Irish House of Lords

The Irish House of Lords was the upper house of the Irish Parliament during the Lordship of Ireland (1171-1541) and the Kingdom of Ireland (1541-1800). It was abolished along with the Irish House of Commons by the 1801 Act of Union.

Following the Act of Union, the peerage of Ireland elected 28 of their number to sit in the UK House of Lords - this practice ended in 1922 with the establishment of the Irish Free State. Other Irish peers were able to stand for election to the UK House of Commons.

The 18th century Irish Parliament building on College Green in Dublin is an office of the commercial Bank of Ireland. Visitors can view the impressive Irish House of Lords chamber within the building.

The upper house of the Irish Parliament Dail is called the Seanad (Senate) and is comprised of appointees from various parties deemed to have a national standing - eg Trades Unions, Universities, Arts and Heritage organisations etc..