Sir William Parsons, 1st Baronet of Bellamont

Sir William Parsons, 1st Baronet of Bellamont PC (Ire) (c. 1570 – 1650), was one of the Lord Justices of Ireland in 1640. He also served as Surveyor General of Ireland and was MP for Newcastle Borough 1613 to 1615 and for Wicklow County in 1639.

William Parsons
Baronet of Bellamont
Successor	Sir William Parsons, 2nd Baronet
Born	c. 1570
Died	1650
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth Lany
Detail Issue Richard, John, Francis, James, & William; Catherine, Margaret, Elizabeth, Jane, Mary, Anne, & Judith.
Father	James Parsons
Mother	Catherine Fenton

Birth and origins

William was born about 1570, the eldest son of James Parsons (1545–1570) and Catherine Fenton (1548–1570). His father was the second son of Thomas Parsons of Diseworth, Leicestershire. William's mother was a sister of Sir Geoffrey Fenton, the Secretary of State to Elizabeth I.[1]

Early life

He settled in Ireland about the about 1590, near the close of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.[2] He became a commissioner of plantations and obtained very considerable territorial grants from the Crown. In 1602, Parsons as surveyor general of Ireland; in 1610 he obtained a pension of £30 (English) per annum for life. In 1611, he was joined with his younger brother Laurence in the supervisorship of the crown lands, with a fee of £60 per annum for life. His proposal that a Court of Wards be established in Ireland was accepted and he became its first master. He sat in the Irish House of Commons in the Parliament of 1613–1615 as member for Newcastle Borough, County Dublin.[3]

He was notorious as a "land-hunter", who acquired lands previously held by Irish clans by dubious legal means. He has been particularly censured by historians for the seizure of the former O'Byrne lands in County Wicklow, although it has also been argued that his behaviour was no worse than that of his partner in the transaction, Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford, the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, who proceeded to swindle Parsons out of his share.

In 1620, personally presenting to King James I surveys of escheated estates, in his capacity of surveyor-general, Parsons received the honour of knighthood, and was created a baronet on 10 November in the same year. He was a cousin by marriage of Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork, the dominant Anglo-Irish magnate of his time, to whom he was close. He was sworn a member of the Privy Council of Ireland in 1623. During the years 1633–40, when Strafford was all-powerful in Ireland, Parsons prudently offered him no open opposition, but he came increasingly to dislike and distrust "that strange man....a mischief to so many".

In 1639 Sir William represented Wicklow County in the Irish House of Commons.[4] In 1640 he was nominated Lord Justice with Robert Dillon. However Dillon was soon removed as he was considered to be too close to Strafford. Sir William was resworn with Sir John Borlase, Master-General of the Ordnance.[5]

The downfall of Strafford ruined those members of the Irish administration who had been close to him, but Parsons, who had quarrelled with Stafford over the O'Byrne land deal, was clearly identified as one of his enemies, and Strafford's fall strengthened his position in the short term.

When the Irish Rebellion of 1641 broke out, Parsons had to cope with it virtually single-handed, since his colleague Borlase was old and incompetent. His management of the crisis has been much criticised, in particular his habit of dealing with the English Parliament directly without informing King Charles I. His enemies accused him of inflaming, or even provoking the Rebellion, as a pretext for a second and more thorough conquest of Ireland. Certainly he argued that the Rebellion must be crushed ruthlessly, and rejected all attempts at compromise.

He continued in the government until 1643, when he was removed, charged with treason, and committed to prison, with Adam Loftus, 1st Viscount Loftus and others. He was quickly released, but complained bitterly of this "poor reward" for his "zealous and painful toil on behalf of the Crown". He continued to live in Dublin until 1648, when he retired to England. He died in Westminster in February 1650, at the age of 80. Parsons was succeeded by his grandson Sir William Parsons, 2nd Baronet (died 31 December 1658).[6]

Family tree

William Parsons with wife, parents, and other selected relatives. Henry Fenton James Parsons 1545–1570 Catherine Fenton 1548–1570 Geoffrey Fenton c. 1539 – 1608 William 1st Baronet c. 1570 – 1650 Elizabeth Lany Richard Parsons Lettice Loftus d. 1633 William 2nd Baronet 16–16 Catherine Jones George comte d'Hamilton d. 1667 Frances Jennings c. 1647 – 1730 Richard 1st Viscount Rosse 1657–1703 Elizabeth Hamilton 1667–1724 Legend XXX William Parsons XXX Baronets of Bellamont & Viscounts Rosse Also see the lists of siblings and children in the text.

Marriage and children

Sir William Parsons married his cousin Elizabeth, eldest daughter of John Lany, an Alderman of Dublin,[7] and niece of Sir Geoffrey Fenton.[8]

William and Elizabeth had 12 children; five sons:

1. Richard (living 1639), who was MP for Wicklow Borough[9] and married Lettice Loftus, eldest daughter of Sir Adam Loftus of Rathfarnham, vice-treasurer of the Exchequer;[10][11]
2. John, married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Walsingham Cooke, of Tomduffe, County Wexford;
3. Francis (died 1668) of Garrydice, County Leitrim, married Sarah Faircloath, and left children;
4. James, died unmarried; and
5. William, died unmarried.

—and seven daughters:

1. Catherine, married Sir James Barry, created 1st Baron Barry of Santry;
2. Margaret, married Thomas Stockdale of Bilton Park, county York;
3. Elizabeth, married Sir William Ussher, of the castle of Grange, county Wicklow, grandson of Sir William Ussher, clerk of the Council;
4. Jane, married Sir John Hoey, Knight of Dunganstown, County Wicklow;
5. Mary, married Arthur Hill of Hillsborough, County Down;
6. Anne, married Sir Paul Davys, Secretary of State (Ireland); and
7. Judith, married Thomas Whyte of Redhills, County Cavan.

Death, succession and timeline

He died early in 1650 in London and was buried in St Margaret's, Westminster.[12] He was succeeded by his grandson, Sir William Parsons, as the 2nd Baronet Parsons, who married Catherine, eldest daughter of Arthur Jones, 2nd Viscount Ranelagh, and the former Lady Katherine Boyle.[13]

Timeline
Age	Date	Event
0	1570, about	Born.[1]
20	1590, about	Settled in Ireland.[2]
33	1603, 24 Mar	Accession of King James I, replacing Queen Elizabeth I.[14]
43	1613, 22 Apr	Returned MP for Newcastle Borough.[3]
55	1625, 27 Mar	Accession of King Charles I, replacing King James I.[15]
69	1639, 10 Mar	Returned MP for Wicklow County.[4]
71	1641, 12 May	Strafford beheaded.[16]
80	1650, early in	Died in London.[12]

See also

• Dublin Castle administration

Notes and references

1. Dunlop 1895, p. 419: "PARSONS, SIR WILLIAM (1570?–1650), lord justice of Ireland, the eldest son of James Parsons, second son of Thomas Parsons of Disworth Grange, Leicestershire, and Catherine Fenton, sister of Sir Geoffrey Fenton was born apparently about 1570."
2. Burke 1949, p. 1725, left column, line 14: "Sir WILLIAM PARSONS, 1st Bt, ancestor of the extinct Earls of Rosse, settled in Ireland ca. 1590, with his brother, Sir Laurence Parsons, ancestor of the later Earls."
3. House of Commons 1878, p. 615: "1613 22 April. William Parsons, esq. (bart.) Bellamont Newcastle Borough"
4. House of Commons 1878, p. 639a: "1639 10 Mar. Sir William Parsons, knt. and bart. Bellamont, Dublin Wicklow County"
5. Warner 1768, p. 4: "... [Charles I] appointed Lord DILLON and Sir W. PARSONS Lord Justices of that kingdom, but finding the former not agreeable to the committee and the English Parliament because of his intimacy and alliance with the Earl of STRAFFORD, his Majesty imprudently cancelled the commission and put SR John BORLASE, master of the ordnance in the room of Lord DILLON."
6. Chisholm 1911, pp. 744,745.
7. Dunlop 1895, p. 420, right column: "Sir William Parsons married Elizabeth, eldest daughter of John Lany, elderman of Dublin, by whom he had several children."
8. Burke 1866, p. 419, left column, line 39: "Sir William m. Elizabeth, eldest dau. of Mr Alderman John Lany of Dublin, and niece of Sir Geoffrey Fenton ..."
9. House of Commons 1878, p. 639b: "1639 21 Feb. Richard Parsons, esq. – Wicklow Borough"
10. Burke 1866, p. 419, left column, line: "RICHARD, M.P., 1639 for the town of Wicklow, m. Lettice, eldest dau. of Sir Adam Loftus of Rathfarnham ..."
11. Cokayne 1895, p. 425, line 41: "... Richard PARSONS (living 1639 but d. v.p.), who was s. and h. ap. of SIR WILLIAM PARSONS, 1st Bart. ..."
12. Dunlop 1895, p. 420, right column, line 36: "Dying early in 1650, he was buried in St. Margaret's, Westminster, on 2 March."
13. Cokayne 1895, p. 425, line 37: "... which William was s. and h. of Richard PARSONS (living 1639 but d. v.p.), who was s. and h. ap. of SIR WILLIAM PARSONS, 1st Bart. ..."
14. Smyth 1839, p. xiii, line 17: "James I. . [Accession] 24 March 1603"
15. Smyth 1839, p. xiii, line 18: "Charles I. . [Accession] 27 March, 1625"
16. Burke 1866, p. 577, left column, line 3: "He [Strafford] suffered death with characteristic firmness on Tower Hill, 12 May, 1641."

• Burke, Bernard (1866), A Genealogical History of the Dormant, Abeyant, Forfeited and Extinct Peerages of the British Empire (New ed.), London: Harrison
• Burke, Bernard (1949), A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Peerage and Baronetage of the British Empire (99th ed.), London: Burke's Peerage Ltd.
• Cokayne, George Edward (1895), The complete peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, extant, extinct, or dormant, 6 (1st ed.), London: George Bell and Sons – N to R
• Dunlop, Robert (1895), "PARSONS, SIR WILLIAM (1570? – 1650)", in Lee, Sidney (ed.), Dictionary of National Biography, 43, London: Smith Elder & Co, pp. dictionaryofnati43stepuoft/page/419/ 419–421 – Owens to Passelewe
• Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Rosse, Earl of". Encyclopædia Britannica. 23 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 744, 745.
• House of Commons (1878), "Members of Parliament", Parliamentary Papers, London: H. M. Stationery Office, 62 (for the subject and his son Richard)
• Smyth, Constantine (1839), Chronicle of the Law Officers of Ireland, London: Henry Butterworth (for Table of reigns)
• Warner, Ferdinand (1768), History of the Rebellion and Civil-War in Ireland, 1, Dublin: James William – from the Rebellion to the Cessation

Baronetage of Ireland
New title	Baronet (of Bellamont) 1620–1650	Succeeded by William Parsons