Editing Catholic emancipation (section)

==Developments of the 1820s==
In 1823, [[Daniel O'Connell]] started a campaign for emancipation by establishing the [[Catholic Association]]. In 1828 he stood for election in [[Clare (UK Parliament constituency)|County Clare]] in [[Ireland]] and [[1828 Clare by-election|was elected]] even though he could not take his seat in the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom]]. 

O'Connell's manoeuvres were important, but the decisive turning point came with the change in public opinion in Britain in favour of emancipation. Politicians understood the critical importance of public opinion. They were influenced as well by the strong support for the measure by the Whigs in the [[House of Lords]] and by the followers of [[William Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville|Lord Grenville]] (1759–1834). The increasing strength of public opinion, as expressed in the newspapers and elections over a twenty-year period, overcame religious bias and deference to the crown, first in the House of Commons and then in the House of Lords. As Robert Peel pointed out to George IV in 1829, every House of Commons elected beginning in 1807 expressed majority support for Catholic emancipation, except that of 1818, which voted only once on the issue, in 1819, and rejected the motion by two votes.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Davis|first=Richard|date=1999|title=The House of Lords, the Whigs and Catholic Emancipation: 1806-1829.|journal=Parliamentary History|volume=18|issue=1|pages=29|doi=10.1111/j.1750-0206.1999.tb00356.x }}</ref> Despite this, the votes in the House of Lords were consistently negative, in part because of the king's own opposition. The balance of opinion in the House of Lords shifted abruptly in 1828–29 in response to public opinion and O'Connell's election, especially reflecting fear of a religious civil war in Ireland.{{Citation needed|date=November 2016}} The [[Sacramental Test Act 1828]] removed the barrier that required certain public officials to be members of the [[Church of England|established Church]].

[[File:Burking Poor Old Mrs Constitution. Wellcome L0019663.jpg|thumb|''[[Burking Poor Old Mrs Constitution]]'' by [[William Heath (artist)|William Heath]], 1829. Satirical cartoon showing Wellington and Peel (as the murderers [[Burke and Hare murders|Burke and Hare]]) extinguishing the constitution for Catholic emancipation.]]

Finally, the [[Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington|Duke of Wellington]] and [[Sir Robert Peel]] changed positions to support the [[Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829]]. This act removed many of the remaining substantial restrictions on Roman Catholics throughout the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland]]. However, at the same time the minimum property qualification for voters was increased, rising from a rental value of forty shillings (£2) per annum to £10 per annum, substantially reducing the number of those entitled to vote, although after 1832 the threshold was again lowered in successive [[Reform Act]]s. The major beneficiaries were the Roman Catholic middle classes, who could now enter careers in the higher civil service and in the judiciary. [[1829 Clare by-election|O'Connell was then re-elected]] and took his seat in Westminster. The year 1829 is therefore generally regarded as marking the chief moment of Emancipation in Britain and Ireland.<ref>Davis, 1999</ref>

The obligation, however, to pay [[tithes]] to the established [[Church of Ireland|Anglican church in Ireland]] remained, resulting in the [[Tithe War]] of the 1830s, and many other minor disabilities remained. A series of further reforms were introduced over time.