The Parliament 1634–1635 was the first of the two Irish parliaments of Charles I. The main purpose was to raise money by taxation and to ratify the

Graces In Greek mythology, the Charites ( ), singular ''Charis'', or Graces, were three or more goddesses of charm, beauty, nature, human creativity, goodwill, and fertility. Hesiod names three – Aglaea ("Shining"), Euphrosyne ("Joy"), and Thali ...

, a series of concessions to Irish Catholic landowners. Six years of taxes were voted, but few of the graces were ratified.

Background

Charles I, king of England, Scotland and Ireland, summoned the Irish Parliament of 1634–1635 to put the Irish government on a sound financial footing. The preceding parliament had been the Parliament of 1613–1615, the only Irish parliament of James I. In this parliament James I had created more than 30 pocket boroughs under Protestant control. The

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fra ...

of 1634 therefore had 254 members: 112 Catholic and 142 Protestant. In 1632 Charles I had appointed Thomas Wentworth (the future

Earl of Strafford Earl of Strafford is a title that has been created three times in English and British history. The first creation was in the Peerage of England in January 1640 for Thomas Wentworth, the close advisor of King Charles I. He had already succe ...

) as his

Lord Deputy of Ireland The Lord Deputy was the representative of the monarch and head of the Irish executive (government), executive under English rule, during the Lordship of Ireland and then the Kingdom of Ireland. He deputised prior to 1523 for the Viceroy of Ireland ...

. Wentworth had taken office in July 1633.

Proceedings

During the parliament the King stayed in England and was represented at the parliament in Dublin by his Lord Deputy. Parliament was opened on 14 July 1634 at

Dublin Castle Dublin Castle ( ga, Caisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a former Motte-and-bailey castle and current Irish government complex and conference centre. It was chosen for its position at the highest point of central Dublin. Until 1922 it was the se ...

by the Lord Deputy. Nathaniel Catelyn, one of the two members for Dublin City, was elected speaker.

Taxation

Wentworth insisted that

subsidies A subsidy or government incentive is a form of financial aid or support extended to an economic sector (business, or individual) generally with the aim of promoting economic and social policy. Although commonly extended from the government, the ter ...

needed to be attended to first. Six subsidies of £50,000 (about £ in ) each, or according to another source £240,000 (about £ in ) altogether, were voted by the Commons unanimously on 19 July 1634. These subsidies were approved by the Lords on 2 August, when the 1st session was closed and prorogued to the 4 November by the Lord Deputy.

The Graces

King Charles I had indicated in 1626 that he would concede certain rights to the Irish Catholics if paid well enough. These concessions are known as the Graces. At

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It is the main ...

in 1628 the King and a delegation of Irish noblemen had agreed on 51 articles. At the core of the Graces were land rights and religious freedom. The payment had been fixed at £120,000 sterling (about £ in ) in three yearly instalments. The Irish Parliament should have confirmed the Graces promptly, but the then Lord Deputy,

Lord Falkland Viscount Falkland is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. Referring to the royal burgh of Falkland in Fife, it was created in 1620, by King James VI, for Sir Henry Cary, who was born in Hertfordshire and had no previous connection to Scotla ...

, had never summoned that parliament. The parliament for which was summoned in 1634 was the first Irish parliament since the proclamation of the Graces. Irish Catholics, therefore, expected to see them confirmed in this parliament while Wentworth expected trouble when he refused. The ratification of the Graces was tabled afterwards. Of the 51 articles Wentworth let 10 be voted into law, the others would be left at the discretion of the government, except articles 24 and 25, concerning land tenure, which he rejected. The Catholic MPs felt that the King had cheated them.

Other Laws

The Catholic MPs expressed their anger by voting against any law later proposed by Wentworth and due to absenteeism among the Protestant MPs, the Catholics were able to vote several laws down. The government recalled the absent Protestant MPs, and the laws passed. Wentworth dissolved parliament on 18 April 1635.

Notes, citations, and sources

Notes

Citations

Sources

* * – 1603 to 1642 * – 1613 to 1641 * – 1624 to 1632 * * – 1603 to 1607 * – 1635 to 1639 * * * – 1634 to 1699 * * * * – Snippet view * – House of Lords * * * {{Authority control Irish MPs 1634–1635 1965 disestablishments in Ireland Parliament of Ireland Charles I of England