Editing Henry Grattan (section)

==In the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland==

For the next five years, Grattan took no active part in public affairs; it was not again until 1805, that he became a Member of the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]] for [[Malton (UK Parliament constituency)|Malton]]. He modestly took his seat on one of the back benches, until [[Charles James Fox|Fox]] brought him forward, exclaiming, "This is no place for the Irish [[Demosthenes]]!" His first speech was on the Catholic question and all agreed with the description of his speech by the ''Annual Register'' as one of the most brilliant and eloquent ever made within the walls of parliament. When Fox and [[William Grenville]] came into power in 1806 Grattan, who sat at this time for [[Dublin City (UK Parliament constituency)|Dublin City]], was offered, but refused to accept, an office in the government. In the following year, he showed the strength of his judgment and character by supporting, in spite of consequent unpopularity in Ireland, a measure for increasing the powers of the executive to deal with Irish disorder. Roman Catholic emancipation, which he continued to advocate with unflagging energy, though now advanced in age, became complicated after 1808 by the question whether a [[Royal veto of the appointment of bishops|veto on the appointment of Roman Catholic bishops]] should rest with the crown.{{sfn|McNeill|1911|pp=380–381}}

Grattan supported the veto, but a more radical Catholic party was now arising in Ireland under the leadership of [[Daniel O'Connell]], and Grattan's influence gradually declined. He seldom spoke in [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|Parliament]] after 1810, the most notable exception being in 1815, when he separated himself from the [[British Whig Party|Whigs]] and supported the final struggle against [[Napoleon I|Napoléon]]. His last speech of all, in 1819, contained a passage referring to the Union he had so passionately resisted, which exhibits the statesmanship, and at the same time the equable quality, of Grattan's character. His sentiments with regard to the policy of the Union remained, he said, unchanged; but "the marriage, having taken place, it is now the duty, as it ought to be the inclination, of every individual to render it as fruitful, as profitable and as advantageous as possible."{{sfn|McNeill|1911|p=381}}