- \ ioners, fellupon them; ard several of the yeomen, with their two commanding officers, were killed. Father Murphy and some other priests *, who were driven or seduced into the rebeiiion, when once embarked in the cause, regularly exercised their spiritual functions in the camps. Numbers oF people were shot in the roadsj at vvOik in the helds, and even in their houses, * Out of 2CC0 priests, of which the catholic clergv in Ireland confisis, only nine were known^ ha\e joined the rebellion: iheir riames ar.d character.'^ fire givtn in Hist. Rev. vol. III. p. 7J7<, jidminhtralion of Earl Camden. 455 unarmed and unoffending, by stiagglin_^ parties of '^5^^. yeomen; which naturally drove others to seek refuse with their friends in arms. Hence, in the space of twenty-four hours, two large bodies were coiiected, one on the hill of Oularr, the otiier on Kiiihomas HilL They were confused multitudes of both sexes and all ages. 20O yeomen from Carnew marched against the body on Kilthomas Hill, which instantly fled in the utmost confusion^ and above a hundred and fifty ot the fugitives were killed in the pursuit: the yeomen in a march of seven miles burned two Catholic chapels, and about a hundred cabins and farm-houses of catholics. The event of the attack on the same day on the hili Reb-iserain of Oulart, where Father Murphy commanded, was dif- triu-e vu% the North Cork militia^ under the conimand of Lieu- tenant-colonel Foote, marched from Wexford, and attacked the rebels on the southern side of the hill. The rebels fled at the first onset and were pursued by the militia, without rank or order. Father Murphy rallied SCO of his men with so much vigor, that with their pikes they killed, almost in an instant, the whole detachment, except the lieutenant^colonei, a sergeant, and three privates. Of the 300 who rallied, only six were armed with firelocks, the rest had pikes. 1 hiee of the insurgents were killed, and six wounded by the disordered soldiery. Whilst the country ejvhibited a scene of distress and consternation, houses in Barnes, families flying in every direction for asylum, the body of^rebels under Father Murphy, marchtd from Oulart, 2 G 4 45G The Reign of George IIL 1798. ' flashed with victory, and encreasing their numbers as they advanced. They first took possession of Camolin, a small town in which 800 armed themselves with guns, which within some few hours had been there deposited by Lord Mountnorris. On the 2Sth of May, Ennis- coithy was attacked by this multitude, and after four hours' revsistance, was left in the possession of the insur- gents. The garrison fell back on Wexford : they lost about fourscore of their men, and set the town on fire in several places : the yeomen intended, and would have murdered all the prisoners, had not the jailer accider.tally gone to Wexford with the key*. The sufferings and reports of the fugitives from Ennis- corthy, who had retired with the troops to Wexford, and the discovery of the smoke and flames in a conti- nued line from Wexford to Enniscorthy, excited the greatest alarm and consternation. reputation Captain Boyd of the V/exford cavalry, in conse- sent to the ^ ... , p , .^^ rebeh. quence or a requisition to tnat purpose or the snerifi and other gentlemen, on the 27th of June had arrested Beauchamp Bagcnal Harvey, John Henry Colclough, and Edward Fitzgerald, all respectable gentlemen of the county of \¥exford. Visiting them in prison on the 29th, Captain Boyd prevailed upon Messrs. Col- clough and "'Fitzgerald to go to the rebels at Ennis- * This butchery of pi Isomers without (rial had been before fre- qiemly piaciised. *' At Cariiew 28 piisoijers were brocglit out of " the j/lace of confinement and deliberately shot, in a bull alley, " by the yeomen." — Insur. Wexf. p. 76. " At Dunlavin 34 " were shot without trial, and among them the informer, on whosd •' evidence they v.ere arrested." — Ibid. S/. AdministraLwn of Earl Camden. 457 corthy, and endeavour to persuade them to disperse 1798. and return to their homes ; but would not give au- thority to promise any terms to the insurgents in case of submission. On the arrival of these two gentlemen at Enniscorthy, about four in the afternoon of the same day, they found the rebels in a state of confu- sion, distracted in their councils, and undetermined upon any plan of operation ; some proposing to attack Newtownbarry, others Ross, others Wexford, others to remain in their present posts: the greater number to march home for the defence of their houses against Orangemen*. They thought more of defence, than ag- gression, f It was but the resolution of a moment to march in a body to attack Wexford. Mr. Fitzgerald they detained in the camp, and Mr. Colclough they sent back to announce their hostile intentions. Mr. Col- clough, on his return to Wexford in the evening, announced the insurgents' determination of marching from Vinegar Hill to the attack of Wexford, Early in the morning of the 29th, Colonel Max- Deucii- . . . . mentfTom well, of the Donegal mihtia, with two hundred men Gen. Faw- of his regiment and a six pounder, arrived in Wex- prised, ford from Duncannon fort, dispatched by General Fawcett, who hadbeen apprized of the insurrection on the 27th. An express sent from the mayor of Wex- * The dread of Orangemen not of Protestants appears to have affected those rebels throughout. Even Sir Uiohard Musgiavehas spoken truly on this point, (p. 335) " On Whitsunday they rose " in mass, armed with pikes and guns, and vtJvved vengeance ** against the Protestants us Orangemen." f Hays, p. 103. 458 Tkc Rcigii of George III, 1798. ford to that general, requesting an additlonai force, had returned with an answer, that the general himself would commence his march for Wexford on the sam.e evening, with the lath regitr>ent, four companies of the Meath militia, and a party of ardllery with two howitzers. General Fawcett halted on the evening of the 29th at Taghnion, seven miles from Wexford ; but sent forward a detachment of 88 men, including 3 8 of the artillery, with the howitzers, under the com- mand of Captain Adams, of the Meath militia. I'his detachment was intercepted early in the morning of the SCth : the howitzers werie taken, and almost the whole party slain. General Fawcett retreated to Dun- gannon fort,, and Colonel Maxwell, who had marched out to join him, was nearly surrounded, butwith great address made good his retreat to Wexford, with the loss of Lieutenant-colonel W^atson killed, and some privates w'oiinded. Internal At Wcxford all Were m desperate consternation. con fusion at i i • i » Wexford. Some yeomen and supplementanes posted nearly op- posite the gaol were heard continually thneatening to put all the prisoners to death, which so roused the attention of the jailer to protect his charge, that he barricaded the door, and delivered np the key to Mr. Harvey. This gentleman was so apprehensive of violence, that he had concealed himself in the chim- ney, and it was not without great difficulty that some magistrates were admitted to see him in the jail. They forced him to write a letter to the insurgents, intimadng;, that he had been treated in prison with all possible humanity, and was then at libtrty. That he Administration of Earl Camden, 459 had procured the liberty of all the prisoners ; and en- 179S. treating them in Christian charity, not to commit massacre, or burn the property oi the inhabitants, but to spare their prisoners' live.s. This- note was sent to the insurgents, with an ofler to surrender the town. Scarcely had this resolution been taken, when all the military corps, (a part of the Wexford infantiT under Captain Hughes excepted) made the best of their way out of the town in whatever direction they imagined they couLi find safety, without acquainting their neighbours on duty with their intentions. The principal inhabitants, whose services had latterly been accepted of for the defence of the town, were mostly catholics, and ac- cording to the prevaihng system, had been continually subjected to obloquy and insult. They were always placed in front of the posts, and cautioned to behave well, or that death should be the consequence. Per- sons were even placed behind them to keep them to their duty, who were so rigorously watchful, that they would not permit them to turn about their heads, Thus were the armed inhabitants left at their post, abandoned by their officers, and actually ignorant of the flight of the soldiery, until all possible means of retreating were cut off. The North Cork repiment on quitting the barracks set them on fire ; but it was soon after extingui:^hed. As the pl.ice was abandon-- ed by the military, the multitude poured in v/ith ex- travagant exultation. They first proceeded to the jail, released the prisoners, and insirted, that Mr, Harvey should become their commander. All thes houses not abandoned by the inhabitants, were decor-. 460 The Reign of George 111. 1798. ated with green boughs, and other emblematic sym- bols of insurrection. The doors were thrown open, and the multitude regaled with spirits and drink^ of which however they uniformly refused to partake, undl the persons offering them had first drunk them- selves, as a proof, that the liquor was not poisoned ; a report having prevailed to that effect. Those, who did not throw open their doors suffered by plunder. The house of Captain Boyd, though not deserted, was pillaged and demolished. S?"" °^ '^^^ troops who had fled from- Wexford, signalized awaytroops. thcmselves in their retreat by plunder^ devastation, and murder; burning the cabins, and shooting -the peasants in their progress ; and thus augmented the number and rage of the insurgents. These excesses were seen from the insurgents' station at the Three Rocks, and it was with extreme difficulty, that the enraged multitude were hindered by their chiefs from rushing down upon Wexford, and taking summary vengeance of the town and its inhabitants. The in- surgents were extremely irritated at the breach of the condition, which they had insisted upon, of all the arms and ammunition being delivered up. Gorey eva- The tum of this rebellion now rendered both sides cuated, and _ . . . -r 1 /-i retreat to ferocious, cven to their associates. When Gorey could be no longer defended by its slender garrison, it was evacuated on the next morning at five o'clock, and the inhabitants were ordered to retire to Arklow. Fainting widi hunger, thirst, fatigue, and the want of sleep, tiie fugitives were denied admittance into the town, and forced to seek refuge in the fields, w here they Admin'istralion of Earl Camden. 4G1 remained, till the rebels, by bending their course to 1798. the south, left Gorey : and then they returned to it unmolested. At Vine<]jar Hill, which commands the town' of campatVi- *-' negarHill. Enniscorthy, the rebels formed, what they called a camp, from which they daily garrisoned the town, by an officer's guard. They wantonly destroyed the interior of the church *. The King's troops gained some advantages at the Alternate successes (f village of Ballycannoo, where they fired most or the the King's , troops and houses; and also at Newtownbarry, which gave a mo- rebel*. mentary check to the rebels. Disheartened at their recent defeats, they took post on Corrigrua Hill in great force, where they rested on their arms till the 4th of June, In the mean time, a corps of 150O men, with 5 pieces of artillery, under General Loftus, arrived at Gorey. Thence they marched in two divisions, by different roads to CoiTigrua. The rebels surprised the division under Colonel Walpole f, at a place called Tubberneering. He i^W on the first * This was the first outrage committed by t!ie rebels on a pro- testant church. There were aUerwards some, though not many more such instances. la order to avoid the odious detail of the wanton destruction of places of divine worship, a list may be seen of the catholic chapels destroyed in time of and after the rebellion, in the Appendix to my Hist. Rev. No. CXll. t This gentleman was a relative and favourite cf Lord Cam- den. He was no soldier ; but, through importunity at the castle, kad procured the command of five hundred men. He refused to employ scouts or flanking parties , and was not aware of the enemy, till they were within gun shot. He was conspicuouly mounted on a white charger, in full uniform and plumage 462 The Reign of George III, i793. fircj and his troops fl.d in the utmost disorder, leaving two six pounders, and a smaller piece, in the hands of the ciiL-niy. ']. licy were pursued as far as Gorey ; in their flight through which, they were gjiilcd by the fire of some of ti^e rebels, who had taken station in the houses. The unfortunate loyalists of Gorey once more fled to Arklow with the routed army, leaving all their effects behind. While Walpole's division was attacked. General Lcftus, being within hearing of the musquetry, detached 70 men, the grenadier company of the Antrim militia, across the fields to its assistance ; but they were intercepted by the rebels, and almost all killed or taken. The ge neral, still ignorant of the fate of ('olonel Walpole's division, and unable to bring his ar< llery across the fields, continued his march aL:)ng the highway, by a circuit, to the field of battle, where he first learnt the fate of Colonel Walpole and his division. He re- treated to Carnevv : and at the head of twelve hundred effective men, abandoned that pare of the country, by retiring to Tullow. Siege rf Whilst ouc formidable body of the Wexford in- New Ross. surgents, under the command ol- Edward Roche, was advancing tov/ards the north, another still more iormidable, under the command ot Mr. Harvey, pe- netrated to the south-W'.st. I'he conquest of New Ross uould have opened the communication with the disaffected in the counties of Waterford and Kilkenny, in which many thonc^nds were supposed ready to rise in arms at the appearance of their suc- cessful confederates. Thi« latter body took post on. ^Administration of Earl Camden. 465 Carrickburne mountain, within six miles of Ross, 1/98. where it was reviewed and oro-anized till the 4th of o June, when it marched to Corbet HiU, within a mile of that town, which it was intended to attack the next morning. Mr. Harvey possessed much resolution, and a good understanding, but no military experience. He had, however, formed the plan of an attack on three different parts of the town at once, which would probably have succeeded had it been put in execution. Having sent a fiag of truce, with a summons to General Johnson, who commanded the King's troops, to surrender the town, the bearer of it, Mr. Furlong, was shot by the sentinel of an out-post. * This so * To shoot all persons carr) hig flags of truce from ihe rebels- appears to have been a maAiai with his majesty's forces. The measure if wise, was certainly less productive of good, than evil consequences. In Mr. Furlong's pocket was found the following letter to General Johnson. " Six, " As a friend to humanity, I request you will "" surrender the town of Ross to the Wexford forces now astern • *' bled against that toun. Your-resistancG will but provoke rapine " and plunder, to the ruin of the most innocent. Flushed with vic- " tory, the Wexford forces, now innumerable and irresistible, will *' not be controlled,, if they meet with resistance. To prevent, " therefoie, the total ruin of all property in (he town, I urge you -" to a speedy surrender, which you will be forced to in a few " hour^, with loss and bloodshed, as you are surrounded on aU "■ sides. Your answer is required in four hours. Mr. Furlong " carries this letter, and will bring the answer, " I am. Sir, ♦' B. B. Harvev, " General commanding, Sec &c. &c.'* " Camp at Corhelt Hill, half past three o'clock in the morning, June 5, l/QS-" 464f The Reign of George III, ^708- exasperated the insurgents, that under the command of Mr. Kelly, they rushed impetuously into the town, drove back the cavalry with slaughter on the infan- try, seized the cannon, and became masters of a great part of the town; upon which a panic seized the King's troops, who retired to the Kilkenny side of the bridge, and several of the officers fled to Waterford, with the alarming intelligence. Major General John- son, perceiving that the insurgents instead of following their advantage, gave up themselves to drinking, with great prudence brought back to the charge his fugitive troops, who presently recovered their post, and drove the rebels from the town. The rebels, in their turn, rallied by their chiefs, returned with redoubled fury to the assault, regained their lost ground, and relaps- ed into riot and intoxication. Again dislodged by the same exertions as before, and a thiid time rallied, but still more disabled by their intem- perance, they were at last finally repulsed, after a contest of above ten hours. Lord Mountjoy, who commanded the Dublin militia, fell early in the day. Three hundied of the King's troops were killed, and above four times tb.at number of the insurgents ; the greater part of-them after the action was over. When the rebel army marched to Corbet Hill, several prisoners had been left under a guard, in a barn belonging to Scullabogue house, at the foot of Car- rickburne mountain. Massacre lu the coursc of the forenoon, some of the rebels bogue. ran away from the assault, and declared, that the Royal army in Ross were shooting all the prisoners^ and ^dminisiration of Earl Camden* 4G3 butchering the catholies, v/ho had fallen into their f"08- hands ; they even forged art order from Harvey for the execution of those at Scullabogue* It was re- sisted by the officer. But the runaways were brutal as they were dastardly. They rushed into the prison, shot and piked 37 at the hall door ; and the rest, since computed at above 100, were burnt alive in the barn. This inhuman barbarity was not the conse- quence of any regular system, but perpetrated by the runaway rebels, to palliate their own flight, by ^ inventions and exaggerations of the cruelty of the King's troops. On the day aftef the rebels' defeat at Ross, they resumed their position on Carrickburn hilL Discontent pervaded the whole army. Loud mur- murs were heard against their commander in chief, who in consequence resigned his command, and reared to Wexford. He was disheartened at the failure of the preceding day, and disgusted at the general insubordination of the forces. His last act of power was a general order, denouncing death against such persons, as should murder any pri- soner, burn any house, or commit any plunderj without special written orders from the commander in chief*. mJB^ The rebels remained two day^PC^Vrickburn ; they Fatner then took post on Sleeva Keelta, a'^.^eighbouring hill, cads Har- commanding the river of Ross, where by a tumul- command* tuous election, they chose for general, in the room of * That oi-der, and several particulars relating tr» the rrassacre of Seullabogue, are to be seen in Hist. Rev- vol. III. p. 731, See* VOL II, 2 H 466 The Reign of George III. 1798. Harvey, Father Philip Roche, a man of athletic powers and boisterous mannere, and not ill adapt- ed to controul the disorderly bands he had to deal with. This choice gave to the contest a new tinge of crusade. The term United Irishmen was sunk into that of Popish Rebels, and the denomina- tion of Orangemen into that of Protestants and He- retics. This circumstance proved how little the Wexford insurrection had been preconcerted. Quit- ting the post of Sleeva Keelta three days after their arrival, the troops under Father Roche occupied the hill of Lacken, within two miles of Ross, where for some days they lay inactive, regaling themselves on the slaughtered cattle and liquors they had plun- dered. tsHckiow The insurgents of the county of Wicklow had tion. Battle With extreme difficulty been kept in check by Major Hardy, who had notwithsanding been repulsed in five different rencounters ; which though singly of slight importance^, encreased the rebels* assurance and eagerness to co-operate with the Wexford insur- gents. On the 9th of June, the rebels, after having wasted some time in burning the town of Carnew, trying prisoners for Orangism, and plundering houses, collected their forces at Gorey, and advanced to attack Arklow, with a force exceedin-^- twenty thou- sand men, of whom near five thousand were armed with gunSj the rest with pikes, and furnished with three serviceable pieces of artillery. The garrison consisted of sixteen hundred men^ including yeomen and artillery. The rebels' attack was so impetuous. Adtmn^sU'ation of Earl Camden. 46'? tliat the piquet guard of yeoman cavalry, on which it '/P'^. first fell, Instantly fled in the utmost confusion. The farther progress of the assailants, though equally fierce, was prevented by the firmness of the infantry, particularly the Durham fencibles, comm.anded by the brave Colonel Skerret, who when General Needham talked of a retreat, spiritedly replied that he knew the spirit of his corps, and could never bear the idea of its giving ground. This magna- nimous answer diverted the general for sdm.e time from his plan of retreat. In the niean time the rebels retired in despair, frustrated in their furious assault and dispirited by the death of Father Michael Murphy, who was killed by a cannon shot, within thirty yards of the Durham line, while he was lead- ing his people to the attack. The battle of Arklow, though not the most bloody, was perhaps the most important of this civil war, as by the unfavourable turn it gave to the rebel arms, it probably decided the fate of Ireland. The tow^n of Wexford was the prime seat of H'orrors \n , the towa oC rebellion in the south. It remained in the possession vvtxiord. of the rebel force, from the 30th of May to the 21st of^ June, during which time it was the scene of many horrors. The sanguinary and vindictive turn the insurrection had very early taken, rendered sub- mission alike dreadful to both parties. On the evacuation of the town by the military, the vessels in the harbour were instantly crowded with fugi- tives, and the quays with men, women, and 2 H 2 468 The Beign of George III. 1798. chll(3ren, who to avoid falling into the hands of ' ^^"^^"^ the rebels, begged in the most pitiable manner to be admitted on board the vessels. On seeing the flames of the toll- house and bridge, all the vessels weighed and stood towards the mouth of the harbour, where they cast anchor. About one o'clock, a white flag was seen flying in Wexford (a signal that the rebels were in possession of the town) ; all the cap- tains answered the signal, except two, who sailed for Wales. They then again weighed anchor, and stood for the town, where they soon landed all their passen- gers to share the fate of their neighbours. The rebels, who entered the town, were headed by Edward Roche, who had been permanent sergeant in Colonel Le Hunte*s corps of yeomen cavalry, from which he had deserted, and become a rebel general. By ac- clamation they appointed General Keugh governor and commandant of the town ; and bore him on their shoulders to the court-house. This man had, from a private, risen to the rank of captain-lieutenant in the 6th regiment, in which he served in America. He was of engaging address, had long been in the habit of freely censuring the corruptions of go- vernment, and was so violent an advocate for reform, that the chancellor had strucken him out of the com- miuiiion of the peace, in the year 1796. In order to introduce some order into the town^ certain persons were chosen to distribute provisions, in rateable por- tions, amongst the inhabitants. The habitations of many of such protestants as had escaped were plun- Administration of Earl Camden, 469 dered, some were demolished, and few houses even J 798. of those Protestants that remahied were spared. The most obnoxious * protestants were committed to pri- son : yet many were stiJI at large, who were really at- tached to thepopular cause,or who from fear now affected to be so. During the tumultuary rule of this en- raged multitude, many murders were perpetrated with a savage affectation of solemnity, in order to excite the enthusiasm of the mob. Most, if not all of the massacres at Wexford, lay Atrocities ■' of Dixon, at the door of an infuriate monster of the name of * The following rebel proclamation seems to justify the idea^ that they had no intent or wish to spill the blood of any, who had not been guilty of acts of cruelty, violence, and oppression against the people. All Orangemen they considered guilty. Proclamation of the People of the County of fFexford. *' Whereas it stands manifestly notorious, that James Boyd, «■' Hawtry White, Hunter Gowran, and Archibald Hamilton " Jacob, late magistrates of this county, have committed the most *' horrid acts of cruelty, violence, and oppression, against our peace* " able and wtU affected countrymen. Now we, the people, " associated and united for the purpose of procuring our just rights, " and being determined to protect the persons and properties of " those of all religious persuasions, who have not oppressed us, *' and are willing with heart and hand to join our glorious cause, *' as well as to shew our marked disapprobation and horror of the " crimes of the above delinquents, do call on our countrymen at " large to use every exertion in their power to apprehend the bo- " dies of the aforesaid James Boyd, &c. &c. &c. and to secure '' and convey them to ihc giol of Wexford, to be brought before "^ the tribunal of the people. " I)»? 2h3 470 The Reign of George HI. i/DS. Dixon, a captain of a trading vessel, then lying In the harbour : he was the first to re-land the fugitives he had on boards towards whom (particularly the ladies) he behaved with brutal ferocity. On his return to shore he was made a captain in the rjbel army ; which •increased iris influence, and exteiided his means of ex- citing tlie rabble to those atrocitieSj in which he de- lighted. The wife of this man, as inhuman as him.- self, had purloined from the drawing-room of Mr. Le Hunte^ four miles t/om Wexford, two fire-screens with emblematical figures. Dixon informed the mob, that this room had been the meeting-place of Orangemen, and that the figures denoted the manner, in which the Roman Catholics were to be put to death by these conspirators J that they were to be first deprived of their sight, and then burned alive, without the exception even of children ; and particularly that. the seamen oi_that communion were to be roasted to death on red-hot anchors. Mr. Le Kunte, who had hithtrtq been permitted to remain quietly in a private house in the tov/n, was instantly dragged into the street by the rabble, who would soon have torn him to pieces, had he not been saved by the exertions of Mr. Edward Hay, and Mr. Robert Caity, two catholic gentlemen, who prudently hurried him into the gaol, \inder pretence of bringing him to trial, and parried in the crowd the thrusts of the pike?, tv/o of which, in spite of their endeavours, wounded him slightly in the back*. The rjamber of protestants in the town * Qordon, second edition, p. 1/8. Mr. E. Hay, in 1802, fvrote n vcj--,- interesting ietttr lo Mr. Gordon on some mistate- Administration of Earl Camden* 471 of V/exford, when it fell Into the hands of the rebels, 1/98. did not merely consist of the inhabitants of that town and its environs, but had been greatly encreased by the assemblage of refugees and prisoners from more distant parts of the country. Of these, about 2()0 were secured in the jail and other places of confinement : some were kept in their own houses : the dread of massacre fell indiscriminately upon them all. On the 6th of June, under an order from Enniscorthy, ten prisoners at Wex- ford were selected for execution, and suffered accord- ingly. The limitation of the victims to half a score, under this order, was made upon the principle of retalia- tion : those, who gave it, having received information, that a similar number of their people had suffered in like manner on the preceding day. A * general slaughter of the prisoners was twice attempted by the sanguinary Dixon, at the head of bands of peasants. He was mag- nanimously opposed, first by one Hore, a butcher, and next by one Scallion, a nautical trader; the former with a sword, the latter v^ith a pistol, defying him to single combat, and insisting, that he must shew himself a man, before he should dare to put defenceless men to death. Notwithstanding the brutality and influence of merits in the first edition of his history, which the reverend author has had the candor to pubhsh at full length in the Appendix to his second edition, to be seen in Appendix to Historical Review, No CXIII. The Rev. Historian there says he is convinced, that Mr. Hay had no eommand among the rebels, and exerted himself only to save lives and property. Mr. Edward Hay has, since the publication of Mr. Gordon's second edition, publiihed a very autheniic and interesting history of tlie insurrection of Wexford, * Gordon, second edition, p. ISO. 2 H 4 472 The Rc'ign of George III. 3708. Dixon, and some few individuals of his cast, over the most infuriated fanatics of the multitude, the leaders of the rebels solemnly disclaimed every idea of cruelty, and strongly recommended brotherly love and aflFec- lion towards their countrymen of every religious persuasion*. An inflax of fugitive rebels from the northern parts of the county, by retailing some and exaggerating or inventing other facts of barbarity committed upon them by the soldiery, had worked up to an unaccountable degree the vindictive fero- city of the lov\^est rebels, which the barbarous Dixon entiamed by whiskey, and the most inhuman exhorta- tions. This monster had art in his barbarity. The Rev. Mr. Dixon, his relative, a catholic clergyman, having been sentenced to transportation, had been sent off to Duncannon Fort the day preceding the insur- rection : he was found guilty on the testimony of one Francis Murphy, whose evidence h^d been positively contradicted by three other witnesses. Under these circumstances, Dixon took a summary mode of aveng- ing the fate of his kinsman, who was generally beloved. He brought this Murphy out of gaol, upon his own sole authority, and conducted him down to the bull-ring, where he obliged three revenue officers, who were then prisoners, and v/hom he brought out along with him, to s'ioot him, arxd afterwards bear his body to the quav and throw it into the water. This execution took place, with all its circumstances, while most of * See the proelamitions, signed B. B Harvey, on the 6th of June, and by Ed'.vaiJ Roche, on the /th, in the Appeiidii to UisturicaJ Review, No. CXIV. Administration of Earl Camden* 473 the town's people were at prayers, and was utterly ^798. unknown to the principal inhabitants. Dr. Cauhield*, the catholic bishop of Ferns, and Exertions others of his clergy in that diocese, exerted themselves thoiic with the utmost zeal at the hazard of their lives to pre- prevent vent bloodshed, and preserve the lives and property of and save * tlie lives of the pro- * It suffices- ^o State two letters written to Dr. Troy by Colonel *^^^^^ Litllehales, secretary to Lord Cornwallis, after the heat of the ferment had subsided, and after the publication of Sir Richard Musgrave's rancorous untraths, as testimonies of his loyalty and meritorious conduct on this trying occasion. Some very curious and interesting details of the exertions and dangers of that respect- able prelate, who is since deceased, and his clergy, are to be seen in Historieal Review, vol. III. p. 750, &ic. Dublin Castle, May lllh, 1800; « Sir, '* Is answer to the honor of your letter of the 9th instant, ** which I have laid before my lord-lieutenant, I am to assure *f you, that government will give to Dr. Oaulfield that protection, *' which, from his conduct and character as a loyal subject, he *' appears justly to merit, ** I have the honor to be, " Sir, " Your most ob°dient and faithful servant, *' The most Rev. Dr. Troy, ^c. ^c. i^c. f ; North King Street." ff J* Sir, DubTm Castle, June SOth, 1800. " Your letter of the 28th current having reached me, " with its enclosure from Dr. Caulfield, I have stated their con- ^' tents to my lord-lieutenant, w4io desires me to say, that bi$ ex* 474 *The Reign of George HI. Vgs. the protestants. Sir Richard Musgrave, the indefati- gable traducer of ancient and modern Ireland, has la- boured all he could by disseminating false calumnies, to criminate that respectable prelate and his clergy. Lord Kings- So radically had the fatal enthusiasm extinguished borough ■' ° taken by all scuse of dutv in the misouided wretches in this tSie rebels, . temporary phrenzy, that it became a service of as much danger to dehort them from their wicked pur- poses, as to hoist an orange cockade, or to threaten to flog, strangle, or picquet them. Lord Kings- borough (now Earl of Kingston), the colonel of the North Cork regiment of militia, v;as in Dublin when the town was taken possession of by the rebels, Dis- beheving the report of this disaster, he set out under obstinate incredulity to join his regiment : he travelled by land to Arklow, and thence proceeding by sea to Wexford, was taken prisoner with two officers of his regiment ofi the harbour of that town. I'he cap- ture of Lord Kingsborough was considered by the rebels as an incident of peculiar importance to them, jiot only on account of his situa'tion in life, but more jespecially as his lordship had ever been prominently I " celkncy has no cause whatsoever to alter the opinion he has " inabibed of the loyalty and proper deportment of Dr. Caulfieldj ** whose letter I return. " I have the honor to be, " Su-, " Your most obedient and faithful servant, E. B. LiTTLEHALBS, " The most Mev. Dr, Troy, tsfc. t^c. ^c. North King Street" Adm'mlslraiion of Earl Camden. 47^ zealous In promoting the system of coercion so ob- J/QS* noxious to the United Irishmen. The more reflecting of them had further views in his importance as an hostage, in case of their being driven to terms of capitulation. To the unremitting and hazardous exertions of Dr. Caulfield does this nobleman owe his life. On the 19th of June, General Edward Roche, and Constcma- such of the insurgents of his neighbourhood, as were fo.donthe at Vinegar Hill, were sent home xo collect the whole the army, mass of the people for general defence. By the march of the royal army in all directions, towards Vinegar Hill and Wexford, a general flight of such of the in- habitants as could get off took place. The alarm was general thoughout the country ; all men were called to attend the camps ; and Wexford became the universal rendezvous of the fugitives, who reported the approach of the army, marking it's movements uith horror and devastation. Ships of war were also seen off the coast : gun-boats blocked up the entrance of the harbour : and from the commanding situation of the camp at the Three Rocks, on the mountain of Forth, the general conflagration, which was as progressive as .the march of the troops, was clearly perceivable. General Moore*, w^ho advance4 * This great and ever to be lamented hero, who lately fell a victim to the councils of some of those very men, who were now- driving the system in Ireland, was an eleve and favonriteof Sir R. Abercrombie, who had resigned the command of the troops act- ing under a system, which he could neither support as a Britoii nor as a soldier. 476 The Reign of George 111. 1798. vvith a part of the army, did all in his power to prevent these atrocities, and had some of the outragers im- mediately put to death. This humane and benevo- lent conduct ill suited the intentions and views of the terrorists. He was instantly ordered to Wicklow, where his conciliatory conduct and humanity were conspicuous^, and will ever be remembered with grati- tude by the people of that neighbourhood, who eagerly flocked to his standard for protection. The principal inhabitants of Wexford having met in con- sultation upon the best mode of defence, issued an order for all the armed men to appear in camp" by break of day. Captain Dixon, although completely accoutred for battle, refused to obey the order, which was communicated to him^ whilst in the act of sending whiskey to a picked band of 70 ferocious peasants, whom he had fo:,ted in the barrack, and there detained for his abominable purpose of a general massacre. He had formed a reserve guard of some thousands of the most dastardly and un- ruly, consequently the most savage and cruel of the mob, who had refused to march to the camp. These he also plied with liquor, to render them the htter for the work of blood. The victims were conducted from the prison in separate detachments of about ten or fifteen^ with horrible solemnity, each surrounded by a guard of butchers, and pre-* ceded by a black flag marked with a white cross, to the place of execution, where they were, after their names had been separately called over, put to death, one after another. One was slaughtered at the door Administration of Earl Camden. 477 of the jail, the rest on the bridge. A multitude of i/f"'*'- wretches (the greater part women) assembled to behold the scene of blood„ and rent the air with savage shouts of exultation on the arrival of each de- tachment at the fatal spot. When S5 had been thus butchered, the slaughter, which had commenced at two o'clock in the afternoon, was stopped at seven by the interference of Father Corrin, a catholic clergy- man, who had gone thither to endeavour to stop the shedding of blood. On his arrival on the bridge, he for.some time vainly supplicated the assassins to delist. Then, in an authoritative tone, he commanded them to pray, before they should proceed farther in the work of death ; having thus caused them to kneel, he dic- tated a prayer, that God might shew the same mercy to them, which they should shew to the surviving pri- soners. The respite thus procured was rendered hap- pily efficient by a report, that Vinegar Hill was beset by the king's troops. This intelligence instantly caused the multitude to disperse. The surviving captives at the bridge were after a short pause re-conducted to prison by their guard, with denunciations of a general massacre of all the protestants on the next day. We must leave the tumultuary horrors of Wexford MoTcmenn to follow the movements of the army, which led to ^ '^ eaimy. the final liberation of that town from the ruthless tyranny of the rebels. After the battle of Arklow the royal army remained some days close within its quar- ters ; but when the country about Gorey was evacu- ated by the rebels. Major-general Necdham moved from Arklow thither on the 19th of June, and "^•i^ The Jteign of George lit, ^793. thenc2 to^v'ards Enniscorthy on the 20th, according to a concerted plan of General Lake, that the great station of the rebels at Vinegar Hill should be surrounded by his majesty's f.trce?, and attacked in all points at once. This eminence, with the town of Enniscorthy at Its foot, and the country for many miles round had been in the possession of the rebels from the 28th of May, daring which time the face of affairs had been indescribably horrid. Of the prisoners, who had fallen Into the hands of the rebels, betv/een three and four hundred were put to death ; several after a sham trial; many without any trial at all*. Battle of The army employed to surround the rebel post of Hill. Vinegar Hill, constituted a force of about thirteen thousand effective men, with a formidable train of ar° tillery, with which the whole insurgent army at that post might have been completely surrounded. The attack began at seven o'clock on the morning of the 21st, with a firing of cannon and mortars. All the divisions were at their respective posts, except that of General Needham, vvho either from neglect or ae- cidentj arrived not at his appointed position till nine, when the business v/as over. The rebels, after sus- * In these unfortunate civil contests, retaliation took place, ■without any reciprocity of rightor law. At the same time the - rebel General Murphy experienced similar treatment from the army. Being a priest, he was tauntingly desired to work mi- racles, scoffed at, and particularly insulted by a young officer, vho went the length of offering indecent insult to his person, ■«'hich so irritated his feelings, that, though on the brink of eter- nity, with his fist he knocked down the officer at a blow. He ■Was then fiageliated and instantly ha^iged. Admuiistraiion of Earl Camden. 479 taming th* fire of the artillery and small arms for an JJ^ hour and an half, fled through the passage, which lay open from the non-arrival of General Needham. They directed their course towards Wexford. Some hundred stragglers after the battle were killed ; most of the real rebels escaped. As the flight of the rebels was precipitate, they left behind them a quantity of rich plunder, with thirteen pieces of ord- nance. The loss on the side of the king's forces was inconsiderable. * Excesses, to be expected in such a crisis^ were committed by the soldiery, paiticularly by the foreign corps, who made no distinction between, loyalist and rebel. A house, used as an hospital by the rebels, was set on fire, in which many sick and wounded were burned to ashesf. On the 21st of June, Capt. Macmanus, of the An- Wexford's .... offer to sUT- trmi, and Lieut. Hay, of the North Cork Mihtia, who render rc- . / , . , . , jected, were prisoners with the reoeis, were sent witn pro- posals from the inhabitants of Wexford, to surrender the town, and return to their allegiance, provided their lives and properties should be guaranteed by the com- manding officer. The acceptance of these terms * Great discontents prevailed in the army upon Gsneral Need- ham's conduct on this^ as on a former occasion. It raised a per- sonal contest between Sir Richard Musgrave and Mr. Gordon. The sarcastical allusions, which became general after the action of the laie General Needham and General Needham s gap, shew on which side iperhaps unwarrantably) the weig'nt of inculpation lay. I The Rev- Air. Gordon says, he was informed by a surgeon,, that the burning was accidental, the bed clothes having been set on fire by the wadding of the soldier's guns, who were shooting the patients in their beds. 4^0 The Reign of George lit 1798. Lord Kingsborough had undertaken personally to answer for. They were, however, disdainfully re-* jected by General I-ake, who returned for answer^ that no terms could be granted to rebels in arms ; but that the deluded multitude might have peace and protection when their arms and leaders should have been delivered into his hands, tvexforci The insurgents were with difEculty prevailed on by occu^Jied ... , by the their chiefs to quit the town. They divided them- troops. selves into two bodies : one under the command of the Reverend Philip Roche, marched into the barony of Forth, and encamped that night at Sledagh ; the other, under the conduct of Messieurs Fitzgerald, Perry, and Edward Roche, proceeded over the bridge to Peppard's Castle, where they took their station for that night. After the approach of the king's troops, upon the rebels evacuating the town. Captain Boyd, the representative of Wexford, returning under their convoy, made many cautious inquiries, from Captain Bourke, who had come recently from that town, and having himself, from the commanding elevation of the road, observed the retreat of the insurgents over the bridge, entered the town attended with eight yeomen, almost with as much precipitancy, as he had formerly abandoned it, loudly declaring the army at iiis heels. The face of the town was instantly changed ; persons, who the moment before had ap- peared anxious to demonstrate their friendship for the insurgents, instantaneously exhibited stronger at- tachment to the king's troops. General Moore, thinking it most adviseable not to let the troops into Administration of Earl Camden. 481 the town, in order to prevent its being plundered 1798. and destroyed, took his station on the Windmill ^'^'^'''^- Hills, which commanded the town. ^ However, shortly after, the rest of the army not under his command, entered the town, and immediately all the wounded men in the hospital were put to the sword, as were many straggling inhabitants and others, who thought themselves in security. Relying on the faith of Lord Kingsborough's Capture of r , . r ■, FatherPhilip promises or complete protection or persons and pro- Roche, perties, several remained in the town of Wexford, unconscious of any reason to apprehend danger ; but they were soon taken up and committed to jail. The Reverend Philip Roche had such confidence in them, and was so certain of obtaining similar terms for those under his command, that he left his force at Sledagh in full hopes of being per- mitted to return in peace to their homes, and was on his way to Wexford unarmed, coming, as -he thought, to receive a confirmation of the conditions, and so Httle apprehensive of danger, that he ad- vanced within the lines, before he was recognized. He was instantly dragged from his horse, and in the most ignominious manner taken up to the camp on the Windmill Hills, pulled by the hair, kicked;, buffeted, and at length hauled down to the gaol in such a condition, as scarcely to be re- cognized. The people, whom he had left in ex- pectation of being permitted to return quietly home, being informed of his fate, abandoned all idea VOL, II. 2 I \ 482 The Reign of George III, 1793- of peace, and set off under the command of the ^^ Reverend John Murphy to the county of Carlow. Horrors of Death and desolation now visited the county of tlic Coiintv • ,- 1 II I J ot Wexford. Wexford so severely, that j;carceiy a man escaped; » the old and harmless suffered, whilst they, who had the use of their limbs and v/ere guilty, had previously made off with the main body of the people. The northern part of the county was deserted by most of its male inhabitants on the J 9th, at the approach of the army under General Needham. Some of the yeomanry, who had formerly deserted Gorey, re- turned thither on the 2lst_, and finding no ofHcer of the army as was expected to command there, li- centiously scoured the country, killed great numbers in their houses, and all the stragglers they met, most of whom w^ere making their way home unarmed from the insurgents, then generally believed to be totally discomfited. These transactions being made known to a body of the insurgents, encamped at Pep- pard's castle, they resolved to retaliate, and marched directly for Gorey, whither they had otherwise no in- tention of proceeding. The yeomen on their approach fled with precipitation towards Arklow, but were pur- sued as far as Coolgreney, with the loss of forty-seven men. The day was called bloody Friday. The in- surgents had been exasperated to this vengeance by discovering through the country, as they came along, several dead men, wiih their skulls split asunder, their bowels ripped open, and their throats cut across, be- sides some dead women and children, whose carcases u4dmimstralio7i of Earl Camden, 483 the pigs were devouring, or preying upon some still i/98. expiring. In the midst of these scenes of blood and slaughter, Amvaiof the Marquis Cornwallis arrived in Dublin on the 20th Cornwaiiii. of June, 1798, with a plenitude of power exceeding that of his predecessor, by the supremacy of the mili- tary command having been superadded to the civil government of the country. Yet as in the first days of his administration the old system was completely acted upon in the settlement of the Wexford re- bellion, it will be fitting to lay these posthumous acts of the extorted system of coercion rather at the close of Lord Camden's, than the commencement of Lord Cornwallis's administration. After the total evacuation of the town of Wexford by the rebel forces, under a general confidence, that their proposal and Lord Kingsborough's undertaking would have been attended to and observed. General Lake entered the town on the 22d of June, in the morn- ing, and remained there with his staff for several days. Almost all the principal inhabitants were immediately taken up, confined to gaol, and arraigned for treason. Two days Captain Keugh remained at L,ord Kingsborough's lodgings, under tv/o senti- nels, before he was removed to gaol. Mr. Cornelius Grocran was taken at his seat ac Johnstown where he had remained, unconscious of any danger, until con- ducted to prison. Mr. Bagenal Harvey had gone to his residence at Bargycastle, in such confidence, that the terms agreed upon with Lord Kingsborough would be ratified, that he sent some fat cattle 'v' 2 I 2 484 The Reign of George 111. 1798. Wexford for the use of the army ; but learning from the messenger, who drove them thither, that no con- ditions whatever would be obtained, he hastened with the fatal news to Mr. Colclough. This gentleman had previously taken his wife and child to one of the Sal tee islands, where he thought to have weathered out the angry storm in a cave, which he had resort- ed to for concealment. Thither Mr. Harvey also repaired; they were all soon discovered, and brought to Wexford, where they were confined in the condemned cells. Courts-martial sat upon the Rev. Philip Roche, Captain Keugh, Mr. Grogan, Mr. Har- vey, Mr. Prendergast, and Mr. Kelly, who had be- haved with such intrepidity at the attack on New Ross, where he was wounded : they were all found guilty^ and successively executed. Their bodies were treated with indecent barbarity. It was afterwards discover- ed, that the court-martial had been so precipitate as not even to have sworn in the members, insurrectioa The province of Ulster, where insurrection had been most of all dreaded;, and where from the spirit of the inhabitants it would, if extensive, have been the most formidable, had hitherto remained undis- s turbed. On the Tth of June, a meeting of magistrates having been appointed in the town of Antrim for the prevention of rebellion, some insurgents, with design of seizing their persons, attacked the town at two o clock in the afternoon, and soon overpowering the troops within it, had possession of it for some time, but were dislodged by Colonel Durham, who battered the town with some artillery, and obliged the insur- Administration of Earl Camdeii. 485 '•^V^i' gents to abandon it. On this day Lord O'Neil was ^9S. mortally wounded *. Some other feeble attempts were made at Ballymena and Ballycastle. The m?.in body of these northern insurgents retired to Donegar hill, where, disgusted with their want of success and other circumstances^ they surrendered their arms and dis- persed. On the 8th of June a more considerable body of insurgents in the county of Down, near Saint- field, nearly surrounded a body of troops under Colonel Stapleton, consisting of York fencibles and yeomen cavalry, of whom they killed about sixty : the infantry, however, rallied and dispersed the rebels, and after a stay of two hours on the field of battle, retreated to Belfast. Little discouraged by this defeat, in which their loss was trifling, the rebels reassembled, and took post at Ballynahinch on the Windmill hlllj at the house and in the demesne of Lord Moira. On the 1 2th General Nugent marching from Belfast, and Colonel Stewart from Downpatrick, formed a junction with fifteen hundred men near the Windmill hill, and with a policy wholly unaccountable, set fire to the town before the action. The action was main- tained about three hours : the artillery did little execu- tion ; at length the Monaghan regiment of mihtia, posted with two field pieces at Lord Moira's great gate, was attacked with such determined fury by the * Ke rode into the town to attend the meeting of the magis- trates, not knowing thai the rebels were in possession of it. He shot one, who seized the bridle of his iiorse, afier wliich he was dragged from his saddle, and so wounded with pikes, that he died in a few days. 2 I 3 48^ The Reign of George III. }]^^ pikeraen of the insurgents, that it fell back in confu- sion on the Hillsborough cavalry, which fled in dis- order. The want of discipline in the insurgents lost what their valour had gained. The disordered troops found means to rally, while the Argyleshire fencibles, entering the demesne, were making their attack on another side. The insurgents confused and distracted retreated up the hill, and making a stand at the top, a,t a kind of fortification, defended the post for some time with great courage,, but at length gave way and dispersed in all directions. Their loss exceeded a hundred; that of the royal army threescore. The main body of these insurgents retired to the mountains of Slyeeve Croob, where they soon after surrendered and returned to their several homes. Thus ter- minated this short but active northern insurrection, in the course of which some slighter actions took place, particularly at Portaferry, where the insurg^ents were repulsed by the yeomanry. They set fire to a revenue cruizer, in which forty men perished. Insurgency In one Other part of the kingdom only did the fn- jntl-cCoun- , . I /-. 15 1 • • ;yofCoik. surgency break out dunng Lord Camden s admini- stration, namely, in the county of Cork, The prin- cipal action, and the only one, which government has thought proper to communicate *o the public, took place near the village of Ballynascarty, where on the l9th of June, according to their account, two hundred ajid twenty men of the Wcotmeath regiment of militia, with two six pounders, under the command of their Lieutenant-colonel, Sir Hugh O'Reilly, were attacked oxi their march from Clognakelty to Bandon, by a Administration of Earl Caviden. 487 body of between three and four hundred men, placed Tgs. in ambush and armed almost all with pikes. The attack was made from an height on the left of the column, so unexpectedly and rapidly, that the troops had scarcely time to form ; when at that critical moment, a hundred men of the Caithness legion arrived on the spot, and by a brisk fire helped to put the assailants to flight. Their loss ahiounted to about fifty men ; that of the royal troops, by the commander's account, only to a sergeant and one private ; which is highly probable, as the insurgents had no fire-arms. 2 I 4 [ 488 ] CHAPTER VIII. Administration of Marquis Cornwallis, 1798. Marquis On thc 2 1 St of Junc, 1798, Marquis Corn waliis sssumTsthe assuHied the civil government and supreme military mcn""^' command, which it was found necessary to unite in the same person. This appointment under Providence was the salvation of Ireland. Plis lordship had it in his special commission to put down the rebellion in Ireland by moderation, and to check the ferocity of the Orange system by firmness. A change in the whole S3^steni of governing that country had become imperiously necessary, and this nobleman was select- ed by Mr. Pitt for the purpose. What ulterior com- mission he had from the British cabinet with reference to the union of the tv/o kingdoms, subsequent events may shew*. * It is the fashionable cry of a certain party, which systemati- cally opposes every proposal brought forward for tlje advantage of Ireland;, to identify the principles of the system of the two govern- - ments of Earl Camden and Lord Cornwallis. For many interest- ing facts and assertions upon this subject, the reader is referred to the postlirainious preface to the Historical Review of the State of Ireland, published in 1804. He will there find, that the author was assured by the prime minister of that day (Lord Sidmouth), that it was an identity of spirit and principle applicable to the vaiying circumstances of a rising, raging, and expiring rebellion. And he very significantly assured the author, that he knew not the .Administration of Marquis Cornv.-aUis» 489 On the 28th of June General Lake was recalled \799. from Wexford, and General Hunter appointed in his R.c.uf stead, lo the inexpressible joy of th urviving inhabit- hkll\n6. ants. The main body of the Wexford insurgents, mem of* reckoned to be fifteen thousand, had directed their !!!,","''. march, under Father John Murphy, into Carlow, with Intention to penetrate into Kilkenny, in hopes of raising the colliers about Castlecomer, who had been in a state of disturbance in the year 170-3. Upon en- tering the gap, they dispersed some troops, who op- posed their progress, and defeated a body of the 4th dragoon guards, and of the Wexford militia, who disturbed their passage over the river Barrow ; some few were killed, and twenty-seven taken prisoners, of whom seven condemned as Orangemen* were shot. grounds, views, or motives of Lord Cornwallis" actions. The author has in his possession a letter from Lord Cornwallis, in which his lordship says, his sentiments with regard to Ireland were well known by the measures he pursued, and those which he recom- mended. The reader will, under these opposite assumptions, mark the conduct of this noble viceroy, throughout his administration, with double interest and caution. * Notwithstanding the constant charges of this contest having become a religious war, it must b':i allowed, that to the la.st the cordial enmity of the rebels was to the Crangeman, and not to the Protestant. Even Sir Richard Musgrave allbrds evidence of this as late as the day, on which the rebels evacuated Wexford, from a certificate, which he says was given on that day by Father Eroe. " I hereby certify that A. of B. in the parish of C. has done his " duty, and proved himself a Roman Catholic, and has made a " voluntary oath, that he never was an Orangeman, nor took the . *' Orange oath. " Dated JVexford, June 21, l/gS. F. John liHOE.'' 490 The Reign of George III. TOS. Major-general Sir Charles Asgill, who Iiad marched with a force of about a thousand men to seize the post of New-bridge, arrived too late to stop the progress of the rebel army, which by a rapid movement had pre- occupied that post, where they passed the night. On the next morning that general arrived too late to protect the town of Castlecome'-, upon which the re- bels descended from the heights, having in their route defeated a body of about two hundred and fi ty men at Coolbavvn. The town was set on fire, and of this conflagration each party accuses the other. In the morning of the 25th of June, having taken post at a place called Kllcomny, they were assailed by a force ' of nearly twelve hundred men, under General Sir Charles Asgill, and that of Major Matthews, of about five hundred, from Maryborough. After an hour's firing of cannon, the rebels, fearing to be surrounded, fied towards the gap with their usual celei ity, leaving all their plunder and artillery behind them. Their artillery consisted of ten light piece:?, and among the ai tides of plunder were seven hundred horses. They forced their way back to the mountains of Wicklow. The other body of Wexford insurgents being joined by thr forces under IMr. Garret Byrne, made an un- successful attack upon Hacketstown, and finding it impracticable to efl'ect their design, without cannon, of which they had not a single piece, retreated from the place, after an action of nine hours. During the en- gagement a considerable force of our cavalry and infantry stood on a hill at a small distance, in view of the scene of action, but did not join in the battle. Administration of Mirquis Cormuallis, 491 Shortly after they surprized a corps of the Ancient J 798; British, and Ballaghkeen cavalry ; of whom thej slew about eighty without losing a single man. On the 2d of July, they were pursued by a body of yeoman cavalry and infantry, before whom they re- tired to an eminence, called Ballyrakeen-hill. Here they took posr. As the yeomen moved up the hill, the insurgents poured upon them with such impe- tuosity, that they were in an instant utterly discom- fited, with the loss of seventy privates and two officers. The cavalry escaped by flight. The first prominent act of Marquis Cornwallis, to First aci of put cL close to the system of blood and terror, was oi system. a proclamation* authorizing his majesty's generals to give protection to such insurgc nts as, being sim- ply guilty of rebellion, should surrender their arms, ab- jure all unlawful engagements, and take the oath of al- legiance to the King. How necessary at that time such a step was, could be a question of no difficulty to those, who viewing dispassionately the state of affairs, considered what numbers had been seduced into the conspiracy by artifice, and forced into rebellion by unfortunate circumstances. To give the full sanction of law to that necessary measure, a message was de- livered from his excellency to the house of commons, * The form of it, (ogether v ith the certificate and oath, are to be seen in my Historical Review, vol. III. p. yjS. It was published in (he Dublin Gazette only on the 3d of July : but as it bears date the 29th day of June, 179^1 it was probably com- municated to General Lake before publication, as that general left Wexford on tlic 2Sth. ^^^2 The Reign of George IIL ^798. on the 17th of July, signifying his Majesty's pleasure to that effect; and an act: of amnesty \va accordingly passed in favor of all engaged in the rebellion, who had not been leaders, who had not committed man- slaughter, except in the heat of battle, and who should co;nply with the conditions mentioned in the. proclamation. Final di'!. The Wexford insur-i^-ents had fixed their station persion of , the Wex- near the Wliite Heaps^ at the foot of Croo:han Moun- fordinsur- . . . . p gents. tain ; whence they moved, durmg the night or tlie 4th of July, toward Wicklow Gap ; but on the morning of the 5th, the army under Sir James DufF from Carnew, under cover of a thick fog, surrounded them in four powerful divisions, before they could perceive the approach of any enemy. Finding them- selves unable to withstand a battle, they broke through the pursuing cavalry, of whom they slew about eighty, and moved with their usual velocity in the direction of Carnew. Upon their arrival at BallyguIIeUj they resolv&d to await the approach of the troops, and try the issue of a battle. Their force was then consider- ably reduced. They maintained the contest for an hour and a half with the utmost intrepidity. They repulsed the cavalry, and drove the artillerymen three times from th.ir guns ; but fresh reinforcements of the army pouring in on all sides, they were obliged to give way, quitting the field of battle with little loss to themselves, and notv.'ithstanding their fatigue, retreat- ed with stupendous celerity in different directions. They assembled again at Carrigrcvv-', where upon con- sidering the rv.duced state of their forces and the ad- Administration of Marquis Cormvallis. 493 vantages gained by the army, they thought it advise- ^798- able to disperse, and thus put an end to the warfare in the county of Wexford. The cessation of hostilities unfortunately did not inqui- sitoriil close the miseries of that devoted district : a bloody court of Wexford. and vindictive spirit seized upon many of the gentle- men of that county, and was carried into effect with outrageous barbarity. Their former claims to re- spectability in life for a length of time gave credit to their falsehood, procured countenance to their fana- ticism, and secured them the means of executing in- justice. * General Lake, previous to his departure from Wexford, had appointed a committee to super- intend prosecutions, and to grant passes to leave the country, consisting of the principal gentlemen then resident there. The appropriate duty of this body was to enquire specially into the cases of such prisoners, as they should hand over to be tried by Gourt-martlal, to procure evidence for prosecution, and to com.mit dif- ferent persons to gaol. It was not, however, deemed ne- cessary to send a committal to a jailer, as the word of anv of them was considered sufficient for the deten- tion of any of those given in custody. They were also to act as a kind of council to General Hunter, whose benevolent disposition they thwarted in many instances. This was in fact so well known, that many, upon being put into confinement, were induced, by their apprehensions, to petition for transportation, rather than abide a trial under their direction. The * Hay's Historj of the insurrectioo of Wexford, p. 265. 49-i The Reign of George III. i/S/^. tyrannical, unjust, and inhuman disposition of this body is strongly exemplified in their unwarrantable treatment of many, besides the writer and eye-vvitnej-s of the insurrection of Wexford, which he has de- tailed in his preliminary discourse*. ■* The quotation I have made from this author, as an eye- witness and a most aggrieved sutierer under this persecuting spiric of the Wexford O angemen, seems to baffle all possibility of fefutaiion. The unparalleled and almost incredible instances, which Mr. Hay details of liis own sulfcrinsrs from this inqui- situial court in the intnxiuciion to his history, chill tlie blooU of the reader Yet as they necessarily excite indignation against ail supporters of the system, it b.-comes more candid to name such as the author has i^iveu to the public, than to permit the foul imputation to light ujion the gentry of the county at Lirge : " ( Inliod. xxviii.) Six magistrates of the county after- ware's formed themselves into an inquisitorial court, consisting of the Right Honorable Cleorge Ogle, James 'Boyd, Richard Newton King, Edward Percival, Ebenezer Jacob, M. D. and John Henry Li-ter, Jtsquires. They as<;embled at the hous« of James Boyd, and summoned hundreds before then], whom they swore to give such information as they could concerning the rebellion. About ^fiy persons liave informed me, that they were principally ques- tioned concerning me ; so that I have strong reason to believe, that no means were left uiitri; d to criminate nie. My conduct has certainly undergone stricter inve.stigation than that of any other person in Ireland, and such as, I believe, that of the most unexceptionable of my persecutors would not pass through un- blemished ; while mine is irreproachable in the utrarst degree, having passed with unimpeached honor the ordeal of the Wexford inquisition. We re-d of nothing, that hss gone such lengths in ftueign countTies. Even the inquisitors are, by duty and oath, to seek out all evidence as well for as against their prisoners !" Amongst the victims devoted to the \ioleiice of the times was the Rev. John Redmond, who had been prominently zealous in en- Administration of Marquis Cornwallis, 495 A party of insurgents In the county of Kildare, i/rs. under the command of Mr. William x\ylraer, still held p!^^.]^^ out in arms. Thither the remaini.ig body of the «nd sur- Wexford men, cominanded bv Mr. Fitzgerald, ac- 'he out companied by Mr. Garret Byrne, and some Wicklow lurjjcjus. men, directed tlieir coarse and formed a junction, but were stoppevi in their progress at Cionard by a body of troops trom Kinnegad and Mullingar, which forced them to retreat. After this repulse the few remaining Wexford men separated from their Wick- low associates, whom they deemed less warlike than themselves, and made different incursions into th^ counties of Kildare, Meath, Louth and Dublin, elud- ing, as well as they could, the pursuit of the army, with different parties, of which thev had several sk'r- mishes. They were finally routed and intercepted by Captain Gordon of the Dumfries light dragoons, at the head of a strong party of horse and foot, at Bally- boghill, near Swords, and never again collected. Some Wexford insurgents, however, remained with JVIr. Fitzgerald and Mr. Ay liner, who, as outstand- ing chiefs, negociated with General Dundas, to whom they surrendered on the 1 2th of July, on condiiion, that all the other leaders, who had adventured v.iih them, should be at liberty to retire whither they pleased out of the British dominions. The same terms were afterwards secured by General Moore tp deavouring to protecf the honse of Lord Mountnorri? from ylunt'er. The particulars ot" his case are fully retailed in my Historical Review, partly from Mi. Gordon, and partly from Dr. Cauidcld, yol. III. p. 7/6, 496 The Rei^n of George III. 1759- Mr. Garret Byrne, who was sent into confinement in the castle of Dublin, together with Messrs. Fitz- gerald and Aylmer, by which tiiey fared much better than those, who laid down their arms in Wexford, depending on the faithful fulfilment of the terms entered into with Lord Kingsborough. Terms of The plan of proposing: terms for saving the lives surrender i i i o o proposed of Mr. OHvcr Bond and Mr. Byrne \V2S brought through ■' _ ^ Mr. Dobbs. forward by Mr. Dobbs, a •.. ember -o parliament. That gentleman, with the sheriff, went to the prison, in which Mr. A. O'Connor was confined, on the 24th' of July, with a paper *, signed by seventy state-pri- soners, purposing to give such information, as was in * The following was the agreement signed by seventy-three on the 29th of July, l/pS, " That the uudersigntd state prisoner!, •' in the three prisons of Newgate, Kiknainham, and Bridewell, *■' engage to give every information in their power, of the whole " of the internal transactions of the United Irishmen, and that " each of the prisoners shall give detailed infonnation of every *' transaction, that has passed between the United Irishmen and " foreign states ; but that the prisoners are not, by naming or " describing, to implicate any person whatever, and that they *' are ready to emigrate to such country, as shall be agreed on '• between them and government, and 'give security not to re- " turn to this country without the permission of government, •' and not to pass into an enemy's country, if on their so doing " they are to be freed from prosecution, and also Mr. Oliver " Bond be permitted to take the. benefit of this proposal. The " state- prisoners also hope, that the benefit of this proposal may " be extended to such persons in custody, or not in custody, as " may chuse to benefit by it." Signed by seventy-three persons. 20th of July, 17.Q8. Administration of Marquis Cornwallis. 497 their power, of arms, ammunition, their schemes^ of 1798. warfare, the internal regulations and foreign nego- ciations of the United Irishmen, provided the hves of Messrs. Bond and Byrne should be spared. In con- sequence of this agreement, some of the rebel chiefs, who were still in arms, among whom was Mr. Ayl- mer of Kildare, surrendered themselves *. Several principals of the Union, particularly Arthur O'Con- nor, Thomas Addis Emmett, Dr. M'Neven, and Samuel Neilson, gave details on oath in their exanii- liations before the secret committees of the two houses of parliament, in whose reports published by author- ity of government is contained a mass of information * In a pamphlet, stiled A Letter from Arthur O'Connor, to Lord Castlereagh, dated from prison, January the 4th, 1799, that minister is directly charged with a yiolatlon of the contract, and a misrepresentation to parliament of the transactions between him and tlie prisoners of state. Other charges are made, one of which is, that the information given by these prisoners to government, was garbled to serve the purposes of the ministry, and particularly, that of a hundred pages, delivered by O'Connor himself, only one had been published in the reports of the secret committees. His lordship is peremptorily challenged to disprove any of the charges in the pamphlet. No reply has appeared. The boldness and no- toriety of the charges made by a prisoner whilst in the power of government stand in competition with the honour and veracity of Lord Castlereagh. Mr.O'Connor asserts, that Lord Castlereagh in their first conference assured him, that Lord Cornwallis's honour was pledged to them for the religious performance of the agreement; and that Lord Clare made use of these remarkable expressions : (p 9) " It comes to this, either you must trust the government, or the government must trust you : a government that could violate engagements thus solemnly made, neither could stand nor deserved to stand." 2k 498 Ute Reign of George TIT. ijs^ concerning the conspiracy. Yet Certain it is, that what- ever might have been the original terms of the contract, and by whatever subsequent events the contractors might have been influenced or afFected, the principal pri- soners ( 15 in number) were not liberated, and a power was reserved or assumed by ministers to detain them in custody, at least during the continuance of the war ^ith France. Oliver Bond died in the mean time in prison cf an apoplexy. Trial and The trials and executions of some of the principal execution of several icaders in the rebellion tended to prevent further at- tempts of individuals in that desperate cause. On the 12Lh of July, Henry and John Sheares were brought to ti'ial, condemned, and soon after put to death. The trial of John M'Cann, who had been secretary to the provincial committee of Leinster, followed on the ,17th; tliat of Michael William Byrne* J delegate from * Of the execution of Byrne, Mr. O'Connor thus speaks in bis letter to Lord Castlerca^h. " On the 24th of July last, Mr, Dobb? and the sheriiF entered my prison with a written paper, signed by seventy state-prisoners, purposing ' to give such in- forniaiion as was in thfir power of arras, ammunition, and schemes of warfa-e, (of which it is no.v manifest they knew httle or notl:iing) and to consent to leave Ireland, provided the lives of Bond and Byrne (both under sentence ofde.ith) should be spared.' 1 refused to sign it, not only from a detestation of entering into any conditions with those, who composed the councils of Lord Cornwallis's administration, but because in the massacre of my unarmed countrymen still raging, I did not think that any object, which was not general, could warrant me, in whom such con- fidence was placed by so many millions of my countiymcn, to enter into any such compact, and because the possibility of its J)eing attributed to a desire to save my own life, iu the peculiar Administration of Marquis CormvalUs, 439 the county committee of Wicklow, and that of Oiiveir i/QS* Bond, on the 23d. The two former were executed, the third was reprieved, as has been mentioned. Some of the more desperate rebels, reinforced by de- Somestra^ serters from some regiments or Irish mnuia, remained rad-esin- in arms in the mountains of Vficklow, and the dwarf country, woods of Killaughram, near Enniscorthy. These de- sperate banditti, who had stiled themselves Babes of the Wood, compelled the neighbouring inhabitants to take refuge in towns. The vv^oods were scoured by the army, and cleared of their predatory inhabitants, and tranquil- lity was restored to that part of the country. The party in the Wicklow mountains, whose range and haunts were much more extensive and difficult of access, continued under two chiefs of the names of Holt and Racket, to annoy the country for a longer time, and in a more formidable degree \ issuing sud- denly from their fastnesses to perpetrate burnings and massacres, and retiring before troops could arrive to intercept them. Harassed incessantly by the pursuit of the yeomen and soldiery, the numbers of the banditti situation I stood in, was in my mind an insuperable objection, if there had been no other. Besides, it seenied, that (o save the lives of Bond and Byrne, enougii had signed their self-sacrifice to induce the ministers, already sated with blood, (as you and Lord Clare appeared to be when we met) to acquiesce ; but in this I was deceived; a council sat on ihe fate of Byrne — he was executed. In this barter of blood, although you had lessened your quantum by half, yet you raised your demands for the price of the other, and proposed to those, who had signed the paper, that they should ^deliver up names." 2 K 2 500 The Beig)i of George III. 1/98. gradually diminished. Racket was killed near Arklow. Holt surrendered for transportation to the Earl ot Powerscourt ; and these bands of robbers at length totally disappeared. Royal mes. Notwithstanding the disastrous state of the coun- sage to par- , i . i • r • ijament. try, the parliament ceased not to sit irom time to timCj as exigencies required. On the 17th of July, Lord Castlereagh presented to the house of commons a message from his excellency, that his Majesty, ever disposed to exert as far as possible his royal prerogative of mercy, and to receive again under his royal protection those, who by the arts of wicked and designing men had been, seduced from their allegiance, had signified his gra- cious intention of granting his general and free pardon for all offences committed on or before a certain day, upon such conditions, and with such exceptions, as might be compatible with the public safety ; for car- r)"ing which benevolent purpose into execution, his Majesty has signified his gracious intention of sanc- tioning, in the usual form, by his royal signature, a bill for that purpose, previous to its being submitted to parliament for iheir concurrence. And that his Majesty had also directed his excellency to lay before them several important papers, relating to the rebel- lion. The message also recommended measures for ascertaining the losses of, and indemnifying the suffering loyalists ; and pledged unceasing ac- tivity and vigor against such, as should remain in arms against his Majesty's peace. This message was ordered to be entered on the journals, and to be re- Administralion of Marqitis Cormvallis, 501 ferred to a secret committee of thirteen, including the 1/98. speaker and the law officers of the crown, before which the papers mentioned in the message were laid. The attorney- general on the 17th of the month Acts of at- brought forward a bill for the attainder of Lord amnesty, Edward Fitzgerald, Cornelius Grogan, and Beau- demnificat- champ Bagenal Harvey deceased: for which purpose * several witnesses were examined at the bar. Similar proceedings were also had in the house of lords. This act of severity, and supplementary vengeance upon the unoffending widow and orphan, appeared to many rather the posthumous issue of the late, than the genuine offspring of the present system. A bill of general amnesty was passed in the course of the session, with the exception of Mr. Napper Tandy, and about thirty others, chiefly fugitives in France. A bilPwas also passed for granting com-pensation to such of his Ma- jesty's loyal subjects, as had sustained losses in their property, in consequence of the late rebellion, and commissioners were named for carrying it into effect. The system of moderation and mercy pursued by System of Lord Cornwallis was particularly seasonable at this introduced crisis, particularly in the county of Wexford. Ge- Comwaiiis. neral Hunter was indefatigable in his exeriions to restore confidence to the people ; in which he was aided by the judicious and zealous exertions of Major Fitzgerald, who by the special appointment of the British government, was sent over to Ireland to act under the commander in chief, in the laudable work of doing impartial justice and quieting the minds of his Majesty's subjects. The country people were 2 K 3 ^03 The Reign of George III, 17pf\ generally deterred from applying for protection, as the yeomen continued with indiscriminate barbarity to fire the cabiiic and shoot every inhabitantlhat moved out of ihem: the melancholy conscqurnce of which had nearly brought on the extermination of an extensive ^nd populous tract of the county of Wexford, ralle4 the Macomores. Applications, supported by affidavits, had been made to government, by different magistrates in Gorey and its vicinity, complaining, that this range of country was infested with constant meetings of rebels, who committed every species of outrage ; th^ viceroy crediting the magistrates vtas justly indignant, that his clemency was abused ; and orders were sent to the different generals and other commanding of-, iicers, contiguous to the devoted tract, to form ^ line along its extent on the western border, and at both ends, north and south, on the land side, so a§ to have no resource to the wretched inhabitants, who vera to be indiscriminately slaughtered by the sol- diery, or driven into the sea. The execution of this severe and exemplary measure was fortunately entrusted to the discretion of General Hunter, who, through the honest exertions of Major Fitzgerald, discovered, in time, the inhuman tendency of the piisrepresentation, that had produced these terrific orders. Whenever any of the inhabitants of this district attempted to stir out of it to obtain protection, the soldiery and yeomanry waited their return in ambush, and slaughtered every one they could overtake. They madv:: incursions into the country, fired into the houses, Vid never failed to aim at every living creature, tha^ Administration of Marquh CormcalUs, 503 ventured abroad. By the frequency of these out- ^798- rages, such houses as remained unbumed were of course crowded with several families ; and tliis aggre- gation encreased at each succeeding incursion. At last most of the inhabitants from necessity took refuge on the hills, and armed themselves with every weapon they could procure. Major Fitzgerald went into ihe midst of this harassed peasantry, ensured them pro- tection from military depredators and murderers, and no subjects could be more loyal and subordinate. Mr. Hawtrey ^Vhite, captain of the Ballaghkeen ca- Eflects of valry, and a justice or the peace tor the county, gave mation. such specific and alarming information to government, as induced the commanding officer at Gorey to quit the town, and encamp on a hill above it. Major Fitz- gerald enquired into and reported the informacion un- founded. Upon this Mr. Ilawtrey White was ordered to Wexford, and put under arrest ; on his persisting in his information, he was conducted to the spot (an island) where he asserted the rebels were encamped. No such island, however, was to be discovered. Mr. Hawtrey White was conducted back to Wexford, and General Hunter determined to bring him to a court- n'iartial. Many gentlemen and ladies interfered to prevent such investigation, representing ihiit Mr. White's age might have subjected him to the impo- sition of fabrications : and the firmness of the general gave way to solicitation. Notv.ithstanding Lord An- cram, and after him Sir Jara^s Fowlis, acted as pre- sidents of courts martial with the utmost honour and integrity, which inspired confidence throughput the 2 K. 4 504 The Reign of George III. Vi^v^ ^'^^' country, and induced many, who were conscious of their integrity, to submit to trial, which they would not otherwise have dared to do ; yet in too many instances elsewhere the grossest perjuries were encou- raged against truth and justice, to the shedding of' much innocent blood *, * As to this Mr. Hay instances in ihe execution of Mr. Kearney, a brewer, for attending the execution of some soldiers, at the distance of 30 miles from Wexford, and the burning of the barn at Scullabogue, when he was actually in prison at Wexford, and seen there on the very day and hour, to wli^c4i the false ■witnesses swore. He recounts the like execution of a Mr. Devereux at Cork, whose trial is published, after which the perjured witneses informed against another person of the same name alleging, that they had now discovered the right Mr. Deve- reux. It will be satisfactory to the reader to learn the ciiaracter of Mr. Hay's history from Major Fitzgerald, who had such ample means of knowing the truth. *^ Dublin, December 14, 1802. " Sir, "^ I return, with my thanks for your polite attention, <' the manuscripts you were so kind as to leave for my perusal. *' Am e):.ceediogly glad to find, through the whole of your com- " pilation, so strict an observance of facts, which chiefly came *' under my cognizance as brigade- m^jor. It is with pleasure *' 1 observe also your adherence to truth and impartiality, free " from the rancorous spirit of pariy-fabi'ication, which is the true *' criterion, that exalt.s the historian above the class of party scrib- *' biers, who dissipate as rapidly as unerring truth unveils itself, *' strongly exemplified in the past and present times. I give you " much credit in not retorting, as you might for your unremitted " sufferings, by exposing the crimes of some respectable persons; " for, indeed, if they are not very forgetful and very insensible, ** the compunctions of their consciences must be sufiicieiitly tor? Administration of Marquis Cormvallis. 505 Happy for the interests of the British empire the '^79^- French government was at that moment in the hands Humbert o ^ lands at of feeble politicians, who, though well acquainted Kiiiaia. with the state of Ireland^ had unaccountably neglected to avail themselves of it. With that lazy afterthought, that marks the folly of a bad statesman, the French detached a small force to the North of Ireland, under the command of General Humbert, who on the 22d of August landed at Killala. They entered the bay- under English colours, and the feint succeeded so v/ell *, that two sons of the Bishop of Killala^ who had thrown themselves into a fishing boat, were presently surprized to find themselves prisoners. The whole armed force in the place did not exceed fifty men, all protestants. About eight on that evening a terrified messenger an- nounced to the bishop, that 300 of the French were within a mile of the town. The cavalry officers rode off directly to Ballina. The yeomanry and fencibles drew up before the castle gate^ but seeing two of their corps fall, they were seized with a panic and fled. Nineteen yeomen were taken and ordered into close custody at the castle. The French general marched into the castle-yard at the head of his officers, and f* raenting. There is little doubt of your labours meeting their f' due reward from an unprejudiced public, which is the wish of " Your obedient humble servant, " B. E. Fitzgerald." " To Edward Hay, Esq. * See the Bishop of Killala's interesting and authentic narrative of this transaction throughout. SOS The Reign of George IIL '798- assured the bishop, that he and his people should be treated with respectful attention, and that nothing should be taken by the French troops, but what was absolutely necessary for their support ; a promise which, as long as these troops continued in Killala, was religiously observed. The bishop's castle was made the head-quarierc of Humbert, who on the morn- ing after his arrival began his military operations by pushing forward to Ballina a detachment of one hundred meuj forty of whom he had mounted on the best horses he could seize. A green flag was mounted over the castle gate, with the inscription Er'mgoBragh, importing an invitation to the country people to join the French. Their cause was to be forwarded by the immediate delivery of arms, ammunition, and clothing to the new levies of the country. Property was to be inviolable. Ready money was to come over in the ships expected every day from France. In the mean time, whatever was bought wasi*paid for in drafts on the future directory. The first 1 800 of the natives, that offered their service received complete clothing. The next 1000 received arms and clothing, but no shoes or stockings. Arms were given to 5500. Humbfrt Humbert left Killala with a quantity of ammunition rai Lake to in the posscssion of 200 men and six oiticers, and flis;ht at Castkbar. on the 25th took possession of Ballina, whence the garrison fled on his approach. The next morning, with eight hundred of his own m.en, about fifteen hundred Irish, and two small curricle guns, he ad- vanced over the mountains to Castlebar, by ways generally deemed impassable to an army. The French Administration of Marquis Cornwallis. 50T were at seven o'clock within two miles of the town, }^^^ before which our army had taken their position en a rising ground. Our artillery at first made 3uch execution among the French, that they in- stantly fell back some paces. They then filed off in small parties to the right and left, and assailed eur troops in flank, who had scarcely fired a second round, when the royal army seized with a panic broke on all sideSj and fled in extreme confusion through the town on the road to Tuam. General Lake is reported to have given an order for retreating, although he had under him 6000 men*. Such was the panic of our troops on this fatal occasion, that they never halted till they reached the town of Tuam, nearly forty English miles from the scene of action. Our loss in artillery consisted of fourteen pieces, of which four were curricle guns : of that of the cara« • This disgraceful conduct of our Ironps in the face of so imall a force has been vaiiously represented by ditFerent writers, whose motives we canr.ot develop. The Bishop of Killala thus evades airect censure. (Narrative, p. A5.) "The writer ©f this narrative professes only to describe what he saw and felt. Xt is not his business therefore, if he were competent to the task, \o trace the events of an invasion, the first successes of which caused so much astonishment, or to shew by what means a hand- ful of men continued so long to brave the force oi a whole king- dom J men, who, from the time they missed their reinforcements from home, confessed their belief, that they were no more than a forlorn hope sent to annoy the enemies of their country ; and, that duty done, expected every hour to be forced to ^urreudar themselves prisoners of war.'* Qprdon's History of the Irish Rebellion, p. 2S6. 508 The Reign of George III. i7"9S» bineers, no return was made ; our loss of men was never stated, nor that of the French ever known. lorfiCorn- The Marquis Cornwallis, from the first intelligence marches of the invasion, had, notwithstanding the smallness Smy/ ^ of the invading army, been so sensible of the danger of rekindling the smothered flame of rebellion, as to have determined to march in person against the enemy^ with so forinidable a force, as effectually to intim^idate the abettors of rebellion in the country, he was about to march throusrh. He arrived on the 4th o of September at Hollymount, fourteen miles from Castlebar, where he received intelligence, that the enemy had abandoned his post and marched to Foxford. After the victory at Castlebar, the French received great accessions of Irish peasantry to their standard, who encreased indeed the numbers of the enemy, but proved of no effectual aid : they had been taught to expect far more powerful co-operation from the Irish. pvo^ress of The advanccd guard of the French at Coloony, ^nvjiai. received an important check from Colonel Vereker, of the city of Limerick Militia, who had marched from Sligo with about two hundred iniantrv, thirty dragoons, and two curricle guns. After an action of about an hour, he was obliged to retreat, with the loss of his artillery, to Sligo, whence he withdrew his little army to Brllyshannon. This opposition is supposed to have cau;-ed the French general to relin- quish his design on SSigo. He directed his march by Drummahair toward Manorhamilton in the county of Leitrim., having for the sake of expedition, left three Administration of Marquis Cornwallis. ^09 six-pounders dismounted on the road^ and thrown ^^l^\. five pieces of artillery into the river at Drummahair. In approaching Manorhamilton he suddenly wheeled to the right, taking his way by Drumkerim, per^ . haps with design, if possible, of reaching Granard in the county of Longford, where an alarming insurrection had taken place. Crawford's troops hung so close on the rear-guard of the French^ as to come to action with it on the 7th, betv/een Drumshambo and Bally namore, in which they were repulsed with some loss. The French are said to have mis- taken this force for the van-guard of the British army, and to have been thereby prevented from attempting to surround it. The French army passing the Shannon at Ballintra, The French arrived at Ballinamuck on the 8th of September, so closely followed by the troops of Colonel Crav/ford and General Lake, that its rear guard was unable to destroy the bridge at Ballintra, to impede the pursuit ; while Lord Cornwallis, with the grand army, having crossed the same river at Canick-on-Shannon, marched by Mohill to Saint-Johnstown, in the county of Long- ford, in order to intercept the enenjy in front, on their way to Granard ; or should they proceed, to surround them with an army of thirty thousand men. In this desperate situation, Humbert arranged his forces, with no other object, as it must be presumed, than to main- lain the honor of the French arms. The rear-guard having been attacked by Colonel Crawford, about two hundred of the French infantry surrendered. Tha rest continued to defend themselves for above half an 51 1> The Iieigji of George I J I. 179s. hour, when, on the appearance of the main body of General Lake's array, they also surrendered, after they had made Lord Roden, and a body of dragoons prisoners. His lordship had precipitately advanced int ) the French hnes to obtain their surrender. The rebel auxiharies, who had accompanied the French to this fatal tieid, being excluded from quarter, fled ill ail directions: five hundred of them w^ere killed in the pursuit; about one thousand escaped. The loss of our troops was officially stated at three privates killed, twelve wounded, ihr:e missing, and one officer wounded. The troops of General Humbert wer^ found, v.hen prisoners, to consist of seven hundred and forty-six privates, and ninety-six officers, having sustained a loss of about two hundred men since their landing at Kiliala on ihe il2d of August*. The re- maining efforts of the rebels, were an unsuccessful attempt to seize the tov>n of Granard. Their plan was in case of success to attack the toxATi of Cavan, where considerable stores of armxS and ammunition. * As it is within the possibilities of this eventful era, that aft Lnvssiou iray be atteropted ciiher in Ireland or Great Britain, it may be useftil to reflect, that in the heart of an anued kingdom a pitiful detachment of eUven himdred French infantr}', routed a select body of six thousand men posted to receive tl;em, provided themselves with crduauce and ammunition from our stores, took 5t:veral towns, marched 150 miles through a countr)', in which •there was an army of 150,000 men, and kept arms in their hand* for seventeen days. But it was that army, which the untem- pori'ring and gallant Abercrombie had, on the 26lh of the preced- ing February, found in such a state of licentiousness, thai mmt raider it fornddalle to every one lut the ensimf^ AdmimstMt'wn of Marquis Cornwallh, ^ 1 1 were deposited. In the county of Mayo, where they ^J^ hiad first risen to assist the invaders, they still perse* vered in a state of insurreotion. Casilebar, which on its evacuation by the French, had been occupied by the King's troops, was also unsuccessfully attacked by a body of two thousand rebels. On the 22d of Sep- tember thirty- two days after the landing of the French force, and fifteen after its capture at Ballinamuck, a body of twelve hundred men with five pieces of cannon, arrived at Killala, under the command of IMajor Ge- neral Trench. After a more spiiited, than judicious resistance for about half an hour, the rebels were forced to disperse. In the action and fiight they lost about four hundred men. The town of Killala, thus recover- ed by his Majesty's forces, had been 32 days in the pos- session of the French and rebels*. The court-martial began the day after the battle, and sat in the house of Mr. Morrison, It had to try seventv-five pnsoners at Kill?da, and a hundred and ten at Baliina, besides others, who might be brought in daily. I'he two first persons tried at this tribunal were General Bellew and Mr. Richard Bourke. Their tiial was short. They were found guilty in the evening, and hanged the * Of the transactions, which occurred at Killala during (hat period, ths bishop's candid narrative is a most interes'ing and authentic hiitoiical document, and extreme.)' hor.orable to the writer. It e\inces a genuine goodness of heart, and a mind so cultivated, so candid, so elevated above vulgar prejudices and the servile fear of party, as to discern and pubiiclj acknowledge the virtues of an enemy. Iron -512 Tke Reign of George II L 1^98. next morning. Roger Macguire was found guilty,- but remanded to prison, and afterwards transported to Botany Bay. His father, the brewer, was hanged j some others were executed. Thus ended the rebel- lion, or, more properly speaking, the various insur- gencies in Ireland in the year 1798, in which, accord- ing to the most probable accounts, the loss of the army amounted to 19,700; that of the rebels and Conse- fugitives exceeded 50,0C0. quences of the rebel- The conscquences and effects of the rebellion now put down, command attention to the progress towards that important event, the incorporate union of the two kingdoms, which so closely followed it. Fierce as was the contest during this unfortunate warfare, the parliament continued to legislate during the whole of its continuance. In the months of August and Sep- tember the examination of the chiefs of the rebels went forward before the secret committees of both houses, and their reports were then published. Go- vernment was anxious, that these reports should gain universal credit. On the other side, advertisements appeared in the more popular prints cautioning the public against giving them credit. On the tith of September, Lord Clare made a special report from the committee of secrecy founded on these advertise- ments, informing the house, that they had thought it their duty to examine Mr. A. O'Connor, Mr. Em- met, and Dr. M'Neven, with respect to such advertise- ments, in order to ascertain, whether they intended to contradict or retract any thing, which they had theretofore deposed before the committee. And their jiamhilstration of Marquis Comic allis, 51 S several examinations and oaths made and signed on ^799. that day, were submitted to the house*. Lord Corn- wallisj anxious to convince the nation, that a real change of system was adopted by government, pubHshed a proclamation to that effect. Al- though this measure had not the desired success, yet was it not followed up by harshness or cruelty to inflame the expiring, or to provoke a new insurgency. On the 6th of October the parliament was pro- Prorogatioa rogued in the usual form, and his excellency de- mem. livered a very interesting speech from the throne f. It could not be expected, that the sudden change of Cause of system should gratify the supporters of the late mea- waiiis being sures of coercion and blood. The most devoted uieOran^a* friends of Lord Camden were the first to oppose and reprobate the measures of his successor. The Earl of Enniskillen, who ranked as a colonel in the army, had been a zealous advocate for rigor and severity. Disliked at first. Marquis Corn wallis isoon became execrated by the Orangemen : they attempted to vilify him by the appellation of Croppy Corny. On the 13th of October a court-martial {, * S Lords* Journal, p. 171. t It is to be seen, Hist. Rev. vol. 111. p. 808. \ This court martial was iiolden in the barracks, at Dublin, hf order of Lieutenant General Crai^. Besides the president it ecu* jisted of Majof Brown, R. I. D. Captain Irwin, Fermanagh. Captain Onge, ditto Captain Carter, R. I. D, Captain Leslie, Fermanagh Lieutenant Summers, 68th. The particulars of this moving case are retailed. Hist. Rev. vol. III. p. SlOj^ 21. 514 The Reign of George 111, 179«- of which the Earl of Enniskillen was the president, sat on the trial of Hugh Wollaghan, a yeoman, charged with the most atrocious murder of Thomas Dogherty. Every aggravating circumstance was fully proved. No attempt was made to contradict any part of the evidence, but a justification of the horrid murder was set up, as having been committed under an order of the commanding officer : that, if the yeomea should meet with any, whom they knew or suspected to be rvbels, they needed not be at the trouble of bring- ing them in, but were to shoot them on the spot. That it was almost the daily practice of the corps to go out upon scouring parties*. This defence v/as con- iirmed by one private, one sergeant, and two lieu- tenants of yeomanry. Captain Archer swore, that he had always found Wollaghan a sober and diligent man; ready to obey his officers, and looked upon him. a« an acquisition to the corps. Captain Gore deposed in like manner, that it was the practice oi the corps to scour the country with an officer, and verily believed the yeomen understood it was their duty to shoot any rebel they met vviih, or suspected to be such J and the deponent had heard, that other corps * These scouring parties were so much matters of course, that it appears from the testimony of the officers on this trial, they were cousidered as acts of military duty : nay, so bru- talized were many of these corps, that they spoke of them as a diversion, which they called partridge shooting and grousing: they hunted, noi unfrequently, with dogs in the brakes, hedges, ditches, and woods to spring any unfortunate peasant, that mlghr have concealed himself from the fury of these blood Uuiiters^ whcH^ •ihey iastaiitly shot. Administration of Marquis Cormvallis, 51^ had similar directions in other districts. Here the ^798. defence closed^ and the court acquitted the prisoner. When the minutes of this court-martial in the usual way were laid before the lord-lieutenant^ his excel- lency was pleased * to disapprove of the sentence, * The following Is the ofEcial letter to General Craig. " Dublin Castle, 18/A October, IJQS; "Sir, '' Having laid before the lord-lieutenant the pro- " ceedings of a general court-martial, held by your orders id *' Dublin Barracks, on Saturday the 13th instant, of which Colonel *' the Earl of Enniskillen is president, I am directed to acquaint " you that his excellency entirely disapproves of the sentence of ** the above court martial, acquitting Hugh Wollaghan of a " cruel and deliberate murder, of which, by the clearest evi- *' dence, he appears to have been guilty. " Lord Cornwallis orders the court martial to be immediately ** dissolved, and directs that Hugh Wollaghan shall be dismissed " from the corps of yeomanry in which he served, and that he " shall not be received into any other corps of yeomanry in this " kingdom. " His excellency further desires, that the above may be read to «* the president and the members of the court-martial in open *• court. *' I have the honour to be, " Sir, " Your most obedient humble servant, , *' H. Taylor, Sec. " Lieut.Geti. Craig, l^c. t^c. " P. S. I am also directed, that a new coQrt-martial njay be im- ** mediately convened for the trial of such prisoners, as may be " brought before them, and that noneof theofiiccrs, who sat upon ** Hugh Wollaghan be admitted as members.*' 2 L 2 516 The Reign of George II h 1798, dissolve the court martial^ and Incapacitate the mem- bers from sitting on any other. Trial and Mr. Thcobald Wolfe Tone was properly the death of ..... Mr.Theo- founder of the Irish Union, which terminated in the bald Wolfe . Tone. late fatal rebellion. After he had fled from the arm of justice in the year 1795, he was of all the Irish fugitives the most favored and attended to by the French government. He obtained a commission in their army. He was taken prisoner on board a fi-igate in -the autumn of 1798, and brought to trial by court-martial on Saturday, the 10th of November* He appeared in court in his French uniform, and pleaded giiilty to the crime, with which he stood charged ; alleging, that what he had once done, he should be ashamed to deny. He then delivered in several documents, which proved his brevet for the rank of chef de brigade, and a letter of service, both having the signatures of the president of the French Directcrry and the minister of war. He expressed his desire to be Indulged with death in the most honorable manner, the death of a soldier, and with the utmost dispatch to be shot by files of grenadiers, as were Charette and Sombreuil. The next evening he was informed, that he must suffer, on the next day as others taken in war against their King. He des- 2>?rately attempted to anticipate the execution by cutting his own throat. A military surgeon pronounced the wound not mortal, though extremely dangerous. In the mean time a "motion was made In his majesty's court of Eang's Benchj then sitting, to arrest execu- tion, grounded on an affidavit sworn by the father of i ^Administration of Marquis CormvaUis, 511 the prisoner, that he had been tried, convicted, and 1798; sentenced to death, on a charge of high treason, be- fore a court-martial, though he did not belong to his Majesty's army, while his Majesty's court of King's Bench was sitting, before which the prisoner might have been tried in the ordinary way. Mr. Curran moved for an Habeas Corpus to bring up the prisoner instanter, which was granted, but he could not be removed into court without danger of instant death. The return of the writ of Habeas Corpus was post- poned for some days, during which he died. Thus ignominiously ended a man, whose qualities and talents, if rightly directed, would have graced the noblest cause. Notwithstanding Ireland had suffered so much from Encrease of the violence and cruelty of both parties, yet in defi- an'dby what ance of the conciliatory exertions of the chief gover- ™^^'**- nor, in many parts of the kingom, and particularly in the county of Wexford, the Orange associations were multiplied, and disunion, hatred, and religious acrimony increased upon the suppression of the re- bellion*. The continuance and extension of Orang- * There may be seen in the Historical Review, vol. III. p. 815, the proceedings in the King's Bench, upon an information against Messrs. White and Goring, two magistrates of the county of Tipperary, for obstructing loyal magistrates and officers in their endeavours to preserve the peace of the most turbulent parts of the county. It appeared that to keep up a semblance of disturbance in the country, they proruied and employed yeom<-n to fabricate pike handles, which they afterwards pretended to discover in consequence of secret information. That these corps of yeomanry 2L 3 513 The Reign of George III, 1753- ism necessarily perpetuated religious differences, riveted disaffection, and sharpened rancour through the nation. consisted of the indigent tenantry of their captain, to -whom they paid rack-rents for lands boiden of him, and had no other way of discharging their rents but by their pay, which the captain usually received and retained in discharge of his rent : and tliat they were kept on permanent duty for the purpose of procuring this per- manent pay. That there vt?.s no appearance of tumult or insur- rection in the country ; but that these persons circulated false reports of it's disturbed situation, in order to answer their own purposes ; that persons were taken up, detained in pri- son, and fined under the timber act for the concealment of these pike handles, which were afterwards discovered to have been hidden by the procurement of the persons, who found them. The impunity, connivance, and countenance from the magis- trates, and the acquittals of the guilty by Orange Juries and Orange Courts Martial, were attended with the worst of conse- quences, as appears in the case of Doyle v. Fitzgerald, which pro- dnced a degree of alarming provocation throughout that part of the^ country. The plaintiff was a respectable tradesman of Carrick upon Suyr, the defendant Mr. Thomas Judkin Fitzgera'd, the sheriff of Tipptrrary. The plaintiff had been seized in the street by the defer.ddnt, in order to be fiagcliaied. In vain did he urge his innocence, which was supported by some of the most re- spectable inhabitarts of the place. He begged to have Captain Jephson s-'^nt for, the commander of the yeomanry, of which he was a member : that was refused. He offered to go to instant executicD, if the l&ist trace of guilt appeared against him on en- quiry : that was aisc refused. Bail was offered to any amount for his appea;ai:ce ; No, ssys the sheriff; I know by his face that he is a tra'tor, a C&'melite scoundrel. The plaintiff was tied to the whipping post : he received one hundred lashes till his ribs ap- pesred : he then had his breeches let down, and received fifty more lashes on bis posteriors. The young man's innocence was aiici wards established. He applied to a court of iaw for redress : the action was tried at Cioumeii assizes : the facts were fullr fro\ed, and he defendant was acquitted by an Orange jury. Administration of Marquis Cornwallis, Si9 The systematic perseverance of Government in 179s. the wicked policy of dividing the country, by keep- r.rstat- ing up an English or Protestar^t ascendancy, had taken inTorporar too deep root, to be suddenly moved by any system however plausibly or powerfully introduced. It was in the special commission from the British Cabinet to Marquis Cornwallis, to avail himself of every rising circumstance, to forward and bring about the important political measure of an union with Great Britain. A more arduous undertaking was never attempted. It produced instantly a new fer- ment in the public mind, and engaged ever)' man having a stake in the kingdom in a new political contest. It commenced, however, in a moment, when the nerves of several of the members in both houses of parliament, as well as of others out of parliament, were from the shock of the late rebellion so much weakened, that they uncondition- ally gave up the exercise of any discretion upon the subject. For the last twenty years no political character on j^-^^ j;^^ either side had ever touched upon the question of ^'^" "^ p"" union, but in terms of marked reprobation. Waving ^°^°^' all other considerations, it is manifest, that terror had produced an influence, which l:ad not before operated upon many. Even before the fury of rebel- lion had subsided, the British ministry had recom- mended preparatory steps to enable the Irish govern- ment to introduce the proposal ot a legislative union with plausibility and eftect on the hrst favorable 2 L4 S20 The Reign of George III T798. opening. In pursuance of this recommendation, a pamphlet was written or procured to be written by Mr. Edward Cock, the under secretary of the civil department. It was published anonymously ; but was well understood to speak the sentiments of the British, as well as the new Irish administration. It was forced into extensive circulation, and artfully called on the Irish nation still terrified vAi\i the unallayed horrors of blood and carnage, to compare the cruelty and vindictive ferocity of the Irish yeomanry towards their countrymen, with the pacific, orderly, and humane conduct of the English militia, of which about eighteen regiments were then in that country. It magnified to excess the confidence^ which the concilia- tory conduct of their chief governor had inspired. This pamphlet was considered as a kind of ofHcial procla- mation of the sentiments of government upon the question, and had no sooner appeared^, than it pro- duced a general warfare of the press, and threw the whole nation in'^o a new division of parties. Meeting of The mcst interesting piiblic meeting upon the subject of the Union was that of the gentlemen of the Irish bar on the 9th of December, when Mr, gaurin opened the business. After stating the question, as to the measure and period of proposing it, when the coantry was but just delivered from a rebellion, the most savage, that had ever scourged a country, hem.oved, "That the measure of a legislative union of this Idn^dom and Great Britain is an innova-r lion, which it would be hjohly dangerous and itnpro« the bar against union. \4dministration of Marquis Cornwallis. 521 per to propose at the present juncture to this country." ,J_2i The motion after a long and animated debate, was carried by a majority of 134 ; 32 only opposed it. A post assembly of the lord mayor, sheriffs, com- CitycfDahr * •' •' _ Iin against mons, and citizens of the city of Dublin was con- Union. vened on the 17th of December; which referring to a variety of rumours, that were then in circulation, of an intended Union of Ireland with Great Britain, came to the following resolutions. '^ That by the spirited exertions of the people and parliament of Ireland, the trade and constitution thereof were settled on prin- ciples so liberal, that the nation had risen ever since rapidly in wealth and consequence. And, that hav- ing boldly defended the constitution in king, lords, and commons, against the open and secret abettors of rebellion, they were determined steadily to oppose any attempt, that might be made to surrender the free legislation of that kingdom, by uniting it with the legislature of Great Britain,'* On the next day, at a numerous meeting of the bankers and merchants of the city of Dublin, (the Lord Mayor in the chair) the following resolutions were unanimously agreed to: " That since the renunciation of the power of Great Britain in the year of 1782 to legislate for Ireland, the commerce and prosperity of that kingdom had eminently encreased. That they attributed these bless- ings under Providence, and the gracious favour of their beloved sovereign, to the wisdom of the Irish, parliament. That they looked with abhorrence on any attempt to deprive the people of Ireland of their parliament, and thereby of their constitutional right. 522 The Jxeign of George IIL irss. rnd immediate power to legislate for themselves* That impressed with every sentiment of loyalty to their king, and affectionate attachment to British con-r nexicn, they conceived that, to agitate in parhament a question of the legislative Union between that king- dom and Great Britain, would be highly dangerous and impolitic," National Xhe quesilon of a legislative Union with Great ferment •* '-' about the Britain, produced a fever in the public mind almost Union. * ' equal to that, which once raged upon the Irish Union. All means of proselytizing v\'ere resorted to by both parties. The news-journals henceforward teemed with essays, addresses, protestations, puffs, squibbs, censures, and encomiums on both sides of this great political question. Meetings were advertised of coun- ties, baronies, parishes, and of every species of in- corporation : religious discriminations indeed were not resorted to. Protestants, dissenters, and catholics in this instance, fcr the first time, were fairly amalgamated into the general m.ass, and marshalled themselves according to their interests or their convictions. vanoy the terms of the Union between England and Scotland. IV " For the sariie purpose it would bd fit to pro- pose, that the said united kingflom be represented in one and the same parliament, td be sriled the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland ; and that such a number of lords spi- ritual and temporal, and such a number of members of the House of Commons, as shall be hereafter agreed upon by the lets of the respective parliaments as aforesaid, shall sit aiid vote in the said parliament on the part of Ireland, and shall be summoned, chosen, and returned, in such mcmneri as shall be fixed by an act of the parliament of Ireland previous to the said Union ; and that every member hereafter to sit and vote in the said parliament of the united kingdom shall, until the said parliament shall other-^ wise provide, take, and subscribe the said oaths, and make the same declarations, as are by law required to be taken, subscribed, and made, by the members of the parliaments of Great Britain and Ireland, V. " For the same purpose it would be fit to pro- pose, that the churches of England and Ireland, and the doctrine, worship, discipline, and government thereof, shall be preserved as now by law established. VI» '* For the same purpose it would be fit to pro- pose, that his majesty's subjects in Ireland c^halI at all times hereafter be entitled to the same privileges, and be oil the same footing in respect of trade and navigation, in all ports and places belonging to Great YOL. II, 2 m 530 The Reign of George 111, 17P9. Britain, and In all cases with respect to which- trea- ties shall be nivvde by his majesty, his heirs or suc- cessors, with any foreign power, as his majesty's sub- jects in Great Britain ; that ro duty shall be imposed on the import or export between G)eat Britain and Ireland of any articles now duty free ; and that on other articles there shall be est:^.blished, for a time to be limited, such a moderate rate of equal duties as ' shall, previous to the Union, be agreed upon and approved by the respective parliaments, subject, after the expiration of such limited time, to be diminished equally with respect to both kingdoms, but in no case to be increased ; that all articles, which may at any time herea ter be imported Into Great Britain from foreign pirts, shall be importable through cither kingdom into the other, subject to the like duties and regulations, as if the same were Imported di* rectly from foreign parts : that where aay articles, the growth, produce, or manufacture of either king- dom, are subject to any internal duty in one king- dom, such countervailing duties (over and above any duties on Import to be fixed as aforesaid) shall be imposed, as shall be necessary to prevent any in- equality in that respect ; and that all matters of trade and commerce, other than the foregoing, and than such others as may before the Union be spe- cially agreed upon for the due encouragement of the agriculture and manufactures of the respective king- doms, shall remain to be regulated from time to time by the united parliament. VII. " For the like purpose it would be fit to pro- Administration of Marquis Cornwallls, pose, that the charge arising from the payment of the interest, or sinking-fund for the reduction of the principal of the debt incurred in either kingdom be- fore the Union, shiill continue to be separately de- frayed by Great Britain and Ireland respectively ; that, for a number of years to be limited, the future ordinary expenses of the united kingdom, in peace or war, shall be defrayed by Great Britain and Ire- land jointly, according to such proportions as shall be established by the respective parliaments previous to the Union ; and tliat, after the expiration of -the time to be so limited, the proportion shall not be liable to be varied, except according to such rates r.nd principles, as shall be in like manner agreed upon pre^ vious to the Union. VIII. *' For the like purpose it would be fit to pro- pose, that all laws in force at the time of the Union, and all the courts of civil or ecclesiastical jarisdictioii within the respective ki^igdoms, shall remain as nr>w by law established within the same, subject only to such alterations or regulations from time to time, as circumstances may appear to the parliament of th& united kingdom to require." Mr, Pitt at the same tiaie moved rm address to Address to . . accompany accompany the resolutions, stating, that the com- the resoiu- mons had proceeded with the utmost attention to the consideradon of the important objects recom- mended in the royal message ; that they entertained a firm persuasion of the probable bene'fits of a com" plete and entire Union between Great Britain and Ireland, founded on equal and liberal principles \ and 2 M 3 tions. Sot The Reign of (^rge III- 17PP that they were therefore induced to hy befor-e his majesty such propositions, as appeared to them to be best calculated to form the basis of such a settlement, leaving it to his wisdom, in due time and in a pro|>er manner, to communicate them to the lords and com- mons of Ireland, with whom they would be at all times readv to concur in all such measures, as might be found most conducive to the accomplishment of that great and salutary work. Mr.Sh«i- Mr. Sheridan tenaciouslv persisted in opposing the pescs the conduct of the minister, and concluded a most am- andprs-* mated speech, vtith proposing the two following re- i«e-iiirioa«. solutions, to which, he thought, no true friend of either country would object. *' That no measures can have a tendency to improve and perpetuate the ties of amity and connexion now existing between Great Britain and Ireland, which have not for their basis the manifest, fair, and free consent and appro- bation of the parliaments of the two countries ;** and ^' that whoever shall endeavour to obtain the appearance of such consent and approbation in either country, by employing the influence of government for the purpose of corruption or of intimidation, is an enemy to his majesrj- and the constitution.'* The house then divided upon the question for the speaker's leaving the chair, when the ayes were 140^ the noes 15. Mr. sher> In Confident assui-ance of final success, the minister tis mriv.zi allowed the interval of a week for the consideration of the coQs^it the resolutions he had submitted to the house, and on bamcDB. the 7th of February he proposed a full discussion of ^Administration of Marquis CornwaUlt, 53S the subject in a committee of the whole hou=^, but ^799- before it was formedj he consented to dispose of Mr. Sheridan's motions respecting the fair and firee con- sent of both parliaments. Mr. Sheridaa then re- newed his Fesoiutions, which were disposed of by the niinister's putting the previous question^ which was carried upon a division of 141 against 25. A very interesting debate took place on the commi.tee being formed for the discus^on of Mr. Pi:t*s propositions, when the question for the Speaker's leading the chair was carried by 149 against 2*. A committee of the whole house was immediately formed, and the reso- lutions were moved and carried, On the 11th of Februar)-, the minister having Mr. sh-Ti- moved the order of the day for the house going into ^^'^j^ti*. a comnuttee for the further consideration of his ma- unioL^^ jesty's message, Mr. Sheridan recorameaded a substi- tute for legislative union. He was of opinion, that the abolition of ail disabilities, which had been in- curred in civil aff^rs by religious distinctions, would tend more to the improvement ot the connexion be-^ tween Gieat Britain and Ireland, than the measure brought forward. He had the authority of the pre- mier himself for the expediency of emancipating thg Catholics of Ireland from the incapacities, to. which , they were s^jected. Such was the opinioa of ihe ^ders of the cat«ii-;il ia the year 179 a.; and, thougk Earl Fitzwilliam were, not then, desired or permitted to propose the emancipation, he is allowed to have been expressly authorized to givi it a kanduom/t 2 ii 3 534< The Rejgn of George IIL i7Q9- support on the part of government. He then moved, that it should be an instruction to the com- mittee to consider " how far it would be consistent with justice and policy, and conducive to the general interests, and especially to the consolidation of the strength of the British empire, were all civil incapa- cities on account of religious distinctions to be done away throughout his majesty's dominions." Mr. Pitt objected to the proposidon, as breaking in upon the independence of the Irish Parliament, by a direct act of dictation and control. He denied, that the rebel- lious disturbances in Ireland originated in any decree from the refusal to grant emancipation to the Ca- tholics. The motion was rejected without a di- vision. Conference WhcH all the rcsolutlons had been agreed to, the houses^"^" next proceeding was a communication of the votes of sub'"cfof ^^° commons to the lords at a conference, which took Bnion. place on the 18th. The peers ordered the resolu- tions to be printed, and some illustrative papers to be produced. In order to avoid precipitancy on so im- portant a subject, they allowed a month's interval for consideration, before they entered upon the dis- cussion. Mr.Toster's Ih DubHn thc defeat of the minister in the House foToppos- of Commons was considered as the death-blow of the uiiion.^ Unionists, and was celebrated in every quarter of the city with bonfires and other demonstrations of joy. The violent opposition, which Mr. Foster gave to the measure, had suddenly translated him from very ge- Admiyiistratlon of Marquis CornwalUs. S35 neral dislike, to the acme of popularity *. The lord 1799. mayor, aldermen, and common council, and a nu- merous body of merchants of Dublin, delivered ad- dresses to him, as an honest man and lover of his country, for not voting away the liberty and inde* pendence of Ireland. On the 28th of January Lord Castlereagh moved Adjoum- an adjournment to the 7th 01 rebruary, m order to imh par- ,.,.', ,. J. Hament, m engrait his lurtber parhamentary proceedmgs upon order to the issue and result of the debates in the British house the resoiu- of commons. Sir John Parnell opposed the motion, Bmishpar- , ..... liamcnt. as there never was a moment, m which it was more necessary for the parliament of Ireland to remain vigil- ant ;at its post. There was a credited report, that the British minister had declared, he ivouid unceas- ingly persevere in a nieamre respecting the internal situation of Ireland, to which the parliament of Ire- land had so recently given its decided negative. It was impossible the British minister or parhament could have previously known the sentiments of the parliament of Ireland, when they had discussed the nieasure on the very same day it was rejected here. The British minister had too much wisdom to per- severe, after the sense of the Irish parliament and Irish people were known to him, without putting in immi- nent hazard the continuance of British connexion. Lord ^astlereagh ptrsisted in his motion, declaring * The public proceedings of the county of Louth on the 14'th, and of the city of Dublin on the Ibih of January, 17g9, are to be seen in the Appendix to Hist. Rev. No. CXVII, 2 M 4 5S6 The Reign of George III. 1799' Union to be a measure so indispensable to perpe- tuate the connexion between both kingvloms, to con- solidate their mutual strength, and promote their mutual prosperity, that he should never lose si;:,ht of it ; though he did not mean that he would, or could press it against the Irish parliament and the Irish people. After several gentlemen had spoken in the strongest terms against the Union, upon which the sense of that house had been unequivocally expressed, the question was carried in the affirmative without division. Lord Castlereagh then solemnly assured the house, that he should never bring forward the question of Union so long, as it appeared to him re- pugnant to the sense of parliament and the country. Colonel Maxwell Barry observed, the noble lord could not himself answer for w at he might do, as he must act according to the instructions he received from England. He moved a call of the house, vi^hich was fixed for the 1 1th of February. Sir H. Cavendish, after having stated, that the house had been degraded by personal outrage and insult to several of its mem- bers, in consequence of votes given in that house, moved, " That any insult or assault offered to any member of parliament coming or going from that house, in consequence of any thing said or done in parliament ; or any attempt to intimidate any member from any vote in that house ; or any tumultuous as- semblage of persons meeting in the passages to that house, to awe or intimidate its members, to or from any vote, or any measure, is an high infringement on the privileges of that house." The debate on the ne- jidministration of Marquis Cormvallis* 53^ ccssity for such resolutions, brought under the consider- 1799> ation of the house a minifc;terial determination to remove the parliament to Cork, in order to secure safety in its deliberations. Upon which the attorney-general said it was notorious, that the persons of members had been assaulted and abused, their houses attacked, and them- selves declared traitors to their country, for having voted in favor of Union ; and that certainly such at- tempts to overawe the parliament would warrant its removal to Cork. To confirm which was read a paragraph in a popular paper, calling the minister of the country and those members who voted for an Union ** a corrupt minister and his conupt phalanx.** Out of parliament, the viceroy applied the whole strength of the castle, to promote the grand object : he gained occasional proselytes. On the other hand he was strongly opposed by many even of his former friends, ^nd found the decided majority of the nation (however desirous of a continuance of connexion) hostile to the measure of Union. Meetings in the different counti e were en- Exertions ... ofth^Anti- couraged by the Anti-uniomsts ; and strong reso- unionists lutions adopted with few dissentient voices. The counuy. miUtary commanders sometimes interfered, on pre- tence of preventing the intrusion and violence of the lower classes; and very frequently ofScers used menace and intimidation, in order to check free discus- sion. The fretholdt-rs ot Fermanagh, King's County, Limerick, Monaghan, Clare, Cavan, Tyrone, and other shires, made strong resolutions against the mea- sure, and thanked their members lor opposing it j but, ^38 1"^^ Reign of George II J^ 17^9- in the county of Gal way, the archbishop of Tuam ^""^ had interest enough to procure a warm declaration in favor of Union. In the commercial city of Cork great disunion prevailed, many of the traders and other inhabitants v/ere zealous for the ministerial - scheme. In opposition to them above 700 cigned and published an address of thanks to the parliamentary Anti-unionists in general, and to the Earl of Charle-- mont and Mr. Foster in particular. While tlie public mind was in that state of agitation, the speeczh, which Mr. Pitt delivered on the 23d of January, was circu- lated through the nation with more than ordinary industry, and some of that minister's remarks, as in- terpreted by the Anti-unionists, increased the public ferment. Parliament When the L'ish house of commons met according adjouta-" ^^ adjournment, a coinplaint was made to the house of several paragraphs * in an English newspaper, under the iaimediate controul of the minister. This was considered by the Anti-unionists a part of the scheme of the British ministry to force the Union upon them, and they unanimously resolved, that those English newspapers, in which the false, scandalous, and malicious libels were contained and published, should be burned by the hands of the common hang* •man, in College Green, and that the sheriffs of Dublin should attend to see the same done accordingly. The horrvvTS ot the late rebellion had now given place to a * These paragraphs may be seen in Historical Reviev, vol. III. p, 920. meets alter adjou meat. administration of Marquis Cornwallis, 539 new irritation created by the question of Union : and i799 the old means of proclaiming different districts in a state of disturbance were resorted to. The first county proclaimed to be in that state, was the County of Galway on the 12th of F.bruary, in which the earhest and most successful exertions had been made in favor of Union, Ihis was conclusive evi- dence, that the advocates for Union, such as were the Earl of Clanricarde, and most of the nobility and gentry of Galway, considered, that it would be more effectually carried by * military coercion, than dehbe- rative persuasion. Personal applications were made by Lord Corn- Lord Com. wallis to such members of the Irish parliament, and personal m- . flaence to persons oi miiuence and power m the country, as were forward the considered most open. The amiable qualities of the viceroy, and the promises and prospects of the flat- tering fruits of Union plausibly made by him, pro- cured a preponderance of interest in favor of the Union from many, who probably would otherwise have opposed it. The predetermination of the British minister to carry the measure, was not to be checked by any Irish '^^^ ^^^' ' J J sure opposition. On the 19th of March, Lord Grenville brought * * forward in opened the business in the British House of Peers, the British ^ _ house of In the p:'rformance of his duty, it afforded him some loff^s- relief, he said, to find, that the two main points oa * I( appears from a paper presented by fjord Castlereagh on fhe llih February, ihat the regiinf-nl.s then serving in IreJand, and oelopgiug to the British euabii-hment, amounted to 23,201 men. (lb Com. Juurn. Appendix, No, XLIX.) i4Q T'he Reign of George III 1799' which the resolutions were founded, had been sufE-* cieiitly established to preclude the necessity of dwell- ing upon them. These wtre, that the legislature of Ireland had an independent right of deciding upon, any proposal of Uiiion, as fully as the parliament of Great Biiiain, and that the int^^rest of the empire at; large, and of every branch of it in particular, re. quired the m^untenance and improvement of the con- nexion bctv.'een the countries. So fai* from being unseasonable, it was highly expedient and politic to enttr upon a speedy inquiry into the merits of the measure. His lordship went into the matter much at larr^e, and amongst other inducements to render the subject desirable to the majority of the Irish people, he held out catholic emancipation as one of the first and most beneficial consequences of the Union. A free admission of ihe catholics into the Irish pariia-f ment might lead to a subversion of its consiitution ; but all fear of their preponderancy would vanish under a general legislature, as they then v/ould be far outnumbered by the protestants. The animosities of these rival parties would be allayed ; and a tranquil- lity, which Ireland had rarely enjoyed would be the pleasing result. His lordship then moved the first resolution, and intimated, that he should after vvards request the house to vote an address favorable to the adjustment of a complete Union. A long and interesting debate * ensued : the house agreed to • "Which may be seen much at large, Hist. Rev. vol. III. p,' 923 to 947. Administration of Marquis Cornwalhs, 541 the resolution, and a day was fixed for proposin'T an 1799' address to the throne upon the subject ; the introduc- tion of which by Lord Grenville gave risr> to another warm debate ; in which Lord Minto toolc a leading part in favor of the Union ; and emph-itically rested the great benefit of that measure to Ireland upon the assumed emancipation of the Irish catholics. Laws therefore beneficial to the mass of the peopl ^ of Ire- land, and promoting its general prosperity arid happi- ness, were to be expected from the united parliament^ in which right might be done unaccompanied by wrong, and Irish catholics invested with their political capacities, without the slightest danger to protestant establishment or property. He advised therefore the insertion of an explicit article in the treaty or act of Union, providing for the just claims of the Catholic Irish; but he was not strenuous or decisive in his re- commendation j for he added, that, '• if any poli- tical peculiarities of the present time should render it impracticable to engross these wholesome provisions in the written treaty itself*, he would rather repress • Mr. Pitt to avoid difficulties and delays, resolved not to intro- duce any stipulation for the catholics, but reserve that measure for the imperial parliament. He sent over therefore to Lord Corn- wallis the following communications to 'be made to some of the catholic body. The paper bespeaks the inducements^ under which many of the catholics were allured to supporc the Union : and its authenticity is verified by a letter from Lord Cornwallis to the author, of the 8th of April, 1805. The verification of this im- portant historical fact is to be seen at large in an historical letter from the author to Sir Richard Musgrave, Bart. p. 72 to 80, 1805. That letter fully exposes the fal.ehoods, malice, and de- ception of that Gentleman's writings. The Reign of George lit, his wishes for •^he immediate accomplishment of this desirable end, than expose this great transaction to *■* The leading part of his majesty's ministers findins; unsnr- tnnuntable obstacles to the bringing forward measures of conces- sion to the catholic body, wliilst in offie, have felt it impo-^sible to cor.tinue in administration ur.der the inab'lity to propose it with the circumstances necessary to earryirg the raeaoUre with all its advantages, and they hav Retired from his majesty's service, con- sidering this line of conduct, as inost likely 'to contribute to its ultimate success. The catholic body will, therefore, See how much their future hopes must depend upon strengthening their cause by ^ood conduct in the mean time ; they will prudently consider their prospects as arising from the persons, who nbw espouse their ia- terests, and compare them with tho?e, which they could look to from any other quarter ; they may with confidence rely on the feealous support of all those, who retire, and of many, who remain in office, when it can be given with a prospect of success. They maybe assured, that Mr. Pitt will do his utmost to establish their cause in the public favor, and prepare the way for finally attaining their objects : arwi the catholics will feel, that as Mr. Pitt omld not concur in a hopeless attempt to force it now, he must at all times repress «"';th the same decision as if he held an adverse opi- nion, any ut constitutional cor.duci in the catholic body. " Under these circumsiances it cannot be doubted that th6 ca- tholics will take the most loyal, dutiful, and patient line of con- duct, that they will not suffer themselves to be led into measures which can, by any construction, give a handle to the opposers of their wishes, either to misinterpret their principles or to raise an ar;j,umcnt for resisting their claims ; but that by their prudent and exemplary demeanour they will afford additional grounds to the growing number of their advccates to enforce their claims on proper occasions, until their objects can be finally and advan- tageously attained." " The Senlimcnls of a sincere Friend (L e. Marquis CornwallisJ to the Catholic Claims. *' If the catholics should now proceed to violence, or entertain kny ideas of gaining their object by convulsive measures, or form- Administration of Marquis Cornwallis* 513 needless and unprofitable hazard by unseasonable 1"99« pertinacity or impatience, and would be contertt to leave it to the mature deliberation and impartial judgment of the imperial legislature.*' The address being voted, a conference was hoi den Conferfnc* ^ ^ with the With the comm.ons on the following day ; and the Commons. deputed lords then proposed, that it should be offered to the throne as the joint address of both houses. \ Before the commons concurred in the address to the King, they once more brought the plan of Union to a fresh discussion. On the 2-2d of April, Mr. Pitt movedj that the house should joinia the address voted ing associations with men of Jacobmical principles, they must of course lose the support and aid of those, who have sacrificed theii own situations in their cause, but who would at the same time feel it to be their indispensable duty to oppose every thing tending to confusion. *' On the other hand, should the catholics be sensible of the benefit the) possess by having so many characters^f esninence pl"dg- ed not to embark in the service of government, except on ?!i" terms of the catholic privileges being obtained, it is to be hoped, that on balancing the advantages and disadv3ntag^s of their s tuaiion they would prefer a qu'et and peaceable demeanour to any line of conduct of an opposite description." The originals of these two declarations were handed to Dr. Troy, and afterwards to Lord Fingall on the same day by Marquis Cornwallis, in the presence of Lieutenant Colonel Littlehales, in the beginning of May, ISOl, shortly before his departure from the government of Ireland, and before the arrival of Lord Hard* wicke, his successor. His excellency desired they should be discreetly communicated to the bishops and principal catholics, but not inserted in. the newspapers. They appeared, nevertheless, in the English prints soon afterwardf, and were copied into the Irish papers. S4t4i The Reign of George ill. 7799. bv the peers. This brouo;ht on a fresh debate. Thtf address* was adopted by the commons j and, on the * The foHow'nnd doinestic enemies, and must tend to confirm and aug* ment the stability, power, and resources of the empire. '* Impressed with these considerations, we feel it our duty humbly to lay before your Majesty such pro;,osiiions, as appear to us best calculated to form the basis of such a settlement, leaving it to your Majesty's wisdom, at such time and in such manner aS 5'our Majesty, in yoiir parental solicitude for the happiness of your people, shall judge fit, to communicate these propositions to your parliament of Ireland, with whom we shall be at all times ready to Concur in all such measures, as may be found most conducive to the accomplishment of this great and salutary work. And we trust, that after full and mature consideration, such a settlement may be framed and established by the deliberative consent of the parliaments of both kingdoms, as may be conformable to the sentiments, wishes, and real interests of your Majesty's faithful subjects of Great Britain and Ireland, and may unite them insepar- ably in the full enjoyment of the blessings of our free and in- valuable constitution, in the support of the honor and dignity of Administration of Marquis Cornwallis, 545 2Gth, the sentiments of both houses on the subject ^7Q9- were communicated in due form to his majesty. Whilst ti'.e qiK^stion of Union was pending- in the Proceedings „ . , , ^ " of the Irish iiritisn senate, that of Irehmd continued to occupy Parliament. itself on other concerns. Long and interesting de- bates took place upon Mr. Dobbs's motion for a com- mutation of tithes ; upon the loyalists' claim bill, and on the rebel disqualification bill*. Sir H. Langrishe vehemently disapproved of the spirit of the bill, which had been brought in by the members for the city of Dublin. It was warmly supported by Messrs. Ogle, J. C. Beresford, and Dr. Duigenan. The attorney-general considered, that to pass this bill would be to commit a breach of the covenant of pardon made with the country ; it would involve in its grasp many innocent and deluded persons, whose return to loyalty was indubitable, but who in the early part of the system of United Irishmen^ had entered into it from curiosity or from folly, and had retired the moment they perceived its wickedness. Upon a division the bill v/as lost. On the 6th of April was presented a petition from Motion in T. Judkin Fitzgerald, Esq. late high sheriff of the Mr?judkin county of Tipperary, praying to be indemnified for ^^^^"* * certain acts done by him in suppression of the late your Majesty's crown, and in the presenation and advancement of the weltare and prosperity of the whole British empire." 8 Pari. Eng. Deb. p. 542. * The title of that bill was for preventing persons, who had ever taken the Oath of the United Irishmen, from voting for Members to serve in Parliament . " YOL, II. 2 N 546 The Reign of George III, 1799. rebellion, not justifiable in common law. The ob- iect of it was to do away the effect of the verdict found against the petitioner in an action at the suit of one Wright before mentioned. His prominent zeal in suppressing rebellion, was highly emblazoned by the advocates of the system of coercion. Mr. Yel- verton, before whose father the trial came on, and who was himself present at it, gave so lively a picture of the brutal conduct of the petitioner, as proved in evidence at the trial*, that his friends thought prudent * Mr. Wright was employed as a teacher of the French lan- guage by several boarding-schools and families of respectability. Having heardj that Islx. Fitzgerald had received some charges of a seditious nature against him, he went to the house of Mr. Fitz- gerald,, and being shewn into his presence, explained the purpose of his coming, when Mr. Fitzgerald drawing his sword, said, down on your knees, you rebellious scoundrel, and receive your sentence, which was first to be flogged, and then shot. The un- fortunate roan surrendered his keys to have his papers searched, and expressed his readiness to suffer any ptmishment the proof of guUr could JQstify, Mr. Fitzgerald's answer was, '* What, you Canneiiie rascal, do you dare to speak after sentence?" He then struck him, and ordered him to pri=ion. The next day being broagbt forth to undergo his sentence, he knelt down in prayer, with bis hat bef->re his &ce. Mr- Fitzgerald snatched his hat from "him and trampled 03 it, seiz^i the man by the hair, dragged him to the earth, kicked him and cat him across the forehead with his sword, then had him stripped naked, tied up to the ladder, and ordered him fifty lashes. Major Rial, an officer in the town, came up as the fi'ty lashes were completed, and asked Mr. F. the C3use. Mr. Fitzgerald handed him a note written in French, saying, he did not himself understand French, though he under- »tood insb, but be {^M?jor Rial] would find in that letter what would jtistify him in flogging the scoundrel to death. Major Administration of Marquis Cornwallis. 547 to drop the matter. Mr. T. Judkin Fitzgerald after- 1/99. wards received a considerable pension for his acdve services in quelling the rebellion. Flushed uith confidence, the Anti-Unionists were Regmcj determined to remove every obstacle, that they con- ceived their opponents might avail themselves of, in bringing the measure to bear. In order therefore to shut out the possibility of any future difference be- tween the parliaments of the two kingdoms in the ap- pointment of a regent, in case that necessity should Rial read the letter. He found it to be a note for the victiHi, •which he thus translated : ♦' Si», " I A>I extremely sorry I cannot xraii on you at the hour appointed, being unavoidably obliged to attend Sir Laurence Parsons. Yocr'Sj Baron de Clces." Notwithstanding this translation, Mr. Fitzgerald ordered him fifty more lashes, -which "were inflicted with such peculiar seve- rity, that the bowels of the bleeding victim could be pCTceivqd to be convulsed and working through his wounds ! ilr. Fitzgerald finding he could not continue the application of his cat-o'-nine tails on that part without cutting his way into his body, ordered the waistband of his breeches to be cut open, and fifty more lashes to be inflicted there. He then left the unfortunate man bleeding and suspended, while he went to the barrack to demand a file of men to come and shoot him ; but being refused by the com- manding officer, he came back and sought for a rope to hang him, but could get none. He then ordered him to be cut down and sent back to prison, where he was confined in a dark small room, with no other fiirniture, than a wretched pallet cf straw, without covering, and these he remained six or seven days without me-^ dical assistance i 2 N 2 54S The Reign of George HI. 1709. General measures for and against uixion. recur, they brought forward a regency bill to pro- vide for the government of Ireland, whenever that of Great Britain should be administered by a regent or regency ; that the regal power of the realm of Ireland should beexercised or administered by the same person or persons, in whom the exercise and adminis- tration of ihe regal powers of the imperial crown of Great Britain should be vested. This bill was fre- quently and violently debated. The majority did not find it an adequate remedy for the evils of parlia- mentars' variance, and it was postponed to the 1 st of August, and thus lost for the session. Though ministers had gained an advantage in the rejection of the regency bill, it did not inspire them with sufficient confidence to risk another dis- cussion of the subject, while the pubhc mind was so much on the fret. It was resolved therefore, that the full development of the measure should be de- ferred to the next session. At this time commenced the singular measure of shifting seats in parliament*, for the open accommodation of those, who wished to votCj and those, who wished to avoid voting on » An instance occurred on the 15th of May, in which Lord Castlereagh mariifesied the most barefaced partiality of govero- ment in refusing the escheatorship of Munster, which like our Chiltem Hundreds) vacates the seat of the member accepting, to Colonel Cole, who was ordered to join bis corps then in Corfu ; but, who being a strong anti-unionist, \\ished to introduce Mr. Balfour, who entertained ibe \\Ke sentiments j thus compelling Colonel Cole either to resign his commission, or to give the mi- nister the advantage of a vote on this important question. Administration of Marquis ComwaUis. 549 this important measure. It is matter of notoriety, J£99^ that the whole powers gf government patronage, ia- fluencej and emolument, were devoted to the pro- selyiizing for Union. An accommodating casuistry reconciled some of the political combatants to quit the field for a valuable consideration, in order to let in others to fight the bartle they were ashamed to engage in : thus squeamishly refusing the wages of prostitution, whilst they enhanced their demands for procuration. When the parliament was prorogued on the 1st Pror^^tbn of Jane, the commons attended their speaker to th" ^i^m, and ', '^ the lord- House of Lords, where his excellency delivered a lieutenant's ■' _ ipecch, speech* from the throne, which contained the fol- lowing special communication from his majesty, that a joint address of t-ie two houses of parliament of Great Britain had been laid before his majesty, ac- companied by resolutions proposing and recommend- ing a complete and entire union between Great Bri- tain and Ireland, to be established by the mutual consent of both parliaments, founded on equal and liberal principles, on the similarity of laws, consti- tution, and government, and on a sense of mutual interest and affections. The session of the British parHament closed on the 12th of July, when his majesty assured them that the ultimate security of Ireland could alone be established by its intimate and entire union with Great Britaifif, Ireland was now neither convulsed with rebellion, i°t^"i»i ^ star; ol Ir«- nor perfectly tranquil. Several counties were pro- ^*"'^ * 19 Com. Joum. p. 145. f 9 Eng. Deb. p. 5/8. 2 N 3 350 The Reign of George III, i799- Efibrts to oppose the onion. claimed. The presence of numerous troops kept the malecontents in awe ; the extraordinary powers of courts-mai'tial diffused through the realm effective terror. Insults, outrages, and depredations, were not infrequent. The question of union fanned the old or raised a new flame of discord. On both sides ar- tifices were practised to obtain signatures to addresses for and against the measure. The influence of go- vernment w^s forwarded by the presence of the lord- lieutenant, in a tour he made through many counties with that \aew. In the meanwhile the legislature of Great Britain re-assembled on the 24th of Sep- tember, when his Majesty expressed his confidence, that the disposition of the parliament of Ireland would be found to correspond with that, which the national council of Britain had manifested for the accomplish- ment of an union. The Marquis of Buckingham moved the address of thanks, and enforced the ex- pediency of the measure from his experimental knowledge of Iieland. In January, 1800, the Marquis of Downshire, Lord Charlemont, and William Brabazen Ponsonby sent circular letters to the gentry and yeomanry, (as au- thorised by a number of gentlemen of both houses of parliament, thirty- eight of whom were representatives of counties) to recommend petitions to parliament against a legislative union. It wa^ falsely given out that the anti-unionists had formed a stock-purse * for * The conduct of the Marquis of Downshire was so displeasing to government, that he was removed from the government of the -Administration of Marquis Cornwallis* 551 defraying the expenses of opposing the measure. At isoo, a meeting of some of the heads of the party in Dub- lin, Lord Dillon made such a proposal^ but it was not followed up. The conduct of Lord Comwallis was politically How the kind arid liberal towards the Catholics, in order to acted as to . . t^g union. engage them in favour of the unio i. No descnption of persons had such strong reasons for opposing that measure as the body of Roman Catholics, who by it forfeited all the consdtutional advantages of a de- cided majority of an independent nation, to sink into an insignificant minority of the united kingdom. At Dublin a large portion of the Catholic residents came forward in their distinct capacity of Catholics, to op- pose it, and on the 1 3th of January, held a numerous meeting, at which they passed and published some re- solutions against union*. In other parts of the king- dom Catholic individuals had signed addresses and resolutions promiscuously with their Protestant bre- thren against the measure. This step was productive of some disunion in the Catholic body, as the clergy and several respectable Catholic inhabitants of the city of Dublin warmly supported the lord-lieutenant in the measure. The Orangemen more wary, in order not to weaken their body by disunion^ published an county, from the colonelcy of the royal Downshire regiment of 1 200 men, and erased from the list of privy counsellors. In open par- liament he diuclalmed the charge of any contribution. * The resolutions of the Catholics against UQion, and of the Grand Orange Lodge, to abstain from discussing the question, are to be seen Hiit. Rev. vol. III. 983, &c. 2 n4 552 The Re'ign of George III. 1800. advertisement from their grand lodge to present eveii the discussion of the question amongst them. Effects of The lord- lieutenant was satisfied with the success the pTcpa- ratory steps of his summer excursion through the kingdom. The for union. " ° great horror of the measure had abated in many places ; in some the original opposers had now be- come warm advocates in its favour. It had not be- come generally popular, although it had ceased to be generally unpopular. Preparations were made on both sides for the parliamentary contest on the 15th of January, on which day Mr. G rattan had been elected for the borough of Wicldow, on the death of Mr. Gahan deceased, and was sworn in. The lord- lieutenant made a long speech from the throne, which avoided any mention of or reference to the union *. After the address had been moved and se- conded. Sir Lawrence Parsons inveighed warmly against the ministerial manoeuvres to pack a parlia- ment, and influence its members. It mattered not whether the representatives of the nation were turned out of that door by the sword of the army, or the gold of the treasury ; by a Cromwell or by a secre- tary ; the treason against the constitution was the same. He then moved an amendment to the ad- dress, connecting the desire of a continuance of Bri- tish connexion with the wish for tlie preservation of an independent resident parliament. This brought on a most interesting debatef. On the division, (at * It maybe seen. Hist. Rev. vol. III. p. 934. t Mr. Grattan entered the house between Mr. William B. Pen- sonby and Mr. Arthur Moore, whilst Mr. Egan was on his legf ^Administration of Marquis CormvalUs, 353 ten o'clock in the morning) 96 voted for the amend- 1800, ment, 138 against it. This majority of 42 exceeded the warmest expectations of government. The victor oy hoped to increase it by allowing an interval of some weeks to pass, before he sent to either house a copy of the resolutions of the parliament of Great Britain. A majority of 42 flushed government with confid- Conse- , ,' , , . . . , , queiices of ence, and drove the Anti-unionists almost to despe- the mini- ration. The members were now so immoveably jonty.'"*" marshalled^ that further changes were not looked to by either side. Some solitary instances of conversion did appear. In order to counteract the first effects of this ministerial triumph in the capital, within an hour or two after the adjoumm.ent of the house of commons (at ten o'clock, on the IGth of January) an aggregate meeting of the freemen and freeholders of the city of Dublin was convened by instant requi- actually referring to the constitution of 1/82. There-appearance in pai lian^ent of the founder of that constitution at that critical moment and under those awful circumstances, electrified the house and galleries with an indescribable emotion of terrific joy and expectation. On rising to speak, he referred to the adjust- ment of 17S2. The minister of Great Britain, he said, Iiad come forward in two celebrated produciions ; he declared his intoler- ance of the parliamentary constitution of Ireland ; that consti- tution, which he ordered the several viceroys to celebrate, in de- fence of which he recommended the French war, and to which he swore the yeoman ; that constitution he now declared to be a miserable imperfection, concurring with the men, whom he had executed for thinking the Irish parliament a grievance ; diflerine from them in the remedy only : they proposing to substitute a republic, and he the yoke of the British parliament. This great and good patriot rallied all the powers ot'his youth^ and in a long speech outstepped his usual briUiancy. 554 The Reign of George IIL J 800. sition, at which they passed very strong resolutions * against Union. Meeting of ^j- ^jjg meetinET of parliament after the adiourn- parliarnent a i j after ad- ment, on the 15th of Febraary, 1800, petitions journment. _ •' against a legislative Union with Great Britain were received from the counties of Dublin, Limerick, Wexford, Cavan, Longford, Tipperary, Galway, Meath, and Fermanagh; also from the city of Li- merick, the town of Belfast, and several others. On the introduction of the Tipperary petition, Sir L. Parsons took occasion of stating to the house, that Major Rogers, who commanded at Birr, having been told, that there was an intention of assembling the freeholders and inhabitants to deliberate on the propriety of petitioning against a legislative Union, the major replied he would disperse them by force if they attempted it ; he had applied to government for directions. And on Sunday, whilst several magistrates and respectable inhabitants were assembled in the session-house, the high-sheriff (Mr. Derby) ordered them to disperse, or he would compel them; they * The proceedings of tliat meeting shew the spirit of the day, and are to be seen, Hist. Rev. vol. III. p. 999. Amongst these re- solutions there was a most enthusiastic panegyric on the talents, virtue, and patriotism of Mr. Grattan, their late member. The quick shiftings of the popularis aura should not her« pass un- noticed. The ingratitude and calumnies of Mr. Grattan's late constituents had weighed not lightly in the scale, which turned that gendeman's resolution to retire from parliament They now placed him at the head of the triumvirate of their fin* terestedj affections and adoration, with Messrs. Foster and Ogle, who had been unceasing objects of Mr. Grattan's opposition dur- ing the whole course of his political career in parliament. Adm'm'tstration of Marquis Cormcallis, 555 were about to depart, when Major Rogers appeared I600. at the head of a column of troops, with four pieces of cannon in front, with matches lighted, and declared that he waited but for one word from the sheriff, that he might blow them to atoms ! These were the dread- ful measures, Sir Laurence said, by which govern- ment endeavoured to force the Union upon the people of Ireland^ by stifling their sentiments and dragooning them into submission. He then proposed two reso- lutions to the house of the following effect : 1st, *' That to prevent by military force the freeholders of any county from meeting to petition parliament, is a gross violation of the privileges of this house, and a subversion of the constitution. 2d. That Vemey Derby, Esq. and Major Rogers do attend at the bar of the house on Wednesday next." Lord Castle- reagh said, that he had never before, either in his official or parliamentary capacity, heard a syllable of the matter then stated to the house. As an acknow* ledged truism, Sir Laurence Parsons withdrew his first resolution, and the second passed unanimously. No- thing however appears to have been done upon it. Lord Castlereagh acquainted the house, that he had Message a * message from his excellency the lord-lieutenant, lord-iieute- nant about Union* ♦ " CORNWALLIS, " At the close of the last session, in obedience to the particular commands, which I received from his Majesty, I ac- quainted this parliament, that a joint address of the two houses of parliament of Great Britain had been laid before his Majesty, ac- companied by resolutions proposing the recommending a complete and entire Union between Great Britain and Ireland, to be es- tablished by the mutual consent of both parliaments, founded on S56 The Reign of George IIL 1600. which he read ; and then proceeded to lay open the plan of the Union, which he now looked up to as a certainty: he spoke with peculiar confidence of the change of sentiment, which had taken place in the minds of many, who were last year hostile to the measure. He concluded a detailed exposition of the plan nearly in the following woi ds : '* Having now gone through the outline of the plan with as much conciseness as possible, I trust I have proved to every equal and liberal principles, on ihe similar'fy of constitution and government, and on a sense cf mutual interests and aft'ectlons. " I have it now further in command from his Majesty to lay those resolutions before this house, and solemnly to recommend to the consideration of his faithful commons the great objects they embrace. " His Majesty has observed with increasing satisfaction, that the sentiments which have continued to be manifested in favor of this important and salutary measure by such numerous and respect- able descriptions of his Irish subjects, confirm the hope he has expressed, that its accomplishment will prove to be as much the joint wish as it unquestionably is the common interest of both his kingdoms : an event to which his Majesty looks forward with the. utmost earnestness, as the only means, by which the common ^ interests of all his people can be indissolubly united, and their se- curity and happiness can be permanently established. *' His Majesty therefore relies on the wisdom of his parliaments, and the loyal concurrence of his people for the completion of this great work, with a firm persuasion that a fuU^nd niireser\'ed participation of constitutional and commercial advantages will augment and perpetuate the prosperity of his subjects of his united kingdom, and that under the favour of Divine Providence the freedom and power of the British empire will be established on a foundation not to be sfeaken by the efforts either of its foreign or donsestic enemies.* Administration of Marquis CormuaUis. 551 man, who hears me, that the proposal is such a one, as isoo* is at once honourable for Great Britain to offer, and for Ireland to accept. It is one, which will entirely remove from the executive power those anomalies, which are the perpetual sources of jealousy and dis* content. It is one, which will relieve the apprehen- sions of those, who feared that Ireland was, in conse- quence of an Union, to be burthened with the debt of Britain. It is one, which, by establishing a fair principle of contribution, tends to release Ireland from an exoense of one million in time of war, and of 500,0001. in time of peace. It is one, which increases the resources of our commerce, protects our manufactures, secures to us the Briush market, and encourages all the produce of our soil. It is one, that, by uniting the ecclesiastical establishments, and consolidating the legislatures of the empire, puts an end to religious jealousy, and removes the possibility of separation. It is one, that places the great ques- tion, which has so long agitated the country, upon the broad principles of imperial policy, and divests it of all its local difficulties. It is one, that establishes such a representation for the country, as must lay asleep for ever the question of parliamentary reform, which, combined with our religious divisions, has produced all our distractions and calamities." The house divided, at a very late hour, 158 for, and 11.5 against the measure of Union *• * When the number of the placemen, pensioners, and other in- fluenced members, wbo voted on ihe late divison is considered, the SoS The Reign of George III, isoo. On the lOth of February Lord Clare brought on The plan ^hc matter on the order of the day for taking his thJ'^rs! Majesty's message into consideration. His lordship * had frequently and publickly pledged himself to carry it through, and he effected it. He concluded his elaborate and animated speech with the foUo^xing observation : *"' that if he lived to see that measure completed, to his latest hour he should feel an honor- abie pride in reflecting on the share he might have had in contributing to effect it f.*' The majority of minister had but slender grounds for triumphing in his majority of 43, if from it were to be collected the genuine sense of the independent part of that house and of the people of Ireland, whom they represented. So predetermined however was the British cabinet to force the measure upon Ireland in that favorable op- portunity of her weakness and fears, that lavish recourse was had to the powers of patronage and influence. Many, it is to be feared, in both houses sacrificed their convictions. Twenty-seven new titles were added to the peerage j promotions, grants, concessions, arrangements, promises were lavished with a profusion never before known in that country. Pity for both sides, that so great and important a political measure should owe any part of its succes?, to other than the means of temperate reason and persuasion. * Having heretofore referred to parts of this noble lord's speech dehvered on that occasion, and also to Mr. Grattan's written answer to it, we recommend them both as valuable repertories of true and interesting representations of facts and characters pecu- liarly important to the modern history of Ireland. f Notwithstanding this declaration , it is reported, that this noble lord felt so sensibly, after the Union, the loss of his own power and consequence, of which he was inordinately fond, that it preyed upon his spirits, and contributed to hasten his dissolution. He avowed in his last illness, that of all the political actions of his life he most repented of his exertions to bring about the Union* ^Administration of Marquis Comwallis. 659 49 (the numbers being 7.5 against 26) in the lords isoo. shewed^ that the Bridsh cabinet had more strength in the lords than the commons. The further considera- tion of the measure was postponed by the lords to the 14th, and by the commons to the 17th of M-^rch. On the 17th of March, the chancellor of the ex- Debated ;a chequer, Mr. Corry, opened the subject by retracing moos, his old ground of argument, which he interspersed with much personal acrimony and abuse, directed particularly at Mr. Grattan, who vindicated himself in strong language, and retorted upon his opponent the insinuations of unconstitutional and treasonable conduct. Mr. Corry replied with redoubled severity ; and Mr. Grattan rejoined with such increased power of censure, as threw the onus of resentment com- pletely on Mr. Corry *. After a long debate, a mo- His ambition aspired to rule the British councils, as he had so long directed those of Ireland. There he failed. * The house saw the inevitable consequences. The speaker (the house was in committee, sent for Mr. Grattan into his cham- ber, and pressed his interposition for an amicable adjustment, which Mr. Grattan positively refused, saying, he saw, and had been some time aware of a set made at him, to pistol him off on that question ; therefore it was as well the experiment were tried then as at any other time. Both parties had instantly left the house upon Mr. Grattan's finishing his speech. Matters having been speedUy adjusted by the seconds, they proceeded in hackney coaches to a field on the Ball's Bridge road, which they reached about twilight. It was agreed, that they should level and fire at their own option. The first shot on both sides did no mischief 3 Mr. Grattan's passed through Mr. Corry' s coat. On the second level there was much scieiice ani pisJol play, Mr. Grattan, with unshaken steadiness, kept his man accurately covered, and 560 • The Reign of George III. isoo. tion was made for adjournment, which being rejected, the first day of the following January was fixed for the commencement of the Union of the kingdoms. Various objections were ineffectually taken by some of the Anti- unionists to the different provisions of the bill, as they were discussed in the committee. Sir John Parnell moved for an addi-ess to the King to convoke a new parliament before any final arrange- ment of Union should be adopted. This motion pro- duced a warm debate, which ended at four o'clock in the morning, in a division of iO-i for the motion. Irish Par- A mess2ge was sent to the House of Lords, im- seTs^t> ii-*e P<>i"ti"gj that the commons had agreed to the articles * articles oi Unioa. reserved his shot to ir.ake it more secure, which Mr. Corry per- ceiving, called to his second, and it was settled upon the honour of the parties, that both should fire together. !Mr. Corry missed his aim, and Mr. Grattan's ball hit his antagonist on the knuckle of his left hand, which he had extended across his breast to protect his right side, and taking a direction along his wrist, did no other icjurv. The populace, notwithstanding the quickness and secrecy, with which the busi: ess was conducted, followed the parties to the ground, ar:d there was reason to fear, had Mr. Grattan fallen, that his antagonist would have been sacrificed on the spot to the re- sentment of the populace, so entuusias'ically were they devoted to their favourite. The issue of this alf ir reached the House of Commons, whilst they were still in debate at half-past eight in the morn ng Bef tc Mr Grattan went to ihe ground, a most affect, ing ard truly Roman meeting took place between him and Mrs. GraUan. That gentleman was as eminent for tiie endearmer^ts of domestic fel city,-as he was conspicuous for his exertions in the cause of the people. * These articles are to be seen in the Appendi.x to Historical Review, No. CXIX. Administration of Marquis Cornwallis. 561 of the Union; and on the 27th, the peers intimated isoo. to the other house, that they had adopted them with some alterations and additions. The amendments were approved of by the commons ; and Lord Castle- reagh immediately proposed an address to his Majesty, in which both houses concurred. In this address they declared, that they cordially embraced the principle of incorporating Great Britain and Ireland into one king- dom, by a complete and entire Union of their legis- latures ; that they considered the resolutions of the British parliament as wisely calculated to form the basis of such a settlement ; that by those propositions they had been guided in their proceedings ; and that the resolutions now offered were those articles, which if approved by the lords and commons of Great Britain, they were ready to confirm and ratify, in order, that the same might be established for ever by the mutual consent of both parliaments. The plan of the Union was thus left to the final consideration of the British legislature. The articles of Union passed through the Irish ^rtHe* of parliament, as they had been originally framed by the J^r"i_^4tbe- British ministry, and were brought forward in the glftJ* House of Lords, as terms proposed by the lords and ^^^^^'^ commons of Ireland, in the form of resolutions on the i2d day of Apri', 1800, by the Duke of Portland, with a message from the King. The articles went through a long and- minute discussion in both houses. The op- position to then was firm, but proceeded from few. A joint address from both houses was presented to his Majesty. The plan was then transmitted to Ireland j YOL. II. O 562 The Reign of George IIL isoo.' and each parliament procee'^ed to carry into effect the articles by a bill. Although the Anti-unionists had been so constantly baffled, they persisted in disputing every inch of the ground. As a separate bill was thought necessary for regulating the election of the repre- sentatives of Ireland in the imperial parliament, Lord Castlereagh moved for leave to introduce it before the general bill of Union. Amongst others this singular ob- jection was raised by the Anti-unionists to the measure : that as the clergy was only shut out of their right to agistment tithe by a vote of the Irish House of Commons, from the moment of the aboHtion of that house, which passed the vote, there would be an end -to any authority, which could preserve the grazing land of the kingdom from the common law right of the clergy to their agistm.ent tithe. That thenceforth the Irish clergy would be in a situation of demanding and enforcing rheir ap-istment tithe in Ireland, as effec- tually as the English clergy could in England. Lord Castlereagh greedily obviated the objection by sa- crificing the rights of the church to the policy of the British ministers in carrying the Union. An act was instantly passed * by acclamation to counteract in this particular the 18th article ot the Union then approved of by the houses of each legislature j viz. I that the churches of Great Britain and Ireland should I be united^ subject to th( saine regulations as are at present hij law esiablislial. Alter the several arti- * On Ibe J2lh of June, ISCO, was passed an act to quiet and. bar all Jaiirn ij tithe agistment Jor dry and iarren cattle. Vicl, bcf. p. iOS, itc. ' " Administration of Marquis Cormvallis, 563 cles had been adjusted and agreed to by each house, i soo- the resolutions were formed into a bill, and the mo- tion for bringing in a bill for the Union of Great Britain and Ireland was carried by 1 60 against ] 00. When it was in the committee, Lord Corry moved av long address to his Majesty against the completion of the bill *, which after a heated debate was negatived by a majority of 58. The bill was carried up to the House of Peers by Lord Castlereagh, where it was read a third time on the ] 3th of June f. A pro- test was entered by the Duke of Leinster and the other dissenting peers. No part of the plan now remained for the secretary Compen^^a- to bring forward, but the scheme of compensation, rough pro- This he plausibly ushered in upon a principle of justice ; he proposed a grant of 1,260,0001. for those, who should suffer a loss of patronage, and be de- prived of a source of wealth, by the disfranchisement of 84 boroughs at the rate of I5,000l. for each. Mr. Saurin, Mr. J. Claudius Beresford, and Mr. Dawson maintained, that the grant of compensation to those, who had no right to hold such species of property, would be an insult to the public and an infringement of the constitution. Mr. Prendergast defended the proposition, alleging, that, though such * This address, which is generally attributed to the pen of J.Ir. Grattan, and was moved for by the Anti-unionists as their soleain prot St to posterity against the meastne, is to be seen in the Ap- pendix to Hist, Rev. No. CXX. and is higiily interesting. + 8 Lords' Journ. p. 463. The division vi-as 41 against 14. The protest is to beseen in the Appendix, to Hist. Rev. No.CXXf,. 2 o 2 .564 The Reign of George Til. ^^^ possessions might have been vicious in their origin^ yet, from prescriptive usage^ and from having been the subjects of contracts and family settlements, they could not be confiscated^ without a breach of honor and propriety. In the House of Peers this bill was chiefly opposed by the Earl of Farnham ; but it passed into law with little opposition in either house; the Anti-unionists having now given up the question as lost *. Soon after the Union bill had passed through both Union bill fjouses of the Irish parliament, Mr. Pitt brought a passed in r ^ o the British ]j\\\ [^ t^iig same form into the British House of Com- parliamcnt. mons. It proceeded through the usual stages^ with- out occasioning any important debate ; and was sent, on the 24th of June, to the peers. On the SOth„ Lord Grenville moved for its third reading, declar- ing, that he rose for that purpose with greater plea- sure, than he had ever before felt in making any pro- position to their lordships. The Marquis of Down- shire merely said, that his opinion of the measure remained unaltered, and that he would therefore give the bill his decided negative. It passed without a * As so much heat and xfal attended this interesthig contest" throughout, it may be gratifying to the curious reader to see the list of those, who voted on the opposite sides. A correct hst is also given of the different writs, which issued in the last year of the Irish parliament, viz. in 1800, with a view to parliamentary ar- rangements in voting for the Union (Vide Index to the Appendix df Vol. XIX. of Ccm, Journ. Part II. and also a list of the Irish Parl'amentary Annuitants.) All are to be seen in the Appendix to Hist. Rrv. No. CXXII. together with ample detail* of the dif- ferent debates on the qutstiyii pf Uoion, Administfathn of Marquis Cornwallis. S€^ division ; and, on the 2d of July, It received the royal assent, when his Majesty thus addressed the two houses, **" With peculiar satisfaction I congratulate you on the success of the steps, which you have taken for effecting an entire Union between my kingdoms. This great measure, on which my wishes have been long earnestly bent, I shall ever consider as the hap- piest event of my reign." The royal assent was given in Ireland to the Union bill on the 1st of August, the anniversary of the accession of the House of Bruns- wick to the thrones of these realms. The next day, the lord' lieutenant put an end to the session with an appropriate speech from the throne *. * " My Lords and Gcnilemen, " The whole business of this important cession being at length happily coneludtd, it is with the most sincere satisfaction, that I communicate to you by his Majesty's express command, his warmest acknowledgments for that ardent zeal and unshaken perseverance, which you have so conspicuously manifested in ma- turing and completing the great measure of a legislative Union be- tween this kingdom and Great Britain. " The proofs you have given on this occasion of your uniform attachment to the real welfare of your country, inseparably con- nected with the security and prosperity of the empire at large, not only entitle you to the full approbation cf your sovereign, and to the applause of ycur fellow-subjects, but must afford you the surest claim to the gratitude of posterity. ** You will reoret with his Majesty, the reverse, which his Ma- jesty's allies have experienced on the Continent ; hut his Majesty is persuaded, that the firmness and public spirit of his subjects will enable him to persevere in that line of conduct, which will best provide for the honor, and the essential interests of his dominions. IBOO. S66 The keign of George III 1800. The example of the Scotch Union was followed by Sei-ct.onof Ireland in the formation of their first quota of the im- the Unioa . ; . . aaembers. penal parliament. No new election was resorted to, but the most zealous supporters of the measure were generally rewarded with seats in the imperial legisla- ture*. In consequence of the proclamations issued in Great Sritain and Ireland for the puipose, a selection was made of tlie persons to represent the boroughs' of Ireland in the imperial parliament. At ten o'clock ill the morning, the deputy cl'^^rk of the crown and hanaper and several members attended in the place of meeting of the House of Commons, where the names of such members, as were to bebaiiotted were written ■R'hose means and resources liave now by your wisdom been more closely and intimately combined. *' Gentlemen of the House of Commons, " I AM to thank you in his Maje':ty's name, for the li-^ beral supplies, which you have cheerfu'iy granted fur the various and important branches of the public service in the present year. " His Majesty has also witnessed wiih pleasure that wise liberality, which will enable him to make a just and equitable retribution to those bodies and individuals, whose privileges and interests are I'fTected by th," Union, and he has also seen with satisfaction that attention to the internal prosperity of this country, which has been so conspicuously testified by the encouragement you have given to the improvement and extension of its inland navigation." ^ Not one of the 28 p<=er?, who opposed the U')ion, was el cted. Amongst the 100 c>mmont rs, some few of the Anfi unionists appear ; such as Mr. Foster, hir John FarnLll, Ivlr, Ogle, Sir Lawrence Parsons, Mr. W. B. Ponsoatiy, Mr. J. G. Beresfordy Lord Corry, S:g. Administration of Alarquis Cormvallis. 567 jupon slips of paper, and drawn from a glass placed ^^^^ vpon the table. On the 3 1 st of December, 1 800, his Majesty en- Compietioa tered the House of Peers, wiien the usher of th? black UuLa. rod \»'as sent to desire the attendance of the commons. Several members of the House of Commons appeared at the bar, preceded by the speaker, who addressed his Majesty in a dignified and impressive speech. That part of it, which related to Ireland v/as as follows : ^' These, Sire, the last proceedings of your parliament previous to the great era now on the point of com- mencing, are the indication and result of that com- mon interest and fellow-feeling with the people, by which it has ever been actuated, and which are the best safeguard of all that is most valuable in society. To that era your commons look forward with a con- fident expectation, that the consolidated wisdom and ;iuthority of the legislature of Great Britain and Ire- land, under the auspicious government of your Ma- jesty, and your illustrious house, will diffuse through- out every part of the united kingdom the full be- nefits of that constitution, wfiich has been proved to be favorable, in an unexampled degree, to the enjoy- meiit of civil liberty and public prosperity ; which cannot therefore fail to animate the zeal and deter- mination of those, who may share its blessings, to cherish and maintain it during their own times, and to transm>it it as the best inheritance to their posterity.'^ His Majesty was then pleased to make a most gracious speech fr^jm tiie throne to both houses of parliament : ' afterwards the lord- chancellor, by his Mijeoty's com- $6$ The Reign of George III. ISOO. mand, prorogued the parliament to the 2 2d day of January, 1801, when the members were summoned by a proclamation read by the clerk at the table, to attend in their places. Immediately after his Majesty had left the house^ he held a grand council, in which several ar- rangements required by that grand event were settled. In honor of the Union many promotions were made, and several new titles created. On the next day, viz. the first of January, one thousand eight hundred and one, the incorporate Union of Great Britain and Ireland was formally announced by proclamation. ^ Thus was accomplished the incorporate Union of Great Britain and Ireland. * On the same day was published another proclamation^ de- claring what ensigns and colours should be borne at sea, in mer- chant ships or vessels belonging to his Majesty's subjects of the iinJted kingdom, for which see Appendix, No. CXXIV. Hi* Majest/'s speech and the several proclamations here referred t« ,are to be seen, Hist. Rev. voj. III. ip/l to JQ/S. THE ..^N». INDEX. XiBERCROMBiE, Sir Ralph, com- mander in chief, censures the army, ii. 419. resigns, ib. Absentee-tax, proposed by Lord Harcourt, and rejected, ii. 168 Act to secure the crown in the protestant line, ii. 32 ' of Queen Ann, to prevent the further growth of popery, ii. 35 Adaviy his perfection, i. 27 his knowledge, how trans- mitted, i. 28 Address of the Commons to the throne, upon pensions, negativ- ed, ii 149 ^ — ditto, for redress of griev- ances j ib. ' — ^-^ to Lord Lieutenant, for pa- pers about septennial bill, ii. 150 ' — ^ on the septennial bill being arrested in England, ii. 151 ' ■■' the King's ungracious an- swer to it, ib. Adbua's, discovery of Ireland, i. 11 Adrian, Pope, his donation of Ireland to Henry, i. 149 — — Pope Alexander's confirma- tion of it, i. 151 ■^ feelings of the Irish as to it, i. 163 yfgislmfjii, vide tithes. S7. ALbatis, battle of, i. 250 Alexander, vide Adrian. America, compared with the case of Ireland, ii. 170 — V— war with, affects Ireland, ii. 171, 174, VOL, ,11. e p America, war with unpopular in Ireland, ii. 174 ^^ her alliance with France, ii; 178 peace with, ii. 237 terms of, censured in the British parliament, ii. 240 Amnesty f act of, passed in 1 7eraid, Messrs. Grogan and Harvey, ii. 501 Baal or Bel, its import, i 65 BabeL confusion of tong;ues at, i. v()-2-3 — — why so called, i. 28 Babes- of the ivoodyoi' Killaughram, who, ii.49i^ Bagpipe, antiquity of, i. 99 used in Ireland, ih. Stanyhursl's description of, i. 100 Bagnal, Mr. proposes a patriotic donation to Mr. (jrattan, ii, 227 Bank of Ireland established, ii. 217, 231 Bar, meeting of, and resolutions a2:ainst union, ii. 520-1 Bards, estimation of, i. 51, 59 Beauchamp, Lord (now Marquis of Hertford,) favourable to the catholics, ii. 179 against simple repeal, ii. 239 Bective, Earl of, reprobates the system of coercion, ii. 412 Bede, his silence about St. Patrick, i. 112 account of his works, i. 1 1 3- 4-5 —^ — his honourable testimony of Ireland, i. 124-5 confirmsthelrrsh annals,!. 126 Bedford, Duke of, favourable to the catholics, ii. 125 forms an association for sup- port of public credit, ii. 128 graciously receives the Ca- th.olic address, ii. 129 Belfast, inhabitants of, petition Mr. Pitt for reform, ii. 260 celebrate the French Kevolu- tion, ii. 307 petition for the repeal of pe- nal laws against catholics, ii.3l5 rtjected, ii. 318 Bellamunt, Lord, against union, ii. 523 Beresford, Mr. his intrigues with the British Cabinet, againstLord Fitzwiiliam, ii. 348 dismissed by Lord Fitzwil* liam, and why, ii. 351 his dismissal the cause of Lord Fitzwilliam's rccal, ii. 355 INDEX. 571 Eercsfordf Mark, produces a warrant for superseding the commission of jail delivery at Antrim, ii. 40G ~ John Claudius, opposes the recompense to proprietors of boroughs, ii. 563 5iiZ'C'/>5,Catholic,addresstheKin2:, ii.34-1 address the Lord Lieutenant for a Catholic seminary, ii. 3i2 • differences between them and the laity, ii/. Blaquiere, Sir John, paving bill, unpopularity of, ii. 257 i opposes t|;ie bill for catholic relief, ii. 35$.'. opposes Mr. Graydon's mo- tion for the reform of abuses, ii 355 Bloody F?iJ^v, why soca!led,ii.482 Blore Heath, battle of, i. 230 Bogs, catholics enabled by statute to take leases for 5 1 years for re- claiming theni, ii. 166 ^ Boii/igl^rokeyhoid, his ideas of his- tory, i. 2 Bollanclisis, who, i. 114 Bollon, Duke of, purposely mis- quotes the words of the statute, granting ease to the dissenters, ii. 76 Bond, Oliver, taken into custody, ii. 424 his death, ii. 498 Boroiighsy reconipense to proprie- tors of, opposed by Messrs, Sau- rin, J. C. Beresford, and Daw- son, ii. 563 Bouller, Primate, his caution of Swill to the Duke of Newcastle, ii.80 his principle of governing, ii. 88 promotes the divisions among ihe catholics, ii. 89 2 P 2 Boulter, his jealousy of any Irish influence, ii. 94 opjxises the restoration of Lord Clanricarde to his estates, ii 95 opposes toleration in favour of the dissenters, ii. 99 — supports the English ascend- ancy in Ireland, li. 100 yields to the loss of the clergy rather than hazard the English interest, ii. 101 his death, ii. 104 -So?/ J, Captain, seizes Messrs. Har- vey, Colclough, and Fitzgerald, and sends them on an embassy to the rebels, at Enniscorthyj, and effects thereof, ii. 456-7 his house plundered by the rebels, ii. 461 Boyle^ Mr. (Speaker of the house of commons) created Earl of Shannon by George IL ii. 123 his death, ii. 148 Walsingham, his motion in the British house of commons, about Lord Town?hend's proro- gation of the Irish parliament, negatived, ii. Id2 Broglull, Lord, sells himself to Cromwell, i. 398 -^ his testimony of the perse- verance of the catholics in the royal cause, i. 406 his duplicity before the resto- ration, i. 414 inclines to the royal party, 1. 416 reconciled to Sir C. Coote, in order to forward the royal cause, i. 417 their insidious conduct to each other, ib. created Earl of Orrery by Charles II, i. 4l9 Brown J Denis, moves an address 57^ INDEX. to the throne on retrenchment, ii. 251 JBrown, opposed by the attorney- general (Fitz Gibbon), ii. 252 JBruce, Robert, beats the English at Bannockburn, i. 204 ■ E(J\v. lands in Ireland, i. 205 • crowned atDundalk, ib. ' falls in battle, i. 209 Buckingham, Marquis of, vide Temple. Buckinghamshire, Lord, succeeds Lord Harcourt, ii. 177 >_. ■ . admits the financial difficul- ties of the kingdom, ii. I78 weak government of, ii. 186 ' prorogues parliament, ii. 196 unpopular in Ireland and dis- apoiov'^d Oi in England, ib recalled and succeeded b)' Lord Carlisle, ib. Burdett, Sir Francis, seconds Mr. Fox's motion for an address to the throne for allaying the dis- turbances of Ireland, ii. 392 Burgh, Mr. Hussey, proposes an amendment for free trade, ii.lS5 =- — his amiable character, ib. Burgundy, Duchess of, her in- trigues against Henry VII. i. 267, 270, 280 Burke, Edmund, his ideas of pub- lishing Irish annals, i. 182 . his opinion of the revolution of >';88 as to Ireland, ii. 2 I his opinion of the penal code under Ann, ii. 35 — — hischaracterofGeo.II.ii.133 his opinion of Mr. Gardiner's catholic bill, ii. 216 ' his book on the French Ke- vokuion r.nd defection from the Whig party, ii. 303 •!= his letter to Sir Here. Lang- rishe on the catholic claims, li. 308 Burke, Richard, Agent to the Ca- tholics, ii. 308 imprudently ventures into the House of Commons, ii. 314 Burston, Counsellor, his opinion of the legality of cathohc dele- gation, ii 324. Butler, Simon, chairman to the society of united Irishmen of Dublin, ii. 306 publishes digest of popery laws, ii. 323 his opinion of legality of ca- tholic delegation, ii. 324 Rev, Mr., hi's murder charg- ed on the cathoJ?/s, ii. 341 Byrne, Pat. the bookseller, com- mitted for high-treason, ii. 430 Michael William, executed conliaiy to agreement with government, ii. 498 Cabal, why so called, i. 435 , their plans to alter the con- stitution of Great Brit. i. 437 -, encourage plots and plot- ters, ib. Cabinet, vide English. Cabyria, what, i. 867 , their antiquity, i. 878 , indecency of, i. 130-1 Camden, his authority in favour of Ireland, i. 126-7. Earl of, his speech in the British Peers in favour of Ire- land, ii. 186 arrives in Dublin as Lord Lieutenant, ii. 362. ill received, ib. addressed by the Commons, ii. 364 ■■ his speech on prorogueing the parliament, ii. 367 ditto on meeting of Parlia- ment, 21st Jan. ii. 373 INLEX, 573 Camden, ditto on ISth October, 1796, ii. 384. sends a message to the Commons that he cannot raise ;^3,395,6y7. ii. 393 sends a message about papers seized at Belfast, ii. 393 issues a proclamation of par- don, its cood effects, ii. 400 dissolves theParliament, nth July, 1797, iic 405 system of coercion extorted from him, ii. 408, 413 Cambrensis, who, i. 4 — — admits the Irish to have been musical, i. 97-8 CaiJibridge, Duke of, petitions Ann for his writ of summons, to sit and vote in Parliament, ii. 62 to 65 — — his conduct offensive to the Queen, ii. 61-5 Capel, Lord, favours the English interest and convenes a new parliament, ii. 20 Carhampton, Lord, vide Luttrell. Carlisle, Lord, lord-lieutenaut, ii. 196 — meets the Parliament, ii. 199 • sends his resignaiion by his secretary, ii. 218 supports Lord Shclburne's motion for legislative independ- ence, ii. 225 Carloza, defeat of the rebels at, ii. 43S Caniew, rebels defeated at, by 300 yeomen,' ii. 435 Carteret, Lord Lieut, no friend to Ireland, ii. 90 Casbell, synod of, i. 162 specious articles of, i. 164 Arch-Bish. of, violent against the catholic claims, ii. 336 Castlecomer, taken by the rebels find burntj ii. 490 Casthhaven, Earl of, imprisoned, i. 370 his testimony of the loyalty of the catholics, i. 377 Castlereagh, Lord, moves an ad- dress to the throne, and the adoption of coercive measures, ii. 396 succeeds Mr. Pelham,ii. 421 writes to the Lord Mayor of Dublin upon the breaking out of the rebellion in 1798, ii. 432 communicates the same to the House of Commons, ii. 433 opposes Colonel Maxwell's motion for executing the pri- soners, ii. 4:{5 — delivers a message from his Excellency about indemnifying loyalists, 8cc. ii. 500 moves an adjournment, op- posed by Sir John Parnell, ii. 533 commends the union, and assures th.e house that he will not bring it forward against the sense of the country, ii. 536 his partiality in granting and refusing the escheatorship of Munster for corrupt purposes, ii. 548 proposes and carries the plan of union, ii. 556-7 —71 — proposes compensation to borough proprietors, ii. 563 Ccithal, the bloody handed, asserts the ancient honours of his fa- mily, i. 173 Catholics, civil establishment re- stored, i. 305 the exercise of their religion opposed by Mountjov,i. 334 send agents to James, i. 346 tolerated by Charles, i, 352 their offer to maintain 5000 infantry, and 500 cavalry, for 574. INDEX. Charles, rejected as idolatrous, i. 352 Catholics, testimonies of their loy- altv to Charles, by Strafford and others, i, 365-8, 393 — — hrst and last in arms for King Charles, notwithstanding their persecutions, i. 368, 393 confederate for support of the King and consiilution, i. 369, 376 present aremonstrancedrawn up by Bishop Bedel, i. 371 — assert their loyalty with ten- ders of service in 1641, ih. proclamation that Irish pa- pists had universally rebtlied, lb. corrected by Lords Justices in a subsequent proclamation, that thev meant only some mere Irish in Ulster, i. 372 their otfer to put down the rebellion of le-ii, rejected, i. 373 goaded into arms, ib. ... LordCastlehaven mipnsoned and Sir John Read racked ior officious interference, i. 376 acted as, and v^ere true loy- alists, ib, present a remonstrance at Trim, i. 377 assert their loyalty, i. 379 make a voluntary payment of 30,000/. for the King, i. 881 desire Orniond to lead them against the King's enemies, i. 383, 390 make peace publickly with Ormond, privately with Gla- morgan, i. 387 their internal divisions, i. 389 their declaration that the king was u);der duress, and that they ought to oppose his ene- iTiicB, i, 391 Catholics honourably receive Or- mond at Kilkenny, and put him at their head, ib. persevere in the royal cause after Charles's execution, i. 394 those who served under Phe- lim O'Nial, declared rebels by the confederates, i. 396 — the only body armed in de- fence of royalty in 1650, i. 397 defeated under Mac Mahon, by Coote, i. 403 — their proceedings at James- town, ih. their clergy excommunicate such as adhere to Ormond or the King's enemies, i. 403, 7 their perseverance in the Royal cause attested by Orrery, i. 406 — reject all terms with the re- gicides, i. 407 driven into Connaught by Cromwell, i. 409 persecution of, renewed un- der Cromwell, i. 413 — their meritorious conduct to, and return of ingratitude from Charles, ii. 4I9 — excluded from parliament, i. 421 — modes of preventing them from redress, ib. — persecuted and calumniated to keep them out of the act of oblivion and general pardon, i. 422 injustice done them by the act of settlement and explana- tion, and court of claims, i. 423, 4, 5, 430 their persevering loyalty to Charles II, i. 435 — admitted into offices by James II, i. 444 INDEX. 573 Catholics, their allegiance to James J[. pure, ii. 460 • reject the favourable terms offered by William, ii. IS their feelings on them, ii. 14 excluded from Parliament by an act of William and Mary, ii. 16 their degraded state, and se- veral penal laws against them, ii. 16, 21 — persecuted by Queen Ann, ii. 35,41 — holden out as enemies to the state, ii. 43 — their oppression under the Stuarts, ii. 52 reduced so as to have no po- litical weight, ii. 49, 53, 81 — honourable testimony of their loyalty by the Lords Justices in 1715, ii.69 — stiled common enemy, ii. 70 — severely persecuted under George I. ii. 71-2 — address George If. but Lords Justices stop the address, ii. 87 — deprived of elective fran- chise, ii, 89, 91-2 side with the patriots, ii. 92 prevented from practising as solicitors, ii. 93 collection to oppose the bill causes a renovation of rigor against them, ib. enjoy some years of relative indulgence under the Duke of Devonshire, ii. 104-6 enlisted in the English army and navy, ii. 106 their loyalty in 1745, ii. 107-8-9 tolerated under Lord Ches- terfield, ii. 110 favoured under the Duke of Bedford, ii. 125 Catholics meet about redress and disagree, ii. 126 address the Lord Lieutenant on the expected invasion, ii. 128 their address well received, ii. 129 internal dissentions among them, ih, — charged with the riots and cleared from the chair by the speaker, ii. 130-1 — address George ITI. ii. 136 Mr. Mason's bill for enabling them to lend money on mort- gage, negatived, ii. 147 enabled to take leases for 51 years for reclaiming of unprofit able bogs, ii. 166 the popish mortgage bill, and lease bill, brought forward bvLord Harcourt and lost, ii. 169 enabled to take an oath of allegiance, ii 170 Lord Beauchamp favourable to them, ii. I79 Sir George Savill's motion in favour of the English catho- lics, ii. 180 —Mr. Gardiner's motion in the Lish house in favour of, ib. — " bill in their favour passed with difficulty, ii. 182 — Mr. Gardiner gives notice of bringing in a bill in their favour, ii. 204 — brought in by Mr. Dillon on the indisposition of Mr. Gardi- ner, ii. 206 opposed by Mr. Flood, ii. 212 Mr. Gar(^iner divides his bill into three, two he carries and loses the third, ii. 215 nature of the opposition to them, ii. 216 576 lNt)KX. Cafbolks, Lord Charlemont ob- jects to admit theui to the rights of election, ii. 260 • effort? of" their clergy against Pavne's doctrines, ii. 303 — ■ committee begin to act in iTpl, ii. 304 resolve to apply for relief, ib. ■ secession from the commit- tee, ii. 305 ■I intimacy between the ca- tholic committee and some dis- senters of the north, ib. pass resolutions reflecting on theseceders, ih. publish declarations of their tenets, ii. 305, 321 — secession of 64 from the committee, ii. 307 the seceders address the Lord Lieutenant, and are censured in a declaration of the united Irish- men, ii. 30/ committee chose Mr. Burke jun, for their agent, ii. 308 embraced all protestants that wished them well, ii. 310 confine their exertions to the relaxation of the penal code, ib. their bill introduced by Sir H. Langrishe, ii. 313 their petition presented by Mr. O'Hara, it. pass resolutions to counter- act the misrepresentations of thc-r enemies, ii< 3] 5 dissatisfied with the conces- sions contained in the bill of Sir Hercules Langrishe, ii. 3l6 present a petition by Mr. Egan, stating their claims, and to meet the prejudices of the public against them, ii. 31 7 their petition on the motion of iMr. Latouche rejected^ ii. 318 Catholics, their delegates, ii. 321 alarm and resistance to that measure, ib. violently opposed by the grand juries^ ii. 322 publish a justification of their conduct in reply to the grand juries, ii. 323 not admitted into the popular societies, n. 324 — the whig club refuses to agi- tate their question, ibi. take the opinions of counsel- lors Butler and Burston on the legality of their delegation, ii, 324* — attempted to be confounded with defenders, ii. 3263 341 delegates meet in Back Lanej and called in derision the Back Lane parliament, ii. 325 frame a petition to thethfotie;) and depute 5 to present it, ii. 327 — — the reception of the 5 dele- gates at Belfast, ib. present their petition, and graciously received by the King, 11. 328 — recommended in the speech from the throne, ib. ——sub-committee, their resolu- tion about reform, ii.321 petition to the commons, presented by Mr. Hobart, ib. bill for their relief brought in by Mr. Hobart, ii. 333 their bill passes the* house, ii. 335 Mr. G. Knox's motion in the committee, that catholics might sit in parliament, negatived, ib. their bill before the lords, ii» 336 how disabled by enlisting in the British service, li. 337 - — owe their relief to the bounty of their sovereign, ii. 329, 340 r:fDEX. 577 Catholics^ admission of catholic merchants into the guild of Dublin rejected, ii. SiO — traduced and calumniated, ii. 34.1 — — the bishops address the King and viceroy, ii. 341-2 ■ diffidence between the bi- shops and laity, ii. 342 - corfident of emancipation, ii. 347 — — • agreed on by the British cabinet, ii. 345 — — — commit their cause to Mr. Grattan, ii. 348 - address Lord Fitzwilliam in confidence of emancipation, ii. 352 • petition for relief against all penal laws, ii 353 — — British cabinet secretly op- poses the measure, ii. 354 — — depute 3 delegates t© address the throne against the recal of Lord Fitzwilliam, ii. 359 address >r. Grattan on the recal of Lord Fitzwilliam, ii. 358 •— — his answer to it censured and commended by opposite parties, ii. 359 — — meet and debate in Francis- street chapel, ii. 362 " students of the university ad- mitted, ii. 363 — — second reading of their bill, 4th of May, l795, rejected, ii. ' 365 -■ ' " ' stated for the first time to be contrary to the coronation oath, ih. — • ■ their emancipation last time before parliament, ii. 3&9 ■ coolness between them and the dissenters iu the North, ii. ' "406 VOL. IT. Caibolics^ fall off from the union in 1797, ii. 406 reject and renounce it thro'- out the nation, ii. 407 publish declarations of loyal- ty, ii. 423, 440, 440 their emancipation assumed by Lord Grenvllle and others as a consequence of the union, ii, 540-1-2 their emancipation pledged for by Mr. Pitt and Lord Corn- wallis, ii. 541-2-3 — — divided as to the measure of union, ii. 551 Cauljield, Doctor, Roman Catho- lic Bishop of Ferns, justified by government, ii. 473 Cavendishy Sir Henry, his motion for economy against Lord Northington's administration, ii. 247 supported by Mr. Flood, ib. complains of outrages from, the mob, ii. 53Q Chalmers, Mr., his ideas of first population, i. 75 Chnrlemont, Earl of, attends the Dungannon meeting, ii. 2O9 appointed general of the vo- lunteers of Ulster, ii. 233 appointed chairman of the national convention, ii. 249 - — opposes the admission of ca- tholics to the rights of election, ii. 260 — thanked bv the corporation of Dublin on that account, ib. — proposes the address to the Prince ofV/ales in the Lords, ii. 2S4 resigns the government of Arniacih, ii. 306 — his predilection for the dis seniei's displeasing to govern- ment, ii. 3o7 578 INDEX. Charlemont^ Earl of, his exertions against union, ii. 550 Charles I. his accession to the throne, i. 351 p tokrates the catholics, i. 352 — — — actuated by the odious policy of the Stuarts, ib. » his graces, i. 353 — — persecutes the catholics,!. 354 — — concurs with Wentworth in a direct system of fraud and de- ceit, i. 359 recalls Wentworth,but sends him back with additional honor and power, i. 364 his speech condemning Wentworth as guilty of high- misdemeanors, i. 366 ' renews his promise of the graces, ih. — — grand rebellion proclaimed, i. 367 his opinion of that rebellion, i. 36f) — — causes of, ih. — — commissionsOrmond tomeet thi confederates, i. 377 affected by the remonstrance of Trim, orders Orniond to ne- gociate a cessation of arms, i. 378 •— again commands Ormond to meet the confederates, ib. his eagerness for the peace. 381,384 — the cessation concluded, i. 381 the northern army reject the cessation and take the covenant, ib. — — publishes grounds and mo- tives of the cessation, i. 382 ■ his reliance on the loyalty of the conlederates, i. 383 — — oives large powers to the Karl of Glamorgan, i. 385 Charles I. pledges himself to ratify the terms granted by Glamorgan to the confederates, i. 386 his insincerity and falsity to Glanjorgan and the confede- rates, i. 388 is beheaded, i. 392 Charles II. confirms the peace from the Hague, i. 395 takes the covenant, ib. revokes the peace made with the catholics, i. 396 applies to the Duke of Lor- raine to assist him in Ireland, i. 405, 408 restored to the throne, i. 41 5 his ingratitude to the Irish, i. 419 ■■■ ■ creates Eroghill, Earl of Or- rery, Coote,Earl of Montrath,z^. his character, i. 427, 432 Ormond's influence over him i. 430 court of wards abolished, and tax upon hearths, i. 431 — his favorable wishes to the catholics thwarted by Ormond, i. 432 — a dangerous conspiracy in consequence of the acts of set- tlement, i. 434 — removes, then confirms Or- mond in the government, i.439 — intends to displace him, and why, i. 440 — dies in the Roman Catholic faith, ib. pensioned by Louis, on con- dition of his professing the Ca- tholic belief, i. 448 Chesterfield, Earl of, lord-lieute- nant in 1745, ii. 107 his prudent and upright con- duct, ii. 108, 110 meets the parliament, ii. IO9 tolerates the catholics, ii. 110 INDEX. S?9 ChesterfieUf Earl of, addressed by lords and commons, ib, — — — instantly recalled, when the danger was over, i i . 1 1 1 Churchy abuse of spiritual power, i. 152, 207, 256 Clancart-y, Lord, fails in reversing his attainder, ii. 105 ■ joins the Pretender in con- sequence, ii. lo6 Clanricardey Earl of, receives the government from Ormond, i. 398, 405 — -— his testimony of the loyalty of the catholics, i. 405 quits Ireland with 3000 men, i. 408 Clare, Earl, his ideas of the Eng- lish policy to Ireland in the days of Henry VIII. i. 293 ditto in the days of Edward VI. and Elizabeth, i. 313 -his account of the transplant- ation of the Irish, by Crom well, into Connaught, i.410 his commendation of its policy, i. 410, 429 • his representation of the act of settlement, i. 425 his representation of the Irish forfeitures, i. 478 his representation of the dif- ference between the English and Irish parliaments under William, ii. 30 — — his commendation of Crom- well, ii. 52 his opinion of the necessity of an English ascendancy in Ireland, ii. 79 — — his representation of Primate Stone's administraiion, li. 116 attributes to Primate Stone's intrigues the party heats of the Irish parliament, ii. 147 — — stiles Ld Buckinghamshire's gove.nment imbecile, ii. 187 Clare, Earl, opposes the vote of thanks to the volunteers, ii. 199 starts objections to the ca- tholic bill, which he afterwards abandons, ii. 206 speaks in support of Irish legislative independence, ii. 223-4 proposes an address to Lord Carlisle, ii. 223 — opposes Mr. Flood's bill for reform, ii. 250 opposes Mr. Brown's motion for an address to the throne, on retrenchment, ii. 252 — gives an account of the Right Boys, ii. 26y — his accountof the poverty of Munster, ii>. moves for further provisions against outrages and unlawful oaths, ii. 270 — in his new riot bill, a clause for prostrating catholic chapels disapproved of by the secretary, ii. 271 arraigned for insolence to country gentlemen, by Mr^ O'Neile, and apologizes, ii. 273 admits Lord Townshend's majority, cost half a million, ii. 268 opposes the vote of thanks to the Prince ot Wales, ii. 288 . made Ld Chancellor, ii.29l Lord Justice, with Mr. Fos- ter, ii. 292 his false account of the ca- tholic bill, ii. 309 — violent against the catholic claims, ii. 336 vouches tor British parli- ament oj)ening the arniy to ca- tholics, li. 33^7 his malicious representatioN of the catholic address to Lord Fiizwilliam, ii. 352 S80 INDEX. Clare, Earl, boasts of the effects of coercion, and admits that the system was extorted from Lord Camden, ii 413 — — opposes Lord Moira's mo- tion, and censures the Bishop of Down, ii. 41 5 — — - carries the plan of union through the Irish Peers, ii. 558 -'■ said to have repented of the union on his death-bed^, ib. Claiendon, Earl of, contradicts himself, i. 373 — admits the prtjtestants be- gan the massacre in 1641, ih. bewails his advice to the King to neglect his friends, i. 427 the only considerable gainer by the restoration, i. 436 •— - appointed Lord-lieutenant, by James II. i. 442 •^ complains of the King's want of confidence in him, i, 444 -' complains of the presumption of Tyrconnel and the catho- lics, i. 445 Clergy, protesiant, their declara- tion against accepting the ca- tholics offer of 5000 infantry and 500 cavalry, i. 352 catholic, excomrnimicate such as adhere to (>rmoud, or the King's enemies, i. 403 — their efforts to prevent blood- shed, and save the prole slants, ii. 473 Coercion, system of, ii. 426-7 — — extorted from Lord Cam- den, ii. 408, 413 • commended bv Lord Clare, ii. 413 recommended by Lord Cas- llereagh, ii. 396 account of in the Pet. W. C. ii.42l CoercioTiy sanctioned by govern- ment, ii. 437 Co'}giey, an Irish priest, tried at Maidstone and hanged, ii. 417 Cuigne and Livery, its mischiev- ous effects, i. 210 ;enovation of, occasions in- surrection, i 2''7 renewal of, 259 Colclough, Mr. Henry, seized by Captain Boyd, sent to tnnis- corthy on an embassy to the rebels, and returns with the re- sult, ii. 456-7 — — tried and executed, ii. 484 Cole, Lord, moves an address to ' Lord Cam.den, ii. 364 Colonel, ordered to Corfu, and relumed the escheatorship of Munster, because a£,ainst union, ii. 548 Commercial propositions brought forward by Mr. Orde, ii. 263 pass both houses, and com- mitted, ii>. introduced intoBritish house of commons, by Mr. Pitt, il/. numerous petitions against^ ii. 264 ~— Mr. Pitt brings forward twenty new propositions, ib. — — pass the British houses of parliament, ib. Mr. Pitt in the British, Mr. Orde in the Irish, introduce a bill founded on them, ii. 265 Mr. Orde reniits ii to next session, ib. public rejoicings at their iailiire, ib. revival of, unpopular, ii. 266 propositions with France, ii. 273 C(jmnn>sio7iers, parliamentary, re- vive the act 01 Elizabeth, and INDEX. sst , renew the persecution of the Irish catholics, i. 413. Cowwj/^j/owe/f, their persons seized by Sir Charles Coote, i. 418. Commons, vide House Confederates, vide CathoVtcs Conriaught, the ca holies all driven thither by Cromwell, i. 409. Conolly, Mr. chartjes governinent with exatrgeratiiig disturbances for had purposes, ii. 268 m I ■ declines moving for the re- peal -^f the hearth tax, till the people should behave more peaceably, ii. 2/0 • his motion for repeal of hearth-tax rejected, ii. 277 — — moves three resolutions in favour of Lord Fitzwilliam ; one passed, two withdrawn at the request of Lord Milton and Mr. Grattan, ii. 357 Conventron , National, at Dublin, ii. 249 — — not numerous, ii. 261 bill, opposed by Mr. Grat- tan, ii. 338-9 Cooke, Mr. dismissed by Lord Fiizwilliam, ii. 3.5 1 .. . Edward, his pamphlet on the Union, ii. 5-0 Coote, Sr Charles, rebels, and goes over to Cromwell, i. 398 — — defeats the confederates un- der Mac Mahnn, bishop of Clojihcr, who was taken and executed, i. 403 ■ unites with Lord Broghill, in favour of Charles If. i. 41 7 — '- their insidious conduct to each other, ib. • seizes the castle at Dublin, and the parliamentary couiniis- sioners, i. 418 — created Earl of Montrath by Charles IL i. 4 19 I Cork, c\ty of ; parliament debates uponthe office of Weigh Mas- ter, ii. 319 — the disposal of it by govern* ment opposed by Mr G. Pon- sonby and Col. Hutchinson, ib; Earl of, his rapacity and cruelly, i. 375 CornwaUis, Marquis, arrives in Dublin, ii. 483 assumes the government, 2 1 St June, 17 98, and changes the .•system, ii. 488 different opinions upon his system n. 489 — issues a proclamation to en- courage surrenders, ii. 491 — marches wah great caution against Humbert, n. ."jOS — oblitrcs Hunjbert to surren- der, ii. 510. — prorogues the parliament, ii. 513 — incurs the odium of Orange- men, and disgraces Lord Ennis- killen. ii. 513, 515 — recommends Union, in a speech from the throne, ii. 523 — promotes Union oui of par- liament, ii. 5S7-9 his pledge to the calholics for procuring them emancipa- tion, ii. 5 J2-3 — his speech from the throne on prorogation of parliament, ii. 549 — advances Union by his pro- erfcss through the kincdom, ii. 550-2 — mentions not L^iiion in his speccli from the throne, ii. 532 — sends a message to the Irish parliament, ii. 555-6 — la=;t speech to the Iii.di par- liament, ii. 565 582 INDEX. Corry, Lord, moves an address agrainst Union bill, ii. 563 ^ Mr. challenges Mr. Grattan, and is wounded, ii. 5.59 Cox^ Sir Richard, a courtly histo- rian, i. 8 - his conduct as to the articles of Limerick, ii. 10 Cromiveil, Oliver, his address in availing himselF of the enthusi- asm of ihe day, i. 399 lands at Dublin wiih 12,000 men, ib~ ' sie^e and massacre at Drog- heda, ib. — ditto of Wexford, i. 4oo — marches to the south, i. 401 — his success various, ib. — gains over the protestant army of Inchiquin, ib. -— sicoe and surrender of Kil- kenny, i. 402 — applauds the bravery of its cVfente, 7b. leaves Ireland, ib. deputes to Ireton the com- mand of his English forces, ib. his camp well supplied on account of his good discipline, i. 407 — his system of transporting the Irish loyalists, i. 408 transplants all the Irish ca- tholics into Connanght, under pain of death, i. 40y — assumes the title of Pro- tector, i. 41 1 opposed by Ludlow, ib. the countrv divided by lots among the soldiery, instead of pay, i. 4l2 his death, i. 4i4 Henry, possesses the go- vernment oi:' Ireland, ib. his humane and pure cha- racter, ib. Cromtvell, Richard, dissolves the parliament, and thus puts an end to his own protectorate, i. 416 his character, ib. Croppy^ term and import of, ii, 4^27 Crosbie-j Sir Edward, condemned and executed, though generally supposed innocent, ii. 438 Crnm Cruadh, description of, i. 67 Cuni^ean Sybil, account of, i. 89, 90-1 Curran^ Mr. opposes the resolu- tions of the lords on the money bills, and asserts the right of the commons to originate and frame money bills, by a motion Vvhich was rejected, ii. 252 presents a seat to Mr. Long- field, who had gone over to the Marquis of Buckingham,ii.276 his motion on division of stamps and accounts, ii. 297 his motion for an address to the crown, ii. 298-Q, 3C6 De Courcy^ John, last governor of Ireland, under Henry II i. 170 supplanted by Hugh DeLa- cey, i. 173 joins De Lacey against King John, i. 176 taken by trcacheryj ib, restored to his possession^, i. 177 Defenders, origin of, ii. 279, -&0 encrease of, ii. 2^0, 294, 325-6, S43, 367, 373 • defeated by the Peep of Day Boys, at Diamond, ii. 372 tampered with by United InshuKn, ii. S7S 9 not Rebels, according to Mr. Pelhamj ii. 1 S4 INDEX. £83 De Lacey, vide De Courcy Dermod, his intrigue with the Queen otBriefne, i. 153 ■ his description, i. 153-8 ■' driven from Leinster, i. 156 seeks the protection of Hen. 11. lb. returns to Ireland, i. 147 hisdeaih, i. 159 Desmond, Lord Deputy, i. 255 made prisoner, and released by O'Connor of Offaly, ib. attainted and beheaded, i. 237 rebels against Queen Eliza- beth, i. 317 killed bv a common soldier, i. 320 Devcreux^ Mr. found guilty and executed through direct perjury, ii. 501 Devonshire, Duke of, succeeds the Duke of Dorset, ii. 103 his administration quiet, his pomp and luxury, ii. 104; Diamond, battle of, ii. 372 Dillon, Lord, opposes the Duke of Leinster's motion of thanks to, and confidence in Lord Fitz- william, ii. 358 proposes a contribution against union, ii. 5b Dissenters, punished by the sa- cramental test, deceived by the protestant parliament, ii. 39 — - — flattered and deceived by the Earl of Wharton, ii. 45 — -— tory administration of Queen Ann against thein, ii. 4"^, 58 — — favoured under George I. ii. 72-5 present a memorial of their grievances, ii. 97 -r^ — a measure of toleration in their favour opposed by Boulter, ii. 99 Dissenters, their application for indulgence remitted to another session, ii. ISO Lord Charlemont's predilec- tion for them displeasing to government, ii.307 motion by Mr. Stewart se- conded by Mr. G. Ponsonby for further provisions for the ministers of Ulster, ii. 316 — coolness in the north be- tween them and the Catholic* in 1797, ii. 406 fall otf from the union, ih. multiply their addresses of loyally, ii. 407, 445 Dixon, a rebel captain at Wex- ford, ii. 470 his character and conduct^ ih. attempts to massacre all the prisoners, ii.. 471 executes nummary justice on one Murphy, through whose evidence the Rev. Mr. Dixon, his relative, had been condemn- ed and sent to Botany Bay, ii. 472 disobeys the orders of the general, and prepares his wretch- ed miscreants for a general mas- sacre, ii. 476-7 Dobbs, Mr, intermediates for pro- posals for saving the lives of Messrs. Oliver Bond and Byrne, ii. 496 makes a motion for com- mutation of tithes, ii. 545 Do) set, Duke of, succeeds Lord Carteret, ii. 9s not unfavourable to the Ca- tholics, ii. 99 his testimonyof thelrloyalty, ii. 100 S8i INDEX. Dorseli Diikeof ,qriits Ireland and returns i-jp I l:M;i.nant, ib. — — again made 1 rd lieire ':ini on purpose to oppose llie Pa triots, ii. lis » disliked on account of fiis subserviency to Stone, ii 120 frightened out of the k ng doni, ii. I 21 JDowneshirey Marquis of, his ex- ertions against the union, ii..5.50 — — displaced in consequence, li ■ denies having contributed against it, ii. bb\ Doiile versus Fitzgerald, case of, il. 318 ISIajor, votes for Catholics sitting in parliament, ii. 335 Drogheda, siege and massacre by Cmnnvell, i". 399 Druidism, what, i. 70 its antiquity, i. 71 — 4? its etyniology, i. 72 Ca-sar's account of, i. 73 introduced into Gaul from Britain, i. 74 traduced by the Romans, i. 76-7 . Mona, chief seat of, i. 7S Hume's account of, i. 79 ■ probably passed from Ireland into Britain, i. 82 , further account of, i. 81 ■—— Lucan's account of, i. 92-3 Dublin, citizens of, address Mr. Pitt (late Lord Chatham) on his resignation, ii. 144 resolutions in favour of sep- tennial bill, ii. 1 51 ■ address Lord Effingham on resigning;: his command not to act against America, ii. 174' pass non- importation reso- lutions, li, 1S3 — corporation of, addresses Earl Temple, ii. 241 i Dt/hlin, n:^tional convention in fa\our of reform, ii. 249 — lord Charlemont chairman, IL — aggregate meetings, resolu- tions, and addresses in favour of reform, ii. 2.59 - sheriff of. imprisoned for heading the meeting, ii 259,261 — corporation, thank Lord Charlemcnt for opposing the admission of Catholics to the rights of election, ii. 260 instruct Mr. Grattan to op- pose the Cati.olic bill, ii. 318 stidents of university, ad- dress Mr. Grattan and receive an answer, ii. 363 proclaimed, ii. 4S3 quiet by the vigilance of government, ii. 435-6 — ail masters deserted by their servants, ii. 436 resoluiionsagainst theunion, r!,52I Catholics of, oppose the union, li. 551 proceedings of the aggregate meeting age inst union, ii. 553-4 Dr/igenan^ D;>ctor, opp ses the in'roductiou of the Catholic bills, ii. 333, 353 city and county of Armagh offer to elect, ii. 383 gives notice of a motion to refute the malicious and lying assertions of Mr. Fox, ii. 392 ■ answer.^ Mr. Gra'tan's ad- dress tc the citizens of Dublin and Mr. Grattan's note to Doc- tor Duigenan in consequence, ii. 411 Dindalk, battle of, 209 DufidaSf general, defeats the re- bels near KilcuUin, ii.433 — — accepts the surrender of JNDEaf. £85 Perkins, near the Curragh, ii. 443 Pundai, Mr. introduces the ques- tion of union into the British house of commons, ii. 525 Dungannonj meeting and resolu- tions of volunteers, ii. 208 Duquerry, Mr. and Sir L. Par- sons, the only opponents of Lord Fitzwiliiam's administra- tion, ii. 355 ■*— — his speech on seconding Sir L. Parsons' motion to address Lord Fitzwilliam, severe on Mr. Pitt, ii. 356 Duties^ protecting, brought be- fore the house of commons^ ii. 248 — — what, ii. '255 Ederif Mr. (now Lord Auckland) goes over as secretary to Lord Carlisle, ii. I96 speaks in favour of perpe- tual mutiny bill, ii. 202 — — precipitate in moving for the repeal of 6 Geo. \. ii. 218 refuses toconimunicate with ministers on the situation of Ireland, ii. 21 y — ' — debate upon his motion, ib. Edward I. called the English Jus- tinian, i 190 • his answer to the Irish pe- tition, i. 192 — — - his intentions to Ireland thwarted, i. 193 •• his ministers drive the peo- ple into insurrectio.i, i. 195 — - — obtains a fifteenth from the Irish laity, i. I97 ' his death, i. 200 //. his character, i. 201 Ins friendship for Gavasion, Edward II. the best legislator to Ireland, i. 212 ///. passes ordinances in fa- vour ot Ireland, i. 217, 220 hisreniedial writs, i. 21 9- 2£5 petitioned by the Irish against his officer.s, i, 220 establishes perpetual vicar- ages, 1. 222 — issues other ordinances and statutes, i. 222-3-4 — his anxiety towards Ireland, i. 225 — ly^. his bloody reign, i. 254< — F. his coronation and mur- der, i. 262 FI, his efforts to forward the reformation, i. 301 Effingham, Earl of, addressed by the ciizens of Dublin, for re- signing his command on the American war, ii. 174 Egmiy Mr. against union^ ii 552 Eleciive Franchise, catholics first deprived of under George II. ii. 81, 91-2 the disqualifying clause insi- diously passed, ii. 91 Kleusynian mysteries, what, i. 83 Elizabct/.-', Queen, orders a survey of all lands, i. 310 her efforts to promote the re- formation, i, 311 repeals the acts of Mary re- spectmg religion, 1. 312 — convenes a second Irish par- li.nnent, i. 313 — hatrd by the Iri?h, i. 317 — attempts to levy uioney by order ol council, i. :5l8 — convenes a new Irish parlia- ib. ment, 1. 320 — institutes the system of plan* ration, i. 322-3 makes peace with the Irish, who iiad risen, i. 324 VOL. II. SS6 INDEX. Elhabeth, Queen, her death and character, i. 329, 330 Emmeft, Mr. his examinalion be- fore the secret committee, and his evidence as to the views of the union, ii. 431 cautions the public not to credit the reports published by the secret connnittee, ii. 512 English cabinet consents to the reversing of l^ord Clancarty's attainder, ii. 105 — —at issue with the Irish com- mons, about tht- appropriation of ihe revenue, ii.118. • alters the septennial bill into cctenniai hoping the Irish par- liament would therefore reject it, ii. 156 alters the judges' bill, which is on ihat account rejected, ih. cluiuis a right tp originate Irish money bills, li. 158 it's proceedings against ho- nour and conscience, (according tofciul Cower,) ii. 189 ■ makes the Irish mutiny bill perpetual, ii. 191' — — its influence over the Irish parliament complained of, ii. 320 ascendancy, supported by Primat. Boulter, ii, 88 to 96 — — ins'iances of its prevalence in the case of theBrodericks and Lord Clanricarde, ii. 94-5 ' ' management of, entrusted to Primate Stoncj ii. 1!5 Prwy Council arrest the pro- gressof the septennial bili,ii. 150 En?i2scorthjy taken by the rebels, ii. 4-56 Enniskillcn, Earl of, disqualified from sitting on any future court martial for his conduct on ihe trial of vVollaghan, ii. 514f Escheatorship of Munster, the iti- tent and use of, ii. 548 Esmond, Doctor, commanded the rebels at Prosperous, and is exe- cuted, ii. 439 Essex^ Earl of, appointed governor of Ireland by Elizabeth, i. 327 his disastrous govermnentand execution, 326-7-8 Eusebius, who, i. 59 Fdlhy sometimes corroborative of fact, i. 15 Falkland, Lord, his character, i. 352 recalled, 1. 353 Farnham, Lord, rtmarks the in- consistency of ojDcning the Irish army to caiholics, and not the English, ii. 337 against the recompense to borough proprietors, ii. 564 Fazucett, general, loses part of his men going to the relief of Wex- ford, and retreats, ii. 458 Fciy, Mr., falsely accused, impri- soned, tried, and acquitted, ii, 341 Feniusa Farsa, inventor of letters, i. 37 Fiats, vide Judges. Fingal, Lord, sides with Lord Kenmare in seceding from the catholic connuittee in 1791, ii. 305 Fitzgerald, Lord Edward, opposes the vote of thanks to the Duke of Rutland, ii. 263 moves for an addressofthanks to the Prince for his gracious answer to their address on the regency, ii. 288 meets the French agent in London, ii. 403 declines a seat in the new parliament, ii,41 1 INDEX.. 537 Pitzgeraldyhd. Edw., arrested and mortally wounded, ii. 429-30 — attainted, ii. 501 ■■ " Major, invested with extra- ordinary powers to forward a system of conciliation, ii. 501 — his testimony of INlr. Hay's history, ii. 50i- Mr. Henry, seized by Cap- tain Boyd, and sent to Ennis- corthy, and detained by the rebels, ii. 556-7 — — Thomas Judkin, his cruelty to Doyle, ii. 518 ■ petitions the commons for indemnification, but drops it at the instance of his friends, ii 54.5-6 — — his inhumanity in the case of Wright, ii. 546-7 — — rewarded with a pension, ii. 547 Fkzfrihhon, vide Clare Fitzlierbert, secretary, (afterwards Lord St. Helen's) brings in a bill to enable the clergy to recover tithes, ii.275 — — supports the address to the Prince on the regency, ii. 2S4 Fitzpairick, Colonel, opposes the restoration of Mr. Flood, ii. 229 Fitzwilliam, Sir William, oppres- sive system of, i. 323 — Earl, coalesces with Mr. Pitt, ii. 345 deceived by Mr. Pitt. ii. 346, 348 ■ ' goes over with power to carry catholic emancipation, ii. 349 • assumes the government, ii. 350 his character, ib. asserts ihat catholic emanci- pation was one of the conditions on which he consented to accept the government, ii. 349-50 Fit-zwilliam, Earl, dismisses Mess. Beresford, Cooke, and others, ii. 351 his speech to parliament, ii. 352 addresses of the commons to him, ii. 353 Mr. Beresford*s dismissal, not the catholic question, the cause of his recall, ii. 355 effects of his recall on the nation, ii. 357, S61 quits Ireland, ii. 360 Flood, Mr. opposes ministers, ii. 201 secondsMr.Grattan's motion against a perpetual mutiny bill, ii. 202 speaks with much eloquence on Poyning's law, ii. 204 — his resolutions for legislative independence negatived, ii. 214 — motion for his beina: restored to his place rejected, ii. 229 — opposes simple repeal, ib. — supports Sir Henry Caven- dish's motion for retrenchment, ii. 247 — his contest with Mr. Grat- tan, ib. — his motion for reform, ii. 249 — panegyrizes the volunteers, ii. 250 " — goes over to England, ii. 251 his character by Mr. Grat- tan, lb. — brings in a bill for parlia- mentary reform, ii. 256 speaks on commercial pro- positions in the British house of commons, ii. 273 admits a controlling supe- riority in the British Parlia- ment, ib. Forbes, Mr., makes a motion against pension-, ii. 2G7 R 2 ^8^ INDEX, Forhe^,Mr.y loses his pension-bil], ii, 272 . .. renews his efforts against the pension list and other govern- ment extravagances, ii. 276 - moves an address to the crown in 1788, ii. 277 — fails in his motion about places and pensions, ii. 297 -^— moves for the 2d reading of his place bill, ii. 293 —.. obtains leave to bring in a responribiHty bill and a pension bill, ii. 331 Foster^ Mr., introduces a bill to curb the licentiousness of the press, ii. 257 , — succeeds Mr. Pery in the chair, ii. 266 Lord Justice with Lord Fitzgibbon, ii. 292 — — recommends the keeping up of the Protestant ascendancy, ii. 320 — ^— opposes the union ; his con- sequent popularity, ii. 534, 554! FoXy Charles, his opinion of the Irish volunteers, ii. igo » his speech on the mutiny bill, ii. 19S Secretary of State, delivers to the British Parliament a message from the throne relative to Ireland, ii. 318 — — makes a motion in the Eng- lish house of commons for the legislative independence of Ire- land, ii.225 resigns his office, ii. 231 — — coalesces with Lord North, ii. 239 ■ moves in the British com- mons for an address to the throne to allay discontents in Ireland, ii. 392 ^ Free qvnrierings, ii. 426 ■ French fleet intended for the I'n- va INDEX. 589 iCjeneva. New, oriiiin of that co- lony, II 241 ■ abandoned by government, ii. 242 '« ' hazard of introducing tur- bulent democratic principles with the Genevese, ii. S^S George^ Saint, brotherhood of, i. 258 ' — — /. comes to the throne, ii, 67 — ■■ — his death and character, ii. 85-6 //. his accession to the throne, ii. 87 "- his exclamation on loosing the battle of Fontenoy, ii. 106 «- his death and character, ii. 132-3 ■ his reign the era of whig- gism, ib. •»-- — ///. comes to the British throne, ii. 135 • • ■ ■ — addressed by the Catholics and Quakers, ii. 136 gives an ungracious answer to the address of the Irish house of Commons, ii. 131 ■ sends a message to the Irish parliament about the increase of the army, ii. 157 ditto for 4000 troops off their establishment for America with an offer to replace them with foreign Protestants, ii. 172 — ditto on the French alliance with America, ii. 178 — sends a message to the Irish parliament that Great Bri- tain should pay the charge of Irish regiments serving out of the kingdom, ii. 182 ditto to British parliament about Ireland, ii. 219 — his answer to the Irish address reprobates the attempts of the volunteers to overawe the par- liament, li. 263 Georsre III^ his illness in 1788, ii.^2Sl his recovery, ii. 288 addressed by the .rish par- liament, and returns a gracious answer, ib. sends a message to the Bri- tish parliament about union, ii. 5^25, 54.9 his speech on passing the act of union, ii. 463 makes a speech to parlia- ment, 3 1st December, 1800, and prorogues it, ii. 567 G'lnkell takes Limerick, i. 477 Glamorgan, Earl of, receives large powers from the king, i. 3S5 charged with high treason by contrivance of Ormond, and imprisoned, but soon released, i. 388 Gorey, its inhabitants retreat to Arklow, and are cruelly treated by the army, ii. 460 Gosford, Lord, his address on the disturbances in Armasih, ii, 376 commands atNaas, prepared for the rebels, ii. 134 Government, English, inconsistent in not applying revolutionary principles to Ireland, ii. 22 tardy and reluctant to grant relief to Ireland, ii. 1 83-9 Irish, wishes to disband the volunteers, ii. 248 attempts to discredit the vo- lunteers, ii. 256 encourages dissentions a- mong tiiem in order to weaken them, ii. 261 charged by Mr. ConoUy with exaggerating disturbances foi bad purposes, ii. 268 590 INDEX. Goi;^r«77z^«',Eng1isb J seizes en and si ves to members of parliament the office of the weighers ot Cork, ii. 319 oppose parliamentary reform, ii. 334 — — encourage the progress of re- bellion, ii. 429 Gower,Earl, (late Marquis of Staf- ford) declares he can no longer take part with ministers, ii. 189 Gr aft on, T)ukeoi, his bar .hi.esa to the Catholics, ii. 7C)-7-S Grattau, Henry, opposes the speech of the lord lieiUenaiU, (Buckinghamshire) and moves for free iratle, ii. 18,5 makes a resolution in favor of the independence of Ireland, ii. 193 makes a motion against per- petual mutiny bill, ii. 202 • moves for an eriquiry into the financial state of the kingdom, ii. 203. speaks in favor of the Catholics, ii. 205, 212. — — moves for an address to the throne on legislative independ- ence, ii. 213 moves an amendment to Mr. G. Ponsonby's vote of thanks to the throne, ii. 221 opposes the address to Lord Carlrsle, ii. 2i'3 ■ moves an address to the throne after the Duke of Port- land's speech, ii. 226 ■ receives a patri(jtic donation of ^50,000, ii. 228. ai)used by some volunteer corps and in the puulic papers, ii. 233 his coijtest with Mr. Flood, ii. 247 GratianjHenry, supports the prin- ciple of Mr. Flood's bill tor re- form, ii. 250-6 recommends union between parliament and the volunteers, ii. 250 his character of Mr. Flood, ii. 251 opj^ses Fitzgibbon's riot act, in 1787, ii. 271 ■ his resolution on tithes ne- gatived, ii. 272 mokes a motion on tithes, ii. 275 movesanaddresstolhe Prince of 'vV ales on ine regtncv, ii. 264 moves res )lut ions for a new police bill, a place bill, a pension bill, a responsibilit.v bill, an ab- sentee hiil, fails in all, ii. 288 — brings in a b.ll to appoint conmissioncrs to er;quire into ihe state of ti:he?.-i;. 289 speaks stron^^y against the Marquis of Buckingham's go- vernment, ii. 295 moves for the names of the advisers of the measure of muU tiplvingoiiicersc.' ievenue,ii.295 — severely arraigns tlie Irish government, u. 'Zbl — h\% motion lor East India trade, ii. 301 — oppo.-es that part of the ad- dress which thanked his Ma- jesty for coi.iinuiiig Lord West- moreland, ii. 3 JO- 1 observes on the rejection of the catholic petition, li. b\5^ — censi'res the government of It eland since 17r2, and moves an aniendmeat to the address to iV,e crown, ii . 329 — • (jbtams leave to brinj; in a iiiil for the improvtuienl ot bar- ren land, ii. 3.^1 INDEX. 591 Graff any Henry, his resolutions for reform of parliament negatived, ii. 334. — — his account of Irish brigades, &c. ii. ;i35 supcorts the catholic bill, ib. ' opposesgu p powder bill, i 1. 1>38 opooses convention bill as criminaung retrospectively, ii, 339 • reprobates universal suffrage, ii. 3-1-3 . united Irishmen publish an ■ address reflecting upon his tail- ing off, ib. sent for to England to advise upon the Irish government, ii. 347 — — presents the petition of the Dublin catholics against penal laws, ii. 353 . . his answer the catholic ad- dress to him, ii. 339 » addressed by the students of the college, ii. 363 « opposes the address to Lord Caniden, ii. 364- — — his motion on the state of the nation, ii. 365 auainst the address of Lord Camden, n. 373 — - his account of the outrages of the Orangemen in Armagh, ii. 375 proposes an amendment to the address, ii. 385 — brings on the question of Catholic emancipation, ii. 3S9 — holds strong language to Mr. Pelham, ii. 390 — — opposes a secret committee, ii. 393 speaks on reform and Catho- lic emancipation, ii. 39S declines a seat in the new parliament, ii. 4U Grattaji, Henry, his note to Doc- tor Duigenan, ii. ib. elected for the borough of Wicklow, and speaks against union, ii. 552-3 returns to the favor of the inhabitants of Dublin, ii. 554 fights Mr. Corry, ii. 559 Gray don, Mr., his motion for the reiorm of abuses, ii. 355 Grer'ville, Lord, opposes Lord Moi- ra's motion for address, ii. 392 defends Lord Camden's sys- tem, ii. 409 introduces the question of union into the British house of peers, ii. 5:5 speaks on introducing Mr. Pitt's resolutions on union, ii. 54-1 Grocran, Mr. Cornelius, taken and executed, ii. 483 attainted, ii, 50l Gunpowder bill, directed to put down the volunteers, opposed by Mr, Grattan, ii. 338-9 Habeas corpus act, moved for by Mr. Bradstrect, ii. 200, 231 suspended, ii. 385 Hacket, outstanding rebel, killed near Arklow, ii. 500 Hacketstown, rebels defeated at, ii. 438, 499 HafifaXy lord-lieutenant, his salary raised to .£'lt5,00O a year, ii. 142 — recalled to be secretary of state, ii. 145 IJarcnurt^ I^ord, succeeds Lord Townshend, easy in his temper, finds all done as to parliamen- tary interest, ii. 167 popular till he too glaringly followed up Lord Townshend's system, ii. 168 59 ^ INDEX. Harcourt, Lord, favorably disposed to tliecatholics, iL 7 his deaih, i. 170 — — — HI. his character, i. 184 — — procures the death of Richard Earl of Pembroke, i. !8d affects sorrow for hisdcalh,;/'. Henry III. grants Ireland to his son Edward^ i. 187 — applies to Ireland for money, i. 18S his death, i. I89 ir. looks upon Ireland as insignificant, i. 232 appoints his sou lord lieute- nant for 20 years, i. 233 — sives his son singular powers, i. 234 V. withdrawn from Ireland by tlie war in France, i. 236 — gains the battle of Agin- court, i. 237 — his death, i.2tl — VI. proclaimed king at Paris, i. 242 — his political intrigues, i. 247 is made prisoner by the Duke of York at St. Alban's, i. 250 — fll. crowned at Bosworlh, i. 264 — his system of reconciliation. gains the battle of Stoke, i. 269 takes Sinmel prisoner, ih. pardons Kildare, i 270 his policy to Ireland, i. 274 his death, i. 282 Fill, his accession to the throne, and character, i. 283 inattentive to Ireland, i. 284 uses strong measures to for- ward the reformation, i. 294 assumes the title of king of Iieland, i. 296 — his death and character, i. 299 HcriJ'ord^ Earl of, lord-lieutenant, ii. 149 succeeded by Lord Towns- bend, ii. 152 H'llsboroiigh, Earl of, a British Minister, consents 10 Lord Shel- INDEX. 593 bume*s motion, for free trade, ii. 189 Hitsborongh, Earl of, brings in a bill to establishan Irish militia, ii. 333 History^ use of, i. 2, 5 ■ confi.ied to few nations, i. 51 — — of Ireland misrepresented, i. 1 ^ "> '-{5 1 aathenticity > *, disputfd, i. 5, 6 treated as fabulous, i. 8, 9 m not overset b\' meic denial, i. 16, 105 Hobart, Mr. Secretary, defends government against the charge of sale 5'9i' INDEX. House of commons, bill for va- cating the seats of pensioners negatived, ii. 124 — — negative Mr. Mason's bill to enable catholics to place out monev on mortgage, ii. 148 . address his Majesty on the septennial bill, and receive an ungracious answer, ii. 150-1 — — — counter resolutions of the court party, ii. 150 pass two patriotic bills that were not returned, ii. 151 — appoint a committee to in- quire into the state of the mili- tary establishment, ii. 157 — carry a resolution in favour of iheir own right to originate money-bills against the cabinet, ii. 158-9 — order the Public Advertiser to be burnt by the common hangman for libelling the Irish parliament, ii. 160 neo-ative and address Lord Harcourt on the proposal to m- troduce foreign troops, ii. 172 - — Mr. Grattan proposes an amendment to the address in 1779, ii. 1S5 — Amendment for free trade proposed by Mr. tlussey Burgh, and carried, ib. — pass a six month's money bill, ii. 191 vote a longer money bill, ii. 194 versatility of, ii. 223 vote of 50,000/- to Mr. Grat- tan, ii. 2i'8 how composed in 1783, ii. 245 — censure some newspapers and the lord-mayor of Dublin, ii. 257 — deliver persons in custody of their terjeant-at-arms, over to the military, ii. 258 /fotti^of Commons expect to bedis- solved on theking's illness, ii. 282 association test for the new members, ib. address to the Prince of Wales on the regency carried against the ministers, ii, 284* appoint members to present the address, ii. 286 out of 300 members, 110 placemen, ii. 298 address the lord-lieutenant on the breaking out of the re- bellion, and present their ad- dress in a body, ii. 4-33 order some English papers lo be burnt by the common hangman, ii. 538 — majority of 42 for union, l6th Jan. 1799) ii. 553 — send a message to the lords that they had approved of the articles of union, ii, 560 EngUsby address King Wil- liam on the abuses of the Irish govcrnnnnt, ii, 5 Earl of Upper Ossory moves for the free uade of Ireland, ii. 190 Humbert^ General, makes the Bishop's castle at Killala his head quarters, ii. 506 marches to Ballina, thence lo Castlebar, and defeats Gene- ral Lake with a much superior force, ii. 606- 7 joined by many Irish pea- sants, ii. 508 checked by Colonel Vereker wiih 200 men, ib. — — surrenders at Ballynamuck, ii. 509 H'umey his disregard to truth,, i. 1, 351 INDEX. 591 tJimter, General, succeeds Gene- ral Lake, ii. 489 liis humane conduct, ii. 501 Hussejy, Catholic bishop of Wa- terford, his conduct and cha- racter, ii. 415-6 ' censured by Doctor Duige- nan, ii. 415 Hutchins'm, Hely, speaks in favour of legislative indepetidence, and particularly commends Mr. Grattan, ii. 221 ' Lord, opposes the appoint- ment by Government to the place of weigh-master of Cork, ii, 3i9. ■ votes for Catholics sitting in parliament, ii. 335 ■ his constitutional address to the city of Cork, ii. 383 JacksoTi^K^x. Mr. convicted of high lieason, ii. 344 James I. seeks popularity with the Irish, i. 333 ■■ favourable to the Catholics, ib. receives the Irish under his protection, i. 336 — — his commission of grace, i. 337 begins his system of plan- tations, i. 342 . convenes a parliament, i. 344 his oppression of the Irish, 1. 349 — his death, i. 350 — //. his accession to the throne, i. 441 — removes Ormond, ib. — appoints tlie Earl uf Granard and Lord Chancellor Eoyle Lord Justices, ib. the Irish niiliiia, consisting of Protestants, (Usnrmed, i, 442 James II. appoints Lord Clarendon lord- lieutenant, ib. disclaims any intention of altering the Acts of Settlement, i. 444 disliked by the Irish Pro- testants, i. 446 his character and religious of enthusiasm, i. 447 — abdicates the throne England, 1. 451 — declines the French offers of succour, i. 454 — sails from France to head his army in Ireland, ih. his conduct at Dublin, ib. — issues several proclamations, and convenes a parliament, i. 455 by abdicating the throne of England, did not abdicate that of Ireland, i. 450-8 — commencement of open war- fare between him and William, i. 455 allegiance due to him longer in Ireland than in England, i. 458 — disliked the Irish, and dis- liked by them, i. 460 — forced to act against his own inclinations, and imposed on by Tyrconnel, i,461 — nature of contest between him and William, i. 463 passes an act for encouraging an Irish navy, i. 464 the battle of the Boyne, i. 469 — his cowardice, i. 470-1 — quits Ireland and flies to France, i. 471 — difference between his Irish subjects, and French allies, i. 474-G 506 INDEX. James II. sends back Tyrconnel as chief governor, i. 4 75 ■ bottie of Aghrim, ib. Inch'iqvin, Y.V'\ of, revolts against the King (Charles), i. 382^ 392 Indemnity, Act of, i. ;}35 Insurgents a*;tack Naas, and are re- pulsed, ii. 433 — — ditto Prosperous, and S'jc- ceed, ii 434f defeated by General Dundas, ib. ' ditto, by Lord Roden. at Cloudalkin, ib. fail at Carlow, Hackets'own, Monastereven, R-ithfarnham, Tallagh, Lucan, Luske, Collon, and Baltinglass, ii. 4"-48 ■— — succeed at Dunboyne and Barretstown, ih. their bloodv measures, ii. 440 ■ quarter refused to them, ib. — — * defeated at 1 arah, ii. 442 respect the sex, ii. 443 Some of them submit under Perkins, lb. ■ those who had assembled to surrender, attacked by mistake under Sir James Duffe, ii. 414 deftated on Kilthomashill by 200 veomen, ii- 455 succeed ui^.der Murphv, at Oulart, ib. " mareh to Cam )lin,and there seize 800 stand of arms, ii. 456 • attack and carryEnniscortlu', ih. ' surprize a detachment of Gcne.-.'i! Fawcett's, ii. 458 ■~ enier W^^ext^d, and elect Mr. Tijrve\ tor c immai.dcr, ii. how received at Wexford^ ii. Insurgents encamp on Vinegar- hili, ii.4f)l destroy the church at Ennis- corthy, ib. defeated at Ballycannoo, and Newtownbarry, il. surprize Colonel Walpole's diviticn at TuHberneering, and drn'e Gen ral Lcjfiua liom Go- rey, ii. 4t.!2 — — under Harvey march to at- tack Ross, ib. -^^^eated by General Johnson, ii. 464 massacre the prisoners at ScuilaMOiiue, ii. 463 de^ea'\-d at Aekio^v, ii. 466-7 enter Wexford, ii. 468 iss'ie a pr climation against obnoxinns persons, ii. 469 professed retaliation^ ii. 471 defeated at Vinec;ar-hill, ii, 478-9 ri?e in Ulster, ii. 483 — — ♦ake Antrim, ii. 4S4 'h'^^main body of the north- ern in-urgents disperse, ii. 485 debated by General Nugent at Ballynahinch, ib. the remainder of the north- erns dis'^'erses, ii. 4S6 — defeated alBal!) nascarthv, ii. 4S7 — penetrate into Carlow, ii. 489 defeat some troops in their progress, ib. — ■ — *.ikt C tstleconitT, n. 490 v..efc>;ud b'. Sir Charles As- giil, at Kilkcnnv, jh. uusaceessfully attack Hack- 460 etstovvn, il. surprize a corps of cavalry. and defeat a body of troops at B™llyrakeen-hill, li. 491 defeated nvar White-heaps by Sir James Duffe, ii. 493 INDEX. 591 Insurgents assemble at Carrigrew, a..)d resdive to disperse, ii. 492 ' of Ki'dare, under William /' vimer, ii. 493 some Wexford men under Messrs.Garret, Byrne, and Fitz- gerald Gtill hold out, and then disperse, ib. —— Messrs. Aylmcr, Bvrne, and Fitzgerald surrender, ii. 4j6 all subdued except Holt and Hacket, ii. 499 fail in an attack on Granard, ii 510 ditto on Castlcbar, ii. 511 defeated at K-illala by Major General French, ih. Insurrection of the White Boys, ii. 136 of the Oak Boys, ii. 142 of the Steel Boys, ii. 143 of the Right Boys, ii. 268-9 — — bills brought in by the At- torney-general, ii. 347 InuasioJi, vide Frerich. Ire/and, discovered by Adhua, i. 11 inhabited before the deluge, i. 1 1, 17, 27 peopled before Great Britain, i. 30 peopled from Spain, i. 34-9 — — literary in the 6th century, i. 33 . tree from venomous crea- tures, I. 106-7 traducement of, ever coun- tenanced, i. 110 ■ its superior civilization, i. 122-3-4 of the same religion as Eng- land, i. 146 mternal calamities of, i. 1 73, 183-8, 190, 200, 210-4, 241, 252, 28S, 311, 6'/ ulidi. Ireland divided among 10 English familie-), i. 195 freed from Peterpcnce, i. 211 her independence asserted by the Yorkists, i. 251 state of, during Edw. FV. i. 261 lordship of, converted into kingdom, i. 296 stale of, under Henry VITF. according to Sir John Davies, i. 29s — state of in 1651, i. 407 — impolitic government of, un- der Queen Ann, ii. 44 — internal distresses under Boulter, ii 92-6 affected by the war with America, ii. 171-4 distressed stale of in 1777 and 1779, ii. 177, 186 — — eased of the payment of her troops servino; out of the kinfj- donj, ii. 1S2 Ircton appointed commander ot" the English forces in Ireland by Cromwell, 1. 402 his death, ib. Irish, antiquity oi, i. 3 their descent from Japhet, i. 20 their idolatry less obscene than that of other nations, i. 69, 87, 92 their paganism, i. 94 acquainted with astronomy, i. 95 6 encouragers of music, i. 97 their annals reformed, i. 129 — their genealogies authentic and genuine, i. 143 — achnitted to English laws, i. 1S3-7, 191 5DS INDEX. Irisb offer the sovereignty to a Scotch monarch, i. ^Ol — their remt)nstrance to Pope John XXII. i. 208 9 • n-,iscon. Gerald, deprived of his office and iu}prisoned, i. 285 is restored to favor and again confined, i 286 his son Thomas and his five brothers executed, i.287 his death, i. 28S Ear! of, presents a spirited memorial to George II. about his country, ii. 122 its good effects, ii. 123 K'tlkenny, convention of, i, 218 statute of, i.2'^4. Killala, Bishop of (Law) speaks strongly in support of the Catho- lic claims, ii. 336 his faithful account of the French landing at Killala, ii.511 town of, French land there under Humbert, ii.505 left in the hands of the re- bels long after Humbert's sur- render, ii. 511 K'uig, doctor, his work against the Catholics, i. 443 o-uiliy of gross falsitv, i.44<6, 45 3"- 6 Kingsboroyoh, Lord, violent against the Catholic bill, ii. 365 falls into the hands of the lebels, ii. +74 had been a supporter of the system of coercion, ii. 475 his undertaking for the safety of the inhabitants of Wextord disregarded, ii. 479, 4S0 600 IKDEX, Kntghls of St. Patrick instituted, ii. 241 Knocfoic, battle of, i, 281 Knox, Mr. his motion that Catho- lics might sit in parliament ne- gativeu, ii. 353 Lake, General, enforces riirnrous military government, ii. 399 — issues a strong notice, ii. 435 — continues the old system, ii. 483 is recalled, ii. 489 his disgraceful conduct at Castlebar, iT. 507 Langrishe, Sir Hercules, chosen to bring forward the Catholic bill in n92, ii. 308 obtains leave to bring in the Catholic bill, ii. 312 brings in the bill, ii. 315 Language^ the pedigree of nations, i.44 Irish, antiquity and preser- vation of, i. 45 — — same as the Scvthian, ih. — — Scvthian prior to the Greek, Hk construction of, difTcrent in Ireland and Wales, i. 47 antiquity of, proved by im- memorial use, i. 53 Waldense s^inc as Irish, i 61 Irish whence derived, i. 63 Latouche, Mr. David, opposes the Catholic petition, ii. 318 Laivyers corps, instituted 14th September, l7S6,ii.382 Led'vich, his scepticism, i. 34 his abuse of Vallancey, &c. i. 60 Le Hunfe, Mr. attacked by the rebels, through the malice of Mrs. Dixon, and wounded, ii. 4 70 . preserved by Mr. E. Hay and Mr. Cartv, Ur Leinster delegates arrested, ii. 424- Duke of, head of ihe friends of con:,iituiion, liberty, and peace, ii. 326 moves in the Lords that Lord Fitzwilliam had deserved the thanks and confidence of the country, ii. 358 protests with the Lords against union bill, ii. 563 Ltland^ his difficulties in avowing truth, i. 7 Leiley^ his answer to Dr. King, i. 443 his impartial opinion of James II, i. 446 his account of the versatility of the Irish Protestants, i. 450 anecdotes of James II. fa- vouring Protestants, i. 462 Letters, when first used, i. 57 Irish same as Scythian, i.61-2 acicient Irish, i. 101-2 introduction of Roman, i.lOl ancient use of, i 103-4 LewifJS, Mr. the agent of the united Irishmenwith the French, ii.40l L/aglfail, what, i. 108-9 L'nnerKk surrenders to Ginkell, i. 477 terms of capitulation, zZ-. — articles (.)f, violated, ii. 3, 14 negociatio!^ ot, ii. 7 •■(.ntcited from the pulpit, ii.9 condu<.t ofSirR. Cox in re- ference to lhc;n, ii. 10 recognized by the English act of 3VViir!auiand Mary, ii. 16 confirmed (or rathcrabridged) by the Irish parliament, ii. 21 petitions against the act re- jected, ib. — some persons comprised in INDEX, 601 llie articles, petition against the act of Ann, heard by counsel, ii. 38 Loftusy Gen., fails in his attack on , the rebels, loses part of his army, and retires from Gorey, ii, 4G2 Longevity no patriarchal privilege, i. 24 Lougbboronghfhordy opposes Lord Shelburne's motion for Irish independence, ii 225 Lucas, starts upon the right of Dublin election, ii. 113 — ■ — forced to fly from Ireland, returns, and is again chosen to represent the city of Dublin in Parliament: his patriotism, ii. 114. heads the patriots in moving for shortening the duration of parliaments, ii. 144 — — brings in heads of a septen- nial bill, ii>. brings in two other bills for securing thp freedom of parlia- ment, and fails in all, ii. 145 commanded the personal esteem of several lord-lieute- nants, ii. 152 Ludlow, opposei the proclamation of Cromwell's protectorate,!. 4 i 1 Z,?///r6>//, General, (afterwards Lord • Carhampton) brings in a bill against houghingsoldiers, ii.256 establishes the system of sending persons, untried, on board the tenders, ii. 372 Mac Million, chief of Monaghan, unjustly executed, i. 324 Ever, bishop of Clogher, taken prisoner, and executed, i. 403 Mac Neven. his examination in | the Lords, u. 441 I ■ sigus an advertisement to the i public, not to credit the reports published by the secret com- mittee, ii. 512 Macomores, who, and how quieted, il. 502 Macphe7-sQ7i admits the existence of St. Patrick, i. 39 Magistrates, dangerous powers given to them by the insurrec- tion bills, ii. 374 of Armagh, their ronduct unjust and cruel to the catholics, ii. 376 infamous conduct of White and Goring, ii 517-8 Magna Char la extended to Ire- land, i. 182 Magog the founder of the Scy- thians, i. 36 Mad- coaches, stoppage of, signal for rebellion, ii. 433 Man, his days abbreviated, i. 21 MarcJie, Edmund, Earl of, ap- pointed lord-lieutenant in 1423, i. 242 his death, i. 2i3 iV/«r^a7V^of Anjou defeats Richard Duke of York, on Biore-heath, i. 240 Marlborough, Lord, lakes Cork and Kinsale, i. 473 Mary, proclaimed Queen, i. 305 revokes the late ecclesiasti- cal mnovations, and restores the civil -establislniient of the Ro-* man catholic religion, i, 306 her civil government unpo- pular in Ireland, i. 308 Mason, Mr. Monk, his bill to enable catholics to place out money on mortjX'^ge, ne2:Mtived by a large majority, ii. 147 Massacre at Smerwick, by Sir W. Rakish, i. 319 in Macgee, i 373 by Onaiond, i. 377 602 INDEX. Mqssacre of Drogheda and Wex- ford, i. 399 . rei ort of an intended mas- sacre of the protestants under Jaincsll. i. 452 — — of the caiholics proposed in council, in iT-iS, ii. 107 — — — reports of intended massa- cres given out, ii. 401 — — of state prisoners proposed by Colone-l Maxwell, ii. 435 — — of the prisoners by the yeo- men at Carnew and Dunlavin ii. 456 ditto by the rebels at Sculla- bogue, ii. 465 • at Wexford by Dixon, ii. 476-7 — — stopped by Father Corrin, a catholic clergymen, li. 477 Maxwell Colonel moves the Com- mons that all prisoners should be instantly executed, ii. 435 opposed by Ld Castlereagh,iZ'. — — against union, i. 536 JMaynoolb, motion for the payment of 20,000/. to, ii. 415 Milesians y why called Phoenicians, i. 38-9 reality of, objected to, i. 53 M } lesius co\ou\zc6 Ireland, i. 11 Military, outrages of, ii. 382 399 i detention of prisoners de- clared illegal, ii. 4(^6 executi'ons, ii. 426 1, 437-8, 441-2 ' brutality of, ii. 434 more savasfe in some in- MiniOi Lord, In favour of union, ii. 541 Moira, Earl, in the British peers, moves for an address to the throne for allaying discontents, ii. 390-1-2 speaks in the British peers in favour of conciliation, ii. 408-9 410 ditto in thelrish Lords, il.414» Molyneux^ his book, ii. 23 condemned by the English parliament, ii. 24 Mona, Isle of, attacked by Sueto> nius, i. 77-9 why called sacred, i. 80-3 Montrath, vide Coote. MoorCf General, his humane con- duct, ii. 476 Morning Star, destroyed by the military, and why, ii. 399 MorioTiy Earl of, lord of Ireland, i, 169 went over to Ireland in 1184, i. 170 recalled, ib. acts as sovereign of Ireland, i. 171 his power not over the whole kingdom, i. 172 — vide John. MoseSj his history, what, i. 20 consequence of to Irish his- tory, i. 26 cures Niul's son from the serpent's bite, i. 107 Mountjojy, Deputy, concludes a peace with Tyrone, i. 329 marches into Munster to check the exercise of the catho- lic religion, i. 334 Earl, falls at NewRoss, ii.464 Munster^ disturbances in, ii. 268-3 poverty of, ii. 269 recruiting for, impeded, by j Murphy, Rev. John, how driven. excluding catholics from com- I into rebellion, ii. 434 missions, ji. 340 ' — — . rallies his men, and cuts to stances than the rebels, ii. 443 — savage in their retreat from Wexford, ii. 459, 460 vide Yeomanrv. Militia, bill for, introduced by Lord Hilsborough, ii. 333 INDEX. 603 pieces a detachment of theNorth Cork militia, near Oulart, ii. 455 Murphy, Rev. John, marches to Camolin, and seizes 800 mus- kets, li. ^56 • takes Enniscorthy, ib. " insulted, whipped, and exe- cuted, ii. 478 -> at the head of 15,000 rebels marched into Carlow, ii. 489 — — Rev. Michael, killed at Ark- low, ii. 467 Mus grave. Sir Richard, defends terrorism and cruelty, ii. 437 m. the acceptance of his book disclaimed by Lord Cornwall is, ib. ■ his falsities, ii. 445 endeavoured to criminate Doctor Caulfield, ii. 474 Music, profession of, honourable, i. 98, 100 Mutiny bill, perpetual, passed, ii. 195 gives great discontent, and resolutions against it, ib. — — Mr. Fox's »peech on it, ii. 198 debate in the Irish Commons, ii. 202 Naas attacked by the rebels, ii. 334 National guards it's nature, ii. 325 Nations, origin of, i. 55 — — their derivations proved by religious institutions, i. 63-4 Needham, General, commanded at the battle of Arklow, ii. 467 — — loo late at his post at Vine- gar-hill, ii. 478 Nelson, Mr. a rebel, arrested, ii. 433 Nennius, his judgment of Irish history, i. 34 Newspapers, the Public Advertiser burnt by the common hangman, ii. 160 Newspapers censured by parlia- ment, ii. 195 Morning Star-office destroy- ed, ii. 399 the IVess, complained of by Mr. O'Donnel, ii. 416 Arthur O'Connor its edi- tor and proprietor, ib. the Press, suppressed, ii. 418 some English newspapers ordered by the House of Com- mons to be burnt by the hands of the common hangman, ii. 538 Niul, his descendants driven from the Red Sea, i. 11, 38 his son cured of the serpent's bite by Moses, i. 107 Noah, the earth divided among his progeny, i. 21-3-9, 30 - cotemporary with Abraham, i. 24 probably acquainted with Ireland, i. 26 North, Lord, disposed to relax the penal laws, ii. 178-9 opens the Irish propositions, ii. 191 downfall of his administra- tion, ii. 217 ■■' ■' " coalesces with Mr. Fox, ii, 239 Northivgton, Earl of, succeeds Earl Temple, ii. 244 resigns, and is succeeded by the Duke ot Rutland, ii. 253 vote of thanks to, proposed by W. B. Ponsonby, ii. 254 additional salarv of 4000/. voted to him^ but declined, ib, Northumberland, Earl of, succeeds Lord Halifax, ii. 145 Nugent, Earl of, speaks strongly T 9 \m INDEX. in favour of the commerce of his country, in the Briiish House of Commons, ii. 179 Nu^e7if, Earl of., conformed in his youth, but died a catholic, ii- 23G Oak boys, who, ii. 142 . — . — suppressed, ii. 143 Oafes, Titus, favoured bv the Eng- lish government, i. 438 . convicted of perjury, fined, whipped, and pilloried, i. 4^9 O'Convor, Charles, his origin of the Irish language, i. 47-8-9 Lord Lyttleton's honourable testimony of him, i. 142 Rev. Mr. his proposed trans- lation of the Irish annals, i. 133-4-5-6 what to consist of, i 137-8-9 " ^ his Collection of Irish manu- scripts, i. 139, 140 -: his earnest in favour of the antiquity of Irish annals, i. 141 Arthur, makes a brilliant speech on catholic emaneipa tion, ii. 365 — oflends his uncle. Lord Lon- gueville, and resigns his seat, /■/'. -! proprietor of the Press news- paper, li, 416 —. — arrested, tried at Maidstone, and acquitted, ii. 417 -^ the terms on which he and other rebels submiUtd to give evidence, ii. 497 m cliaigcs Lord Castlereagh with deviating from his engage- ment, ii. 497-8 — — sip-ns an advertisement to cautKJii the pviplic against cre- diting the reports published by the secret couunitiee, ii. 512 Oetoher club, what, ii ,59 Ogham characters, what, i. 84-5-6 Ogle, Mr. with Doctor Duicrenan, opposes the Catholic bills, ii. 333, 353 O'Hara, Mr. presents the Catho- lic petition, rejected, li. 313 O'Neil) Mr. moves a voteof thanks, to the volunteers, ii. 199 moves an address to the. Duke of Portland, ii 223 strongly rebukes Fitzgibbon for insolence, ii. 273 presents a peiiiion from Bel- fast for the repeal oi all penal laws, ii. 315 — votes for Catholics sitting in parlian>ent, ii. 335 Lord, killed at Antrim, ii. . 485 O'Nial, vide Tyrone. —. — i'hehm, f-Tged the King's commission, i. 375 — tempted by the regicides to acknowledge his commission genuine, refuses, and isexecuted, i. 397 Opposif'ion^ to Lord Northington, popular, ii. 248 loud against government ex- penditures under the Puke of Kutland, ii. 270 oppose Fitzgibbon's riot act, ii. 272 to the Marquis of Bucking'* ham, strong, iu277 — : — largest division on Mr. Forbes's place bills, ii. 298 determined to persevere, ii, 301,318 Oravgemen^fiX&i instituted in 1795, and hovv, their oath or test, ii. 371 encrease in number and fe- rocitv in Armagh, ii. 372 encouraged by government^ li. ;i82-3 INDEX. 605 Orangemen) their loyal address to the public, ii. 42'2 ——mischief of such societies, ih. according to Mr. O'Connor they administered the oath of extern ination, and received .mont y uid encouraaemeiu from government ii. 423 ■ dislike Lord Cornwallis, ii. 513 • encrease in spite of Lord Cornwallis, ii. 517-8 — — warily abstain from the ques- tion of union, ii.551 Orde, Mr. introduces his com- mercial propositions into the Irish house oi commons, ii. 263 -' disapproves of the clause for prostrating Catholic chapels, and denies the riots of theKight boys to be a popish conspiracy, ii.27l • submits to the house his plan of education, ii, 273 Ormond, James, Earl of, accused of infidelity, i. 246 — — executed on a scaffold, 1.251' - John, restored to favor and his estates, i. 260 — Marquis of, devastates part of the. pale, i. 374 - his commission to meet the confederates, i. 377 -I ■ obeys the parliamentarian committee against the King's commands, id. — — his massacre in cold blood, ?^. marches to Ross with 6000 men in obedience to the Par- liamentarian committee, ii>. • commanded by the King to negociate one year's cessation of arms, i. 378 *- — again commanded to meet the coiifederates, i. 379 Ormond, Marquis of, opposes the cessation, i. 379 Sir Henry Tichborne's ac- count, ih. disobeys the King's com- mands, i. '380 3-4 procures frum the confeder- ates a voluntary payment of 30,0001. and a reinforcement of some thcmsand men, i.381 his army opposes the cessa- tion, and takes the covenant, i. 382 is desired by the confederates to lead them against the King's enemies, i, 383 treats with the Scots to join him against the confederaleSj i, 384 his perfidy to Glamor- gan and the confederates, i. 386 refuses to lead the confedei*- ates against the pariiameniari- ans, i. S89, 390 delivers the sword, castle, &c. to the rebels, i. 389 — reads a forged letter to the lord mayor of Dublin, to induce him to give up the city sword, i. 390 — settles the price of his trea- chery, ib. — commended by the Irish par- liament, ib. leaves Ireland, and is then forced to quit England, ib. returns to Kilkenny, is ho- nourably received, dissembles, and heads the confederates against the parliamentarian re- bels, i. 39i — opposes the catholics to the last, 1. 392 — concludes a peace w ith the 606 INDEX. confederates only a fortnight before Charles's death, i. 3p2 Ormond, Marquis of, proclaims Charles II. king at Youghal!, i. 393 — — — shamefully defeated at Rath- njines, by Jones, i. S91 encourages Charles U. to take the covenant, i. 395 • received 3000^. a year from Cromwell, i. 397 his scandalous misconduct, 1. 397-8 surrenders his powers to Lord Clanricarde,and goes to France, i. 398, 405 — - his testimony of Cromwell's cruelty, i. 400 mistrusted by the confede- rates, i. 39.5, 401-5 — — reasons for his quitting Ire- land, i. 40-1- ■ encourages Charles II. to ap- ply to the Pope, i. 406 '- duke of, disobeys Charles Il.'s commands about the ca- tholics, i. 423 ■ resumes the government of Ireland, ib. '. injures his catholic country- men by the acts of settlement and explanation, and court of claims, i. 424 ■ ■■ his ingratitude and injustice to the Irish, i. 4i25 his gains by the rebellion, i. 428, 436 •! — • — his influence over Charles II. 1.430 — opposes the enlargement of time tor holding the court of claims, i, 432 — thwarts Charles's wishes to favour the catholics, ib. — boasts of his endeavours to secure a true protestant English interest in Ireland, 1. 433 Qrmond. Duke of, detects a dangerous conspiracy in conse- quence of ihe acts of settlement, i. 434 opposes the further persecu- tion of the catholics, and why, i. 435-7 his system of policy, i. 439 displaced and restored, ib. remo\ ed by James II. i. 44L 2d duke of, grandson, ap- pointed lord lieutenant, furthers the act to prevent the growth of popery, ii. 40 10,000/. put upon his head» and attainted for adhering to a popish pretender, ib. durst not attempt to seduce his tenants, or any of the Irish into his rebellion, ii. 32, 75 heads an expedition in favour of the pretender, from Spain, against Great Britain, ii. 74 Orrery^ vide Broghill. Ossian, authenticity of, disputed, i. 52 Ossory, Upper, earl of, moves in the liritiah house of commons, in favour of the free trade of Ireland, ii. I90 Parliamenty English, passes an ordinance against giving quarter to any Irishman taken m hos- tility to the parliament, i. 382 under William declares the acts of the Irish parliament un- der James II. to have been acts of rebellion and treason, J. 459 ^usurps the right ot iegi^-Iatiiig over Ireland, 1. ioy ^5-7, 55 — - st'.les sucti of the Irish as ad- hered to Jaines II. rebels and* traitors, ii. 27 INDRX. 667 Tarliement, British, passes an act to secure the crown in the pro- testant line, ii. 32 -- passes the schism bill, in 1714, ii. 55 — — grants the Irish propositions, ii- 191 ■ passes the. bill for union^ ii. 564 ■ ■ imperial, members of, how selected, ii. 56G Irish, the first, i. 198 — — several at Kilkenny and Dublin, i. '216 several during Henry IV. i. 234 - ' offensive to the Irish, ih. of Drogheda, i. 275 — — servility of, i. 292 ■ proctors excluded from, i. 294 improvident acts of, i. 316 ■ managed by Wentworth, i. 357 the first under Charles II. how constituted, i. 42o had been none (except that of James II.) for 26 years till Lord Sydney convened one in 1692, i'i. 18 reprimanded and prorogued by Lord Sydney, ii. I9 a new one convened by Lord Capel, ii. 20 passe? resolutions against the resTgnation of members, ii. 36. dissolved on account of whig prevalence, ii. 53 » ■ ■ sets a price of 50,00ol. on the Pretender, ii. 68 addresses the throne against Wood's patent, ii. S3 resolves on an address of thanks to the throne, for ap- pointing Lord Chesterfield lond- iieutenant, ii. I09 Parlimnent, Irish, all who opposed the minister (under Stone) dis- missed, ii. 121 message to parliament about French invasion, and its effects, ii. 127 motion for shortening dura- tion of, ii. 144 — tw<5 bills, brought in bv Mr. Lucas, for securing its freedom lost, ii. 145 octennial bill established, ii. 156 rejects the judges' bill, on account of alterations intro* duced into it by the English cabinet, ib. unconstitutionally prorogued by Lord Towiashend, ii. 16I unconstitutional act for try- ing offenders out of their coun- ties, passed imder Lord Towns- hend, and repealed under Lord Harcon^t, ii. 167 -' first octennial parliament dissolved in four years, ii. 175 Mr. Grattan's motion for legislative independence nega- tived, ii. 213 dissolved in July 1783, ii. 244 vote of thanks to the volun- t(!ers in 1783, ii. 246 reasons for not convening it ont the regency, n. 282-3 desires the lord -lieutenant (A larquis of Buckingham) lo trailsmit its address to the Prince of Wales, which his Excellency refuses, ii. 285 addresses his Majesty on hi;; recovery, and receives a graci- ous an swer, ii. 288 llO' placemen out of 300 member?, ii. 293 603 INDEX. Parliament, Irish, passes several popular acts in 1793, ii. 339 ■'. adjourns under Lord Fitz- william to the loih of April, to give time for the new arrange- ments, ii. 3.57 « prorogued, 5th of June 1 795, ii. 367 — — meets, 2 1 St January 1 796, ii. 372 prorogued, 15ih April 1796, ii. 376 convened in October 1796, ii. 384 — dissolved, 11th July 1797,ii. 405 prorogued^ 6th October 1 708, ii. 513 . meets, 22d January 1 799, ii. 523 motion for the parliament to remove to Cork, ii. 537 ■ members of, shift their seats. 11. 548-9 prorogued on the 1st of June, 1799, ii. 549 • address of both houses, with their resolutions, approving of the articles of union, presented to the British parlianjcnt by the Duke of Portland, ii. 561 passes the bill for union, ii. 563 the last session put an end to, 2d August 1800, ii. 565 Parncll, Sir John, against union, ii. 535 — opposes an adjournment, ii. 560 • moves for a dissolution of parliament, ih. Parsons, Sir William, indicted for high crimes and misdemeanors, 378 — — Sir Lawrence, oppjoses the addrtss which sanct7A>ne^ the measures of the Rutland admi- nistration, ii. 275 Panons, Sir Lawrence, he and Mr. Du Querry alone opposed Lord Fitzwilliam's administration, on the ground of war, ii. 355 moves for an address to Lord Fitzwilliam, on the rumour of his recall, ii. 356 moves a short money-bill, and fails, ii. 357 moves a censure on Lord Westmoreland, for sending troops out of the country, &c. ii. 366 moves for increasing the yeomanry to 50,000 men, ii. 389. his motion to go into the state of the nation, 5th of March 1798, negatived, ii. 418 moves for expunging from the address the paragraph re- lating to union, ii. 524 arraigns the minister for packing a parliament, and moves an amendment for con- tinuing the independence of the Irish parliament, ii. 552 moves for the attendance of Major Rogers and Sheriff Der- by, ii. 555 Parlies, state of, in Ireland, under James I. i. 344 Palrick, Saint, his existence ques- tioned, i. 9, 11 1 sent trom Rome to Ireland, i. 12 baptizes King Loagaire, ib. [)r()ofs of his existence, i. 1 16-7-8 his existence denied by Led- wich, i. I 21 believed by Campbell, i. 128 his civil estimation, i. 12ft INDEX. 609 Patriots in Ireland, who under George I. ii. 79 carry important questions on money-bills, ii. 9s, II7 their cause advanced by the popularity of Lucas and convic- tion of Neville, ii. 119 — their majority of five on the money-bill, ii. 120 — many of them recreant from their principles, ii- 124 — carry an important question against the minister, ii. 125 outvoted on the septennial bill, ii. 145 fail in their motion about pensions, ii. I46 re-attack the pension list, ii. 149 fall off in numbers, il. their motion to enquire into the suppression of the heads of a bill for securing the freedom of parliament negatived, ii. 150 strong address upon the heads of the septennial bill having been arrested by the English privy council negatived, ii, 151 carry a more moderate ad- dress next day, ii. 152 — two popular bills lost in Eng- land, ii. 151 move addresses and resolu- tions descriptive of the distress of the country, ii. 1/3 succeed in rejectmg the fo- reign troops, ii. 172 oppose Fitzgibbon's riot act, ii. 272 persevere in pressing upon the popular subject?, ii. 29-1-5, 301,318 Payney Thomas, his doctrines per- nicious, ii. 303 Peep-of-day Boys, who, why so called, ii. 279,' 280 Peep-of-day Boys, acquire an as- cendancy over the defenders in the north, ii. 291 encrease, ii. 325-6 become Orangemen, and why, ii. 371 defeat the defenders at Dia- mond, in Armagh, ii, 372 P^^rrt^4?5, twelve, created by Queen Ann, ii. 56 unusual creation of, in 1777, ii. 176 sale of, under th« Marquis of Buckingham, ii. 2g0 charged on ministers, and defended from want of evidence, ii. 301 twenty-seven, created on the union, ii. 557 Peers, English, 34, protest against the schism bill, ii. 57. dispute with the Irish peers about appellant jurisdiction, ii. 73 Lord Moira moves for an address to the throne, ii. 390-1-2 Irish, thank the Duke of Ormond for furthering the act to prevent ihe growth of popery, ii. 41 Tories comm.Tud a majoritv, ii. 49 — address the Qncen (Ann) against the coumions, iL — ■■ address tht- Queen in favor of chancellor Pliipps, li. 60 dispute with the English peers about appellant jurisdic- tion, ii. 73 5, with lord-lieutenant, pro- test against the right ot iI)q Irish commons to originate mo- ney bills, li. 159 i5f protest against the ad- dress to his majesty, for con- U 610 INDEX* tiniung Loril Townsend in the government, ii. 164 Teers pai^s strong resoluiidns against tacking to money-bills, ii~ 252 ;■ ■ address to the Prince to ac- cept of the regency voted, ii. 284 protest against it, \h. — — protest against union, ii. 524 . plan of imi(in carried, fi 53S . make some amendments in the articles of union, ii. 561 Duke of Leinsier and others protest against the union-bill, ii. 563 Felham, Mr., county and city of Armagh offer to elect him, ii. 383 moves for referring papers to a secret committee, ii. 393 says neither Defenders nor Orangemen are rebels, ii.418 re^iens his office, ii. 4-20 Vembroke, Earl of, protector of England, i. 181 -r ^extends Magna Charta to Ireland, i. 182 his death, i. 183 Richard, offends Henry, i. Ill, 185 — — treacherously murdered, i. 186 »—- — Earl of, lord-lieutenant in 1707, terms the catholics ene- mies, ii, 63 P£??sions, motions against, nega- tived, ii. 146-9 resolutions against their shameful encrecse, ii. 177 attacked by Mr. Forbes, ii. 266, 276 bill lost, ii. 272 — — list encreased 13,000/. per annum under the Marquis of Buckingham, ii. 2£)l Pery, Mr. gained over by Lord Townshend, ii. 163 elected speaker, ih. succeeded in 1786 by Mr. Foster, ii. 266 Perrot, Sir John, his prudent ad- ministration, ii. 320 Pheniciansy who, i. 40 their mode of preserving their records, i. 144 Phipps, Sir Constantine, lord- chancellor, bis character, ii. 53 the Irish Commons present an address against him, ii. 53, 60 supported by the house of peers and convocation, ii. 60 P'lbacbiroth, idem quod Caperchi- roth, i. 140-1 Pttt, Mr. (afterwards Lord Chat- ham), addressed by the citizens of Dublin on his resignation, ii. 144 William, his administration established, ii. 255 gives a discouraging answer to the inhabitants of Belfast oa reform, ii 260 introduces Mr. Orde's pro- positions into the British house of commons, ii. 263 — reprobates the former system of governing Ireland, ii. 264 abandons Orde's, and frames 20 other propositions, ib. — his restrictions on the regen- cy, ii. 281 — sees the necessity of recon- ciling Ireland, ii. 345 declares the determination of the British cabinet to bring forward catholic emancipation, ib. — assured Lord Westmoreland he should not be removed, ii. 316 INDEX. 611 Fi/#, William, fixes on Lord Cam- den as his successor, ii. 3^6 ■ his dupliciiy about Lord Fitzwilliam, ii. 346-8-9 » secretly opposes his Lord- ship, writes to him on the dis- - missal of Messrs. Wulfe, Toler, and Beresford, ii. 354 — — declares his determination never to abandon the question of union till carried, ii. 528 ■ proposes his resolutions for union, ii. 528 to 531 his ardour for union not checked by opposition, ii. 539 — — his pledge to the catholics for procuring their emancipa- tion, and cause of his resigna- tion, ii. 541-2 Plantations, svstem of, instituted under Elizabeth, i 322 ditto, under James, i. 342 extension of, i. 348 Plautus, his Punic scene intelli- gible to the Irish scholar, i. 48-9 Plnnketf, Oliver, his execution, i. 439 Police bill, unpopular and oppos- ed, ii. 266 report of committee rejected, ii. 289 Ponsonly^ .Tohn, elected speaker of the house of commons, ii. li>8 resigns, ii. 163 = George, supports ministers, ii.201 - moves a vote of thanks to the throne, ii. 221 — — makes a motion on the multiplication of places, ii. 297 r- violent asainst the appoint- ment by government to the office of weigh-master of Cork, ii. 319 sent for to England to advise about the Irish Government, ii. 347 Ponsony, G., opposes the suspen- sion of Habeas CorpuSy ii. 385 William Brab.TZon, moves thanks to Lord Nurlhington, ii. 254 — — his bill for reform in paHia* ment lf)St, ii. 343 introduces his resolutions on reform, ii. 396 his exertions against union in concert with the Marquis of Downeshire, and Lord Charle- mpnt, ii. 5,50 Pope, vitle Adrian. demands tithes of spiritual promotions in Ireland, i 189 excommunicates the lawless Irish, 217 ■ ■ excommunicates queen Eli- zabeth, 320 Portarlington, Lord, for the ca- tholic bill, ii. 336 Porter, S\r Charles, his probity: accused of treason, and atquit- ted, ii. 22 Portland, Duke of. lord-Jieute- nant in 1782, ii. 2] 8 makes a speech from the throne to the irish parliament, ii. 2-26 resigns, ii. 231 coalesces with Mr. Pitt, on condition of reformmg the abuses in Ireland, ii. 545 in favour of union, ii. 561 Portugal, checks on the trade with, ii. 200 motion on, negatived, ii. 201 Powerscourt, Earl, moves an amendment against the address for union, ii. 523 Poynings, Sir Edward, chief go- vernor of Ireland, i. 273 612 INDEX. PqyningSf Sir Edward, grounds of his appointttient, i. 274 defeats Warbeck's attempt, i. 275 his laws, ih. Prejudice, force of, i. 14 infavourofGreeceandRome, i. 2 ' Press, liberty of, Mr. Foster's bill to restrain, ii. £57 • newspaper, censured by Mr. O'Donnell, ii. 416 suppressed, ii. 418 Pretender i 50,0001. seton his head, ii. 61, 65, 68 ■ proposal to proclaim him king on thedeathofQueenAnn,:i.67 — — recruiting for his service at Dublin, ii. 69 expedition in his favour un- der Ormond, planned by Cardi- nal Alberoiii, ii. 74 the young, lands in Scotland ii. 106-7 - death of the old, at Rome in 1765, ii. 149 Przt parliament, national convention at Dublin in favour of, ii. 249 Mr Flood's motion for it, iZ^. • the Irish confide in the new ministers, Mr. Pitt, and the - Duke of Rutland, to obtain it, ii. 256 petitioned for by several counties and boroughs, ib. — — resolutions in favour of it by the aggregate meeting of Dublin signed by the sheriffs, ii. 259 — — committee appointed bv par- liament to enquire into the abu- ses of the state ot representation, ii. 330 Mr. Grattan's resolutions ne- gatived, ii. 334 not supported by the people without, ii, 339 Mr. \V. B. Pon=onby's bill for It, lost, ii. 343 his resolutions in its favour rejected, ii. 398 Reformation begun in Ireland, i. 289 opposed by Cromer, i. 290 ' its progress, i. 295, 3G2 enacted by parliament, i. 3 1 1 viiSti Henry Fill., Edward Vl-, Mary, and EU'i.abelb, Regency, limited, carried by Mr. Titi, ii. 2S1 ■ submitted to by the Prince of Wales, li. 2S3 • the feelings of Ireland upon ii, ii. 282 ^ address to the Prince of Wales voted unanimously, ii. 284 Rege?)cy, the address presented to and answered by the Prince, ii, 287 bill brought forward by the /^ntiunionisis, lost, ii. 548 ^ Repeal, simple, proposed by Mr. Eden, ii. 218 opposed bv Mr Flood, and supported bvMr. Grattan, ii.229 resolutions in favour of, by the volunteers, ii. 232 agitated and debated by the volunteers, ii. 234, 237 Resumption ot lv\sh grants, made by King William, ii. 26-7 Revenue, Mr. Grattan's motion on encrease of revenue officers, ii.. 296 ReiJolutiori, of 1688, brought no liberty to Ireland, ii. 2 a nik:re conquest of Ireland, ii.2, 15 Edmund Burke's opinion of, ib. of France, its effects on Ire- land, ii. 30-2 celebrated by the volunteers at Beliast, 14th ot July, 1792, ii. 307 Reynolds, the informer, account 'of, u. 423 Richard L interferes not with Ireland, i 171 his death, i. 174 //. sketch of his reign, i. 228 gives the regal dominion of Ireland to Robert de Vere, il/. . invades Ireland with much pomp, i 229 is satisfied with the apparent submissi(>n of the Irish, il\ agaisi invades Ireland, i. 230 is taken prisoner in Wales, and d' nosed, i. 231 III. his leign and death, i. 262 dil INDEX. High}', secretary to the Dtike of Bedford, maintains the right of the British Parliament to tax Ireland, ii. 170 • defends the unusual promo- lion to peerages, in 1 777, ii. l 76 Right boys and Capt. Right, what and who, ii, 263 Riotous proceedings in I7S4, ii. 258 Roche, Father Phillip, chosen to succeed Harvey, ii. 4G6 deceived by the acceptance of terms promised by Lord Kingsborough and not ratitied, and taken, ii. 4S1 m h'.dward, a rebel genera!, ii. 468 goes to Wexford to summon all to V^inegar hill, ii. 475 Rodtric O'Connorj invades Lein- ster, i, 155 • his want of resolution, i. 161 ^ his death, i. 1 74 Rogers, iVhtjor, threatens to blow- up the sessions house, at Birr, where some anti-iuiionists had assembled, ii. 554 Rowan, Hamilton, found guilty of a libel in an address to the vo- lunteers, fined and imprisoned, ii. 342 — — escapes from prison ; lOOO/. set on his head, ii. 343 Rutland, Duke of, succeeds Lord Northington, ii. 255 « addressed by parliament, ii. 256 *— — addresses and prorogues the parliament, May 4, i7S4, ii. 256 > •■ his answer to the Sheritl^'s of Dublin on presenting theaddrcss from the agg'egaie mteung, ii. 259 -< in his speech to parliament recon)mends iurihcr considera- tion of the commercial proposi- tions, ii. 266 Riitl Did, Duke of, becomes un- popular, and is insulted at the theatre, ii. 267 his death and character, ii. 274 Sampson, William, his reasons' for CromwtH's hatred to the Irish, i. 41 1 SancboTiiatho, who, i. 58 his history how preserved, i. 59 accords with the Irish annals, i. 66-7-8 his auihenticity, and etymo- loLTV, i 72 Sau/, Mr. prosecuted for protect* " iug Miss Toole, a catholic young ladv, ii. 126 Schomlerg, Duke of, lawless state of hi< armv, i. 456 — — killed at the battle of the Boyne, i. 470 Scotland colonized from Ireland, i. 82 3 Sioil, attorney - general, (after- \vards Lord Clonmel) opposes the vote of thanks to the volui\-! teers, ii 199 ' in favor of Irish legislative independence, ii. 224 ScyU:ians, their consequence, i. 37 language imnmtabie, i. 102 Secret Cowmttti e, their report on Defenders,United Irishmen, &c, ii. 362 ■ '■ appointed to examine the pa- pers seized at Belfist, ii. 394 ' their report, ii. 395 examine the chiefs of the rebels in Aug, and Sept. 1798, ii. 512 •- cautions acainsi their re- port signed by Mess. O'Connor, INDKX. 6li Emmet, and Mac Nevfn, appear in the newspapers, ii. 512 Settlement ot" Irish lands, how contrived under Charles II., i. 423-5 injustice of, i. 423-1-3, 430 ■ ■ James II. disposed to repeal the acts of settlement, i, 445-9 Sbeares, Messrs. committed for high treason, and a bloody pro- clamation found in their house, ii. 430 Mr.Emmett's evidenceabout, ii. 431. executed, ii. 49S Sheehyy a Roman catholic clergy- man, unjustly executed, ii. 140 Shelhuryie^ Lord, his motion in favour of Ireland in the Brilish Peers negatived, ii. I8y hismot,ion for Irish independ- ence in the British Lords, ii. 225 Sheridan, R. B. in the British Commons, moves an amend- ment to the address on the ques- tion of union, ii. 527 his resolutions a'oout the free consent of parliament rejected, ii. 532-3 his substitute for union re- jected, ii. 534 Uherifs, of Dublin, Mr. Reilly, fined and imprisoned, ii. 2i)9, 261 petitioned to convene meet- ings to prejiare addresses to the throne for the removal of mi- nisters, and mostly refuse, ii.404 Simnel, Lambert, v^dio, i. 265 his arrival in Dublin, i. 266 ■ ■■ proclaimed king, and crown- ed, Uk ' again crowned with more solemnity, i. 268 --'■■■ his parliament, ib. Sirnnel, Lambert, taken prisoner in the battle at Stoke, i. 269 Speaker oi the house of Comtnons, contest about the election of Stanyhurst and Sir Christopher Barnewall, i. 315 Mr. John Ponsonby elected, ii. 158 resigns, ii. 163 Mr. Sexton Pery, elected, ib. of the imperial parliament, his speech to the King on the unif)n, ii. 567 Stafford, Colonel, betravs Wex- ford to Cromwell, i, 400 Statutes of Kciward J. i. 1.98 of Kilkenny, i. 224 about tlie King's supremacy, i. 291 Steel boys, their origin and sup- pression, ii. 143 Stoke, battle of, i. 2G9 Stone, Primate, iiis testimony of Irish loyalty, in 1745, ii. 108 isentru-ied with the manage- ment of the English interest, ii. 115 bis character, ih. opposed by his colleague, Mr. Bovle, ii. 116 Lord Clare's represcntationof his adniimstration, ib. vvhollv manages the Duke of Dor«;ci, ii. 1 20 violent in Iiis measures, ii. 121 disgraced and struck off the list ot privy counsellors, Ii. 123 his death, in 1764, ii. 148 Strafford, vide IVentivorth. Strong bow, engages for Dermod, i. 157 his success rouses Henry's jealousy, i. 159 hi? letter to Henry, ih. 616 INDEX. Stronghotv, reconciled with Henry, i.l60 — — — appointed sole covernor of Ireland, i. 169 * ' his death, ib. Sussex, Karl of, extends the pale, i.307 - represents to Elizabeth the bad ffftcts of her measures re- specting the reformatinxi, i.313 Swan^ Mr. Justice, arrests the Leinster deltiiates in the house of Mr. ()liverBond,ii. 424 Swijt, Dean, his character of doctor Lesley, i. 443 his character of the Earl of Wharton, ii. 46 his patriotism and character, ii 80 his Drapior's letter, ib. Tandy, James Napper, secretary to the socicfN of iniited Irish- men in Dublin, ii. 306 fied to the continent, ii. 880 excepted f)v.t of the act of Amnt'Stx-, ii. .501 Toy ah. defeat of the rebels at, ii. 442 Temple, Earl succeeds the Duke of Poribnd as lord iieu'enant, ii. 236 his general cliaracter and po- pular; iv, lb. - auv rvssed bv the corporation ofDiibiii,, ii.241 f— — quits the government 3d June, 1783, ii. 243 — — thanks ot tht- commons to h;ni opposed (/.ii\ bv 3 n.eni- bersp ii. 24b" • succf^ds tl.v Duke of Rut- land, ii. 27." » ■ conu:.tuU> ii:c late system in his address to the ParTiament, ih. Temple, Earl, his secret system, ii. 276 pursues the plan of his pre- decessor, ih, prorogues the parliament prematurely, ii.277 — his ris;orous scrutiny into the subaltern departments, ii. 278 afraid to convene parliament on the resency. ii. 281 — instructed from England to prepare Ireland for a limited re- gency, ii. 283 — refuses to transmit the ad- dress of parliament to the Prince of Wales, ii. 285 announces to the Irish par- liament the King's recovery, ii. 288 appoints a day of public thanksgiving, \b. — opposed and disliked in his government, ii. 290 — corruption of his govern- ment, ib. — - displaces all who voted for the address to the Prince, ib. encrcases the pension list by 13,0001. per annum, ii.291 celebrates the Kind's reco- very by a superb gala, and in- vi'es none who voted for the address to the Prince, ib. — retires secretly from irelatid, ii. 292 — severe charges against him by Mr. G rattan, ii. 295 — his attempt to gain over Mr. G Ponsonby, ii. 319 — for union, ii. 550 Jhurloic, Lord, recommends the Irish judicature bill to b^ put oft, li .240 INDEX. 617 Thurloiif.t Lord, commends Earl Temple, ii. 240 Tic/jborne, Sir Henry, vide LorJs Justices. ^ — his account of Ormond's op- position to the cessation, i. 379 Tighermasy killed by lightning, i. 67 Tithes^ abolition of agistment, ii. 101 -^ resolutions of the grand jury of Armagh, in 1S08, as to tithes, ii. 103 • Mr. Grattan's resolutions negatived, ii. 272 Mr. Fitzherbert's bill for clergy to recover, ii. 275 — - bill introduced by Mr. Grat- tan appointing commissioners to enquire into the stateof tithes, ii. 289 — — act to quiet and bar all claims of agistment for dry and barren cattle, and cause of, ii. 562 Tone, Theobald Wolfe, his trial and lamentable end, ii. 516 Tories, address Oueen Ann against the Presbyterians, ii. 47 — — prevalent in the Irish Peers, ii. 49, 79 • ■ ditto in the English Com- mons, ii. 56-g — — dismissed from the councils of George [., ii. 68 Ttttvnshend , Mr. Thomas, (after- wards Lord Sydney) in the British Commons censures Lord Harcouri*s conduct as to the 4000 men sent to America, ii. 175 - ■ proposes a bill to take away appellant jurisdiction from the courts of Great Britain, ii. 238 Marquis, lord lieutenant, system of governing Ireland when he went over, ii. 1 52-3 Townshend, Marquis, attempts to destroy it, ii. 154 his address in managing the system and his character, ii. 155 — — countenances the cry for sep- tennial parliaments, ib. drawn by the populace on the passing of the septennial bill, ii. 156 loses his popularity, ii. 157 sends a message to parlia- ment about the increase of the army, ib. dissolves the parliament, and after a lapse of 16 months con- venes a new one, ii. 158 — irritated at the resolutions of the commons in favor of their originating money bills, ib. is prevented from protesting against them in their journals, ii. 159, 162 protests in the lords, ib. motion against his sudden- ly proroguing the parliament carried by 106 against 73, ii. 161 prorogues the parliament in- stantly, ib. makes many proselytes, ii. 161 secures a majority of one third of the house, ii. 164 finds the fiscal resources of Ireland insufficient, ii. 165 procures an increase of lol. per annum to popish priests conforming, ib. makes an interesting speech on commercial propositions, ii. 264 Trade, resolutions of Dublin and Waterford about trade, ii. ISS — ~ Mr. Grattan moves for a free trade, ii. 185- 61$ INnBX. Trade^ Lord Noith's 3 proposi- tions upon free trade, ii. IQI > debates upon it in the British parliament, ii. 188-9 Tradition^ facility of, io 18-9, 22- 4-5 r-r— - not confined to one line of patriarchs, i. 19, 20 Troy, Catholic Bishop of Ossory, quiets theWhitt-boys, for which be is thanked by government, ii. 262 Tijrconnel, Earl of, head of the armvjdislikedby the protcs'.ant.'?, 445-6 disposes the King f JainesII.) to the repeal of the acts of set- tlement, i. 445-9 — — appointed lord deputy, i. 443 his character, i. 446-9 ' — — summons the loyal Irish to arm against the rebels, i. 452 — — his proclamation to persuade the rebels to lay down their arms, i. 453 — — imposes on the King, i. 461 = appointed chief governor by James, after he had left the country, i. 475 Tyrone^ Earl of, his insurrection, i. 303 '^ forced to submission, i. 327-9 ' his insurrection encouraged by Jam^es, i. 332 - JJnion of Ireland with Great Bri- tain first projected under the Duke of Bedford, ii. 129 opposed by the Irish interest, and productive of riots, ib. ^— — Lofd Cornwallis instructed to bring it about, ii. 519 -« Mr; Cooke's pamphlet on union, ii, 520 Unlony it divides the nation into new parties, ii. 520 - — — resolutions of the bar against it, ii. 520-1 ■ ditto of Dublin against it, ii. 521 ditto various against it, ii. 522-3, 554 recommended in speech from the throne, ii. 523 first question of, carried in the Irish Pters, il. 524 ditto in the Commons by a majority of one, ib. — rejected in the Commons by a majority of 6, ii. 525 introduced into the British Parliament by Lord Grenville and Mr. Dundas, ii. 526 Mr. Pitt proposes his reso- lutions on union, ii. 528 to 531 — votesof the British Commons in favour of union communica- ted to the British Peers, ii. 534 various resolutions and ex- ertions against, ii. 537-8 — ~ wished by some to be car- ricd by awe of military disci- pline, ii. 539 — - conference of the British houses upon it, ii. 543 British Parliament address the crown for union, ii. 544-5 government patronage em- ployed in proselytizing for it^ ii. 549, 551^ — — unjustifiable means for and against it, ji. 550 articles of, carried in th^ Irish Comxnons, ii. 55^ — '■ — ditto in the Lords, ii. 558 introduced into the British parliament ii. 561 plan of, approved and sent to Ireland, ii. 561-2 IK I) EX. 619 tfnion, till for, passes the Irish parliament, ii. 563 • ditto the British parliament, ii. 564- • receives the royal assent, ii, 565 ■ ' ■ ■ is announced by proclama- tion, ii. 568 United Irishmen, first institution of, in 1791, ii. 305-6 ■ ' " ' publish a declaration of their poHlical tenets, test, aad consti- tution, ii. 307 — — address the volunteers, ii. 342 — — offended at Mr. Grattan's reprobating their system of an- nual parliaments, and universal suffrage, ii. 343 — — not criminal in 1794, ih. — — difference between the first and the last, ii. 34<4< — -— their test originally confined to parUamentary reform, ii. 345 — encrease in numbers, ii. 367 _ ^ .^ — their views according to Mess. O'Connor, Emmett, and Mac Neven, ii. 36s- 9 . their oath, ii. 370 how far connected with de- fenders, ii. 378-9 . - ■ ■ how armed and organized, ii. 381 not guilty of having a com- mittee of assassination, ib. . . ■ two committees arrested and their papers seized at Belfast, ii. 393 ' acquitted in Rex v. Hanlm and Nqgber, ii. 394 — — diminish in Ulster in the summer of 1797, ii. 400 ~ their leaders give out reports of intended general massacres, ii, 401 Z7n«/(°(^Irishmen,theirnegociation9 with the French, ii. 40-2-3 ■ engage the Dutch to prepare for the invasion of Ireland, which leads to Lord Duncan's victorv, ii. 403 wish the ministers to remain in ofEce, ii. 405 in 1797 the secret committee reports their cause to be on the decline, ib. charged in the British par- liament with intentions of as- sassinations, ii. 410 resolve on a desperate effort, ii. 414 memoir of Messrs. O'Con- nor, Emmett, and Mac Neven, ii. 368, 402, 420 betrayed by Revnolds, ii. 423 their conduct on the seizure of the Leinster delegates, ii* 424-5 ■■ choose a nev/ directorv, ii* 425 betrayed by Captain Arm- strong, ib. bill for disqualifying all who bad taken the oath from sitting; and voting m parliament, reject- ed, ii. 545 Usbefy Archbishop, heads tlie clergy in declaring against the kings acceptance of the eatho-*- lics' offer of 5000 infaniry and 500 cavalry as the price oF idol- atry and superstition, i. 352 enters a catholic chapel, ia tim'i of divine service, demo- lishes, and diaperses, See. i. 354 Veracity, grounds of, i. 50 Ferekcr, Colonel, makes an ho- norable stand against the Freuch, ii. 508 X 2 620 INDEX. Verse, used to commemorate, past events, i. 51-2 Vinegar hill, rebels encamp on, ii. 461 battle of, ii. 4-78-9 Volunteers^ origin and cause of, ii. 183-4-186 . encouraged by government, ii. 18G 1 in 1 779 amount to 42,000,/^. Mr. Fox's opinion of, ii. 190 their progress and system, ii. 192-3 assert the independence of their country, ii. 103 votes of thanks to, ii. 199^ 246 government wishes, but fears to disarm them, ii. 199 conduct and resolutions of. ii. 207, 209 — their first meeting, ii. 208 — address the minority in par- liament, ii. 210 — their resolutions in favor of simple repeal, ii. 232 — their addresses, ii. 233 — their delegates graciously re- ceived in England, ih. dissentions among them, th. — debate about simple repeal, ii. 234 — — agitate the question of sim- ple repeal with more violence than the parliament, ii- 237 convention at Lisburnc, ii. 245 — their resolutions,and address- es for reform, ii. 245-6 — supported by opposition, ii. 248-9 supposed to have given Mr. Flood instructions to move for parli mentary reform, ii. 250 — panegyrized byMr. Flood,//'. Volunteers, government attempts to discredit them, ii. 256 Lord Charlemont objects to admit the catholics to the rights of election, ii. 260 decline by dissention, ib, 2d meeting of theirdelegates, their proceedings less animated, ii. 262 King's answer unfavorable to the delegates, ii. 263 - — — celebrate the French revolu- tion at Belfast, ii. 307 addressed by the united Irish- men, for which Mr. Hamilton Rowan was imprisoned, ii. 342 IVakeJield, battle of, i. 252 If ales, vide Prince. IValpole, Colonel, killed by the rebels, ii. 461 Walsh, a confidant of Ormond, who, i. 432 IVarheck, Perkin, who^ i. 270 appears in Ireland, i. 272 his short stay there, and its effects, ib. — his first attempt defeated by Poynings, i. 273 — marries Lady Catharine Gor- don, i. 280 lands in Cornwall, surren- ders, and is hanged, ib. Warwick, Earl of, executed, i. 281 JVent'worth, (Earl of Strafford), dislikes Ireland, i. 355 his duplicity to the catholics i. 356 disapproves of maintaining the army with catholic fines, ib. his pride and arrogance, ib, manages parliament, i. 357 concurs with Charles in a direct system of fraud and de- ceit, i. s'59 INDEX, ^^ IVentworth, (Earl of Strafford) his falsehoods, i. 360 -■ institutes a high commission court, i. 361 sets about the inquisition into the titles of ail Connanght against the act of James T. i.361 his corrupt and despotic deal- ings with juries, sheriffs, judges, &c. i. 362-3 ■ recalled, but returned with additional honor and power, i. 364 — — alarmed at the Scotch cove- nanters, ib. raises 9000 men, 8000 of whom were catholics, i. 3G5 — — his testimony of the loyalty of the catholics, i. 365-8 — — procures surreptitiously his own encomium to be entered on the journals, i. 365 ■— — the commons protest against it next session, ih. impeached, attainted, and be- headed, i. 366 — — his attainder reversed in 1660, ih. Westmoreland, Earl of, succeeds the Marquis of Buckingham, ii, 293 — — adopts the Marquis of Buck- ingham's system, ib. prorogues and dissolves the parliament, ii. 300 seeks popularity, ib. — — — communicates to parliament - the King's approbation of the indulgencies conceded to the Roman catholics, ii. 320, 340 communicates a message to parliament on the commence- ment of hostilities with France, ii. 334 his speech to parliament, August 10, 1793, ii. 340 lVe<;tmoreland, Earl of, address- ed by the catholic bishops, ii. 342 succeeded by Lord Fitzwil- liam, ii. 350 asserts in the British house of peers, that Lord Fitzwilliam countenanced catholic emanci- pation with the disapprobation of the British cabinet, ii. 349 Sir L. Parsons moves a vote of censure upon him, for having sent troops out of the country, 366 IFexford,^ Oliver Cromwell's mas- sacre, i. 400 rising in that county, and why, ii. 446 to 450-3 abandoned by the troops and entered by the rebels, ii. 459, 468 their conduct during 3 weeks possession, ii. 468 to 480 atrocities committed by Dixon, ii. 470-1-2 number of protestants en- creascd by the fugitives, ii, 471 ten murdered by the rebels on the 6th of June, ib. consternation on the approach of the King's troops, ii. 475 sick and wounded massacred by the King's troops, ii. 479 evacuated by the rebels, ii. 480 final dispersion of the Wex- ford rebels, ii. 492 vindictive cruelty of the Wcxtovd men composincr the committee to superintend pro- secutions, ii. 493-4 JVharton, Earl of, lord-lieutenant, flatters and deceives the dissent- ers, and oppresses the cathciics, ii, 45 62S INDEX* Whartorii Earl of, his profligate character, by Swift, ii. 46 JVhiggism, principle of, ii. 235 Whigs, taken into favour by George I. ii. 6s »— — great defection from that party in England, ii. 302 * branded as Democrats and Jacobins, ii. 302-3 *— — their principles in Ireland different from those in England, ii. 17 — — command a majority in the commons, ii. 52-3 Whig Club, established in Ireland, ii. 293 — refuses to agitate the catholic question, ii. 324- — — petitions the King, ii. 404 White Boys, origin of, ii. 136 attempt to fix the catholics with the disloyalty attending their insurrections, ii. 140 bind themselves by ^oath to each other, ii. 141 " ' caUed the Popish insurrec- tion, ib. suppressed, ii. 142 — — revival of, ii. 262 White, Hawtrey, gives false in- formation to createalarms,ii. 503 — -- arrested in consequence, ib. Whitshed, chief-justice, improper conduct of, ii. 80 Wicklozo, rising in that county, and vviiy, ii. 453 William, (Prince of Orange), na- t»ire of his contest with James II. i. 463 — — his difficulties after his ac- cession to the Eui'lish throne, 1. ^Q5 — — — sides with the Tories, ih. ——— addresged not to expose his person in Irtland, i. 466 - — ■ — in consequence prorogues. and dissolves the English par- liament, ib. William, (Prince of Orange) sailff for Ireland, with his army, i. 467 the battle of the Boyne, William is wounded, i. 468 his brave conduct, i. 470 his progress after the battle of the Boyne, i. 472 invests Limeric, fails, and returns to England, i. 473 anxious to terminate the war in Ireland, i. 474 battle of Aghrim, i. 475 — — — not naturally intolerant, ii. 4, 31 — — difference between him and his parliament, ii. 4 is addressed by, and answers the English house of commons, ii. 5 willing to observe the articles of Limeric, ii. g offered to the Irish terms more favourable than the arti- cles of Limeric, ii. 12 thwarted by his English par]4ament, particularly in the resumption of Irish grants, ii.26 seriously affected by the act of resumption, ii. 29 his death, ii. 32 disliked by the Irish, ih: Windsor, peace of, i. 166 Wood, his halfpence, ii. 82 opposed by all parties in Ire- land, ii. 82-3, 90 his' patent revoked, ii. 84 Wollaghan, his trial for murder and acquittal, ii. 514 Wright, Mr., whipped, and reco- vers 500/. against Mr. Judkin Fitzgerald, ii. 428, 446-7 YehertoUf Mr., (late Lord Avon- I^DEX. more) inoves an address to the throne on the surrender of Lord Cornwallis in America, ii. 202 Yelvertony Mr., exposes the inhu- manity of Mr. Jadkin Fitzge- r Id, ii 54.6 Y'^omanry, institution of, in 1796, ii. 382 — — encrease of, to 50,000, op- posed by government, ii. 389 ■ ■ ■ burn the catholic chapel of Boolavogue, ii. 4.54' ■«.. thelr^outrages, ii. 454-5 » their massacre of prisoners at Carnew and Dunlavjn, ii. 456 — — threaten to massacre the prisoners at Wexford jail, ii.458 < ■' their excesses and outrages at Gorey, ii. 482 r pursued by a body c^ rebels in consequence, ib. = their excesses and outrages ijithe Macpmoreg, ii. 502-3 Teomanry, their bloody system proved on the trial of Vi-AUg-.^ han, ii.514 ^' infamous conduct of som. of them proved in thg case of the King v. 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