, lord Santry, descended from a Welch family, was the son of a merchant
, lord Santry, descended from a Welch
family, was the son of a merchant in Dublin, and educated in the profession of the law. When admitted at the
bar, he practised for some years with great reputation and
success. In 1629, the king conferred upon him the office
of his majesty’s serjeant at law, for the kingdom of Ireland,
at a yearly fee of twenty pounds ten shillings sterling, and
in as full a manner as the same office was granted before
to sir John Brereton, knt.; and lord Wentworth, afterwards earl of Strafford and lord deputy of Ireland, soon
discovered his abilities, took him under his protection,
and laid hold of the first opportunity he had to promote
him. Accordingly, on the 5th of August 1634, he obtained a grant of the office of second baron of the exchequer of Ireland, to hold during pleasure, with such
fees, rewards, and profits, as sir Robert Oglethorpe, sir
Lawrence Parsons, sir Gerard Lowther, or any other second baron, did or ought to receive; and he soon after
received the honour of knighthood. He obtained this favour, notwithstanding a powerful recommendation from
England in behalf of another; and it was merely the fruit
of the lord Wentworth’s friendship, of which he had occasion, soon after, of making a public acknowledgement.
After the year 1640, when the parliament of Ireland were
about to send over a committee of their body to England,
to impeach the earl of Stratford, he joined all his weight
and interest with sir James Ware, and other members of
the house of commons, to oppose those measures; though
the torrent was so violent, that it was fruitless, nor do we
hear much of our baron during the long course of the rebellion, till a little before the restoration of king Charles II.
in the year 1660, when he was appointed chairman of the
convention, which voted his majesty’s restoration without
any previous conditions, in which resolution, no doubt, he
was instrumental, since we find his majesty took his merit
into consideration a very short time after. For on the
17th of November that year, the king issued a privy seal
for advancing him to the office of chief-justice in the king’s
bench in Ireland, and another on the 18th of December
following, in consideration of his eminent fidelity and
zeal shewn in his majesty’s service, for creating him lord
baron of San try, in the kingdom of Ireland, to him and the
heirs male of his body; and he was soon after called to
the privy council. He died in March 1672, and was buried in Christ church, Dublin. His only publication was,
“The case of Tenures upon the commission of defective
titles, argued by all the judges of Ireland, with the resolution, and reasons of their resolution,
” Dublin,