William Burton Conyngham (1733 – 31 May 1796) was an Irish politician and improver.

Life

He was born William Burton, the second son of Francis Burton and Mary Conyngham, sister of

Henry Conyngham, 1st Earl Conyngham Henry Conyngham, 1st Earl Conyngham PC (1705 – 3 April 1781) was an Anglo-Irish nobleman and politician. He was the second son of General Henry Conyngham of Slane Castle and his wife Mary Williams, daughter of Sir John Williams, 2nd Baronet, ...

. In 1781, his name was changed by Royal Licence to inherit the estates of his uncle. Conyngham was a longtime

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 of ...

. From 1761 to 1777 he represented Newtown Limavady, from 1776 to 1777 as well as from 1783 to 1790

Killybegs Killybegs () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is the largest fishing port in the country and on the island of Ireland. It is located on the south coast of the county, north of Donegal Bay, near Donegal Town. Its Irish name ''Na Cealla Bea ...

. Between 1776 and 1783 and again between 1790 and 1796, he sat 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 ...

for

Ennis Ennis () is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in County Clare, with a population of 25,27 ...

Conyngham planned a settlement on the previously unpopulated island of Rutland, Ireland, having installed, from 1784, a street of residences and business premises, post office, school house and a fish landing and processing facility. The island remained inhabited into the 1960s. The village which developed around the mainland pier which served Rutland,

Burtonport or (English name: Burtonport) is a fishing village about northwest of Dungloe in The Rosses district of County Donegal, Ireland. The main employers in the village were the Burtonport Fishermen's Co-op and the ''Bord Iascaigh Mhara Bord ...

, still bears his name. 2013 at Slane Castle (8647010098)

In 1785 Conyngham commenced the building of

Slane Castle Slane Castle (Irish ''Cáisleán Bhaile Shláine'') is located in the village of Slane, within the Boyne Valley of County Meath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The castle has been the family seat of the Marquess Conyngham, Conyngham family since i ...

, assisted by his nephew the 1st Marquess Conyngham, on a site overlooking the River Boyne just a few kilometres upstream from the site of the

Battle of the Boyne The Battle of the Boyne ( ga, Cath na Bóinne ) was a battle in 1690 between the forces of the deposed King James II of England and Ireland, VII of Scotland, and those of King William III who, with his wife Queen Mary II (his cousin and ...

. From 1793 Conyngham was one of the

Commissioners of the Treasury for Ireland The Lord High Treasurer of Ireland was the head of the Exchequer of Ireland, chief financial officer of the Kingdom of Ireland. The designation ''High'' was added in 1695. After the Acts of Union 1800 created the United Kingdom of Great Britain a ...

. Conyngham is most famous today for having presented the

Trinity College Harp The Trinity College harp, also known as "Brian Boru's harp", is a medieval musical instrument on display in the long room at Trinity College Dublin in Ireland. It is an early Irish harp or wire-strung cláirseach. It is dated to the 14th or 15th ...

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 ...

; from 1922 the harp was used as the model for the insignia of the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between th ...

and the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

. An image was also registered as a

Guinness Guinness () is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in 1759. It is one of the most successful alcohol brands worldwide, brewed in almost 50 countries, and available in ove ...

trade mark in 1876.

References

1733 births 1796 deaths Irish MPs 1761–1768 Irish MPs 1769–1776 Irish MPs 1776–1783 Irish MPs 1783–1790 Irish MPs 1790–1797 Members of the Privy Council of Ireland

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

Commissioners of the Treasury for Ireland Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Londonderry constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Donegal constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Clare constituencies {{Ireland-pre1801-MP-stub