When the Iron Duke formed a Government, the Catholic Association passed a resolution declaring that it would oppose the election of any Irish member who took office under the new premier. Undisturbed by this, the member for Clare, Mr. Fitzgerald, accepted the post of President of the Board of Trade, and then O'Connell announced that he would be the nominee of the Association, and would contest the seat. This created a veritable sensation. The eyes of the world were centred on Clare, and Lord Anglesey sent an army of occupation to take possession of it. On the polling days there were about five soldiers for every voter, and the Catholic Association {232} received an advertisement that made the world understand the seriousness of its principles. No single election has ever had the effect produced by the election of Daniel O'Connell to represent Clare at Westminster. A month before the result Sir Robert Peel declared that he would die politically rather than give way: the returns from Clare were still being discussed when the same man started to draft the Bill he introduced into the House of Commons in February, 1829, a measure which completely emancipated the Roman Catholics. The posts of Regent, of Lord Chancellor, and of Irish Viceroy were the only ones Catholics could not hold. The Catholic Association had justified its existence. Meanwhile Lord Anglesey's position was not without interest. He was very unpopular with the patriotic party, and the fact that George IV. was annoyed with him tended to increase further his popularity. Anglesey learned many things during his first six months in England, and he became an emancipationist while Peel was still defiant. The Duke of Wellington was exasperated when Anglesey nullified his advice to Catholics to substitute patience for agitation by advising them to agitate until they obtained their demands. The duke wrote curt letters, and Anglesey answered in a similar strain. He was not fond of Dublin or Dublin society, and Irish affairs began to bore him. The most interesting men were in his opinion the members of the Catholic Association, and he dare not be seen with them, while he knew, as every other viceroy had known, that {233} to withhold complete emancipation was the worst service the English ministry could do the country. The Prime Minister, with the help of the king, compelled Anglesey to send in his resignation, and the vacancy was given at once to Hugh Percy, third Duke of Northumberland, Greville's 'prodigious bore,' and almost the wealthiest nobleman in England. He accepted with the proviso that he was not to hold the post for more than eighteen months, while he advised the Government to reduce the viceroy's salary by L10,000--it then stood at L20,000 a year. The latter piece of advice was not accepted, because the Government realized that there would be future viceroys without the wealth of the newer Percys. [Sidenote: The Tithe War]