Dr Brendan Scott. Thomas Jones, Elizabethan bishop of Meath by History Hub

'Thomas Jones, Elizabethan bishop of Meath' by Dr Brendan Scott.

Presentation recorded at the 2015 Tudor and Stuart Ireland Interdisciplinary Conference which took place from August 28-29 2015 in Maynooth University. Podcasting by Real Smart Media.

This paper will deal with Thomas Jones, who was Church of Ireland bishop of Meath from 1584-1605. In many ways his story is that of a man overseeing a State religion which had already been rejected by the majority of people living in Ireland. Jones’ uncompromising view of the best means of religious reform merely continued to further alienate recusants as well as other, less hard-line, Protestants. The softening of this attitude during the Nine Years’ War was a temporary measure, however, and Jones soon resumed his policy of persecution in the Pale when he became archbishop of Dublin in 1605.His early years as bishop of Meath showed promise, but when appointed bishop of Meath, he soon showed himself to be more interested in matters temporal over those ecclesiastical. His perceived venality and ruthless acquisitiveness surely made the bishop a disliked figure among the majority Catholic population in Meath. His close association with Adam Loftus, archbishop of Dublin, also made him a target for many of the archbishop’s enemies in the Dublin administration. Jones’ attempts in 1581 to convert condemned Catholic men would also have contributed to his unpopularity among Catholics in the Pale. Thomas Jones, the man recognized for his preaching and efforts to convert in his early years, by the time of his death was now associated with corrupt practices, political underhandedness and avarice. In some ways, Thomas Jones’ slow decline was mirrored in the failure of the Church which he had sworn to promote and protect.

The Tudor and Stuart Ireland conference was generously supported by UCD School of History, UCD Research, Marsh's Library, Graduate Studies Office at Maynooth University, the Department of History at Maynooth University and the Irish Research Council (New Foundations Award).