Arthur French (politician)

Arthur French (1764 – 24 November 1820) was an Irish Whig politician.

He belonged to the long-established French family of Frenchpark, County Roscommon, who were substantial landowners who also made money in the wine trade. He was the eldest son of Arthur French MP and Alicia Magenis, daughter of Richard Magenis of Dublin and sister of Richard Magenis.^[1] He married Margaret Costello, daughter of Edmond Costello of Edmondstown, County Mayo, and had nine children, including Arthur French, 1st Baron de Freyne, John, 2nd Baron and Charles, 3rd Baron.

In 1783, he was elected a Member of Parliament (MP) for

Earldom if he would support the Union of Ireland with Great Britain but refused the honour. Later he also refused a Barony with no strings attached, although in time three of his sons would hold the title Baron de Freyne

. The Crown was frequently irritated by French's demands for offices and favours for his brothers and sons, although such behaviour was entirely typical of an Irish politician at the time.

A critic of the policy of collective fines as a deterrent to the illicit distillation of

poteen, he incurred the wrath of Chief Secretary of Ireland Robert Peel

who called him "an Abominable fellow", but his enormous popularity in Roscommon meant that he could not be ignored. He also criticized the continuation of martial law in Ireland.

By 1817 he was complaining of ill health: he died on 24 November 1820. One report at the time states that he had died "from excessive fox hunting".

References

^ Burke, Bernard (1899). A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry of Ireland. Harrison & sons. p. 291. Retrieved 13 June 2019.

Mosley, Charles (editor). Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage: 107th Edition.
French, Maurice. The Frenchs of French Park. Warminster: Maurice French, 1999.

Parliament of Ireland
Preceded by Edward Crofton Maurice Mahon	Roscommon County 1783–1800 With: Edward Crofton 1783–1798 George King, Viscount Kingsborough 1798–1799 Thomas Mahon 1799–1801	Succeeded by Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
New constituency	1801–1820 With: Thomas Mahon 1801–1802 Edward King 1802–1806 Stephen Mahon 1806–1820	Succeeded by Arthur French Stephen Mahon

[burke1899-1] Burke, Bernard (1899). A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry of Ireland. Harrison & sons. p. 291. Retrieved 13 June 2019.

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