Sir Thomas Esmonde, 11th Baronet

Sir Thomas Esmonde, 11th Baronet
Sir Thomas Esmonde, 11th Baronet
Crest	Out of a mural crown Gules a head in profile wearing a helmet all Proper.
Shield	Ermine on a chief Gules three mullets Argent.
Motto	Malo Mori Quam Foedari (Had Rather Die Than Be Dishonoured)

Sir
Thomas Esmonde
KHS
Sir Thomas Esmonde KHS
	Esmonde in 1907
Senator
	In office; 11 December 1922 – 12 December 1934
Member of Parliament for; North Wexford
	In office; October 1900 – December 1918
Preceded by	Thomas Joseph Healy
Succeeded by	Roger Sweetman
Member of Parliament for; West Kerry
	In office; July 1892 – October 1900
Preceded by	Edward Harrington
Succeeded by	Thomas O'Donnell
Member of Parliament for; South Dublin
	In office; December 1885 – July 1892
Preceded by	New Creation
Succeeded by	Horace Plunkett
Personal details
Born	21 September 1862; County Wexford, Ireland
Died	15 September 1935 (aged 72); County Wexford, Ireland
Political party	Irish Parliamentary Party(1885–1918); Independent (after 1918);
Spouses	Alice Donovan (m. 1891; died 1922); Anna Frances Levins (m. 1924);
Parent	John Esmonde (father);
Residence(s)	Ballynastragh House, Gorey, County Wexford

Sir Thomas Henry Grattan Esmonde, 11th Baronet, KHS (21 September 1862 – 15 September 1935) was an Irish Home Rule nationalist politician and author.^[2]

Politics[edit]

Esmonde was elected Irish Parliamentary Party MP for the constituencies South Dublin from 1885 to 1892; West Kerry from 1892 to 1900; and North Wexford from 1900 to 1918. He also sat as an independent Senator in the Oireachtas from 1922 to 1934.^[3]^[4] He was High Sheriff of County Waterford in 1887.^[2]

Personal life[edit]

He was the son of Sir John Esmonde, 10th Baronet and his wife Louisa, daughter of Henry Grattan.^[5]

In July 1891, he married Alice Donovan of Tralee.^[6] Alice and Esmonde had five children:

Alngelda Barbara Mary Grattan Esmonde
Eithne Moira Grattan Esmonde; married her second cousin Sir Anthony Esmonde, 15th Baronet
Patricia Alison Louisa Grattan Esmonde
Sir Osmond Esmonde, 12th Baronet (1896–1936)
John Henry Grattan Esmonde (1899–1916); killed in the Battle of Jutland

Alice died in December 1922, and in September 1924 Esmonde married Anna Frances Levins.^[6]

Esmonde's home, Ballynastragh House, located near Gorey, County Wexford, and dating from the 17th century, was burned down on 9 March 1923 by members of the anti-Treaty Irish Republican Army. The house was rebuilt on a much smaller scale in 1937.^[7]

Esmonde was a frequent traveller and author of articles on Irish folklore and antiquities, as well as a memoir, Hunting Memories of Many Lands (1920).^[2] He died in Dublin, six days before his 73rd birthday.^[2]

In 1902 he founded the Enniscorthy Echo in co-operation with William Sears.^[9]

Honours[edit]

Knight of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre.^[10]

References[edit]

^ by George Petrie from Brewer, Vol. 2: where it is stated that it was published by Sherwood 1 May 1826 and engraved by James Sargant Storer and Henry Sargant Storer
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Sir T. H. Gratton Esmonde: Nationalist Whip and Sinn Fein Senator". The Times. 16 September 1935. p. 14.
^ "President's nominees for Seanad". Houses of the Oireachtas. 6 December 1922. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
^ "Thomas Esmonde". Oireachtas Members Database. Retrieved 27 December 2018.
^ Robert Henry Mair, ed. (1886). Debrett's House of Commons and The Judicial Bench 1886. London: Dean and Son. p. 48. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
^ ^a ^b Maume, Patrick. "Esmonde, Sir Thomas Henry Grattan". Dictionary of Irish Biography. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
^ "The destruction of Ballynastragh House, Gorey, March 1923". The Archaeology of Conflict: Wexford in the Civil War, 1922–1923. 17 February 2018. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
^ Debrett's Peerage. 1878.
^ "Sears, William". Dictionary of Irish Biography. October 2009. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
^ Notable Irish Members (Historic): Sir Thomas Grattan Esmonde

External links[edit]

Esmonde Family Tree
Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Sir Thomas Esmonde
Portraits of Sir Thomas Esmonde at the National Portrait Gallery, London
"Esmonde, Sir Thomas Henry Grattan" . Thom's Irish Who's Who . Dublin: Alexander Thom and Son Ltd. 1923. p. 74 – via Wikisource.

Parliament of the United Kingdom
New creation	Member of Parliament for South Dublin 1885–1892	Succeeded by Horace Plunkett
Preceded by Edward Harrington	Member of Parliament for West Kerry 1892–1900	Succeeded by Thomas O'Donnell
Preceded by Thomas Joseph Healy	Member of Parliament for North Wexford 1900–1918	Succeeded by Roger Sweetman
Baronetage of Ireland
Preceded by John Esmonde	Baronet (of Clonegall) 1876–1935	Succeeded by Osmond Esmonde

[1] y George Petrie from Brewer, Vol. 2: where it is stated that it was published by Sherwood 1 May 1826 and engraved by James Sargant Storer and Henry Sargant Storer

[times-2] "Sir T. H. Gratton Esmonde: Nationalist Whip and Sinn Fein Senator". The Times. 16 September 1935. p. 14.

[3] "President's nominees for Seanad". Houses of the Oireachtas. 6 December 1922. Retrieved 26 December 2023.

[oireachtas_db-4] "Thomas Esmonde". Oireachtas Members Database. Retrieved 27 December 2018.

[debrett-1886-5] Robert Henry Mair, ed. (1886). Debrett's House of Commons and The Judicial Bench 1886. London: Dean and Son. p. 48. Retrieved 24 May 2014.

[dib_esmonde-6] Maume, Patrick. "Esmonde, Sir Thomas Henry Grattan". Dictionary of Irish Biography. Retrieved 4 January 2022.

[7] "The destruction of Ballynastragh House, Gorey, March 1923". The Archaeology of Conflict: Wexford in the Civil War, 1922–1923. 17 February 2018. Retrieved 26 December 2018.

[8] Debrett's Peerage. 1878.

[dib_sears-9] "Sears, William". Dictionary of Irish Biography. October 2009. Retrieved 10 December 2021.

[10] Notable Irish Members (Historic): Sir Thomas Grattan Esmonde

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Authority control databases
International	ISNI VIAF
National	France BnF data United States Vatican
People	Ireland
Other	SNAC

Politics[edit]

Personal life[edit]

Honours[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

External links[edit]