Municipal Corporations (Ireland) Act 1840 Explained

Short Title:Municipal Corporations (Ireland) Act 1840[1]
Type:Act
Parliament:Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long Title:An Act for the Regulation of Municipal Corporations in Ireland.
Citation:3 & 4 Vict. c. 108
Territorial Extent:Ireland
Royal Assent:10 August 1840
Commencement:25 October 1840
Repeal Date:1972 and 2001
Status:repealed

The Municipal Corporations Act (Ireland) 1840 (3 & 4 Vict. c. 108), An Act for the Regulation of Municipal Corporations in Ireland, was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom on 10 August 1840. It was one of the Municipal Corporations (Ireland) Acts 1840 to 1888.[2]

The Act followed similar lines to the Municipal Corporations Act 1835 which reformed municipal boroughs in England and Wales. Prior to the passing of the Act, there were 68 borough corporations in Ireland. However, many of them were ineffective, some were virtually defunct and none of them in any way representative of their populations. The Act dissolved all but 10 of the corporations.

Background

At the Acts of Union 1800, there had been 117 boroughs entitled to send MPs to the Irish House of Commons. From 1801, this number was reduced to 33 boroughs entitled to send MPs to the United Kingdom House of Commons.

Defunct corporations

Commissioners were reported to inquire into the state of municipal corporations in Ireland. They found that 99 had actually exercised any functions in the previous century.

In addition, there were 7 boroughs which were "at not very remote periods, Corporate Municipalities, acting, or at least constituted, under Royal Charters still on record".

BoroughCounty
BaltimoreCork
ClogherTyrone
DungarvanWaterford
LismoreWaterford
MallowCork
NewryDown
TallaghWaterford

There were 5 boroughs, "the existence either of a corporation or of burgage tenure is noticed in ancient records, but no charter of incorporation [was] discovered".

BoroughCounty
ClonminesWexford
DownpatrickDown
RatoathMeath
SwordsDublin
TaghmonWexford

There were 6 boroughs "though possessing charters empowering them to return Members of Parliament, never, as far as we have been able to trace, possessed the character of Municipal Corporations".[3]

BoroughCounty
AntrimAntrim
DoneraileCork
LisburnAntrim
MullingarWestmeath
RandalstownAntrim
RathcormacCork

There were 30 corporations that had become extinct since the Union.[4]

BoroughCounty
AskeatonLimerick
AthboyMeath
AugherTyrone
BallinakillQueen's County
BallyshannonDonegal
BanagherKing's County
BannowWexford
BlessingtonWicklow
Carrick-on-ShannonLeitrim
CarysfortWicklow
CastlebarMayo
DonegalDonegal
DunleerLouth
FeathardWexford
ForeWestmeath
GowranKilkenny
GranardLongford
HarristownKildare
JamestownLeitrim
KillybegsDonegal
KnocktopherKilkenny
LanesboroughLongford
LimavadyLondonderry
New Castle near LyonsDublin
Old LeighlinCarlow
PhilipstownKing's County
RoscommonRoscommon
St JohnstonDonegal
St JohnstonLongford
TulskRoscommon

The reformed corporations

The ten reformed corporations, which were named in Schedule A to the Act were to be styled as Mayor, Aldermen and Burgesses, with the exception of Dublin where the title Right Honourable Lord Mayor was retained.

BoroughCounty
BelfastAntrim and Down
ClonmelTipperary
Cork (County of the City)Cork
Drogheda (County of the Town)Louth and Meath
Dublin (County of the City)Dublin
Kilkenny (County of the City; merging the
former boroughs of Kilkenny and Irishtown)
Kilkenny
Limerick (County of the City)Limerick
Londonderry (City)Londonderry
SligoSligo
Waterford (County of the City)Waterford

Dissolved boroughs

Under section 13 of the Act, the remaining 58 borough corporations were dissolved on 25 October 1840. The extinguished boroughs were listed in schedules B and I of the Act. Boroughs in schedule B could petition for a grant of a charter restoring borough status, as could any town with a population of more than 3,000. Boroughs in Schedule I were already effectively extinct at the time of the passing of the Act, and so were not permitted to apply for such a charter.

Wexford's application for restoration of its charter was granted in 1846. Cashel also applied,[5] but without success.

Boroughs in Schedule B

BoroughCounty
ArdeeLouth
Armagh (City)Armagh
AthloneRoscommon and Westmeath
AthyKildare
Bandon or Bandon BridgeCork
BoyleRoscommon
CallanKilkenny
CarlowCarlow
Carrickfergus (County of the Town retained)Antrim
Cashel (City)Tipperary
CharlevilleCork
CloghnakiltyCork
ColeraineLondonderry
DingleKerry
DundalkLouth
DungannonTyrone
EnnisClare
EnniscorthyWexford
EnniskillenFermanagh
FethardWexford
Galway (County of the Town retained)Galway
GoreyWexford
KellsMeath
KinsaleCork
LongfordLongford
MaryboroughQueen's
MonaghanMonaghan
NaasKildare
NavanMeath
New RossWexford
PortarlingtonQueen's and King's
StrabaneTyrone
TraleeKerry
TrimMeath
TuamGalway
WexfordWexford
WicklowWicklow
YoughalCork

Boroughs in Schedule I

BoroughCounty
ArdfertKerry
AthenryGalway
BaltinglassWicklow
BangorDown
BelturbetCavan
CarlingfordLouth
CastlemartyrCork
CavanCavan
CharlemontArmagh
DuleekMeath
HillsboroughDown
InistiogeKilkenny
KilbegganWestmeath
KildareKildare
KillileaghDown
KilmallockLimerick
LiffordDonegal
MidletonCork
NewtownardsDown
ThomastownKilkenny

Town commissioners

See main article: Town commissioners. Many of the extinguished boroughs had an additional form of local government in place, in the form of commissioners appointed under the Lighting of Towns (Ireland) Act 1828. Where such a body existed, it was deemed to be the successor to the corporation. Section 16 of the Act provided that any borough dissolved with property worth more than £100, and which did not have commissioners under the 1828 Act, should have a board of municipal commissioners established. In most cases, the commissioners appointed under the terms of the 1840 Act eventually adopted the terms of the 1828 Act or its replacement, the Towns Improvement (Ireland) Act 1854. By 1876, only Carrickfergus was still governed by commissioners appointed under the 1840 Act.[6]

References

Sources

Primary:
Session !!colspan=3
Commons !Lords Other house's amendments
(1st &) 2nd r Ctee 3rd r 2nd r Ctee (& Rpt) 3rd r L in C C in L 2nd L in C
18351st r: Jul 31
2nd r: Aug 10 12
Aug 13Aug 17
1836Feb 29 Mar 7 8 14 18 21 22 23 Mar 28 Apr 18 Apr 26, May 9 16May 18 May 19, Jun 10 13Jun 17 27 Jun 30
18371st r: Feb 7 8
2nd r: Feb 17
Feb 20 21 22, Mar 20 Apr 10 11Apr 13 25 May 5 Jun 9
1837–381st r: Dec 5 11
2nd r: Feb 2
May 29, Jun 1 11 15 18Jun 25Jul 9Jul 12 Jul 27 Aug 2Aug 4 Aug 9
18391st r: Feb 14
2nd r: Mar 1 8 22
Jun 28 Jul 4Jul 15 Jul 22Jul 25Aug 5Aug 12
1840Feb 14 Feb 24 28, Mar 3 Mar 9Mar 23, May 4May 14 15, Jun 12 19 29, Jul 6
Rpt: Jul 10
Jul 20 31Aug 3Aug 5 6Aug 7
Secondary:

Citations

Notes and References

  1. The citation of this Act by this short title was authorised by the Short Titles Act 1896, section 1 and the first schedule. Due to the repeal of those provisions it is now authorised by section 19(2) of the Interpretation Act 1978.
  2. The Short Titles Act 1896, section 2(1) and Schedule 2
  3. 1835 Report, p. 6
  4. 1835 Report, p. 8
  5. Book: Return of Towns in Ireland from which Petitions have been presented for Charters of Incorporation. 11 September 2016. Sessional papers. HC 45 335. 22 May 1845. 18 September 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160918182022/http://www.dippam.ac.uk/eppi/documents/11985/eppi_pages/285735. live.
  6. Book: Report and proceedings . Select Committee on Local government and taxation of towns (Ireland) . 11 July 1876 . 3 §15 . 26 November 2014 . Command papers . C.352 . 23 September 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150923215010/http://www.dippam.ac.uk/eppi/documents/16178/page/425552 . live .