Robert Bligh ( 1704 – 1778) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

in the 18th century.

Early life

Bligh was the son of

Thomas Bligh Lieutenant General Thomas Bligh (1685–1775) was an Kingdom of Ireland, Irish-born Kingdom of Great Britain, British soldier, best known for his service during the Seven Years' War when he led a series of amphibious raids, known as "Naval Descen ...

(1654–1710) and his wife Elizabeth Napier (d. 1737).Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh. ''Burke's Irish Family Records''. London, U.K.: Burkes Peerage Ltd, 1976. Bligh's elder brothers were

John Bligh, 1st Earl of Darnley John Bligh, 1st Earl of Darnley (28 December 1687 – 12 September 1728), was an Irish peer of the realm, peer born of an English family. Early life He was the son of Elizabeth (née Napier) Bligh and Thomas Bligh (1654–1710), Thomas Bligh (16 ...

and Lt.-Gen.

, best known for his service during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

. Both of his elder brothers and his son served 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 ...

. He was educated at

Trinity College, Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

Career

He was

Dean of Elphin The Dean of Elphin and Ardagh is based in St John the Baptist Cathedral, Sligo in the Diocese of Elphin and Ardagh within the united bishopric of Kilmore, Elphin and Ardagh of the Church of Ireland. The dioceses of Elphin and Ardagh were merged i ...

from 1768 until his death in 1778.G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, ''The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant'', new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910-1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume III, page 72.

Personal life

On 1 July 1742 in

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 ...

, he married

Catherine (Kitty) Elliott Major General Roger Elliott ( 1665 – 16 May 1714 ) was one of the earliest British Governors of Gibraltar. A member of the Eliot family, his son Granville Elliott became the first Count Elliott and his nephew George Augustus Eliott al ...

(1714–55). Kitty, a daughter of Major-General

Roger Elliott Major General Roger Elliott ( 1665 – 16 May 1714 ) was one of the earliest British Governors of Gibraltar. A member of the Eliot family, his son Granville Elliott became the first Count Elliott and his nephew George Augustus Eliott als ...

and Charlotte Elliot, was sister to Major-General

Granville Elliott Major-General Granville Elliott, 1st Count Elliott (7 October 1713 – 10 October 1759), was a British military officer who served with distinction in several other European armies and subsequently in the British Army. He fought at the Batt ...

, and a widow of Charles Boyle (1710-), of Araglin Bridge, County Cork. On 18 March 1759, he married secondly to Frances Winthrop (b. 1735) in London. Together, they were the parents of: * Frances Theodosia Bligh (d. 1802), who married

Robert Jocelyn, 2nd Earl of Roden Robert Jocelyn, 2nd Earl of Roden KP, PC (Ire) (26 October 1756 – 29 June 1820) was an Irish peer, soldier and politician. He was styled The Honourable from his birth to 1771, and then Viscount Jocelyn from 1771 to 1797. He was the eldest son ...

. *

Thomas Cherburgh Bligh Thomas Cherburgh Bligh ( – 17 September 1830) was an Anglo-Irish Whig politician who served in the Irish House of Commons and the Parliament of Great Britain. Early life He was the eldest son of the Very Rev. Robert Bligh, Dean of Elphin, and ...

(–1830), who married Lady Theodosia Bligh, a daughter of Bligh's nephew,

John Bligh, 3rd Earl of Darnley John Bligh, 3rd Earl of Darnley (1 October 1719 – 31 July 1781), styled '' The Hon. John Bligh'' between 1721 and 1747, lord of the Manor of Cobham, Kent, was a British parliamentarian. Background Bligh was the son of John Bligh, 1st Earl ...

. * Catherine Maria Bligh (d. ), who married Hon. Hugh Howard, son of

Ralph Howard, 1st Viscount Wicklow Ralph Howard, 1st Viscount Wicklow PC (I) (29 August 1727 – 26 June 1789) was an Anglo-Irish politician and nobleman. Early life Ralph Howard was born on 29 August 1727 at Shelton Abbey, County Wicklow, the eldest son of seven children born to ...

, in 1792. * Robert Elphin Bligh, who died without issue. Bligh died about 1778.

References

1704 births 1778 deaths

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

Deans of Down Deans of Elphin 18th-century Irish Anglican priests {{Ireland-Anglican-clergy-stub