John Keogh
Encyclopedia
Biography
KeoghKeogh
Keogh plans are a type of retirement plan for self-employed people and small businesses in the United States.-History:Named for U.S. Representative Eugene James Keogh of New York, they are sometimes called HR10 plans...
was a leading Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
campaigner who struggled to get Irish Roman Catholics the right to vote and the repeal of the Penal Laws
Penal Laws (Ireland)
The term Penal Laws in Ireland were a series of laws imposed under English and later British rule that sought to discriminate against Roman Catholics and Protestant dissenters in favour of members of the established Church of Ireland....
. He was of an obscure family and made his considerable fortune in land speculation, brewing
Brewing
Brewing is the production of beer through steeping a starch source in water and then fermenting with yeast. Brewing has taken place since around the 6th millennium BCE, and archeological evidence suggests that this technique was used in ancient Egypt...
, and silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
trading. He owned land in Dublin, County Sligo, County Roscommon
County Roscommon
County Roscommon is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the town of Roscommon. Roscommon County Council is the local authority for the county...
, and County Leitrim
County Leitrim
County Leitrim is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the village of Leitrim. Leitrim County Council is the local authority for the county...
, and by the 1790s he had an income of around £6,000 per year.
He was born in Dublin, 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 became involved in the political struggle for Roman Catholic rights in the 1780s, when he was a member of the Catholic Committee from 1781. In 1784, Keogh joined in a plan for Ulster
Ulster
Ulster is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial...
and Dublin radical elements to combine to push for Catholic franchise
Suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply the franchise, distinct from mere voting rights, is the civil right to vote gained through the democratic process...
, and by 1790 Keogh was leading the Catholic Committee. He was part of a delegation that was denied a hearing by the Lord Lieutenant
Lord Lieutenant
The title Lord Lieutenant is given to the British monarch's personal representatives in the United Kingdom, usually in a county or similar circumscription, with varying tasks throughout history. Usually a retired local notable, senior military officer, peer or business person is given the post...
, and so they went to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to make their case for the repeal of the penal laws and extension of the vote to Catholics. They met with government ministers personally, and they received promises; however, Lord Kenmare quashed all progress.
On the selection of the Protestant radical lawyer Theobald Wolfe Tone
Theobald Wolfe Tone
Theobald Wolfe Tone or Wolfe Tone , was a leading Irish revolutionary figure and one of the founding members of the United Irishmen and is regarded as the father of Irish Republicanism. He was captured by British forces at Lough Swilly in Donegal and taken prisoner...
as Secretary to the Committee, he and Keogh became great friends, frequently travelling together around Ireland. Tone's nickname for Keogh was 'Gog'.
By 1792, Keogh led the Catholic Convention in Dublin. He and others took their grievances to the King
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
, and the result was the Catholic Relief Act of 1793, which gave Catholics the vote and repealed many of the penal laws. In return, Keogh made concessions on behalf of the Catholic Committee: they would not press for independence, and they would dissolve the committee. Keogh was criticized sharply for making these concessions, and conservatives in England were unhappy with the Relief Act. In 1795, Earl Fitzwilliam
William FitzWilliam, 4th Earl FitzWilliam
William Wentworth-Fitzwilliam, 4th Earl Fitzwilliam PC , styled Viscount Milton until 1756, was a British Whig statesman of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1782 he inherited his uncle Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham's estates, making him one of the richest people in...
, who had favored Irish Catholic causes, and tried to extend their involvement in politics, was recalled as Lord Lieutenant and replaced with a conservative. When another delegation headed by Keogh went to London, it got no aid and little audience.
Keogh's authority and influence in the Catholic movement in Ireland decreased as newer leaders emerged, though he remained on the Dublin committee of the United Irishmen into 1798. Although he was frequently arrested and searched, Keogh was a moderate radical, and he used his wealth to aid his co-religionists' cause without crossing the line to overt illegality. He was on the non-violent wing of the United Irishmen, along with Thomas Addis Emmet
Thomas Addis Emmet
Thomas Addis Emmet was an Irish and American lawyer and politician. He was a senior member of the revolutionary republican group United Irishmen in the 1790s and New York State Attorney General 1812–1813.-Background:...
. Days before the outbreak of the 1798 Rebellion
Irish Rebellion of 1798
The Irish Rebellion of 1798 , also known as the United Irishmen Rebellion , was an uprising in 1798, lasting several months, against British rule in Ireland...
, in despair at the likely result, Keogh printed a pamphlet warning his followers in Dublin that it could not succeed.
Controversially some nationalists such as Walter Cox who acted as a body guard to Lord Edward Fitzgerald
Lord Edward FitzGerald
Lord Edward FitzGerald was an Irish aristocrat and revolutionary. He was the fifth son of the 1st Duke of Leinster and the Duchess of Leinster , he was born at Carton House, near Dublin, and died of wounds received in resisting arrest on charge of treason.-Early years:FitzGerald spent most of his...
in the 1798 rebellion, he was sceptical of Keogh's motives, and suggested that he may have been acting as an informer under the secret service of William Pitt
William Pitt
William Pitt is most likely to refer to:* William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham , Prime Minister of Great Britain 1766–1768; often known as William Pitt the Elder...
, in order to attain information on revolutionary activities being planned by the United Irishman.
He died in Dublin in 1817 and was buried in St. Kevin's Churchyard, where his grave can be seen.