The Irish Patriot Party was the name of a number of different political groupings in Ireland throughout the 18th century. They were primarily supportive of Whig concepts of personal liberty combined with an Irish identity that rejected full independence, but advocated strong self-government within the British Empire. The definition of "patriot" in the 18th century was subtly different from its meaning today, but it was commonly used before the rise of chauvinist popular nationalism in the 19th century.
For historical reasons the Irish Parliament at the time was exclusively Anglican Protestant (Episcopalian). Their main achievement was the Constitution of 1782, which gave Ireland legislative independence.
Read more about Irish Patriot Party: Early Irish Patriots, Grattan's Patriots, Act of Union and Legacy
Famous quotes containing the words irish, patriot and/or party:
“For every nineteenth-century middle-class family that protected its wife and child within the family circle, there was an Irish or a German girl scrubbing floors in that home, a Welsh boy mining coal to keep the home-baked goodies warm, a black girl doing the family laundry, a black mother and child picking cotton to be made into clothes for the family, and a Jewish or an Italian daughter in a sweatshop making “ladies” dresses or artificial flowers for the family to purchase.”
—Stephanie Coontz (20th century)
““My country, right or wrong” is a thing that no patriot would think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying “My mother, drunk or sober.””
—Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874–1936)
“We will have to stay in this house until 8 o’clock in the morning. But we have some party favors for you in these little coffins.”
—Robb White, and William Castle. Frederick Loren (Vincent Price)