Freedom of the City of Dublin

In ancient boroughs such as Dublin, a royal charter established the privileges of the "burgesses" (or "citizens" in places like Dublin with city status). Admission as a freeman or citizen was principally granted to members of the Guilds of the City of Dublin and others by "special grace", as well as by marriage or descent from existing citizens. The wealthy could buy freedom by paying a "fine", and some of the penal laws facilitated Protestant immigrants' becoming freemen.{{cite book |author=Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the municipal corporations in Ireland |title=First report, appendix: Report on the City of Dublin, Part I |url=http://www.dippam.ac.uk/eppi/documents/10925/page/244571|series=Command papers|volume=27|year=1835|issue=23 |publisher=William Clowes for HMSO |pages=17–19, §§60–63}}

Ancient charters were superseded for municipal governance purposes by the Municipal Corporations (Ireland) Act 1840 and for all other non-ceremonial purposes by the Local Government Act 2001.{{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2001/en/act/pub/0037/sec0011.html#sec11|title=Local Government Act, 2001, Section 11 (16)|date=21 July 2001|work=Irish Statute Book|quote=Subject to this Act, royal charters and letters patent relating to local authorities shall continue to apply for ceremonial and related purposes in accordance with local civic tradition but shall otherwise cease to have effect.|access-date=2 April 2015}} Nevertheless, ancient privileges and duties of freemen are sometimes cited in relation to the modern award. Rights included:{{cite web |title=Why are Bono and The Edge grazing sheep in Stephen's Green in 2000? It's their right as Freemen of the City |publisher=TheJournal.ie |date=7 February 2017 |url=http://jrnl.ie/3226054 |access-date=30 November 2020 }}

• Exemption from octroi charged on goods brought through the city gates.
• Pasturage of sheep on city commons, which included College Green and St Stephen's Green. This right was exercised as a publicity stunt by U2 members the day after their 2000 conferring.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=uJtOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=6UQDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4966%2C7170556|title=Bono asserts public sheep-grazing right|last=AP|date=20 March 2000|work=Rome News-Tribune|access-date=2 April 2015|location=Rome, Georgia}}{{Cite book|title=U2 by U2|publisher=HarperCollins|date=2007-10-09|isbn=978-0-06-077674-9|author=Edge, Adam Clayton, Larry Mullen Jr.}}{{page needed|date=April 2015}}
• The right to vote in municipal elections, and in the Irish parliamentary borough of Dublin (after the Acts of Union 1800 in the UK parliamentary borough of Dublin).

Freedmen had a duty to defend the city and could be called into the militia at short notice. In 1454, apprentices to be admitted freemen needed a bow and sword, while merchants additionally needed a coat of mail and helmet.{{cite journal|last=Berry|first=Henry F.|year=1900|title=The Records of the Dublin Gild of Merchants, known as the Gild of the Holy Trinity, 1438-1671.|journal=The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland|volume=10 (5th ser.) 30 (continuing)|issue=1|page=59|url=https://archive.org/stream/journalofroyalso30royauoft#page/59/mode/1up}}{{cite book|last=Gilbert|first=John T. |title=Calendar of ancient records of Dublin in the possession of the municipal corporation of that city |chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/calendarofancien01dubl#page/283/mode/1up|volume=1|year=1889|publisher=Joseph Dollard |page=283|chapter=Dublin Assembly Roll, 1454}}

While the Representation of the People Act 1918 abolished the franchise rights of freemen, the Municipal Privileges Ireland Act 1876 allowed the establishment of the title of "Honorary Freemen".Clark (2000) p.34 This was retained by Local Government Act 1991{{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/1991/en/act/pub/0011/sec0048.html#sec48|title=Local Government Act, 1991, Section 48|work=Irish Statute Book|access-date=26 March 2015}} and currently the Local Government Act 2001.{{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2001/en/act/pub/0037/sec0074.html|title=Local Government Act, 2001, Section 74|work=Irish Statute Book|access-date=26 March 2015}}

;Notes

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• {{cite journal |first=Mary |last=Clark |title=Freedom of the City of Dublin |journal=Dublin Historical Record |volume=53 |number=1 |date=Spring 2000 |pages=33–37 |jstor=30101245 }}

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• [https://web.archive.org/web/20140803183238/http://dublincitypubliclibraries.com/image-galleries/digital-collections/freedom-city Freedom of the City] 88 photographs from the Dublin City Council public libraries website

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