Sir Ralph Bingley (c.1570–1627) was a Welsh soldier who served and settled in Ireland. Born in

Hawarden Hawarden (; cy, Penarlâg) is a village, community and electoral ward in Flintshire, Wales. It is part of the Deeside conurbation on the Wales-England border and is home to Hawarden Castle. In the 2011 census the ward of the same name ha ...

Flintshire , settlement_type = County , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_flag = , image_shield = Arms of Flint ...

, Bingley served as an officer under Sir

Henry Docwra Henry Docwra, 1st Baron Docwra of Culmore (1564 – 18 April 1631) was a leading English-born soldier and statesman in early seventeenth-century Ireland. He is often called "the founder of Derry", due to his role in establishing the city. Bac ...

, as part of the expedition to establish garrisons in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. Th ...

and the

Lough Foyle Lough Foyle, sometimes Loch Foyle ( or "loch of the lip"), is the estuary of the River Foyle, on the north coast of Ireland. It lies between County Londonderry in Northern Ireland and County Donegal in the Republic of Ireland. Sovereignty over t ...

during Tyrone's Rebellion (1594–1603). Following its capture, Bingley was placed in command of

Rathmullan Rathmullan () is a seaside village and townland on the Fanad Peninsula in County Donegal, Ireland. It is situated on the western shore of Lough Swilly, north-east of Ramelton and east of Milford. Rathmullan has historical significance as the s ...

. In 1602, he was granted land near Rathmullan by the Crown as a reward for his services. In the

Plantation of Ulster The Plantation of Ulster ( gle, Plandáil Uladh; Ulster-Scots: ''Plantin o Ulstèr'') was the organised colonisation ('' plantation'') of Ulstera province of Irelandby people from Great Britain during the reign of King James I. Most of the se ...

he was granted 1,100 acres in

Kilmacrennan Kilmacrennan ( ga, Cill Mhic nÉanáin or ), also Kilmacrenan, is a village, townland and civil parish in County Donegal, Ireland. The village population was 753, as of the 2016 census. The village's population has increased steadily over the l ...

, including the town of Rathmullan. His brother

Richard Bingley Richard Bingley was an Irish soldier originally from Wales. In 1610 Bingley was appointed Constable of Doe Castle. He was granted a significant estate as part of the Plantation of Ulster. Along with his elder brother Sir Ralph Bingley, he turned ...

also served in Ireland and became a landowner in the Plantation, with northern

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconn ...

becoming a centre of Welsh settlement due to the influence of the brothers. During O'Doherty's Rebellion of 1608 he returned to active service with the

Irish Army The Irish Army, known simply as the Army ( ga, an tArm), is the land component of the Defence Forces (Ireland), Defence Forces of Republic of Ireland, Ireland.The Defence Forces are made up of the Permanent Defence Forces – the standing bran ...

, following the

Burning of Derry The Burning of Derry took place on 19 April 1608 during O'Doherty's Rebellion when Sir Cahir O'Doherty led a force of rebels to storm Derry in Ulster. He launched his rebellion with an attack on the garrison town of Derry, which was taken tha ...

. In 1624, he was elected

Mayor of Derry The Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council is an honorary position bestowed upon a Citizen of Derry City & Strabane District in Northern Ireland, who is in practice a member of Derry and Strabane District Council, chosen by their peers ...

. He was a strong supporter of

George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, 28 August 1592 – 23 August 1628), was an English courtier, statesman, and patron of the arts. He was a favourite and possibly also a lover of King James I of England. Buckingham remained at t ...

Morgan p.68 and led a force of Irish troops to serve under him at the

Siege of La Rochelle The siege of La Rochelle (, or sometimes ) was a result of a war between the French royal forces of Louis XIII of France and the Huguenots of La Rochelle in 1627–28. The siege marked the height of the struggle between the Catholics and the Pr ...

. He was killed during the battle of the Pont du Feneau.

References

Bibliography

* Bardon, Jonathan. ''The Plantation of Ulster''. Gill & MacMillan, 2012. * McGurk, John. ''Sir Henry Docwra, 1564-1631: Derry's Second Founder''. Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2006. * Morgan, Rhys. ''The Welsh and the Shaping of Early Modern Ireland, 1558-1641''. Boydell & Brewer, 2014. People of Elizabethan Ireland 17th-century Irish people Welsh soldiers Irish soldiers Welsh emigrants to Ireland People of O'Doherty's rebellion 1627 deaths People from Hawarden People from County Donegal Irish knights Year of birth uncertain {{Ireland-bio-stub