Catholic Association

The Catholic Association was an Irish Roman Catholic political organisation set up by Daniel O'Connell in the early nineteenth century to campaign for Catholic emancipation within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It was one of the first mass-membership political movements in Europe.

The Catholic Association was founded in 1823 by Daniel O'Connell. It was the latest in a series of similar associations formed over the previous ten years or so; none of these had prospered. Like the other associations, this new association was composed mainly of the middle-class elite: the annual subscription amounting to a guinea, an amount equivalent to what an average farmer would pay for six months' rent. In 1824, the Catholic Association began to use the money that it had raised in order to campaign for Catholic emancipation. Furthermore, in this year the association created a new category of associate member at the cost of a penny a month, the so-called Catholic Rent. The reasoning behind the creation of this new membership category was to stimulate a swelling in association numbers. This new cheaper category ensured Catholics from a poorer background could join and thus the association's initial class-based entry barriers were removed.

The Catholic rent transformed the association. Arguably, it could be interpreted as having transformed the entire history of Ireland. In terms of the association, the rent catalysed a transformation in a number of ways. Firstly, as previously mentioned, it gave the Catholic Association a constant source of money which enabled Daniel O'Connell to run a consistent campaign. Secondly, it facilitated easy calculation of total association membership numbers so that O'Connell could say with confidence that he had the support of so many people. This was important as it could be used to apply pressure against the British government. Third, and perhaps most importantly however, it announced the arrival of mass mobilisation politics, it being the first such populist movement in Europe.

Daniel O'Connell decided to add this additional membership level, at a reduced price of a penny a month, deliberately. The benefits were clear. With the membership subscription set at a relatively cheap price, a large number of the peasant and working classes could join. Affordability ensured large numbers. In effect, it became a universal Catholic organisation, transparent and populist. Members of the association were in essence the owners; their subscription fees going directly into the maintenance and running of the association. The fact that each member had contributed financially to the association also ensured that they were more deeply involved in pushing the cause of Catholic emancipation. People wanted value for money. Thus, this ensured a cheap method for O'Connell to get the message of Catholic emancipation spread throughout Ireland.

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