Clancarty Trench

28/10/2025

A nice afternoon on Sunday with the Morrinsville Historical Society, talking about the connections between the Clancartys and the Waikato Land Wars. A very attentive group with plenty of questions. My thanks to you all, especially chair Bette Blance and president Jo Gifford who did such a good job reconnecting the technology!

12/10/2025

Long overdue for a change of picture at the head of this page. Welcome the 5th Earl of Clancarty William Frederick Le Poer Trench, known as Fred, sometimes "poor Fred" for all the obvious reasons. Bankrupt three times it would not be unkind to say that he gutted the Trench fortunes with gambling and high living over many years. The best thing he ever did was marry Belle Bilton. Sadly she died of cancer but even if she had lived it is doubtful if even she could have changed his spending habits.

05/09/2025

On the road again last month. An attentive group at Fairfield Rotary. The first Rotary club I've come across that has chosen not to have dinner but instead donate the cash involved to their projects. Sounds like a good idea. Glad to meet president Jonathan Bennett and crew.

16/07/2025

Yet another good audience to hear the story of Clancarty contacts with New Zealand - the Papatoetoe Historical Society. They were an attentive crew, and I was impressed with their knowledge of local heritage matters. It seems their Museum fills an effective role in telling their stories to the local community.

19/06/2025

Let me introduce you to Sara Colohan an Irish London-based freelance journalist who made valiant efforts to gain media coverage for the release of "Clancarty". She tried numerous outlets who have welcomed her work in the past, but on this occasion there were no bites. So her article is on her own website and is very positive. If you would like to read it here is the link http://www.saracolohan.com/p/shop.html Sara grew up in the gamekeepers lodge at Mackney near Garbally and remembers the school's dominant place in Ballinasloe, especially the teenage discos! The photo accompanying this post was taken at the London launch of "Clancarty" last October. Many thanks for your efforts Sara. Much appreciated.

19/06/2025

Another successful opportunity to tell the Clancarty - New Zealand story at the Hamilton U3A general meeting this week. They were a most attentive group and a number of folks had questions afterwards. It was a very friendly occasion, and my thanks go to Catherine Gurnsey and her helpers. Cheers.

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27/05/2025

Started on the "speaking tour circuit" last week with a presentation to the Hamilton East Rotary Club. I've fashioned a talk out of the research material which revealed the involvement of a son of the third Earl fighting in the British forces in the Waikato Land War in 1863-64. The Earl also gave a remarkable speech in the House of Lords on NZ race relations at the time. The Hamilton audience seemed to like the story. Thanks to President Mark Milroy and the crew. It was an enjoyable night.

29/12/2024

Yet another item of interest from the Trench family is a bust said to be Admiral William Le Poer Trench, the third surviving son of the first Earl of Clancarty William Trench and his wife Anne. (p. 53-62 in the book). The bust is now in the care of the Farrant family but its origins are a complete mystery.

29/12/2024

Several items of Clancarty history have come to light since the book was published in October. The first is a two-page letter written by young Viscount Fred Dunlo (later the fifth Earl) when he was on his parent-imposed exile in 1889-90. (p. 206-11 in the book). He was in India in 1890 staying in the Kaiser I Hin Hotel, in Jaipur, Rajputana. It seems the British Resident Sir William Prideaux arranged for Dunlo to go on a hunting expedition - pig-sticking - with one Captain Tate. The letter shown here is Dunlo's note of appreciation. The second item is a news report in "Bystander" Magazine of 14 October 1908 at the time of the fifth Earl's marriage to Mary Ellis. The writer observed that Clancarty had strong views on the Irish land question. He was "by no means a landlord who wanted all the loaves and fishes for himself." He wanted to encourage those born on the land to live on the land - "a charming ideal a few hundred years ago." Doubt was cast on his views but "at least, Lord Clancarty has a workable scheme."

01/12/2024

I should have highlighted this article long before now but it's still good to see the support even from 15 weeks distant! Thanks Dave.

A New Zealander with a passion for history – and for Ireland through his wife’s ancestry as a member of the Guinness family – has just published a new book that traces the other side of her roots…embedded deep in the story of Ballinasloe. Rod Smith from Tauranga in New Zealand describes his ...

30/11/2024

On a visit to Garbally House, Father Colm Allman showed us a piece of furniture with an inscription that has puzzled him for years, and equally perplexes us. In a chest of drawers in one of the bedrooms, one of the drawers has some writing on the side that has no easy explanation - Brinsley Le Poer Trench 15 December 1893. The date is in the time of the fifth Earl Frederick and his wife Belle Bilton. But Brinsley le Poer Trench the eighth Earl was born in London in September 1911. So who is the person recorded in 1893? And why on the side of a drawer? Possible explanations welcome!

28/11/2024

In chapter nine of "Clancarty" which deals with the contribution of the ninth Earl, Nicholas Trench, I discussed the Labour Party's election pledge to abolish the hereditary peers from House of Lords should Labour become Government. Labour did win the election in July last year, and they have introduced legislation into the House of Commons to abolish hereditary peers. It is expected that the Bill will become law in early 2025 at which point the 9th Earl and his hereditary peer colleagues will cease to have a place in the Lords. A huge step in reforming the House of Lords. There are several articles listed on Google on the matter.

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