Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish was a term used historically to describe middle and upper class inhabitants of
Ireland who were the descendants and successors of the
Protestant Ascendancy[The Anglo-Irish, Fidelma Maguire, University College Cork], mostly belonging to the
Anglican Church of Ireland or to a lesser extent one of the
English dissenting churches, such as the
Methodist church. It was not usually applied to
Presbyterians, most of whom were of
Scottish descent and were identified as
Ulster-Scots or Ulstermen.
Anglo-Irish is also used to describe formal contacts, negotiations, and treaties between the
United Kingdom and the
Republic of Ireland. Some examples of this usage are the
Anglo-Irish Treaty of
1921, the
Anglo-Irish Agreement of
1985, and the Anglo-Irish Summits (as meetings between the British and Irish
prime ministers are usually called).
The "Anglo-Irish" landed elite replaced the
Old English and Gaelic Irish Catholic aristocracies in the
course of the 17th century as the ruling class in Ireland. At this time, they were usually called the "New English" to distinguish them from the Catholic "Old English," who were descendants of medieval
Hiberno-Norman settlers. Under the
Penal Laws that were in force between the
17th and
19th centuries,
Roman Catholics in Ireland were barred from public office, military service, membership in the
Irish Parliament, and from entering professions such as law and medicine. The lands of the old Catholic elite were largely confiscated in the
Plantations of Ireland and their rights to inherit landed property were severely restricted. Those who converted to Protestantism were usually able to keep or regain their lost property.
The term "Anglo-Irish" was often applied to the anglicised Protestants who therefore made up the Irish professional and landed classes. A number of them became famous as poets or writers, including
Jonathan Swift,
Bishop Berkeley,
Oliver Goldsmith,
Laurence Sterne,
Bram Stoker,
Oscar Wilde,
W.B. Yeats,
C.S. Lewis and
Bernard Shaw. Some, such as
Edmund Burke, played an important role in
British politics, while others, such as
William Rowan Hamilton,
G.G. Stokes, and
Ernest Walton, were distinguished scientists. The Anglo-Irish were also represented among the senior officers of the
British Army by men such as
Field Marshal Lord Roberts, first honorary Colonel of the
Irish Guards regiment, who spent most of his career in
India, and Field Marshal
Lord Gough who served under
Wellington in the
Peninsular War before rising to prominence by commanding the British army fighting the
first Opium War in
China. Field Marshal
Lord Montgomery's family came from
County Donegal, although he was born in
London and his father was the Anglican Bishop of
Tasmania.
The Anglo-Irish were often of Irish or mixed Irish-British ancestry and usually identified themselves as Irish despite adopting many English customs. The more successful among them often spent their careers in Great Britain or in some part of the British Empire. In this sense, "Anglo-Irish" identified a
social class. Playwright
Brendan Behan, a staunch
Irish Republican, famously defined an Anglo-Irishman as "a Protestant with a horse."
The term is no longer commonly used in this way since southern Irish Protestants, or Protestants of the Republic of Ireland as a group have been largely assimilated into Irish society and are no longer distinctive.
After the
Flight of the Earls in
1607 and the
Plantations of Ireland, the
peerage of Ireland was composed mostly of Protestant families of British origin. One leading Anglo-Irish peer described his experience as one of the 'Anglo-Irish' as being regarded as Irish in England, English in Ireland and not accepted fully as belonging to either. However, such divisions are no longer as prevalent in Ireland, where Anglo-Irish peers have played a prominent role in modern Irish affairs.
Among the most prominent Anglo-Irish peers are:
*
Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork - Lord High Treasurer of Ireland, father of scientist
Robert Boyle*
James Campbell, 1st Baron Glenavy - first speaker of the
Irish Senate (1922)
*
Henry Conyngham, Earl of Mount Charles - owner of the
Slane Castle rock venue and candidate for
Fine Gael in recent Irish
general elections
*
Benjamin Guinness, 3rd Earl of Iveagh - head of the
Guinness family, who sat in the Irish
Senate (1973-1977) (of Gaelic Irish descent)
*
Valerie, Lady Goulding - founder of the Rehabilitation Institute and close associate of former
Taoiseach (Prime Minister)
Charles J. Haughey*
Michael Morris, 3rd Baron Killanin - former head of the
International Olympic Committee and head until his death of the state-affiliated
Irish Heritage Council*
Edward Pakenham, 6th Earl of Longford - Impresario at the
Gate Theatre in
Dublin in the
1950s*
Frank Pakenham, 7th Earl of Longford (who succeeded his brother (above) in the Earldom) - British
Labour Cabinet minister, biographer and friend of
Eamon de Valera*
William Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse - astronomer and builder of the then largest telescope in the world
*
Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron Dunsany - author
*
James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde - 17th century statesman, served as
Lord Deputy of Ireland on two occasions and commanded Royalist forces in Ireland in the
Irish Confederate Wars -negotiating with the
Irish Confederates on behalf of
Charles I.
*
Murrough O'Brien, 1st Earl of Inchiquin, 6th Baron Inchiquin (1618-1674) (of Gaelic Irish descent) - a Parliamentary commander in the
Irish Confederate Wars 1644-48 and then changed sides to become one of the leaders of the Royalist troops in Ireland in the
Cromwellian conquest of Ireland 1649-53 during the
Wars of the Three Kingdoms*
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington - British general who fought many successful campaigns and defeated
Napoleon Bonaparte at the
Battle of WaterlooThe Duke of Wellington is reputed to have denied being Irish by stating that "being born in a stable does not make one a horse."
[Quoted, for instance, in Neillands, Robin, Wellington and Napoleon: Clash of Arms, Barnes & Noble Books, 2002, p. 32.]A number of Anglo-Irish peers have been appointed by
Presidents of Ireland to serve on their advisory
Council of State. Some were also considered possible candidates for presidents of Ireland, including:
*
Valerie, Lady Goulding*
Michael Morris, 3rd Baron Killanin*
Edward Gibson, 1st Baron Ashbourne (a renowned Gaelic scholar)
*
Church of Ireland*
Irish topics*
UK topics*
Hiberno-Norman*
Hiberno-English*
Old English (Ireland)*
Scots-Irish*
The Reform Movement*
Unionism*
West Briton*
Baron Baltimore*
Londonderry* Peter Berresford Ellis,
Erin's Blood Royal: The Gaelic Noble Dynasties of Ireland ISBN 0094786003
