1775 dissenters' petitions

Historical background to the 1775 dissenters' petitions

The Penal Laws, passed after 1691 mainly by the Irish Parliament, were designed to restrict the religious, political and economic activities of Roman Catholics so that they would not have the means to threaten the Protestant (Anglican or Church of Ireland) monopoly of power. As a result Roman Catholics were excluded, for example, from political power at local and national level; from holding land on long leases and from many of the professions as well as the armed forces. However Dissenters, those Protestants who were not members of the Church of Ireland, were also affected by the Penal Laws. These were largely Presbyterians who formed a sizeable proportion of the population in Ulster and were seen by the Established Church of Ireland as posing just as big a threat as Roman Catholics. Consequently, they too suffered from religious and political discrimination. Presbyterians, for example, could not be married legally except in a Church of Ireland church and the ceremony performed by a Church of Ireland clergyman. This prevailed until 1782.

Discrimination against Dissenters was further extended in 1704 when the Irish Parliament passed an Act to prevent the further growth of popery. This Act contained a clause imposing a ‘Sacramental Test’ for public offices that applied equally to all Protestant Dissenters. The Sacramental Test required those seeking or holding office to take communion at the Church of Ireland. Many Dissenters refused to do so and were thereby excluded from political and civic influence, and from the learned professions (apart from medicine) and other occupations requiring the oath. The Test was not removed until 1780.

Attempts to limit the powers of Dissenters continued throughout the 18^th century. In 1774, the Irish Parliament passed an Act excluding them from voting at vestry meetings of the Church of Ireland. This greatly angered Ulster Protestants who in protest petitioned Parliament in October and November 1775 and as a result the Act was repealed in 1776.

About the Petitions

The extant petitions that formed part of the records of the Irish Parliament were transferred to the Public Record Office of Ireland (PROI) in 1870. They were subsequently lost in the destruction of the PROI in 1922.

Although the original petitions were lost in the destruction of the Public Record Office of Ireland, fortunately transcripts of some have survived. They were copied by Tenison Groves, an antiquarian and genealogist working in the Public Record Office of Ireland before 1922. They can be accessed in PRONI under T808/ 15307.

While they exist for all counties in Northern Ireland except for County Fermanagh, they are most extensive for parishes, towns and congregations in Counties Antrim and Down. Because the names index is based on transcripts there is no guarantee of accuracy or completeness.

The petitions are lists of names of Dissenters arranged either by parish, by congregation, by town and neighbourhood or in one instance by barony. Occasionally, members of the Established Church also signed the petitions. The lists usually indicate whether the signatories were Dissenters or Established Church members. Where no denomination is given against a name this is because the list contained the names of both Dissenters and Established Church (Church of Ireland) members without distinguishing between them.