Thomas Butler, 10th Earl of Ormonde

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Thomas Butler, 10th Earl of Ormonde, was born circa 1531 and died on 22 November 1614. He was a son of James Butler, 9th Earl of Ormonde and Lady Joan FitzGerald. He was Lord Treasurer of Ireland and a very prominent personage during the latter part of the 16th century.

Much of his life was taken up with a fierce feud with his hereditary foe, the Earl of Desmond. The two sides fought a pitched battle in 1565, the Battle of Affane. Butler's victory, not only in the field but also in the handling the political fallout, helped to spark the Desmond Rebellions. This struggle (1569-73 and 1579-83) desolated Munster for many years. Ormonde was a Protestant and threw his great influence on the side of the Queen Elizabeth I and her ministers in their efforts to crush the rebels, although he was motivated as much by factional rivalry with the Desmond dynasty as by religion. His successor was his nephew Walter Butler (1569-1633).

He married, firstly, Elizabeth Berkeley, daughter of Thomas Berkeley, 6th Lord Berkeley and Anne Savage. They separated in 1564 without issue.

He married secondly, Elizabeth, daughter of John Sheffield, 2nd Baron Sheffield and Douglas,daughter of William Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Effingham. They had three children:

• James Butler, Viscount Thurles (b. 1584)
• Elizabeth Butler (b. b 1593-1628), married, firstly, Theobald Butler, 1st and last Viscount Butler, son of Sir Edmund Butler and Hon. Eleanor Eustace, without issue. She married, secondly, Sir Richard Preston, 1st Earl of Desmond, and had one daughter.
• Thomas Butler (b. b 1601-1606)

He married, in 1601, Hon. Helena Barry, daughter of David Fitz-James de Barry, 5th Viscount Buttevant, without issue.

[edit] References

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
• Genealogics website

Peerage of Ireland
Preceded by James Butler	Earl of Ormonde 1546–1614	Succeeded by Walter Butler