Maurice Fitz Gerald, 6th Duke Of Leinster
Maurice FitzGerald, 6th Duke of Leinster, etc. (1 March 1887 – 4 February 1922) was the eldest son of Gerald FitzGerald, 5th Duke of Leinster and his wife, the former Lady Hermione Wilhelmina Duncombe, a daughter of William Duncombe, 1st Earl of Feversham.
Born at Kilkea Castle and never married, he acceded to the dukedom and its related titles upon his father's death, from typhoid fever, in 1893, at age 42; his mother died, of tuberculosis, in 1895, at age 30.
The Duke had three siblings:
- A sister (born 1885 - died 5 February 1886)
- Lord Desmond FitzGerald (1888-1916)
- Edward FitzGerald, 7th Duke of Leinster (1892-1976), whose biological father was Hugo Charteris, 11th Earl of Wemyss.
During his minority, his family's large estates in County Kildare were sold in November 1903 by his trustees to 506 tenant farmers via the Land Commission. Some of the lands had a title dating back to the Norman invasion of Ireland in 1171. The 45,000 acres sold for £766,000, a huge amount at the time, but this had to cover costs, some mortgages and £272,000 that was earmarked to family trusts for the surviving younger children of the 4th duke.
Read more about Maurice Fitz Gerald, 6th Duke Of Leinster: Mental Illness and Death, Ancestry
Famous quotes containing the word duke:
“It seemed a long way from 143rd Street. Shaking hands with the Queen of England was a long way from being forced to sit in the colored section of the bus going into downtown Wilmington, North Carolina. Dancing with the Duke of Devonshire was a long way from not being allowed to bowl in Jefferson City, Missouri, because the white customers complained about it.”
—Althea Gibson (b. 1927)