Lord Edward FitzGerald
Encyclopedia
Lord Edward FitzGerald (15 October 1763 – 4 June 1798) was an Irish aristocrat and revolutionary
. He was the fifth son of the 1st Duke of Leinster
and the Duchess of Leinster (née Lady Emily Lennox), he was born at Carton House
, near Dublin, and died of wounds received in resisting arrest on charge of treason.
at Blackrock in Dublin where he was tutored by William Ogilvie
in a manner inspired by Rousseau's Emile
.
Edward was only 11 years of age when his father died.
in 1779, he served on the staff of Lord Rawdon
in the southern theater of the American Revolutionary War
. He was seriously wounded at the Battle of Eutaw Springs
on 8 September 1781, his life being saved by an escaped slave named Tony Small ('Faithful Tony')Fitzgerald commissioned a lovely picture of Tony Small, by John Roberts, in 1786. , whom Lord Edward freed and employed to the end of his life.
He was evacuated from Charleston
, South Carolina
in 1782 when the British forces abandoned the city.
, had procured his election to the Irish Parliament
as a Member for Athy
, a seat he held until 1790. He represented then Kildare County
from 1790 to 1798. In Parliament he acted with the small Opposition Irish Patriot Party
group led by Henry Grattan
, but took no prominent part in debate. After spending a short time at Woolwich
to complete his military education, he made a tour through Spain in 1787; and then, dejected by unrequited love for his cousin Georgina Lennox (who later married the 3rd Earl Bathurst
), he sailed for New Brunswick
to join the 54th Regiment with the rank of Major.
's writings, for which at a later period Lord Edward expressed his admiration. In February 1789, guided by compass, he traversed the country, practically unknown to white men, from Fredericton, New Brunswick
to Quebec
, falling in with Indians by the way, with whom he fraternized; and in a subsequent expedition he was formally adopted at Detroit by the Bear tribe of Hurons as one of their chiefs, and made his way down the Mississippi
to New Orleans, whence he returned to England. The Author Patrick O'Brian
based one of his main characters Stephen Maturin on one of the cousin's of Lord Edward FitzGerald in his book The Far Side of the World
.
, and desiring to maintain political independence, Lord Edward refused the command of an expedition against Cadiz
offered him by Pitt
, and devoted himself for the next few years to the pleasures of society and his parliamentary duties. He was on terms of intimacy with his first cousin C. J. Fox
, with R. B. Sheridan
and other leading Whigs
. According to Thomas Moore
, Lord Edward FitzGerald was the only one of the numerous suitors of Sheridan's first wife, Elizabeth Ann Linley
whose attentions were received with favour; and it is certain that, whatever may have been its limits, a warm mutual affection subsisted between the two.
, which he embraced enthusiastically when he visited Paris in October 1792. He lodged with Thomas Paine
and listened to the debates in the Convention. At a convivial gathering on the 18 November he supported a toast to "the speedy abolition of all hereditary titles and feudal distinctions", and gave proof of his zeal by expressly repudiating his own title, a performance for which he was dismissed from the army.
While in Paris, FitzGerald became enamoured of a young girl whom he chanced to see at the theatre, and who is said to have had a striking likeness to Mrs. Sheridan. Procuring an introduction he discovered her to be a protégé of Madame de Sillery, Comtesse de Genlis. The parentage of the girl, whose name was Pamela (1773–1831), is uncertain; but although there is some evidence to support the story of Madame de Genlis that Pamela
was born in Newfoundland of parents called Sims, the common belief that she was the daughter of Madame de Genlis herself by Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans
(to whose children she was then acting as governess), was probably well founded. On 27 December 1792 FitzGerald and Pamela were married at Tournay
, one of the witnesses being Louis Philippe
, afterwards King of the French; and in January 1793 the couple reached Dublin.
The couple eventually had a son, named Edward Fox FitzGerald (10 October 1794 - 25 January 1863), married on 6 November 1827 to Jane Paul (died 2 November 1891), and two daughters, Pamela FitzGerald (1795/1796 - 25 November 1869), married on 21 November 1820 Sir Guy Campbell, 1st Baronet
(died 26 January 1849), and Lucy Louisa FitzGerald (1798 - September 1826), married on 5 September 1825 Capt.
George Francis Lyon
(died 8 October 1832). After her husband's death in Newgate Gaol, Dublin, Pamela, Lady Edward FitzGerald, was no longer welcome at Boyle Farm, the house of his brother Lord Henry FitzGerald
in Thames Ditton
. But her daughters found much happiness in the village, living with an aunt. After she died, her mortal remains were buried at St Nicholas Churchyard, Thames Ditton. Edward Fox and his wife Jane had an only daughter, Pamela Frances Lucy Augusta Charlotte FitzGerald (29 September 1830 -), who married on 7 December 1850 James Turner.
Ireland was by now seething with dissent which was finding a focus in the increasingly popular and revolutionary Society of the United Irishmen
who had been forced underground by the outbreak of war between France and Britain in 1793. Lord Edward FitzGerald, fresh from the gallery of the Convention in Paris
, returned to his seat in the Irish Parliament and immediately sprang to their defence but within a week of his return he was ordered into custody and required to apologise at the bar of the House of Commons for violently denouncing in the House a Government proclamation, which Grattan
had approved. However, it was not until 1796 that he joined the United Irishmen, who by now had given up as hopeless the path of constitutional reform and whose aim after the recall of Lord FitzWilliam
in 1795 was nothing less than the establishment of an independent Irish republic.
was in Paris
endeavoring to obtain French assistance for an insurrection in Ireland. In the same month FitzGerald and his friend Arthur O'Connor proceeded to Hamburg, where they opened negotiations with the Directory through Reinhard, French minister to the Hanseatic
towns. The Duke of York
, meeting Pamela at Devonshire House on her way through London with her husband, had told her that "all was known" about his plans, and advised her to persuade him not to go abroad. Also, in Hamburg Lord Edward met with Johan Anders Jägerhorn
(or baron de Spurila, as he called himself), a Finnish Swede who had advocated Finnish autonomy and now acted as an intermediary between Lord Edward and the French.
The proceedings of the conspirators at Hamburg
were made known to the government in London
by an informer, Samuel Turner
. Pamela was entrusted with all her husband's secrets and took an active part in furthering his designs; and she appears to have fully deserved the confidence placed in her, though there is reason to suppose that at times she counselled prudence. The result of the Hamburg
negotiations was Hoche
's abortive expedition to Bantry Bay
in December 1796.
In September 1797 the Government learnt from the informer MacNally that Lord Edward was among those directing the conspiracy of the United Irishmen, which was now quickly maturing. He was specially concerned with the military organisation, in which he held the post of colonel of the Kildare
regiment and head of the military committee. He had papers showing that men were ready to rise. They possessed some arms, but the supply was insufficient, and the leaders were hoping for a French invasion to make good the deficiency and to give support to a popular uprising. But French help proving dilatory and uncertain, the rebel leaders in Ireland were divided in opinion as to the expediency of taking the field without waiting for foreign aid.
Lord Edward was among the advocates of the bolder course and there is some evidence that he favoured a project for the massacre of the Irish peers while in procession to the House of Lords for the trial of Lord Kingston in May 1798, despite the fact many were his own relations.
. Lord Edward FitzGerald, warned by Reynolds, was not among them.
As a fellow member of the Ascendancy
class, the Government were anxious to make an exception for FitzGerald, and also avoid the embarrassing and dangerous consequences of his subversive activities, communicating their willingness to spare him from the normal fate meted out to "traitors". The Lord Chancellor, Lord Clare
, said to a member of his family, "for God's sake get this young man out of the country; the ports shall be thrown open, and no hindrance whatever offered."
FitzGerald however refused to desert others who could not escape, and whom he had himself led into danger. On 30 March the government proclamation of martial law
authorising the military to act as they saw fit to crush the United Irishmen, led to a campaign of vicious brutality in many parts of the country, and forced the United Irish executive to bring forward plans for the rising, with or without French aid.
The capture of Lord Edward FitzGerald, the most dangerous United Irish leader still at liberty, was now the top priority of Dublin Castle
and on 9 May a reward of £1,000 was offered for his apprehension. Since the arrests at Bond's, FitzGerald had been in hiding, but had twice visited his wife in disguise and was himself visited by his stepfather. Meanwhile, the date for the rising was finally fixed for 23 May and FitzGerald awaited the day hiding in a house in Thomas Street, Dublin.
However, his hiding place was disclosed by a Catholic barrister and informer
named Magan and on 18 May Town Major Henry C. Sirr
led a military party to the house where Lord Edward was in bed suffering from a fever. Alerted by the commotion, he jumped out of bed and, ignoring the pleas of the arresting officers Major Swan and Captain Ryan to surrender peacefully, FitzGerald stabbed Swan and mortally wounded Ryan with a dagger in a desperate attempt to escape. He was only secured after Sirr shot him in the shoulder and was beaten unconscious by the rifle butts of the soldiers.
He was conveyed to Newgate Prison, Dublin
where he was denied proper medical treatment. At the age of 34 he died of his wounds as the rebellion
raged outside on the 4 June 1798. He was buried the next day in the cemetery of St Werburgh's Church, Dublin
. An Act of Attainder
confiscating his property was passed, but was eventually repealed in 1819.
Shortly after his death, Lord Edward’s sister, Lady Lucy FitzGerald, authored the following statement regarding her brother's fidelity to Ireland: Irishmen, Countrymen, it is Edward FitzGerald's sister who addresses you: it is a woman but that woman is his sister: she would therefore die for you as he did. I don't mean to remind you of what he did for you. 'Twas no more than his duty. Without ambition he resigned every blessing this world could afford to be of use to you, to his Countrymen whom he loved better than himself, but in this he did no more than his duty; he was a Paddy and no more; he desired no other title than this.
For particulars of Pamela, and especially as to the question of her parentage, see
Revolutionary
A revolutionary is a person who either actively participates in, or advocates revolution. Also, when used as an adjective, the term revolutionary refers to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor.-Definition:...
. He was the fifth son of the 1st Duke of Leinster
James FitzGerald, 1st Duke of Leinster
Lieutenant-General James FitzGerald, 1st Duke of Leinster, etc. PC , styled Lord Offaly until 1744 and known as The Earl of Kildare between 1744 and 1761 and as The Marquess of Kildare between 1761 and 1766, was an Irish nobleman, soldier and politician.-Background:Leinster was the son of Robert...
and the Duchess of Leinster (née Lady Emily Lennox), he was born at Carton House
Carton House
Carton House was one of Ireland's greatest stately homes and one time ancestral seat of the Earls of Kildare and Dukes of Leinster. Located west of Dublin, in Maynooth, County Kildare, the Carton demesne runs to 1,100 acres . For two hundred years it possessed the finest example in Ireland of a...
, near Dublin, and died of wounds received in resisting arrest on charge of treason.
Early years
FitzGerald spent most of his childhood in Frescati HouseFrescati House
Frescati was an estate situated in Blackrock, Dublin, between the mountains and the sea. During the eighteenth century, Blackrock found favour with the well-to-do of Ireland and it grew into a fashionable seaside resort. The gentry of smog-ridden Dublin advanced into the area to embrace the sea air...
at Blackrock in Dublin where he was tutored by William Ogilvie
William Ogilvie (Ardglass)
William Ogilvie was a Scottish-born scholar and tutor of Lord Edward FitzGerald, and married Edward's mother Emily FitzGerald, Duchess of Leinster after the death of her first husband. Ogilvie was nine years her junior, and was the natural father of her youngest son from her first marriage. A...
in a manner inspired by Rousseau's Emile
Emile: Or, On Education
Émile, or On Education is a treatise on the nature of education and on the nature of man written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who considered it to be the “best and most important of all my writings”. Due to a section of the book entitled “Profession of Faith of the Savoyard Vicar,” Émile was be...
.
Edward was only 11 years of age when his father died.
American War of Independence
Fitzgerald joined the British ArmyBritish Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
in 1779, he served on the staff of Lord Rawdon
Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings
Francis Edward Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings KG PC , styled The Honourable Francis Rawdon from birth until 1762 and as The Lord Rawdon between 1762 and 1783 and known as The Earl of Moira between 1793 and 1816, was an Irish-British politician and military officer who served as...
in the southern theater of the American Revolutionary War
Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War
The Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War was the central area of operations in North America in the second half of the American Revolutionary War. During the first three years of the conflict, the primary military encounters had been in the north, focused on campaigns around the...
. He was seriously wounded at the Battle of Eutaw Springs
Battle of Eutaw Springs
The Battle of Eutaw Springs was a battle of the American Revolutionary War, and was the last major engagement of the war in the Carolinas.-Background:...
on 8 September 1781, his life being saved by an escaped slave named Tony Small ('Faithful Tony')Fitzgerald commissioned a lovely picture of Tony Small, by John Roberts, in 1786. , whom Lord Edward freed and employed to the end of his life.
He was evacuated from Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
in 1782 when the British forces abandoned the city.
Post-War Military Career
In 1783 FitzGerald returned to Ireland, where his brother, the 2nd Duke of LeinsterWilliam FitzGerald, 2nd Duke of Leinster
William Robert FitzGerald, 2nd Duke of Leinster, etc. KP, PC was an Irish liberal politician and landowner. He was born in London.-Career:...
, had procured his election to the Irish Parliament
Parliament of Ireland
The Parliament of Ireland was a legislature that existed in Dublin from 1297 until 1800. In its early mediaeval period during the Lordship of Ireland it consisted of either two or three chambers: the House of Commons, elected by a very restricted suffrage, the House of Lords in which the lords...
as a Member for Athy
Athy (Parliament of Ireland constituency)
Athy was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons to 1800. Following the Act of Union 1800 the borough was disenfranchised.-History:In the Patriot Parliament of 1689 summoned by King James II, Athy was represented with two members....
, a seat he held until 1790. He represented then Kildare County
Kildare County (Parliament of Ireland constituency)
Kildare County was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons to 1801.-History:In the Patriot Parliament of 1689 summoned by King James II, Kildare County was represented with two members.-1689–1801:...
from 1790 to 1798. In Parliament he acted with the small Opposition Irish Patriot Party
Irish Patriot Party
The Irish Patriot Party was the name of a number of different political groupings in Ireland throughout the 18th century. They were primarily supportive of Whig concepts of personal liberty combined with an Irish identity that rejected full independence, but advocated strong self-government within...
group led by Henry Grattan
Henry Grattan
Henry Grattan was an Irish politician and member of the Irish House of Commons and a campaigner for legislative freedom for the Irish Parliament in the late 18th century. He opposed the Act of Union 1800 that merged the Kingdoms of Ireland and Great Britain.-Early life:Grattan was born at...
, but took no prominent part in debate. After spending a short time at Woolwich
Woolwich
Woolwich is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.Woolwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created...
to complete his military education, he made a tour through Spain in 1787; and then, dejected by unrequited love for his cousin Georgina Lennox (who later married the 3rd Earl Bathurst
Henry Bathurst, 3rd Earl Bathurst
Henry Bathurst, 3rd Earl Bathurst KG PC was a British politician.-Background and education:Lord Bathurst was the elder son of Henry Bathurst, 2nd Earl Bathurst, by his wife Tryphena, daughter of Thomas Scawen...
), he sailed for New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
to join the 54th Regiment with the rank of Major.
Explorer in the "New World"
The romantic temperament of the young Irishman found congenial soil in the wild surroundings of unexplored Canadian forests, and the enthusiasm thus engendered for the "natural" life of savagery may have been already fortified by study of Jean-Jacques RousseauJean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of 18th-century Romanticism. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological and educational thought.His novel Émile: or, On Education is a treatise...
's writings, for which at a later period Lord Edward expressed his admiration. In February 1789, guided by compass, he traversed the country, practically unknown to white men, from Fredericton, New Brunswick
Fredericton, New Brunswick
Fredericton is the capital of the Canadian province of New Brunswick, by virtue of the provincial parliament which sits there. An important cultural, artistic, and educational centre for the province, Fredericton is home to two universities and cultural institutions such as the Beaverbrook Art...
to Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, falling in with Indians by the way, with whom he fraternized; and in a subsequent expedition he was formally adopted at Detroit by the Bear tribe of Hurons as one of their chiefs, and made his way down the Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
to New Orleans, whence he returned to England. The Author Patrick O'Brian
Patrick O'Brian
Patrick O'Brian, CBE , born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series of novels set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and centred on the friendship of English Naval Captain Jack Aubrey and the Irish–Catalan physician Stephen...
based one of his main characters Stephen Maturin on one of the cousin's of Lord Edward FitzGerald in his book The Far Side of the World
The Far Side of the World
The Far Side of the World is an historical novel by Patrick O'Brian set during the Napoleonic Wars. It was first published by HarperCollins in 1984 and is the tenth book in the Aubrey-Maturin series, concerning the adventures of naval commander Jack Aubrey, and his friend, ship's surgeon,...
.
Enters politics
Finding that his brother had procured his election for the County of KildareKildare
-External links:*******...
, and desiring to maintain political independence, Lord Edward refused the command of an expedition against Cadiz
Cádiz
Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....
offered him by Pitt
William Pitt the Younger
William Pitt the Younger was a British politician of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He became the youngest Prime Minister in 1783 at the age of 24 . He left office in 1801, but was Prime Minister again from 1804 until his death in 1806...
, and devoted himself for the next few years to the pleasures of society and his parliamentary duties. He was on terms of intimacy with his first cousin C. J. Fox
Charles James Fox
Charles James Fox PC , styled The Honourable from 1762, was a prominent British Whig statesman whose parliamentary career spanned thirty-eight years of the late 18th and early 19th centuries and who was particularly noted for being the arch-rival of William Pitt the Younger...
, with R. B. Sheridan
Richard Brinsley Sheridan
Richard Brinsley Butler Sheridan was an Irish-born playwright and poet and long-term owner of the London Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. For thirty-two years he was also a Whig Member of the British House of Commons for Stafford , Westminster and Ilchester...
and other leading Whigs
British Whig Party
The Whigs were a party in the Parliament of England, Parliament of Great Britain, and Parliament of the United Kingdom, who contested power with the rival Tories from the 1680s to the 1850s. The Whigs' origin lay in constitutional monarchism and opposition to absolute rule...
. According to Thomas Moore
Thomas Moore
Thomas Moore was an Irish poet, singer, songwriter, and entertainer, now best remembered for the lyrics of The Minstrel Boy and The Last Rose of Summer. He was responsible, with John Murray, for burning Lord Byron's memoirs after his death...
, Lord Edward FitzGerald was the only one of the numerous suitors of Sheridan's first wife, Elizabeth Ann Linley
Elizabeth Ann Linley
Elizabeth Ann Sheridan was the second daughter of the composer Thomas Linley and his wife Mary Johnson, and was herself the wife of the playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan.-Life:Of the 7 Linley children destined for musical careers, it is said that Elizabeth had the greatest talent and beauty...
whose attentions were received with favour; and it is certain that, whatever may have been its limits, a warm mutual affection subsisted between the two.
Marries in France
His Whig connections, together with his transatlantic experiences, predisposed Fitzgerald to sympathize with the doctrines of the French RevolutionFrench Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
, which he embraced enthusiastically when he visited Paris in October 1792. He lodged with Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine
Thomas "Tom" Paine was an English author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States...
and listened to the debates in the Convention. At a convivial gathering on the 18 November he supported a toast to "the speedy abolition of all hereditary titles and feudal distinctions", and gave proof of his zeal by expressly repudiating his own title, a performance for which he was dismissed from the army.
Lady Edward FitzGerald
Lady Edward FitzGerald was married to Lord Edward FitzGerald, and was an enthusiastic supporter of Irish independence, scarcely less celebrated at the time than Lord Edward himself.-Background:...
was born in Newfoundland of parents called Sims, the common belief that she was the daughter of Madame de Genlis herself by Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans
Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans
Louis Philippe Joseph d'Orléans commonly known as Philippe, was a member of a cadet branch of the House of Bourbon, the ruling dynasty of France. He actively supported the French Revolution and adopted the name Philippe Égalité, but was nonetheless guillotined during the Reign of Terror...
(to whose children she was then acting as governess), was probably well founded. On 27 December 1792 FitzGerald and Pamela were married at Tournay
Tournay
Tournay may refer to:* Tournai , a municipality located in the Belgian province of Hainaut* Tournay, a commune of the Hautes-Pyrénées département, in southwestern France...
, one of the witnesses being Louis Philippe
Louis-Philippe of France
Louis Philippe I was King of the French from 1830 to 1848 in what was known as the July Monarchy. His father was a duke who supported the French Revolution but was nevertheless guillotined. Louis Philippe fled France as a young man and spent 21 years in exile, including considerable time in the...
, afterwards King of the French; and in January 1793 the couple reached Dublin.
The couple eventually had a son, named Edward Fox FitzGerald (10 October 1794 - 25 January 1863), married on 6 November 1827 to Jane Paul (died 2 November 1891), and two daughters, Pamela FitzGerald (1795/1796 - 25 November 1869), married on 21 November 1820 Sir Guy Campbell, 1st Baronet
Sir Guy Campbell, 1st Baronet
Major-General Sir Guy Campbell, 1st Baronet, CB was a British Army officer, the eldest son of Lieutenant-General Colin Campbell and his wife Mary, daughter of Guy Johnson...
(died 26 January 1849), and Lucy Louisa FitzGerald (1798 - September 1826), married on 5 September 1825 Capt.
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
George Francis Lyon
George Francis Lyon
George Francis Lyon was a rare combination of Arctic and African explorer. By all accounts a fun loving extrovert, he also managed to be a competent British Naval Officer, Commander, explorer, artist and socialite...
(died 8 October 1832). After her husband's death in Newgate Gaol, Dublin, Pamela, Lady Edward FitzGerald, was no longer welcome at Boyle Farm, the house of his brother Lord Henry FitzGerald
Lord Henry FitzGerald
Lord Henry FitzGerald PC was the fourth son of the 1st Duke of Leinster and the Duchess of Leinster . A younger brother was the revolutionary Lord Edward FitzGerald.-Life:...
in Thames Ditton
Thames Ditton
Thames Ditton is a village in Surrey, England, bordering Greater London. It is situated 12.2 miles south-west of Charing Cross between the towns of Kingston upon Thames, Surbiton, Esher and East Molesey...
. But her daughters found much happiness in the village, living with an aunt. After she died, her mortal remains were buried at St Nicholas Churchyard, Thames Ditton. Edward Fox and his wife Jane had an only daughter, Pamela Frances Lucy Augusta Charlotte FitzGerald (29 September 1830 -), who married on 7 December 1850 James Turner.
Return to Ireland
Society of the United Irishmen
The Society of United Irishmen was founded as a liberal political organisation in eighteenth century Ireland that sought Parliamentary reform. However, it evolved into a revolutionary republican organisation, inspired by the American Revolution and allied with Revolutionary France...
who had been forced underground by the outbreak of war between France and Britain in 1793. Lord Edward FitzGerald, fresh from the gallery of the Convention in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, returned to his seat in the Irish Parliament and immediately sprang to their defence but within a week of his return he was ordered into custody and required to apologise at the bar of the House of Commons for violently denouncing in the House a Government proclamation, which Grattan
Henry Grattan
Henry Grattan was an Irish politician and member of the Irish House of Commons and a campaigner for legislative freedom for the Irish Parliament in the late 18th century. He opposed the Act of Union 1800 that merged the Kingdoms of Ireland and Great Britain.-Early life:Grattan was born at...
had approved. However, it was not until 1796 that he joined the United Irishmen, who by now had given up as hopeless the path of constitutional reform and whose aim after the recall of Lord FitzWilliam
William FitzWilliam, 4th Earl FitzWilliam
William Wentworth-Fitzwilliam, 4th Earl Fitzwilliam PC , styled Viscount Milton until 1756, was a British Whig statesman of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1782 he inherited his uncle Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham's estates, making him one of the richest people in...
in 1795 was nothing less than the establishment of an independent Irish republic.
Revolutionary activities
In May 1796 Theobald Wolfe ToneTheobald Wolfe Tone
Theobald Wolfe Tone or Wolfe Tone , was a leading Irish revolutionary figure and one of the founding members of the United Irishmen and is regarded as the father of Irish Republicanism. He was captured by British forces at Lough Swilly in Donegal and taken prisoner...
was in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
endeavoring to obtain French assistance for an insurrection in Ireland. In the same month FitzGerald and his friend Arthur O'Connor proceeded to Hamburg, where they opened negotiations with the Directory through Reinhard, French minister to the Hanseatic
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was an economic alliance of trading cities and their merchant guilds that dominated trade along the coast of Northern Europe...
towns. The Duke of York
Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany
The Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany was a member of the Hanoverian and British Royal Family, the second eldest child, and second son, of King George III...
, meeting Pamela at Devonshire House on her way through London with her husband, had told her that "all was known" about his plans, and advised her to persuade him not to go abroad. Also, in Hamburg Lord Edward met with Johan Anders Jägerhorn
Johan Anders Jägerhorn
Johan Anders Jägerhorn af Spurila was a Finnish nobleman born in 8 April 1757 in Helsinki county. He was the eldest son of lieutenant colonel Fredrik Anders Jägerhorn and Ulrika Sofia Brunow...
(or baron de Spurila, as he called himself), a Finnish Swede who had advocated Finnish autonomy and now acted as an intermediary between Lord Edward and the French.
The proceedings of the conspirators at Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
were made known to the government in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
by an informer, Samuel Turner
Samuel Turner (informer)
Samuel Turner was an Irish barrister, a Protestant supporter of the United Irishmen who turned informer.-Life:He was the son of Jacob Turner of Turner's Glen, near Newry, a gentleman of good fortune in County Armagh. He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, where he entered on 2 July 1780,...
. Pamela was entrusted with all her husband's secrets and took an active part in furthering his designs; and she appears to have fully deserved the confidence placed in her, though there is reason to suppose that at times she counselled prudence. The result of the Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
negotiations was Hoche
Lazare Hoche
Louis Lazare Hoche was a French soldier who rose to be general of the Revolutionary army.Born of poor parents near Versailles, he enlisted at sixteen as a private soldier in the Gardes Françaises...
's abortive expedition to Bantry Bay
Bantry Bay
Bantry Bay is a bay located in County Cork, southwest Ireland. The bay runs approximately from northeast to southwest into the Atlantic Ocean. It is approximately 3-to-4 km wide at the head and wide at the entrance....
in December 1796.
In September 1797 the Government learnt from the informer MacNally that Lord Edward was among those directing the conspiracy of the United Irishmen, which was now quickly maturing. He was specially concerned with the military organisation, in which he held the post of colonel of the Kildare
Kildare
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regiment and head of the military committee. He had papers showing that men were ready to rise. They possessed some arms, but the supply was insufficient, and the leaders were hoping for a French invasion to make good the deficiency and to give support to a popular uprising. But French help proving dilatory and uncertain, the rebel leaders in Ireland were divided in opinion as to the expediency of taking the field without waiting for foreign aid.
Lord Edward was among the advocates of the bolder course and there is some evidence that he favoured a project for the massacre of the Irish peers while in procession to the House of Lords for the trial of Lord Kingston in May 1798, despite the fact many were his own relations.
Net tightens
It was probably abhorrence of such measures that converted Thomas Reynolds from a conspirator to an informer; at all events, by him and several others the authorities were kept posted in what was going on, though lack of evidence produced in court delayed the arrest of the ringleaders. But on the 12 March 1798 Reynolds's information led to the seizure of a number of conspirators at the house of Oliver BondOliver Bond
Oliver Bond was an Irish revolutionary, one of the leaders of the Society of United Irishmen in the end of 18th century, which has the objective of ending British rule over Ireland and founding an independent Irish republic.He was born in the parish of St...
. Lord Edward FitzGerald, warned by Reynolds, was not among them.
As a fellow member of the Ascendancy
Protestant Ascendancy
The Protestant Ascendancy, usually known in Ireland simply as the Ascendancy, is a phrase used when referring to the political, economic, and social domination of Ireland by a minority of great landowners, Protestant clergy, and professionals, all members of the Established Church during the 17th...
class, the Government were anxious to make an exception for FitzGerald, and also avoid the embarrassing and dangerous consequences of his subversive activities, communicating their willingness to spare him from the normal fate meted out to "traitors". The Lord Chancellor, Lord Clare
John FitzGibbon, 1st Earl of Clare
John FitzGibbon, 1st Earl of Clare PC , later known as Earl of Clare or Lord Clare, was Attorney-General for Ireland in 1783, then Lord Chancellor of Ireland in 1789, in which capacity he was first promoted to the Irish peerage.He was a controversial figure in Irish history, being described...
, said to a member of his family, "for God's sake get this young man out of the country; the ports shall be thrown open, and no hindrance whatever offered."
FitzGerald however refused to desert others who could not escape, and whom he had himself led into danger. On 30 March the government proclamation of martial law
Martial law
Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...
authorising the military to act as they saw fit to crush the United Irishmen, led to a campaign of vicious brutality in many parts of the country, and forced the United Irish executive to bring forward plans for the rising, with or without French aid.
Arrest and Death
Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle off Dame Street, Dublin, Ireland, was until 1922 the fortified seat of British rule in Ireland, and is now a major Irish government complex. Most of it dates from the 18th century, though a castle has stood on the site since the days of King John, the first Lord of Ireland...
and on 9 May a reward of £1,000 was offered for his apprehension. Since the arrests at Bond's, FitzGerald had been in hiding, but had twice visited his wife in disguise and was himself visited by his stepfather. Meanwhile, the date for the rising was finally fixed for 23 May and FitzGerald awaited the day hiding in a house in Thomas Street, Dublin.
However, his hiding place was disclosed by a Catholic barrister and informer
Informant
An informant is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law enforcement world, where they are officially known as confidential or criminal informants , and can often refer pejoratively to the supply of information...
named Magan and on 18 May Town Major Henry C. Sirr
Henry Charles Sirr (soldier)
Henry Charles Sirr was an Irish soldier, police officer, wine merchant and collector.He was born in Dublin Castle, the son of Major Joseph Sirr, the Town Major of Dublin from 1762 to 1767....
led a military party to the house where Lord Edward was in bed suffering from a fever. Alerted by the commotion, he jumped out of bed and, ignoring the pleas of the arresting officers Major Swan and Captain Ryan to surrender peacefully, FitzGerald stabbed Swan and mortally wounded Ryan with a dagger in a desperate attempt to escape. He was only secured after Sirr shot him in the shoulder and was beaten unconscious by the rifle butts of the soldiers.
He was conveyed to Newgate Prison, Dublin
Newgate Prison, Dublin
Newgate Prison was a place of detention in Dublin until its closure in 1863. It was initially located at Cornmarket, near Christ Church Cathedral, on the south side of the Liffey, and was originally one of the city gates.-From city gate to prison:...
where he was denied proper medical treatment. At the age of 34 he died of his wounds as the rebellion
Irish Rebellion of 1798
The Irish Rebellion of 1798 , also known as the United Irishmen Rebellion , was an uprising in 1798, lasting several months, against British rule in Ireland...
raged outside on the 4 June 1798. He was buried the next day in the cemetery of St Werburgh's Church, Dublin
St Werburgh's Church, Dublin
St. Werburgh's Church is a Church of Ireland church in Dublin, Ireland, and was built in 1178, shortly after the arrival of the Anglo-Normans in the town, and named after St. Werburgh, abbess of Ely and patron saint of Chester who died in 699 CE. It is located in Werburgh Street, close to Dublin...
. An Act of Attainder
Bill of attainder
A bill of attainder is an act of a legislature declaring a person or group of persons guilty of some crime and punishing them without benefit of a judicial trial.-English law:...
confiscating his property was passed, but was eventually repealed in 1819.
Shortly after his death, Lord Edward’s sister, Lady Lucy FitzGerald, authored the following statement regarding her brother's fidelity to Ireland: Irishmen, Countrymen, it is Edward FitzGerald's sister who addresses you: it is a woman but that woman is his sister: she would therefore die for you as he did. I don't mean to remind you of what he did for you. 'Twas no more than his duty. Without ambition he resigned every blessing this world could afford to be of use to you, to his Countrymen whom he loved better than himself, but in this he did no more than his duty; he was a Paddy and no more; he desired no other title than this.
Sources
- Thomas Moore, Life and Death of Lord Edward Fitzgerald (2 vols., London, 1832), also a revised edition entitled The Memoirs of Lord Edward Fitzgerald, edited with supplementary particulars by Martin MacDermott (London, 1897)
- R. R. Madden, The United Irishmen (7 vols., Dublin, 1842–46)
- C. H. Teelin Personal Narrative of the Irish Rebellion of 1798 (Belfast, 1832)
- W. J. Fitzpatrick, The Sham Squire, The Rebellion of Ireland and the Informers of 1798 (Dublin, 1866) and Secret Service under Pitt (London, 1892)
- J. A. Froude, The English in Ireland in the Eighteenth Century (3 vols., London, 1872–74)
- W. E. H. Lecky, History of England in the Eighteenth Century, vols. vii. and viii. (London, 1896)
- Thomas Reynolds the younger, The Life of Thomas Reynolds (London, 1839)
- The Life and Letters of Lady Sarah Lennox, edited by the countess of llchester and Lord Stavordale (London, 1901)
- Ida A. Taylor, The Life of Lord Edward Fitzgerald (London, 1903), which gives a prejudiced and distorted picture of Pamela.
- Tilyard, Stella, Citizen Lord: Edward Fitzgerald. 1763–1798 (1998)
For particulars of Pamela, and especially as to the question of her parentage, see
- Gerald Campbell, Edward and Pamela Fitzgerald (London, 1904)
- Memoirs of Madame de Genlis (London, 1825)
- Georgette Ducrest, Chroniques populaires (Paris, 1855)
- Thomas Moore, Memoirs of the Life of R. B. Sheridan (London, 1825. R. J. M.)