Kerry Evening
Post 23 February
1901
Death of Old Warrior
We take the following from the Boston Western News…it
may be interesting to some of our readers: -
There has just died at Appalachicola, Florida, Mr.
Joseph Hansard, who was one of ‘The Six Hundred’ who was born in the town of Tipperary
of a good old English family, nearly all his ancestors being military men. His
father was the late John Hansard, who kept a wine and spirit establishment in
the town of Tipperary some eighty years ago, and was commonly known as ‘Captain
Johnny’, and this is how he came to Tipperary -In 1798 a volunteer regiment was
raised in Tipperary by the then Earl of Derby…and his lordship brought over
about 20 Englishmen to officer this corp. Amongst them was John Hansard, who,
when the rebellion subsided and the regiment was disbanded…settled there,
having married a Miss Lampier who was in business there, by whom he had several
sons - three of whom got free
commissions in the East India Company’s service, through the influence of the
Earl of Glengall, who then resided at Cahir Castle. The above-named Joseph Hansard,
who died last month in Florida was a lieutenant in the Ceylon Rifle Brigade,
volunteered for the Crimea in 1854, and was one of the ‘Gallant Six Hundred’,
who rode through the famous charge…he requested [that] his sword [be] given to
his nephew Mr. Joseph Hansard of Killarney…and all he regretted was that his
bones would lay in a foreign soil, and not with those of his ancestors in Tipperary,
or at Snenton, near Nottingham…and his last words were that either on the
battle-field or n a foreign land, he always upheld the dignity of the Crown and
the honor of his country...he desired to be remembered to General ‘Redan’ Massy,
COB, the present High Sheriff of Tipperary’.
Joseph Hansard (1835-1909) of Killarney lived in
Dungarvan for many years and had a printing office in Lower Main Street, where
he published his History of Waterford City & County in 1870.