William Meade (judge) facts for kids
William Meade (died after 1611) was an Irish lawyer and judge who lived during the time of Queen Elizabeth I. He was known as the Recorder of Cork, which was an important legal job in the city. William Meade was a popular person, but he also caused a lot of trouble. He was accused of leading a small revolt against the English Crown in 1603. He was put on trial for treason (being disloyal to the ruler) but was found not guilty. After this, he left Ireland and lived in Italy until he died.
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Early Life and Studies
The Meade family, also known as Meagh or Miagh, became very important in the city of Cork by the late 1500s. They were powerful in both law and politics. William Meade was part of this family, though we don't know much about his parents.
William first went to London in 1580 to study law at a famous school called the Middle Temple. At this time, there was a lot of tension between England and Catholic countries like France and Spain. William was openly Roman Catholic, which caught the attention of the authorities. He and other Irish law students were arrested and questioned. Their rooms were searched for any writings that might cause trouble. This made many Irish Catholic students in London nervous, and some left their studies for a while.
William must have convinced the English Crown that he was loyal. He finished his law studies and became a lawyer in Cork. When he was chosen as the Recorder of Cork, he had to take an oath. This oath meant he accepted Elizabeth I as the head of the Church of Ireland.
The Cork Uprising of 1603
When Queen Elizabeth I died in March 1603, her cousin James VI of Scotland became the new King of England. In Ireland, however, things were not so calm, especially in the southern towns. Many people thought King James would be more accepting of Catholics than Queen Elizabeth had been. The rebels hoped that by showing their strength, they could convince the King to ease the strict Penal Laws against Irish Catholics.
The biggest unrest happened in Cork. William Meade and the Mayor of Cork, Thomas Sarsfield, led this movement. When officials arrived to announce the new King, Sarsfield and Meade would not let them. It was said that Sarsfield even mentioned Perkin Warbeck, who had tried to become king many years before. This suggested that the Irish might choose a different king if they wanted.
William Saxey, a senior judge, said that anyone who refused to announce the King should be arrested. Meade replied that the officials had no power to arrest anyone. Riots then broke out, and it was reported that three Englishmen died. The officials were forced out of the city, and the city gates were closed. Meade was accused of telling people to tear down the new fort at Haulbowline.
Sir George Carew, the main leader in the province of Munster, heard about the riot. He sent soldiers to Cork to bring back order. His own wife was in Shandon Castle and had locked herself in for safety. Most of the city leaders in Cork then decided to stop fighting. They opened the city gates, going against Meade's orders. Meade, Sarsfield, and other leaders were arrested.
After the Uprising
In May 1603, the Lord Deputy, Mountjoy, came to Cork to handle the situation himself. Carew wanted all the Cork city leaders tried for treason. But Mountjoy chose a calmer approach. He set up a special court to try the main rebels. After a quick trial, Lieutenant Christopher Morrogh and two others were hanged.
Sarsfield admitted his mistakes and was pardoned by Mountjoy. Others, like Thomas Fagan (a church official) and Richard Gould (a merchant), were also pardoned. Their reasons for joining the uprising seemed to be about money, not politics or religion. But Meade refused to admit he did anything wrong. He insisted he had acted lawfully and had not committed treason. Because of this, he stayed in prison while the authorities decided what to do with him. He was still in prison in Dublin in July.
People later said that Mountjoy should have pardoned Meade too. The Crown knew how popular Meade was in Cork. They also knew that in Ireland, a jury might find someone not guilty in a treason trial, unlike in England. There was a suggestion to try him in England, but they decided to try him in Youghal. They hoped he would be less known and less popular there than in Cork.
The Trial of William Meade
The hope that Meade would be less popular in Youghal was wrong. However, Mountjoy put together a very strong group of judges for Meade's trial. This group was led by Carew himself. Other senior judges included William Saxey, who had seen the riot, and Sir Nicholas Walsh, a chief judge from Dublin. Walsh had almost died during a similar riot in Waterford. Some people might argue that he should not have been a judge in Meade's trial because he might have been biased.
Meade said he was not guilty. He insisted he had never questioned the new King's authority. He challenged any jurors who were English. In the end, the jury had nine Protestants and three Catholics, all of them Irish. The government put a lot of pressure on the jury to find Meade guilty. Evidence was presented about his refusal to announce the King, his attempt to declare the Roman Catholic faith as supreme, and the effort to destroy Haulbowline Fort. They also tried to link him to the deaths of three men during the riot.
Fynes Moryson, who worked for the Lord Deputy of Ireland, later wrote that no one who knew Ireland believed an Irish jury would convict Meade. And they didn't. The jury said they knew that "he had not intended treason in his heart." Because they went against the government's clear wishes, the jury members faced serious consequences. They were fined heavily and ordered to stand outside Cork Courthouse holding signs that explained their "offence."
Later Life and Exile
Meade, who was described as "not one to press his luck," left Ireland for good soon after he was found not guilty. He eventually settled in Italy. He even accepted money from Philip III of Spain, which showed the Crown's suspicions about his loyalty were right.
He continued to work for the end of the Penal Laws. In 1611, he published an important paper called Advice to the Catholics of Munster. In this paper, he argued that these laws were no longer valid after Queen Elizabeth I died. In the same year, he was sent to Rome to try and convince Hugh O'Neill to return to Ireland, but this attempt failed. It is believed that William Meade died in Naples. The exact date of his death is not known.
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