Edward Tyrrell was a priest-hunter based in Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

. He travelled the country from 1710 onwards looking for Catholic priests and bishops.

Tyrrell was working to enforce the Act to prevent the further Growth of Popery, commonly known as the Popery Act

Popery Act

An Act to prevent the further Growth of Poperty was an Act of Parliament of the Parliament of Ireland passed in 1703 and amended in 1709, one of a series of penal laws against Roman Catholics....

 or the Gavelkind Act, which was an Act of parliament

Act of Parliament

An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...

 of the Parliament of Ireland

Parliament of Ireland

The Parliament of Ireland was a legislature that existed in Dublin from 1297 until 1800. In its early mediaeval period during the Lordship of Ireland it consisted of either two or three chambers: the House of Commons, elected by a very restricted suffrage, the House of Lords in which the lords...

 passed in 1703 and amended in 1709, one of a series of penal laws against Roman Catholics.

He was convicted of bigamy and executed on May 28, 1713 having been reprieved for fifteen days after his original execution date.