View source for Solicitor-General for Ireland

{{Short description|Irish government position}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=July 2022}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2023}}
[[File:LordAtkinson.jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[John Atkinson, Baron Atkinson|Lord Atkinson]], Solicitor-General for Ireland from 1890 to 1892]]
The '''Solicitor-General for Ireland''' was the holder of an [[Kingdom of Ireland|Irish]] and then (from the [[Act of Union 1800]]) [[United Kingdom]] government office. The holder was a deputy to the [[Attorney-General for Ireland]], and advised [[the Crown]] on Irish legal matters. On rare occasions, there was also a Deputy Attorney-General, who was distinct from the Solicitor-General.<ref>Ball, F. Elrington ''The Judges in Ireland 1221-1921'' London John Murray 1929 p.220</ref> At least two holders of the office, [[Patrick Barnewall (judge)|Patrick Barnewall]] (1534–1550) and Sir [[Roger Wilbraham]] (1586–1603), played a leading role in Government, although in Barnewall's case, this may be partly because he, was also King's Serjeant.<ref>Hart '' History of the King's Serjeants-at-law''</ref> As with the [[Solicitor General for England and Wales]], the Solicitor-General for Ireland was usually a [[barrister]] rather than a [[solicitor]].

The first record of a Solicitor General is in 1511, although the office may be older than that as the records are incomplete; on the other hand, the equivalent English office is a relatively recent creation, dating from 1461. Early Solicitors almost always held the like of [[Serjeant-at-law (Ireland)|Serjeant-at-law]]. For some forty years in the sixteenth century a '''[[Principal Solicitor for Ireland]]''' shared the duties of the office: confusingly both were referred to as "the Solicitor". The  Principal Solicitor might also be a Serjeant-at-law, as Richard Finglas was.

[[Elizabeth I]] thought poorly of most of her Irish-born Law Officers (there were a few exceptions like [[James Dowdall (Chief Justice)|James Dowdall]]) and [[Richard Finglas]], and from 1584 onwards there was a practice, which lasted for several decades, of appointing English-born lawyers as Solicitor General. At least one of them, Sir [[Roger Wilbraham]] (in office 1586–1603), was a key figure in the Dublin government for many years.

Unlike the Attorney General, the Solicitor was not, as a rule, a member of the [[Privy Council of Ireland]], although he might be summoned by the council to advise it.<ref>Delaney, V.T. H. ''Christopher Palles'' Allen Figgis and Co Dublin 1960 p.60</ref>

With the establishment of the [[Irish Free State]] in 1922, the duties of both the Attorney General and Solicitor General ''for'' Ireland were taken over by the [[Attorney General of Ireland|Attorney General ''of'' Ireland]], and the office of Solicitor General was abolished, apparently as an economy measure. This led to complaints for many years about the undue burden of work which was placed on the Attorney General, whose office was seriously understaffed until the 1930s.

==Solicitors-General for Ireland (1511–1922)==

===16th century===
*[[Thomas Rochfort]]: appointed 1511<ref>Here, and elsewhere, there appear to be gaps caused by the destruction of records- see Smyth ''Chronicle of the Irish Law Officers'' (1839)</ref>
*[[Thomas Luttrell (Irish judge)|Thomas Luttrell]]: 9 September 1532 – 1534
*[[Patrick Barnewall (judge)|Patrick Barnewall]]: 17 October 1534 – 1550
*[[John Bathe (politician)|John Bathe]]: 16 October 1550 – 1554
*[[James Dowdall (Chief Justice)|James Dowdall]]: 20 July 1554 – 1565
*[[Nicholas Nugent]]: 17 April 1565 – 1574
*[[Richard Bellings, Solicitor-General|Richard Bellings]]: February 1574 – 1584
*[[Jesse Smythes]]: 7 July 1584 – 1586
*[[Roger Wilbraham]]: 11 February 1586 – 1603
[[File:Sir Roger Wilbraham 1553-1616.jpg|thumb|Sir Roger Wilbraham, Solicitor-General for Ireland 1586-1603]]

===17th century===
*[[John Davies (poet, born 1569)|Sir John Davies]]: 18 September 1603 – 1606
*[[Robert Jacobe|Sir Robert Jacobe]]: 19 April 1606 – 1618
*[[Richard Bolton (lawyer)|Sir Richard Bolton]]: 31 December 1618 – 1622
*[[Edward Bolton|Sir Edward Bolton]]: 5 December 1622 – 1640
*[[William Sambach|Sir William Sambach]]: 8 June 1640 – ?<ref>In the confusion of the [[English Civil War]], Sambach returned to England, and the office of Solicitor-General seems to have simply lapsed</ref>

''Office vacant c.1640-1657''
*[[William Ellis (solicitor-general)|William Ellice]]: 1657 – 1658 (Commonwealth)
*[[Robert Shapcote]]: 1658 – 1660 (Commonwealth)
*[[John Temple (Irish politician)|Sir John Temple]]: 10 July 1660 – 1689
*Sir [[Theobald Butler (solicitor–general)|Theobald Butler]]: 1689 – 25 July 1689
*[[Sir Richard Levinge, 1st Baronet|Sir Richard Levinge, Bt]] 3 November 1689 – 1695
*[[Alan Brodrick, 1st Viscount Midleton|Alan Brodrick]]: 10 May 1695 – 1704

===18th century===
*[[Sir Richard Levinge, 1st Baronet|Sir Richard Levinge, Bt]]: 4 April 1704 – 1709
*[[John Forster (Chief Justice)|John Forster]]: 8 September 1709 – 24 December 1709
*[[William Whitshed]]: 24 December 1709 – 1711
*[[Francis Bernard (lawyer)|Francis Bernard]]: 4 June 1711 – 1714
*[[John Rogerson (1676–1741)|John Rogerson]]: 8 November 1714 – 14 May 1720
*[[Thomas Marlay (judge)|Thomas Marlay]]: 13 October 1720 – 1727
*[[Robert Jocelyn, 1st Viscount Jocelyn|Robert Jocelyn]]: 5 April 1727 – 29 September 1730
*[[John Bowes, 1st Baron Bowes|John Bowes]]: 29 September 1730 – 3 September 1739
*[[St George Caulfeild]]: 24 September 1739 – 23 December 1741
*[[Warden Flood]]: 24 December 1741 – 27 August 1751
*[[Philip Tisdall]]: 27 August 1751 – 31 July 1760
*[[John Gore, 1st Baron Annaly|John Gore]]: 31 July 1760 – 24 August 1764
*[[Marcus Paterson]]: 29 August 1764 – 18 June 1770
*[[Godfrey Lill]]: 18 June 1770 – 1774
*[[John Scott, 1st Earl of Clonmell|John Scott]]: 13 July 1774 – 17 October 1777
*[[Robert Hellen]]: 31 October 1777 – 1779
*[[Hugh Carleton, 1st Viscount Carleton|Hugh Carleton]]: 7 April 1779 – 30 April 1787
*[[Arthur Wolfe, 1st Viscount Kilwarden|Arthur Wolfe]]: 1 May 1787 – 16 July 1789
*[[John Toler, 1st Earl of Norbury|John Toler]]: 16 July 1789 – 26 June 1798
*[[Sir John Stewart, 1st Baronet, of Athenree|John Stewart]]: 26 June 1798 – 9 December 1799

===19th century===
{{columns-list|colwidth=30em|
*[[Sir William Cusack-Smith, 2nd Baronet|William Cusack-Smith]]: 6 December 1800 – 1801
*[[James McClelland (Solicitor-General)|James McClelland]]: 17 December 1801 – 1803
*[[William Plunket, 1st Baron Plunket|William Conynham Plunket]]: 22 October 1803 – 15 October 1805
*[[Charles Kendal Bushe]]: 15 October 1805 – 14 February 1822
*[[Henry Joy (judge)|Henry Joy]]: 20 February 1822 – 18 June 1827
*[[John Doherty (Irish politician)|John Doherty]]: 18 June 1827 – 23 December 1830
*[[Philip Cecil Crampton]]: 23 December 1830 – 21 October 1834
*[[Sir Michael O'Loghlen, 1st Baronet|Michael O'Loghlen]]: 21 October 1834 – 1834
*[[Edward Pennefather]]: 27 January 1835 – 1835
*[[Sir Michael O'Loghlen, 1st Baronet|Michael O'Loghlen]]: 29 April 1835 – 1835
*[[John Richards (Attorney General)|John Richards]]: 21 September 1835 – 10 November 1836
*[[Stephen Woulfe]]: 10 November 1836 – 3 February 1837
*[[Sir Maziere Brady, 1st Baronet|Maziere Brady]]: 3 February 1837 – February 1839
*[[David Richard Pigot]]: 11 February 1839 – 14 August 1840
*[[Richard Moore (Irish lawyer)|Richard Moore]]: 14 August 1840 – 1841
*[[Edward Pennefather]] 21 September 1841 – 1841
*[[Joseph Devonsher Jackson]]: 10 November 1841 – 9 September 1842
*[[Thomas Cusack-Smith]]: 21 September 1842 – 1 November 1842
*[[Richard Wilson Greene]]: 1 November 1842 – 2 February 1846
*[[Abraham Brewster]]: 2 February 1846 – June 1846
*[[James Henry Monahan]]: 16 July 1846 – 24 December 1847
*[[John Hatchell]]: 24 December 1847 – 23 September 1850
*[[Henry George Hughes]]: 26 September 1850 – February 1852
*[[James Whiteside]]: February 1852 – December 1852
*[[William Keogh]]: April 1853 – March 1855
*[[John FitzGerald, Baron FitzGerald|John FitzGerald]]: March 1855 – March 1856
*[[Jonathan Christian]]: March 1856 – February 1858
*[[Henry George Hughes]]: February 1858 – 1858
*[[Edmund Hayes (judge)|Edmund Hayes]]: 1858 – June 1859
*[[John George (lawyer)|John George]]: June 1859 – 1859
*[[Rickard Deasy]]: 1859 – February 1860
*[[Thomas O'Hagan, 1st Baron O'Hagan|Thomas O'Hagan]]: February 1860 – 1861
*[[James Anthony Lawson]]: 1861 – 1865
*[[Sir Edward Sullivan, 1st Baronet|Edward Sullivan]]: 1865 – June 1866
*[[Michael Morris, 1st Baron Killanin|Michael Morris]]: 3 August 1866 – 1 November 1866
*[[Hedges Eyre Chatterton]]: 8 November 1866 – 1867
*[[Robert Warren (Irish politician)|Robert Warren]]: 1867 – 1867
*[[Michael Harrison (Solicitor-General)|Michael Harrison]]: 1867 – 1868
*[[John Thomas Ball]]: 1868 – 1868
*[[Henry Ormsby]]: 1868 – 1868
*[[Charles Robert Barry]]: 12 December 1868 – 26 January 1870
*[[Richard Dowse]]: 14 February 1870 – 13 January 1872
*[[Christopher Palles]]: 6 February 1872 – 5 November 1872
*[[Hugh Law]]: 18 November 1872 – February 1874
*[[Henry Ormsby]]: 12 March 1874 – 21 January 1875
*[[David Plunket, 1st Baron Rathmore|Hon. David Plunket]]: 29 January 1875 – 1877
*[[Gerald FitzGibbon (Irish lawyer)|Gerald FitzGibbon]]: 3 March 1877 – 1878
*[[Hugh Holmes]]: 14 December 1878 – April 1880
*[[William Moore Johnson]]: 24 May 1880 – 17 November 1881
*[[Sir Andrew Porter, 1st Baronet|Andrew Porter]]: 18 November 1881 – 3 January 1883
*[[John Naish]]: 9 January 1883 – 19 December 1883
*[[Sir Samuel Walker, 1st Baronet|Samuel Walker]]: 19 December 1883 – 1885
*[[Hugh Hyacinth O'Rorke MacDermot|The MacDermot]]: 1885 – June 1885
*[[John Monroe (lawyer)|John Monroe]]: 3 July 1885 – November 1885
*[[John George Gibson]]: 1885 – January 1886
*[[Hugh Hyacinth O'Rorke MacDermot|The MacDermot]]: February 1886 – July 1886
*[[John George Gibson]]: August 1886 – 1887
*[[Peter O'Brien, 1st Baron O'Brien|Peter O'Brien]]: 1887 – 1888
*[[Dodgson Hamilton Madden]]: 1888 – 1890
*[[John Atkinson, Baron Atkinson|John Atkinson]]: 1890 – 1892
*[[Edward Carson]]: June 1892 – August 1892
*[[Charles Hemphill, 1st Baron Hemphill|Charles Hare Hemphill]]: August 1892 – 1895
*[[William Kenny (Irish politician)|William Kenny]]: 28 August 1895 – 1898
*[[Dunbar Barton|Sir Dunbar Plunket Barton]]: 1898 – 1900
}}

===20th century===
*[[George Wright (lawyer)|George Wright]]: 30 January 1900 – 1901
*[[James Campbell, 1st Baron Glenavy|James Campbell]]: October 1901 – 1905
*[[Redmond Barry (lord chancellor)|Redmond Barry]]: 20 December 1905 – 2 December 1909
*[[Charles O'Connor (Irish judge)|Charles O'Connor]]: 2 December 1909 – 26 September 1911
*[[Ignatius O'Brien, 1st Baron Shandon|Ignatius O'Brien]]: 19 October 1911 – 24 June 1912
*[[Thomas Molony]]: 24 June 1912 – 10 April 1913
*[[John Moriarty (Attorney General)|John Moriarty]]: 25 April 1913 – 20 June 1913
*[[Jonathan Pim (1858–1949)|Jonathan Pim]]: 20 June 1913 – 1 July 1914
*[[James O'Connor (Irish jurist)|James O'Connor]]: 1 July 1914 – 8 January 1917
*[[James Chambers (politician)|James Chambers]]: 19 March 1917 –  June 1917
*[[Arthur Warren Samuels]]: 12 September 1917 – 7 April 1918
*[[John Blake Powell]]: 7 April 1918 – 1918
*[[Sir Denis Henry, 1st Baronet|Denis Henry]]: 27 November 1918 – 6 July 1919
*[[Daniel Martin Wilson]]: 6 July 1919 – June 1921
*[[Thomas Watters Brown]]: 12 June 1921 – 5 August 1921
*''Office abolished thereafter''

==Principal Solicitors for Ireland (1537–1574)==
*[[Walter Cowley]]: 7 September 1537 – 1546
*[[John Bathe (politician)|John Bathe]]: 7 February 1546 – 1550
*[[Richard Finglas]]: 17 October 1550 – 1574<ref>There is considerable confusion as to who held the offices of Solicitor-General and Principal Solicitor during this period. Smyth states that Finglas was Principal Solicitor from 1554 until his death in 1574. Hart gives the same date for Finglas's death but refers to him as Solicitor General.</ref>
*[[James Dowdall (Chief Justice)|James Dowdall]]: 20 July 1554 – 1565
*[[Lucas Dillon (judge)|Lucas Dillon]] 1565 – 1566
*[[John Bathe (died 1586)|John Bathe]] (cousin of the earlier  John  Bathe): 20 October 1570 – 1574

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
*Hart, A.R. ''History of the King's Serjeants at law in  Ireland'' Four Courts Press Dublin 2000
* {{cite book|last=Smyth|first=Constantine J.|title=[[s:Chronicle of the law officers of Ireland|Chronicle of the law officers of Ireland]]|year=1839|publisher=Henry Butterworth|location=London}}

{{Solicitors-General for Ireland}}
{{Dublin Castle administration}}

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