Theodosia Meade, Countess Of Clanwilliam
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Theodosia Hawkins-Magill (5 September 1743 in Brighton – 2 March 1817 in Brighton), later Countess of Clanwilliam, was a great heiress and landowner in
County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 552,261. It borders County Antrim to the ...
,
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
.


Early life

Theodosia Hawkins-Magill was born on 5 September 1743 in
Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...
. She was the daughter and heir of Robert Hawkins-Magill (d. 10 April 1745), of Gill Hall,
Dromore, County Down Dromore () is a small market town and civil parish in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies within the local government district of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon. It is southwest of Belfast, on the A1 Belfast–Dublin road. The 2011 ...
, by his second wife, Anne Bligh, daughter of
John Bligh, 1st Earl of Darnley John Bligh, 1st Earl of Darnley (28 December 1687 – 12 September 1728), was an Irish peer born of an English family. Early life He was the son of Elizabeth (née Napier) Bligh and Thomas Bligh (1654–1710) of Plymouth, a Commissioner of Cus ...
and
Theodosia Bligh, 10th Baroness Clifton Theodosia Bligh, 10th Baroness Clifton (''née'' Lady Theodosia Hyde; 9 November 169530 July 1722), was an English peeress. Life Baroness Clifton was the third child and second daughter of Edward Hyde, 3rd Earl of Clarendon and Katherine Hy ...
. Her father died on 10 April 1745, when she was less than two years old and she inherited his fortune. Her mother remarried in December 1747, to
Bernard Ward Bernard Ward may refer to: *Bernard Ward, 1st Viscount Bangor (1719–1781), Irish MP for Down, Bangor and Killyleagh *Bernard Ward (bishop) (1857–1920), English Roman Catholic writer *Bernard Ward (sailor) (1918–?), Bermudian Olympic sailor *B ...
, and had a number of further children. Mrs Pendarves wrote of Bernard Ward and the former Lady Anne Hawkins-Magill: 'He wants taste and Lady Anne is so whimsical that I doubt her judgement'. Theodosia may have been called "Titty" by her family, as this was a pet name used for Theodosia's aunt, Lady Theodosia Bligh, who married William, 2nd Lord Brandon, in 1745. When young, Theodosia Hawkins-Magill was painted by both Reynolds and
Gainsborough Gainsborough or Gainsboro may refer to: Places * Gainsborough, Ipswich, Suffolk, England ** Gainsborough Ward, Ipswich * Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, a town in England ** Gainsborough (UK Parliament constituency) * Gainsborough, Saskatchewan, Ca ...
, both paintings are now held by the
Ulster Museum The Ulster Museum, located in the Botanic Gardens in Belfast, has around 8,000 square metres (90,000 sq. ft.) of public display space, featuring material from the collections of fine art and applied art, archaeology, ethnography, treasures ...
.


Marriage and family

On 29 August 1765 Theodosia Hawkins-Magill married John Meade (21 April 1744 – 19 October 1800,
St. Stephen's Green St Stephen's Green () is a garden square and public park located in the city centre of Dublin, Ireland. The current landscape of the park was designed by William Sheppard. It was officially re-opened to the public on Tuesday, 27 July 1880 by Ar ...
, Dublin), son and heir of Sir Richard Meade, 3rd
Baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...
, of Ballintober, Co. Cork, by Catherine, daughter of Henry Prittie, of Kilboy, Co. Tipperary. She was then known as Theodosia Meade. Her husband was Member of Parliament for
Banagher Banagher ( or ) is a town in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, located in the midlands, on the western edge of County Offaly in the province of Leinster, on the banks of the River Shannon. The town had a population of 3,000 at the height of its ...
between 1764–66. On 17 November 1766 as Sir John Meade, 4th Baronet, he was created Baron Gillford, of the manor of Gillford, Co. Down, and Viscount Clanwilliam, of Co. Tipperary. Nearly a decade later, on 20 July 1776 he became
Earl of Clanwilliam Earl of Clanwilliam is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1776 for John Meade, 1st Viscount Clanwilliam. The Meade family descends from Sir John Meade, who represented Dublin University and County Tipperary in the Irish Hous ...
; all 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 ...
. This gave Theodosia the title of Countess of Clanwilliam, and was called Lady Clanwilliam. Between them (hers being the far greater share) their estates in 1799 were said to be worth £14,000 per annum, which made them approximately the eleventh largest landowners in Ireland.Appendix C, G. E. Cokayne's ''Complete Peerage'', volume IV. Theodosia had strong terms to her marriage settlement that prevented her husband from accessing and selling her estates. He was profligate and built up significant debts despite his wealth, owing £72,135 by 1787, and by his death in 1800 his estate had reduced considerably to service these debts. Between 1766 and 1782, the couple had ten children. Theodosia Meade, Countess of Clanwilliam died on 2 March 1817 and was buried in the cemetery of
St Peter's Church, Preston Village St Peter's Church is a former Anglican church in the Preston Village area of Brighton, in the English city of Brighton and Hove. The 13th-century building, standing on the site of two older churches, was restored in the late 19th century and aga ...
.


Politics

Despite the fact that women would not have the vote for another two centuries, rich and influential women could have significant political influence. Lady Clanwilliam's family, the Magills, had a long history of representing Co. Down in parliament in the late 1600s and early 1700, and she promoted her sons' political careers to continue the tradition. In October 1793 she announced that her absent eldest son Lord Gilford would stand for the Down by-election, but he was not elected and soon fell out with his mother after he married Countess Caroline Thun, daughter of
Maria Wilhelmine von Thun und Hohenstein Maria Wilhelmine von Thun und Hohenstein, born Uhlfeldt (Vienna 13 June 1744 – Vienna 18 May 1800) was a Viennese countess. She is remembered as the sponsor of a musically and intellectually outstanding salon and for her patronage of music, nota ...
, of a Catholic Austrian aristocratic family. The Clanwilliams were a prominent protestant Ascendancy family, strongly opposed to Catholic emancipation in Ireland, and the marriage caused a rift.


Properties

She lived at Gill Hall and at
Burrenwood Burrenwood is a cottage orné or English country house, country house and estate near Castlewellan, County Down, Northern Ireland. History The ornamental wooded and cottaged demesne at Burrenwood was conceived by Theodosia Hawkins-Magill (5 Septe ...
, a
cottage ornée A cottage, during Feudalism in England, England's feudal period, was the holding by a cottager (known as a cotter or ''bordar'') of a small house with enough garden to feed a family and in return for the cottage, the cottager had to provide ...
put up near
Castlewellan Castlewellan () is a small town in County Down, in the south-east of Northern Ireland close to the Irish Sea. It is beside Castlewellan Lake and Slievenaslat mountain, southwest of Downpatrick. It lies between the Mourne Mountains and Slieve ...
on some land halfway between her mother's house at
Castle Ward Castle Ward is an 18th-century National Trust property located near the village of Strangford, in County Down, Northern Ireland, in the townland of the same name. It overlooks Strangford Lough and is 7 miles from Downpatrick and 1.5 miles fro ...
, the
Greenore Greenore () is a village, townland and deep water port on Carlingford Lough in County Louth, Ireland. History A lighthouse was built on Greenore Point in 1830. Several decades later, the Dundalk and Greenore Railway Act 1863 authorised the ...
Ferry,
Rathfriland Rathfriland () is a market town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is north-east of Newry town centre. History In older documents written in English, the town's name was usually spelt ''Rathfylan'' or ''Rathfrilan''.
, and her ancestral seat at Gill Hall.


Burrenwood

Burrenwood stands between the forest parks of
Tollymore and Castlewellan, beside the Mourne mountains and just inland from Dundrum bay at
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 ...
. Burrenwood is comparable with the
Swiss cottage Swiss Cottage is an area in the London Borough of Camden, England. It is centred on the junction of Avenue Road and Finchley Road and includes Swiss Cottage tube station. Swiss Cottage lies north-northwest of Charing Cross. The area was ...
at
Cahir Cahir (; ) is a town in County Tipperary in Ireland. It is also a civil parish in the barony of Iffa and Offa West. Location and access For much of the twentieth century, Cahir stood at an intersection of two busy national roadways: the Dubli ...
(Tipperary); Derrymore,
Bessbrook Bessbrook ( Irish: ''An Sruthán'') is a village in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It lies about three miles (5 km) northwest of Newry and near the Newry bypass on the main A1 Belfast-Dublin road and Belfast-Dublin railway line. Today t ...
, Co. Armagh (National Trust, of Northern Ireland); and the Petit hameau de la Reine at Versailles.


Gill Hall, near Dromore

Meanwhile, Gill Hall had become one of the most haunted houses in Ireland and was home to the "Beresford ghost story". This took place on 14 October 1693 when John Power, 2nd
Earl of Tyrone The Earl of Tyrone is a title created three times in the Peerage of Ireland, and once in the Spanish nobility. It was created for the final time in 1746 for Marcus Beresford, 1st Viscount Tyrone, son-in-law of the last de Poer earls. His son wa ...
(1665–1693) told his friend, Nichola Sophia (1665/6–1712/13), the sister-in-law of Sir John Magill (d. 1700), youngest daughter of Hugh, 1st Lord Hamilton of Glenawly, wife to
Sir Tristram Beresford, 3rd Baronet Sir Tristram Beresford, 3rd Baronet (1669 – 16 June 1701) was an Anglo-Irish soldier, politician and baronet. Early life He was the second, but oldest surviving son of Sir Randal Beresford, 2nd Baronet and the Hon. Catherine Annesley. Among h ...
(1669–1701), and mother of Sir Marcus Beresford, 4th Baronet and 1st Viscount Tyrone, of his own death that day thus showing, as arranged, that there was life on the other side. Part of the stable block remains but the house was destroyed over thirty years ago.


Descent of Gill Hall

:*Captain John Magill (
McGill McGill is a surname of Scottish and Irish origin, from which the names of many places and organizations are derived. It may refer to: People * McGill (surname) (including a list of individuals with the surname) * McGill family (Monrovia), a promin ...
), was granted fairs at Loughan in 1669, and who died in 1677, via his only child, Susanna, to her son; ::*Sir John Johnston, Kt (dsps 1701), aka Sir John Magill, 1st and only Bt. ::Johnston was High Sheriff 1660, changed his name to Magill, an MP, and was given an Irish Baronetcy in 1680. In February 1689 he was colonel of a company of volunteers. His first wife Elizabeth Hawkins was his sister's sister-in-law. His widow, his second wife, sister of Lady Beresford, having remarried, died in 1708 and is buried in
Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...
. :::Sir John Magill's only daughter (born 1684): 'by the negligence of a servant was killed when an infant, by a fall from a scaffold at Gill Hall' (another possible ghost source). ::::Renowned Dublin silversmith ''Robert Calderwood'' (c 1706–1766) was a nephew. (Magill's sister was Calderwood's mother). Accordingly, Calderwood (''Dublin Goldsmiths Company'', Warden: 1733-36, & Master: 1736-37) was patronised by his Gill Hall cousins. ::Magill left Gill Hall to his elder sister's son (and his first wife's nephew); :::*John Hawkins (1675 – 5 September 1713), who also accordingly (in 1701, as instructed in his uncle's will) changed his name to Magill or Hawkins Magill. MP for County Down 1703–1713. High Sheriff for County Down 1700 and 1712. His father was granted a fair/market in Rathfriland in 1682, having been High Sheriff in 1675. His father was also an elder half-brother to Ulster King at Arms, William Hawkins. Two sons and a daughter (John, Hugh and Arabella Susanna (b&d 1698) died young. His surviving son, by his wife Rose, daughter of Sir Robert Colville, by Rose, daughter of William Leslie, MP, son of Henry Leslie, Bishop of Meath: ::::*Robert Hawkins Magill (1704–1745 at
Seaforde Seaforde is a small village in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is within the townland of Naghan,Dublin Society The Royal Dublin Society (RDS) () is an Irish philanthropic organisation and members club which was founded as the 'Dublin Society' on 25 June 1731 with the aim to see Ireland thrive culturally and economically. It was long active as a learned ...
1731; his first wife (whom he married in 1728) was Rachael (died 13/14 April 1739), daughter of Clotworthy (Skeffington), 3rd
Viscount Massereene Viscount Massereene is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1660, along with the subsidiary title of Baron Loughneagh. From 1665 to 1816 the Skeffington Baronetcy of Fisherwick was attached to the viscountcy and from 1756 to 181 ...
, and granddaughter of Sir Edward Hungerford, KB, (after whom today's
Hungerford Bridge The Hungerford Bridge crosses the River Thames in London, and lies between Waterloo Bridge and Westminster Bridge. Owned by Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd (who use its official name of Charing Cross Bridge) it is a steel truss railway bridge ...
is named) she was the widow of Randal (Mac Donnell), 4th
Earl of Antrim Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ''countess'' is used. The titl ...
(1680–1721), whom she had married in 1699; ::left it to his daughter, by his second wife (Anne Bligh); :::::*Theodosia Hawkins Magill, aka Theodosia, Countess of Clanwilliam.


Heraldic note

*Hawkins of Rathfriland (Alderman Hawkins (d.1680): per chevron argent and vert three hinds trippant proper. :crest: a falcon rising proper, belled or, perched on a lure gold. :motto: ''providence with adventure'' (also for Hawkins' in Scotland). *Magill (for John Mac Gill, died 1677): azure three doves argent. :: (cf. Makgill/M'Gill/Mac Gill (of Kembach/Rankeillour, Fife): gules three martlets argent. :::motto: ''In Domino confido''. crest: a martlet argent). *Hawkins Magill (for John (formerly Hawkins) Magill 1701): quarterly 1st and 4th, azure three pewits argent (for Magill), 2nd and 3rd per chevron argent and vert three hinds trippant (for Hawkins). :crest: a falcon standing on a hawk's lure both proper argent and vert. *Meade (of Ballintobber): gules, a chevron ermine between three trefoils slipped argent; ::crest: an eagle displayed with two heads sable, armed or. :::motto: ''Toujours prest''. *Meade (of Earsham and Burrenwood): ::quarterly, 1st and 4th, grand quarters, gules, a chevron ermine between three trefoils slipped argent (Meade); 2nd and 3rd, grand quarters, quarterly 1st and 4th, azure, three peewits argent (Magill); 2nd and 3rd, per chevron and vert, three hinds trippant proper (Hawkins) a crest for difference. ::Mantling: gules and argent.


Ancestry


References

*A. P. W. Malcolmson 1999. ''Familia'', no. 15. * *Bernard Burke, Sir, CB, LLD, 1884. ''The general armoury of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales'', Ulster King at Arms, Harrison, London. *Edith Mary Johnston-Liik, 2002, ''History of the Irish Parliament, 1692-1800'', six volumes, Ulster History Foundation. *Esme Wingfield-Stratford, 1959. ''The Lords of Cobham Hall'', Cassell, London. * G. E. Cokayne (ed.), 1904, ''Complete Baronetage'', Exeter. *G. E. Cokayne (ed.), ''The Complete Peerage'' volume III. *G. E. Cokayne (ed.), ''The Complete Peerage'' ( G.E.C.), et al., volume VII, page 452, note d (description of ghost story). *Grace Dorothea Meade (1902–1977), 1937-11-21, ''Houses of Ulster'' transcript, BBC. *
Hugh Montgomery-Massingberd Hugh John Massingberd (30 December 1946 – 25 December 2007), originally Hugh John Montgomery and known from 1963 to 1992 as Hugh Montgomery-Massingberd, was an English journalist and genealogist. He began his career at ''Burke's Peerage''/''Bur ...
(ed.), 1976, ''Burke's Irish Family Records'', Burke's Peerage Ltd.. *T. C. & E. C. Jack, 1905. ''Fairbairn's Book of Crests of the Families of Great Britain and Ireland'', 4th edition, 2 vols., London, & Edinburgh.


Notes


External links


Ulster Museum's
1765 Reynolds portrait of Theodosia Magill.
Art Fund's
superior reproduction of the above painting.
Ulster Museum's
1765 Gainsborough portrait of Theodosia Magill.

October 1693.
Gill Hall
old photo of it.
1775 Ewer
in the Ulster Museum, bearing the arms of Clanwilliam. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hawkins-Magill, Theodosia 1743 births 1817 deaths Theodosia 18th-century British women landowners 18th-century Irish women Clanwilliam, Theodosia 18th-century Irish landowners People from Dromore, County Down 19th-century Irish landowners People from Castlewellan 19th-century British women landowners 18th-century women landowners