Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2005 Emerging from the Shadows: The Life and Career of Arthur Annesley, Earl of Anglesey (1614-1686) Rebecca Kathern Hayes-Steuck Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES EMERGING FROM THE SHADOWS: THE LIFE AND CAREER OF ARTHUR ANNESLEY, EARL OF ANGLESEY (1614-1686) By Rebecca Kathern Hayes-Steuck A Dissertation submitted to the Department of History in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Degree Awarded: Fall Semester, 2005 Copyright © 2005 Rebecca Kathern Hayes-Steuck All Rights Reserved The members of the Committee approve the dissertation of Rebecca Kathern Hayes-Steuck defended on July 29, 2005. _____________________________________________ Peter Garretson Professor Co-Directing Dissertation ______________________________________ C. John Sommerville Professor Co-Directing Dissertation ______________________________________ James Sickinger Outside Committee Member ______________________________________ Paul Strait Committee Member ______________________________________ William J. Tatum Committee Member The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation could not have been written without the support and friendship found at Florida State and elsewhere. The love of family and friends provided my inspiration and was my driving force. It has been a long journey and completing this work is definitely a high point in my academic career. I could not have come this far without the assistance of many individuals and I want to express my deepest appreciation to them. Since the passing of my major professor, the incomparable Dr. Richard L. Greaves, I was fortunate to gain a mentor in Dr. C. John Sommerville. Ironically, it was he who started me on my path as a historian while obtaining my Bachelor’s degree at the University of Florida. His encouragement and advice led me to Florida State and Dr. Greaves. It was Dr. Greaves’ wish for Dr. Sommerville to serve as my dissertation advisor and I feel blessed to have worked with both. Without their belief in me I could not have developed confidence in my abilities as a historian and teacher and for that I am truly grateful. I have learned a great deal from them and I will never forget the valuable lessons they taught me. The faculty and staff at Florida State are the most dedicated and generous people that I have ever met and I feel honored to have worked with them. Their guidance has served me well and I owe them my heartfelt appreciation. My committee members deserve a special note of praise, for they have watched over me since my first days as a graduate student. I wish to thank Dr. Peter Garretson, Dr. Paul Strait, Dr. Jeff Tatum, and Dr. James Sickinger for providing numerous hours of advice and critiques. Their examples, as researchers and as teachers, continue to serve as guidelines for my academic career. Debbie Perry and Chris Pignatiello also deserve my sincerest thanks, their friendship and assistance has meant more to me than I could ever express. They have iii gone above and beyond their job descriptions to help me and countless other graduate students. They are priceless treasures and the department is lucky to have them. I must also thank the Strozier librarians and staff for their assistance as well as the Congress of Graduate Students, for their grants allowed me to continue my research in London. While traveling abroad, I had great help at the following institutions. I would like to thank the staff at the British Library, London; Bodleian Library, Oxford University; Public Record Office, Kew Gardens; and the National Library of Ireland, Dublin. Their kindness and assistance will always be remembered. Finally, I wish to thank my family and friends. The people I have met while in graduate school have become my closest and dearest friends, and counselors, and to all of you I give my love and thanks. My parents, Carper and Leona Hayes, have always believed in me and helped me reach my goals. Their support forged my desire to achieve all that I could in life. I owe them everything and wish I could show them just how much I love and appreciate them. My husband, Daniel Steuck, whose love and encouragement allowed me to finish this journey, already has my heart so I will just give him a heartfelt “thanks.” Finally, I would like to dedicate this work to my lost “father,” Dr. Greaves, who left us too soon. I hope that this work makes you proud. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ABBREVIATIONS ………………………………………………………………….…. vi ABSTRACT ………………………………………………………………………….…vii INTRODUCTION ………………………………………………………………………..1 1. EARLY LIFE AND NAVIGATING THE CIVIL WAR IN IRELAND: TO 1649 …..8 2. A CHANGE OF LOYALTIES: 1649-1660 …………………………………………31 3. THE RESTORATION GOES SOUR: 1660-1667 ……………………………..……46 4. THREATENED WITH DISMISSAL: 1667-1673 …………………………………..74 5. POWER RESTORED: 1673-1678 ………………………………………………..…97 6. POPISH PLOT AND IRISH BUSINESS: 1678-1681 …………………………..…127 7. QUARREL WITH ORMOND AND FALL FROM POWER: 1679-1682 ………...159 8. RETIREMENT AND PERSONAL SCHOLARSHIP: 1682-1686 ………………...185 CONCLUSION ………………………………………………………………………...200 BIBLIOGRAPHY ……………………………………………………………………...211 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH …………………………………………………………..221 v ABBREVATIONS Add MS Additional Manuscript, British Library Bodl. Bodleian Library, Oxford CCP Calendar of Carte Papers (London: M. Cooper, 1744) CCSP Calendar of the Clarendon State Papers Preserved in the Bodleian Library, 5 vols (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1970) CJ Journals of the House of Commons, 1547-1714, vol. 8 CSPD Calendar of State Papers, Domestic Series, 1603-1714 CSPI Calendar of State Papers Relating to Ireland DNB Dictionary of National Biography HMC Historical Manuscripts Commission LJ Journals of the House of Lords, 1767, vol. 10 MS/MSS Manuscript, British Library NIL National Library of Ireland, Dublin PRO SP Public Record Office (London), State Papers vi ABSTRACT Arthur Annesley, earl of Anglesey, played an essential role in the English Restoration and was a prominent individual in Anglo-Irish politics before and after. He was one of the major figures who bridged the political divide between England and Ireland. His career spanned a period of some forty years. And yet he has received next to no attention from historians, compared with contemporaries such as Clarendon, Buckingham, and Arlington. Only a thirty-year-old study by Douglas Greene is devoted to his life and career, which is showing its age as historians are devoting increasing attention to this era. The present dissertation will take a closer look at this essential figure in the light of new evidence and fresh perspectives. Recent scholarship, particularly religious studies, offers a more complete view of the Restoration. Prior to this, most assumed that Protestant dissenters were not a credible threat to the British government; however, scholars such as Richard Greaves proves this notion invalid. The dangers of nonconformity were quite real and those who supported dissenters, as Anglesey did, often paid the price politically. We know more now about the convoluted political relationships within a greater Britain, as a result of the work of Ronald Hutton, Jonathan Scott, Tim Harris, and Brendan Bradshaw, just to name a few. Older views of the Cabal government have been overturned. More awareness exists about Charles II’s personal control over policy. Also, the inner workings of parliament are better understood, especially the use of crown managers within the house of lords. We are more curious about how Anglo-Irish politicians maintained their balance in the tricky conditions of the new British politics. For in comparison with more familiar periods of the Civil War or the Revolution, Anglesey’s was a time of treacherous court intrigues, religious disappointment, and constitutional uncertainty. vii A broader theme is the complicated political relationship that existed between England and Ireland and how certain individuals, such as Anglesey, were able to sustain their political careers in both countries, though not without a certain amount of risk. Connected to this is the complex nature of Anglo-Irish politics and how political careers rose and fell depending on governmental factions and intrigues. The Anglo-Irish politicians, men who served both countries as Anglesey did, are crucial if we are to bring these kingdoms’ histories closer together. Anglesey’s connections with the nonconformist religious community in England and Ireland, primarily the Presbyterians, will also be examined to gain further insight into how these groups survived periods of persecution that occurred throughout the Restoration. Throughout his career, Anglesey was truly a political realist very cautious about making hard decisions, preferring to tread a moderate path, one which others followed during these tumultuous times. The one tendency that endangered that path was his sympathy for dissent, though he never went to any real extremes even with this personal belief. Indeed, Anglesey was one to push for “comprehension” rather than toleration. Survival meant compromise whether over political, religious, or personal issues and above all else the earl of Anglesey was a survivor. For most of his life Anglesey sought two goals, advancement for himself and for the Anglo-Irish interest. He helped steer Anglo-Irish politics through turbulent times like the Restoration, two Dutch wars, various plots and threats of rebellion, the Exclusion Crisis, and growing tensions between Court/Country factions and the king. His long career and contributions have been ignored for too long and it is time to bring Anglesey out of the shadows and onto history’s center stage. viii INTRODUCTION Arthur Annesley, earl of Anglesey, played an essential role in the English Restoration and was a prominent individual in Anglo-Irish politics before and after. He was one of the major figures who bridged the political divide between England and Ireland. His career spanned a period of some forty years. And yet he has received next to no attention from historians, compared with contemporaries such as Clarendon, Buckingham, and Arlington. Only a thirty-year-old study by Douglas Greene is devoted to his life and career, which is showing its age as historians are devoting increasing attention to this era. The present dissertation will take a closer look at this essential figure in the light of new evidence and fresh perspectives. Recent scholarship, particularly religious studies, offers a more complete view of the Restoration. Prior to this, most assumed that Protestant dissenters were not a credible threat to the British government; however, scholars such as Richard Greaves proves this notion invalid. The dangers of nonconformity were quite real and those who supported dissenters, as Anglesey did, often paid the price politically. We know more now about the convoluted political relationships within a greater Britain, as a result of the work of Ronald Hutton, Jonathan Scott, Tim Harris, and Brendan Bradshaw, just to name a few. Older views of the Cabal government have been overturned. More awareness exists about Charles II’s personal control over policy. Also, the inner workings of parliament are better understood, especially the use of crown managers within the house of lords. We are more curious about how Anglo-Irish politicians maintained their balance in the tricky conditions of the new British politics. For in comparison with more familiar periods of the Civil War or the Revolution, Anglesey’s was a time of treacherous court intrigues, religious disappointment, and constitutional uncertainty. 1