The King of the Claddagh was the leader of the
Claddagh community in
Galway city
Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...
as well as at sea who was charged with being the arbiter in any disputes.
A new king was chosen on
St. John's Day, 23 June.
It is now an honorary role.
Mayors and kings
Elections of Mayors of the Claddagh are noted in 1812 and 1837. One possible mayor in the 1830s was Denis King. Only in 1846 are the names of the mayor, Bartley Hynes, and the runner-up and deputy, Owen Jones, recorded. Hynes died on 27 April 1849 and was succeeded by Jones.
The first recorded King of the Claddagh was the Rev
Thomas Folan, who died in 1887.
Padge King
Padge King () was Mayor/King of the Claddagh.
Biography
King was one of the earliest recorded Kings of the Claddagh. The ''Galway Vindicator'' of 12 May 1887 stated that "This custom of appointing their own ruler prevails among the Claddagh fo ...
and
Eoin Concannon were his successors, and regarded as the last actual kings when Concannon died in 1954.
Ceremonial 'kings' since then have been Martin Oliver, Patrick Ladeen Curran, and Mike Lynskey.
Martin Oliver, for example, held the title from the early 1960s until 1972, and represented the community at events such as the Oyster Festival. Oliver was a descendant of 19th century mariner
Martin Oliver and owned the
Galway hooker ''Truelight''.
[''Galway - A Maritime Tradition:Ships, boats and people'', Brendan O'Donnell, Galway, 2001]
See also
*
Mayor of Galway
The office of Mayor of Galway is an honorific title used by the of Galway City Council. The council has jurisdiction throughout its administrative area of the city of Galway which is the largest city in the province of Connacht, in Ireland. Th ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayor/King of the Claddagh
Nobility from County Galway