The Maynooth College Act 1795 (35 Geo. 3 c. 21) was an Act of the

Parliament of Ireland The Parliament of Ireland ( ga, Parlaimint na hÉireann) was the legislature of the Lordship of Ireland, and later the Kingdom of Ireland, from 1297 until 1800. It was modelled on the Parliament of England and from 1537 comprised two chamb ...

that established and arranged the funding for St Patrick's College,

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 ...

as Ireland's Catholic seminary. Irish Catholic priests had traditionally been educated on the Continent in

seminaries A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

but in the aftermath of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

and during its ensuing wars many of these seminaries were either closed down or became inaccessible. Bishops were also worried that students on the Continent might become exposed to the "contagion of sedition and

infidelity Infidelity (synonyms include cheating, straying, adultery, being unfaithful, two-timing, or having an affair) is a violation of a couple's emotional and/or sexual exclusivity that commonly results in feelings of anger, sexual jealousy, and riva ...

". The

Dublin Castle administration 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 ...

had supported the passage of the

Roman Catholic Relief Act 1793 The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1793 (33 Geo. III, c.21) is an Act of the Parliament of Ireland, relieving Roman Catholics of certain political, educational, and economic disabilities. The Act was introduced by the Chief Secretary for Ireland, ...

but was opposed to full

Catholic emancipation Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, and later the combined United Kingdom in the late 18th century and early 19th century, that involved reducing and removing many of the restricti ...

Notes

{{reflist Acts of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) 1795 in law 1795 in Ireland St Patrick's College, Maynooth

See also

Notes