Thomas Butler, 6th Earl of Ossory

Vice-Admiral Thomas Butler, 6th Earl of Ossory, KG, PC, PC (Ire) (1634–1680) was an Irish soldier and politician. He was born at Kilkenny Castle, the eldest son of James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormond, and his wife Elizabeth Preston.

Thomas Butler
Earl of Ossory
Reign	1662–1680
Successor	James, 2nd Duke of Ormonde
Born	8 July 1634 Kilkenny Castle
Died	30 Jul 1680 London
Spouse(s)	Emilia van Nassau
Detail Issue James, Charles, Henrietta & others
Father	James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormond
Mother	Elizabeth Preston

Birth and origins

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]

Family tree

Thomas Butler with wife, parents, and other selected relatives. His mother was a second cousin once removed of his father as both descended from the 9th Earl of Ormond. James 9th Earl 1496–1546 Joan FitzGerald d. 1565 Thomas 10th Earl c. 1531 – 1614 Black Tom Elizabeth Sheffield John of Kilcash d. 1570 Katherine MacCarthy Theobald Viscount Tulleophelim d. 1613 Elizabeth Butler c. 1585 – 1628 Richard Preston 1st Earl Desmond d. 1628 Walter 11th Earl 1559 – 1633 'Beads' Helen Butler d. 1631 Thomas Viscount Thurles d. 1619 d.v.p.* Elizabeth Pointz 1587–1673 Elizabeth Preston 1615–1684 James 1st Duke 1610–1688 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 Elizabeth Countess of Chesterfield 1640–1665 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 XXX Thomas Butler XXX Earls & dukes of Ormond *d.v.p. = predeceased his father (decessit vita patris). This family tree is partly derived from the condensed Butler family tree pictured in Dunboyne.[4] Also see the lists of siblings and children in the text.

He was one of ten siblings, eight brothers and two sisters, but five of the sons died in childhood.[5]

Thomas listed among his siblings

He heads the list of siblings as the eldest of the children that grew up to adulthood: Thomas (1634–1680); Richard (1639–1686), became first and last Earl of Arran of the 1662 creation and predeceased his father;[6] Elizabeth (1640–1665), married Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield[7] and had affairs with James Hamilton[8] and the Duke of York;[9] John (1643–1677), became the Earl of Gowran;[10] and Mary (1646–1710), married William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Devonshire.[11]

Early life

As the eldest living son, he was the heir apparent and was styled with the corresponding courtesy title, which at first was Viscount Thurles but changed to Earl of Ossory when his father became marquess in 1642.[12] His early years were spent in Ireland until 1647 when he accompanied his father to England. In 1648 his father renewed his support for the royalist cause and he and his son had to flee to France, arriving in Caen in February 1648.[13] Lady Ormond also moved to Caen, where she arrived on 23 June 1648 with his siblings.[14]

Ossory was an accomplished athlete and a good scholar. Having come to London in 1652 he was rightly suspected of sympathising with the exiled royalists, and in 1655 was jailed by Oliver Cromwell. After his release about a year later he went into exile to the Netherlands[15] where Charles II had his exile court at the time[16]

Marriage and children

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

Thomas and Emilia had eleven children,[18] including two sons:

1. James (1665–1745), became the 2nd Duke of Ormonde in 1688;[19] and
2. Charles (1671–1758), became the de jure 3rd Duke of Ormonde, following his elder brother's attainder in 1715.[19]
3. Elizabeth (died 1717), married William Stanley, 9th Earl of Derby in 1673;[20]
4. Amelia (died 1760), inherited the estates of her brother Charles and never married.[21] and
5. Henrietta (died 1724), married Henry de Nassau d'Auverquerque, 1st Earl of Grantham;[22]

Quartered arms of Thomas Butler

Portrait by Sir Peter Lely

The Earl of Ossory

He accompanied Charles II back to England in 1660.

In 1661 Ossory became a member of both the English and the Irish houses of commons, representing in the former Bristol[23] and Dublin University in the latter.[24]

Writ of acceleration

In 1662 Ossory was called to the Irish House of Lords under a writ of acceleration as the Earl of Ossory.[25] His father held the title "5th Earl of Ossory" as one of his subsidiary titles. The acceleration made Thomas Butler the 6th Earl of Ossory. This was the only substantive title he ever held, as he would predecease his father and therefore never succeed to his father's titles. His eldest son, however, would later be the 2nd Duke of Ormond and the 7th Earl of Ossory.

Military career

Lord Ossory held several military appointments;

• lieutenant-general of the army in Ireland (appointed in 1665)
• created an English peer as Lord Butler (in 1666). Almost as soon as he appeared in the House of Lords he was imprisoned for two days for challenging the Duke of Buckingham.[15]
• Lord of the Bedchamber to Charles II (appointed in 1660), a post he held until his death.

In 1665 a fortunate accident allowed Ossory to take part in the Battle of Lowestoft against the Dutch, and in May 1672, being now in command of a ship, he fought against the same enemies in the Battle of Solebay, serving with great distinction on both occasions. The earl was partly responsible for this latter struggle, as on 12 March 1672, before war was declared, he had attacked the Dutch Smyrna fleet, an action which he is said to have greatly regretted later in life.[26] Whilst visiting France in 1672 he rejected the liberal offers made by Louis XIV to induce him to enter the service of France, and returning to England he added to his high reputation by his conduct during the Battle of Texel in August 1673.[15] From 1677 until 1679, he served alongside his father as a Lord of the Admiralty.

Ossory was intimate with William, Prince of Orange, and in 1677 he joined the allied army in the Netherlands, commanding the British contingent and winning great fame at the siege of Mons in 1678. He acted as deputy for his father, who was lord-lieutenant of Ireland, and in parliament he defended Ormond's Irish administration with great vigour. In 1680 he was appointed governor of English Tangier, but his death prevented him from taking up his new duties.[15]

One of his most intimate friends was John Evelyn, who eulogised him in his Diary.[15]

Death, succession, and timeline

Ossory died on 30 July 1680 at Arlington House in London.[27][28] He was buried provisionally in Westminster Abbey on 31 July 1680.[29] The ceremony of burial was performed belatedly on 13 November 1680.[30] 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
Age	Date	Event
0	1634, 8 July	Born in Ireland at Kilkenny Castle.[1]
8	1642, 30 Aug	His father made a Marquess of Ormond.[12]
13	1647	Leaves Ireland for England with his father.[13]
13	1648, Feb	Arrived at Caen, France, with his father.[13]
14	1649, 30 Jan	King Charles I beheaded.[31]
25	1659, 17 Nov	Married Emilia von Nassau.[17]
25	1660, 29 May	Restoration of King Charles II.[32]
26	1661, 18 Apr.	MP for the University of Dublin in the Irish House of Commons.[24]
27	1662, 22 Jun	Became the 6th Earl of Ossory by writ of acceleration.[25]
37	1672, 12 Mar	Attacked the Dutch Smyrna fleet.[26]
46	1680, 30 July	Died.[28]

Notes

1. Davies 2004, p. 226, left column: "... was born at Kilkenny Castle on 8 July 1634."
2. Debrett 1828b, 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. Dunboyne 1968, pp. 16–17: "Butler Family Tree condensed"
5. Perceval-Maxwell 2004, p. 130, right column, line 3: "... between 1632 and 1646 Elizabeth ... gave birth to eight sons including Richard Butler, five of whom died as children, and two daughters."
6. Burke 1949, p. 1540, right column, line 31: "RICHARD, cr. 13 May 1662 Baron Butler, Viscount of Tullogh and EARL OF ARRAN ..."
7. Debrett 1828a, p. 114, bottom: "PHILIP, 2nd earl m. 1st Anne, da. of Algernon Percy, earl of Northumberland; 2ndly Elizabeth, da. of James Butler, duke of Ormond; and 3rd ..."
8. Hamilton 1888, p. 181: "Hamilton, therefore was no further embarrassed than to preserve Lady Chesterfield's reputation, who, in his opinion, declared herself rather too openly in his favour ..."
9. Pepys 1893, p. 360: "He tells me also how the Duke of York is smitten in love with my Lady Chesterfield (a virtuous Lady, daughter of my Lord Ormond); and so much, that the duchess of York hath complained to the king and her father about it, and my Lady Chesterfield is gone into the country for it."
10. Burke 1949, p. 1540, right column, line 39: "JOHN, cr. EARL OF GOWRAN 1676, m. Lady Anne Chichester, dau. of 1st Earl of Donegal, but d.s.p. 1677, when the dignity expired."
11. Burke 1949, p. 1540, right column, line 43: "Mary m. 1st Duke of Devonshire, K.G., and d. 31 July 1710, leaving issue."
12. Cokayne 1895, p. 149, line 27: "He [James Butler] was cr. 30 Aug. 1642 MARQUESS OF ORMONDE [I.];"
13. 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."
14. 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."
15. Chisholm 1911.
16. Airy 1886b, p. 82, left column, line 44: "Thence he went to Holland, and avoided the refugee court of nCharles, lest he should give Cromwell a pretence for taking away his mother's estate."
17. Lodge 1789, p. 59, line 27: "He married 17 November 1659, N.S. the Lady Amelia Nassau, eldest daughter of Louis, Lord of Beverwaert ..."
18. Davies 2004, p. 226, right column, line 21: "The marriage produced eleven children ..."
19. Debrett 1828b, p. 641, line 39: "2 sons: James 2nd Duke; and Charles, created earl of Arran, but d. without issue 1758."
20. 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 ... "
21. 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."
22. Burke 1949, p. 1540, right column, line 28: "Henrietta, m. 12 Jan. 1697, D'Auverquerque, Earl of Grantham, and d. 11 Oct. 1724 ..."
23. Davies 2004, p. 226, right column, line 27: "He served as MP for Bristol from 16 May 1661 to 14 September 1666 ..."
24. House of Commons 1878, p. 615: "1661 / 18 Apr. / Thomas Earl of Ossory A.M. / ditto [Dublin University]"
25. Airy 1886b, p. 82, right column: "On 22 June 1662 Charles ordered that he should be called to he House of Peers in that country [Ireland]."
26. 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 ..."
27. Evelyn 1901, p. 146: "... he was persuaded to remove to Arlington House ... He died the Friday following, the 30th of July ..."
28. Cokayne 1895, p. 150, line 28: "He [Ossory} d. v.p. of a violent fever, after four days illness, 30 July 1680 ..."
29. 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."
30. Chester 1876, p. 200: "1680 Nov. 13 Lord Ossery had ye ceremony of burial performed over him by Mr. Crispion."
31. Burke 1949, p. cclxvii, line 9: "… after the decapitation of CHARLES I at Whitehall, 30 Jan. 1649 ..."
32. Seaward 2004, p. 127, right column: "… he sailed to England and on 29 May [1660] he entered London in triumph."

References

• Airy, Osmund (1886a). "Butler, James, twelfth Earl and first Duke of Ormonde (1610–1688)". In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. 8. New York: MacMillan and Co. pp. 52–60.
• Airy, Osmund (1886b). "Butler, Thomas, Earl of Ossory (1634–1680)". In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. 8. New York: MacMillan and Co. pp. 81–85.
• Burke, Bernard (1949). A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Peerage and Baronetage of the British Empire (99th ed.). London: Burke's Peerage Ltd.
• Carte, Thomas (1851). The Life of James Duke of Ormond. 3 (new ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Chester, Joseph Lemuel (1876). Registers of Westminster Abbey. London: Private Edition.
• Cokayne, George Edward (1895). The complete peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, extant, extinct, or dormant. 6 (1st ed.). London: George Bell and Sons. – N to R (for Ossory under Ormond)
• Davies, J. D. (2004). "Butler, Thomas, sixth earl of Ossory (1634–1680)". In Matthew, Henry Colin Gray.; Harrison, Brian (eds.). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 9. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 226–229. ISBN 0-19-861359-8.
• Debrett, John (1816). Peerage of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. 1 (10th ed.). London: F. C. and J. Rivington. – England (for his sister Elizabeth, cited here because the corresponding page is missing in the 1828 edition.)
• Debrett, John (1828a). Peerage of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. 1 (17th ed.). London: F. C. and J. Rivington. – England
• Debrett, John (1828b). Peerage of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. 2 (17th ed.). London: F. C. and J. Rivington. – Scotland and Ireland
• Dunboyne, Patrick Theobald Tower Butler, Baron (1968). Butler Family History (2nd ed.). Kilkenny: Rothe House.
• Evelyn, John (1901). Bray, William (ed.). The Diary of John Evelyn. 2 (new, in two volumes ed.). New York & London: M. Walter Dunn. – 1665 to 1706
• Hamilton, Anthony (1888). Memoirs of Count Grammont. Translated by Walpole, Horace. Philadelphia: Gebbie & Co.
• House of Commons (1878). Members of Parliament. Parliamentary Papers. 62. London: H. M. Stationery Office. (for the subject as MP)
• Lodge, John (1789). The Peerage of Ireland. 4. Dublin: James Moore. - Viscounts (for Ossory under Butler, Viscount Mountgarrett)
• Pepys, Samuel (1893). Wheatley, Henry Benjamin (ed.). The Diary of Samuel Pepys. 2. London: George Bell & Sons. – 1 April 1661 to 31 December 1661
• Perceval-Maxwell, Michael (2004). "Butler [née Preston] Elizabeth, duchess of Ormond and suo jure Lady Dingwall (1615–1684)". In Matthew, Henry Colin Gray.; Harrison, Brian (eds.). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 9. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 130–131. ISBN 0-19-861359-8.
• Seaward, Paul (2004). "Charles II". In Matthew, Henry Colin Gray.; Harrison, Brian (eds.). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 11. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 122–145. ISBN 0-19-861361-X. (for Restoration)

Attribution:

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Ossory, Thomas Butler, Earl of". Encyclopædia Britannica. 20 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 354.