The post ofLord President of Munster was the most important office in the English government of the Irish province ofMunster from its introduction in the Elizabethan era for a century, to 1672, a period including theDesmond Rebellions in Munster, theNine Years' War, and theIrish Rebellion of 1641. The Lord President was subject to theLord Deputy of Ireland, but had full authority within the province, extending to civil, criminal, and church legal matters, the imposition of martial law, official appointments, and command of military forces.[1] Some appointments to military governor of Munster were not accompanied by the status of President. The width of his powers led to frequent clashes with the longer established courts, and in 1622 the President,Donogh O'Brien, 4th Earl of Thomond, was warned sharply not to "intermeddle" with cases which were properly the business of those courts. He was assisted by a Council whose members included theChief Justice of Munster, another justice and the Attorney General for the Province. By 1620 his council was permanently based in Limerick.
The position of President of Munster was created at the suggestion ofSir Henry Sidney in the late 1560s. Filling it proved troublesome initially, since the nomination in 1566 ofWarham St Leger failed to get royal approval.[2] John Pollard turned down Sidney's offer, ultimately, for financial reasons. Later in 1569Sir Edward Fitton accepted the position ofLord President of Connaught.[3] The first President to be appointed wasSir John Perrot (1568) but it took several years for him to arrive in Munster.[2] There are sources saying thatHumphrey Gilbert had the title in 1569.[4]
From the late 16th or early 17th century,Shandon Castle (just outside the Cork's north gate) became an official residence associated with the office.[5] The castle was used by the administration as a residence, for court hearings, and as a place of imprisonment.[5][6][7]
Carew asked to resign, and was replaced about the time James I came to the English throne. There are different, confused accounts of the transition and outcome, one from the perspective of officials in London, and another local to Munster and indeed Cork. Brouncker, President in title, over-reached his position quickly;
(I) On one account, Carew was recommending as Vice-PresidentOliver St John; but in fact held the post until the appointment of his successorHenry Brouncker.[10][11]
(II) On another account, Carew put his post in commission withCharles Wilmot and George Thornton. The post was taken over from them (c.1605) by Henry Becher (d. 1610). Here sources conflict.[12][13][14][15][unreliable source][16]
(III) Whatever the nominal position from 1606, Wilmot and Thornton again held the reins of government.[17]
1627–1642William St Leger. After his death the position is three-cornered and unclear and the territory of Munster was in Irish hands, effectively until Cromwell's campaign of reconquest.
^Theodore William Moody, F. X. Martin, William E Vaughan, F. J. Byrne, J. R. Hill, Art Cosgrove, Dáibhí Ó Cróinín,A New history of Ireland (1984), p. 534.
^Penry Williams,The Later Tudors: England, 1547–1603 (1998), p. 269.
^Jennifer Speake, ed.,Literature of Travel and Exploration: G to P (2003), p. 490.
^abCollins, J. T. (1943)."Military Defences of Cork"(PDF).Journal of the Cork Historical and Archaeological Society. 2.48 (167): 63, 64.Shandon Castle, on the north side of the city, was erected soon after the Anglo-Norman invasion [..] and served as a manorial feudal centre until the reign of Queen Elizabeth. Then it became official residence of the Lord President of Munster, and the vital nerve-centre of English power in the south of Ireland
^Dwyer, James (1897)."Permanent Influence of the Religious Orders"(PDF).Journal of the Cork Historical and Archaeological Society. 2.3 (31): 298.Shandon Castle was built soon after the Conquest by one of the lords of Barrymore [..] Courts for criminal cases were frequently held there by the lord president and the judges on circuit. Persons obnoxious to the government were likewise imprisoned there
^"History of Shandon".Cork Past and Present. Cork City Libraries. Retrieved28 January 2021.
^Letters from Sir Robert Cecil to Sir George Carew (1864, Camden Society), note p. 145.
^Hugh Montgomery-Massingberd, editor, Burke's Irish Family Records (London, U.K.: Burkes Peerage Ltd, 1976), Becher, page 100. Hereinafter cited as Burke's Irish Family Records.
^Be(e)cher's appointment by the commission is mentioned by Charles Bernard Gibson inThe History of the County and City of Cork (1861), on p. 19, as occurring in 1604; and alluded to inA History of the City and County of Cork (1875) byMary Francis Cusack, p. 345.
^Brendan Fitzpatrick,Seventeenth-century Ireland: the war of religions (1989), p. 16.
