James Dillon, 3rd Earl Of Roscommon
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Sir James Dillon, 3rd Earl of Roscommon ( – 1649) was an Irish magnate and politician. He was born a Catholic but converted at a young age to the
Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland (, ; , ) is a Christian church in Ireland, and an autonomy, autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the Christianity in Ireland, second-largest Christian church on the ...
. He supported Strafford during his term as governor of Ireland. In the Confederate Wars and the Cromwellian conquest he was a
royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...
. He died in 1649, but was nevertheless included as the fifth on the list of people that were excluded from pardon in Cromwell's 1652
Act of Settlement The Act of Settlement ( 12 & 13 Will. 3. c. 2) is an act of the Parliament of England that settled the succession to the English and Irish crowns to only Protestants, which passed in 1701. More specifically, anyone who became a Roman Cathol ...
.


Birth and origin

James was born about 1605 in Ireland, the eldest son of Robert Dillon and his first wife Margaret Barry. His father was the second Earl of Roscommon. His family was
Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
and descended from Sir Henry Dillon who came to Ireland with Prince John in 1185. His family held substantial lands in
Meath County Meath ( ; or simply , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is bordered by County Dublin to the southeast, County ...
,
Westmeath County Westmeath (; or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It formed part of the historic Kingdom of ...
,
Longford Longford () is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It had a population of 10,952 at the 2022 census. It is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the county's population lives there. Longford lies at the meeting of ...
and
Roscommon Roscommon (; ; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60 road (Ireland), N60, N61 road (Ireland), N61 and N63 road (Irelan ...
. James's mother was a daughter of
David de Barry, 5th Viscount Buttevant David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the Kings of Israel and Judah, third king of the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy), United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stel ...
. Her family, the de Barry family is another
Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
family. Her ancestor John Barry was created Viscount Buttevant by
Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward, Prince of Wales (later known as the Black Prince), and Joan, Countess of Kent. R ...
in 1385. James was one of five brothers including two half-brothers, who are all listed in his father's article.


Early life

His father's family was traditionally
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
, which is why his father, despite his record of loyalty to the Crown, was never fully trusted by
King Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of Scotland, but after h ...
. James, however, was converted to the
Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland (, ; , ) is a Christian church in Ireland, and an autonomy, autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the Christianity in Ireland, second-largest Christian church on the ...
by
James Ussher James Ussher (or Usher; 4 January 1581 – 21 March 1656) was the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland between 1625 and 1656. He was a prolific Irish scholar and church leader, who today is most famous for his ...
,
Archbishop of Armagh The Archbishop of Armagh is an Episcopal polity, archiepiscopal title which takes its name from the Episcopal see, see city of Armagh in Northern Ireland. Since the Reformation in Ireland, Reformation, there have been parallel apostolic success ...
. On 24 January 1620 his grandfather was raised to the peerage with the title of Baron Dillon of Kilkenny-West, in the
Peerage of Ireland The peerage of Ireland consists of those Peerage, titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lordship of Ireland, Lord or Monarchy of Ireland, King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great B ...
. in a ceremony performed by the Lord Deputy Oliver St. John in the Presence Chamber of
Dublin Castle Dublin Castle () is a major Government of Ireland, Irish government complex, conference centre, and tourist attraction. It is located off Dame Street in central Dublin. It is a former motte-and-bailey castle and was chosen for its position at ...
on 25 January. On 5 August 1622 James's grandfather was further honoured by being created Earl of Roscommon. In consequence of this advancement, Robert, the heir apparent, James's father, was styled Lord Kilkenny-West, as a
courtesy title A courtesy title is a title that does not have legal significance but is rather used by custom or courtesy, particularly, in the context of nobility, the titles used by children of members of the nobility (cf. substantive title). In some context ...
from 1622 to 1641.


Marriage and children

In late September or early October 1636 James Dillon married Elizabeth Wentworth, daughter of Sir William Wentworth and Anne Atkins at Lowton Hall, Essex. She was a sister of
Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford (13 April 1593 (New Style, N.S.)12 May 1641), was an English people, English statesman and a major figure in the period leading up to the English Civil War. He served in Parliament of England, Parliament ...
, the formidable and (for a while), all-powerful
Lord Deputy of Ireland The Lord Deputy was the representative of the monarch and head of the Irish executive (government), executive under English rule, during the Lordship of Ireland and then the Kingdom of Ireland. He deputised prior to 1523 for the Viceroy of Ireland ...
. James's father was a staunch supporter and a personal friend of Strafford, and the marriage was clearly intended to strengthen English rule in Ireland through family alliances between leading English and
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 State rel ...
families. James and Elizabeth had a son: * Wentworth (1637–1685), 4th Earl and a poet of renown.


Parliament

Dillon was knighted before or in 1639 and thus became Sir James Dillon. The same year he stood as MP, or "
knight of the shire Knight of the shire () was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 ...
" as county MPs were then still called, for
County Longford County Longford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Longford. Longford County Council is the Local government in the Republic ...
in the Parliament of 1640–1649, the second of Charles I. Sir James was elected as one of the two members for County Longford on 28 February 1640. Parliament met on 16 March 1640. In its first session the parliament unanimously voted for four subsidies of £45,000 to raise an Irish army of 9,000 for use by the king against the Scots in the
Bishops' Wars The Bishops' Wars were two separate conflicts fought in 1639 and 1640 between Scotland and England, with Scottish Royalists allied to England. They were the first of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, which also include the First and Second En ...
. Dillon must have voted in favour. On 31 March 1640 Wentworth prorogued parliament until the first week of June. On 3 April 1640, Strafford (i.e. Wentworth) left Ireland, called to England by the king to help him manage the Bishops war against the Scots. Strafford appointed Christopher Wandesford as Lord Deputy to govern Ireland in his absence. Wandesford opened the second parliamentary session on 1 June 1640. News from England was the
Short Parliament The Short Parliament was a Parliament of England that was summoned by King Charles I of England on 20 February 1640 and sat from 13 April to 5 May 1640. It was so called because of its short session of only three weeks. After 11 years of per ...
had refused subsidies to the king. The Irish MPs regretted having agreed to subsidies and wanted to sabotage their own action by making the subsidies difficult to evaluate and to collect. After two weeks of inconclusive discussions, Wandesford prorogued parliament on 17 June. Parliament reconvened for the third session on 1 October. The House of Commons formed a committee for grievances that compiled a remonstrance (complaint) against Strafford. The remonstrance was then approved by the House of Commons. Sir James must have voted against it in order to support Strafford. Wandesford prorogued parliament on 12 November, a day after Strafford's impeachment in Westminster by the
Long Parliament The Long Parliament was an Parliament of England, English Parliament which lasted from 1640 until 1660, making it the longest-lasting Parliament in English and British history. It followed the fiasco of the Short Parliament, which had convened f ...
. Parliament met again on 26 January 1641.40
/> Lord Deputy Wandesford had died on 3 December 1640 and the Irish government had devolved to the Lords Justice, Parsons and Borlase.


Earl of Roscommon

In March 1641 James's grandfather died and his father succeeded as the second earl. His tenure was, however, a short one as he died on 27 August 1642 in Oxmantown, a residential quarter in Dublin's Northside. James succeeded as the 3rd Earl of Roscommon. He had to abandon his seat in the lower house and gained a seat in the House of Lords, which he took on the 17 November 1642. Roscommon was in Dublin in July 1647 when Ormond handed the town over to the English Parliament and was given as a hostage to the English Parliament by Ormond. Roscommon returned to Ireland with Ormond sailing on a man-of-war sent by
William II, Prince of Orange William II (Dutch language, Dutch: ''Willem II''; 27 May 1626 – 6 November 1650) was sovereign Prince of Orange and Stadtholder of County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, Zeeland, Lordship of Utrecht, Utrecht, Guelders, Lordship of Ove ...
to
Le Havre Le Havre is a major port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the Seine, river Seine on the English Channel, Channe ...
to carry them to Cork where they arrived on 29 September 1648.


Death and timeline

He died at
Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...
in October 1649, at the house of the Anglican Bishop Bramhall, of an accidental fall down a flight of stairs. According to legend, his son, then in exile at
Caen Caen (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune inland from the northwestern coast of France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Calvados (department), Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inha ...
, knew of his death at the moment it happened, although the official news did not reach him until two weeks later.


Notes and references


Notes


Citations


Sources

* * * * – 1603 to 1642 * – Scotland & Ireland * * – 1643 to 1660 * – 1640 to 1641 * – N to R (for Roscommon) * – (for timeline) * – 1639 to 1641 * * * (for the subject as MP) * – 1634 to 1699 * * * – Viscounts (for Dillon) * * – House of Lords * – House of Commons * – 1641 to 1643 * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Roscommon, James Dillon, 3rd Earl of 1600s births 1649 deaths Year of birth uncertain Earls of Roscommon Dillon, James Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Longford constituencies Nobility from County Roscommon People of the Irish Confederate Wars