Sir John Ponsonby (1608-1678), an Englishman and colonel of a regiment of horse in Cromwell’s army, received grants of land at Kildaton, co. Kilkenny, under the Act of Settlement, and renamed it Bessborough in honour of his 2^nd wife, Elizabeth. Their son, William, was created BARON BESSBOROUGH (11 Sep 1721) and VISCOUNT DUNCANNON (28 Feb 1722/3). His son, Brabazon, was created EARL of BESSBOROUGH (6 Oct 1739) and BARON PONSONBY of SYSNOBY, co. Leicester (12 June 1749). All but Sysnoby were in the peerage of Ireland.

John Ponsonby (1713-1789), the 3^rd son of the 1^st Earl of Bessborough, was speaker of the Irish House of Commons, 1756-71, until he lost a political battle with the Marquis of Townsend. He married, Sep 1733, Lady Elizabeth Cavendish, da. Of the 3^rd Duke of Devonshire. It was he who started the Inchiquin branch of the family, his property consisted of the Inchiquin estate (10,000 acres) in co. Cork and Bishop’s Court, co. Kilkenny (acquired 1721). His son, William (1744-1806), created 1^st BARRON PONSONBY of Inchiquin 13 Mar 1806, built a new house at Bishop’s Court approx. 1780, the house and Kilkenny land was sold to the 3^rd Earl of Clonmell in 1838, from this time it would appear that the Ponsonby family had no country residence. John Ponsonby, 2^nd Baron, a diplomat, was created, 1839, VISCOUNT PONSONBY, when he died in 1855 the Viscounty became extinct but the Barony and estate went to his nephew. The title eventually became extinct on the death of the 4^th Baron in 1866 but the estates were inherited by Charles William Talbot, his cousin and great grandson of the 1^st Baron, who, by royal licence, took the surname Ponsonby. C.W.T. Ponsonby was still the incumbent when the bulk of the estate was sold to the tenants in the early 1900s.

Other notable family members include: George Ponsonby (1755-1817) Whig leader, Irish chancellor; and leader of the opposition in the British House of Commons; John William (Ponsonby) 4^th Earl of Bessborough (1781-1847), Lord Lieutenant of Ireland; Major General Sir William Ponsonby, killed at Waterloo; Rt. Rev Richard Ponsonby, Bishop of Derry; Major General Sir Henry Frederick Ponsonby, served in the Crimea, later private secretary to Queen Victoria.

The Inchiquin estate (10,367 acres in 1881) was located principally in the civil parishes of Ardagh, Clonpriest and Kilmacdonogh but there were also a small number of townlands in Killeagh and Youghal. From the early 1800s the Ponsonby family had little to do with the running of the estate, preferring to leave it to their agent, in 1846 that was Robert Hudson of Winford, Youghal. The Cork Examiner, 1 Feb 1847, reported over 200 evictions. There were also evictions during the land wars of the 1880s including Michael Flavin of Clonard, one of my ancestors. It was not until the Wyndam Act of 1903 that most tenants were able to purchase their land.