Catholic Convention

The Catholic Committee or Catholic Convention was an organisation in 18th-century Ireland that campaigned for the rights of Catholics and for the repeal of the Penal Laws.

In 1757 the Catholic Committee was formed by Charles O'Conor; others involved included the historian, doctor, and activist John Curry and Thomas Wyse of Waterford.[1] The committee met in Essex Street, Dublin, in 1760. The French Revolution and the rise of the more militant United Irishmen saw a number of the landed gentry and aristocrats leave the committee.[2] In 1792 Theobald Wolfe Tone was appointed assistant secretary of the Catholic Committee. The businessman John Keogh served as chairman of the committee.[3]

Back Lane Parliament

Members of the committee met on 2 December 1792 in Tailors Hall in Back Lane, Dublin, referred to as the 'Back Lane Parliament'.[4] During this meeting, a petition to the king and the Irish Parliament was prepared, asking for certain rights for Catholics such as the franchise to vote and some other privileges like getting degrees and being allowed to study at Trinity College Dublin on taking an oath. In 1793 many of the measures requested were sanctioned with the relaxation of the Penal Laws, although Catholics still could not sit in Parliament or hold certain offices.

The committee was dissolved in April 1793, but did establish a committee for lobbying for Catholic Education.[5]

Daniel O'Connell's Catholic Association was in many ways a descendant of the Catholic Committee.

See also

References

  1. ↑ John Carpenter (1770-1786) Archived 2015-05-28 at the Wayback Machine.
  2. ↑ AN INSTALMENT OF EMANCIPATION (1790-1793) www.libraryireland.com
  3. ↑ John Keogh (1740-1817) www.ricorso.net
  4. ↑ Tailors Hall Back Lane Dublinks.
  5. ↑ Maynooth a Catholic Seminary in a Protestant State. History Ireland.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.