The Moorehall Site

The new Disraeli Government tried to buy off Moore and Keogh with appointments, but the "Brigade" stood firm. The Tenant League which had started in Callan in Kilkenny had Moore's firm support and for a time that of the "Brigade". By voting with the Whigs the Brigade toppled yet another English Government and in the 1852 election most of the "Brigade" were returned.
A meeting was held between the League and the Brigade on August 5th. In the 1852 election the landlords were firmly against the Brigade and Moore found himself snubbed by most of his friends. Moore's ersatz friend and fellow brigadier Ouseley Higgins tried to unseat Moore but intrigue didn't work. McAlpine the Tory candidate tried to plead undue clerical influence and an enquiry was held in Castlebar but collapsed when the complainants failed to appear or give evidence.

The smell of death hung over the Independent opposition party for the next five years but its final collapse was postponed until the election of 1857. Moore and Higgins were elected and the Home Rule-Tenant Right Party held together. Moore had a hard fight for his seat. Under Cardinal Cullen's influence, the bishops, with the exception of Dr. MacHale and Dr. Deery, had forbidden their priests to support the Independents. However, as a consequence of Moore's success, the two English parties agreed to a Commission to enquire into "clerical influence". This time it worked. Fr. Conway and Fr. Luke Ryan together with Dr. MacHale being named as the chief agents of this "intimidation". Nothing was said of the mass "intimidation" of electors by Cullen's lay and clerical henchmen in almost every constituency in Ireland. The Reform Bill of 1870 had to be passed before a real Home Rule Party, under Butt (who had learned much from Moore's failure), could come into existence. Moore recognised the utter inefficiency of the franchise as it was since 1829. "I shall have it decided" he sa
id in an election address in Ballina, "whether one landlord shall herd 50, another 100, better men than himself to vote for an "amadáun" at his bidding'".

Moore was unseated and declared, by a Parliamentary Commission,to be ineligible for the ensuing by-election. The fact was that British Whig and Tory parties both now recognised that Moore could not be "bought" and that he was a "Home Ruler".
Moore's last political effort - He contested a seat in 1860 in Kilkenny; he knew he could not win, but he did succeed in what he wanted having Cardinal Cullen's Whig placeman nominee put at the bottom of the poll. After 1860 he became increasingly sceptical of the efficiency of the constitutional effort to obtain Repeal and sometime about 1866 he joined the Fenian movement, but was repelled by the impractical day-dreaming of some of its leaders.

He continued to race, his best horse at this time being "Croagh Patrick". He and his family went to London after Christmas 1869. He returned alone at Easter to attend to affairs of the estate and died of a stroke on 19th April 1870 attended by Fr. Lavelle. His family asked that no public ceremonial take place and that he be buried quietly in Kiltoom rather than Glasnevin. All Irish papers and indeed some English came out with black-bordered obituaries next day.

George Henry the sportsman, George Henry the politician, but what of George Henry the man? John Henry Garvey, long the school master in Carnacon used to say ,"He was the finest scholar and greatest patriot of the last 100 years". Alec McDonnell: "A fine man, that respected every mans rights". He was a good employer, and never evicted a tenant.

An interesting "aguisín"-(aside!) George Henry Moore understood Irish and could speak it reasonably well, according to Martin Haugh of Tournakeady.

George IV and Maurice George

Geoge Henry had four sons and one daughter. George the eldest was born in 1852. He received the usual governess education and with Maurice was sent to Oscott College which he thoroughly hated. He was expelled at the age of 16. He said it was because he was making no progress. But an important part of his education took place between 1858 - 1861. He spent this time with the jockeys, and workmen round Moorehall where he learned to ride and shoot, but more importantly he learned to know and sympathise with their outlooks and attitudes. He watched tradesmen at work and ever afterwards he always had a great respect for craftsmen. For example in his "Confessions of a Young Man" he says that the illiterate carpenter who could design and build a beautiful wardrobe was a true artist. Years later he watched my father make a slit grafting on an apple-tree and said "You craftsmen are the real artists of the world. You create something that has beauty in itself".

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		The new Disraeli Government tried to buy off Moore and Keogh with appointments, but the "Brigade" stood firm. The Tenant League which had started in Callan in Kilkenny had Moore's firm support and for a time that of the "Brigade". By voting with the Whigs the Brigade toppled yet another English Government and in the 1852 election most of the "Brigade" were returned. A meeting was held between the League and the Brigade on August 5th. In the 1852 election the landlords were firmly against the Brigade and Moore found himself snubbed by most of his friends. Moore's ersatz friend and fellow brigadier Ouseley Higgins tried to unseat Moore but intrigue didn't work. McAlpine the Tory candidate tried to plead undue clerical influence and an enquiry was held in Castlebar but collapsed when the complainants failed to appear or give evidence. The smell of death hung over the Independent opposition party for the next five years but its final collapse was postponed until the election of 1857. Moore and Higgins were elected and the Home Rule-Tenant Right Party held together. Moore had a hard fight for his seat. Under Cardinal Cullen's influence, the bishops, with the exception of Dr. MacHale and Dr. Deery, had forbidden their priests to support the Independents. However, as a consequence of Moore's success, the two English parties agreed to a Commission to enquire into "clerical influence". This time it worked. Fr. Conway and Fr. Luke Ryan together with Dr. MacHale being named as the chief agents of this "intimidation". Nothing was said of the mass "intimidation" of electors by Cullen's lay and clerical henchmen in almost every constituency in Ireland. The Reform Bill of 1870 had to be passed before a real Home Rule Party, under Butt (who had learned much from Moore's failure), could come into existence. Moore recognised the utter inefficiency of the franchise as it was since 1829. "I shall have it decided" he sa id in an election address in Ballina, "whether one landlord shall herd 50, another 100, better men than himself to vote for an "amadáun" at his bidding'". Moore was unseated and declared, by a Parliamentary Commission,to be ineligible for the ensuing by-election. The fact was that British Whig and Tory parties both now recognised that Moore could not be "bought" and that he was a "Home Ruler". Moore's last political effort - He contested a seat in 1860 in Kilkenny; he knew he could not win, but he did succeed in what he wanted having Cardinal Cullen's Whig placeman nominee put at the bottom of the poll. After 1860 he became increasingly sceptical of the efficiency of the constitutional effort to obtain Repeal and sometime about 1866 he joined the Fenian movement, but was repelled by the impractical day-dreaming of some of its leaders. He continued to race, his best horse at this time being "Croagh Patrick". He and his family went to London after Christmas 1869. He returned alone at Easter to attend to affairs of the estate and died of a stroke on 19th April 1870 attended by Fr. Lavelle. His family asked that no public ceremonial take place and that he be buried quietly in Kiltoom rather than Glasnevin. All Irish papers and indeed some English came out with black-bordered obituaries next day. George Henry the sportsman, George Henry the politician, but what of George Henry the man? John Henry Garvey, long the school master in Carnacon used to say ,"He was the finest scholar and greatest patriot of the last 100 years". Alec McDonnell: "A fine man, that respected every mans rights". He was a good employer, and never evicted a tenant. An interesting "aguisín"-(aside!) George Henry Moore understood Irish and could speak it reasonably well, according to Martin Haugh of Tournakeady. George IV and Maurice George Geoge Henry had four sons and one daughter. George the eldest was born in 1852. He received the usual governess education and with Maurice was sent to Oscott College which he thoroughly hated. He was expelled at the age of 16. He said it was because he was making no progress. But an important part of his education took place between 1858 - 1861. He spent this time with the jockeys, and workmen round Moorehall where he learned to ride and shoot, but more importantly he learned to know and sympathise with their outlooks and attitudes. He watched tradesmen at work and ever afterwards he always had a great respect for craftsmen. For example in his "Confessions of a Young Man" he says that the illiterate carpenter who could design and build a beautiful wardrobe was a true artist. Years later he watched my father make a slit grafting on an apple-tree and said "You craftsmen are the real artists of the world. You create something that has beauty in itself".
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