Sir William Fownes, 2nd Baronet (1709 – 5 June 1778) was an

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 ...

politician, and abusive guardian to Sarah Ponsonby, one of the

Ladies of Llangollen The "Ladies of Llangollen", Eleanor Butler (1739–1829) and Sarah Ponsonby (1755–1831), were two Irish nobility, upper-class Irish women who lived together as a couple. Their relationship scandalised and fascinated their contemporaries. The ...

. Fownes was the son of Sir William Fownes, 1st Baronet, and in 1735 he inherited his father's

baronetcy A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

. Fownes was the Member of Parliament for

Dingle Dingle ( or ''Daingean Uí Chúis'', meaning "fort of Ó Cúis") is a town in County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The only town on the Dingle Peninsula (known in Irish as ''Corca Dhuibhne''), it sits on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coa ...

in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until the end of 1800. The upper house was the Irish House of Lords, House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, ...

between 1749 and 1760, before representing

Knocktopher Knocktopher (historically ''Knocktofer'' and ''Knocktover''; ) is a village in County Kilkenny, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is situated on the R713 road (Ireland), R713 road between the villages of Stoneyford, County Kilkenny, Stoneyford t ...

from 1761 to 1776. Fownes was admitted to 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 execut ...

in 1761. He finally represented the borough of

Wicklow Wicklow ( ; , meaning 'church of the toothless one'; ) is the county town of County Wicklow in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located on the east of Ireland, south of Dublin. According to the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, it had ...

between 1776 and his death in 1778. In 1739, William married Lady Elizabeth Ponsonby. His granddaughter was the artist Marianne-Caroline Hamilton via his daughter and only child Sarah Tighe (née Fownes). Sarah Ponsonby (1755–1831), stayed with the Fownes after she was orphaned by the death of her father Chambre Brabazon Ponsonby, and attended school in Kilkenny. She became friendly with Eleanor Butler (1739–1829) and on 30 March 1778 they tried to flee together, Butler to escape her family and Ponsonby to avoid the unwanted attentions of Sir William, her guardian. Although the women were apprehended by their families, Eleanor escaped her family and secretly stayed in Sarah's room in Fownes' house, with food smuggled in by

Mary Carryl Mary Carryl (d. 22 November 1809) was an Irish-born loyal servant and friend of the celebrated Ladies of Llangollen. She served them up to her death; and when the Ladies died, they shared the same grave. Early life in Ireland Mary Carryl was bro ...

, one of the household servants. The women were eventually able to leave their difficult domestic situation and moved to North Wales where they became known as the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fownes, William, 2nd Baronet 1709 births 1778 deaths 18th-century Anglo-Irish people Baronets in the Baronetage of Ireland Irish MPs 1727–1760 Irish MPs 1761–1768 Irish MPs 1769–1776 Irish MPs 1776–1783 Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Kerry constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Kilkenny constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Wicklow constituencies Members of the Privy Council of Ireland