Hearth tax and became widespread in the 14th century when the royal finances were unable to bear the rising costs of war and state agents. In particular, "fouages" were levied in 1342 and 1349. The "hearth-penny" was an Anglo-Saxon term for "Peter's pence". In England, hearth tax, also known as hearth money, chimney tax, or chimney money, was a tax imposed by Parliament in 1662, to support the Royal Household of King Charles II. Following the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, Parliament calculated that the Royal Household needed an annual income of £1,200,000. The hearth tax was a supplemental tax to
Rosehill, Templeport the townland as part of "Kilcrooghan" (the other part was Gortnaleck). The 1665 Down Survey map depicts it as part of "Killcrachan". An 1809 map of ecclesiastical lands in Templeport depicts it as "Bellacrohaw", (from Irish: "Bél Átha Cruachán", meaning "The Entrance to the Ford of the Round Hill") which was probably its old Irish name before it was changed to Rosehill in the 19th century. The 1652 Commonwealth Survey lists the proprietor of Killecrooghan as "John Boyd". In the Hearth Money Rolls of 1662 there were two people paying the Hearth Tax in "Killecrohean- John Bride and Robert Grige"