James Wynne MP (abt. 1651 - 1695)

Born about 1651 in Lurganboy, County Leitrim, Ireland

Ancestors

Died 1695 at about age 44 in Flanders, Belgium

Biography

James was the son of Owen Wynne and Catherine Hamilton.

He held the office of High Sheriff for County Leitrim in 1686.

He left Ireland for England to enlist in King William's army. He was appointed a captain in Col. Cunningham's regiment Of foot. In April, 1689 this regiment, together with a second regiment under a Col. Richards, sailed from Liverpool in ten troopships destined for the relief of the besieged town of Derry. The 2 regiments were turned back by Lundy, the governor of Derry, on the grounds that there were not enough provisions to feed them.

The regiments returned with new commanding officers and finally broke the seige. One of the Enniskilleners was Andrew Hamilton who in 1690 published his 'True Relation of the Action of the Enniskillen Men' ' In this book Hamilton describes how Kirke gave them firearms, powder and some small cannons. He continues: "The Major-General told us that he could spare none of his private men, but gave us some very good officers, viz Colonel William Wolseley to be our commander-in-chief and Colonel William Berry to be lieutenant-colonel of our horse, Captain Charles Stone to be major of our horse and Captain James Wynne, a gentleman from Ireland, but then a captain in Colonel Stewart's regiment, to be colonel of our dragoons..." There was a terrible slaughter of those who had resisted in the seige. Near 1,500 of the vanquished were put to the sword. About 500 more, in ignorance of the country, took a road which led to Lough Erne. The lake was before them: the enemy behind: they plunged into the waters and perished there.

In 1689 he raised a separate regiment of Dragoons. The regiment was raised on 20 June 1689 as the "James Wynne's Regiment of Dragoons". It was the first of two regiments raised in Inniskilling during the war in Ireland. It initially ranked as 6th Dragoons.

During the Williamite War in Ireland, on 11 July 1690, the regiment fought in the battle of the Boyne. The same year, it was renumbered 5th Dragoons. On 22 July 1691, it took part in the battle of Aughrim.

He was the Member of Parliament in 1692 for Leitrim.

In April 1694, together with his regiment, he left Ireland for Flanders. In October of that year, while serving at Ghent, he was promoted to Brigadier-General. In June of the following year [1695] John Pain, the regimental agent in England, wrote to Wynne expressing regret at the news that the latter had been wounded in action. Three months later Pain wrote to James' younger brother, Lt-Col. Owen Wynne, also serving in Flanders, expressing condolences on James' death.

James married Catherine Bingham, daughter of John Bingham ^[1] John Bingham had married James Wynne's mother as her third husband, his daughter Catherine, whom James married, being a child of Bingham's by a previous marriage. ^[2]

Children:

1. James died unmarried
2. Sidney
3. Dorothy
4. Jane
5. Mary

He died of wounds around September 1695 in Roeselare, Flanders.

Research Notes

Both Wood-Martin and O'Rorke in their respective histories of Sligo (the latter copying from the former) are in error in saying that James was killed at the Battle of Malplaquet, an event which did not take place until 1709.

Burkes Landed Gentry (1879) is also incorrect on his place of death.

Sources

1. ↑ "A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry of Great .." by Bernard Burke Volume 2 p 1562 [1]
2. ↑ *The Wynnes of Sligo & Leitrim by Winston Guthrie-Jones, Published 1994

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Malplaquet
• A genealogical and heraldic history of the landed gentry of Great Britain & Ireland by Sir Bernard Burke, Publication date 1879, Vol2, Family: Wynne of Hazelwood
• The Wynnes of Sligo & Leitrim by Winston Guthrie-Jones, Published 1994
• https://linleyfh.com/p1033.htm#i11807