Blayney

Family title

Baron

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Estate(s)

Name	Description
Blayney	Castleblayney was founded by Edward Blayney, governor of Monaghan in the early 17th century, who was granted extensive estates in the Monaghan and Castle Blayney areas by King James I. He became Baron Blayney of Monaghan in 1621 and died 1629. However by the middle of the century the family was in difficult financial circumstances and the estate was sold to Thomas Vincent, a London merchant. By the marriage of the 4th Lord Blayney with Vincent’s daughter Elizabeth the estate returned to Blayney family possession. Much of their Monaghan estate was sold off in 1680 by the 5th Lord Blayney and passed through the Cairnes, Murray and Cunningham families until it was inherited by the Westenras who became the Lords Rossmore. Cadwallader 7th Lord Blayney sold part of the Castleblayney estate to the Uptons, Lords Templetown. Andrew Thomas the 11th Lord Blayney was a distinguished soldier who served in the Napleonic wars and developed the town of Castleblayney. He died in 1832. In 1853 the Castle Blayney estate in county Monaghan was purchased by Henry Thomas Hope from the 12th and last Baron Blayney, who died in 1874. The representatives of Lord Blayney, London, owned 1,561 acres in county Tipperary and 421 acres at Carrickfergus in the 1870s.
Owen (Raconnell)	In 1668, Nicholas Owen of Mongomeryshire, Wales, received a grant of lands in counties Cavan and Monaghan (parish of Kilmore), including Raconnell. His mother was Mary Blayney, aunt to the first Lord Blayney. He married Mary Banks and had two sons Blayney Owen of Monaghanduffe (Newgrove), High Sheriff of Monaghan 1693, and Edward of Ballydrimny, county Meath. Blayney Owen of Newgrove, died 1708, had sons Nicholas Owen of Raconnell and Blayney Owen of Newgrove (1702-1750) and daughters Mary who married William Robinson and Euphemia who married James Martin. They were co-heirs to their brother Blayney of Newgrove. Nicholas of Raconnell had a son Nicholas who married Mabel Clarke, an heiress of Portadown. Their son John Owen married Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Rogers of Crieve and had three daughters, Mary married to R. Phibbs of Colooney, county Sligo; Olivia married firstly to Henry Owen Scott of Clonamully, county Monaghan, by whom she had a daughter Henrietta and secondly to Lieut Colonel Lucas; Jane Elizabeth married to Brigadier Major Henry Cole. Henry and Jane Elizabeth had a son Owen Blayney Cole of Brandrum.
Westenra (Baron Rossmore)	Of Dutch origin, the Westenras settled in Ireland in the mid-17th century. General Robert Cuningham was created 1st Baron Rossmore of Monaghan in 1796. His wife Elizabeth Murray was a co-heir of her mother Mary, daughter and heir of Sir Alexander Cairnes Baronet of Monaghan. According to Shirley, in 1680 Alexander Cairnes bought that part of the Blayney estate which was situated in the barony of Monaghan. As the first Baron Rossmore and his wife had no children the title passed in 1801 by a revisionary clause to Mary Murray’s grandson Warner William Westenra, son of one of her other daughters and co heirs Harriet and her husband Henry Westenra, Member of Parliament for Monaghan. The 2nd Baron was born in 1765 and died in 1840. The estate of his son Henry Robert 3rd Baron, as recorded in Griffith’s Valuation, was principally in the parish of Monaghan where he held at least 52 townlands, with large portions also in the parishes of Tedavnet and Kilmore and smaller portions in the parishes of Aghabog, Donagh and Killeevan. In 1876 his son held the fifth largest estate in county Monaghan amounting to 14,839 acres.