THE BLANDS WERE MAJOR LANDOWNERS IN COUNTY KERRY, WITH 25,576 ACRES
SIR CHRISTOPHER BLAND WAS CHAIRMAN OF THE BBC BOARD OF GOVERNORS, 1996-2001
This family was originally seated in Yorkshire. The first who settled in Ireland was THE VERY REV JAMES BLAND, Archdeacon of Limerick and Dean of Ardfert. In a deed of sale registered in Wakefield, 1717, he is described as "of Killarney, County Kerry", and as disposing of his estates in Sedbergh, Yorkshire, to Richard Willen. Dr Bland was the son of John Bland, of Sedbergh, as proved by the records of St John's College, Cambridge, where he was admitted in 1684. He went to Ireland as Chaplain to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Henry Sydney, Earl of Romney, in 1692.
Dr Bland wedded Lucy, eldest daughter of Sir Francis Brewster, Lord Mayor of Dublin, 1674-5, by whom he had issue, and was father of the Rev Francis Bland (whose great-grandson,
THE VEN NATHANIEL BLAND, Archdeacon of Aghadoe, was the head of the family); and of
NATHANIEL BLAND LL.D, Judge of the Prerogative Court of Dublin, Vicar-General of the Diocese of Ardfert and Aghadoe, who married firstly, Diana, only daughter and heiress of Nicholas Kemeys, and had issue,
JAMES, his heir;
John.
He wedded secondly, Lucy, daughter of Francis Heaton, and had further issue,
Francis;
Nathaniel;
George;
Lucy; Hester; Dorothea.
Dr Bland was succeeded by his eldest son,
THE REV JAMES BLAND, of Derryquin Castle, who espoused firstly, Elizabeth, daughter of Christopher Julian, and had issue,
FRANCIS CHRISTOPHER, his heir;
Nathaniel;
James;
Letitia; Diana; Maria; Elizabeth.
He married secondly, Barbara, daughter of _____ Nash.
The Rev James Bland was succeeded by his eldest son,
FRANCIS CHRISTOPHER BLAND, of Derryquin Castle, High Sheriff of County Kerry, 1806, who wedded, in 1798, Lucinda, daughter of Arthur Bastable Herbert, of Brewstersfield, near Killarney, by his wife Barbara, daughter of Maurice FitzGerald, Knight of Kerry, and had issue,
JAMES FRANKLIN, his heir;
Arthur;
John;
Edward;
Nathaniel;
George;
Francis Christopher;
Elizabeth; Lucy; Frances Diana; Mary Matilda;
Christina Frances; Laetitia; Barbara; Laetitia; Clara Delinda.
Mr Bland died in 1838, and was succeeded by his eldest son,
JAMES FRANKLIN BLAND JP (1799-1863), of Derryquin Castle, High Sheriff of County Kerry, 1835, who espoused, in 1825, Emma, daughter of Major Joseph Taylor, of Dunkerron Castle, County Kerry, and had issue,
FRANCIS CHRISTOPHER, his heir;
James Franklin;
Nathaniel Franklin;
Alice Phillis.
Mr Bland was succeeded by his eldest son,
FRANCIS CHRISTOPHER BLAND JP (1826-94), of Derryquin Castle, High Sheriff of County Kerry, 1859, who married, in 1849, Jane, daughter of the Rev Archibald Robert Hamilton, and had issue,
JAMES FRANKLIN, his heir;
Archibald Robert Hamilton;
Francis Christpher Earle;
Richard Townsend Herbert;
Emma Alice; Jane Hamilton; Catherine Cotter;
Alice Phillis; Mary Evelyn.
Mr Bland was succeeded by his eldest son,
JAMES FRANKLIN BLAND (1850-1927),
late of Derryquin Castle, and of Drimina House, Sneem, County Kerry, who wedded, in 1873, Agnes Margaret, eldest daughter of Samuel Wilson Block, of 15, Talbot Square, Hyde Park, London, and had issue,
FRANCIS CHRISTOPHER CECIL, his heir;
Archibald Franklin Wilson;
Godfrey Hamilton;
Agnes Emma; Evaleen Wilson; Ethel Hamilton.
Mr Bland was succeeded by his eldest son,
FRANCIS CHRISTOPHER CECIL BLAND (1875-1953), of Drimina House, who married, in 1904, Mary Green, daughter of Henry Albert Uprichard, and had issue,
JAMES FRANKLIN McMAHON;
Henry Archibald Forster.
Mr Bland was succeeded by his elder son,
JAMES FRANKLIN McMAHON BLAND (1905-84), of 14, Tullybrannigan Road, Newcastle, County Down, who married, in 1936, Jess Buchan, daughter of Major Harry Campbell Brodie, and had issue,
FRANCIS CHRISTOPHER BUCHAN;
Godfrey Hamilton.
The elder son,
SIR (FRANCIS) CHRISTOPHER BUCHAN BLAND (1938-).
DERRYQUIN CASTLE, Sneem, County Kerry, was a Victorian pile of rough-hewn stone by James Franklin Fuller, built for the Bland family.
The main block was of three storeys, with a four-storey octagonal tower running through its centre.
The entrance door was at one end, flanked by a two-storey, part-curved wing.
There were rectangular, pointed and camber-headed windows; battlements, and machicolations.
The castle was eventually sold by the Blands to the Warden family.
In 1906, it was owned by Colonel Charles W Warden and valued at £70.
The Wardens resided there until it was burnt in 1922.
It was located in the grounds of what is now the
Parknasilla Hotel, but the ruins were demolished in 1969.
In 1732, the Rev Dr Nathaniel Bland obtained his grant of the Parknasilla area, the grantors being described as
'Rt Hon Clotworthy, Lord Viscount Massareene, and Philip Doyne, with the consent of James Stopford.'
The link with these three gentlemen is Elizabeth Smyth.
Her father, the Rt Rev Edward Smyth, Lord Bishop of Down and Connor, married secondly, the Hon Mary Skeffington.
She was the daughter of Clothworthy, 3rd Viscount Massareene. Elizabeth married James Stopford in 1726.
In 1762, he was created Viscount Stopford and Earl of Courtown.
His sister, also Elizabeth Stopford, was the third wife of Philip Doyne.
The Rt Rev Richard Pococke, Lord Bishop of Ossory, visited the area in 1758.
He was an avid traveller who published accounts of his visits to the Middle East, Scotland and England.
The Bishop went in search of Dr Bland's house, which was a summer residence located between the Sneem River and the Owreagh River.
He found the house, known as 'The White House', abandoned by its owner, in favour of Parknasilla, a fine Georgian residence a little further east.
Nathaniel Bland's first wife Diana, was the daughter of Nicholas Kerneys or Kemis of County Wexford. They had two sons, John and Rev James.
It was to Rev James that Nathaniel left the bulk of his estate and we shall return to him presently.
John served in the army at Dettingen, Fontenoy and Clifton Moor.
Nathaniel's son Francis, by his second marriage, was a captain in the army and gave it up to become and actor in Thomas Sheridan's company in Dublin.
He fell in love with Grace Phillips, a Welsh actress, and married her in 1758.
They had several children. Grace was the daughter of the Rev Phillips of St. Thomas's Haverfordwest.
Nathaniel died in 1760 just before the birth of Francis and Grace's child, a daughter, in 1761.
She was christened Dorothea and known as Dorothy, although she referred to herself as Dora and acquired a surfeit of names.
In 1774, Francis decided to leave Grace and his family and marry an heiress.
This time he chose the well-to-do Catherine Mahony from Kerry.
Dora became an actress and was also known by her stage name, Mrs Jordan. She was seduced by her actor manager in Dublin.
Shortly afterwards she became pregnant and fled to England and fell in love with Richard Ford , a handsome lawyer, who was knighted some years later.
She lived with Ford and had three children by him.
When he failed to do the decent thing and marry her, she left him.
She became mistress to William Henry, Duke of Clarence, 3rd son of George III in 1790. He became William IV upon the death of his brother George IV.
They lived together in Busy House in Teddington, near Hampton Court from 1797 until 1811, when he took a new mistress.
Their children, ten in total and all illegitimate, were known as the FitzClarences. The boys were ennobled, the eldest was created Earl of Munster.
The girls married well, viz. two earls, a viscount, the younger son of a duke and a general in the army.
The Duke pensioned Dora off. She was swindled out of money by a son-in-law.
When Nathaniel Bland died in 1760, his son, the Rev James Bland, inherited the estate. Derryquin Castle was probably built during his era.
His son, Francis Christopher Bland, married Lucinda Herbert in 1798.
His son, James Franklin Bland, was born in 1799. Under him the Derryquin estate witnessed its golden years and was self-supporting.
His sister Frances "Fanny" Diana married Thomas Harnett Fuller of Glasnacree and their son James Franklin Fuller was to become the architect of the new Parknasilla hotel in 1897.
James Franklin Bland was succeeded in turn by his son Francis Christopher.
This Francis Christopher joined the Plymouth Brethren.
He neglected his estate and devoted his energy to preaching.
Land agitation was rife in Ireland at this juncture and it was unfortunate that Bland decided to absent himself.
The estate inevitably went into rapid decline.
First published in September, 2012.