Henry Theophilus Clements PC(I) (1734 – 26 October 1795) was an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...

soldier, politician and official in the

Dublin Castle administration Dublin Castle was the centre of the government of Ireland under English and later British rule. "Dublin Castle" is used metonymically to describe British rule in Ireland. The Castle held only the executive branch of government and the Privy Cou ...

in Ireland.

Early life

Clements was the second son of Nathaniel Clements and Hannah (née Gore). He was the younger brother of

Robert Clements, 1st Earl of Leitrim Robert Clements, 1st Earl of Leitrim (25 November 1732 – 27 July 1804)Collen, G.W. (1840)''Debrett's Peerage of Great Britain and Ireland'' London. p. 444. Accessed 5 February 2020. was an Irish nobleman and politician. Son of Cavan Boroug ...

. He had four sisters, through whom he was the brother-in-law of

Francis Conyngham, 2nd Baron Conyngham Francis Conyngham, 2nd Baron Conyngham (born Francis Pierpoint Burton; 1725 – 22 May 1787) was an Irish peer and politician. Biography Burton was the eldest of two sons born to politician Francis Burton of County Clare by his wife, Mary (' ...

George Leslie Montgomery George Leslie Montgomery (c. 1727 – March 1787) was an Irish politician. Montgomery sat as Member of Parliament (MP) for Strabane from 1765 to 1768. He purchased the seat from John McCausland of Strabane for £2,000 after the death of the ...

, Eyre Massey, 1st Baron Clarina and

Ralph Gore, 1st Earl of Ross Ralph Gore, 1st Earl of Ross (23 November 1725 – September 1802), known as Sir Ralph Gore, 6th Baronet, from 1746 until 1764, subsequently as The Baron Gore until 1768, and then as The Viscount Belleisle until 1772, was an Anglo-Irish soldier, ...

. He was raised at the family seat at Ashfield Lodge,

County Cavan County Cavan ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is based on the hi ...

and at Woodville,

Lucan, Dublin Lucan ( ; ) is a suburban village to the west of Dublin, Ireland, located 12 km from Dublin city centre, on the River Liffey. It is near the Strawberry Beds and Lucan Weir, and at the confluence of the River Griffeen. It is mostly in the l ...

Career

In 1757, Clements was commissioned into the 30th Regiment of Foot. By 1764, he was lieutenant colonel of the

69th Regiment of Foot The 69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1756. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 41st (Welch) Regiment of Foot to form the Welch Regiment in 1881. History Formation ...

. In 1766 he served as High Sheriff of Cavan. In 1769, he was elected as a Member of Parliament for Cavan Borough in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until the end of 1800. The upper house was the Irish House of Lords, House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, ...

. In 1772 he succeeded his father as agent to regiments serving abroad, with an income of £800 per year, and in 1777 Clements also became deputy vice-treasurer and paymaster of pensions, together worth a further £2,000 per year. Although not the eldest son, he inherited his father's estate at Ashfield Lodge, with a rental income of around £3,000 per year. In 1773 he was appointed High Sheriff of Leitrim and in 1776 he was elected to represent

County Leitrim County Leitrim ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the village of Leitrim, County Leitr ...

. In parliament, Clements was a staunch supporter of the Dublin Castle administration, voting against legislative independence and parliamentary reform. He did, however, vote in favour of

Roman Catholic relief bills The Roman Catholic relief bills were a series of measures introduced over time in the late 18th and early 19th centuries before the Parliaments of Great Britain and the United Kingdom to remove the restrictions and prohibitions imposed on British ...

in 1774 and

1778 Events January–March * January 18 – Third voyage of James Cook: Sea captain, Captain James Cook, with ships HMS Resolution (1771), HMS ''Resolution'' and HMS Discovery (1774), HMS ''Discovery'', first views Oahu, Oʻahu th ...

. He was appointed to the

Privy Council of Ireland His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal executi ...

in 1777. In 1783, he was unseated from Leitrim by a popular petition after being accused of bribing voters; he returned to representing Cavan Borough instead. In the early 1780s, Clements was colonel of the Leitrim Rangers Volunteers. On 25 December 1783, Clements was appointed paymaster and receiver general of Ireland. In this role he reformed the financial administration in Ireland and was closely involved in developing a national

lottery A lottery (or lotto) is a form of gambling that involves the drawing of numbers at random for a prize. Some governments outlaw lotteries, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find som ...

in 1686. In 1785 it was estimated that he held government positions worth £2,400 a year. He was a member of the committee that prepared the draft bill for the establishment of the

Bank of Ireland Bank of Ireland Group plc () is a commercial bank operation in Ireland and one of the traditional Big Four Irish banks. Historically the premier banking organisation in Ireland, the bank occupies a unique position in Irish banking history. At ...

in 1781, and he subscribed the maximum permissible sum of £10,000 to the bank's capital on its foundation in 1783. In 1790 he was elected again to represent Leitrim; he held the seat until his death. He died on 26 October 1795 at his home in

and was buried in St. Michan's Church, Dublin.

Family

Clements was married twice. On 2 June 1770, he married firstly Mary, daughter and heiress of Daniel Webb, with whom he had two daughters. After Mary's death in 1777, he married secondly Catherine, eldest daughter of John Beresford, on 7 August 1778. This marriage produced three sons and two daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clements, Henry Theophilus 1734 births 1795 deaths 18th-century Anglo-Irish people Henry Theophilus High sheriffs of Cavan High sheriffs of Leitrim Irish MPs 1769–1776 Irish MPs 1776–1783 Irish MPs 1783–1790 Irish MPs 1790–1797 Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Cavan constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Leitrim constituencies Members of the Privy Council of Ireland People from Lucan, Dublin Politicians from County Cavan Military personnel from County Cavan