Colonel Thomas Be(e)cher JP (1640 – 10 October 1709) was an Irish politician and soldier. The family's surname varies in its spelling, caused by its pronunciation.

Background

Born in

Baltimore, County Cork Baltimore (; , translated as "fort of the jewels") is a village in western County Cork, Ireland. It is the main village in the parish of Rathmore and the Islands, the southernmost parish in Ireland. It is the main ferry port to Sherkin Island, ...

, he was the son of Major Henry Becher and his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Notte. His paternal grandfather Henry was

Lord President of Munster The post of Lord President of Munster was the most important office in the English government of the Irish province of Munster from its introduction in the Elizabethan era for a century, to 1672, a period including the Desmond Rebellions in Munste ...

. The elder Henry married Mary Lyon, daughter of William Lyon,

Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross The Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross is the Church of Ireland Ordinary of the united Diocese of Cork, Cloyne and Ross in the Province of Dublin. The current bishop is the Right Reverend Paul Colton BCL, DipTh, MPhil, LLM, PhD. He was consecrate ...

. Becher was educated at

Trinity College, Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Univ ...

and graduated in 1658.

Career

Becher was nominated a Justice of the Peace in 1665, assigned to

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

.Cork Historical and Archaeological Society (1907), p. 180 He fought in the

Battle of the Boyne The Battle of the Boyne ( ) took place in 1690 between the forces of the deposed King James II, and those of King William III who, with his wife Queen Mary II (his cousin and James's daughter), had acceded to the Crowns of England and Sc ...

in 1690, serving as aide-de-camp to William of Orange, for which he was awarded a watch by the later King.Burke (1847), p. 77 In 1692, he was appointed Governor of

Sherkin Island Sherkin Island, historically called Inisherkin (), lies southwest of County Cork in Ireland alongside other islands of Roaringwater Bay. It had a population of 111 people at the time of the 2016 Census, and measures long by wide. The i ...

. Later in that year he entered 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, ...

, having stood for

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

.Johnston-Lilk (2006), p. 69 He was returned for the constituency until his death in 1709. In Parliament he supported

Henry Capell, 1st Baron Capell of Tewkesbury Henry Capell, Baron Capell of Tewkesbury KB, PC (1638 – 30 May 1696) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1660 and 1692. He was then created Baron Capell. Early life Henry Capell was born in Hadham Parva, ...

, at that time the

Lord Deputy of Ireland The Lord Deputy was the representative of the monarch and head of the Irish executive (government), executive under English rule, during the Lordship of Ireland and then the Kingdom of Ireland. He deputised prior to 1523 for the Viceroy of Ireland ...

Family and legacy

In 1665, he married Elizabeth Turner, daughter of Henry Turner; they had fifteen children, nine sons and six daughters. Becher died in 1709 and was buried at St Matthew's Church in Aughadown. Elizabeth died about 1720, her will being dated 26 September was proved in the

prerogative court A prerogative court is a court through which the discretionary powers, privileges, and legal immunities reserved to the sovereign were exercised. In England in the 17th century, a clash developed between these courts, representing the crown's a ...

in Cork in the following year. His son

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...

sat also in the

Parliament of Ireland The Parliament of Ireland () was the legislature of the Lordship of Ireland, and later the Kingdom of Ireland, from 1297 until the end of 1800. It was modelled on the Parliament of England and from 1537 comprised two chambers: the Irish Hou ...

, representing the same constituency as his father. Surviving letters are held by the

Bristol Archives Bristol Archives (formerly Bristol Record Office) was established in 1924. It was the first borough record office in the United Kingdom, since at that time there was only one other local authority record office (Bedfordshire Record Office, Bedf ...

. Notable descendants were the social reformer John Thomas Becher (1769–1848), a friend of the poet

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...

as well as Anne Becher (1792–1864), the mother of

William Makepeace Thackeray William Makepeace Thackeray ( ; 18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was an English novelist and illustrator. He is known for his Satire, satirical works, particularly his 1847–1848 novel ''Vanity Fair (novel), Vanity Fair'', a panoramic portra ...

.Burke (1976), p. 100

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beecher, Thomas 1640 births 1709 deaths Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Irish MPs 1692–1693 Irish MPs 1695–1699 Irish MPs 1703–1713 Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Cork constituencies Williamite military personnel of the Williamite War in Ireland Politicians from County Cork