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CSO/RP/CA/1824/31

Memorandum by author identified as 'S N E' [Stephen N Elrington] providing an eyewitness account of an aggregate meeting of the Catholic Association at Townshend Street Chapel, chaired by Sir Thomas Esmonde; Counsellor Fitzsimon proposed a vote of thanks to [Nicholas Purcell] O’Gorman and both he and O’Gorman noted the great increase in membership and income since their last aggregate meeting; [Frederick W] Conway read letter from Lord Killeen regretting that he could not attend; Hugh O’Connor proposed that a petition demanding emancipation be drawn up noting the absence of catholics in the Corporation [of Dublin] and Corporation of the Bank of Ireland; various resolutions were proposed and seconded by Mr Harte, Gerald Deace, [Richard] O’Gorman, [Frederick W] Conway, Mr O’Brien, Mr Bellew, [Richard Lalor] Sheil, Mr Dace, Mr Baggot, Mr O’Farrell, Luke Plunkett and [John] Bric; Sheil recounted an anecdote about a man from Waterford who rescued seven men from drowning in Waterford – when Mr McDougall sought a reward for this man he was asked if the rescuer was a catholic or protestant or was he ‘to use the language of [William] Saurin “of the right sort”’; Sheil expressed his respect for the Attorney General [William Plunkett] but could not agree with the enormous incomes secured for the clergy – ‘was it better that Parsons should be fat, or that the People should be free?’. [Daniel] O’Connell, in a lengthy speech, assured the meeting that emancipation was now inevitable; pointed out the contortions of their enemies and hostile newspapers; mocked Sir Abraham King and Master Ellis; commented on the murders in the north; claimed that seven million catholics remained unstained by crime or guilt; challenged the ‘British Press’ and ‘British Bigots’ to point out how and when the association had violated any laws; refuted the claim that the association was made up of ‘a few agitating Lawyers … a few busy bodies’; claimed that the threat of a government proclamation against them had raised the catholic rent from £500 to £1000 per week; Baggot proposed that an address be presented to the king recommending that parliament consider their grievances; a resolution was passed stating that the association did not represent, nor did it affect to represent the people of Ireland; Mr MacDonnell and Mr Ronan supported a resolution that ‘if their petition for Emancipation were rejected they would proclaim the conduct of England thro’ all civilized Europe’; noted that between 200 and 300 spectators attended, mainly from ‘the lower classes’; recommended that the report be referred to [] Abdy and the Solicitor General.

2 Dec 1824

1824

CSO/RP/CA/1824/32

Memorandum by author identified as 'S N E' [Stephen N Elrington] providing an eyewitness account of a meeting of the Catholic Association at the Corn Exchange, chaired by James O’Connell; most of the meeting was taken up with reading letters enclosing subscriptions and admitting over 100 new members, one third of whom were catholic clergymen; Mr M’Namara [McNamara] claimed that police in County Clare were ‘getting up a Paddy M’Kew plot’ and had brought in a number of ‘Pastotini prophecies’; [Nicholas Purcell] O’Gorman read a reply from Eneas MacDonnell accepting a salary of £300 and noting that he had been admitted as a member of the British Catholic Association; in a letter Maurice O’Connell of Kerry urged the association to mix moderation with fairness; [Daniel] O’Connell commented on this letter from his 97 year old relative and stated that if catholics ‘had joined Scotland when Charles Stewart’s army reached Carlisle … the present Royal family may have been read of in the Epitaphs at Hanover as those of the Stewards are in France’ [passage underlined in pencil]; O’Connell also denied the accusation in ‘The Courier’ newspaper claiming that the Catholic Convention had been engaged in the last rebellion noting that one of his relatives had loyally arrested a French Officer at Bantry Bay; [Richard Lalor] Sheil asked if the movement for catholic emancipation and the end of slavery in the Americas had not commenced with the French Revolution and he lauded France where Huguenots were admitted to positions of trust and profit; Sheil welcomed Mr Stewart of Waterford as a new member and urged the catholics of Waterford to oppose the Beresford interest; O’Connell welcomed a second letter from Mr Jevers of Paris, offering to spread the proceedings of the association throughout Europe but Mr O’Reilly wondered if Jevers was writing at the behest of the British government; O’Connell argued that if they had an adequate number of collectors the catholic rent would yield ‘fifty times as much’ and a letter from Mr Crane was read complaining of the ‘backwardness’ of the collection at Saint Mary’s; Morgan Connell of Bantry, [County Cork] in a letter, requested 1000 copies of the address which was ‘read from the altar’; the committee of grievances was asked to investigate a claim from Charles Church of M[ount]rath, [County Laois] that gunpowder was confiscated from a Mr Arnet; Mr Ronan repeated his charge against Delap, a police man in Waterford and was supported by Sheil who claimed that Delap was unsuitable to hold such a position as he had been acquitted of murder ‘on a point of law’ and despite objections from Mr Baron this matter was referred to the committee of grievances; O’Connell read [Patrick] Curtis’ [Catholic archbishop of Armagh] letter concerning education and noted that he held hopes and fears for the findings of the parliamentary commission on education [Commission of Education Inquiry]; Mr Devreux [Devereux] noted that the government had fraudulently promised Sir John Newport that liberal persons would be nominated to this commission and had appointed Mr Blake who was known to be hostile to the petition of the catholic hierarchy, [John] Leslie Foster a supporter of the Bible Society and [Frankland] Lewis whose wife was a collector for the Kildare Place Society; O’Connell suggested that he, Sheil and Mr Wolfe visit the Catholic Associations in Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and London to explain their objectives and claims; noted that £6000 catholic rent had already been collected and that funds were vested in a private security and government stock.

9 Dec 1824

1824

CSO/RP/CA/1824/33

Memorandum by author identified as 'S N E' [Stephen N Elrington] providing an eyewitness account of a meeting of the Catholic Association at the Corn Exchange, chaired by Mr Barron of Waterford; noted that the catholic rent was invested in the names of [Cornelius] M’Loughlin [McLoughlin], D Lynch and [Nicholas] Mahon, treasurers; a number of letters were read including from [Richard Hely Hely-Hutchinson, 1st Earl of Donoughmore] praising the Hutchinson family, from John Luther of Clonmel proposing 74 candidates for membership, from Rev Corbett of Kilrush, [County Clare] reporting on a grievance and from the Ladies of Drogheda concerning fundraising; new members were admitted including Mr Crawford of the firm Bemish and Crawford, [Thomas Coen] the Catholic Bishop of Clonfert, [William Thomas Nugent, 5th Baron Nugent of Riverston], General O’Farrell Ambrose and Dr O’Reilly of Waterford, the only surviving delegate of 1793; [Nicholas Purcell] O’Gorman reported that police in County Clare had searched peasants for arms and asked that more copies of the address to the people be circulated; noted that this address was being translated into Irish; O’Connell noted that catholic soldiers were unable to advance in the British army but that many, including his relatives, were promoted on the continent; D Lynch presented a report recommending that a delegation comprised of O’Connell, Sheil and [John] Bric visit catholic associations in England; O’Connell refused to allow individuals from Cavan join the association anonymously, despite the interjections of Mr O’Reilly, and clarified that they were not a secret society; O’Connell noted that 100000 catholic tracts were ready for circulation to schools; in a speech eulogising the editors of the ‘London Examiner’ who had contributed £5, O’Connell stated that if Ireland were not ‘restored to her rights’ he wished that ‘a new Bolivar may be found … and that the spirit of the Greeks and the South Americans may animate the people of Ireland’ [this passage extensively highlighted in pencil]; Sheil was anxious that every chance be given to the parliamentary education commission and both he and [Frederick W] Conway stated, for the record, that Mr Blake had recently declined to subscribe to [the Kildare Place Society] and that Leslie Foster believed that the people of Ireland could not be educated without the aid of the catholic clergy; O’Gorman proposed that an address be made to the people of England urging them not to support bible societies and schools whose aim was to ‘uncatholicize’ Ireland; Mr M’Namara [McNamara] noted that at a bible meeting in Ennis, attended by Capt Gordon and Mr Noel, it was said that there were 23 [Kildare Place Society] schools in County Clare; O’Connell hoped that Mr Stewart would be elected for Waterford and the Hares and Bandons ‘driven’ from Cork adding that the Beresfords were a ‘tastleless’ and ‘talentless family’ hostile to everything serviceable to Ireland; in response to a letter from Mr Lawless of Belfast, O’Connell claimed that amongst the northern dissenters who abandoned the catholics in the 1798 rebellion were the father and uncle of [Henry] Joy, Solicitor General [passage underlined and including annotation ‘Shame!’]; Sheil however hoped that presbyterians and catholics would unite against the established church; O’Connell presented four petitions on the subjects of emancipation, church building, tithes and church rents and church wardens and moved that the forthcoming report on the Delap case be presented to [Richard Wellesley, Lord Lieutenant] to prevent it being ‘cushioned’ in [Henry] Goulburn’s [Chief Secretary] office; O’Connell proposed that they subscribe £20 to John Smith’s society for the protection of protestant dissenters in London.

16 Dec 1824

1824

CSO/RP/CA/1824/34

Memorandum by author identified as 'S N E' [Stephen N Elrington] providing an eyewitness account of a meeting of the Catholic Association at the Corn Exchange, chaired by Dr Magee; several letters to the association were read including from [Edward] Kernan, Catholic Bishop of Clogher enclosing £35 catholic rent; it was reported in a letter from Thurles that persons were endeavouring to stir up the people and that ‘a well-dressed fellow in a gig’ was seen distributing tracts by Pastorini; [Daniel] O’Connell reprobated the false claims of an informer, ‘the vilest class of people in the world’, that 1600 rebels were lately seen near Roscrea and he urged the people to remain quietly obedient to the law; noted that the address to the people had been translated into Irish by Rev Fitzgerald of Limerick; O’Connell read a letter from Lord Cloncurry, residing at Torquay, which commented on the delegation to England; [Richard Lalor] Sheil, in a passionate speech, clarified the intended purpose of this deferred mission to change the opinions of the English, and stated that it was monstrous to suppose that they sought revolution or actions against the public peace asking who would be ‘wicked, foolish and mad enough to embark in that which must end in their own destruction?’; O’Connell claimed that he had been misrepresented in ‘Saunders’ newspaper concerning his comments on Maynooth College and noted that the London agent had been instructed to threaten the ‘Courier’ newspaper with legal action concerning their article on the same subject; O’Connell also denied that he had said that Dr Flood was an United Irishman; Mr O’Flaherty, a witness in the case of ‘The King versus O’Connell’ informed the meeting that he had been ‘trepanned’ by the police ‘into giving evidence in support of his own report in the Morning Post’ [noted that this statement was greeted by ‘Thunders of applause’]; noted that 300 persons attended this meeting and that the hall was being altered to accommodate members and the admission of ladies.

30 Dec 1824

1824

CSO/RP/CA/1825/1

Memorandum by author identified as 'S:NE' providing an eyewitness account of a meeting of the Roman Catholic Association, held at the Corn Exchange, [Dublin] chaired by [Col] Pierce Butler; Daniel O’Connell condemned Rev McNeile, son-in-law of the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, who at a recent ‘Bible meeting’ in London libellously claimed that the Roman Catholic clergy of Ireland were circulating the work of Pastorini and also commented on reports of intimidation of catholics by protestant tenants at the Powerscourt Estate; O’Connell mentioned a number of ‘Paddy McKew’ plots in Ireland which were being investigated by the police but added that as their rent plan was promoting tranquillity throughout the country and that the ‘catholic rent collectors were friends of Government’; O’Connell commented on the spying and informing system transacted from [William] Gregory’s, [Under Secretary] office in Dublin Castle where ‘none but sworn Orangemen were so employed’ and denied that the Catholic Association wished to meddle in the question of reform; [Frederick W] Conway read a letter from Rev M Roche of County Wicklow claiming that the actions of local landlords and orange associations were impacting on the collection of the catholic rent; O’Connell and Mr Finn disagreed on whether to pursue ‘The Courier’ newspaper in the courts over its attack on the catholic clergy and Maynooth College; [Richard Lalor] Sheil spoke about the late arrest and failed prosecution of O’Connell and proposed a resolution congratulating O’Connell on his victory and also congratulating ‘Mr Plunkett on his defeat’ to which O’Connell later replied that he hoped the fact that a ‘Protestant Jury had done him justice’ might encourage the people of Ireland to always respect the laws as he had done; other resolutions were proposed and seconded by Mr Clinch, Mr Fitzgerald, [Frederick W] Conway and Anthony Brown; [John] Bric expressed his disbelief about rumours that the association was to be supressed adding that O’Connell had ‘done more towards securing the tranquillity of the country than the paid officers of the state’; finally 85 new members were enrolled, a letter from Lord Cloncurry [Valentine Browne Lawless, 2nd Baron Cloncurry] was read and it was announced that the late chairman would be offering himself as a candidate for County Kilkenny in the next election [this latter point has been highlighted in pencil]; noting amount of catholic rent collected.

8 Jan 1825

1825

CSO/RP/CA/1825/2

Memorandum by author identified as 'S:NE' providing an eyewitness account of a meeting of the Roman Catholic Association, held at the Corn Exchange, [Dublin], chaired by Lord Killeen [Arthur James Plunkett, 9th earl of Fingall] and Sir Simon Broadstreet; Killeen acknowledged that 'despite past differences' they would now come together as 'one man' in Parliament and later Daniel O'Connell eulogized Lord Fingal [Arthur James Plunkett, 8th earl of Fingall], Killeen and Broadstreet and rejoiced at the union of the Irish clergy, peerage and people; [Nicholas Purcell] O’Gorman commented on the trial and acquittal of a soldier of the 25th Regiment in County Clare accused, under the Insurrection Act, of promoting ‘an imaginary Confederacy’; [Patrick] Costello condemned the actions of Rev Dawson of Castlecomer, County Kilkenny who accused Mr W Maher of allowing ‘seditious meetings’ on his licenced premises which were in fact meetings of the association's rent collectors; O’Connell proposed that court proceedings for libel be instigated against Dawson ‘in his own county (Kilkenny) where his character was known’; Richard O’Gorman then spoke on the need to circulate the ‘Proceedings of the Catholic Association’ and newspapers like ‘The Morning Register’ and the ‘Dublin Evening Post’ throughout England to counteract the influence of the ‘callous Absentee, and his agent, the little noteless squire’ who vilify the Irish character and religion in England and who deceive the English people who, in his opinion, were ‘a frank race of men, and ardent lovers of liberty’; Mr Briscoe read an address from the catholic inhabitants of Bolton, Lancashire, [England]; Mr Therry reported on an association meeting in Newcastle, County Limerick where the 7000 strong crowd was addressed by a priest in the Irish language; Therry also spoke on the subject of education and the Kildare Place Society and moved that the ‘Report of the Catholic society for promoting the education of the poor in Ireland’ be referred to a committee to draw up a petition to parliament; Edward and Arthur Preston and 70 others were admitted as members; noting amount of catholic rent collected.

27 Jan 1825

1825

CSO/RP/CA/1825/3

Memorandum by author identified as 'S:NE' providing an eyewitness account of a meeting of the Roman Catholic Association, held at the Corn Exchange, [Dublin], chaired by Sir Thomas Esmonde [9th Baronet Esmonde]; noted that Lord Gormanstown [Edward Preston, 13th Viscount Gormanston] was to chair the meeting but did not attend; [Daniel] O’Connell expressed gratitude to those who had signed the protestant petition in favour of catholics which was circulating around Dublin and recalled that protestants had granted concessions and the franchise in 1778 and 1793 respectively; [Frederick W] Conway added that the petition was signed by Sir Francis Lynch Bloss [9th Baronet Bloss] who had recently taken orders in the Established Church; it was noted that the Society of London Dissenters refused to accept a subscription of £20 from the association; [John] Lawless objected to ‘Mr O’Connell’s constant allusions to Dissenters’ adding that they had been vindicated by the Duke of Hamilton [Alexander Hamilton, 10th Duke of Hamilton] from a ‘hypocritical prosecution, instituted by a hypocritical Attorney General’; Lawless also proposed a vote of thanks to Hamilton and Mr Jeffrey; [Nicholas Purcell] O’Gorman reported on a meeting at Nenagh, [County Tiperary] to which Mr Lanigan added that all the protestants in Nenagh were Orangemen; [Richard Lalor] Sheil emphysised O'Connell's loyalty and defended the speech made on 16 December which only alluded ‘hypothetically’ to South America; O’Connell spoke in favour of a draft petition to parliament asking that catholics be admitted to both houses of parliament, stating that he would not accept instalments or half measures and drawing on the examples of Scotland and Wales where the settlement of religious questions established peace; it was resolved that Mr Bingham present the petition to parliament; Sheil presented a report recommending that court action be taken against [?Rev Cavendish] for his alleged conspiracy to frame John Cahill, which was passed despite O’Connell’s reference to a letter from Lord Donoughmore [Richard Hely Hutchinson, 1st earl of Donoughmore] vindicating and exonerating Cavendish; noting amount of catholic rent collected; including annotation noting that the memorandum was sent to [Henry] Goulburn, [Chief Secretary].

2 Feb 1825

1825

CSO/RP/CA/1825/4

Memorandum by unknown author providing an eyewitness account of a meeting of the Catholic Association chaired by Lord Viscount Gormanstown [Edward Preston, 13th Viscount Gormanston] in unspecified location; Gormanstown stated that he was eager to attend as 'an obliquy [sic] was about to be placed on the Association'; [Nicholas Purcell] O'Gorman read a letter from Eneas McDonnell [MacDonnell] informing the association that Sir Francis Burdett planned to present the catholic petition with ‘all possible speed’; in a letter to MacDonnell, Lord Liverpool [Robert Banks Jenkinson, 2nd earl of Liverpool] had stated that he could not ‘enter into any communication with the agent of the Roman Catholic Association’; [?William Francis] Finn and [John] Lawless disagreed over whether Lord Downshire [Arthur Blundell Hill, 3rd marquess of Downshire] was not ‘friendly to the Catholic cause’ and Finn observed the level of secrecy by which ministers were attempting ‘to carry their Proscriptive Bill through the house’; Lawless proposed a motion of thanks to the Duke of Hamilton [Alexander Hamilton, 10th Duke of Hamilton], Mr Jeffrey and the people of Scotland who were ‘anxious for the freedom of the Catholics of Ireland’; the motion was seconded by Lord Killeen and Mr Teeling noted that the ‘Reformers were on their side’; [Daniel] O’Connell proposed that Lord Fingall [Arthur James Plunkett, 8th Earl of Fingall], the [catholic] archbishops, peers, merchants and professional men be asked to join a deputation to travel to England; Mr Kirwan commented on observations by Mr North that the association was causing such excitement amongst the people ‘that Magistrates were fearful of personal violence’ and added that North was speaking in reply to a motion by Dr Lushington concerning the prosecution of a priest for having conducted an illegal marriage; O’Connell read a draft address to the meeting which he hoped to publish in England as he ‘did not think it safe to do so in Ireland’; memorandum also mentioning [Christopher] Fitzsimon, Joseph McCann, Maurice O’Connell, [Mr] Ryan Brennan, Hugh O’Connor and Mr O’Reilly.

11 Feb 1825

1825

CSO/RP/CA/1825/5

Memorandum by unknown author providing an eyewitness account of an aggregate meeting of the Catholic Association held in Townsend Street Chapel, chaired by Lord Killeen [Arthur James Plunkett, 9th earl of Fingall]; Killeen read letters of support from Lord Gormanstown [Edward Preston, 13th Viscount Gormanston] and Lord Kenmare [Valentine Browne, 2nd Earl of Kenmare] who could not attend; Killeen stated that while it was their duty to petition against the intended violation of their constitutional freedom they should abstain from ‘all intemperate or irrelevant discussion’; [Nicholas Purcell] O'Gorman protested against the trumped up accusation made by [Henry] Goulburn, [Chief Secretary] that the association had influenced witnesses in the case of [] Hanley, a soldier accused of administering illegal oaths; [John] Lawless also commented on the case in detail adding that he must react ‘blow for blow’ against the ‘enemies to Catholic Freedom’; Mr Baggott of Castle Baggott noted that [Richard] Wellesley’s [Lord Lieutenant] principles were ‘in unison with the truest spirit of the Constitution’ but that Goulburn’s unfounded assertions were derived from questionable sources such as ‘stipendiary magistrates and police constables who were interested in the existence of the Police’; James Dwyer acknowledged that he had ‘not at all times coincided with those who took the lead in Catholic affairs’ and on the subject of moderation added that ‘English Catholics were a sad illustration of the practice of Moderation’; Dwyer predicted that if the wrongs in Ireland were righted it would be ‘beneficial in encouraging the introduction of English Capital into Ireland’; Maurice O’Connell stated that the vile bill would deprive them of the right of petition and he condemned the report of [John] Doherty [Solicitor General] who ‘had the audacity to propose himself as the member for Waterford in opposition to the venerable staunch and talented Patriot, Sir John Newport’; [John] Bric noted that catholics were moderate and would ‘not be betrayed into childish acts of violence and intemperance’ adding that the presence of wealthy landowners, merchants and protestants who had everything to lose from public disorder showed that the association did not interfere in the administration of justice; Bric refuted [George] Canning’s [Foreign Secretary] assertion that the association was unconstitutional arguing that the association stood on the principle of presenting petitions for the redress of grievances and that the catholic rent threw ‘the Shield of legal protection over the Poor and Humble Peasant’; Bric also reported that [Daniel] O’Connell and [Richard Lalor] Sheil had gone to England ‘in the public cause’; memorandum also mentions Counsellor Fogarty who was proposed as temporary secretary, Mr Curran of Dundrum, [Frederick W] Conway who read a letter from [Patrick] Curtis [Catholic archbishop of Armagh] and [James] O’Gorman Mahon who contradicted ‘a most audacious attack’ on [James] O’Shaughnessy [Catholic Bishop of Killaloe] by Goulburn.

15 Feb 1825

1825

CSO/RP/CA/1825/6

Memorandum by unknown author providing an eyewitness account of a meeting of the Catholic Association held at the Corn Exchange, [Dublin], chaired by [Joseph] Huband; Huband speculated that the association would be suppressed but suggested that at least they would have the ‘satisfaction of pulling down the Idol of Orangeism with their ruins’; he praised [George] Canning, Secretary for Foreign Affairs as being a ‘very able statesman’ and predicted that catholic emancipation would be granted in a future session of parliament; Nicholas Mahon stated that at no time did the association pass resolutions supporting reform in parliament or the abolition of tithes and added that stocks and £11000 had be transferred or invested in government securities; [Stephen] Coppinger noted that the honourable Michael Browne, despite having been grievously wounded at the Battle of Waterloo ‘in defence of the constitution’, was still deemed ‘unworthy to be admitted to the meanest of its privileges’; [John] Lawless reported that 4000 dissenters had signed a petition in favour of Emancipation in Belfast; Mr O’Reilly claimed that catholics contributed voluntarily and ‘cheerfully’ to the catholic rent and Mr Redmond denied claims that the association kept a register of those who were unwilling to contribute; in a verbose maiden speech Mr McDermott of Coolavin was critical of ‘those Irishmen who have alienated themselves by dangerous and illegal confederacies’ and ‘degraded themselves like the hog rolling in the mire’ but criticised the defective criminal code stating that ‘the Law is too strong for the armed rebel that is too weak for the unarmed slave’ [quote underlined in red ink in the memorandum]; other individuals mentioned include Mr Teeling, Denis Coghlan and Maurice O’Connell.

17 Feb 1825

1825