17th Generation  

66348. Earl [4th] James BUTLER of Ormond, son of Earl [3rd] James BUTLER of Ormonde [120900] and Countess Anne WELLES of Ormond [120904], was born on 23 May 1393 in Kilkenny Castle Co. Kilkenny Ireland and died on 23 Aug 1452 in Dublin Co. Dublin Ireland at age 59.

General Notes: Wikipedia says of James,
James Butler, 4th Earl of Ormond (23 May 1393 \endash 23 August 1452) was the son of James Butler, 3rd Earl of Ormond. He was called 'The White Earl', and was esteemed for his learning. He was the patron of the Irish literary work, 'The Book of the White Earl'. His career was marked by his long and bitter feud with the Talbot family.
James Butler was the second but eldest surviving son of James Butler, 3rd Earl of Ormond, and his first wife Anne Welles, daughter of John de Welles, 4th Baron Welles by Maude de Ros, daughter of William de Ros, 2nd Baron de Ros of Helmsley.
He prevailed upon Henry V to create a King of Arms in Ireland, with the title of Ireland King of Arms (altered by Edward VI to Ulster King of Arms), and he gave lands in perpetuity to the College of Heralds, London. He was appointed Lord Deputy of Ireland in 1405, and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1420, 1425, and 1442. He appointed James FitzGerald, 6th Earl of Desmond as Seneschal of Imokilly in 1420.
His term as Lord Lieutenant was marked by his bitter feud with the Talbot family, headed by John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury, and his brother Richard, Archbishop of Dublin. The dispute reached its height in 1442 when Archbishop Talbot, supposedly acting on behalf of the Irish Parliament, presented the Privy Council with a long list of grievances against Ormond, who was accused of being old and feeble (in fact he was only fifty, which was not considered a great age even in the fifteenth century), and of having lost most of his Irish estates through negligence; there were also vague references to treason and "other crimes which could not be named".[2] The Council summoned Ormond to account for his actions: he defended himself vigorously, and made detailed counter-charges against the Archbishop. The Council took no action against him. Instead, it rebuked both sides of the dispute severely for disrupting the good governance of Ireland. The feud gradually cooled off, and friendly relations between the two families were finally established by the marriage of Ormond's daughter Elizabeth to Shrewsbury's son and heir John.
Ormond remained an influential figure in Irish politics, although his later years were troubled by fresh quarrels with the Earl of Desmond, with Giles Thorndon, the Treasurer of Ireland, with Thomas Fitzgerald, Prior of the Knights Hospitaller at Kilmainham, and with Richard Wogan, the Lord Chancellor of Ireland. Wogan, in particular, complained that he was no longer able to endure the burden of Ormond's "heavy lordship" and asked to be allowed to deputize his duties.[4] Relations between Ormond and Prior Fitzgerald became so bad that in 1444 it was seriously suggested that they settle the matter through trial by combat, but King Henry VI intervened personally to persuade them to make peace.[5]

In 1440, Ormond had a grant of the temporalities of the See of Cashel for ten years, following the death of the Archbishop of Cashel, Richard O'Hedian. He built the castles of Nenagh, Roscrea and Templemore in North County Tipperary and Tulleophelim (or Tullowphelim) in County Carlow. He gave the manor and advowson of Hickcote in Buckinghamshire to the Hospital of St Thomas of Acre in London, which was confirmed by the Parliament of England (in the third year of Henry VI) at the suit of his son.[6]

Since his father-in-law had no surviving son, Ormond, in right of his second wife Elizabeth, claimed possession of the Earldom of Kildare, and for some years he was able to keep the legitimate heir out of his inheritance.

He died in Dublin on 23 August 1452 on his return from an expedition against Connor O'Mulrian, and was buried in St. Mary's Abbey near Dublin.

James married Countess Joan BEAUCHAMP of Ormond [120913] about Aug 1413. Joan was born in 1396 and died on 5 Aug 1430 in Kilkenny Castle Co. Kilkenny Ireland at age 34.

Children from this marriage were:

             i.  Earl [5th] James BUTLER Ormond [120917] was born on 24 Nov 1420 in Kilkenny Co. Kilkenny Ireland and died on 1 May 1461 in Newcastle upon Tyne Northumberland England at age 40. The cause of his death was Beheading.

            ii.  Earl [6th] John BUTLER of Ormond [120921] was born in 1422 in Kilkenny Co. Kilkenny Ireland and died on 14 Dec 1476 in Palestine at age 54.

33174      iii.  Earl [7th] Thomas BUTLER of Ormond [120923] (born in 1426 in Kilkenny Co. Kilkenny Ireland - died on 3 Aug 1515 in London England)

66349. Countess Joan BEAUCHAMP of Ormond, daughter of Baron [1st] William BEAUCHAMP Bergavenny [120915] and Lady Joan FITZALAN [120916], was born in 1396 and died on 5 Aug 1430 in Kilkenny Castle Co. Kilkenny Ireland at age 34.

Joan married Earl [4th] James BUTLER of Ormond [120907] about Aug 1413. James was born on 23 May 1393 in Kilkenny Castle Co. Kilkenny Ireland and died on 23 Aug 1452 in Dublin Co. Dublin Ireland at age 59.

75776. Sir John BEAUMONT of Cole Orton & Godeby, son of John BEAUMONT of Cole Orton & Godeby [120680] and Joan d'ARCY [120681], was born in 1446 and died on 11 Aug 1531 at age 85.

Noted events in his life were:

• Knighted: 1490.

John married someone.

His children were:

37888        i.  William BEAUMONT [120669] (died in 1529)

            ii.  Edmund BEAUMONT [120678]