Brigadier-General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

Sir Thomas Prendergast, 1st Baronet ( 1660 – 11 September 1709) 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 ...

politician and soldier.

Early life

He was the son of Thomas Prendergast (d. 1725) of Croane,

County Limerick "Remember Limerick" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Limerick.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Munster , subdivision ...

, a small Catholic landowner, and Eleanor Condon, daughter of Daniel Condon. Little is known of his early life. His family suffered greatly under

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

, and he is thought to have grown up in poverty.

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish Satire, satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whig (British political party), Whigs, then for the Tories (British political party), Tories), poe ...

, who detested him, called him the son of a cottager who narrowly escaped being hanged for stealing cows. However, his friends esteemed him as a man of honour and ability.

Career

On 15 July 1699 he was created a baronet, of

Gort Gort ( or ) is a town of around 3,000 inhabitants in County Galway in the west of Ireland. Located near the border with County Clare, the town lies between the Burren and the Slieve Aughty and is served by the R458 and R460 regional roads, wh ...

, in the County of Galway. He received his baronetage for informing King William III of the Jacobite plot to ambush the King's coach at

Turnham Green Turnham Green is a public park on Chiswick High Road, Chiswick, London, and the neighbourhood and conservation area around it; historically, it was one of the four medieval villages in the Chiswick area, the others being Old Chiswick, Little S ...

. The plot had been conceived by Sir George Barclay, who landed at Romney in January 1696 intent upon assassinating the King. Prendergast was called upon on Thursday 13 February 1696 by Captain George Porter, one of the forty-odd conspirators, to stop the coach on Saturday 15 February. However, on the Friday he went to

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It is the main ...

and informed the

Earl of Portland Earl of Portland is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of England, firstly in 1633 and secondly in 1689. What proved to be a long co-held title, Duke of Portland, was created in 1716 and became extinct in 1990 upon the death of t ...

of the conspiracy. A man named Fisher had already reported the planned assassination but the plot was taken seriously only after Prendergast's account. It was made known on the Saturday morning that the King would not be driving to

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

, and so the plotters postponed the assassination until the following Saturday 21 February. Another informer, De La Rue, revealed the plot but the King wanted confirmation from Prendergast, whom he felt he could trust and rely on. On the morning of the plot, the conspirators heard that guards had been dispatched but soon most of them had been rounded up and were eventually charged, thanks mainly to the testimonies of Prendergast. He was rewarded with a grant from the

Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be state or royal property, church treasure or i ...

and the Gort Estate in County Galway, which was confiscated from the

O'Shaughnessy Ó Seachnasaigh, O'Shaughnessy, collectively Uí Sheachnasaigh, clan name Cinél nAedha na hEchtghe, is a family surname of Irish origin. The name is found primarily in County Galway and County Limerick. Their name derives from Seachnasach mac ...

family. This, and his marriage to Penelope Cadogan, enabled his family's fortunes to grow, although the O'Shaughnessy family did not give up easily, and litigation over the right to Gort went on for fifty years. He became a Member of Parliament for Monaghan Borough in 1703, and rose to the rank of Brigadier-General, seeing action at the Battle of Oudenarde and finally being killed at the

Battle of Malplaquet The Battle of Malplaquet took place on 11 September 1709 during the War of the Spanish Succession and was fought between a French army commanded by the Duke of Villars and a Grand Alliance force under the Duke of Marlborough. In one of the blo ...

on 11 September 1709 whilst leading his regiment against the French troops at Blaregnies. Fighting against him at both of the latter battles was

William O'Shaughnessy William O'Shaughnessy, The O'Shaughnessy (1673 – 2 January 1744) was an Irish Chief and Major-General. Early life William O'Shaughnessy was a member of the Uí Seachnasaigh (O'Shaughnessy) of Cenél Áeda na hEchtge in south County Galway. ...

of the O'Shaughnessy family whose ancestral lands of the Gort Estate in County Galway were forfeited and regranted to Thomas Prendergast, leading to decades of litigation.

Personal life

On 10 August 1697 he married Penelope Cadogan (d. 1746), sister of

William Cadogan, 1st Earl Cadogan William Cadogan (-1726), 1st Earl Cadogan, an Irish-born British Army officer, began his active military service during the Williamite War in Ireland in 1689 and ended it with the suppression of the 1715 Jacobite Rebellion. A close associate an ...

, and daughter of

Henry Cadogan Henry Cadogan (1642 – 13 January 1713/14) of Liscartan, County Meath was an Irish barrister. Early life Cadogan was the son of Maj. William Cadogan and Elizabeth Roberts.Mosley, Charles, editor. ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 1 ...

and Bridget Waller. Together, they were the parents of a son and three daughters: *

Sir Thomas Prendergast, 2nd Baronet Sir Thomas Prendergast, 2nd Baronet (1702-died 23 September 1760) was an Irish politician. His career was helped by influential family connections, but apparently hampered by his own lack of ability. To Jonathan Swift, who detested him, he was "N ...

(1702–1760), who married Anne Williams, daughter of Sir Griffith Williams, 6th Baronet, in 1739. * Elizabeth Prendergast, who married Sir John Dickson Haman, 1st Baronet, and, secondly, Charles Smyth, parents of

John Prendergast-Smyth, 1st Viscount Gort John Prendergast-Smyth, 1st Viscount Gort (1742 – 23 May 1817) was an Ireland, Irish politician. Born John Smyth, Gort was the son of Charles Smyth (politician), Charles Smyth, Member of the Irish Parliament for Limerick City, and Elizabeth Pre ...

.Spurrell, J.C., ''In Search of Thomas Smyth, Mayor of Limerick'', Irish Family History, Vol. 25 (2009) * Anne Prendergast, who married Samuel Hobson, Esq. of Muckridge House,

Youghal Youghal ( ; ) is a seaside resort town in County Cork, Ireland. Located on the estuary of the River Blackwater, the town is a former military and economic centre. Located on the edge of a steep riverbank, the town has a long and narrow layout. ...

. * Juliana Prendergast (d. 1758), who married Chaworth Brabazon, 6th Earl of Meath. On his death at the

, he was succeeded by his son

. His widow was greatly troubled in her later years by protracted lawsuits against the Butler family of Ballyline over the right to certain lands in

County Galway "Righteousness and Justice" , anthem = () , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Galway.svg , map_caption = Location in Ireland , area_footnotes = , area_total_km2 = ...

, and several other lawsuits, including one involving her own brother.

, a bitter personal enemy of the younger Thomas, extended his hatred to the elder: "him who shamed our isle, traitor, assassin and informer vile". This appears to be a garbled reference to the Assassination Plot.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prendergast, Thomas 1660 births 1709 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of Ireland British Army generals British military personnel killed in the War of the Spanish Succession Irish MPs 1703–1713 Irish officers in the British Army Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Monaghan constituencies Military personnel from County Limerick British military personnel of the War of the Spanish Succession Year of birth uncertain