Editing Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (section)

==Role==
[[File:Lord Dudley, Grand Master of the Order of St. Patrick.jpg|thumb|right| The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland was the ''ex officio'' Grand Master of the [[Order of St Patrick]] (uniform shown here worn by [[William Ward, 2nd Earl of Dudley]], Lord Lieutenant from 1902 to 1905).]]
The Lord Lieutenant possessed a number of overlapping roles.{{citation needed|date=January 2018}} He was
* the representative of the King (the "viceroy");
* the head of the executive in Ireland;
* (on occasion) a member of the English or British Cabinet;
* the fount of mercy, justice and patronage;
* (on occasion) [[commander-in-chief]] in Ireland.
* Grand Master of the [[Order of St. Patrick]]

Prior to the [[Act of Union 1800]] which abolished the Irish parliament, the Lord Lieutenant formally delivered the [[Speech from the Throne]] outlining his Government's policies. His Government exercised effective control of parliament through the extensive exercise of the powers of patronage, namely the awarding of [[peerage]]s, [[baronet]]cies and state honours. Critics accused successive viceroys of using their patronage power as a corrupt means of controlling parliament. On one day in July 1777, [[John Hobart, 2nd Earl of Buckinghamshire|Lord Buckinghamshire]] as Lord Lieutenant promoted 5 [[viscount]]s to [[earl]]s, 7 [[baron]]s to viscounts, and created 18 new barons.<ref name=Robins66 />{{rp|66}} The power of patronage was used to bribe MPs and peers into supporting the [[Act of Union 1800]], with many of those who changed sides and supported the Union in [[Parliament of Ireland|Parliament]] awarded peerages and honours for doing so.