France

Burke, James (Jacques) (1739–1821), priest, was born in St Conald's parish (an area later known as Dromcliffe), near Ennis, Co. Clare, son of James Burke and Mary Burke (née Callery). Aged 17 he entered the Irish College, Bordeaux, where he was later joined by his brother, Thomas. In…

Butler, James (1665–1745), 2nd duke of Ormond, soldier, lord lieutenant of Ireland, and Jacobite, was born 29 April 1665 in Dublin castle, second but eldest surviving son of Thomas Butler (qv), 6th earl of Ossory, and his wife Emilia,…

Butler, Lady (Charlotte) Eleanor (c.1739–1829), recluse of Llangollen, was born in Cambrai, France, the youngest daughter of Walter Butler of Garryricken, Co. Tipperary, and his wife, Ellen (née Morres), of Latargh, Co. Tipperary. Her family were members of the old catholic…

Butler (le Botiller, fitz Walter, Pincerna, Walter), Theobald (c.1200–1230), magnate, 2nd chief butler of Ireland, was only son and heir of Theobald Butler (qv) and Maud, daughter of Robert le Vavasour. After his father'…

Butler, Pierce (Piers) (1652–1740), 3rd Viscount Galmoy and Jacobite earl of Newcastle, army officer, was born 21 March 1652, the son of Edward, 2nd Viscount Galmoy (c.1627–1667), and Eleanor, the daughter of Sir Nicholas Whyte of Leixlip, Co. Kildare. He succeeded to the…

Butler, Thomas (d. 1419), prior of Kilmainham and deputy lieutenant of Ireland, was the illegitimate son of James Butler (qv), 3rd earl of Ormond, and an unknown woman. He rose to the position of prior of the Hospitallers of Kilmainham,…

Byrne, Miles (1780–1862), United Irishman, French army officer, and author, was born 20 March 1780 at Ballylusk, Monaseed, Co. Wexford, the eldest son of Patrick Byrne, a middling catholic farmer, and Mary (née Graham). He joined the United Irishmen in the spring of 1797, and…

Cahill, Harry (Harold Alexander) (1930–2009), international hockey player, was born on 9 June 1930 at 94 Fitzroy Avenue, Drumcondra, Dublin, one of two boys and one girl born to Henry Joshua Cahill, superintendent of stamping in Dublin Castle, and his wife Mary Maeve Cahill (née…

Cammock (Camocke, Camock), George (c.1666–1722), sailor and Jacobite, was born in Co. Down, son of a Mr Camocke and Mary Arney. Little is known of his early life but he joined the Royal Navy in the mid 1680s, serving as a midshipman 1687–90. He served as first lieutenant of…

Canning, George (1778–1840), politician, 1st Baron Garvagh , was born 15 November 1778, only surviving son of Paul Canning of Garvagh, Co. Londonderry, and Jane Canning, daughter of Conway Spencer of Trumery, Co. Antrim; among his uncles were Sir…

Caradoc (Cradock), John Hobart (1799–1873), 2nd Baron Howden , diplomat, soldier, and MP, was born 11 October 1799 at St Stephen's Green, Dublin, the only son among three children of John Francis Caradoc (qv),…

Cassidy, James Archbold (1827/8–90), distiller and brewer, was the second of three sons of Robert Cassidy (1791–1858), a strong farmer at Jamestown, Co. Kildare, who in 1839 took over the distilling and brewing firm at nearby Monasterevan founded in 1784 by his father, John…

Cavendish, Spencer Compton (1833–1908), 8th duke of Devonshire , chief secretary for Ireland, liberal unionist leader, was born 23 July 1833 at Holker Hall, Lancashire, England, eldest among three sons of William Cavendish, later 7th duke of Devonshire, and his wife Lady Blanche…

Chauviré, Roger (1880–1957), Renaissance scholar and writer, was born 6 April 1880 at Constantine, Algeria, the elder son of a French army officer. He studied at lycées at Lille and Lyons and then at the universities of Lyons and Paris. In 1904 he became a teacher of the higher…

Chenevix, Richard (d. 1830), mineralogist and author, was born either in Dublin or in Ballycommon, King's Co. (Offaly), only son of Lt-col Daniel Chenevix, high sheriff of the county in 1764, and Elizabeth Chenevix (née Arabin), both of huguenot descent. A birthdate of 5 April 1774…

Chipp, Edmund Thomas (1823–86), organist, composer, and conductor, was born 25 December 1823 in London, son of Thomas Paul Chipp (1793–1870), a distinguished performer on harp and timpani. Nothing is known of his mother. He entered Belfast musical life at a significant juncture. By…

Clare, Anthony Ward (1942–2007), psychiatrist and media personality, was born 24 December 1942 in Dublin, the youngest of three children (two girls and a boy) of Bernard Clare, state solicitor with the land registry, and his wife Agnes (née Dunne). Clare recalled his father as a gentle…

Comerford, Patrick (c.1584–1652), catholic bishop of Waterford and Lismore, was the son of Robert Comerford, merchant, of Waterford, and his wife, Anastasia (née White) of Clonmel. He was educated in Waterford and Kilkenny, and was one of the first students at the Irish…

Conolly, Thurloe (1918–2016), artist, was born in Cork city on 21 July 1918, the younger of two sons to William Joseph Conolly, a structural engineer, and his wife Constance Elizabeth Conolly (née Jeffares). According to family lore, the Conollys were descended from the eighteenth-…

Conway, Edward (1594–1655), 2nd Viscount Conway and Killultagh, nobleman and army officer, was baptised at Arrow, Warwickshire, on 10 August 1594, the eldest son, of the three sons and four daughters, of Edward, later 1st Viscount Conway, army officer, and his wife, Dorothy,…

Coppinger, William (d. 1696), merchant and ancestor of the Coppingers of Bordeaux, was second son of Stephen Coppinger (d. 1681) of Ballyvolane, Co. Cork, and his wife Ellice (d. 1688), daughter of Henry Gould of Cork, alderman. According to a local tradition his father's…

Corbet, Thomas (1773?–1804), United Irishman and French soldier, was born at Ballythomas, Co. Cork, one of eight children of Frederick Corbet, protestant farmer and schoolteacher; his mother was a Purcell. Educated by his father, he entered …

Corbet, William (1779–1842), United Irishman and French general, was born 17 August 1779 at Ballythomas, Co. Cork, one of eight children of Frederick Corbet, a protestant farmer and schoolteacher; his mother was a Purcell. Educated by his father, he entered…

Crofton, Sir Edward (c.1662–1729), politician and landowner, was eldest son of Sir Edward Crofton, 1st baronet, of The Mote, Co. Roscommon, and his second wife, Susannah Clifford of Devon. His early life remains obscure; he succeeded as 2nd baronet on his father's death (…

Crommelin, (Samuel) Louis (1652–1727), huguenot businessman, settler of Lisburn, Co. Antrim, and putative founder of the Irish linen industry, was born in Armancourt, near St Quentin, in the French province of Picardy, the son of Louis Crommelin and Marie Mettayer. The Crommelin…