John FitzGibbon, 2nd Earl of Clare KP GCH PC (10 July 1792 – 18 August 1851) was an Anglo Irish aristocrat and politician.

Early life

FitzGibbon was born on 10 July 1792. He was the eldest son of

John FitzGibbon, 1st Earl of Clare John FitzGibbon, 1st Earl of Clare Privy Council of Ireland, PC (Ire) (1748 – 28 January 1802), was Attorney-General for Ireland from 1783 to 1789 and Lord Chancellor of Ireland from 1789 to 1802. He remains a deeply controversial figure i ...

and his wife, the former Anne Whaley. He had two siblings, the Hon. Richard Hobart FitzGibbon (who later became the 3rd Earl of Clare), and Lady Isabella Mary Anne FitzGibbon. His maternal grandparents were Richard Chapel Whaley, of Whaley Abbey in

County Wicklow County Wicklow ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The last of the traditional 32 counties, having been formed as late as 1606 in Ireland, 1606, it is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the Provinces ...

, and the former Anne Ward (daughter of Rev. Bernard Ward). His uncle was Thomas Whaley, a Member of Parliament for

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...

. His father was the second, but first surviving son, and heir, of John FitzGibbon, of Mount Shannon in

County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...

and Eleanor (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Grove) FitzGibbon (daughter of John Grove, of Ballyhimmock, in

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

). Upon his father's death in 1802, he succeeded to the titles of Baron FitzGibbon in the

Peerage of Great Britain The Peerage of Great Britain comprises all extant peerages created in the Kingdom of Great Britain between the Acts of Union 1707 and the Acts of Union 1800. It replaced the Peerage of England and the Peerage of Scotland, but was itself repla ...

and Earl of Clare in the

Irish Peerage 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 ...

. He was educated at

Harrow School Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (school founder), John Lyon, a local landowner an ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

, graduating in 1812.

Career

From 1820 to 1851, he was active in estate management when not in public office, and from 1820 onwards was active in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

. In 1830 he became a Privy Councillor, and later the same year was appointed

Governor of Bombay Until the 18th century, Bombay consisted of seven islands separated by shallow sea. These seven islands were part of a larger archipelago in the Arabian sea, off the western coast of India. The date of city's founding is unclear—historians tr ...

, serving until 1835. In 1835 he was invested as a Knight Grand Cross of the

Royal Guelphic Order The Royal Guelphic Order (), sometimes referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Kingdom of Hanover, Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent (later King George IV). It takes its name from the House ...

, was a member of the

Royal Asiatic Society The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society, was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encourag ...

from 1839 and invested as a Knight of St Patrick in 1845. He was Deputy Lieutenant of the County of Limerick from 1846 to 1849 and afterwards Lord Lieutenant of the City of Limerick for the remainder of his life.

Personal life

On 14 April 1826, he married the Hon. Elizabeth Burrell, daughter of Peter Burrell, 1st Lord Gwydwyr and Priscilla Bertie, ''

suo jure ''Suo jure'' is a Latin phrase, used in English to mean 'in his own right' or 'in her own right'. In most nobility-related contexts, it means 'in her own right', since in those situations the phrase is normally used of women; in practice, especi ...

'' 21st Baroness Willoughby de Eresby. Her dowry was between £30,000 and £60,000. The couple lived apart, Lady Clare moving to the Isle of Wight where she built a Catholic church at Ryde and a Priory at Carisbrooke. He was also known to have been a great friend of

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...

while attending Harrow School. Byron had claimed to love him "ad infinitum" and said that he could never hear the word "Clare" without "a murmur of the heart". O'Brien, Edna (2009), ''Byron in Love: A Short Daring Life''; W.W. Norton & Co., pg 18. Lord Clare died on 18 August 1851 and, as he had no issue, was succeeded in his titles and estates by his younger brother. His remains are deposited in Catacomb B, Vault 63, in

Kensal Green Cemetery Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of North Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in P ...

, London where his

cap of maintenance A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...

may be seen inside the vault. His widow was buried at Mountjoy Cemetery in Carisbrooke,

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

, next to her close companion Miss Charlotte Elliot.

Coat of arms

References

External links

John Fitzgibbon, 2nd Earl of Clare (1792-1851), Governor of Bombay
at the National Portrait Galler, London. {{DEFAULTSORT:Clare, John FitzGibbon, 2nd Earl of 1792 births 1851 deaths Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Earls of Clare Knights of St Patrick Lord-lieutenants of Limerick Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Governors of Bombay Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery People educated at Harrow School