Sir Robert FitzEustace (c.1420–1486) was an Irish landowner and politician of the fifteenth century. He was born at Coghlanstown,

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...

, son of Sir

Richard FitzEustace Sir Richard FitzEustace (c.1380–1445) was an Irish statesman who twice held the office of Lord Chancellor of Ireland. Family background He was born about 1380 in Coghlanstown, County Kildare. His father was Sir Maurice FitzEustace, High Sh ...

, who served briefly as

Lord Chancellor of Ireland The Lord High Chancellor of Ireland (commonly known as Lord Chancellor of Ireland) was the highest judicial office in Ireland until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. From 1721 to 1801, it was also the highest political office of ...

, and Katherine Preston, widow of William Lawless and of Christopher Holywood of

Artane, Dublin Artane, sometimes spelt Artaine (), historically TartaineDublin, 1862: Thom's ''Almanac and Official Directory'' is a northside suburb of Dublin city, Ireland. Artane is also a civil parish in the ancient barony of Coolock. Neighbouring d ...

Rowland FitzEustace, 1st Baron Portlester Rowland FitzEustace, 1st Baron Portlester (c. 1430 – 19 December 1496) was an Irish peer, statesman and judge. He was one of the dominant political figures in late fifteenth-century Ireland, rivalled in influence probably only by his son-in-law ...

was his cousin; Rowland was one of the dominant Irish statesmen of his time, and Robert was a loyal supporter of Portlester and his son-in-law, Gerald FitzGerald, the "Great Earl" of Kildare. The office of Constable of the Castle of

Ballymore Eustace Ballymore Eustace () is a small town situated in County Kildare in Ireland, although until 1836 it lay within an exclave (a detached "pocket") of County Dublin. It lies close to the border with County Wicklow. The town's name, which is frequ ...

was in effect hereditary in the FitzEustace family; Robert was appointed Constable on his father's death in 1445, but was dismissed from office for a time, due to his refusal to live in the castle. Like his father he was

High Sheriff of Kildare The High Sheriff of Kildare was the British Crown's judicial representative in County Kildare, Ireland from the 16th century until 1922, when the office was abolished in the new Free State and replaced by the office of Kildare County Sheriff. T ...

in 1456, and he was one of the original members of the

Brotherhood of Saint George The Brotherhood of Saint George was a short-lived military guild, which was founded in Dublin in 1474 for the defence of the English-held territory of the Pale. For a short time it was the only standing army maintained by the English Crown in Irel ...

, a short-lived military

guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...

charged with the defence of

the Pale The Pale (Irish: ''An Pháil'') or the English Pale (' or ') was the part of Ireland directly under the control of the English government in the Late Middle Ages. It had been reduced by the late 15th century to an area along the east coast st ...

. At his death in 1486 he was one of the largest landowners in Kildare (despite having been imprisoned for

debt Debt is an obligation that requires one party, the debtor, to pay money or other agreed-upon value to another party, the creditor. Debt is a deferred payment, or series of payments, which differentiates it from an immediate purchase. The ...

in the 1450s) An Act of the Irish Parliament of 1472 conferred the office of Lord Chancellor of Ireland on Robert FitzEustace and John Taxton jointly. O'Flanagan states that nothing is known of either man. Since Robert FitzEustace of Coghlanstown was the son of a Lord Chancellor, and it was not unusual for members of the same family to hold office, he may well be the Robert referred to; on the other hand, as the

Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

suggests, the name Robert may be a slip for his cousin Rowland FitzEustace who held the office two years later. He was party to the royal

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...

of 1478 which set up the Dublin Baker's Guild (the

Guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...

of St. Clement and St. Anne). Robert had at least seven surviving children: his eldest son and heir Sir Maurice FitzEustace, James, Richard, Oliver, John, Anne and Margaret. Margaret married Robert Talbot of Belgard. Maurice married his cousin Joan FitzEustace, daughter of Lord Portlester and widow of

Richard Plunkett, 2nd Baron of Dunsany Richard Plunkett, 2nd Baron of Dunsany (died c. 1482) was an Irish nobleman. He was one of at least five surviving sons of Christopher Plunkett, 1st Baron of Dunsany, and his first wife Anne Fitzgerald, daughter of Richard FitzGerald. He succeed ...

. Anne married Richard Eustace, another cousin of the Baltinglass branch. Sharpe, John ''Peerage of the British Empire'' London 1830Vol.1

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:FitzEustace, Robert Politicians from County Kildare 15th-century Irish politicians Lord chancellors of Ireland