James Fitzgerald (1742–1835), was an Irish politician, descended from the family of the

White Knight A white knight is a mythological figure and literary stock character. They are portrayed alongside a black knight as diametric opposites. A white knight usually represents a heroic warrior fighting against evil, with the role in medieval literatu ...

. He was the younger son of William Fitzgerald, an attorney of

Ennis Ennis () is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in County Clare, with a population of 25,27 ...

, and brother of Maurice Fitzgerald, Clerk of the Crown for

Connaught Connacht ( ; ga, Connachta or ), is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, Conmhaícne, and Delbh ...

Early career

He was born in 1742, and educated at

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

. In 1769 he was called to the

Irish Bar The Bar of Ireland ( ga, Barra na hÉireann) is the professional association of barristers for Ireland, with over 2,000 members. It is based in the Law Library, with premises in Dublin and Cork. It is governed by the General Council of the Ba ...

, and he soon obtained a large practice, and won a great reputation both as a sound lawyer and an eloquent pleader. In 1776 he entered 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 ...

as member for Fore, a seat which he held until 1783. In 1783 he was elected both for

Killybegs Killybegs () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is the largest fishing port in the country and on the island of Ireland. It is located on the south coast of the county, north of Donegal Bay, near Donegal Town. Its Irish name ''Na Cealla Bea ...

and

Tulsk Tulsk () is a village in County Roscommon, Ireland, on the N5 national primary road between Strokestown and Bellanagare. It is 19 km north of Roscommon town. Heritage Near Tulsk is Cruachan, an Iron Age (Gaelic) royal palace. As recou ...

Roscommon Roscommon (; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60, N61 and N63 roads. The name Roscommon is derived from Coman mac Faelchon who built ...

, and preferred to sit for the latter borough; in 1784 and 1790 he was re-elected for Tulsk, and in 1798 he was chosen to represent Kildare Borough in the last Irish Parliament. His eloquence soon made him as great a reputation in the Irish parliament as at the Irish bar, and he was recognised as one of the leading orators in the days of Grattan and

Flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

. Though an eloquent speaker, Fitzgerald was not much of a statesman. He supported all the motions of the

radical parties Radical may refer to: Politics and ideology Politics *Radical politics, the political intent of fundamental societal change *Radicalism (historical), the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and ...

, and in 1782 he made his most famous speech in proposing a certain measure of

Catholic relief The Roman Catholic Relief Bills were a series of measures introduced over time in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries before the Parliament of Great Britain, Parliaments of Great Britain and the Parliament of the United Kingdom, Unit ...

. In that year he married Catherine, younger daughter of the Rev. Henry Vesey, who was a grandson of

John Vesey John Vesey or Veysey ( – 23 October 1554) was Bishop of Exeter from 1519 until his death in 1554, having been briefly deposed 1551–3 by King Edward VI for his opposition to the Reformation. Origins He was born (as "John Harman"), probabl ...

Archbishop of Tuam The Archbishop of Tuam ( ; ga, Ard-Easpag Thuama) is an archbishop which takes its name after the town of Tuam in County Galway, Ireland. The title was used by the Church of Ireland until 1839, and is still in use by the Catholic Church. Histor ...

(ancestor of the Viscounts de Vesci), and cousin of Lord Glentworth.

Promotions and last offices

Fitzgerald never sought political office, but he eagerly accepted professional appointments, which helped him at the bar. He thus became in rapid succession Third Serjeant of Ireland in 1779, Second Serjeant in 1784, and Prime Serjeant in 1787. In all the debates which preceded the final abolition of the independent Irish parliament, Fitzgerald distinguished himself. He opposed the project of the Union with all his might, and he was certainly disadvantaged in his cause, for in 1799 he was dismissed from his post of Prime Serjeant to make way for

St George Daly St George Daly (1758 – December 1829) was an Irish judge, who had a reputation for ignorance of the law. He owed his career advancement entirely to his support for the Act of Union 1801, which did nothing to enhance his standing in the lega ...

, who had been converted to the Unionist policy. The Irish bar insisted on showing their respect for him, and continued to give him precedence in court over the

Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

and Solicitor-General which he had held as Prime Serjeant. When the Union Acts were carried, Fitzgerald accepted it, and he sat in Parliament for

from 1802 to February 1808, when he resigned the seat to his son, William Vesey Fitzgerald. He was re-elected in 1812, but resigned his seat in January 1813, and retired from politics. James Fitzgerald died at

Booterstown Booterstown () is a coastal suburb of the city of Dublin in Ireland. It is also a townland and civil parish in the modern county of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. It is situated about south of Dublin city centre. History There is some debate on ...

, near Dublin, on 20 January 1835, aged 93; the baroness had predeceased him on 3 January 1832. His youngest son, Henry Vesey-Fitzgerald, was

Dean of Emly The Dean of Emly was based at The Cathedral Church of St Alibeus, Emly in the former Diocese of Emly within the Church of Ireland. St Alibeus' cathedral was demolished in 1877. List of deans of Emly *1245–1251 Gilbert O'Doherty (Gilbertus)(aft ...

(1818–26), and

Dean of Kilmore The Dean of Kilmore is based at the Cathedral Church of St Fethlimidh in Kilmore in the Diocese of Kilmore within the united bishopric of Kilmore, Elphin and Ardagh. Prior to the 1841 amalgamation the cathedral was in the bishopric of Kilmore an ...

from 1826 till his death, on 30 March 1860. He succeeded his eldest brother as third Lord Fitzgerald and Vesey in 1843.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fitzgerald, James 1742 births 1835 deaths 18th-century Irish politicians 19th-century Irish politicians Members of the Privy Council of Ireland Irish MPs 1769–1776 Irish MPs 1776–1783 Irish MPs 1783–1790 Irish MPs 1790–1797 Irish MPs 1798–1800 Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Clare constituencies (1801–1922) UK MPs 1802–1806 UK MPs 1806–1807 UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 People from Ennis Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Westmeath constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Roscommon constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Donegal constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Kildare constituencies Serjeants-at-law (Ireland) Lawyers from County Clare 18th-century Irish lawyers 19th-century Irish lawyers