The family of Lally (also ''O'Lally'' or ''O'Mullally'') were an Irish family originally from

Tuam Tuam (; , meaning 'mound' or 'burial-place') is a town in Ireland and the second-largest settlement in County Galway. It is west of the midland Region, Ireland, midlands of Ireland, about north of Galway city. The town is in a civil parishe ...

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

, who distinguished themselves in the service of the

Jacobite pretenders A Jacobite is a follower of someone named Jacob or James, from the Latin ''Jācōbus''. Jacobite or Jacobitism may refer to: Religion * Arminianism, the theology of Jacobus Arminius * Jacobites, followers of Saint Jacob Baradaeus (died 578). C ...

and in the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

army.

Titles

Gerard Lally Gerard Lally or O'Mullally (? in Tuam, County Galway – 1737) was an Irish Jacobite and French military officer. Biography Lally was the second son of Thomas Lally (or O'Mullally) of Tullaghnadaly, by his wife, Jane, sister of Theobald Dillon ...

of Tullynadala was appointed a Baronet in the

Baronetage of Ireland Baronets are hereditary titles awarded by the Crown. The current baronetage of the United Kingdom has replaced the earlier, existing baronetages of England, Nova Scotia, Ireland and Great Britain. To be recognised as a baronet, it is necessary ...

by the titular King James III and VIII (the "Old Pretender") on 7 July 1707. He was succeeded by his son, Thomas Arthur, who took part in the

Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745 was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the Monarchy of Great Britain, British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took place during the War of the Austrian Succession, when the bulk of t ...

. Upon his return to France in 1746, he was appointed Earl of Moenmoyne, Viscount Ballymole and Baron Tollendally, 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 ...

, by the

Stuart Stuart may refer to: People *Stuart (name), a given name and surname (and list of people with the name) * Clan Stuart of Bute, a Scottish clan *House of Stuart, a royal house of Scotland and England Places Australia Generally *Stuart Highway, ...

claimant. These titles were never recognised by the government in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

(''see

Jacobite peerage The Jacobite peerage includes those peerages created by James II and VII, and the subsequent Jacobite pretenders, after James's deposition from the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland following the Glorious Revolution of 1688. These creati ...

''). In about 1755, he was also named Comte de Lally and Baron de Tollendal by King

Louis XV of France Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...

, although this may have been merely a recognition of his Jacobite title.

Execution

Lally was executed in 1766, but formally pardoned posthumously in 1778. A legend about his execution circulated in the following years, resurrected by A.C.H. Smith in his 2000 novel ''The Dangerous Memoir of Citizen Sade''. Herein, the author had the

Marquis de Sade Donatien Alphonse François, Marquis de Sade ( ; ; 2 June 1740 – 2 December 1814) was a French writer, libertine, political activist and nobleman best known for his libertine novels and imprisonment for sex crimes, blasphemy and pornography ...

remembering that before the introduction of the

guillotine A guillotine ( ) is an apparatus designed for effectively carrying out executions by Decapitation, beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secur ...

''we were burned, or impaled, or broken, when it was our right as noblemen to demand the axe, until they botched Lally-Tollendal and he danced around for half a minute trying to hold his head on.''

Heir

His only son, Trophime Gérard, was an ''

émigré An ''émigré'' () is a person who has emigrated, often with a connotation of political or social exile or self-exile. The word is the past participle of the French verb ''émigrer'' meaning "to emigrate". French Huguenots Many French Hugueno ...

'' during the French Revolution, but after the

Bourbon Restoration Bourbon Restoration may refer to: France under the House of Bourbon: * Bourbon Restoration in France (1814, after the French revolution and Napoleonic era, until 1830; interrupted by the Hundred Days in 1815) Spain under the Spanish Bourbons: * Ab ...

was named (21 March 1815) Marquis de Lally-Tollendal and a

Peer of France The Peerage of France () was a hereditary distinction within the French nobility which appeared in 1180 during the Middle Ages. The prestigious title and position of Peer of France () was held by the greatest, highest-ranking members of the Fr ...

. He died on 11 March 1830, whereupon all titles passed to his daughter's estate.

Baronets (1707)

* Sir Gerard Lally, 1st Baronet (died 1737) * Sir Thomas Arthur Lally, 2nd Baronet (1702–1766), created Earl of Moenmoyne in 1746

Earls of Moenmoyne (1746) and Comtes de Lally (c. 1755)

* Thomas Arthur Lally, 1st Comte de Lally (1702–1766) * Trophime Gérard de Lally, 2nd Comte de Lally (1751–1830), created Marquis de Lally-Tollendal in 1815

Marquis de Lally-Tollendal (1815)

* Trophime Gérard de Lally, Marquis de Lally-Tollendal (1751–1830)