Richard Bellew, 3rd Baron Bellew of Duleek (c.1671 – 22 March 1715) was an Irish soldier, peer and politician.

Biography

Bellew was the second son of John Bellew, 1st Baron Bellew of Duleek and Mary Bermingham. He joined his father as a supporter of

James II James II may refer to: * James II of Avesnes (died c. 1205), knight of the Fourth Crusade * James II of Majorca (died 1311), Lord of Montpellier * James II of Aragon (1267–1327), King of Sicily * James II, Count of La Marche (1370–1438), King C ...

during the Williamite War in Ireland, serving as a captain and later a colonel in the Jacobite dragoon regiment of Lord Dongan. He was outlawed under the Articles of Limerick and in 1691 he joined in the

Flight of the Wild Geese The Flight of the Wild Geese was the departure of an Irish Jacobite army under the command of Patrick Sarsfield from Ireland to France, as agreed in the Treaty of Limerick on 3 October 1691, following the end of the Williamite War in Ireland. ...

to France, serving briefly in the

French Royal Army The French Royal Army (french: Armée Royale Française) was the principal land force of the Kingdom of France. It served the Bourbon Dynasty from the reign of Louis XIV in the mid-17th century to that of Charles X in the 19th, with an interlude ...

. While in France he had a disagreement with Brigadier Maxwell and decided to return to Ireland. In 1694, Bellew succeeded his older brother, Walter, as Baron Bellew of Duleek and began attempting to have his outlawry reversed. With support from influential figures, including the Duke of Shrewsbury, Bellew was granted a pardon by William III of England on 18 March 1697. On 24 June 1698, Bellew was given leave to remain in England, but it took a further year before he regained his estates. The costs of obtaining his own and his father's posthumous pardon, the incumbrances on the estate, and the many claims outstanding against both himself and his father, left him heavily in debt. In 1705, Bellew became a Protestant by conforming to the established Church of England and he was summoned to attend the Irish House of Lords in 1707. In January 1709, he contested a by-election for the Steyning constituency in the

House of Commons of Great Britain The House of Commons of Great Britain was the lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain between 1707 and 1801. In 1707, as a result of the Acts of Union of that year, it replaced the House of Commons of England and the third estate of th ...

on the interest of his brother-in-law, Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond. A double return was made, and on 15 February 1709, the House decided that Bellew's opponent had won the seat. He contested the seat for a second time at a by-election in February 1712 and was successful, but was unseated in May 1712 after an investigation found evidence of bribery and the election was declared void. At this stage, he was identified as a high Tory, but by 1714 was considered a Whig in the Irish parliament. On 13 October 1713, he was awarded a pension of £300 per year by Anne, Queen of Great Britain. He died in 1715 and was buried at St. Mary's Abbey, Duleek. In July 1695, he married

Lady Frances Brudenell Lady Frances Brudenell (before 1677 – 23 February 1735/36), Countess of Newburgh, was an Irish aristocrat known as the subject of a satire in which she was portrayed as the leader of a society of lesbians. She was the daughter of Franci ...

, daughter of Francis Brudenell, Lord Brudenell and the widow of Charles Livingston, 2nd Earl of Newburgh. Upon Bellew's death, his title was inherited by his son, John. Bellew's daughter, Dorothea, married Gustavus Hamilton.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bellew of Duleek, Richard, 3rd Baron Year of birth unknown 1715 deaths Barons in the Peerage of Ireland British MPs 1734–1741 Converts to Anglicanism from Roman Catholicism Irish Jacobites Irish soldiers in the army of James II of England Irish soldiers in the French Army Members of the Irish House of Lords Tory (British political party) politicians Wild Geese (soldiers) Year of birth uncertain