John Butler, 17th Earl of Ormonde

John Butler
John Butler
Earl of Ormond
Tenure	1783–1795
Predecessor	Walter, 16th Earl of Ormonde
Successor	Walter, 1st Marquess of Ormonde
Born	10 December 1740; Garryricken
Died	25 or 30 December 1795; Kilkenny Castle
Spouse(s)	Anne Wandesford
Issue; Detail	Walter, James, & others
Father	Walter, 16th Earl of Ormonde
Mother	Ellen Morres

John Butler, 17th Earl of Ormonde, 10th Earl of Ossory (1740–1795) was an Irish peer and Member of Parliament (MP). He became a Protestant in 1764. He was an Irish MP, representing Gowran between 1776 and 1783, and Kilkenny City between 1783 and 1792. In 1791, his right to the peerage was acknowledged in the Irish House of Lords and he became the 17th Earl of Ormond.

Birth and origins

Family tree

John Butler with wife, parents, and other selected relatives.^[a]

Walter
of
Garryricken
d. 1700

Mary
Plunket

Thomas
of
Garryricken
d. 1738
Colonel

Margaret
Magennis
1673–1744

John
Butler

Frances
Butler

John
de jure
15th Earl
d. 1766

Walter
de jure
16th Earl
1703–1783

Ellen
Morres
d. 1794

John
17th Earl
1740–1795

Anne
Wandesford
1754–1830

Walter
1st
Marquess
1770–1820

Anna
Clarke
d. 1817

James
1st
Marquess
1774–1838

Louisa
Staples

John
2nd
Marquess
1808–1854

Frances
Jane
Paget

Legend

XXX

Subject of
the article

XXX

Earls & marquesses
of Ormond

John was born on 10 December 1740^[2] at Garryricken.^[3] He was the only son, of Walter Butler and his wife Ellen Morres.^[4] At the time of his birth his father was the heir apparent of his father the esquire of Garryricken. In 1766 his father would become the de jure 16th Earl of Ormond. His father's family, the Butler dynasty, was Old English and descended from Theobald Walter, who had been appointed Chief Butler of Ireland by King Henry II in 1177.^[5]

John's mother was a daughter of Nicholas Morres of the Court, County Dublin, granddaughter of Sir John Morres, 7th Baronet Morres of Knockagh.^[6]^[7] John was one of four siblings, who are listed in his father's article.

Conforms and marries a Protestant heiress

On 16 December 1764 he conformed to the established Church of Ireland in a ceremony performed in the church of Golden, County Tipperary.^[8] In other words: he became a Protestant.

In February 1769 he married Frances Susan Elizabeth Wandesford.^[9] also called Anne.^[10]^[11] She was a rich heiress being the only surviving child of John Wandesford the 1st Earl Wandesford and 5th Viscount Castlecomer and his wife Agnes Southwell. The Wandesfords were Protestants and had supported the Prince of Orange during the Williamite War in Ireland. They owned land and coal mines around Castlecomer in northern County Kilkenny. His wife's mother belonged to a junior branch of the family of Viscount Southwell. When the Earl of Wandesford died in 1784, his titles became extinct, but his estates passed to John Butler.^[12]

John and Anne (or Frances Susan Elizabeth) had four sons:

Walter (1770–1820), who was in 1816 created Marquess of Ormonde^[13]
John Wandesford (1772–1796), who died unmarried
James (1774–1838), who was in 1825 created Marquess of Ormonde after his brother's death
Charles Harward (1780–1860), who married firstly Lady Sarah Butler, daughter of Henry Thomas Butler, 2nd Earl of Carrick and, secondly, Lucy French, daughter of Arthur French

—and two daughters:

Elizabeth (1777–1823), who married Thomas Kavanagh (1767–1837), The MacMorrough, in 1798
Eleanor (1788–1859), who married Cornelius O'Callaghan, 1st Viscount Lismore (1775–1857) in 1808

Two inheritances

In 1783 his father died in Kilkenny Castle.^[14] John inherited Kilkenny and the lands, notably those that his father had inherited from John Butler of Kilcash, the de jure 15th Earl of Ormond, in 1766.^[15] In 1784 his father-in-law, the Earl of Wandesford died. His titles became extinct, but John inherited the land and the coal mines.^[12]

Earl

In 1791 he claimed the title of Earl of Ormond, which was believed to have become extinct in 1715. The Irish House of Lords accepted this claim and he was restored to become the 17th Earl of Ormonde.^[16]^[11]

Death and succession

Ormond, as he now was, died on 25 or 30 December 1795 at Kilkenny Castle and was buried in Kilcash.^[17]^[18] His widow died in Dublin in 1830.^[19] He was succeeded by his son Walter, who was made a Marquess in 1816.

Timeline
Age	Date	Event
0	1740, 10 Dec	Born at Garryricken^[3]
119	1760, 25 Oct	Accession of King George III, succeeding King George II^[20]
24	1764, 16 Dec	Became a Protestant^[8]
25	1766, 24 Jun	Father inherited the estate of John Butler of Kilcash and unknowingly became de jure the 16th Earl of Ormond.^[15]
28	1769, 26 Feb	Married Frances Susan Elizabeth Wandesford^[10]
42–43	1783	Father died at Kilkenny Castle.^[14]
43–44	1784	Father-in-law died, and he inherits in the name of his wife.^[12]
50–51	1791	Became Earl of Ormond^[16]
54–55	1795, Dec	Died^[17]^[18]

Notes and references

Notes

^ This family tree is partly derived from the condensed Butler family tree pictured in Dunboyne.^[1] Also see the lists of siblings and children in the text.

Citations

^ Dunboyne 1968, pp. 16–17. "Butler Family Tree condensed"
^ Burke & Burke 1915, p. 1551, left column, line 38. "John, 17th Earl of Ormonde, b. 10 Dec. 1740 ..."
^ ^a ^b Carrigan 1905, p. 320, line 1. "John Butler of Kilkenny Castle. He was born in Garryricken, Dec. 10th 1740."
^ Burke & Burke 1915, p. 1551, left column, line 32 . "... [Walter Butler] had issue, 1. John, 17th Earl."
^ Debrett 1828, p. 640. "Theobald le Boteler on whom that office [Chief Butler of Ireland] was conferred by King Henry II., 1177 ..."
^ Burke & Burke 1915, p. 1551, left column, line 29. "[Walter Butler] m. [married] 19 Dec. 1732 Ellen (d. Jan. 1794) dau. of Nicholas Morres, of Lataragh, co. Tipperary, and grand-dau. of Sir John Morres, 7th Bt., of Knockagh ..."
^ Cokayne 1895, p. 153, line 22. "He m. [married], 19 Dec. 1732, Eleanor 1st da. [daughter] of Nicholas Morris, of the Court, co. Dublin, and of Lataragh, co. Tipperary."
^ ^a ^b Carrigan 1905, p. 320, line 2. "On Sunday, Dec. 16th, 1764, he conformed to the Established church in the church of Golden, near Cashel, and was thus the first Protestant of his branch of the Butler family."
^ Burke & Burke 1915, p. 1551, left column, line . "His lordship [John Butler] m. [married] 14 Feb. 1769, Lady Frances Susan Elizabeth Wandesford, dau. and sole heir of John Earl of Wandesforde ..."
^ ^a ^b Debrett 1828, p. 642, line 33. "John Butler who claimed ... m. [married] 26 Feb. 1769, Anne da. & sole h. of John, earl of Wandesford ..."
^ ^a ^b Burke 1883, p. 568, left column, line . "I. Anne, m. [married] 13 February 1769 to John Butler, Esq. of Garryricken, to whom the Earldom of Ormonde was restored by the House of Lords of Ireland in 1791."
^ ^a ^b ^c Lodge 1789, p. 65. "... but his estates devolved on Mr. Butler (in right of Lady Anne)."
^ Burke & Burke 1915, p. 1541, left column, line 51. "Walter, Marquess of Ormonde and 18th Earl of Ormonde K.P. b. 5 Feb. 1770, created Marquess of Ormonde in Ireland, and Baron Butler of Llanthony in England."
^ ^a ^b Carrigan 1905, p. 319, line 35. "... [Walter Butler] died, in Kilkenny Castle, in 1783."
^ ^a ^b Dunboyne 1968, p. 19. "Having died childless in 1766, he [John Butler] was buried at Kilcash and was succeeded by his first cousin, Walter, then aged 63.
^ ^a ^b Carrigan 1905, p. 320, line 4. "In 1791 he was restored to the title of Earl of Ormonde which was supposed to have been extinguished since 1715."
^ ^a ^b Debrett 1838, p. 523, right column, line 34. "The earl [John Butler] d. [died] 30 Dec 1795, and was succeeded by his son ..."
^ ^a ^b Carrigan 1905, p. 320, line 5. "He died at Kilkenny Castle on Christmas Day 1795 and is buried at Kilcash."
^ Cokayne 1895, p. 153, line 33. "His widow d. [died] 3 April 1830 in Dublin, aged 76."
^ Fryde et al. 1986, p. 46, line 35. "George III … acc. 25 Oct. 1760;"

Sources

Burke, Bernard (1883). A Genealogical History of the Dormant, Abeyant, Forfeited and Extinct Peerages of the British Empire (New ed.). London: Harrison. OCLC 499232768.
Burke, Bernard; Burke, Ashworth Peter (1915). A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Peerage and Baronetage, the Privy Council, Knightage and Companionage (77th ed.). London: Harrison. OCLC 1155471554.
Carrigan, Rev William (1905). The History and Antiquities of the Diocese of Ossory. Vol. IV. Dublin: Sealy, Bryers & Walker. OCLC 29384778. – The Southern Deanery
Cokayne, George Edward (1895). Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct, or Dormant. Vol. VI (1st ed.). London: George Bell and Sons. OCLC 1180818801. – N to R (for Ormonde)
Debrett, John (1828). Peerage of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Vol. II (17th ed.). London: F. C. and J. Rivington. OCLC 54499602. – Scotland and Ireland
Debrett, John (1838). Courthope, William (ed.). Debrett's Complete Peerage of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (22nd ed.). London: F. C. and J. Rivington. OCLC 315551200.
Dunboyne, Patrick Theobald Tower Butler, Baron (1968). Butler Family History (2nd ed.). Kilkenny: Rothe House.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
Fryde, Edmund Boleslaw; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I., eds. (1986). Handbook of British Chronology. Royal Historical Society Guides and Handbooks, No. 2 (3rd ed.). London: Offices of the Royal Historical Society. ISBN 0-86193-106-8. – (for timeline)
Lodge, John (1789). Archdall, Mervyn (ed.). The Peerage of Ireland or, A Genealogical History of the Present Nobility of that Kingdom. Vol. IV. Dublin: James Moore. OCLC 264906028. – Viscounts (for Butler, Viscount Mountgarret)

Parliament of Ireland
Preceded by Arthur Browne Henry Prittie	Member of Parliament for Gowran 1776–1783 With: James Agar 1776–77 Sir Boyle Roche, 1st Bt 1777–83	Succeeded by Hon. Henry Welbore Agar George Dunbar
Preceded by Gervase Parker Bushe Eland Mossom	Member of Parliament for Kilkenny City 1783–1792 With: William Cuffe	Succeeded by William Cuffe Hon. John Wandesford Butler
Peerage of Ireland
Preceded by Walter Butler (de jure)	Earl of Ormonde Earl of Ossory 1783–1795	Succeeded by Walter Butler