Boulter Inquiry
Archived: 13 October 2026
In 1732, Irish institutions revealed tensions within a Protestant-governed, predominantly Catholic society. Hugh Boulter’s Lords’ inquiry counted extensive Catholic clergy, worship, schools and religious houses, prompting renewed enforcement of penal laws, while also exposing uneven local practice. Parliament reduced the maximum interest rate to six per cent, reflecting an expanding but unequal commercial economy. Trinity College Dublin’s Burgh-designed Library was completed, symbolising privileged Protestant learning. George Grierson became king’s printer, but Constantia Grierson’s death diminished Dublin letters. In Paris, Begley and MacCurtin published the first comprehensive English–Irish dictionary. Dublin also published Berkeley’s Christian defence, Alciphron, illustrating religious and intellectual debate.
