Charles French Blake-Forster (1851–1874) was an Irish writer. Born at Forster Street House,

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city on ...

City, the eldest son of Captain Francis Blake-Forster of the

Connaught Rangers The Connaught Rangers ("The Devil's Own") was an Irish line infantry regiment of the British Army formed by the amalgamation of the 88th Regiment of Foot (Connaught Rangers) (which formed the ''1st Battalion'') and the 94th Regiment of Foot (wh ...

, educated at home and later in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Began to play a prominent part in Galway's public affairs upon his return in his late teens. He became a town councillor, a member of the local Board of Guardians, and in 1874

High Sheriff of Galway Town The High Sheriff of Galway Town was the Sovereign's judicial representative in the county of the Town of Galway. Initially an office for lifetime, assigned by the Sovereign, the High Sheriff became annually appointed from the Provisions of Oxf ...

. He presided in this capacity at three Parliamently elections in 1874. He died aged 23 on 9 September 1874, and was laid to rest in the family vault at Bushypark, on the Galway-

Oughterard Oughterard () is a small town on the banks of the Owenriff River close to the western shore of Lough Corrib in Connemara, County Galway, Ireland. The population of the town in 2016 was 1,318. It is located about northwest of Galway on the N5 ...

road. He had a deep and abiding interest in the history of the county. He contributed a number of articles on this subject to the '' Galway Vindicator'' and '' Galway Express'' between 1869 and 1871. His only full-length published work, '' The Irish Chieftains, or, a struggle for the Crown'', was published in 1872 by McGlashran & Gill. It was an account of the

Williamite War in Ireland The Williamite War in Ireland (1688–1691; ga, Cogadh an Dá Rí, "war of the two kings"), was a conflict between Jacobite supporters of deposed monarch James II and Williamite supporters of his successor, William III. It is also called th ...

from the perspective of Galwegians, many of them historical - Sir Roger

O'Shaughnessy Ó Seachnasaigh, O'Shaughnessy, collectively Uí Sheachnasaigh, clan name Cinél nAedha na hEchtghe, is a family surname of Irish origin. The name is found primarily in County Galway and County Limerick. Their name derives from Seachnasach ma ...

- including some of his ancestors. Some ten other works attributed to him in ''The Irish Chieftains'' have never been published nor traced, appearing to have disappeared sometime after his death. He was a grand-nephew of the last

Warden of Galway The Collegiate Church of St. Nicholas is a medieval church building in Galway, Ireland. It is a collegiate church and the parish church of St. Nicholas Church of Ireland parish, which covers Galway city. It was founded in 1320 and dedicated to ...

Edmund Ffrench Edmund Ffrench, O.P. (1775–1852) was the Roman Catholic Warden of Galway and Bishop of Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora. Ffrench was a descendant of The Tribes of Galway, though by the 18th century his family had become Protestant. His father, Edmu ...

Bibliography

* ''The Annals of Corcomroe Abbey'' in ''Galway Vindicator'', 29 December 1869, 1 January 1870. * ''Lemenagh Castle, or, a legend of the wild horse'' in ''Galway Vindicator'', 12, 16, 19 February 1870. * ''The O'Brien Family'' in ''Galway Vindicator'', 31 December 1870. * ''Kilfenora, or Ye City of Ye Crosses'' in ''Galway Vindicator'', 31 December 1870. * ''What are the Arms of Galway? - a historical essay'' in ''Galway Express'' 13, 20, 27 May 1871. * ''The Irish Chieftains, or, a struggle for the Crown'' With numerous notes and copious appendix. An historical novel respecting events in 1689 and following years. McGlashran & Gill, 1872.

External links

* * http://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclare/history/kilfenora_annals/index.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:Blake-Forster, Charles French 1851 births 1874 deaths Writers from Galway (city) 19th-century Irish writers High Sheriffs of Galway Town