View source for Earl of Limerick

{{Short description|Title in the peerage of Ireland}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2021}}
{{Use Irish English|date=December 2021}}
{{Infobox nobility title
| name              = Earldom of Limerick 
| image             = [[File:Coronet of a British Earl.svg|90px|centre]][[File:Earl of Limerick COA.svg|100px|Arms of the Earl of Limerick]] 
| image_size        =  
| alt               =  
| caption           = '''''Arms:''' Quarterly: 1st & 4th, Quarterly Gules and Or, on a Bend Argent, three Lions passant Sable (for Pery); 2nd & 3rd, Per chevron engrailed Or and Sable, three Pellets in chief, and in base a Stag trippant Or (for Hartstonge). '''Crests:''' 1st, A Hind’s Head erased proper ( for Pery); 2nd, A Demi-Saracen supporting on the dexter shoulder a Sword, the point resting on the palm of his hand, the sinister arm extended holding a Battle-Axe, all proper (for Hartstonge). '''Supporters:''' Dexter: A Lion Ermine; Sinister: A Fawn proper, ducally collared and chained Or.''
| creation_date     = 1 January 1803 
| creation          = Second 
| monarch           = [[George III of the United Kingdom|George III]] 
| peerage           = [[Peerage of Ireland]] 
| baronetage        =  
| first_holder      = [[Edmund Pery, 1st Earl of Limerick|Edmund Pery, 1st Viscount Limerick]] 
| last_holder       =  
| present_holder    = [[Edmund Pery, 7th Earl of Limerick|Edmund, 7th Earl of Limerick]] 
| heir_apparent     = Felix, Viscount Glentworth
| heir_presumptive  =  
| remainder_to      =  
| subsidiary_titles = {{small|Viscount Limerick <br>  Baron Glentworth <br> Baron Foxford (United Kingdom)}}
| status            = Extant 
| extinction_date   =  
| family_seat       =  
| former_seat       = [[Dromore Castle (County Limerick)|Dromore Castle]] 
| motto             = '''VIRTUTE NON ASTUTIA''' <br> ''(By courage, not by craft)''}}
{{Infobox nobility title
| name              =  
| image             = [[File:Coronet of a British Earl.svg|90px|centre]]
| image_size        =  
| alt               =  
| caption           = '''''Arms:''' Quarterly: 1st & 4th, Gules, three Lions passant Or, supporting with the dexter forepaw a Helmet close Argent, garnished Gold (Dongan); 2nd & 3rd, Azure, six Plates, three, two and one, on a Chief Or, a Demi-Lion Gules (Dungan). '''Crest:''' A Lion passant Or, supporting with the dexter forepaw a Helmet close Argent, garnished Gold. '''Supporters:''' On either side a Lion Argent, gouttée-de-sang, charged on the shoulder with a Pellet.''
| creation_date     = 2 January 1686 
| creation          = First 
| monarch           = [[James II of England|James II]] 
| peerage           = [[Peerage of Ireland]] 
| baronetage        =  
| first_holder      = [[William Dongan, 1st Earl of Limerick]] 
| last_holder       = [[Thomas Dongan, 2nd Earl of Limerick]]  
| subsidiary_titles = Viscount Dungan <br>  Baronet 'of Castletown' 
| status            = Extinct 
| extinction_date   = 14 December 1715}}
[[File:Colonel Thomas Dongan.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Thomas Dongan, 2nd Earl of Limerick.]]
'''Earl of Limerick''' is a title that has been created twice in the [[Peerage of Ireland]], associated first with the Dongan family, then with the Pery family. It should not be confused with the title Viscount of the City of Limerick (usually shortened to Viscount of Limerick, or Lord Limerick) held by the Hamilton family, also [[Earl of Clanbrassil|Earls of Clanbrassil]].

==First creation==
The earldom was created for the first time in 1686 for [[William Dongan, 1st Earl of Limerick|Sir William Dongan, 4th Baronet]], with remainder, failing male issue of his own, to his brothers Robert, Michael and Thomas and the heirs male of their bodies. He had been made '''Viscount Dungan''', of [[Clane]] in the County of Kildare in 1661,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZDhKAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA2-PA217|title = Report, 1840-1908|year = 1870}}</ref> also in the Peerage of Ireland and with similar remainder. His only son [[Walter Dungan, Viscount Dungan]], was killed at the [[Battle of the Boyne]] and Lord Limerick was succeeded according to the special remainders (and normally in the baronetcy) by his brother [[Thomas Dongan, 2nd Earl of Limerick|Thomas Dongan]], the second Earl. He was [[List of colonial governors of New York|Governor of New York]] from 1683 to 1688. All three titles became extinct on his death in 1715. The '''Dungan Baronetcy''', of Castletown in the County of Kildare, was created in the [[Baronetage of Ireland]] in 1623 for Walter Dungan.
He was the eldest son of John Dongan or Dungan (died 1592), originally of [[ Fishamble Street]],  [[Dublin]]  and his wife Margaret Forster.  John Dongan was  a civil servant who became a figure of  some importance in the Irish Government, and  was  rich enough  in later life to acquire substantial estates  in [[County Kildare]].<ref>Dungan, T. P.  ''John Dongan of Dublin, an Elizabethan Gentleman''  (1988)  The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries in Ireland  Vol, 118 p.101</ref>

==Second creation==
The title was created for the second time in 1803 in favour of [[Edmund Pery, 1st Earl of Limerick|Edmund Pery, 1st Viscount Limerick]]. He was the son of the Right Reverend [[William Pery, 1st Baron Glentworth|William Pery]], [[Bishop of Limerick]] from 1784 to 1794. In 1790 the latter was raised to the [[Peerage of Ireland]] as '''Baron Glentworth''', of Mallow in the County of Cork.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=13208 |date=12 June 1790 |page=358}}</ref> He was succeeded by his only son, the second Baron. He represented [[Limerick City (Parliament of Ireland constituency)|Limerick City]] in the [[Irish House of Commons]] and was a supporter of the Union with [[Great Britain]]. On 29 December 1800 he was created '''Viscount Limerick''', of the City of Limerick,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=15326|page=40|date=6 January 1801}}</ref> and on 11 February 1803, he was further honoured when he was made '''Earl of Limerick''', of the County of Limerick.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=15561|page=205|date=22 February 1803}}</ref> Both titles were in the Peerage of Ireland. Lord Limerick sat in the [[House of Lords]] as one of the 28 original [[List of Irish representative peers|Irish representative peer]] from 1800 to 1844. In 1815 he was also created '''Baron Foxford''', of Stackpole Court in the County of Limerick, in the [[Peerage of the United Kingdom]], giving him a permanent seat in the Lords.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=17041 |date=18 July 1815 |page=1459}}</ref> His great-grandson, the third Earl, was a [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative and Unionist]] politician and served as [[Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard]] from 1889 to 1892 and from 1895 to 1896. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the fourth Earl. He died without surviving male issue and was succeeded by his half-brother, the fifth Earl. He was a soldier and also served as President of the [[Medical Research Council (UK)|Medical Research Council]] between 1952 and 1960. His eldest son, the sixth Earl, was a successful businessman. Lord Limerick also served as Under-Secretary of State of Trade from 1972 to 1974 in the [[Conservative Government 1970-1974|Conservative administration]] of [[Edward Heath]]. As of 2014, the titles are held by his son, the seventh Earl, who succeeded in 2003.{{fact|date=December 2021}}

Another member of the Pery family was [[Edmund Pery, 1st Viscount Pery]], [[Irish House of Commons|Speaker of the Irish House of Commons]] from 1771 to 1785. He was the elder brother of the first Baron Glentworth.{{fact|date=December 2021}}

Some heirs to the earldom have used the title ''Viscount Glentworth'' as a [[courtesy title]] (instead of the "real" title of Baron Glentworth), although there is no such peerage.{{fact|date=December 2021}}

The family seat was Dromore Castle, near [[Pallaskenry]], [[County Limerick]].{{fact|date=December 2021}}

==Dongan Baronets, of Castletown (1623)==
[[File:Dongan family tomb.jpg|thumb|Dongan family tomb, [[Tea Lane Graveyard]], [[Celbridge]]]]
*[[Sir Walter Dongan, 1st Baronet]] (died 1626)
*[[Sir John Dongan, 2nd Baronet]] (died 1650)
*[[Sir Walter Dongan, 3rd Baronet]] (died 1686)
*[[William Dongan, 1st Earl of Limerick|Sir William Dongan, 4th Baronet]] (died 1698) (created '''Earl of Limerick''' in 1686)

==Earls of Limerick, first creation (1686)==
*[[William Dongan, 1st Earl of Limerick]] (died 1698)
*[[Thomas Dongan, 2nd Earl of Limerick]] (1634–1715)

==Barons Glentworth (1790)==
*[[William Pery, 1st Baron Glentworth|William Cecil Pery, 1st Baron Glentworth]] (1721–1794)
*[[Edmund Pery, 1st Earl of Limerick|Edmund Henry Pery, 2nd Baron Glentworth]] (1758–1844) (created '''Earl of Limerick''' in 1803)

==Viscount Limerick (1800); Earls of Limerick, second creation (1803)==
*[[Edmund Pery, 1st Earl of Limerick|Edmund Henry Pery, 1st Earl of Limerick]] (1758–1844)
*William Henry Tennison Pery, 2nd Earl of Limerick (1812–1866)
*[[William Pery, 3rd Earl of Limerick|William Hale John Charles Pery, 3rd Earl of Limerick]] (1840–1896)
*[[William Pery, 4th Earl of Limerick|William Henry Edmund de Vere Sheaffe Pery, 4th Earl of Limerick]] (1863–1929)
*[[Edmund Pery, 5th Earl of Limerick|Edmond Colquhoun Pery, 5th Earl of Limerick]] (1888–1967)
*[[Patrick Pery, 6th Earl of Limerick|Patrick Edmund Pery, 6th Earl of Limerick]] (1930–2003)
*[[Edmund Pery, 7th Earl of Limerick|Edmund Christopher Pery, 7th Earl of Limerick]] (born 1963)

The [[heir apparent]] is the present holder's son Felix Edmund Pery, Viscount Glentworth (born 1991).

==Notes==
{{refimprove|date=February 2013}}
{{reflist}}

==References==
*{{cite book | last=Hesilrige | first=Arthur G. M. | year=1921 | title=Debrett's Peerage and Titles of courtesy | url=https://archive.org/details/debrettspeeraget00unse/page/562 | location=[[London]], UK | publisher=[[Dean & Son]] | page=562 }}
*Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, {{Page needed |date=February 2013}}
*{{Rayment|date=February 2012}}

==External links==
*{{Hansard-contribs | mr-edmund-pery | Edmund Henry Pery, 1st Earl of Limerick }}
{{Extant British earldoms}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Limerick}}
[[Category:Noble titles created in 1803]]
[[Category:Earldoms in the Peerage of Ireland]]
[[Category:Noble titles created in 1686]]
[[Category:Extinct earldoms in the Peerage of Ireland]]
[[Category:Limerick (city)|Earl]]
[[Category:Peerages created with special remainders]]
[[Category:History of County Limerick|Earl]]
[[Category:Politics of County Limerick|Earl]]
[[Category:1686 establishments in Ireland]]
[[Category:Earls of Limerick| ]]