The Inspector General: Sir Jeremiah Fitzpatrick and Social Reform, 1783-1802

Sir Jeremiah Fitzpatrick (c.1740-1810) was the first inspector general of prisons and lunacy inspector in Ireland and the first and only inspector of health to HM land forces in Great Britain. He also inspected convict vessels bound for New South Wales and the East India Company’s troop ships, inquired into the Irish Charter Schools and attempted to alleviate the miseries of soldiers’ dependents. His further ambitions ranged from a poor law for Ireland to a reorganisation of Dublin’s police, to the regulation of noxious trades, from slave trade inspectorates to hospital management. He was therefore in many ways a precursor of the titans of early and mid-Victorian government. Originally published in 1981, much of the interest of the book lies in its revelation of late eighteenth century anticipations of mid-nineteenth century government. It also explores the differences between the two forms of administration and the reasons for the divergences and discontinuities.

Oliver MacDonagh was W.K. Hancock Professor of History in the Research School of Social Sciences at the Australian National University.