Detailed information on leases can be found in Dr William Roulston’s book: “Researching farming ancestors in Ireland.” The book explores the subject in considerable depth.
Some farms were held on “at will” terms ie no lease at all, some were on terms such as 30 years, and others had lifetime leases. In the 1700s, 3 lives leases were popular. They lasted for the duration of the lease eg 21 years, sometimes 31 years, or so long as at least one of the 3 names in the lease were still alive, whichever was the longer.
The length of the lease was largely a matter of what the landlord wanted. Quoting from Roulston pp 57/8: “The disinclination of many landlords to issue leases as the nineteenth century wore on has been attributed to a number of factors. First of all there was a change in the franchise with the 40 shilling freeholders no longer able to vote after 1829. This certainly had an impact on the granting of life leases (a pre-requisite for voting). The emerging political consciousness, particularly amongst Catholic farmers, also made landlords reluctant to issue leases to people whose voting patters they could not control as before. There were also economic factors, especially the agricultural depression following the end of the Napoleonic wars, which made it harder for tenants to keep up with the rent payments specified in their leases.”
In 1870 80% of farmers in Ireland were tenants at will (so no written lease). Roulston p 58.
On the Downshire estate (Co Down), “The average duration of 43 leases for lives concerning the Banbridge portion of the Downshire estate was 54 years – only 6 expired in less than 40 years, while 17 lasted for 60 years.” (Roulston p 61).
