Eyre Massey, 1st Baron Clarina (24 May 1719 – 17 May 1804), was an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the establis ...

British army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

officer of the

18th century The 18th century lasted from January 1, 1701 ( MDCCI) to December 31, 1800 ( MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions. During the century, slave trad ...

, known primarily for his successful action at La Belle-Famille during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

. In 1800, he was made

Baron Clarina Baron Clarina, of Elm in the County of Limerick, was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 27 December 1800 for General Eyre Massey. The third Baron sat in the House of Lords as an Irish representative peer between 1849 and 1872. Th ...

in the

Peerage of Ireland The Peerage of Ireland consists of those titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is one of the five divisi ...

Life and career

Born on 24 May 1719, he was fifth son of Colonel Hugh Massey of Duntrileague,

County Limerick "Remember Limerick" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Limerick.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Munster , subdivision ...

, and his wife Elizabeth, fourth daughter of George Evans, the father of

George Evans, 1st Baron Carbery George Evans, 1st Baron Carbery PC (Ire) (c. 1680 – 28 August 1749) was an Irish politician and peer. A member of a County Limerick family of Whigs, he entered the Irish House of Commons and was created a peer in 1715 as a reward for his father's ...

. His eldest brother was

Hugh Massy, 1st Baron Massy Hugh Massy, 1st Baron Massy (1700 – 30 January 1788) was an Anglo-Irish peer and politician. Massy was the son of Colonel Hugh Massy and the elder brother of General Eyre Massey, 1st Baron Clarina. He married firstly Mary Dawson, daughter of C ...

. In a memoir he states that he 'purchased a pair of colours' in the 27th foot in 1739, and went with the regiment to the West Indies as lieutenant of the grenadiers. The 27th foot, of which his fellow Limerickman General William Blakeney was colonel, was at Porto Bello, with

Admiral Vernon Admiral Edward Vernon (12 November 1684 – 30 October 1757) was an English naval officer. He had a long and distinguished career, rising to the rank of admiral after 46 years service. As a vice admiral during the War of Jenkins' Ear, in 173 ...

, in 1739, and the few survivors returned home in December 1740. Military records show the dates of Massey's commissions in the 27th foot as ensign, 25 January 1741. Massey served with his regiment in Scotland in 1745–1746, and was made captain-lieutenant, and captain in the regiment by the

Duke of Cumberland Duke of Cumberland is a peerage title that was conferred upon junior members of the British Royal Family, named after the historic county of Cumberland. History The Earldom of Cumberland, created in 1525, became extinct in 1643. The dukedo ...

, apparently in 1747, captain 24 May 1751, and major 10 December 1755.

French and Indian War

In 1757 he went out to North America as a major 46th foot, of which he became lieutenant-colonel in 1758, and the year after commanded the regiment in the expedition to Niagara, succeeding to the command of the king's troops when Brigadier-general

John Prideaux John Prideaux (7 September 1578 – 29 July 1650) was an English academic and Bishop of Worcester. Early life The fourth son of John and Agnes Prideaux, he was born at Stowford House in the parish of Harford, near Ivybridge, Devon, England, ...

was killed. Massey states in his memoirs that as

Sir William Johnson Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet of New York ( – 11 July 1774), was a British Army officer and colonial administrator from Ireland. As a young man, Johnson moved to the Province of New York to manage an estate purchased by his uncle, Royal Na ...

was in command of a large body of Indians, who were lukewarm in the British cause, he waived the chief command in favour of Johnson. Massey commanded in the action at La Belle-Famille, where with five hundred militia, men of the 46th, and four hundred Indians he routed eighteen hundred French regulars and Canadians, together with five hundred Indians, taking all the French officers but one prisoner. This action took place in view of

Fort Niagara Fort Niagara is a fortification originally built by New France to protect its interests in North America, specifically control of access between the Niagara River and Lake Ontario, the easternmost of the Great Lakes. The fort is on the river's e ...

, which surrendered immediately afterwards, leaving the whole region of the Upper Ohio in possession of the British. Massey was transferred to his old regiment, the 27th Inniskillings, at his own request, and commanded the grenadiers of the army in the advance on Montreal in 1760. He commanded a battalion of grenadiers at the capture of Martinique in 1762, and at the conquest of Havana in 1762. During these campaigns he was wounded several times.

Later career

After the secession of peace, Massey commanded the 27th in New York and Quebec from 1763 to 1769, and afterwards in Ireland. He was appointed colonel of the regiment on 19 February 1773. Massey was then deployed to

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

in 1776 as a Major-General, and commanded the troops in Halifax for four years. Later he held command at Cork. A plan of his for the defence of Cork in 1780 is in the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

(Add. MS. 33178, f. 240). For many following years he remained unemployed by the military. From 1790 to 1797 he served as Member of Parliament for

Swords A sword is a cutting and/or thrusting weapon. Sword, Swords, or The Sword may also refer to: Places * Swords, Dublin, a large suburban town in the Irish capital * Swords, Georgia, a community in the United States * Sword Beach, code name for ...

in the

Parliament of Ireland The Parliament of Ireland ( ga, Parlaimint na hÉireann) was the legislature of the Lordship of Ireland, and later the Kingdom of Ireland, from 1297 until 1800. It was modelled on the Parliament of England and from 1537 comprised two chamb ...

. However, in some letters to General Sir John Vaughan around 1793–4, Massey relates his disappointments in not obtaining a military command, and his vexations at the appointment by the Marquis of Buckingham, the lord-lieutenant, of 'Popish children' (Master Talbot, aged eight, Master Skerritt, aged nine, and others), to ensigncies in his regiment. Later in 1794 he obtained the Cork command, which he held until his promotion to full general in 1796. The command had difficulties with new regiments, which the government persisted in 'drafting' in defiance of their recruiting engagements. He quelled a mutiny of two thousand of these young troops at Spike Island in 1795. Massey was raised to the

on 27 December 1800, under the title of Baron Clarina of Elm Park, co. Limerick. He died a full general, colonel of the 27th Inniskilling foot, Marshal of the Army in Ireland, and governor of Limerick and of the Royal Hospital, Kilmainham, on 17 May 1804, aged 85.

Marriage and issue

Massey married Catherine, sister of

Robert Clements, 1st Earl of Leitrim Robert Clements, 1st Earl of Leitrim (25 November 1732 – 27 July 1804)Collen, G.W. (1840)''Debrett's Peerage of Great Britain and Ireland'' London. p. 444. Accessed 5 February 2020. was an Irish nobleman and politician. Son of Cavan Boroug ...

, by whom he had four children. Two of his successors in the title—his second and only surviving son, Nathaniel William, second baron, who died a major-general on the staff in the West Indies in 1810, and his great-grandson, the fourth baron (died 1897), who served in the 95th regiment in the Crimea and the Indian mutiny—rose to general's rank.

Arms

References

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Clarina, Eyre Massey, 1st Baron 1719 births 1804 deaths Barons in the Peerage of Ireland Peers of Ireland created by George III 18th-century Anglo-Irish people 27th Regiment of Foot officers British Army personnel of the Seven Years' War Irish MPs 1790–1797 Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Dublin constituencies