James Godkin facts for kids

James Godkin (born 1806, died 1879) was an important Irish writer and journalist. He wrote a lot about church matters and land rights in Ireland.

Who Was James Godkin?

James Godkin was born in a town called Gorey in County Wexford, Ireland. His family were farmers and followed the Roman Catholic faith. When he was young, he married Sarah Lawrence. Her father was a well-off landowner from County Wicklow. James and Sarah had five children: three daughters and two sons. One of their sons, Edwin Lawrence Godkin, later became a famous newspaper editor in America.

From Minister to Journalist

In 1834, James Godkin became a Congregational minister, which is a type of Protestant church leader. He worked as a pastor in Armagh. Later, he became a missionary, working with Roman Catholics for a group called the Irish Evangelical Society.

Writing for Change

James Godkin wrote several books and started a newspaper. In 1836, he published a book called A Guide from the Church of Rome to the Church of Christ. Two years later, in 1838, he started a newspaper in Belfast called the Christian Patriot. He also wrote a strong response to a religious movement in 1842, called The Touchstone of Orthodoxy and Apostolic Christianity. Even though he had strong religious beliefs, he was fair to others.

A Voice for Irish Land Rights

In 1842, James Godkin started working with Charles Gavan Duffy on issues about land in Ireland. His interest in religion began to shift towards political matters. In 1845, it was discovered he had written an essay called The Rights of Ireland, which won a prize. After this, he left the Irish Evangelical Society.

Godkin then became a full-time journalist. He was the editor of the Derry Standard newspaper. By 1848, he decided to stop being a minister completely. He moved to London and wrote for many different publications, like the British Quarterly Review and The Times. In 1850, he was an active member of the Irish Tenant League, a group that fought for the rights of people who rented land. After two years in England, he moved to Dublin. There, he became the main editor of a new newspaper called the Daily Express. At the same time, he reported from Dublin for The Times newspaper in London.

James Godkin was a very important writer on church and land issues. In 1867, he published a major book called Ireland and her Churches. In this book, he argued that all churches in Ireland should be treated equally. He also believed that Irish people should have secure rights to their land. The book also shared his strong opinions on the Great Famine, people leaving Ireland, land disputes, and schooling. The British government, led by William Gladstone, decided to separate the Church of Ireland from the government, and this change became law in 1871. In the 1860s, Godkin's articles about Ireland appeared in the Fortnightly Review.

In 1869, he traveled around Ulster and other parts of Ireland to understand what people thought about the land question. This led to his book The Land War in Ireland (1870). This book actually gave a name to the land disputes that happened later in the 1880s. His book was very important because it came out at the same time as important meetings and laws about land rights, like the Landlord & Tenant (Ireland) Act 1870. Godkin also wrote about religion and education in India and a history of England from 1820 to 1861.

Later Life and Legacy

In 1873, Queen Victoria gave James Godkin a special payment from the government, based on a recommendation from William Gladstone. James Godkin died in 1879 while living in England. He was buried at West Norwood Cemetery. His son, Edwin Lawrence Godkin, became a very famous newspaper editor in America. He was the editor-in-chief of The Nation and the Evening Post. In 1870, he even chose not to become a history professor at Harvard University.

James Godkin's book Ireland and Her Churches was republished in 2007, showing that his work is still important today.