page_title: Counties of Meath and Westmeath Act 1543
section_title: Provisions
hierarchical_section_title: Counties of Meath and Westmeath Act 1543 / Provisions
caption_attribution_description: English: Map highlighting Meath and Westmeath
context_page_description: An Act for the division of Meath into two shires was an Act of the Parliament of Ireland passed in 1542 which resulted in the division of County Meath, shired in 1297, into the counties of Meath and Westmeath. The Act commenced on Saint Catherine's Day in 1542 and remains in effect.
context_section_description: The Act noted that although Meath was "great and a large in ciruit, the west part therof laid about and beset with diverse of King's rebels'" and that in the western part of the county, the High Sheriff of Meath was not able to execute the king's laws. Furthermore, the Act stated that the sheriff most commonly hailed from those areas within the Pale (ie. modern County Meath) rather than elsewhere in the county.
  On the subject of the aim of partition, the Act concludes:
  the said shire shall be divided and made into two shires and one of them shall be named Methe and the other shall be called Countie of Westmethe, and there shall be two sheriffs and other offices convenient within the said shires, and that the kings subjects thereby should greatly increase in obedience unto the Kings Highness and his laws
  Under the partition, the six westernmost baronies of Meath became part of the new shire of Westmeath. The barony of Fore was divided in two, with the western half becoming part of Westmeath. Further west, four new baronies were established along historic Norman marcher lineages, bringing the total number of baronies in the new shire to eleven. 
  The new baronies created as a result of the act were:
  Dalton's country became the barony of Rathconrath;
  Delamare's country became the barony of Rossaughe;
  Tyrrell's country became the barony of Fartullagh; and
  Dillon's country became the barony of Kilkenny West.
  Mullingar was named as the "head and shire town" of Westmeath and a Dominican priory in the area was converted into a gaol. Robert Dillon was appointed as the first High Sheriff of Westmeath in 1543.
caption: Modern boundaries of Meath (Red) and Westmeath (Green).
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