These decrees apparently included innocent Protestants, and the number of these, as we know from a statement of the Commissioners, was 168.
Therefore about 540 Catholics, at the outside, were decreed innocent.[1] It was notorious that there were numerous others whose claims had not been heard. The Commissioners themselves declared that they had heard the claims of all who had never taken lands west of the Shannon, and of one-sixth of those who had.[2] If this is accurate there can have been at the outside only 1,500 claimants unheard. But Prendergast cites cases of claimants unheard though they had taken no lands from Cromwell. The Irish said the number of those unheard was 8000. Sir Heneage Finch, ordered in 1670 to report to the King on the whole matter, declares that over 4000 had not been heard. The exact numbers therefore cannot be determined. Many of those unheard, too, were persons whose innocence would have been hard to prove, and who therefore had not been eager to press their claims.[3] But among them were numerous widows and orphans, persons without
- ↑ The surviving Rolls of Innocents, ten in number, have 492 names. One is missing. This would give about 540 in all, confirming the above estimate. Mr. Bagwell gives from the Egerton MSS. Innocent Papists 566, Innocent Protestants 141, Nocent 113; 820 in all.
- ↑ Document already cited. If we suppose that 2000 transplanted Irish received lands from Cromwell, probably an excessive estimate, we must remember that many of these came under one or other of the "nocent" classes, but had the benefit of their articles of surrender. Most of the lords and gentry of Leinster were in this category. None of them therefore could have claimed "innocence." Two hundred is a very low estimate of their numbers.
- ↑ Finch says: "There were several times when the Commissioners wanted causes, and could not prevail with men to bring on their claims."
