Wentworth FitzGerald, 17th Earl of Kildare PC (I) (1634 – 5 March 1664), styled Lord Offaly until 1660, was an Irish politician who sat in the

House of Commons of England The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England (which incorporated Wales) from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons ...

in 1660 and from 1661 sat in the

Irish House of Lords The Irish House of Lords was the upper house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from medieval times until 1800. It was also the final court of appeal of the Kingdom of Ireland. It was modelled on the House of Lords of England, with membe ...

Background

Kildare was the son of

George FitzGerald, 16th Earl of Kildare George FitzGerald, 16th Earl of Kildare (23 January 1612 – 29 May 1660) was known as the "Fairy Earl", apparently for no other reason than that his portrait, which is extant, was painted on a small scale." Biography FitzGerald was the son of T ...

, and Lady Jane Boyle, daughter of

Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork (13 October 1566 – 15 September 1643), also known as the Great Earl of Cork, was an English politician who served as Lord Treasurer of the Kingdom of Ireland. Lord Cork was an important figure in the continuing ...

. He succeeded his father in the earldom in 1660.

Political career

Kildare served as Governor of King's County,

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the count ...

and Queen's County. He owned no property in Nottinghamshire, but in April 1660 he was elected

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

for

East Retford East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

in the Convention Parliament. In 1661, he took his seat in the Irish House of Lords and was sworn of the

Irish Privy Council His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal execu ...

. He was active both in Parliament and in the Privy Council.

Family

Kildare married Lady Elizabeth, daughter of

John Holles, 2nd Earl of Clare John Holles, 2nd Earl of Clare (13 June 1595 – 2 January 1666) was an English nobleman. Family Holles was born in Haughton, Nottinghamshire, the eldest son of John Holles, 1st Earl of Clare and Anne Stanhope, and the brother of Denzil Holles ...

and his wife Elizabeth Vere . He died in March 1664 and was succeeded by his son,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

. His daughter, Anne, married Hugh Boscawen of

Tregothnan Tregothnan is a country house and estate near the village of St Michael Penkivel, southeast of Truro, Cornwall, England, which has for many centuries been a possession of the Boscawens. Geography Location Tregothnan is located on a hill overl ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...

, was widowed, and remarried Francis Robartes. Both her husbands belonged to leading Cornish families.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kildare, Wentworth FitzGerald, 17th Earl of Wentworth 1634 births 1664 deaths 17th-century Irish politicians Politicians from County Kildare English MPs 1660 Members of the Privy Council of Ireland Earls of Kildare Barons Offaly