Richard Northalis

Richard Northalis (died 20 July 1397) was an English-born cleric and judge who spent much of his life in Ireland, where he held the offices of Bishop of Ossory, Archbishop of Dublin and Lord Chancellor of Ireland. For the last decade of his life he was one of the English Crown's most trusted advisers.

He was born in Middlesex, the son of John Northale (died 1349), better known as John Clarke, who was Sheriff of London in 1335-6. He entered the Carmelite house in London. He gained a reputation as a preacher of great eloquence, and was appointed a royal chaplain. He was Bishop of Ossory from 1386 to 1396.

He was a diplomat and statesman of considerable repute. He was to the Holy See in 1388 and was a trusted adviser to King Richard II both in his dealings with the Holy See and in Irish affairs. As a mark of Royal favour he was given an export licence for a wide variety of items, including hawks, falcons, gold and silver. Affairs of state kept him out of Ireland for much of the years 1388-90, during which there appear to have been serious disturbances in his diocese; he later complained of his inability to collect most of the diocesan revenues. In 1390 he was given a commission to inquire into corruption, maladministration and abuse of office by Irish officials. The powers granted to him by the commission (a familiar response to complaints about the misgovernment of Ireland) were exceptionally wide, an indication of the high degree of trust placed in him by the Crown. He was entitled to examine all official records and summon any official for questioning. All Crown servants, even the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, were required to co-operate with the Bishop.

The King in 1391 referred to Richard as a man on whom he greatly relied for his "circumspection, prudence and fidelity". He spent much of the spring and summer of that year in England in constant attendance on the King. On his return to Ireland he was made a member of the Privy Council of Ireland and acted as Justiciar of Kilkenny. He was summoned to the Great Council in Kilkenny in 1395 where the King, uniquely in Irish history, was present.

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