Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the
chief governor of Ireland
The chief governor was the senior official in the Dublin Castle administration, which maintained English and British rule in Ireland from the 1170s to 1922. The chief governor was the viceroy of the English monarch (and later the British monarch ...
from the
Williamite Wars
The Williamite War in Ireland (1688–1691; ga, Cogadh an Dá Rí, "war of the two kings"), was a conflict between Jacobite supporters of deposed monarch James II and Williamite supporters of his successor, William III. It is also called th ...
of
1690 until the
Partition of Ireland
The partition of Ireland ( ga, críochdheighilt na hÉireann) was the process by which the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland divided Ireland into two self-governing polities: Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland. I ...
in 1922. This spanned the
Kingdom of Ireland
The Kingdom of Ireland ( ga, label=Classical Irish, an Ríoghacht Éireann; ga, label=Modern Irish, an Ríocht Éireann, ) was a monarchy on the island of Ireland that was a client state of England and then of Great Britain. It existed from ...
(1541–1800) and the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was a sovereign state in the British Isles that existed between 1801 and 1922, when it included all of Ireland. It was established by the Acts of Union 1800, which merged the Kingdom of Great B ...
(1801–1922). The office, under its various names, was often more generally known as the
Viceroy
A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...
, and his wife was known as the
vicereine
A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...
.
The government of Ireland in practice was usually in the hands of the
Lord Deputy
The Lord Deputy was the representative of the monarch and head of the Irish 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. The plural form is '' ...
up to the 17th century, and later of the
Chief Secretary for Ireland.
Role
![Lord Dudley, Grand Master of the Order of St](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Lord_Dudley%2C_Grand_Master_of_the_Order_of_St._Patrick.jpg)
The Lord Lieutenant possessed a number of overlapping roles. He was
* the representative of the King (the "viceroy");
* the head of the executive in Ireland;
* (on occasion) a member of the English or British Cabinet;
* the fount of mercy, justice and patronage;
* (on occasion)
commander-in-chief in Ireland.
* Grand Master of the
Order of St. Patrick
The Most Illustrious Order of Saint Patrick is a dormant British order of chivalry associated with Ireland. The Order was created in 1783 by George III of the United Kingdom, King George III at the request of the then Lord Lieutenant of Irelan ...
Prior to the
Act of Union 1800 which abolished the Irish parliament, the Lord Lieutenant formally delivered the
Speech from the Throne
A speech from the throne, or throne speech, is an event in certain monarchies in which the reigning sovereign, or a representative thereof, reads a prepared speech to members of the nation's legislature when a session is opened, outlining th ...
outlining his Government's policies. His Government exercised effective control of parliament through the extensive exercise of the powers of patronage, namely the awarding of
peerage
A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted noble ranks.
Peerages include:
Australia
* Australian peers
Belgium
* Belgi ...
s,
baronet
A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...
cies and state honours. Critics accused successive viceroys of using their patronage power as a corrupt means of controlling parliament. On one day in July 1777,
Lord Buckinghamshire as Lord Lieutenant promoted 5
viscount
A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status.
In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...
s to
earl
Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...
s, 7
baron
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
s to viscounts, and created 18 new barons.
The power of patronage was used to bribe MPs and peers into supporting the
Act of Union 1800, with many of those who changed sides and supported the Union in
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
awarded peerages and honours for doing so.
Constitutional structure
The Lord Lieutenant was advised in the governance by the
Irish Privy Council, a body of appointed figures and hereditary title holders, which met in the Council Chamber in Dublin Castle and on occasion in other locations. The chief constitutional figures in the viceregal court were:
*
Chief Secretary for Ireland: From 1660, originally the chief administrator, but by the end of the 19th century effectively the prime minister in the administration, with the Lord Lieutenant becoming a form of
constitutional monarch
A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...
.
*
Under-Secretary for Ireland
The Under-Secretary for Ireland (Permanent Under-Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland) was the permanent head (or most senior civil servant) of the British administration in Ireland prior to the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922 ...
: The head of the civil service in Ireland.
*
Lord Justices: Three office-holders who acted in the Lord Lieutenant's stead during his absence. The Lord Justices were before 1800 the
Lord Chancellor of Ireland, the Speaker 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 was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fra ...
, and the
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...
Archbishop of Armagh as
Primate of All Ireland
The Primacy of Ireland was historically disputed between the Archbishop of Armagh and the Archbishop of Dublin until finally settled by Pope Innocent VI. ''Primate'' is a title of honour denoting ceremonial precedence in the Church, and in ...
.
Lords Lieutenant were appointed for no set term but served for "His/Her Majesty's pleasure" (in reality, as long as wished by the British government). When a
ministry
Ministry may refer to:
Government
* Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister
* Ministry (government department), a department of a government
Religion
* Christian ...
fell, the Lord Lieutenant was usually replaced by a supporter of the new ministry.
Officeholders
Until the 16th century,
Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the establis ...
noblemen such as the
8th Earl of Kildare and the
9th Earl of Kildare traditionally held the post of Justiciar or Lord Deputy. From the Tudor reconquest of Ireland the post was increasingly given to Englishmen, whose loyalty to the Crown was not doubted.
Although it was the faith of the overwhelming majority on the island of Ireland,
Roman Catholics
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
were excluded being able to hold the office from
Glorious Revolution
The Glorious Revolution; gd, Rèabhlaid Ghlòrmhor; cy, Chwyldro Gogoneddus , also known as the ''Glorieuze Overtocht'' or ''Glorious Crossing'' in the Netherlands, is the sequence of events leading to the deposition of King James II and ...
in 1688 until the
Government of Ireland Act 1920
The Government of Ireland Act 1920 (10 & 11 Geo. 5 c. 67) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act's long title was "An Act to provide for the better government of Ireland"; it is also known as the Fourth Home Rule Bill ...
.
Until 1767 Lords Lieutenant did not live full-time in Ireland. Instead they resided in Ireland during meetings of the Irish Parliament (a number of months every two years). However the British cabinet decided in 1765 that full-time residency should be required to enable the Lord Lieutenant to keep a full-time eye on public affairs in Ireland.
[Joseph Robins, ''Champagne and Silver Buckles: The Viceregal Court at Dublin Castle 1700–1922'' p.56 (Lillyput Press, 2001) ]
Importance of the post
The post ebbed and flowed in importance, being used on occasion as a form of exile for prominent British politicians who had fallen afoul of the
Court of St. James's
The Court of St James's is the royal court for the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. All ambassadors to the United Kingdom are formally received by the court. All ambassadors from the United Kingdom are formally accredited from the court – & ...
or
Westminster
Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster.
The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...
. On other occasions it was a stepping stone to a future career. Two Lords Lieutenant,
Lord Hartington
Spencer Compton Cavendish, 8th Duke of Devonshire, (23 July 183324 March 1908), styled Lord Cavendish of Keighley between 1834 and 1858 and Marquess of Hartington between 1858 and 1891, was a British statesman. He has the distinction of having ...
and the
Duke of Portland
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranke ...
, went from
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 ...
to
10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street in London, also known colloquially in the United Kingdom as Number 10, is the official residence and executive office of the first lord of the treasury, usually, by convention, the prime minister of the United Kingdom. Along wi ...
as
Prime Minister of Great Britain, in 1756 and 1783 respectively.
By the mid-to-late 19th century the post had declined from being a powerful political office to that of being a symbolic quasi-monarchical figure who reigned, not ruled, over the Irish administration. Instead it was the Chief Secretary for Ireland who became central, with he, not the Lord Lieutenant, sitting on occasion in the British cabinet.
Official residence
![Dcastlemaindoor](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Dcastlemaindoor.jpg)
The official residence of the Lord Lieutenant was the Viceregal Apartments in
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 ...
, where the Viceregal Court was based. Other summer or alternative residences used by Lord Lieutenant or Lords Deputy included
Abbeville
Abbeville (, vls, Abbekerke, pcd, Advile) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France.
It is the chef-lieu of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital of ...
in
Kinsealy
Kinsealy (officially Kinsaley; ) is an outer suburb of Dublin in Fingal, Ireland. Kinsealy is on the northside of the city, about 7 km from the centre city, on the Malahide Road, in the former green belt between the suburbs of Balgriffin, ...
,
Chapelizod House
Chapelizod House, known as the Viceregal Lodge, was a late medieval residence in Chapelizod, at the time a village outside Dublin (but now a suburb) which in the 1680s was used as a temporary residence for the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland following ...
, in which the Lord Lieutenant lived while Dublin Castle was being rebuilt following a fire but which he left due to the building being supposedly haunted,
Leixlip Castle and
St. Wolstan's in
Celbridge
Celbridge (; ) is a town and townland on the River Liffey in County Kildare, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is west of Dublin. Both a local centre and a commuter town within the Greater Dublin Area, it is located at the intersection of the ...
.
[ The Geraldine Lords Deputy, the 8th Earl of Kildare and the 9th Earl of Kildare, being native Irish, both lived in, among other locations, their castle in ]Maynooth
Maynooth (; ga, Maigh Nuad) is a university town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to Maynooth University (part of the National University of Ireland and also known as the National University of Ireland, Maynooth) and St Patrick's ...
, County Kildare
County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...
. Lord Essex
Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, KG, PC (; 10 November 1565 – 25 February 1601) was an English nobleman and a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I. Politically ambitious, and a committed general, he was placed under house arrest following a ...
owned Durhamstown Castle
Durhamstown Castle is a 600-year-old towerhouse in the townland of Durhamstown of the civil parish of Ardbraccan which is in the barony (Ireland) of Lower Navan, in County Meath, Ireland. It is named after a Mr Doream and has been converte ...
near Navan
Navan ( ; , meaning "the Cave") is the county town of County Meath, Ireland. In 2016, it had a population of 30,173, making it the tenth largest settlement in Ireland. It is at the confluence of the River Boyne and Blackwater, around 50&nb ...
in County Meath
County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the sou ...
, a short distance from the residence of the Lord Bishop of Meath
The Bishop of Meath is an episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient Kingdom of Meath. In the Roman Catholic Church it remains as a separate title, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with another bishopric.
History
Unt ...
at Ardbraccan House.
The decision to require the Lord Lieutenant to live full-time in Ireland necessitated a change in living arrangements. As the location of the Viceregal Court, the Privy Council and of various governmental offices, Dublin Castle became a less than desirable full-time residence for the viceroy, vicereine and their family. In 1781 the British government bought the former ranger's house in Phoenix Park to act as a personal residence for the Lord Lieutenant. The building was rebuilt and named the Viceregal Lodge. It was not however until major renovations in the 1820s that the Lodge came to be used regularly by viceroys.[ It is now known as ]Áras an Uachtaráin
(; "Residence of the President"), formerly the Viceregal Lodge, is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of Ireland. It is located off Chesterfield Avenue in the Phoenix Park in Dublin. The building design was credite ...
and is the residence of the President of Ireland
The president of Ireland ( ga, Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Republic of Ireland, Ireland and the supreme commander of the Defence Forces (Ireland), Irish Defence Forces.
The president holds office for seven years, and can ...
.
By the mid-19th century, Lords Lieutenant lived in the Castle only during the Social Season
The social season, or season, refers to the traditional annual period in the spring and summer when it is customary for members of the social elite of British society to hold balls, dinner parties and charity events. Until the First World War, ...
(early January to St. Patrick's Day, 17 March), during which time they held social events; balls, drawing rooms, etc. By tradition the coat of arms of each Lord Lieutenant was displayed somewhere in the Chapel Royal in Dublin Castle; some were incorporated into stained glass windows, some carved into seating, etc.
Irish attitudes
The office of Lord Lieutenant, like the British government in Ireland, was greatly resented by some Irish nationalist
Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...
s, though it was supported with varying degrees of enthusiasm by the minority Irish unionist community. Some Lords Lieutenant did earn a measure of popularity in a personal capacity among nationalists. From the early 19th century, calls were made frequently for the abolition of the office and its replacement by a " Secretary of State for Ireland". A bill to effect this change was introduced in Parliament in 1850 by the government of Lord John Russell
John Russell, 1st Earl Russell, (18 August 1792 – 28 May 1878), known by his courtesy title Lord John Russell before 1861, was a British Whig and Liberal statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1852 and a ...
but was subsequently withdrawn when it became clear that it would receive insufficient support to pass. The office survived until the establishment of the Irish Free State
The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between ...
in 1922.
Irish nationalists throughout the 19th century and early 20th century campaigned for a form of Irish self-government. Daniel O'Connell
Daniel O'Connell (I) ( ga, Dónall Ó Conaill; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilizat ...
sought repeal
A repeal (O.F. ''rapel'', modern ''rappel'', from ''rapeler'', ''rappeler'', revoke, ''re'' and ''appeler'', appeal) is the removal or reversal of a law. There are two basic types of repeal; a repeal with a re-enactment is used to replace the law ...
of the Act of Union, while later nationalists such as Charles Stewart Parnell
Charles Stewart Parnell (27 June 1846 – 6 October 1891) was an Irish nationalist politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1875 to 1891, also acting as Leader of the Home Rule League from 1880 to 1882 and then Leader of the ...
sought a lesser measure, known as home rule
Home rule is government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governance wit ...
. All four Home Rule bills provided for the continuation of the office.
Abolition
The Government of Ireland Act 1920
The Government of Ireland Act 1920 (10 & 11 Geo. 5 c. 67) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act's long title was "An Act to provide for the better government of Ireland"; it is also known as the Fourth Home Rule Bill ...
divided Ireland into two devolved
Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territories h ...
entities inside the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
and Southern Ireland
Southern Ireland, South Ireland or South of Ireland may refer to:
*The southern part of the island of Ireland
*Southern Ireland (1921–1922), a former constituent part of the United Kingdom
*Republic of Ireland, which is sometimes referred to as ...
. Two institutions were meant to join the two; a Council of Ireland
The Council of Ireland was a statutory body established under the Government of Ireland Act 1920 as an all-Ireland law-making authority with limited jurisdiction, initially over both Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland, and later solely over ...
(which was hoped would evolve into a working all-Ireland parliament) and the Lord Lieutenant who would be the nominal chief executive of both regimes, appointing both prime ministers and dissolving both parliaments. In fact only Northern Ireland functioned, with Southern Ireland being quickly replaced by the Irish Free State
The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between ...
with its own Governor-General. The Irish Free State (Consequential Provisions) Act 1922
The Irish Free State (Consequential Provisions) Act 1922 (Session 2) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed on 5 December 1922. The Act dealt with a number of matters concerning the Irish Free State, which was established on ...
provided that, once the Parliament of Northern Ireland
The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended because of its inability to restore ord ...
opted out of the Free State, the office of Lord Lieutenant of Ireland would be abolished and its residual powers transferred to the new position of Governor of Northern Ireland. This duly happened on 8 December 1922, two days after the Free State Constitution came into force.
List of Lords Lieutenant
See also
* Constitution of 1782
The Constitution of 1782 was a group of Acts passed by the Parliament of Ireland and the Parliament of Great Britain in 1782–83 which increased the legislative and judicial independence of the Kingdom of Ireland by reducing the ability of ...
* Governor of Northern Ireland
* Governor-General of the Irish Free State
The Governor-General of the Irish Free State ( ga, Seanascal Shaorstát Éireann) was the official representative of the sovereign of the Irish Free State from 1922 to 1936. By convention, the office was largely ceremonial. Nonetheless, it wa ...
* Dublin Castle administration in Ireland
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cen ...
* Monarchy of Ireland
* Penal Laws
* Poynings' Law (on certification of acts)
Poynings' Law or the Statute of Drogheda ( 10 Hen.7 c.4 'The Irish Statutes'' numberingor 10
Hen.7 c.9 'Analecta Hibernica'' numbering later titled "An Act that no Parliament be holden in this Land until the Acts be certified into England" ...
References
Footnotes
Sources
* Government of Ireland Act 1920
The Government of Ireland Act 1920 (10 & 11 Geo. 5 c. 67) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act's long title was "An Act to provide for the better government of Ireland"; it is also known as the Fourth Home Rule Bill ...
Citations
Further reading
* Rachel Wilson, ‘The Vicereines of Ireland and the Transformation of the Dublin Court, c. 1703–1737’ in ''The Court Historian'', xix, no. 1 (2014), pp 3–28.
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lord Lieutenant Of Ireland
*
Political office-holders in pre-partition Ireland