Randal Arthur Henry Plunkett, 19th Baron of Dunsany (25 August 1906 – 8 February 1999) was an Irish peer. An only child, he was the son of author and playwright
Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany
Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany (; 24 July 1878 – 25 October 1957, usually Lord Dunsany) was an Anglo-Irish writer and dramatist. Over 90 volumes of fiction, essays, poems and plays appeared in his lifetime.Lanham, ...
and Lady Beatrice Child Villiers, daughter of
Victor Child Villiers, 7th Earl of Jersey
Victor Albert George Child Villiers, 7th Earl of Jersey, (20 March 1845 – 31 May 1915) was a British banker, Conservative politician and colonial administrator from the Villiers family. He served as Governor of New South Wales between 1891 and ...
.
Family background and seat
The family seat of the Lords Dunsany is at
Dunsany Castle
Dunsany Castle ( ga, Caisleán Dhún Samhnaí), Dunsany, County Meath, Ireland is a modernised Anglo-Norman castle, started c. 1180 / 1181 by Hugh de Lacy, who also commissioned the original Killeen Castle, nearby, and the famous Trim Castle ...
, Dunsany,
County Meath
County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the sou ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. The original Dunsany and nearby Killeen Castles were built by
Geoffrey de Cusack Geoffrey, Geoffroy, Geoff, etc., may refer to:
People
* Geoffrey (name), including a list of people with the name
* Geoffroy (surname), including a list of people with the name
* Geoffrey of Monmouth (c. 1095–c. 1155), clergyman and one of the ...
who was a tenant of Sir
Hugh de Lacy Hugh de Lacy may refer to:
* Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Lassy (c.1020–1085), first recorded member of the Norman noble family de Lacy
* Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath (died 1186), 4th Baron Lacy
* Hugh de Lacy, Abbot of Shrewsbury (died c. 1215/18)
*Hug ...
, an early
Cambro-Norman
Cambro-Normans ( la, Cambria; "Wales", cy, Normaniaid Cymreig; nrf, Nouormands Galles) were Normans who settled in South Wales, southern Wales, and the Welsh Marches, after the Norman invasion of Wales, allied with their counterpart families ...
who arrived in Ireland with
Strongbow, sometime between his arrival in Ireland in 1172 and the year 1181. Sir Hugh was given most of
County Meath
County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the sou ...
. The Plunketts of Dunsany and Killeen are descended from Geoffrey de Cusack and Matilda (née le Petit sister of William le Petit of
Dunboyne
Dunboyne () is a town in Meath, Ireland. It is a commuter town for Dublin. In the 20 years between the 1996 and 2016 censuses, the population of Dunboyne more than doubled from 3,080 to 7,272 inhabitants.
Location
Dunboyne is centred on the ...
Castle). The castle was built on an area of land believed to have been the site of an earlier ''Dún'' or fort, which may give its name to the locality. Both castles came to the Plunkett family through the marriage in the early 15th century of Sir Christopher Plunkett (Deputy Governor of Ireland in 1432) to Lady Joan de Cusack. It is claimed that the castle is the longest-occupied home and one of the oldest surviving continuously inhabited buildings in Ireland.
Early life
Randal Plunkett was born in Dublin on 25 August 1906 and was educated at
Eton College
Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...
, Eton, Berkshire, England. In 1957 he succeeded to the family title on the death of his father the 18th
Lord Dunsany
Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany (; 24 July 1878 – 25 October 1957, usually Lord Dunsany) was an Anglo-Irish writer and dramatist. Over 90 volumes of fiction, essays, poems and plays appeared in his lifetime.Lanham, M ...
.
Army career
Plunkett joined the
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 ...
in 1926, with the 16th/5th Lancers. He made a transfer to the
British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...
some years later, and over a career of nearly 20 years served in the
Guides Cavalry
The Guides Cavalry (Frontier Force) is an armoured regiment of the Pakistan Army which was raised in 1846 as The Corps of Guides. During more than a hundred and fifty years of military service, the regiment has earned the reputation of one of ...
and the
Indian Armoured Corps The Indian Armoured Corps was a unit of the British Empire's Indian Army. The Corps was formed on 1 May 1941 to administer existing armoured units within the Indian Army. Its headquarters was located at Ferozepore. Upon partition in 1947, the unit's ...
. He fought on the
North-West Frontier in 1930 in the
Guides Cavalry
The Guides Cavalry (Frontier Force) is an armoured regiment of the Pakistan Army which was raised in 1846 as The Corps of Guides. During more than a hundred and fifty years of military service, the regiment has earned the reputation of one of ...
regiment of the
British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...
, and was decorated for this service, and promoted to the rank of
Lieutenant-Colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
. He also served on the North West Frontier during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and in the summer of 1941 led a squadron by the
Khojak Pass
Khojak Pass (el. ) is a mountain pass connecting Qila Abdullah with Chaman in the province of Baluchistan, Pakistan. The road through the Toba Achakzai range connects the larger cities of Quetta, Pakistan, and Kandahar, Afghanistan.
* Khojak ...
in what is now Pakistan. He was also deployed to Central Asia, working to preempt southward advances by German forces. He was later redeployed to northern Africa, to the Western Desert theatre, fighting at
El Alamein
El Alamein ( ar, العلمين, translit=al-ʿAlamayn, lit=the two flags, ) is a town in the northern Matrouh Governorate of Egypt. Located on the Arab's Gulf, Mediterranean Sea, it lies west of Alexandria and northwest of Cairo. , it had ...
. He retired from military service in 1947, the year the British Indian Army was stood down, having been decorated (Medal and Clasp).
Personal life
On 23 August 1938 Plunkett married Vera de Sà Sottomaior (d.1986), the youngest daughter of Dr. Genesio de Sà Sottomaior of
Sao Paulo, Brazil
SAO or Sao may refer to:
Places
* Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD
* Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso
* Saco Transportation Center (station code SAO), a train station in Saco, Maine, U.S. ...
, and formerly wife of
Ivar Bryce. Just over one year later the couple had their only child
Edward John Carlos Plunkett, who would later succeed his father as 20th Lord Dunsany in 1999. However, the couple were divorced in 1947 and on 8 October 1947 Randal Plunkett married Sheila Victoria Katrin Philipps (1912–1999), daughter of
Sir Henry Philipps, 2nd Baronet, of
Picton Castle
Picton Castle ( cy, Castell Pictwn) is a medieval castle near Haverfordwest in the community of Uzmaston, Boulston and Slebech, Pembrokeshire, Wales. Originally built at the end of the 13th century by a Flemish knight, it later came into the han ...
in
Pembroke. From this marriage Beatrice Mary Plunkett was born on 15 July 1948.
Plunkett was an active player of polo while in the army, and was later Master of the Hunt for the Tara Harriers. He assumed management of
Dunsany Castle and Demesne
Dunsany Castle ( ga, Caisleán Dhún Samhnaí), Dunsany, County Meath, Ireland is a modernised Anglo- Norman castle, started c. 1180 / 1181 by Hugh de Lacy, who also commissioned the original Killeen Castle, nearby, and the famous Trim Cast ...
after leaving the army, with his father retiring to Kent. He and his wife stayed annually with
Henry McIlhenny Henry Plumer McIlhenny (October 7, 1910 – May 11, 1986) was an American connoisseur of art and antiques, world traveler, socialite, philanthropist, curator and chairman of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Early life and art collections
During hi ...
at
Glenveagh
Glenveagh ( ; ) is the second-largest national park in Ireland. Located in County Donegal, it includes Glenveagh Castle grounds, Lough Veagh, and much of the Derryveagh Mountains. National parks in Ireland conform to IUCN standards.
Geograp ...
in
County Donegal
County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...
, where he stalked deer and fished.
Randal Dunsany died in 1999 after a long illness. He was buried on one of the mounds in front of Dunsany Castle.
He was survived by both of his children. He had two grandchildren by Edward and Maria Alice Plunkett, both boys, to whom he left a personal bequest, while Beatrice Plunkett (styled "The Hon."), based in London and Wales, did not marry.
Achievements
Dunsany led the establishment of the
Military and Hospitaller Order of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem in Ireland.
On 21 September 1962 the official inauguration of the
Military and Hospitaller Order of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem Bailiwick (later to be Grand Priory) of Ireland took place at Dunsany Castle and Dunsany was invested as the first Chancellor of the order in Ireland. Dunsany and his wife funded the decoration of the Chapel of St Stephen at
St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin
Saint Patrick's Cathedral ( ir, Ard-Eaglais Naomh Pádraig) in Dublin, Ireland, founded in 1191 as a Roman Catholic cathedral, is currently the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland. Christ Church Cathedral, also a Church of Ireland ca ...
as the order's chapel in Ireland.
References
Sources
*Burke, Bernard (1862). A genealogical and heraldic dictionary of the landed gentry of Great Britain and Ireland, 4th edition. London: Harrison, p. 327.
*Mosley, Charles, editor. (2003). Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. London.
*Lee, G. A. (1996) Leper Hospitals in Medieval Ireland. Dublin: Four Courts Press, p. 72.
Footnotes
External links
Official Site of Dunsany Castle and Plunkett FamilyMilitary and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem Grand Priory of Ireland
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunsany, Randal Arthur Henry Plunkett, 19th Baron Of
1906 births
1999 deaths
20th-century Irish people
People educated at Eton College
Corps of Guides (India) officers
Indian Army personnel of World War II
Barons of Dunsany