William Marcus de la Poer Horsley Beresford, 4th Baron Decies DL JP (12 January 1865 – 30 July 1910) was an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the establis ...

aristocrat.

Early life

Beresford was born on 12 January 1865. He was the eldest of five sons born to William Horsley Beresford, 3rd Baron Decies, a Captain in the 10th Hussars and

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

, and Catherine Anne Dent, daughter of Commander William Dent. His paternal grandparents were

John Horsley-Beresford, 2nd Baron Decies John Beresford, 2nd Baron Decies (20 January 1774 – 1 March 1865) was an Irish peer and clergyman. His father, the 1st Baron Decies was son of Marcus Beresford, 1st Earl of Tyrone and Catherine de Poer, Countess of Tyrone. Early life Beresfor ...

and the former Charlotte Philadelphia Horsley (only daughter and heiress of Robert Horsley of Bolam House). He was educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

Career

Upon his father's death on 3 July 1893, he succeeded as the 4th

Baron Decies Baron Decies, of Decies in the County of Waterford, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1812 for the Right Reverend William Beresford, Archbishop of Tuam from 1794 to 1819. He was the third son of the Marcus Beresford, 1st Ea ...

. He served as Deputy Lieutenant of

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

and

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for Northumberland.Mosley, Charles, editor. ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes.''

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003, volume 1, page 335. A "well-known and popular sportsman," he had an interest in hunting and "all outdoor sports." At the time of his death he had several horses in training with Pickering at Newmarket and with Maj. Morris at Wallingford.

Personal life

On 12 March 1901, Lord Decies was married to Maria Gertrude Willoughby at St Michael's Church in

Chester Square Chester Square is an elongated residential garden square in London's Belgravia district. It was developed by the Grosvenor family, as were the nearby Belgrave and Eaton Square. The square is named after the city of Chester, the city nearest ...

(in the

Belgravia Belgravia () is a Districts of London, district in Central London, covering parts of the areas of both the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Belgravia was known as the 'Five Fields' Tudor Period, during the ...

district of

West London West London is the western part of London, England, north of the River Thames, west of the City of London, and extending to the Greater London boundary. The term is used to differentiate the area from the other parts of London: North Londo ...

). As Maria's father,

Sir John Willoughby, 4th Baronet Sir John Pollard Willoughby, 4th Baronet (21 April 1799 – 15 September 1866) was a British Conservative politician and civil servant. Early life and family Born at Baldon House, Oxfordshire, Willoughby was the son of Christopher Willoughby, ...

, had died in 1866, her brother, Maj. Sir John Willoughby, Bt of

Jameson Raid The Jameson Raid (29 December 1895 – 2 January 1896) was a botched Raid (military), raid against the South African Republic (commonly known as the Transvaal) carried out by British colonial administrator Leander Starr Jameson, under the emplo ...

fame, gave her away and William's groomsman was his brother, Capt. the Hon. John Graham Beresford, aide-de-camp to the

Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn (Arthur William Patrick Albert; 1 May 185016 January 1942), was the seventh child and third son of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. He served as Go ...

. She was known for her "remarkable collection of cats." Lord Decies died, suddenly, on 30 July 1910, aged 45, at the Cottage Hospital in

Hornsey Hornsey is a district of north London, England in the London Borough of Haringey. It is an inner-suburban, for the most part residential, area centred north of Charing Cross. It adjoins green spaces Queen's Wood and Alexandra Park to the ...

, after having been "overcome by the oppressive heat" while attending the races at Alexandra Park. As he died without issue, he was succeeded in the barony by his younger brother,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Decies, William Marcus de la Poer Horsley-Beresford, 4th Baron 1865 births 1910 deaths 19th-century Anglo-Irish people 20th-century Anglo-Irish people Barons in the Peerage 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 ...

Deputy Lieutenants of Northumberland People educated at Eton College Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford