THE VISCOUNTS DONERAILE WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY CORK, WITH 16,400 ACRES
The ancient family of ST LEGER is of French extraction, and derives from SIR ROBERT SENT LEGERE, Knight, as the name was then written, one of the companions in arms of WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR; and, according to a family tradition, the person who supported that prince with his arm when he quitted the ship to land in Sussex. This Sir Robert, having overcome a pagan Dane who inhabited the manor of Ulcombe, in Kent, fixed his abode there; and in that place his posterity flourished for many generations.
SIR ANTHONY ST LEGER KG (c1496-1559), of Ulcombe, Kent, went first into Ireland in 1537, being appointed by HENRY VIII one of the commissioners for letting the Crown lands there, and returning into England, was constituted Lord Deputy of Ireland, in 1540.
In 1543, he was recalled to inform the King of his administration of affairs, which gave His Majesty such satisfaction that he created him a Knight of the Garter, and sent him back as Lord Deputy; in which high office he continued until 1556, serving three sovereigns, when, being recalled by QUEEN MARY, he retired to his estate in Kent, and died there in 1559.
Sir Anthony married Agnes, daughter of Hugh Warham, and was succeeded by his second, but eldest surviving son,
WILLIAM ST LEGER, father of
SIR WARHAM ST LEGER, who was appointed President of Munster in 1566, by Sir Henry Sidney, Lord Deputy of Ireland.
In 1580, he caused James of Desmond, who was denominated a notorious rebel, to be hanged under martial law at Cork.
Sir Warham was killed, 1600, in battle (in single combat), by Hugh Maguire, Lord of Fermanagh, who fell himself at the same time.
He wedded Ursula, youngest daughter of George, Lord Abergavenny, and was succeeded by his son,
THE RT HON SIR WILLIAM ST LEGER (1586-1642), Privy Counsellor, Lord President of Munster, 1627, MP for Cork County, 1634, who was appointed, in that year, Sergeant-Major-General in the Army.
Sir William was subsequently employed against the rebels in Ireland.
He married Gertrude de Vries, a Lady of Lower Germany, and left with other issue (from which descended the St Legers of Yorkshir, and General St Leger),
WILLIAM, his heir;The eldest son,
JOHN, successor to his brother;
Heyward.
SIR WILLIAM ST LEGER, Knight, MP for Cork County, 1639, who fell at the battle of Newbury, 1644, was succeeded by his brother,
JOHN ST LEGER, of Doneraile, County Cork, who wedded the Lady Mary Chichester, elder daughter and co-heir of the 1st Earl of Donegall, and was succeeded by his son,
THE RT HON ARTHUR ST LEGER, of Doneraile, who was elevated to the peerage, 1703, in the dignities of Baron Kilmayden and VISCOUNT DONERAILE.
His lordship espoused, in 1690, Elizabeth, daughter and heir of John Hayes, of Winchilsea, and had issue,
ARTHUR, his successor;He died in 1727, and was succeeded by his eldest son,
John;
Hayes;
Elizabeth.
ARTHUR, 2nd Viscount (1694-1734), who wedded firstly, in 1717, Mary, only child of Charles, Lord Mohun (who lost his life in a duel with the Duke of Hamilton), and had an only son,
ARTHUR MOHUN.
His lordship wedded secondly, in 1738, Catherine Sarah, daughter of Captain John Conyngham, but had no surviving issue.
He was succeeded by his only son,
ARTHUR MOHUN, 3rd Viscount (1718-50), who espoused firstly, in 1738, Mary, daughter of Anthony Shepherd, of Newcastle, County Longford; and secondly, in 1739, Catherine, eldest daughter of the Viscount Massereene; but died childless, when the honours reverted to his uncle,
HAYES, 4th Viscount (1702-67), who married, in 1722, Elizabeth, eldest daughter and co-heir of Joseph Deane, Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer; but dying without issue, when the titles became EXTINCT, and the family estates devolved upon his nephew,
ST LEGER ALDWORTH, MP for Doneraile, 1749-76; and upon succeeding to the estates of his maternal ancestors, assumed the surname and arms of ST LEGER.
He was elevated to the peerage, in 1776, in the dignity of Baron Doneraile; and advanced to a viscountcy, in 1785, as VISCOUNT DONERAILE (second creation).
His lordship wedded Mary, eldest daughter of Redmond Barry, of Ballyclough, County Cork, by whom he had,
HAYES;His lordship died in 1787, and was succeeded by his eldest son,
Richard, grandfather of the 5th and 6th Viscounts;
James;
Arthur;
Barry Boyle;
Henrietta; Elizabeth; Mary; Louisa Anne; Caroline Catherine; Charlotte Theodosia; Georgiana.
HAYES, 2nd Viscount (1755-1819), MP for Doneraile, 1777-87, High Sheriff of County Cork, 1780, who espoused, in 1785, Charlotte, fourth daughter of James Bernard, of Castle Bernard, and sister of Francis, 1st Earl of Bandon, and had issue,
HAYES;His lordship was succeeded by his only son,
Charlotte; Harriet.
HAYES, 3rd Viscount (1786-1854), High Sheriff of County Cork, 1812, who married, in 1816, his first cousin, the Lady Charlotte Esther Bernard, second daughter of Francis, 1st Earl of Bandon, and had issue, an only child,
HAYES, 4th Viscount (1818-87), DL, High Sheriff of County Cork, 1845, who wedded, in 1851, Mary Anne Grace Louisa, daughter of GEORGE LENOX-CONYNGHAM, and had issue,
Hayes Warham, died in infancy;His lordship was succeeded by his second cousin,
Ursula Clara Emily; May.
RICHARD ARTHUR, 5th Viscount (1825-91), who died unmarried, and was succeeded by his nephew,
EDWARD, 6th Viscount (1866-1941), who died unmarried, and was succeeded by his brother,
HUGH, 7th Viscount (1869-1956), who espoused, in 1919, Mary Isobel, daughter of Francis Morice, though died without issue, and was succeeded by his cousin,
ALGERNON EDWARD, 8th Viscount,
The heir apparent is the present holder's son, the Hon Nathaniel Warham Robert St John St Leger.
- Hayes St Leger, 2nd Viscount (1755–1819);
- Hayes St Leger, 3rd Viscount (1786–1854);
- Hayes St Leger, 4th Viscount (1818–87);
- Richard Arthur St Leger, 5th Viscount (1825-91);
- Edward St Leger, 6th Viscount (1866–1941);
- Hugh St Leger, 7th Viscount (1869–1956);
- Algernon Edward St Leger, 8th Viscount (1878–1957);
- Richard St John St Leger, 9th Viscount (1923-83);
- Richard Allen St Leger, 10th Viscount (b 1946).
*****
The 4th Viscount was one of the great Victorian hunting men, and his demise was both ironic and macabre: he kept a pet fox which was housed near the gate at the side of the Court.
The fox became rabid and bit its master.
Lord Doneraile contracted rabies, and was smothered with pillows by the housemaids to spare him suffering and prevent him spreading the disease to others.
DONERAILE COURT, Doneraile, County Cork, comprising three storeys and seven bays, dates from the early 18th century.
A cut-stone front was added ca 1730.
The house has a three-bay breakfront, blocked quoins, crisply-moulded window surrounds with scroll keystones in the two upper storeys, and a door-case with Ionic columns and a scroll pediment.
Later in the 18th century curved end bows were added; and later still, the side elevation was extended by a bow-fronted addition, thus becoming a garden front of three bays between two bows.
On the other side of the house, a wing containing a new dining-room was added in 1869 by the 4th Viscount of the 2nd creation, though this was demolished relatively recently.
During the Victorian era, ninety gardeners were employed to maintain the parkland.
The 7th Viscount died at Doneraile Court in 1956.
The estate and its 400 acres was bought by the Irish state in 1969 from the St Leger family, for the purpose of creating a wildlife preserve.
In 2011, there was a €10m plan to turn the house and its extensive grounds into a major tourist attraction, focused on turning the historic Doneraile Court into a tourist mecca.
First published in December, 2012. Doneraile arms courtesy of European Heraldry.
I was dining with an old friend in Switzerland along with an English lady who was with her. The English lady mentioned her family had come from Doneraile, and I mentioned its significance in freemasonry. It turns out that this lady was descended. from the St Ledgers / Aldworth
ReplyDeleteIn the late 1960s and 1970s I worked for an antique dealer based in Melbourne, Australia . He had travelled to Ireland many times buying old furniture , mostly in shocking condition but of great quality and worthy of major restoration . I remember a pair of late 18th Century library bookcases of concave shape with gothic tracery to the doors .We basically were able to only salvage the doors due to fire damage to the carcase . They and a lot of other pieces of smoke and fire damaged furniture were supposedly from Doneraile . They were purchased from a major Dublin dealer who had warehouses , mainly old cinemas , all over Ireland full of early furniture in wretched condition . I have often wondered over the past 40 years whether those bookcases fitted the bay ends seen in this photo ! I also remember a fabulous pair of gilded side chairs in Louis Quinze design but possibly English, maybe even Irish . The chairs were filthy but cleaned beautifully , were reupholstered in sky blue silk , and sold to an English tennis official in Melbourne for the Australian Open ! They ended up in Bristol . They too were supposedly from Doneraile .
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