John Browne (died 1589) was an Irish

cartographer Cartography (; from , 'papyrus, sheet of paper, map'; and , 'write') is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an imagined reality) can ...

and

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

. Browne appears to have been a member of the Anglo-Norman Browne family of Kilpatrick,

County Westmeath County Westmeath (; or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It formed part of the historic Kingdom of ...

. By his own account, he was ''"the first Englishman (

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...

) that in the memory of man settled himself to dwell in the county of Mayo."'' In August 1583, while servant to

Sir Christopher Hatton Sir Christopher Hatton (12 December 1540 – 20 November 1591) was an English politician, Lord Chancellor of England and a favourite of Elizabeth I of England. He was one of the judges who found Mary, Queen of Scots guilty of treason. Early ...

, he created town plans of

Athenry Athenry (; ) is a town in County Galway, Ireland, which lies east of Galway city. Some of the attractions of the medieval town are its town wall, Athenry Castle, its priory and its 13th-century street-plan. The town is also well known by virt ...

and

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

, which he sent to

Sir Francis Walsingham Sir Francis Walsingham ( – 6 April 1590) was principal secretary to Queen Elizabeth I of England from 20 December 1573 until his death and is popularly remembered as her " spymaster". Born to a well-connected family of gentry, Wa ...

. That November, he was appointed the first

Sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

County Mayo County Mayo (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, County Mayo, Mayo, now ge ...

. He settled at The Neale,

Ballinrobe Ballinrobe () is a town in County Mayo in Ireland. It is located on the River Robe, which empties into Lough Mask two kilometres to the west. As of the 2022 census, the population was 3,148. The town is in a civil parish of the same name. Hist ...

, on lands thought to have been acquired from the Mac Meyler Bourkes. In the summer of 1584, he prepared a map of Mayo, leaving out the barony of Costello and parts of Gallen and Clanmorris. This map was created at the request of Sir Richard Bingham, and was sent to Walsingham. He was again appointed Sheriff in 1587. Other maps by Browne included one of Connacht, which was completed by his nephew, John, in 1591, and one of parts of

County Monaghan County Monaghan ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of Border Region, Border strategic planning area of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town ...

. Browne and his sub-Sheriff, Donnel O'Daly, were killed in an encounter with Risdeard mac Deamhain and Chorrain and Walter na mBuilleadh Burke at

Burrishoole Burrishoole () is one of the nine historical baronies of County Mayo in Ireland. It is named after the former Gaelic territory of Umhaill, which also included Murrisk barony, and roughly means "the borough or territory of Umhall" or "the owle ...

in February 1589 at the start of a major rebellion. John Browne married Ann, daughter of Thomas Kardyff of Dunsink,

County Dublin County Dublin ( or ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and holds its capital city, Dublin. It is located on the island's east coast, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Until 1994, County Dubli ...

. From their only son, Josias Browne, descends Baron Kilmaine,

Marquess of Sligo Marquess of Sligo is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1800 for John Browne, 3rd Earl of Altamont. The Marquess holds the subsidiary titles of Baron Mount Eagle, of Westport in the County of Mayo (created 10 September 1760), ...

and a number of other Browne families in Mayo. They were known as Browne of the Neale, and distinct from the family of Browne - one of the

Tribes of Galway The Tribes of Galway () were 14 merchant families who dominated the political, commercial and social life of the city of Galway in western Ireland between the mid-13th and late 19th centuries. They were the families of Athy, Blake, Bodkin, Brown ...

- who also settled in Mayo and assumed the title Baron Oranmore and Browne. Other descendants included John Browne of the Neale (1638-1712?); John Browne (died 1762) and Henry Browne, Chief Justice of

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

References

* ''A map of .... Mayo ...'', Martin J. Blake, in the ''Journal of the

Galway Archaeological and Historical Society The Galway Archaeological and Historical Society was founded on 21 March 1900. It promotes historical preservation, as well as the study of the archaeology and history of the west of Ireland. As of January 2002, the Society had published 53 cons ...

'', volume 5, 1907–08, pp. 145–58. * ''the History of the county of Mayo to the close of the sixteenth century'', Hubert T. Knox, 1908; reprinted 1982. * ''Shapes of Ireland:maps and their makers, 1564-1839'', J.H. Andrews, 1997 * ''Dictionary of Irish Biography'', p. 915, Cambridge, 2010

External links

* http://thepeerage.com/p3469.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:Browne (sheriff), John People from County Westmeath People from Ballinrobe 16th-century Irish people People of Elizabethan Ireland English army officers High sheriffs of Mayo 1589 deaths Year of birth unknown