Biographies A-Z

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Rawdon, John

Rawdon, John (1720–93), 1st earl of Moira, landowner, patron of the arts, and opposition peer, was born 17 March 1720, second (but first surviving) son of Sir John Rawdon, 3rd baronet, of Rawdon Hall, Yorkshire, and Moira, Co. Down, and Dorothy, daughter of Sir…

Rawdon, Sir Arthur

Rawdon, Sir Arthur (1662–95), 2nd baronet, soldier, and horticulturalist, was born 17 October 1662, the third and only surviving son of Sir George Rawdon (qv), 1st baronet, and his second wife, Dorothy, eldest daughter of the 2nd…

Rawdon, Sir George

Rawdon, Sir George (1604–84), Ulster landowner and politician, was son and heir of Francis Rawdon of Rawdon Hall, Yorkshire, England, and his wife Dorothy, daughter of William Aldborough of Aldborough, Yorkshire. The scion of an old gentry family, Rawdon was educated at schools in…

Rawson, John

Rawson, John (c.1470–a.1547), Viscount Clontarff , prior of Kilmainham, treasurer of Ireland, was eldest son of Richard Rawson, member of the Mercer's Company, sheriff and alderman of London, and Isabella Craford. He joined the Hospitallers sometime between 1492…

Rawson, Thomas James

Rawson, Thomas James (1748?–1814), yeomanry captain and author of the Dublin Society's statistical survey of Kildare, was a son of James Rawson of Punchestown, Co. Kildare. His mother was born a James of Ballycrystal, Co. Wexford. It seems both parents were of humble origin, as…

Ray, Elizabeth

This is a co-subject for the entry on Ray, Joseph. View the original entry.

Ray, Joseph

Ray, Joseph (d. 1709), printer, bookseller, newspaper publisher, and ‘deputy king's printer’, was son of Giles Ray, of London, woodmonger; nothing is known of his mother. Serving his apprenticeship under his kinsman John North, bookseller, Ray was made free of the London…

Raymond, Anthony

Raymond, Anthony (1675–1726), clergyman and Irish-language scholar, was born in Ballyloughran, near Listowel, Co. Kerry, second son of Anthony Raymond, sheriff of Kerry, and his wife Ann (née Taylor). His family moved to Mitchelstown, Co. Cork, at some stage during his youth. Little is…

Ray, Thomas Mathew

Ray, Thomas Mathew (1801–81), political activist and administrator, was born in Dublin, eldest son of Mathew Ray, master cooper, and Sarah Ray (née Carton). He was given a classical education in schools in Dublin and worked as a scrivener before becoming secretary of the National…

Read, Charles Anderson

Read, Charles Anderson (1841–78), writer, journalist, and editor, was born 10 November 1841 at Killsellagh (Kilsella) House, in the parish of Drumcliffe, near Sligo. His father, George Read, was a gentleman who, having lost an inheritance, was forced to take a position as…

Rea, Joe

Rea, Joe (1938–2007), farm leader, was born 2 May 1938 in Cahir, Co. Tipperary, eldest of two sons and a daughter of Michael Rea, farmer of Farmlee House, Ballyea, near Cahir, and his wife Catherine (‘Kathleen’, née O’Keeffe), originally from Co. Wexford. A voracious reader from early…

Rea, John

Rea, John (1822–81), lawyer and political activist, was born in West St., Belfast, son of Francis Rea, who was variously a cotton spinner, an agent for the Dublin mail coach, and a clerk of the Belfast markets. John was educated at the Belfast Academy, where he was a champion…

Reavey, George

Reavey, George (1907–76), editor and poet, was born 1 May 1907 in Vitebsk, Russia, son of Daniel Reavey (1876–1938), Belfast businessman and director of flax-spinning mills in Vitebsk, and his Russian wife Sophia Turchenko (1883–1957). George was brought back to Belfast to be…

Reavy, Edward (‘Ed’)

Reavy, Edward (‘Ed’) (1898–1988), composer and fiddle player, was born 14 February 1898 in Barnagrow, Maudabawn, Co. Cavan, the son of Patrick Reavy, farmer, and Sarah Reavy (née Hamill), a renowned lilter. He emigrated in 1912 and settled in Drexel, Philadelphia, where he worked as…

Rebbeck, Denis

This is a co-subject for the entry on Rebbeck, Sir Frederick (Ernest). View the original entry.

Rebbeck, Sir Frederick (Ernest)

Rebbeck, Sir Frederick (Ernest) (1877–1964), shipbuilder and marine engineer, was born near Swindon, Wiltshire, only son of Albert Ernest Rebbeck and Jeanette Rebbeck. He was educated privately, serving his engineering apprenticeship in the English midlands, followed by employment at…

Reddan, Clare Rosemary ('Clarrie') (née Tiernan)

Reddan, Clare Rosemary ('Clarrie') (née Tiernan) (1916–2007), golfer, was born 3 July 1916 in Co. Louth, one of two daughters of Andrew Joseph Tiernan, who worked in the offices of a milling company in Dublin, and his wife Mary Victoria (née Connolly). Clarrie attended Loreto College on…

Reddin, John Kenneth Sheils

Reddin, John Kenneth Sheils (1894–1967), district justice and writer, was born 24 March 1894 in Clontarf, Dublin, one of three sons of John Joseph Reddin, clerk of the Dublin Port and Docks Board, and Annie Teresa Reddin (née Sheils). His parents were keen patrons of the Irish…

Redfern, Peter

Redfern, Peter (1821–1912), doctor and professor of anatomy and physiology, was born 17 December 1821 in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England, second son of Peter Redfern; his mother's name is not known. He was educated at a local school and by private tutors in classics. Apprenticed…

Redington, Sir Thomas Nicholas

Redington, Sir Thomas Nicholas (1815–62), landlord, MP, and under-secretary for Ireland, was born 2 October 1815 at Kilcornan, Oranmore, Co. Galway, the only son of Capt. Christopher Redington (1780–1825), a catholic landowner, and his wife Frances, daughter of Henry Dowell of…

Redlich, (Mary) Patricia

Redlich, (Mary) Patricia (1940–2011), journalist and psychologist, was born on 1 December 1940 at the National Maternity Hospital, Holles Street, Dublin, one of four daughters and a son born to Ben Cribbon, a clerk, and his wife Mary (née Crean). Growing up in the northside Dublin…

Redmond, Bridget Mary

Redmond, Bridget Mary (1904–52), Cumann na nGaedheal and Fine Gael TD, was born 30 October 1904 at the Curragh, Co. Kildare, second of four children of John Mallick, landowner, hotelier, and racehorse owner, and Bridget Mallick (née Sex), both of the Curragh. She was a pupil at…

Redmond, Denis Lambert

Redmond, Denis Lambert (c.1780–1803), insurgent, had a coal factor's business at 14 Coal Quay (now Wood Quay), Dublin. Little is known of his background, save that he was Wexford-born. He served as an apprentice to James Cruise, a hatter in Parliament St. Active in the…

Redmond, John

Redmond, John (d. 1798), catholic priest, was born at Ballinakill, Marshalstown parish, Co. Wexford; no details are known of his parents. It seems that he attended a seminary in France in the late 1780s and once met the young Napoleon Bonaparte. In 1797–8 he was one of two curates…

Redmond, John Edward

Redmond, John Edward (1856–1918), Parnellite and leader of the Irish parliamentary party 1900–18, was born 1 September 1856 in Dublin, third child among two daughters and two sons of William Archer Redmond (qv), a member of a…