Patrick Barnewall (Solicitor General)
Encyclopedia
Patrick Barnewall was a leading figure in the Irish Government in the 1530s and 1540s, due largely to his close links with Thomas Cromwell. He held the offices of Solicitor General for Ireland and Master of the Rolls in Ireland
. Today he is remembered mainly for his role in founding the King's Inns
. He belonged to a junior branch of the Trimleston family; his own descendants gained the title Viscount Barnewall
of Kingsland.
. His choice of a legal career no doubt owed something to his uncle; he is also said to have been greatly influenced by his brother-in-law Thomas Luttrell
, later Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas
. His most important political connection was with Thomas Cromwell, whom he probably met in London in the 1520s.Patrick was at Grays Inn in 1527 and is known to have taken part in the legal debates there. He returned to Ireland to practice at the Bar.
. He became effective leader of the Irish opposition to the plan to dissolve the Irish monasteries and was asked to raise the matter with the King. This was another very delicate matter since Henry VIII was not noted for tolerance of any opposition to his wishes, and the Cowley family were busily spreading the story that Barnewall had challenged the King's authority to dissolve any religious house. Again however Barnewall's friendship with Cromwell was decisive and the plan to dissolve the Irish houses was abandoned in the short term.
The reprieve for the Irish houses was temporary, and Barnewall soon abandoned his opposition to dissolution.He sat on the Commission for the surrender of the Irish houses 1539-1541, and himself did well out of their suppression. It was been argued he received a smaller reward than some of his colleagues, but in 1541 he bought the monastery of Grace Dieu in County Dublin, and the following year Knocktopher
in County Kilkenny
.In 1547 he obtained a lease of the possessions of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin
.
If his opposition to the suppression of the monasteries was self interested, it nonetheless took considerable courage; he also deserves credit for his willingness to plead for a general pardon.
Master of the Rolls in Ireland
The office of Master of the Rolls in Ireland originated in the office of the keeper of the Rolls in the Irish Chancery and became an office granted by letters patent in 1333. It was abolished in 1924....
. Today he is remembered mainly for his role in founding the King's Inns
King's Inns
The Honorable Society of King's Inns , is the institution which controls the entry of barristers-at-law into the justice system of Ireland...
. He belonged to a junior branch of the Trimleston family; his own descendants gained the title Viscount Barnewall
Viscount Barnewall
Viscount Barnewall, of Kingsland in the Parish of Donabate in the County of Dublin, was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 29 June 1646 for Nicholas Barnewall, who had earlier represented County Dublin in the Irish House of Commons...
of Kingsland.
Background
He was the eldest son of Roger Barnewall, of the junior or Kingsland branch of the family, who married his cousin Alison, sister of John Barnewall, 3rd Baron Trimleston, later Lord Chancellor of IrelandLord Chancellor of Ireland
The office of Lord Chancellor of Ireland was the highest judicial office in Ireland until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. From 1721 to 1801 it was also the highest political office of the Irish Parliament.-13th century:...
. His choice of a legal career no doubt owed something to his uncle; he is also said to have been greatly influenced by his brother-in-law Thomas Luttrell
Thomas Luttrell
Sir Thomas Luttrell was a leading Anglo-Irish nobleman of the sixteenth-century Irish Pale, and was also a distinguished lawyer and judge who held the offices of Solicitor General for Ireland and Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas....
, later Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas
Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas
The Chief Justice of the Common Pleas for Ireland was the senior judge of the Court of Common Pleas ,known in its early stage as the Common Bench or simply Bench, one of the senior courts of common law in Ireland. It was a mirror of the Court of Common Pleas in England...
. His most important political connection was with Thomas Cromwell, whom he probably met in London in the 1520s.Patrick was at Grays Inn in 1527 and is known to have taken part in the legal debates there. He returned to Ireland to practice at the Bar.
Solicitor General
His appointment as King's Serjeant and Solicitor General in 1534 was due to the patronage of Cromwell, who actively promoted the careers of Barnewall and Luttrell. His main rivals for power were the Cowley family, whose loyalty was to the Earl of Ormond.In 1535 Barnewall obtained the lucrative posts of Collector of Customs for Dublin and Drogheda, only to lose them to Walter and Robert Cowley. Walter also aimed for Barnewall's other offices and in 1536 Barnewall went so far as to write an abject letter to Cromwell offering to surrender them. In the event a new office of Principal or Chief Solicitor was created for Cowley; Barnewall retained his seniority and his influence.By his own account he was heavily involved in arguing on behalf of the Crown before the Lord Chancellor, but there is evidence that his other duties made Court appearances difficult: in 1537 John Bolter, a goldsmith, complained to Cromwell that his own case before the Chancellor was being adjourned from term to term at Barnewall's request.Silken Thomas
The rebellion of Silken Thomas was to involve Barnewall in the delicate task of pleading for a general pardon. He himself is not thought to have had any sympathy for the rebel's cause, although the hostile Cowley family tried hard to persuade Cromwell that he had. His uncle Lord Trimleston had with more reason been accused of wavering in his loyalty, but Cromwell had been prepared to overlook this. Given the close ties of blood and marriage between the Anglo-Irish families of the Pale, it was reasonable that Barnewall, with his influence at the English Court, be asked by his relatives and neighbours to plead for a pardon, and he agreed to do so. It has been suggested that he was exposing himself to great danger : however, his influence prevailed and during his visit to London in 1536-7 he succeeded in obtaining a general pardon.Dissolution of the Monasteries
Barnewall's other mission in London was to deal with the dissolution of the Irish monasteries. This raised rather different issues in Ireland than in England. Much monastic land in Ireland was effectively in lay hands through leases and alienations, and the threat to dissolve them was therefore unwelcome to the landowners of the Pale, including Barnewall , who was the steward for seven manors owned in Ireland by the Abbey of KeynshamKeynsham
Keynsham is a town and civil parish between Bristol and Bath in Somerset, south-west England. It has a population of 15,533.It was listed in the Domesday Book as Cainesham, which is believed to mean the home of Saint Keyne....
. He became effective leader of the Irish opposition to the plan to dissolve the Irish monasteries and was asked to raise the matter with the King. This was another very delicate matter since Henry VIII was not noted for tolerance of any opposition to his wishes, and the Cowley family were busily spreading the story that Barnewall had challenged the King's authority to dissolve any religious house. Again however Barnewall's friendship with Cromwell was decisive and the plan to dissolve the Irish houses was abandoned in the short term.
The reprieve for the Irish houses was temporary, and Barnewall soon abandoned his opposition to dissolution.He sat on the Commission for the surrender of the Irish houses 1539-1541, and himself did well out of their suppression. It was been argued he received a smaller reward than some of his colleagues, but in 1541 he bought the monastery of Grace Dieu in County Dublin, and the following year Knocktopher
Knocktopher
Knocktopher is a village in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is situated on the M9 between the villages of Stoneyford to the north, and Ballyhale to the south....
in County Kilkenny
Kilkenny
Kilkenny is a city and is the county town of the eponymous County Kilkenny in Ireland. It is situated on both banks of the River Nore in the province of Leinster, in the south-east of Ireland...
.In 1547 he obtained a lease of the possessions of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin
St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin
Saint Patrick's Cathedral , or more formally, the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Patrick is a cathedral of the Church of Ireland in Dublin, Ireland which was founded in 1191. The Church has designated it as The National Cathedral of Ireland...
.
KIng's Inns
Barnewall is now chiefly remembered for his role in establishing the King's Inns. Again his friendship with Cromwell was important.It seems that for some time Barnewall had been raising with Cromwell the need for an establishment in Dublin for the education of lawyers; and in April 1538 he wrote that as he had previously declared; "if your lordship thought it meet that there should be a house of chancery here, where such as were towards the law and other young gentlemen, might be together, I reckon it would do much good".It is not known if Cromwell responded at the time : but Barnewall presumably continued to press the matter even after Cromwell's downfall.He was one of the original lessees named in the lease of Blackfriars by the King in 1541; and he signed the petition to the Privy Council later that year asking for the title to the property to be confirmed.Judge
Barnewall was a key figure in the Irish Government during the years 1536-41, but thereafter his influence declined, no doubt due partly to Cromwell's death. Unlike his uncle and his brother-in-law he failed to achieve any of the four crucial judicial offices: he had hoped to be Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer, but was passed over for Richard Delahide. He had to wait until 1550 to become Master of the Rolls, then a more junior post, and died only two years later.Character
Barnewall has been described as a "redoubtable figure" who was noted for integrity and learning. Kenny describes him as an astute politician as well. Hart agrees and notes the crucial role he played in Government; no other Solicitor General approached his influence.If his opposition to the suppression of the monasteries was self interested, it nonetheless took considerable courage; he also deserves credit for his willingness to plead for a general pardon.
Family
Barnewall married before 1522 Anne Luttrell, sister of the future Chief Justice. They had two children:- Sir Christopher BarnewallChristopher BarnewallSir Christopher Barnewall was a leading Anglo-Irish statesman of the Pale in the 1560s and 1570s,and was effective Leader of the Opposition in the Irish House of Commons in the Parliament of 1568-71...
, a popular Sheriff of Dublin, and ancestor of the Viscounts Barnewall - Margaret, who married a cousin, also called Patrick Barnewall.