Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

Sir James Jeffreys (c. 1650 – 1722), also spelt Jeffereyes, 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 ...

soldier and politician, who served in the armies of both

Charles XI of Sweden Charles XI or Carl ( sv, Karl XI; ) was King of Sweden from 1660 until his death, in a period of Swedish history known as the Swedish Empire (1611–1721). He was the only son of King Charles X Gustav of Sweden and Hedwig Eleonora of Holstein- ...

and

William III of England William III (William Henry; ; 4 November 16508 March 1702), also widely known as William of Orange, was the sovereign Prince of Orange from birth, Stadtholder of County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, Zeeland, Lordship of Utrecht, Utrec ...

Biography

Born in England, Jeffreys joined the

Swedish Army The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav Vas ...

and was likely a member of the Swedish contingent in the service of

Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I (Leopold Ignaz Joseph Balthasar Franz Felician; hu, I. Lipót; 9 June 1640 – 5 May 1705) was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary, Croatia, and Bohemia. The second son of Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor, by his first wife, Maria An ...

during the

Great Turkish War The Great Turkish War (german: Großer Türkenkrieg), also called the Wars of the Holy League ( tr, Kutsal İttifak Savaşları), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Pola ...

. He attained the rank of lieutenant-colonel. In January 1690, Jeffreys applied through the English envoy in Sweden to leave Swedish service and join the army of William III. His application was accompanied by a letter of commendation from Charles XI which praised Jeffreys' bravery. He travelled to London and on 30 May 1690 received a brevet commission as a "colonel of foot". Jeffreys participated in 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 ...

. On 4 September 1690 he was made

Governor of Duncannon Fort The Governor of Duncannon Fort was a military officer who commanded the garrison at Duncannon in County Wexford. In later years the post became a sinecure and was abolished on the death of the last holder in 1835. List of governors * Sir Car ...

. In the autumn of 1697, 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 ...

heard a series of complaints about Jeffreys's actions in Duncannon and in 1698 he was removed to become

Governor of Cork The Governor of Cork was a military officer who commanded the garrison at Cork in Ireland. The office became a sinecure and in 1833 was abolished from the next vacancy. List of governors of Cork Governors *1644: Major Muschamp *1651: Colonel R ...

, exchanging commands with

Toby Purcell Toby Purcell or Tobias Purcell was an Irish soldier in the Williamite War in Ireland. He served in the forces of William of Orange during the conflict. Purcell was in command of the garrison of Newry in 1689, when it was attacked by a Jacobite ...

. His unpopularity in Cork led the English government to abolish the position of governor of the castle in May 1699. Jeffreys petitioned William III to be reinstated as Governor of Cork, which he was in 1700. The position allowed Jeffreys to amass considerable wealth, with which he purchased

Blarney Castle Blarney Castle ( ga, Caisleán na Blarnan) is a medieval stronghold in Blarney, near Cork, Ireland. Though earlier fortifications were built on the same spot, the current keep was built by the MacCarthy of Muskerry dynasty, a cadet branch of the ...

. He successfully petitioned Queen Anne and

George I George I or 1 may refer to: People * Patriarch George I of Alexandria ( fl. 621–631) * George I of Constantinople (d. 686) * George I of Antioch (d. 790) * George I of Abkhazia (ruled 872/3–878/9) * George I of Georgia (d. 1027) * Yuri Dolgoruk ...

to maintain his position in Cork, which was accompanied by a generous pension. Between 1703 and 1715 he was the

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for Lismore 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 ...

. Jeffreys was promoted to brigadier general in 1704, and to "brigadier general of all forces of Her Majesty's Service" in 1709. He married a Swedish woman, Katherine Drokenhellem, and was the father of James Jeffreys.Jeffereys, James Bavington [SSNE 4902]
Institute of Scottish Historical Research, University of St Andrews. Retrieved 26 January 2023.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jeffreys, James Year of birth uncertain 1722 deaths 17th-century Anglo-Irish people 18th-century Anglo-Irish people English generals Irish MPs 1703–1713 Irish MPs 1713–1714 Knights Bachelor Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Waterford constituencies People of the Great Turkish War Williamite military personnel of the Williamite War in Ireland