Henry Of London’s Return
The most firmly documented political development was the removal of Geoffrey de Marisco as justiciar, the king’s chief officer in Ireland. Geoffrey had held office since 1215. A substantial landholder in Munster, Leinster and Offaly, and connected by marriage and patronage to leading colonial families, he was exceptionally powerful. He was also under sustained pressure to account for royal income. The minority government of Henry III in England had received complaints about Irish revenues, while Geoffrey had previously been ordered to pay crown receipts into the Dublin exchequer and to answer for his conduct.