Page:A Compendium of Irish Biography.djvu/235

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and enthusiastic musician; he was much beloved and esteemed in all the private relations of life. He died at the Priory, Hampstead, London, 27th August 1874, aged 56, and was buried in St. Paul's Cathedral. The Examiner said at the period of his death: " We have said that ]Mr, Foley was our greatest practical sculptor, by which we mean the greatest artist who had fairly embodied his ideas. Flaxman as a designer and a draughtsman as what we might term a sketcher in sculpture has no equal; and if we say that Foley's art in its concrete, finished form, combining as it does the severity of the ancient with the picturesqueness of the modern school, is the finest yet seen in England, especially if we confine our re- marks to historic portraiture, few, we should imagine, would be prepared to dis- pute the assertion. Mr. Foley's devotion to his art was as intense as his manners were simple. He flattered no literary coterie, and was never seen much in what we call society. His familiar friends were few, and nothing delighted him more than to see them round his table. He was a sympathetic listener, but could at opportune moments show that he was not deficient in the sprightly qualities of his countrjTnen. In all matters of a philan- thropic kind he was always the first to move, and in this respect his wife was a read}-- and active helpmate unto him. The very last flower-wreaths that fell upon his coSin were dropped by grateful hands." ^ ^33 Forbes, Sir Arthur, 1st Earl of Granard, was born in 1623. [His father came to Ireland in 1620, from Scotland, and obtained large estates in the County of Longford: in 1632, while serving as an officer under Gustavus Adolphus, he was killed in a duel at Hamburg. His mother distinguished herself by the heroic defence of Castleforbes against the Confederate Irish in 164 1.] He served Prince Charles in Scotland, and afterwards returned home, and was included in the Articles — not having fought against the Common- wealth in Ireland. After the Eestora- tion he was appointed one of the Com- missioners of the Court of Claims, and in 1663 helped to frustrate the plot of the discontented Parliamentary soldiers for seizing the castles of Dublin, Drogheda, and Derry. A few years afterwards he became a Privy-Councillor, and was made Marshal of the Army, with an allowance. In 1675 ^6 "^^ raised to the peerage as Vis- count Granard, and was afterwards made an Earl. He augmented the family es- tates. By James II. he was continued in the post of Marshal and Lieutenant-G«ne-

Content for right side goes here ral of the Army in the North, and was appointed Lord- Justice in conjunction with the Archbishop of Armagh. Not agreeing to James's plans for the reorga- nization of the army, he was superseded in his commands by the Earl of Tirconnell. He joined WilUam III., and in 1691 commanded one wing of the army that reduced Sligo and other towns. He died at Castleforbes, in the County of Longford, in 1696, aged about 73. He is described as "a statesman as weU as a soldier, who un- derstood the interests of Ireland perfectly well. He was wise and experienced in publick afiairs ; upright, frank, and gener- ous." 'S3 =16

Forbes, Sir Arthur, 2nd Earl of Granard, son of preceding, was born about 1656. He served in the French army imder Turenne. In 1686 he was made Colonel of the Eoyal Eegiment of Ireland (now the iSth Eoyal Irish), raised by his father. He adhered to the fortunes of James IL, and was by "William III. committed to the Tower. In confinement he is said to have refused a present of £300 from William, and on his release to have declined a commission in the army; and so late as 1702, although ap- pearing at court, he refused the govern- ment of Jamaica. Afterwards he accepted a pension of ;£50O a year (which appears never to have been paid) from his friend Godolphin, and in 17 15 was made Lord- Lieutenant of the County of Longford. He died at his mansion at Simmonscourt, near Dublin, 24th August 1 734, and was interred at Castleforbes. '^3 216

Forbes, Sir George, 3rd Earl of Granard, second son of preceding, was bom 2ist October 1685. He received most of his education at Drogheda Gram- mar School. He entered the navy in 1704, served with distinction in the Mediterranean and elsewhere, and acted as adviser to the Emperor of Austria in naval matters. In 1 729 he was appointed Governor of the Leeward Caribbee Islands. In 1733 he was sent as plenipotentiary to Eussia, chiefly to negotiate a treaty of commerce. On his return in 1734 he was made Eeai'-Admiral of the White, then Eear- Admiral of the Eed, and the same year became Earl of Granard on his father's death. The latter part of his life was spent on his Irish estates, promoting the com- mercial interests of the country. He had much to do with putting the coinage of Ireland on a more correct basis. He also appears to have devoted much of his time to study and literary pursuits. He died 19th Jime 1765, aged 79, and was buried at Newtownforbes. 153 216