Peter Finnerty
Encyclopedia
Peter Finnerty, printer, publisher and United Irishman
, c. 1766?-11 May 1822.
Finnerty was born in Loughrea
, the son of a town trader. He moved to Dublin where he became a printer, later publishing The Press, a nationalist paper begun in September 1797 by Arthur O'Connor (United Irishman).
Finnerty was closely associated with James MacHugo
and Francis Dillon (United Irishman), fellow natives of Loughrea who built the local branch of the United Irishmen.
A prosecution by the government against The Press in 1797 resulted in Finnerty being tried for seditious libel
. Despite being defended by John Philpot Curran
, he was found guilty in spring 1798 and sentenced to two years in prison. Despite this, he remained in correspondence with MacHugo.
On his release, Finnerty emigrated to London, working as a parliamentary reporter with the Morning Chronicle. In 1811 he was sentenced to eighteen months for libel against Lord Castlereagh. He died in Westminster
in 1822.
United Irishman
The United Irishman title has been a very popular newspaper title in Ireland and a number of newspapers have been published under the title.*...
, c. 1766?-11 May 1822.
Finnerty was born in Loughrea
Loughrea
Loughrea is a town in County Galway, Ireland. The town lies north of a range of wooded hills, the Slieve Aughty Mountains.The town expanded in recent years as it increasingly becomes a commuter town for the city of Galway.- Name :...
, the son of a town trader. He moved to Dublin where he became a printer, later publishing The Press, a nationalist paper begun in September 1797 by Arthur O'Connor (United Irishman).
Finnerty was closely associated with James MacHugo
James MacHugo
James MacHugo, United Irishman, fl. 1797–1799.MacHugo was a merchant trading in tobacco until found guilty of smuggling, which led to revenue officers impounding his entire stock and putting him out of business...
and Francis Dillon (United Irishman), fellow natives of Loughrea who built the local branch of the United Irishmen.
A prosecution by the government against The Press in 1797 resulted in Finnerty being tried for seditious libel
Seditious libel
Seditious libel was a criminal offence under English common law. Sedition is the offence of speaking seditious words with seditious intent: if the statement is in writing or some other permanent form it is seditious libel...
. Despite being defended by John Philpot Curran
John Philpot Curran
John Philpot Curran was an Irish orator, politician and wit, born in Newmarket, County Cork. He was the son of James and Sarah Curran.-Career:...
, he was found guilty in spring 1798 and sentenced to two years in prison. Despite this, he remained in correspondence with MacHugo.
On his release, Finnerty emigrated to London, working as a parliamentary reporter with the Morning Chronicle. In 1811 he was sentenced to eighteen months for libel against Lord Castlereagh. He died in Westminster
Westminster
Westminster is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
in 1822.
Reference
- Case of Peter Finnerty, including a full report of all the proceedings which took place in the Court of Kings Bench upon the subject ..., London, 1811
- Galway Authors, Helen Mahar, 1976
- The District of Loughrea: Vol. I History 1791-1918, pp. 19–25,37 ISBN 0 9546567 0 9
External links
- http://www.loughreahistory.com/more_book1.html