Nicholas French facts for kids

Nicholas French (1604 – 23 August 1678) was an important Irish Roman Catholic leader. He was the Bishop of Ferns and also a writer who shared his political ideas through pamphlets. He was born in Wexford, Ireland.

Early Life and the Irish Rebellion

Nicholas French studied at St Anthony's College, Leuven in Belgium. After finishing his studies, he returned to Ireland and became a priest in Wexford.

In 1641, a big war started in Ireland. This was the Irish Rebellion of 1641, where Irish Catholics rebelled. French, along with other Catholic priests and important people, helped organize these rebels. They formed a group called the Confederate Catholics of Ireland in March 1642.

Their main goals were:

• To have freedom to practice their religion.
• To have equal rights for Catholics.
• To have Ireland govern itself.

The Confederates set up their main base in Kilkenny. Because the king's power was weak due to the Civil War in England, the Confederates became the real government of Ireland from 1642 to 1649.

Bishop and Political Leader

In 1646, Nicholas French became the Bishop of Ferns. That same year, he worked with the Pope's special messenger, Giovanni Battista Rinuccini. They stopped a peace deal that the Confederate leaders had made with the English Royalists and King Charles I. French and Rinuccini felt this deal did not give Catholics enough of what they wanted.

Later, French and a lawyer named Nicholas Plunkett took charge of the Confederate Council. They tried to make a better peace treaty with the Royalists. At the same time, they pushed for the war in Ireland to be fought more strongly. A new treaty was signed with the Royalists in 1648. French worked hard to get everyone in the Confederate group to support it. However, some very strict Catholics still did not like the deal.

This alliance between the Royalists and Confederates did not last long. In 1649, the English Parliamentarians began to conquer Ireland. They were very against Catholic clergy. They would even execute priests if they caught them. Because of this danger, French decided it was safer to leave Ireland in 1651. He spent the rest of his life living in different parts of Europe.

He helped other bishops in cities like Santiago de Compostella in Spain and Paris in France. He also helped the bishop of Ghent in Belgium. He passed away in Ghent on 23 August 1678.

Later Writings and Legacy

When the English monarchy was restored in 1660, many Irish Catholics were very disappointed. They had hoped for better treatment. However, only a few favored Irish Catholic Royalists got their land back. Also, practicing Catholicism in public was still against the law.

In 1676, French wrote a book criticizing James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde. Ormonde was the leader of the Royalists in Ireland during the Civil Wars. French's book was called "The Unkinde Desertor of Loyall Men and True Friends." Soon after, he wrote another one called "The Bleeding Iphigenia."

One of his most important writings was "Narrative of the Settlement and Sale of Ireland," published in 1668. All of Bishop French's historical writings, including these three pamphlets and some letters, were put together and published in Dublin in 1846.