Fitzpatrick Clans in Ireland

How are our Fitzpatrick ancestors related to the Breifne Fitzpatricks?  

There are five Fitzpatrick clans registered with the Clans of Ireland. Fitzpatrick Clans

Kingdom of Breifne, Wikipedia, 2024

Mac Giolla Phadraig Osraighe - Fitzpatricks of Upper Ossory - in Laois and Kilkenny.

O Maol Phadraig Breifne - O'Mulpatrick of Breifne and some Mac Giollla Phadraig

Mac Giolla Phadrai Ulaidh - Mac Gilpatrick of Ulster - an older form of Fitzpatrick found in Ulster.

Mac Giolla Phadraig Laighin - Mac Gilpatrick of Leinster, associated with O'Carroll.

Mac Giolla Phadraig Dai gCais - Mac Gilpatrick of Cas, associated with O'Brien and O'Kennedy in south-west Ireland, Galway, Mayo and Roscommon.

The Breifne clan is associated with families in County Cavan.  The Fitzpatrick One Name Study includes John Fitzpatrick 1786-1838 as part of this group.  Shearman has John Fitzpatrick's military service with the 3rd Buffs, but he is not included in the UK National Archives records.  His military record was with the 88th Regiment.  Captain John Fitzpatrick

His ancestors, according to the Shearman family tree were from "Ballogh" a townland in Rathdowney Parish, Queen's County Laois.  These ancestors are also recorded in the Fitzpatrick One Name Study.  Fitzpatrick One Name Study.  

The Shearman family tree links the Fitzpatricks of Ballogh [Ballagh] to Thady Fitzpatrick and the Fitzpatricks of Ballyboden.  The link through Thady's son John is challenged in an article about The Will of Thady Fitzpatrick.

A more intriguing link to the land of Ballagh is Geoffrey Fitzpatrick, of Ballyraghan [Ballagharahin] who married Mary O'Farrell and who died on 13 August 1638. 

Ballagharahin 

In 1622, Geoffrey erected a cross in the neighbouring townland of Errill.  This was in memory of his parents, Florence Fitzpatrick and Katherine Moore, Lord and Lady Upper Ossory.  Florence was a younger son of Brian Oge (Barnaby) Mac Gilla Patraic, who submitted to King Henry VIII in 1537.  

In 2022, the Fitzpatrick Clan Society held a 400th centenary commemoration at the Fitzpatrick Wayside Cross.  It was Geoffrey's older brother Edmond of Castle Fleming, whose son Andrew's sons (Edward d.1696 and Richard, first Baron Gowran) were made heirs of John of Castletown in 1693.  Thereby, Richard became the great-grandfather of John Wilson Fitzpatrick (b.1809, 1st Baron Castletown) who was the lessor of Ballagharahin townland, occupied by Joseph Fitzpatrick, his father Charles and grandfather John (d. 1784, buried at Errill).  Thady died in Dublin so was buried in St James' churchyard.  His will requested if he died in Ossory, he be buried at Errill, in his parents' grave.

Errill

It is clear that the Ballagh and Errill townlands had long association with the Fitzpatrick family.

Fitzpatrick Family of Ossory

Fitzpatrick Ancestors of Thady Fitzpatrick. Family Maker chart with Fitzpatrick ancestors from Shearman, J. F. “Loca Patriciana: Part XII. The Early Kings of Ossory, 1978, between pp. 402-403.

I found this source when I searched for John E Fitzpatrick, 14th Hussars.  There is extraordinary detail about the ancient Lords of Ossory.  The Fitzpatricks of Ballogh are linked to the Fitzpatricks of Ballybodan through John, son of Thady Fitzpatrick (d.1674) and father of Joseph Fitzpatrick (born about 1702).  Some of the Fitzpatrick Earls of Ossory, were driven out of their land from Queen's County Laois and settled in about 1156 in County Cavan.  

Shearman, J. F. “Loca Patriciana: Part XII. The Early Kings of Ossory: The Journal of the Royal Historical and Archaeological Association of Ireland, vol. 4, no. 33/34, 1878, pp. 336–408, page 402.  JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/25506726. Accessed 16 Nov. 2023,

  

Our ancestor John Fitzpatrick 1786-1838 is listed in a remarkable data base in the website of the Fitzpatrick One Name Study.  This links backwards from John and Matthew to their 3x great grandfather Thady, and then back to the Ossorian Genealogy in the Appendix of the Shearman journal article in 1878. The list includes John and his ancestors as part of the Breifne Fitzpatrick clan.  The Kingdom of Breifne is further north of Ossory (Osraige) and includes the present County Cavan.

Why are they Breifne Fitzpatricks when their Ballagh lands are in County Laois in the former Kingdom of Ossory?  Birthplace may not accord with ancestry or the One-Name Study assigned John and his ancestors to the Breifne Clan based on the DNA results for descendants of Mathew Fitzpatrick FGC11134 ... BY12234.  

Sources: Ronan Fitzpatrick, Fitzpatrick List 2 July 2024 and Mike Fitzpatrick, 3 July 2024.

It has now been confirmed that John Fitzpatrick's ancestors were from County Laois, so the Breifne Clan link would be worth further research.

Fitzpatrick Evidence 1747 - 1847

Kingdom of Ossory
Source: Wikipedia, 4 May 2024

 

The Fitzpatrick Society and Fitzpatrick Clan Society websites contains a lot of information, including Newsletters.  Articles warn about errors in the Shearman family tree.  In an article in 2023, Mike Fitzpatrick suggests that “the Fitzpatricks of Ballogh are not with certainty related to the Fitzpatricks of Ballyboodan”. The Will of Thady Fitzpatrick (M. Fitzpatrick, "The Carrigan Manuscripts: the will of Thady Fitzpatrick, MD, 1674".  The Journal of the Fitzpatrick Clan Society S1, pp.1-10.) 

Jeremiah Johnson

Who was Jeremiah Johnson?  Was he the grandfather of Margaret Rebecca Johnson, whose father was Arthur William Johnson?

More research could discover whether Colonel Jeremiah Martin Johnson was in the British East India Company in Java between 1811 and 1816.  Did he remain in Paris, France after the 1827  baptism of his son Arthur William Johnson?  Was Arthur's mother Saiba also in France? 

British Army landing at Cilincing, Java. 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Java_(1811)
14 February 2024

Even though there is no confirmation that this Jeremiah Johnson had any link to the Goodfellow family, this record raises an interesting aspect of unfamiliar British colonial history.  The French had occupied Java prior to the annexation of the Netherlands by France in 1810.  The British naval and cavalry forces defeated the Dutch/ French in Java in 1811.  Why would a British soldier move to France, after the British had retreated from Java after 1816?  Jan Willem Janssens was the Governor of Java. Janssen appears as a similar-sounding surname for Johnson in searching names in France.

In England between 1790 and 1891, there were 54 results, searching for Jeremiah Johnson, with birth in France between 1790 and 1810 and residence in England, whose death was in England between 1790 and 1810. There were no results when death place was specified in Middlesex County, England. Searching FamilySearch, there were 218 Jeremiah Johnson in the 1841 Census in England, but none in Lambeth or St Marylebone Parish.  Jeremiah Johnson age 50 [b~1791] was at Clarges Street, St George Hanover Square with Sarah Johnson age 55 [b~1785], William Johnson age 25 [b~1816] and Louisa Johnson age 9.  There was Ann J. Johnson in St Martin parish age 37 [b~1804] with Wm John Johnson age 19 [b ~1822].  There were 21 Johnson, born between 1790 and 1810 [in France; not exact] in the 1841 Census.  However, there were no results when France birthplace was made exact in the search.

 

Arthur William Johnson

 

Java! What a surprise! Was Arthur William Johnson really born in Java on 12 September 1813? This was the Non-Conformist baptism record for Arthur in 1827 in Paris, France.  So by that time Arthur was 14 years old.  Attached to the page is a note:

“born at Java, according to a statement of his friends”.  The sponsors were Mary Augusta Webb, John William Latham and James Wilkinson.  Jeremiah’s occupation was Colonel.  This is an intriguing insight into another theatre of British Empire wars, with the conquest of Java by the English in 1811 and their colonisation of the island between 1811 and 1816.  This episode inspired several plays at the time – more theatre.  Was Arthur William’s father a soldier in the English East India Company and his mother Saiba was Javanese?

This was the first result when searching FamilySearch for William Johnson, death in England between 1845 and 1900, birth 1810 to 1832, birthplace specified as France: Arthur William Johnson, christening 1827, Paris France from the Non-Conformist Record Index (RG4-8).  His parents were Jeremiah Martin Johnson and Saiba [no surname].  

Few confirmed facts are known about Margaret’s father, Arthur William Johnston.  His occupation was recorded as farmer on Margaret and George’s marriage.  On that marriage transcription, Margaret’s father was named William Arthur Johnston.  Although Margaret's records state she was born in France, there is no evidence that her father was also born in France.

Could William Johnsone, born France in 1817 be related?  He was in the Royal Staff Corps, recorded in the GRO Regimental Birth Indices 1761 to 1924 from UK British Armed Forces and Overseas Vital Records, 1761-2005.   There was a William Johnston, a Sergeant Major (is that the Light Horse?) and his wife Agnes was born in Sterling (?), India.  So perhaps this family moved around if he was in the army (email 13 September 2013).

There were 501 results from searching FamilySearch for William Johnson, born in France 1810 to 1832, residence England between 1841 and 1871.  There were no results when these results were filtered to only born in France.  There were 11 results when specified to be William Johnson.  The only William Johnson born in France was born in 1817, his wife was Martha Johnson and children were William and George in the 1851 Census and George, Martha, Eliza and Alice in the 1871 Census.  This family continued to live in Norfolk until 1881 when William age 74, born France, British subject was a retired plasterer and “inmate” and 1891, widowed was a lodger pensioner Queens Household in Brighton, Sussex.  There does not seem to be a connection with the Margaret Rebecca Johnston who migrated to Queensland in 1871.

Searching Ancestry for Arthur William Johnson in France, there were several births and deaths, results in Paris France BMD, 1555-1929, but the baptism of William, born on 30 June 1841, son of William and Ann Johnson was too late - and the baptism record is Le Havre.  The 1857 marriage was to Justine Cetaz.

France, registres protestants, 1536-1897." Database with images. 
FamilySearch. https://FamilySearch.org : 8 December 2023.
Societe de L'histoire du Protestantisme Francais
(Society of the history of French Protestantism), Paris.

On 9 May 2024, I  found Arthur Johnson’s marriage to Justine Tetaz on 20 August 1857.  The civil marriage was at the town hall in Batignolles, Paris.  

His parents were Jeremie Martin Johnson and Marie Saiba.  This confirms that he is the son born in Java in 1813 and baptised in Protestant records in Paris in 1827.

It is unlikely that he is Margaret Johnson’s father.  So this Arthur did not marry Annie Pasquie. 

There are many Ann* Pasquier in France births and marriages, but none of them married Arthur or William Johnson.  It seems like a very specific name for Margaret Goodfellow to have recorded as her mother.

There have been many suggested results for William Arthur Johnston on MyHeritage.  The birth dates are too early or late and none of these has spouse named Anne and daughter Margaret. 

The second result in Ancestry for Arthur William Johnson was a baptism on 13 November 1814 at Hackney in London.  His parents were Clement and Sarah Johnson. They lived in Kingsland Road; Clement was a packer.  This record is also in FamilySearch Genealogies source International Genealogical Index (IGI) of Arthur William Johnson birth 16 October 1814 at Shoreditch, London.  However, the record was submitted the Genealogies by unknown38379.  This family could be more relevant, given the 1866 burial of Arthur William Johnson in Hackney.  There was no Clement Johnson in the 1841 Census.

Another result from the England and Wales Non-Conformist Record Indexes (RG4-8) was the burial of Arthur William Johnson on 25 May 1866 at Hackney, Middlesex.  There was an old Non-Conformist burial ground at St Thomas Long Burial Ground in Well Street.  This is now a park.  An Arthur William Johnson’s death in London in 1866, was registered in the June quarter 1866 at St Marylebone.  In the 1861 Census, “Johnson” was living in Riding House Street, St Marylebone.  A single man, with many other unrelated surnames.

There is no evidence that this was the same Arthur William Johnson whose wife was Anne Pasquie and daughter was Margaret Rebecca Johnson.