Most Waterford people know a little about Curraghmore House and the Beresford family who have been the marquises of Waterford since the 1700s but, perhaps, not too much about individual members and their extended families.A new book by the distinguished lawyer and historian Marcus de la Poer Beresford about his distant relative, Marshal William Carr Beresford, is certainly an interesting read, even more so for history buffs.
William Carr Beresford was a son of the first Marquis of Waterford. He was born before his father’s marriage and therefore did not inherit a title or land but was warmly acknowledged as his own by the Marquis.
At the launch of the biography of Marshal William Carr Beresford were the author, Marcus de la Poer Beresford (right) and the distinguished Waterford-born and Newtown School educated historian, Professor Roy Foster.
William Carr Beresford joined the British army in 1785 and served in the Mediterranean, Egypt, South Africa and South America. He was described by the Duke of Wellington as ‘the ablest man I have yet seen in the army’ and was considered by the Duke as his ‘strong right arm’.Among other military achievements, Beresford served as Commander in Chief of the Portuguese army for eleven years. He was held in such high esteem by Wellington that he made him Master General of Ordinance in his government of 1828.Published in hardback by Irish Academic Press, the book is available in good bookshops with a recommended retail price of 35 euro.