Risteárd Buidhe Kirwan (1708–1779) was an Irish

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a Conscription, conscripted or volunteer Enlisted rank, enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an Officer (armed forces), officer. Etymology The wo ...

and duellist.

Biography

Kirwan was a son of Patrick Kirwan of Cregg and Mary Martin of Dangan. Both towns are in

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

, and his parents were members of the Tribes of Galway. He was an uncle of the scientist

Richard Kirwan Richard Kirwan, LL.D, Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS, FRSE Membership of the Royal Irish Academy, MRIA (1 August 1733 – 22 June 1812) was an Irish geologist and chemist. He was one of the last supporters of the theory of Phlogiston theory, ...

, and a cousin of Richard Martin MP, founder of the

Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals A Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) is a common name for non-profit animal welfare organizations around the world. The oldest SPCA organization is the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which was founded ...

. He travelled to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

for his education. He joined Dillon's Regiment of the Irish Brigade. He became famed as a swordsman and duellist, and for his stature, which measured six feet four inches in height. Among his closest acquaintances were Lord Clare and

Maurice de Saxe Maurice, Count of Saxony (, ; 28 October 1696 – 20 November 1750) was a notable soldier, officer and a famed military commander of the 18th century. The illegitimate son of Augustus II the Strong, King of Poland, Grand Duke of Lithuania ...

. He participated in the

Battle of Fontenoy The Battle of Fontenoy took place on 11 May 1745 during the War of the Austrian Succession, near Tournai, then in the Austrian Netherlands, now Belgium. A French army of 50,000 under Maurice, comte de Saxe, Marshal Saxe defeated a Pragmatic Ar ...

(1745). His became notorious because of his duelling, and was obliged to leave France. He joined the Austrian service. He retired in 1751 and returned to Ireland. He married Maria Birmingham, a relative of Baron Athenry, and had issue. He was nicknamed ''Risteárd Buidhe a' chlaidhimh'' (swarthy Richard of the sword) and ''Nineteen-duel Dick''. A watch presented to him by

Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...

, set with diamonds and pearls, was in the possession of the Kirwan family as of 1949.

References

* ''Biographical Dictionary of Irishmen in France'', Richard Hayes,

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, 1949 * http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~jmack/kirwan.htm 18th-century Irish people Military personnel from County Galway Irish duellists 1708 births 1779 deaths Irish expatriates in France Irish expatriates in Austria-Hungary Irish soldiers in the French Army Irish soldiers in the Austrian Army {{Ireland-bio-stub

Biography

See also

References