Nathaniel Clements

Government and the governing elite in Ireland, 1725–75

Anthony Malcomson

'Malcomson has succeeded in producing a book which is the most authoritative and comprehensive analysis of eighteenth-century Irish public administration. The author’s grasp of the often impenetrable intricacies of the Irish public finance system is especially impressive. The book’s thematic structure provides extremely useful examinations of key governmental institutions … Dr Malcomson is to be congratulated for providing readers with an impressively researched and stylishly written treatment of the development of key institutions of the Irish government in the eighteenth century’, Paddy McNally, Irish Economic & Social History.

‘Malcomson’s Nathaniel Clements is essential reading for scholars of eighteenth century Irish social and political history. It is also a reminder of how biography is essential to particular areas of historical investigation, and how the illuminating evidence it can reveal is far from being a mere ‘by-product’, N.C. Fleming, Irish Studies Review.

‘Malcomson’s skill in recreating the circumstances that gave rise to apparently unappealing behaviour and opinions has made him the outstanding historian of the conservative and orthodox in Georgian Ireland. His latest investigation, constantly illuminating, crowns an achievement unrivaled among historians of Ireland, and to be admired by all’, Toby Barnard, EHR.

'[Nathaniel Clements: Government and the Governing Elite in Ireland] illustrates Malcomson’s strengths as a scholar, being based on an impressive range and depth of primary research ... [A] handsome and nicely-illustrated volume ... In this elegant, deft and lucid study, Malcomson has rediscovered and largely rehabilitated one of the key figures of 18th-century government and constructed a brilliant picture of the workings of the Irish financial and administrative machine within which he operated', Stephen Farrell, Parliamentary History (2008).

‘[T]his is not a conventional biography … [T]he book takes us into uncharted territory, using Clements to reveal the rarely discussed behind-the-scenes of government and administration, frequently in complex detail … Malcomson’s incredible command of the manuscript sources and his impressive grasp of the intricacies of the Irish administration in the eighteenth century ensure that this is a formidable and original book. Moreover, he provides important comparative dimensions, generally drawing parallels with English practices … The author has written a meticulous study of Clements’s career and provides revealing insight into the government of eighteenth-century Ireland’, Liam Chambers, American Historical Review (April 2006).