Peter Martyn

Peter Martyn (born after 1630, died after 1690) was an Irish barrister, landowner and judge. He was one of the Roman Catholic judges appointed to the Irish Bench by King James II, as part of James's policy of creating an exclusively Catholic Irish administration. After the downfall of James' cause at the Battle of the Boyne he was accused of attempting to ingratiate himself with the new regime, but soon afterwards he was attainted. He later fled the country and died in exile. Background He was born in Kinvara, County Galway, the second son of Richard Óge Martyn (died 1648) of Dunguaire Castle and his wife Magdalen French. His father was a wealthy landowner, lawyer and politician, who with his cousin Patrick D'Arcy belonged to a group of Roman Catholic lawyers in County Galway who continued to practice law in the 1630s in defiance of the Penal Laws, which barred Catholics from the practice of any profession, until the Crown finally put a stop to their practice; later Richard was a key figure in Confederate Ireland. His eldest son Oliver Óge Martyn, despite his father's dubious loyalty to the Crown, was able to hold on to the family estates; unlike his brother Peter, he was never attainted, apparently due to the high regard felt for him by his neighbours. Career In the general atmosphere of religious toleration which followed the Restoration of Charles II (since both the King and his brother and heir James were known to incline to the Roman Catholic faith) Peter's cousin Patrick Darcy was able to resume his legal practice and may have encouraged Peter to follow him to the Irish Bar. Peter entered Middle Temple in 1663 and the King's Inn in 1673, and was on the Connaught Circuit in 1683. He became wealthy, and bought the manor of Kilconnel, County Galway.