James Cotter (of Anngrove)
Encyclopedia
James Cotter the Younger , or James Cotter of Anngrove, was the son of Sir James Fitz Edmond Cotter
who had commanded King James's forces in the Counties of Cork, Limerick, and Kerry. His mother was Eleanor/Ellen Plunkett, daughter of Matthew, 7th Lord Louth
, and he was a member of the Irish Cotter family, which had Norse-Gaelic origins. He was born 4 August 1689 and was executed in Cork City on 7 May 1720. His death was seen by many, especially within the Catholic
population of Ireland, as a form of political assassination.
(Gaelic). The Irish text Párliament na mBan or 'The Parliament of Women' was dedicated by its author, Domhnall Ó Colmáin,' to a young James Cotter in 1697. As one of the few major landowners of the Catholic faith remaining in Ireland, and as a man of known Jacobite
and Tory
sympathies he was distrusted by the authorities. He was also held in suspicion by those of his landed neighbours who were part of the Protestant Ascendancy
and of Whiggish political views. Amongst his overt political actions he is believed to have played a leading part in the instigation of the election riots of 1713 in Dublin. His trial, ostensibly for rape, was a cause celebre
at the time and widely seen as an example of judicial murder
.
Though married, he had a reputation as a ladies' man. His wealth allowed him to flaunt his independence of the Protestant ruling class and anti-Catholic laws of Ireland. These characteristics, allied to his political activities, led to his downfall. He had made an enemy of a powerful neighbour, Alan Brodrick, 1st Viscount Midleton
. Brodrick, it appears, arranged that Cotter be accused of abducting and raping a young Quaker woman named Elizabeth Squibb, reported by some to have been Cotter's mistress. When news of this trumped-up or exaggerated charge reached Cork City the Quakers of the town went in fear of their lives for many weeks. Believing the charge could not hold up in court Cotter gave himself up to the Cork sheriff. The judge presiding on the case was, however, Sir St. John Brodrick; who, as a close relative of James Cotter's accuser, was hardly impartial; the jury had also been packed - all twelve of its members were justices of the peace. The trial took place in a period of heightened rumour of Jacobite invasion; a large number of arms for cavalry were found in Cork which triggered a scare until it was discovered that they were government owned and intended for a local militia unit. James Cotter was held in jail, though bail had been granted, and was convicted of the crime. A bizarre element in Cotter's downfall were the pleas for mercy expressed by both the jury which had convicted him and Elizabeth Squibb, his alleged victim. Attempts to gain a pardon in Dublin were proceeding and a stay of execution was sent, however, the hanging was deliberately brought forward and it did not arrive in time. Cotter had attempted to escape and spent the night before his execution in chains. The gallows erected for the execution had been destroyed by some of the citizens of Cork and the hanging was extemporised using a rope attached to a metal staple in a vertical post. James Cotter was hanged in Cork City on the 7 May 1720. News of his execution triggered widespread riots on a national scale. He was buried in his family's vault at Carrigtwohill
.
Some have also seen the death of James Cotter as the working of a family feud. James' father had been intimately involved in the assassination of the regicide
John Lisle
in Switzerland (1664). The wife of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland at the time of James Cotter's trial was a granddaughter of John Lisle.
Up to twenty poems in Irish
(Gaelic) survive which reflect the widespread dismay felt at James Cotter's execution., including ones by Éadbhard de Nógla
, son of his close friend, the lawyer Patrick Nagle.
A Cork broadsheet of 1720 recorded this tribute to James Cotter:
"Just, Prudent, Pious, everything that’s Great
Lodg’d in his breast, and formed the Man complete,
His Body may consume, his Virtues shall
Recorded be, till the World’s Funeral."
, their other children were: Edmond, Ellen and Elizabeth. The authorities intervened in the education of James' children, who were raised as a Protestants. This act eliminated another of the families who formed the hereditary leadership of the Catholic community in Ireland.
Sources
James Fitz Edmond Cotter
Sir James Fitz Edmond Cotter was a soldier, a colonial governor and the commander-in-chief of King James's forces, in the Irish Counties of Cork, Limerick, Tipperary and Kerry. He was a prominent political figure in the south of Ireland and was of Royalist and Jacobite sympathies. He was also a...
who had commanded King James's forces in the Counties of Cork, Limerick, and Kerry. His mother was Eleanor/Ellen Plunkett, daughter of Matthew, 7th Lord Louth
Baron Louth
Baron Louth is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1541 for Sir Oliver Plunkett. His great-great-great-grandson, the seventh Baron, served as Lord Lieutenant of County Louth. However, he later supported King James II and was outlawed. His great-great-grandson, the eleventh Baron,...
, and he was a member of the Irish Cotter family, which had Norse-Gaelic origins. He was born 4 August 1689 and was executed in Cork City on 7 May 1720. His death was seen by many, especially within the Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
population of Ireland, as a form of political assassination.
Life
At the time of his death he was seen, like his father before him, as the natural leader of the Catholics of Cork. He was also a prominent patron of poetry and other literature in the Irish languageIrish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
(Gaelic). The Irish text Párliament na mBan or 'The Parliament of Women' was dedicated by its author, Domhnall Ó Colmáin,' to a young James Cotter in 1697. As one of the few major landowners of the Catholic faith remaining in Ireland, and as a man of known Jacobite
Jacobitism
Jacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
and Tory
Tory
Toryism is a traditionalist and conservative political philosophy which grew out of the Cavalier faction in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It is a prominent ideology in the politics of the United Kingdom, but also features in parts of The Commonwealth, particularly in Canada...
sympathies he was distrusted by the authorities. He was also held in suspicion by those of his landed neighbours who were part of the Protestant Ascendancy
Protestant Ascendancy
The Protestant Ascendancy, usually known in Ireland simply as the Ascendancy, is a phrase used when referring to the political, economic, and social domination of Ireland by a minority of great landowners, Protestant clergy, and professionals, all members of the Established Church during the 17th...
and of Whiggish political views. Amongst his overt political actions he is believed to have played a leading part in the instigation of the election riots of 1713 in Dublin. His trial, ostensibly for rape, was a cause celebre
Cause célèbre
A is an issue or incident arousing widespread controversy, outside campaigning and heated public debate. The term is particularly used in connection with celebrated legal cases. It is a French phrase in common English use...
at the time and widely seen as an example of judicial murder
Judicial murder
Judicial murder is the unjustified execution of death penalty.The term was first used in 1782 by August Ludwig von Schlözer in reference to the execution of Anna Göldi...
.
Though married, he had a reputation as a ladies' man. His wealth allowed him to flaunt his independence of the Protestant ruling class and anti-Catholic laws of Ireland. These characteristics, allied to his political activities, led to his downfall. He had made an enemy of a powerful neighbour, Alan Brodrick, 1st Viscount Midleton
Alan Brodrick, 1st Viscount Midleton
Alan Brodrick, 1st Viscount Midleton PC was an Irish lawyer and politician.-Background:He was the second son of Sir St John Brodrick of Ballyannan, near Midleton in County Cork, by his wife Alice , daughter of Laurence Clayton of Mallow, County Cork and sister of Colonel Randall Clayton M.P., of...
. Brodrick, it appears, arranged that Cotter be accused of abducting and raping a young Quaker woman named Elizabeth Squibb, reported by some to have been Cotter's mistress. When news of this trumped-up or exaggerated charge reached Cork City the Quakers of the town went in fear of their lives for many weeks. Believing the charge could not hold up in court Cotter gave himself up to the Cork sheriff. The judge presiding on the case was, however, Sir St. John Brodrick; who, as a close relative of James Cotter's accuser, was hardly impartial; the jury had also been packed - all twelve of its members were justices of the peace. The trial took place in a period of heightened rumour of Jacobite invasion; a large number of arms for cavalry were found in Cork which triggered a scare until it was discovered that they were government owned and intended for a local militia unit. James Cotter was held in jail, though bail had been granted, and was convicted of the crime. A bizarre element in Cotter's downfall were the pleas for mercy expressed by both the jury which had convicted him and Elizabeth Squibb, his alleged victim. Attempts to gain a pardon in Dublin were proceeding and a stay of execution was sent, however, the hanging was deliberately brought forward and it did not arrive in time. Cotter had attempted to escape and spent the night before his execution in chains. The gallows erected for the execution had been destroyed by some of the citizens of Cork and the hanging was extemporised using a rope attached to a metal staple in a vertical post. James Cotter was hanged in Cork City on the 7 May 1720. News of his execution triggered widespread riots on a national scale. He was buried in his family's vault at Carrigtwohill
Carrigtwohill
Carrigtwohill, officially Carrigtohill , is a village in County Cork, Province of Munster, Ireland with a population of 4,869 . It is located east of Cork city, bypassed by the N25 road and is part of Metropolitan Cork. Carrigtwohill is one of the fastest growing towns in Ireland. It is a major...
.
Some have also seen the death of James Cotter as the working of a family feud. James' father had been intimately involved in the assassination of the regicide
Regicide
The broad definition of regicide is the deliberate killing of a monarch, or the person responsible for the killing of a monarch. In a narrower sense, in the British tradition, it refers to the judicial execution of a king after a trial...
John Lisle
John Lisle
Sir John Lisle was an English lawyer and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1640 and 1659. He supported the Parliamentarian cause in the English Civil War and was one of the Regicides of King Charles I of England...
in Switzerland (1664). The wife of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland at the time of James Cotter's trial was a granddaughter of John Lisle.
Up to twenty poems in Irish
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
(Gaelic) survive which reflect the widespread dismay felt at James Cotter's execution., including ones by Éadbhard de Nógla
Éadbhard de Nógla
Éadbhard de Nógla, tailor and Jacobite poet, fl. 1748.-Biography:De Nógla was a descendant of Jocelyn de Angulo and a son of the lawyer, Patrick Nagle .-References:...
, son of his close friend, the lawyer Patrick Nagle.
A Cork broadsheet of 1720 recorded this tribute to James Cotter:
"Just, Prudent, Pious, everything that’s Great
Lodg’d in his breast, and formed the Man complete,
His Body may consume, his Virtues shall
Recorded be, till the World’s Funeral."
Family
James married Margaret Mathew of Thurles, their elder son was Sir James Cotter, 1st Baronet Cotter of Rockforest, MP for AskeatonAskeaton (Parliament of Ireland constituency)
Askeaton was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons until 1800.-History:In the Patriot Parliament of 1689 summoned by King James II, Askeaton was represented with two members.-Members of Parliament, 1614–1801:...
, their other children were: Edmond, Ellen and Elizabeth. The authorities intervened in the education of James' children, who were raised as a Protestants. This act eliminated another of the families who formed the hereditary leadership of the Catholic community in Ireland.
Reference and sources
NotesSources
- Burke, J. (1832) A General and Heraldic Dictionary of the Peerage and Baronetage of the British Empire, Volume 1 H. Colburn and R. Bentley.
- Leland, M. (1999) The lie of the land: Journeys Through Literary Cork, Cork University Press. ISBN 1859182313
- Lydon, J.F.,(1998) The Making of Ireland: From Ancient Times to the Present, Routledge, ISBN 0415013488
- Marshall, A. (2003) Intelligence and Espionage in the Reign of Charles II, 1660-1685 Cambridge University Press.
- Nichols, J.G. (1858) The Topographer and Genealogist Vol III, London.
- Ó Cuív, B. (1959) James Cotter, a Seventeenth-Century Agent of the Crown. The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland, Vol. 89, No. 2 (1959), pp. 135-159.
- O'Donnel, K. (2000) The Image of a Relationship in Blood. in Eighteenth-Century Ireland / Iris an dá chultúr Vol. 15, (2000), pp. 98-119. Published by: Eighteenth-Century Ireland Society.