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Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



from doing so that, as the historian of Edgecomb's mission tells the 

 tale, he gave with a manful spirit unto the said prior fearful and 

 terrible words," and, refusing to extend the Royal clemency, forthwith 

 removed him from the Constableship of Dublin Castle.^ It was not until 

 three years later, however, that the prior was with difficulty removed 

 from Kilmainham. It is not surprising that Keating's sustained and 

 almost successful treason should have thoroughly alarmed the 

 Oovernment, which showed its sense of the power for good or ill 

 of a Prior of Kilmainham by procuring the passing of a Statute 

 confining that dignity for the future to persons of English birth.- 



"With the disappearance of Prior Keating the history of Kilmainham 

 Hospital as a great factor in the social and political life of 

 Ireland comes to an end. The Priory had dwindled to the shadow 

 of its former self forty or fifty years before the dissolution of 

 the monasteries formally completed its destruction. The four 

 Priors who succeeded Keating were Englishmen and law-abiding 

 subjects of the Crown. But they do not appear to have had 

 the slightest infiuence in public affairs, or indeed to have sought to 



1 Voyage of Sir Richard Edgecomb in Ireland ; printed in Harris's " Hiber- 

 nica." 



2 This Statute, passed in the tenth year of Henry VII, runs thus : — 



*'Iteni at the supplication of the Commons of the Land of Ireland, that 

 whereas, the hed -house and priorate of St. John's Jerusalem within the same 

 land, hath been above all other houses and places of religion the most honourably 

 and nobly founded and endowed with possessions spiritual and temporal, of which 

 possessions great part thereof hath desolated for lack of good order, rule and 

 governance, and also much thereof is granted and aliened under the convent seal of 

 that place, by means of such evil-disposed persons which have been late priors 

 there taking no regard to their conscience nor to the honour and weal of that 

 noble Order whereunto they were professed, which is among other great causes of 

 misgovernance and evil order of the said land ; for such a gentleman being prior 

 there putting that livelihood in good approvement to the use and behoof of the said 

 priorate was able to have the rule and governance of a great part of that land. 

 Therefore it be ordained, enacted and established by the authority of the present 

 Parliament, by the assent of the lords spiritual and temporal here assembled, that 

 from henceforth he that shall be made prior of the said priorate of St. John's 

 Jerusalem in Ireland, by the Lord Master of the Rhodes, or by his Deputy, by the 

 King's assent, having sufficient power and authority in that behalf, shall be a man 

 of the English blood, sad, wise and discreet, one as shall have livelihood by the 

 religion within the realm of England, whereby the King's grace shall be more 

 faithfully and better served in these parts of Ireland and the yearly responsion 

 which ought to be paid to the Rhodes by the prior of the said priorate for the main- 

 tenance of the Christian faith well contented and satisfied hereafter." 



