François Thurot - 18th century French privateer in Ireland.

The capture of the town of Carrickfergus by a French naval officer and privateer in February 1760 was a very interesting episode in Franco-Irish relations.

On February 25th, 1760, the French privateer, François Thurot, sailed from Carrickfergus. He had occupied the town with a force of several hundred men for almost a week by that stage. Three days later, his fleet was attacked by British men-of-war near the Isle of Man and Thurot was killed in what subsequently became known as The Battle of Bishops Court or The Defeat of Thurot.

François Thurot. Image source.

François Thurot (1726-1760) who has been described as "one of the boldest and most accomplished privateers"(1), was commissioned into the French navy during the Seven Years' War (1756-1763). Some have said that the War was the original 'world war', as Franco-British fighting in North America and India led to a general war in Europe, involving most major European states.

During the War, Thurot commanded a frigate. Together with his men, he captured a large number of British merchant ships. You can read about Thurot in this book on French buccaneers, Les Frères de la Coste: Flibustiers & Corsaires (pages 239-299). It is available to read and download on Gallica, the French National Library's digital library. 

18th century French map of Ireland. Image source

1. The Oxford Companion to Ships and The Sea.

Josephine McNeill - Ireland's first female diplomatic head of mission

Josephine McNeill about to present her letter of credence. Image source.

Josephine McNeill (1895-1969) was Ireland's first female head of a diplomatic mission. She took up the post of Irish Minister to the Netherlands in early 1950. She subsequently served as envoy to several other European countries. She remained in the Department of External Affairs until her retirement in 1960. I have just written an Irishman's Diary in the Irish Times newspaper about her. Read it here.

Portrait photograph of Josephine McNeill. Image source.

Josephine McNeill packed an awful lot into her life and was involved with many different organisations and had a wide circle of friends. This can be seen in her private papers that are held in the University College Dublin (UCD) Archives. If you look at the descriptive list, you can see who she corresponded with and on what topic. There are references to a whole range of personalities from the world of the Arts and Politics. For example, she frequently wrote to Lady Augusta Gregory, Shane Leslie, and Lennox Robinson. There are also letters from WB Yeats, Sean O'Casey, George Bernard Shaw, and Mícheál Mac Liammóir.