Whig Prologue
Archived: 13 October 2026
In 1712, Ireland remained tense following Williamite wars, with Tory administrators under Sir Constantine Phipps accused by Whigs of favouring Jacobitism and interests. Dublin’s conflict erupted when Dudley Moore delivered a banned Whig prologue on William III’s anniversary, provoking proceedings. Religious policy combined missionary outreach and exclusion: John Richardson published an Irish-English prayer book while penal laws constrained Catholics; Quaker pioneer William Edmundson died. Banbridge gained a bridge across the Bann, aiding communications. Livelihoods depended on agriculture and expanding linen exports, shaped by imperial restrictions, war and landholding. These events reveal authority contested through politics, religion, print, commerce and infrastructure.
