Galway Jury
Preserved but no longer current.
An enlightened, in- dependent jury. The expression has its birth in certain trials held in Ireland in 1635 upon the right of the king to the counties of Ireland. Leitrim, Roscommon, Sligo, and Mayo gave judgment in favour of the Crown, but Galway opposed it; whereupon the sheriff was fined £1,000, and each of the jurors £4,000.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Galway Jury” mean?
An enlightened, in- dependent jury. The expression has its birth in certain trials held in Ireland in 1635 upon the right of the king to the counties of Ireland. Leitrim, Roscommon, Sligo, and Mayo gave judgment in favour of the Crown, but Galway opposed it; whereupon the sheriff was fined £1,000, and each of the jurors £4,000.
Is “Galway Jury” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.