Arthur French (1764 – 24 November 1820) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

Whig politician. He belonged to the long-established French family of

Frenchpark Frenchpark, historically known as Dungar (), is a village in County Roscommon, Ireland on the N5 national primary road. It was the home of Douglas Hyde, the first President of Ireland. The nearby French Park Estate was until 1952 the ancestra ...

County Roscommon "Steadfast Irish heart" , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Roscommon.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Connacht , subdi ...

, who were substantial landowners who also made money in the wine trade. He was the eldest son of Arthur French MP and Alicia Magenis, daughter of Richard Magenis of Dublin and sister of Richard Magenis. He married Margaret Costello, daughter of Edmond Costello of Edmondstown,

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...

, and had nine children, including

Arthur French, 1st Baron de Freyne Arthur French, 1st Baron de Freyne and de Freyne (1786 – 29 September 1856) was an Anglo-Irish peer and member of parliament. De Freyne was the eldest son of Arthur French of Frenchpark and his wife Margaret Costello of Edmondstown. The Fren ...

, John, 2nd Baron and Charles, 3rd Baron. In 1783, he was elected a Member of Parliament (MP) for

Roscommon County Roscommon County ( ') is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 23,459. The county seat is Roscommon. The county was founded in 1840 and organized in 1875. History The county was formed by ...

in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fra ...

. After the Act of Union in 1801 he represented

Roscommon Roscommon (; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60, N61 and N63 roads. The name Roscommon is derived from Coman mac Faelchon who built ...

in the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...

. He was alleged to have been offered an

Earldom Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...

if he would support the Union of Ireland with Great Britain but refused the honour. Later he also refused a

Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

y with no strings attached, although in time three of his sons would hold the title

Baron de Freyne Baron de Freyne, of Coolavin in the County of Sligo, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1851 for Arthur French, 1st Baron de Freyne, with remainder to his younger brothers John, Charles and Fitzstephen French. He ha ...

. The Crown was frequently irritated by French's demands for offices and favours for his brothers and sons, although such behaviour was entirely typical of an Irish politician at the time. A critic of the policy of collective fines as a deterrent to the illicit distillation of poteen, he incurred the wrath of Chief Secretary of Ireland

Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet, (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850) was a British Conservative statesman who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835 and 1841–1846) simultaneously serving as Chancellor of the Exchequer ...

who called him "an Abominable fellow", but his enormous popularity in Roscommon meant that he could not be ignored. He also criticized the continuation of martial law in Ireland. By 1817 he was complaining of ill health: he died on 24 November 1820. One report at the time states that he had died "from excessive fox hunting".

References

*Mosley, Charles (editor). ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage: 107th Edition''. *French, Maurice. ''The Frenchs of French Park''. Warminster: Maurice French, 1999. {{DEFAULTSORT:French, Arthur 1764 births 1820 deaths 19th-century Irish people Politicians from County Roscommon Irish MPs 1783–1790 Irish MPs 1790–1797 Irish MPs 1798–1800 Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Roscommon constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Roscommon constituencies (1801–1922) UK MPs 1801–1802 UK MPs 1802–1806 UK MPs 1806–1807 UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs 1818–1820