Irish House of Commons - Definition and Overview

The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland, that existed from from mediæval times until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a very restrictive franchise. Most crucially, Roman Catholics were debarred from sitting in the Irish parliament, even though they comprise the vast majority of the Irish population. Until 1790s they were also forbidden to participate in elections to the Commons.

The British apponted Irish executive, under the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, was not answerable to the House of Commons but to the British government. However the Chief Secretary for Ireland was usually a member of the Irish parliament. In the Commons, business was presided over by the Speaker who, in the absence of a government chosen from and answerable to the Commons, was the dominant political figure in the parliament. The House of Commons was abolished when the Irish parliament merged with its British counterpart in 1801 under the Act of Union.

Famous members

• Henry Grattan - went on to serve as an Irish member of the United Kingdom House of Commons.
• Hon. Arthur Wesley - later became Duke of Wellington, defeated Napoleon, and served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He represented his family borough of Trim, in County Meath from 1790-1796.
• William Connolly - a past Speaker, Connolly remains today one of the most widely known figures ever to be produced by the Irish parliament. He is famous not just for his role in parliament but also for his great wealth that allowed him to build one of Ireland's greatest Georgian houses, Castletown House.

See also

• History of Ireland
• House of Commons
• House of Commons of Southern Ireland