The 1831 Tithe Defaulters
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These records are the most important evidence we have of the infamous Tithe War 1831-38. All occupants of land were required to pay an annual tithe (or religious tax) of 10% of the agricultural produce generated by that holding. This money was demanded by landholders, irrespective of their religion, and was paid directly to the official state church, the Anglican (Episcopalian) Church of Ireland.
However in 1830 and 1831 many people refused to pay this tithe, and so started the Tithe War. The names in these records are those recorded by the Church of Ireland clergy who refused to pay their tithe. The people most affected by the Tithe War are precisely those most affected by emigration and the famine in the next generation.
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