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Nicholas Aylward Vigors M.P.
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1786-1840
by Brother P. J, Kavanagh, M,A.
NICHOLAS
Aylward Vigors was descended from an English parson.
Rev, Louis Vigors of Holloden, North Devon, who came to Ireland
c.1615. "Holloden" near the Royal Oak recalls the family's
origins. In the 1690s a Vigors was Bishop of Leighlin in the
Church of Ireland. His chair is still in the sanctuary of the
cathedral in Old Leighlin. Nicholas's grandfather, Bartholomew
(1707-1776), was Dean of Leighlin. This Bartholomew married Anne
Aylward of Shankill, Paulstown. Hence Nicholas's middle name.
His father, also Nicholas Aylward (1756-1828), married twice. By
his first wife, Catherine Richards of Solsborough, Wexford, he
had Anne (1782-1862), Nicholas Aylward (1786-1840) and Frances
(1788-1877). Anne and Frances remained single and lived out
their lives in the family home at Old Leighlin. Their house is
now owned by the Foley family. Thomas Tench Vigors of "Erindale,"
near Carlow, was son of the second marriage. More of him anon.
Scholar and Soldier
Meanwhile Nicholas, our subject, went to study at Oxford. He
left the University without completing his course in 1809,
probably because he wanted to join the British army, then
fighting Napoleon. Nicholas did not neglect the intellectual,
however. In 1810 he published "An Enquiry into the Nature and
Extent of Poetick (sic) Licences" in London. 1811 found him as a
captain in the Grenadier Guards fighting in the Peninsular War
where he received a severe leg wound at the Battle of Barrosa.
Later he resumed his studies at Oxford gaining a B.A. in 1817
and an M.A. in 1818. He made a career for himself as a barrister
and was awarded the D.C.L. in 1832.
In 1826 he was a founding member of the Royal Zoological Society
and was its first secretary until 1833. In his lifetime he
published some forty papers on ornithological subjects, an
unusual pursuit which laid him open to a certain amount of
derision from his political opponents. He was also a member of
the Royal Irish Academy.
The Landlord
Upon the death of his father in 1828 Nicholas Aylward Vigors
inherited some 3,000 acres of land nearly all of it in the civil
parish of Old Leighlin. In so far as it can be ascertained from
the Ordnance Survey Name Books he owned the townlands of
Moanduff, Annagar, Feamore, Johnduffswood, Parknakyle. Raheen
Upper, Raheenwood and Tomnasock, as well as portions of
Ballynolan, Banagagole and Old Leighlin. His agent was a Captain
Richards from Wexford. Ambrose Doran of Old Leighlin acted as
agent for Old Leighlin and Johnduffswood. He continued to live
in London, a factor used against him by his Tory opponents
— the vast majority of the forty or
so Carlow landlords in the 1830s were resident and Tories to a
man. As a landlord Vigors was on excellent relations with his
tenants, but then, since they and he were of a similar political
outlook that was to be expected. In 1835 he could count upon
seventy votes from his estate, quite a lot considering the small
electorate of those days when property alone qualified one for
a vote. He probably wasn't a good business man. Innuendoes in
the Tory press when he died suggest that the estate was in debt.
When he won Emancipation in 1829 O'Connell awakened hope of
political equality in Irish Catholics, an equality which Irish
Protestants had nothing to fear from as they were still
protected by an inbuilt Protestant majority at Westminster.
When, however, towards the end of 1831, O'Connell began to
advocate Repeal of the Union he stirred up a political hornet's
nest in Ireland.
Catholics, led by their priests, were all for having a
parliament that would suit them. The landlords had been in the
ascendency since the Williamite settlement of the 1690s and had
no intention of surrendering their power to ignorant Catholic
peasants. And it was easy enough for the landlords to have their
way. The vote was public until the Ballot Act of 1872 and the
voters were their tenants, at their mercy for their very
livelihood. So in the period 1831-1842 during which there was an
unusually high number of elections, the priests, the only
leaders the peasantry had, and the landlords fought it out for
the allegiance of the voters. Pity the voters!
Since the Act of Union the County had been represented by two
M.P.s and the borough by one. The borough was "rotten". It had
been sold to Lord Tullamore by the Burtons in 1790 and was in
his pocket until the Reform Act of 1832 gave the vote to the
£10 freeholders. Until then the only electors were the Sovereign
(Mayor) and the burgesses (about ten). Lord Tullamore kept the
seat for himself in the years before 1832.
Between 1801 and 1830 inclusive there were eight general
elections. Only two of these were contested in the County. In
the same period there were two by-elections neither of which was
contested. The following table will serve to illustrate how the
gentry, according to the accepted custom of the time, had the
two seats all wrapped up for themselves:
|
Year |
Election |
Returned |
opposed by |
|
1802 |
general |
David La Touche |
Unopposed |
|
|
|
Walter Bagenal |
|
|
1806 |
general |
David La Touche |
do. |
|
|
|
Walter Bagenal |
|
|
1807 |
general |
David La Touche |
do. |
|
|
|
Walter Bagenal |
|
|
1812 |
general |
David La Touche |
Walter Bagenal |
|
|
|
Henry Bruen n |
(died 1814) |
|
1816 |
by-election |
Robert La Touche |
unopposed |
|
1818 |
general |
Henry Bruen n |
do. |
|
|
|
Sir Ulysses Burgh |
|
|
1820 |
general |
Henry Bruen II |
do. |
|
|
|
Sir Ulysses Burgh |
|
|
1826 |
by-election |
Thomas Kavanagh |
do. |
|
|
|
(Bruen's father-in-law) |
|
|
1826 |
general |
Henry Bruen n |
do. |
|
|
|
Thomas Kavanagh |
|
|
1830 |
general |
Henry Bruen n |
Horace Rochfort |
|
|
|
Thomas Kavanagh |
|
The general election of 1831 brought a change. Sir John Milley
Doyle, an Irish Catholic, and Walter Blackney of Ballyellen,
supported by J.K.L., were returned unopposed when Bruen and
Rochfort withdrew from the contest beforehand.
Nicholas Aylward Vigors stepped into the above scenario in 1832.
General Election December 1832
Walter Blackney, the Repealer, and Thomas Wallace, a Protestant
Liberal Irishman, beat Kavanagh and Bruen by 657 votes to 470
votes in the County.
In July Vigors was already working for the borough seat. On the
recommendation of Lord Duncannon, the County Lieutenant, he was
made a Deputy Lieutenant thus increasing his standing in the
County. William Francis Finn, son of a rich Carlow tanner, and
O'Connell's brother-in-law, was also in contention for the seat.
(Finn was Repeal M.P. for Co. Kilkenny, 1832-37). J.K.L. decided
to support the Protestant Vigors against the Catholic Repealer
because Vigors favoured a Poor Law which O'Connell (and Finn)
opposed on the grounds that state hand-outs would demoralise the
people. Francis Bruen of Coolbawn, Co. Wexford, a brother of
Henry, was the Tory candidate. Rev. Andrew Fitzgerald O.P.,
president of Carlow College, proposed Vigors on the hustings on
December 13th. His seconder was Thomas Haughton of Kelvin Grove,
a Quaker. Fitzgerald and Haughton had recently been jailed for
non-payment of tithes. Vigors beat Bruen by 145 votes to 120.
General Election January 1835
Vigors was to be candidate for the borough. Again his backers
were Rev. Andrew Fitzgerald and Thomas Haughton. His opponent
was again Francis Bruen who was proposed by William Fishbourne
(whose family or its representatives still or until very lately
owned ground rents in Carlow town) and seconded by Patrick Finn,
brother of William, whom Vigors had ousted as the popular
candidate in 1832. This time the Tories made no mistake. Bruen
won by 150 votes to 132. About 28 voters did not register their
preference.
In the County also, Bruen and Kavanagh made a come-back,
defeating a popular side thrown into disarray by the last minute
withdrawal of its candidates.
Musical Chairs
— By-Election, June 1835
Upon petition Bruen and Kavanagh were unseated by a Committee of
the House on May 29th and a new election ordered for the County.
It was alleged that their agents had stalled for time while the
voters were being polled so that when the booths had closed a
considerable number of 'Liberal' or anti-Tory voters had not
voted. This was accomplished by demanding that each voter took
the two oaths (one declaring that he was qualified to vote and
the other that he had not taken a bribe) which need not have
been insisted upon and which took up a considerable amount of
time. The booths had to be closed by a given date, thus
depriving the remaining voters of their franchise.
Vigors, together with Alexander Raphael, an English Catholic, an
ex-Sheriff of London, were the Liberal or popular candidates. On
June 2nd Vigors made a triumphal entry into Carlow, accompanied
by Rev. James Maher (uncle of the future Cardinal Cullen), Rev.
Patrick Mickey, P.P., Aries, and 20,000 people. On June 9th it
was reported that he was canvassing the Barony of Rathvilly,
accompanied by Rev. John Walsh of Borris. The Pilot of June 12th
carried his election address in which he appealed to the sense
of vexation of the Catholics because of the way "their religion
has been reviled," hardly a very positive election programme,
but understandable in the 1830s.
Vigors was due to meet a large body of electors in Bagenalstown
on Saturday, June 13th. Instead he found himself in jail! His
half-brother, Thomas Tench Vigors of Erindale, had married Miss
Rudkin, heiress of the late Gilbert Pickering Rudkin of Wells.
£1500 had been promised her by bond from Nicholas's estate. The
trustees of the bond were John Watson, former High Sheriff,
Thomas Watson and Henry Carey, Henry Bruen's cousin and estate
agent. When the bond was drawn up at the time of the marriage
(1830) there would have been nothing odd about having these
Tories as trustees. Politics had soured since then and they were
now on the opposite side of the fence to Nicholas. For some
unexplained reason (possibly because Nicholas was home from
London and available) Mrs. Vigors looked for her £1600 at this
time quite oblivious to the storm she would raise. She
threatened to have the trustees imprisoned unless payment was
forthcoming. To save their own skins they had Nicholas
imprisoned for debt, refusing, according to the Liberals, to
accept the money from him although he had it in the bank. It
being a week-end may account for his not being able to withdraw
it readily. To make a long story short Vigors was released after
some hours. To the Liberals the whole episode seemed like a
political stroke "to lower him in the estimation of the
electors." The Tories said the whole affair was a coincidence.
All the circumstances are not clear from the extant evidence.
On Friday, June 19th, Vigors and Raphael were declared elected
by 627 votes to 671. Vigors was due to take the oath in the
Commons on June 29th but the Tories got up an appeal against the
election result and he and Raphael were unseated and their seats
given to Kavanagh and Bruen. 104 persons, named, in the appeal
as not having been properly registered, were struck off the list
of those who voted Liberal. Many of these are recognisable as
Vigors' tenants, members of the Idrone West Baronial Club,
Vigors' local "cumann."
County By-Election February 1837
Thomas Kavanagh died on 20th January, 1837. Thomas Bunbury of
Moyle was selected by the Tories to contest the ensuing
by-election. Vigors stood against him. His proposer and seconder
were Walter Blackney, former Repeal M.P., and Rev. Thomas
Tyrrell, P.P., Tinryland. Vigors was elected by 670 votes to
634. The inevitable petition was got up against his return. A
Committee of the House reduced his majority to a single vote! He
was declared elected on May 8th.
General Election August 1837
King William W died on 20th June and the customary general
election was called. Vigors and John Ashton Yates, an
Englishman, would stand for the County. William Henry Maule, an
Englishman, was the borough candidate. All three candidates
made a triumphal entry into Carlow town on July 12th. The
pro-Tory "Kilkenny Moderator" thus sneeringly describes the
occasion;
"Triumphal entry into Carlow of the O'Connell Tools. Once more
the holy padres are in all their glory . . . (The candidates)
were accompanied by a ragged and intoxicated mob . . . Father
Maher received due notice of their approach . . , (and) with
his rosy-gilled colleague, Father Hickey (P.P., Arles), awaited
the moment with exemplary patience . . ."
Maule beat Francis Bruen in the borough. Vigors and Yates were
returned by 730 votes to 644 for Henry Bruen and Thomas Bunbury
of Moyle.
Nicholas Aylward Vigors M.P. died at his London home on 26th
October, 1840, and lies buried in the nave of Old Leighlin
cathedral. In his time the distinctions between political
parties weren't aa clear-cut aa they are to-day. In the article
I have generally described Vigors as a Liberal or popular
candidate. Although he ousted a Repealer, William Francis Finn,
in the 1832 borough election he seems to have been something of
a Repealer himself. McIntyre in his
"The Liberator" so classifies him, although no hard and fast
evidence of this has come to my attention. He certainly had some
feeling for the plight of the Catholic peasantry. London
obviously rid him of some of the insular attitudes of his
fellow-landlords in this respect. It's not at all clear why he
entered politics in the first place. His importance lies in the
fact that he was
big enough to be able to step out-aide the traditions of his own
class and back the underdog. For this Carlow people should
remember him with respect. He remained unmarried and the Vigors
family has descended through Thomas Tench Vigors, his
half-brother.
At the 1842 general election Henry Bruen and Thomas Bunbury
again won the County for the Tories. With one exception the
landlords were to hold the County seats until 1880. By then the
Ballot Act had removed all fear of landlord reprisal and a new
force, Parnellism, had arrived to advance the cause of the
common man and of Ireland.
Chief Sources: Carlow Newspapers of the 1830's.
Previously
published in the 1983 Edition of Carloviana No. 30 p. 15-19
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