barrister
A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...
, politician and Law Officer of the early eighteenth century. He sat in 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 ...
and held the Crown office of Third Serjeant.Hart p.179
Purdon was born in
County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns are ...
, to a junior branch of a family, originally from
Cumberland
Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...
in England, which had acquired substantial lands in
County Clare
County Clare ( ga, Contae an Chláir) is a county in Ireland, in the Southern Region and the province of Munster, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council is the local authority. The county had a population of 118,817 ...
in the sixteenth century; Henry's branch of the family settled at
Mallow, County Cork
Mallow (; ) is a town in County Cork, Ireland, approximately thirty-five kilometres north of Cork. Mallow is in the barony of Fermoy.
It is the administrative centre of north County Cork, and the Northern Divisional Offices of Cork County Coun ...
,Burke, Bernard ''Landed Gentry of Great Britain and Ireland'' Colburn and Co London 1852 Vol.2 p.1064 and grandson of Sir Nicholas Purdon (died 1678), who was MP for
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
in the time of Charles II, and his wife Alice or Eilis Stephens.
Bartholomew Purdon
Bartholomew Purdon (–1737) was a County Cork landowner and a long-serving member of 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 ...
, who was
High Sheriff of County Cork
The High Sheriff of County Cork was the Sovereign's judicial representative in County Cork. Initially an office for lifetime, assigned by the Sovereign, the High Sheriff became an annual appointment following the Provisions of Oxford in 1258. B ...
in 1708, and MP successively for several County Cork constituencies, was Henry's first cousin. Ballyclogh Tower House, the main family residence, was burnt in the 1690s and rebuilt in the nineteenth century.
Henry entered the
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn an ...
in 1707. He was
called to the Bar
The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...
and became
King's Counsel
In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...
in 1716. He was MP for
Charleville Charleville can refer to:
Australia
* Charleville, Queensland, a town in Australia
**Charleville railway station, Queensland
France
* Charleville, Marne, a commune in Marne, France
*Charleville-Mézières, a commune in Ardennes, France
** C ...
1721–27. In 1725 the House of Commons resolved that one Joseph Nagle should be committed to prison for breach of
Parliamentary privilege
Parliamentary privilege is a legal immunity enjoyed by members of certain legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made in the course of their legislative duties. ...
, on account of his publication of a pamphlet entitled ''The Case of Joseph Nagle'',''Irish House of Commons Journal'' Index p.361 which Purdon claimed was a malicious
libel
Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
on him in his official capacity, and therefore an attack on the dignity of the House of Commons itself. The House, noting that the pamphlet "reflected highly" on Purdon's honour, accepted that the pamphlet was a malicious attack on its own privilege.
He was made Third Serjeant-at-law in 1730 and held that office until his death in December 1737. He is thought to have been the last Irish Serjeant to act as "messenger" to the House of Commons i.e. he advised the Commons on points of law, just as the High Court judges advised the
Irish House of Lords
The Irish House of Lords was the upper house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from medieval times until 1800. It was also the final court of appeal of the Kingdom of Ireland.
It was modelled on the House of Lords of England, with membe ...
. His appointment as Serjeant-at-law was unusual in that he was no longer a sitting MP: normally one of the functions of the Serjeant was to manage Government business in the Commons, and so he was as a rule chosen from the sitting MPs.
He was made a
burgess __NOTOC__
Burgess may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Burgess (surname), a list of people and fictional characters
* Burgess (given name), a list of people
Places
* Burgess, Michigan, an unincorporated community
* Burgess, Missouri, U ...
of the town of
Kinsale
Kinsale ( ; ) is a historic port and fishing town in County Cork, Ireland. Located approximately south of Cork City on the southeast coast near the Old Head of Kinsale, it sits at the mouth of the River Bandon, and has a population of 5,281 (a ...
in 1733, and was a Major in the Irish
Yeomanry
Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army, British Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Army Reserve, descended from volunteer British Cavalry, cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of ...
. His principal residence was at
Little Island, Cork
Little Island, County Cork, is a civil parish and mainly industrial area to the east of Cork city in Ireland. It is no longer an island, since the northern channel separating it from the mainland has filled over. To the west and south is Lough M ...
.
He married a daughter of Henry Boreman, or Boverton (died 1701), his predecessor as MP for Charleville, but had no children. His last
will
Will may refer to:
Common meanings
* Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death
* Will (philosophy), or willpower
* Will (sociology)
* Will, volition (psychology)
* Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will
...
, dated shortly before his death in 1737, still exists.National Library of Ireland
Our only glimpse of Purdon's personal character, his move to commit the publisher Joseph Nagle to prison for an alleged libel, suggests that he was a somewhat arrogant and vindictive individual. On the other hand, as the wording of the resolution shows, his fellow MPs clearly regarded Nagle's conduct as an attack on the House of Commons as a whole, and thus deserving of punishment.
Sources
*Hart, A. R. ''History of the King's Serjeants at law in Ireland'' Dublin Four Courts Press 2000
*Johnston-Liik, Edith Mary ''MPs in Dublin: Companion to History of the Irish Parliament 1692-1800'' Ulster Historical Foundation 2006
*''Journal of the Cork Historical and Archaeological Society''
*''Journal of the House of Commons of the Kingdom of Ireland'' Dublin 1763
*Smyth, Constantine Joseph ''Chronicle of the Law Officers of Ireland'' London 1839