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Thomas Butler, 6th Earl of Ossory

For other people named Thomas Butler, see Thomas Butler (disambiguation).

Vice-Admiral Thomas Butler, 6th Earl of Ossory, KG, PC, PC (Ire) (8 July 1634 – 30 July 1680) was an Irish soldier and politician. He was the eldest son of James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormond but predeceased his father and therefore never succeeded as duke.

Thomas Butler
Earl of Ossory
Thomas Butler, Earl of Ossory by Sir Peter Lely.jpg
Detail from the portrait below
SuccessorJames, 2nd Duke of Ormonde
Born8 July 1634
Kilkenny Castle, Ireland
Died30 July 1680
London, England
Spouse(s)Emilia van Nassau
Issue
Detail		James, Charles, Henrietta, & others
FatherJames Butler, 1st Duke of Ormond
MotherElizabeth Preston

Birth and origins

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Thomas was born on 8 July 1634, at Kilkenny Castle.[1] He was the eldest son of James Butler and his wife Elizabeth Preston. His father was then the 12th Earl of Ormond but would be raised to marquess and duke. His family, the Butler dynasty, is Old English and descends from Theobald Walter, who had been appointed Chief Butler of Ireland by King Henry II in 1177.[2]

Thomas's mother was a second cousin once removed of his father as she was a granddaughter of Black Tom, the 10th Earl of Ormond. Her father, however, was Scottish, Richard Preston, 1st Earl of Desmond, a favourite of James I. Both parents were Protestants. They had married on Christmas Day 1629.[3]

He had three surviving brothers and two sisters,[4] who are listed in his father's article.

Family tree
Thomas Butler with wife, parents, and other selected relatives[a]
Thomas
Viscount
Thurles
d. 1619
d.v.p.*		Elizabeth
Pointz
1587–1673
James
1st Duke
1610–1688		Elizabeth
Preston
1615–1684		Richard
of
Kilcash
1615–1701
Thomas
6th Earl
Ossory
1633–1680
d.v.p.*		Emilia
von
Nassau
1635–1688		Richard
1st Earl
Arran
1639–1684		Walter
of
Garryricken
d. 1700
d.v.p.*
James
2nd Duke
Ormond
1665–1745		Charles
1st Earl
Arran
1671–1758		Elizabeth
Butler
d. 1717		Henrietta
Butler
d. 1724		Thomas
of
Garryricken
d. 1738
Thomas
Butler
1686–1689		John
de jure
15th Earl
d. 1766
Legend
XXXSubject of
the article		XXXEarls & dukes of
Ormond
*d.v.p. = predeceased his father (decessit vita patris)

Early life

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As the eldest living son, he was the heir apparent and was styled with the corresponding courtesy title, which initially was Viscount Thurles but changed to Earl of Ossory when his father became marquess in 1642.[6] Ossory, as he was after 1642, continued to live with his family in Ireland until 1647 when his father abandoned Dublin to the parliamentarians and Ossory accompanied his father to England. In 1648 his father renewed his support for the royalist cause and Ossory fled with his father to France, arriving in Caen, Normandy, in February 1648.[7] Ossory's mother also moved to Caen, where she arrived on 23 June 1648 with his siblings.[8] Ossory was educated at a school in Caen and was an accomplished athlete and a good scholar.

However, the family soon ran into financial problems. In 1652 when Cromwell had completed the conquest of Ireland, his mother brought Ossory and his sibling to London where she obtained a pension of £2000 per year from the income from her Irish estates under the condition that none of that money would be passed on to her husband.[9] In 1655 Ossory was rightly suspected of sympathising with the exiled royalists, and was jailed by Oliver Cromwell. After his release about a year later he went into exile to the Netherlands[10] where Charles II had his exile court at the time.[11]

Marriage and children

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On 17 November 1659, while in exile in the Netherlands, Ossory married Emilia van Nassau, the second daughter of Louis of Nassau, Lord of De Lek and Beverweerd.[12]

Thomas and Emilia had eleven children,[13] including two sons:[14]

  1. James (1665–1745), became the 2nd Duke of Ormonde in 1688[15]
  2. Charles (1671–1758), became the de jure 3rd Duke of Ormonde, following his elder brother's attainder in 1715[16]

—and three daughters:

  1. Elizabeth (died 1717), married William Stanley, 9th Earl of Derby in 1673[17][18]
  2. Amelia (died 1760), inherited the estates of her brother Charles and never married[19][20]
  3. Henrietta (died 1724), married Henry de Nassau d'Auverquerque, 1st Earl of Grantham[21]

Later life

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In 1660 at the Restoration, Ossory accompanied Charles II back to England. That same year he was appointed Lord of the Bedchamber to Charles II, a post he held until his death. Emilia was naturalised as English by act of Parliament.[22]

In 1661 Ossory became an MP for Bristol in the English and for Dublin University in the Irish house of commons.[23][24]

In 1662 Ossory was called to the Irish House of Lords under a writ of acceleration as Earl of Ossory.[25] His father had held the title "5th Earl of Ossory" as one of his subsidiary titles. The acceleration made Thomas Butler the 6th Earl of Ossory.

 
Portrait by Sir Peter Lely

In 1665 Ossory was appointed lieutenant-general in the Irish army. In 1665 during the Second Anglo-Dutch War (1665–1667), a fortunate accident allowed Ossory to take part in the Battle of Lowestoft against the Dutch.

He was created an English peer as Baron Butler of Moore Park by being summoned to the English House of Lords by a writ on 17 September 1666.[26] Almost as soon as he appeared in the House of Lords, he was imprisoned for two days for challenging the Duke of Buckingham.[10]

He acted as deputy for his father,[27] who was lord-lieutenant of Ireland, and in parliament he defended Ormond's Irish administration with great vigour.

On 12 March 1672 he attacked the Dutch Smyrna fleet with HMS Resolution,[28] starting the Third Anglo-Dutch War (1672–1674) in an action that he is said to have greatly regretted later in life.[29]

In May 1672 he fought against the same enemies in the Battle of Solebay, serving with great distinction on both occasions.

While visiting France in 1672, he rejected the liberal offers made by Louis XIV to induce him to enter the service of France.

In August 1673 he added to his high reputation by his conduct during the Battle of Texel in August 1673.[10] From 1677 until 1679, he served alongside his father as a Lord of the Admiralty.

Ossory was intimate with William, Prince of Orange,[30] and in 1677 he joined the allied army in the Netherlands, commanding the British contingent and excelling at the siege of Mons in 1678.

In 1680 he was appointed governor of English Tangier, but his death prevented him from taking up his new duties.[10]

Death, succession, and timeline

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Ossory died on 30 July 1680 at Arlington House in London.[31][32] He was buried provisionally in Westminster Abbey on 31 July 1680.[33] The ceremony of burial was performed belatedly on 13 November 1680.[34] Some say Ossory's body was later taken to Ireland and reburied in the family vault in St Canice's Cathedral, Kilkenny. James, his eldest son, succeeded him as the 7th Earl of Ossory and would in 1688 become the 2nd Duke of Ormond.

Timeline
Italics for historical background.
Age Date Event
0 8 July 1634 Born at Kilkenny Castle, Ireland[1]
8 30 Aug 1642 Father advanced to Marquess of Ormond.[6]
9  Nov 1643 Father appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.[35]
12–13 1647 Left Dublin for England with his father[7]
13 Feb 1648 Arrived at Caen, France, with his father[7]
14 30 Jan 1649 Charles I beheaded[36]
25 17 Nov 1659 Married Emilia von Nassau[12]
25 29 May 1660 Restoration of Charles II[37]
25 about Jun 1660 George Monck appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.[38]
26 18 Apr 1661 MP for Dublin University in the Irish House of Commons[24]
27 21 Feb 1662 Father re-appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.[39]
27 22 Jun 1662 Became the 6th Earl of Ossory by writ of acceleration[25]
32 17 Sep 1666 Created Baron Butler of Moore Park in the English peerage[26]
33 7 Feb 1668 Appointed Lord Deputy of Ireland[27]
37 12 Mar 1672 Attacked the Dutch Smyrna fleet[29]
46 30 July 1680 Died[32]

Notes and references

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Notes

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  1. ^ This family tree is partly derived from the condensed Butler family tree pictured in Dunboyne.[5] Also see the lists of siblings and children in the text.

Citations

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  1. ^ a b Davies 2004, p. 226, left column. "... was born at Kilkenny Castle on 8 July 1634."
  2. ^ Debrett 1828, p. 640. "Theobald le Boteler on whom that office [Chief Butler of Ireland] was conferred by King Henry II., 1177 ..."
  3. ^ Airy 1886a, p. 53, line 2. "... the marriage took place on Christmas of the same year [1629] ..."
  4. ^ Perceval-Maxwell 2004, p. 130, right column, line 33. "... between 1632 and 1646 Elizabeth ... gave birth to eight sons including Richard Butler, five of whom died as children, and two daughters."
  5. ^ Dunboyne 1968, pp. 16–17. "Butler Family Tree condensed"
  6. ^ a b Cokayne 1895, p. 149, line 27. "He [James Butler] was cr. [created] 30 Aug. 1642 Marquess of Ormonde [I. [Ireland]];"
  7. ^ a b c Airy 1886b, p. 81, right column, line 23. "Here [in Kilkenny] he remained, and was carefully educated throughout the Irish rebellion, until Ormonde surrendered Dublin to the parliamentary commissioners in 1647, when he accompanied his father to England, and shortly afterward, in February 1647-8, to France."
  8. ^ Carte 1851, p. 384. "The marchioness of Ormond had landed in that country on June 23d [1648], with her two sons and three daughters, and had taken up her residence at Caen."
  9. ^ Perceval-Maxwell 2004, p. 131, line 5. "... receive £2000 per annum from her estate on condition that she sent no funds to, nor had any contact with, her husband."
  10. ^ a b c d Chisholm 1911.
  11. ^ Airy 1886b, p. 82, left column, line 44. "Thence he went to Holland, and avoided the refugee court of Charles, lest he should give Cromwell a pretence for taking away his mother's estate."
  12. ^ a b Lodge 1789, p. 59, line 27. "He married 17 November 1659, N.S. the Lady Amelia Nassau, eldest daughter of Louis, Lord of Beverwaert ..."
  13. ^ Davies 2004, p. 226, right column, line 21. "The marriage produced eleven children ..."
  14. ^ Debrett 1828, p. 641, line 39. "2 sons: James 2nd Duke; and Charles, created earl of Arran, but d. [died] without issue 1758."
  15. ^ Ward 1886, p. 60. "... was born in Dublin Castle, 29 April 1665, the second but eldest living son of Thomas, Earl of Ossory, and of his wife Emilia, daughter of de Beverweerd ..."
  16. ^ Cokayne 1910, p. 226, line 10. "was b. [born] 4 Sep 1671."
  17. ^ Debrett 1816, p. 130, line 22. "William-Richard-George, 9th earl, lord-lieutenant of Lancashire, May 11, 1676, m. Elizabeth Butler, daughter of Thomas, Earl of Ossory, and sister of James, duke of Ormond ... "
  18. ^ Burke & Burke 1915, p. 1550, right column, line 16. "1. Elizabeth, m. [married] 10 July 1673, William George Richard, 9th Earl of Derby. ... She d.s.p. [died childless] 5 July 1717."
  19. ^ Dunboyne 1968, p. 18. "While the 2nd Duke was in exile, his estates were bought in 1721 by his brother, the Earl of Arran, and settled first on their sister, Lady Amelia Butler, who inherited them when, in the words of Walpole 'a young heiress of 99'—she died two months short of her centenary—and secondly on John Butler of Kilcash, the representative of Richard, younger brother of the 1st Duke."
  20. ^ Burke & Burke 1915, p. 1550, right column, line 18. "2. Emilia, d. unm. [died unmarried] 1760."
  21. ^ Burke & Burke 1915, p. 1550, right column, line 19. "Henrietta, m. [married] 12 Jan. 1697, D'Auverquerque, Earl of Grantham. He d. [died] 5 Dec. 1754. She d. 11 Oct. 1724 ..."
  22. ^ "House of Lords Journal Volume 11: 27 August 1660 Pages 144-145 Journal of the House of Lords: Volume 11, 1660-1666". British History Online. HMSO 1830. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  23. ^ Davies 2004, p. 226, right column, line 27. "He served as MP for Bristol from 16 May 1661 to 14 September 1666 ..."
  24. ^ a b House of Commons 1878, p. 615. "1661 / 18 Apr. / Thomas Earl of Ossory A.M. / ditto [Dublin University]"
  25. ^ a b Airy 1886b, p. 82, right column. "On 22 June 1662 Charles ordered that he should be called to the House of Peers in that country [Ireland]."
  26. ^ a b Cokayne 1912, p. 451, line 15. "... was v.p. sum. to Parl., 17 Sep. 1666 by writ ..."
  27. ^ a b Fryde et al. 1986, p. 170, line 2. "1668, 7 Feb. / 25 Apr. / Thomas Butler, e. [earl] of Ossory, L.D. [Lord Deputy]"
  28. ^ Airy 1886b, p. 83. "in command of the third-rate king's ship the Resolution ..."
  29. ^ a b Evelyn 1901, p. 76. "12th March 1672. Now was the first blow given by us to the Dutch convoy of the Smyrna fleet, by Sir Robert Holmes and Lord Ossory, in which we received little save blows and a worthy reproach for attacking our neighbors ere any war was proclaimed ..."
  30. ^ Armstrong 2009, 4th paragraph. "In October 1670 he travelled to the United Provinces to escort Prince William of Orange to England, and became one of William's closest friends thereafter;"
  31. ^ Evelyn 1901, p. 146. "... he was persuaded to remove to Arlington House ... He died the Friday following, the 30th of July ..."
  32. ^ a b Cokayne 1895, p. 150, line 28. "He [Ossory} d. v.p. [predeceased his father] of a violent fever, after four days illness, 30 July 1680 ..."
  33. ^ Chester 1876, p. 199. "1680 July 31 Lord Ossery was layd in ye Duke of Monmouth's vault, at midnight till ye Duke of Ormond's pleasure be known."
  34. ^ Chester 1876, p. 200. "1680 Nov. 13 Lord Ossery had ye ceremony of burial performed over him by Mr. Crispion."
  35. ^ Fryde et al. 1986, p. 169, line 4. "1643, 13 Nov. /21 Jan. 1644 /James Butler, 1st m. of Ormond, L.L. [Lord Lieutenant] (appd by K. Charles I)"
  36. ^ Fryde et al. 1986, p. 44, line 17. "Charles I. ... exec. 30 Jan. 1649 ..."
  37. ^ Fryde et al. 1986, p. 44, line 39. "Charles II. ... acc. 29 May 1660 ..."
  38. ^ Fryde et al. 1986, p. 169, bottom. "1660 ? June / Lt.-Gen. George Monck, duke of Albemarle, L.L. [Lord Lieutenant]"
  39. ^ Fryde et al. 1986, p. 170, line 1. "1662, 21 Feb. / 27 July / James Butler, duke of Ormond, L.L. [Lord Lieutenant]"

Sources

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Parliament of England
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Bristol
with Sir John Knight
1661–1666 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by
The Duke of Ormonde
(Lord Lieutenant)
 Lord Deputy of Ireland
1668–1669 		Succeeded by
The Lord Robartes
(Lord Lieutenant)
Peerage of England
New creation Baron Butler
1666–1680 		Succeeded by
Peerage of Ireland
Preceded by Earl of Ossory
(writ in acceleration) 		Succeeded by
Military offices
Preceded by Governor of Tangier
1680–1680 		Succeeded by
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