George Grace, Esq, Brittas, Tipperary
My ggg grandmother was Maria Grace, who emigrated to Australia. Her father was George Grace married to Hannah Anne Lane, her paternal grandfather was George Grace, barrister and Proprietor of the Clonmel Herald and, following the male line, her grandfather was George Grace Esq of Brittas, married to Mary Egan or Carroll, then Martha Clarke. This earliest George was a nephew of Oliver Grace of Brittas Castle, Tipperary and inherited the estate when Oliver's sons died without male issue (described in the will extracts from both Oliver and George). I'm struggling to determine who George's father was and to work out who was the father of Oliver and his brother. Oliver's youngest daughter Margaret inherited Brittas Castle and it passed to Henry Langley when she married. Henry Langley wrote that Margaret's father Oliver was the grandson of John Grace of Brittas by his wife Joan, daughter of Thomas Butler Esq of Brittas. A Deed of Settlement in 1666 gave the castle and lands of Brittas to John Grace Esq. NUI Galway states that the Grace family seem to have inherited the Brittas estate from their Butler connections. St Mary's churchyard Thurles has a Grace memorial for John Grace of Brittas Castle, married to Ellen Purcell of Loughmore Castle. This John died in 1683. I found an extract of his will which leaves furniture, pictures, book, money to his sons Nicholas, Richard and James and to his daughter Macdonnell. The money was stored in chests in Brittas castle but there's no mention in the extract of whether the castle itself or any lands passed to a son. I'm wondering whether anyone has an historical knowledge of the Grace families in Tipperary or any ideas about how I can further unravel the Grace familiy connections. I haven't been able to find where any are buried, other than John mentioned above and George Grace the barrister who is buried in St Mary's church, Clonmel. Mabel Langley has a recording entitled Irish Life and Lore in which she mentions the family graveyard at Brittas. Does anyone know about this and if it is there, any way I could find out what the inscriptions are?