Sir John Kirwan (1650–1721) 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 ...

merchant and politician who founded the Kirwans of Castle Hackett, County Galway.

Background

Kirwan was a member of one of the

Tribes of Galway The Tribes of Galway ( ga, Treibheanna na Gaillimhe) were 14 merchant families who dominated the political, commercial and social life of the city of Galway in western Ireland between the mid-13th and late 19th centuries. They were the families ...

. The family were of Gaelic origin, possibly of

Conmhaícne The Conmhaícne or Conmaicne were a people of early Ireland, perhaps related to the Laigin, who dispersed to various parts of Ireland. They settled in Connacht and Longford, giving their name to several Conmaicne territories. T. F. O'Rahilly's ...

descent. They settled in Galway around 1488 under William Ó Ciardhubháin and within a generation had become among the leading merchants of the town. John Óge Kirwan served as

Mayor of Galway The office of Mayor of Galway is an honorific title used by the of Galway City Council. The council has jurisdiction throughout its administrative area of the city of Galway which is the largest city in the province of Connacht, in Ireland. The ...

for the term 1530-1531, followed by Thomas (1534–1535) and Richard (1550–1551), along with numerous bailiffs, sheriffs, and aldermen. In all, eleven Kirwans would be Mayor before the fall of the tribal corporation in 1654. As a result of the Irish Confederate Wars, almost all of the tribes' property was confiscated. Many were forced to emigrate to the

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indentured servants Indentured servitude is a form of labor in which a person is contracted to work without salary for a specific number of years. The contract, called an "indenture", may be entered "voluntarily" for purported eventual compensation or debt repayment, ...

and in this way the basis of new wealth was accrued in the succeeding generation.

Career

In the late 17th century, Galway experienced a boom in

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct excha ...

with both

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and the

, trading in tobacco and sugar, along with slaves, salted goods, hides and tallows. Branches of the family settled in

Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...

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and Montserrat. During Kirwan's lifetime, Ireland, led by the ports of Galway and Cork, was the principal external supply route for provisions to the islands; the annual value of beef exports in 1685 alone was 45,000 pounds. Kirwan served as Mayor of Galway from 1686 to 1688, and as a

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 o ...

for Galway Borough in the short-lived

Patriot Parliament Patriot Parliament is the name commonly used for the Irish Parliament session called by King James II during the Williamite War in Ireland which lasted from 1688 to 1691. The first since 1666, it held only one session, which lasted from 7 May ...

. He was knighted by James II. While he supported the Jacobite side during 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 ...

, he surrendered on terms to General Ginkel, was pardoned, and was allowed to hold his property.

Castle Hackett

It is uncertain how Kirwan acquired Castle Hackett, except it was probably sometime in the late 1690s. He would have lived in the original castle built by the Hackett family, at the foot of

Cnoc Meadha Cnoc Meadha (also Cnoc Meádha Siuil referring to its location on the plain of Maigh Seóla, and variously spelled Knockmagha, Knockma, or Knock Ma) is a hill west of Tuam, County Galway, in Ireland. It is said in legend to be the residence of ...

, while the new house of the same name was being built. It was completed in 1703. Located six miles from

Tuam Tuam ( ; ga, Tuaim , meaning 'mound' or 'burial-place') is a town in Ireland and the second-largest settlement in County Galway. It is west of the midlands of Ireland, about north of Galway city. Humans have lived in the area since the Bronz ...

, 3-story house called Castlehacket which was burned in 1923 during the Irish Civil War. The last member of the family to bear the name,

Sir Denis Kirwan Bernard Lieutenant General Sir Denis John Charles Kirwan Bernard, (22 October 1882 – 25 August 1956) was a British Army officer who commanded the 3rd Infantry Division shortly before the outbreak of World War II. He was also Governor of Bermuda and G ...

, died unmarried in 1956 and was buried on the summit of

. It was inherited by his nephew, Percy Paley, who died there in 1986.

Children and descendants

Kirwan and his wife, Maria, had at least three children - Simon, Mary, Anne. Mary married Arthur French of

Tyrone House Tyrone House in County Galway is a ruined manor house, built in the 1770s on a promontory by the estuary of the Kilcolgan river, about from the village of Kilcolgan, County Galway, Ireland. The house was destroyed by the local Irish Republ ...

; Anne married Sir Walter Blake of Menlough in 1687; Simon married Julian French, sister of Christopher French, father of Arthur, above. Descendants of the family include

References

* ''The Kirwans of Castlehacket, Co. Galway:History, folklore and mythology in an Irish horseracing family'', Ronan Lynch,

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, 2006. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kirwan, Sir John People from County Galway 1650 births 1721 deaths 17th-century Irish people 18th-century Irish people Irish Jacobites Irish merchants Irish MPs 1689 Recipients of English royal pardons Jacobite military personnel of the Williamite War in Ireland People of Conmaicne Mara