Edward Plunkett, 16th Baron of Dunsany

Last updated

Edward Plunkett, 16th Baron of Dunsany (29 Nov 1808-22 February 1889), was a naval officer and Anglo-Irish peer. He was elected Representative Peer for Ireland in the British House of Lords on 8 March 1864 and served until his death. In addition, he was also deputy lieutenant and justice of the peace in County Meath. [1]

Contents

Birth and family

He was the second son of Edward Plunkett, 14th Baron of Dunsany and his first wife, Hon Charlotte Louisa Lawless, the youngest daughter of Nicholas Lawless, 1st Baron Cloncurry and nephew by marriage of Admiral James Ryder Burton, Royal Navy. [2] He was the grandfather of Admiral Sir Reginald Aylmer Ranfurly Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax, KCB, DSO, JP, DL. On 22 September 1846, he married by special license The Hon. Anne Constance Dutton, daughter of John Dutton, 2nd Baron Sherborne. [3] The couple had two sons and a daughter. The eldest son and successor to the title was John Plunkett, 17th Baron of Dunsany. [4]

The Hon. Edward Plunkett entered the Royal Navy on 4 October 1823. He served as a midshipman in the boats of the 48-gun HMS Sybille (1794), commanded by Captain Samuel John Brooke Pechell, in a severe action with the pirates in the Greek archipelago in 1826. He passed his lieutenant's examination in 1830 and was commissioned lieutenant on 24 August 1834. He served in three warships on the coast of Spain from 1835 to 1840 during the First Carlist War. First, in the 36-gun frigate HMS Castor (1832) under Captains Lord John Hay and William Robertson. He then commanded the 10-gun brig HMS Royalist (1823) from 19 January 1837 until taking command of another 10-gun brig, HMS Savage (1830) on 16 July 1838, which he commanded until 1 August 1840. He received the Royal and Military Order of Saint Ferdinand First Class for his service in Spanish waters. [5] Promoted to commander on 1 August 1840, he commanded the paddle-wheel steamer HMS Stromboli (1839) on the Irish Station from 9 October 1843 to June 1845. He was promoted to captain on 9 November 1846. [6]

On 11 December 1848, Captain Edward Plunkett's father, Lord Dunsany, died, and the title passed to Edward's elder brother, Randall Plunkett, who became the 15th Baron of Dunsany. Randall married Elizabeth Evelyn in 1838, but the couple had no children, leaving his brother Edward as the presumptive heir. [7] After leaving active service, he was promoted on the Navy's reserved half-pay list to Rear-Admiral on 12 November 1864 and to Vice-Admiral on 14 July 1871.. [8] He was promoted to Admiral on 1 August 1877. [9]

Post-naval career

By 1850, Edward had become chairman of the Caledonian Railway Company. [10]

His elder brother, Randall. died at the age of 47 on 7 April 1852 without heirs, passing the title to his younger brother, Captain Edward Plunkett, who became the 16th Baron of Dunsany. [11]

Remaining active in naval affairs, Edward was elected vice-president of the Naval Benevolent Society in January 1866. [12] and lectured at the United Services Institution in February 1878 on "The Laws of Warfare as Limiting the use of fireships, explosion-vessels, torpedoes, and mines." [13] In 1882, he reportedly believed a proposed Channel Tunnel risked invasion. [14]

Admiral Lord Dunsany died at his home in Hastings, Kent, on 22 February 1889 at the age of 80 and was buried at Copthorne, West Sussex. [15]

Publications

As Commander the Hon. E. Plunkett, R.N., he wrote a 216-page book entitled The Past and Future of the British Navy in 1846 in which he discussed both the history of the Navy and its future, commenting on the shifts in naval technology and the impact of steam power as well as providing predictions on the future of the Navy. [16] As the Hon. Captain Plunkett, R.N., he translated from French the two-volume work by Captain Edmond Jurien de La Gravière, French Navy, Guerres Maritimes sous la Républic et L'Empire (Paris, 1847) as Sketches of the Last Naval War (London, 1848).

Portrait

Edward Plunkett, 16th Baron Dunsany, by Frederick Sargent pencil, 1870s or 1880s?, 8 in. x 5 in. (203 mm x 127 mm), Purchased, 1983. Primary Collection NPG 5606 [17]

Archives

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baron of Dunsany</span> Irish peerage title

The title Baron of Dunsany or, more commonly, Lord Dunsany, is one of the oldest dignities in the Peerage of Ireland, one of just a handful of 13th- to 15th-century titles still extant, having had 21 holders, of the Plunkett name, to date. Other surviving medieval baronies include Kerry, Kingsale, Trimlestown (1469), Baron Louth, and Dunboyne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmund Lyons, 1st Baron Lyons</span> 19th-century British Royal Navy Admiral and diplomat

Admiral Edmund Lyons, 1st Baron Lyons, was an eminent British Admiral of the Royal Navy, and diplomat, who ensured Britain's victory in the Crimean War, during which he was Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet, by his contribution at the Siege of Sevastopol (1854–1855) with both the Royal Navy and the British Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmund Moubray Lyons</span> British naval officer (1819–1855)

Captain Edmund Moubray Lyons was an officer of the Royal Navy. He served during the early nineteenth century, and was mortally wounded while commanding HMS Miranda in the Crimean War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur Hood, 1st Baron Hood of Avalon</span>

Admiral Arthur William Acland Hood, 1st Baron Hood of Avalon, was an officer of the Royal Navy. As a junior officer he took part in the capture of Acre during the Oriental Crisis in 1840 and went ashore with the naval brigade at the defence of Eupatoria in November 1854 during the Crimean War. He became First Naval Lord in June 1885 and in that role was primarily concerned with enshrining into law the recommendations contained in a report on the disposition of the ships of the Royal Navy many of which were unarmoured and together incapable of meeting the combined threat from any two of the other naval powers : these recommendations were contained in the Naval Defence Act 1889.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reginald Drax</span> British naval officer (1880-1967)

Sir Reginald Aylmer Ranfurly Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax, KCB, DSO, JP, DL, commonly known as Reginald Plunkett or Reginald Drax, was an Anglo-Irish admiral. The younger son of the 17th Baron of Dunsany, he was Director of the Royal Naval Staff College, President of the Naval Inter-Allied Commission of Control in (Berlin), commander-in-chief of successive Royal Navy bases. His brother Edward, who became the 18th Baron of Dunsany, was best known as the famous playwright and author Lord Dunsany. Edward inherited the paternal estates in Ireland, while Reginald was bequeathed most of his mother's inheritance across portions of the West Indies, Kent, Surrey, Dorset, Wiltshire and Yorkshire. He extended his surname by special Royal licence in 1916, and was noted for the quadruple-name result, Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Waldegrave, 1st Baron Radstock</span> Royal Navy officer and Governor of Newfoundland

Admiral William Waldegrave, 1st Baron Radstock, GCB was an officer in the Royal Navy and Governor of Newfoundland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sir William Parker, 1st Baronet, of Shenstone</span> British admiral

Admiral of the Fleet Sir William Parker, 1st Baronet, GCB, was a Royal Navy officer. As a captain's servant he took part in the Battle of The Glorious First of June in June 1794 during the French Revolutionary Wars and, as a captain, he participated in the capture of the French ships Marengo and Belle Poule at the action of 13 March 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. He was detached on an independent command on the Tagus in September 1831 with a mission to protect British interests during the Portuguese Civil War. As Commander-in-chief of the East Indies and China Station, he provided naval support at various actions between 1841 and 1842 during the First Opium War. Appointed Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet in February 1845, he was briefly First Naval Lord in the First Russell ministry from 13 July 1846 to 24 July 1846 but gave up the role due to ill health before returning to his command with the Mediterranean Fleet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sydney Dacres</span> Royal Navy Admiral (1804-1884)

Admiral Sir Sydney Colpoys Dacres, was an officer of the Royal Navy who saw service during the Greek War of Independence, when he was involved in an attack on the Turkish forces at Morea, and later during the Crimean War. Born into a substantial naval dynasty during the Napoleonic Wars, he eventually rose to the rank of Admiral and became First Naval Lord. His only significant action as First Naval Lord was to press for the abolition of masts. He went on to be Visitor and Governor of Greenwich Hospital.

Admiral The Hon. Sir Frederick William Grey GCB was a Royal Navy officer. As a captain he saw action in the First Opium War and was deployed as principal agent of transports during the Crimean War. He became First Naval Lord in the Second Palmerston ministry in June 1861 and subsequently published a pamphlet Admiralty Administration, 1861–1866 describing his reforms which included, inter alia, the notion that all senior naval promotions and appointments should be non-political and should be discussed and agreed by the Naval Members of the Admiralty Board on a collective basis before recommendations were made to the First Lord of the Admiralty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James O'Brien, 3rd Marquess of Thomond</span>

Admiral James O'Brien, 3rd Marquess of Thomond, GCH (1769–1855), styled Lord James O'Brien from 1809 to 1846, was a British naval officer and Chief of Clan O'Brien.

HMS <i>Bombay</i> (1805) Frigate of the Royal Navy

HCS Bombay, later HMS Bombay and HMS Ceylon, was a teak-built fifth rate, 38-gun wooden warship built in the Bombay Dockyard for the Honourable East India Company (HEIC) and launched in 1793. The Royal Navy purchased her in 1805 and renamed her HMS Bombay. She served with the Royal Navy under that name until 1 July 1808, when she became HMS Ceylon. She was sold at Malta in 1857 and broken up in 1861.

Rear Admiral Frederick Warden CB was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Channel Squadron.

Rear-Admiral Edward Sneyd Clay was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.

Rear-Admiral Sir John Hill was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.

Frederick Watkins was an officer of the British Royal Navy.

Admiral Sir Stephen Lushington GCB was an officer in the Royal Navy who served during the Crimean War. Long and distinguished service in the Mediterranean brought him honours and rewards.

Admiral Lord William FitzRoy, was an officer of the British Royal Navy who served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and also as a Member of Parliament.

Vice-Admiral Charles Orlando Bridgeman was a Royal Navy officer who saw active service in the Napoleonic Wars and the Greek War of Independence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anthony Maitland, 10th Earl of Lauderdale</span> Royal Navy admiral and hereditary peer

Admiral Anthony Maitland, 10th Earl of Lauderdale was a British naval officer who served during the French Revolutionary War, Napoleonic Wars and War of 1812. He also participated in the Bombardment of Algiers. He served as Member of Parliament for Haddington Burghs between 1813 and 1818 and Berwickshire between 1826 and 1832. From 1830 until he was promoted to rear-admiral in 1841 he was a naval aide-de-camp to at first King William IV and then Queen Victoria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenelm Somerville, 17th Lord Somerville</span> British Royal Navy officer and hereditary peer

Admiral Kenelm Somerville, 17th Lord Somerville was a Royal Navy officer and Scottish hereditary peer. He joined the navy in 1801 and served throughout the Napoleonic Wars, fighting at the invasion of Isle de France, Battle of Tamatave, and invasion of Java. He was promoted to commander in 1811 and in 1813 took command of the troopship HMS Thames which he sailed to North America to fight in the War of 1812. Promoted to post-captain in 1814, he commanded a flotilla in the expedition that burned Washington. Somerville retired from the navy in 1846 and continued to be promoted on the retired list, becoming an admiral in 1862. He inherited the title of Lord Somerville from his brother in 1842 and died at Newbold Comyn in 1864 at the age of 76.

References

  1. ↑ Obituary, Illustrated London News Saturday, 2 March 1889,
  2. ↑ W.R. O'Byrne, A Naval Biographical Dictionary (London, 1849).
  3. ↑ Illustrated London News Saturday, 26 September 1846, p. 10
  4. ↑ Obituaty, Illustrated London News Saturday, 2 March 1889.
  5. ↑ The New Navy List (London, 1841), pp. 44, 45, 67, 209.
  6. ↑ W.R. O'Byrne, A Naval Biographical Dictionary (London, 1849).
  7. ↑ Southern Reporter and Cork Commercial Courier Tuesday 19 December 1848, p. 3.
  8. ↑ The Navy List, January 1875, p. 255.
  9. ↑ Navy List, p. 356.
  10. ↑ The Scotsman, Saturday 30 March 1850, p. 3.
  11. ↑ Debrett's Illustrated Peerage of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (Bosworth, 1865), p. 137.
  12. ↑ Illustrated London News, Saturday 20 January 1866, p. 22.
  13. ↑ Illustrated London News Saturday, 9 February 1878, p. 2.
  14. ↑ Illustrated London News, Saturday, 4 March 1882, p. 20; Illustrated London News, Saturday 7 May 1881, p. 20.
  15. ↑ Gloucester Citizen, Tuesday, 26 February 1889.
  16. ↑ [https://archive.org/details/pastandfuturebr00dunsgoog Digital Copy of The Past and Future of the British Navy.
  17. ↑ https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/person/mp05267/edward-plunkett-16th-baron-dunsany
  18. ↑ https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/N14000646

}}

Political offices
Preceded by Representative peer for Ireland
1864–1889		Succeeded by
Peerage of Ireland
Preceded by Baron of Dunsany
1852-1889		Succeeded by
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.