General Sir Richard Bourke K.C.B. Governor New South Wales 1831 -1837
Oil by Sir Martin Arthur Shee, held by State Library of NSW, Sydney.
Oil by Sir Martin Arthur Shee, held by State Library of NSW, Sydney.
General Sir Richard Bourke, K. C. B.
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Bourke’s Parakeet––– Neopsephotus bourkeii
When Thomas Livingston Mitchell (1792 – 1855) set out from Fort Bourke in 1835* in yet another of his many journeys of exploration in New South Wales, - there is little doubt but on discovery of a new species of parakeet, (Neopsephotus Bourkeii – “New inlaid with pebbles.”) he was influenced in naming it after a `comrade at arms` serving seven years as Governor of New South Wales, - General Sir Richard Bourke, K. C. B. (1777-1855)
Two years on from the discovery of the Bourke’s parrot in 1837 Richard Bourke was to travel back to Ireland having served one term of seven years as Governor. He choose the circuitous route home calling at Fiji, then going up the Andes, across Argentina by mule, before finally leaving for Ireland from Rio de Janeiro that took him more than a year to complete.
Who was Sir Richard Bourke? The Bourkes from whom Sir Richard descends came to Ireland with the Anglo-Norman invasion of 1169/70, - then known as deBurgo, and to be more specific, - in a genealogical tree by John Sheehan of Castleconnell, for Gerard Bourke (of which more later) William Fitzadelm de Burgo, married Isabel daughter of Richard Coeur de Lion, and settled in Castleconnell Co. Limerick in 1199, having been viceroy of Ireland in AD. 1177.
The young Richard Bourke attended school at Westminster and while here he would on occasion visit and spend holidays with his relative (second cousin once removed) the statesman, Edmund Burke, at his home in Beaconsfield. He also studied at Oxford where he had taken a law degree. He opted for a career in the army. He joined the Grenadier Guards and when only a young ensign he was wounded in the battle of the Helde in Holland in 1801.
He was involved in three campaigns in the River Plate, Argentina, in 1806-1807.
He was superintendent of the military academy at High Wycombe where in addition to military matters, he taught Spanish, classics and law, and it was while in this post in 1811 he bought the house and estate of 180 acres then called `Shanavoy` (later renamed `Thornfields` by Richard) situated just six miles east of Limerick city.
It would appear that he enjoyed farming his small estate, (singularly not shared by any of his successors.) and had a keen interest in botany. Hundreds of trees are testimony to this, none more so than two magnificent `Cedar of Lebanon` that are today, standing sentinel over all beside the lawn.
After four months on the high seas, a journey that must have taken its toll on his beloved wife Betsy (who died just five months after arriving in Sydney) Richard took up his appointment as governor of New South Wales on the 3rd December 1831
We know that Richard was a most devout, liberal, and fair minded, of the Protestant faith. Shortly after his arrival in Sydney he discovered that there were moves afoot to have the Church of England declared the established church of New South Wales He moved against this position, no doubt his experience in Ireland standing him in good stead as two years prior to his departure for New South Wales, (1829) Catholic Emancipation was enacted through the House of Commons under the stewardship of its Irish born Prime Minister, the celebrated Duke of Wellington. But in fact ever before he left to go abroad Richard established a school for 70 pupils just across the road from Thornfields at Ahane in 1825. In documents recently discovered in a solicitor’s office in Limerick were a set of rules for the running of the school, and in the words of Gerard Bourke in his biography, “Equal tuition for both religions stands proudly first among them”. Bourke gave equality of religions through the Church Act of 1836.His reforms also extended to the Administration of Justice and Education. He decreed that education follow the Irish National Model in which the syllabus was agreed by Anglican, Catholic, and other protestant religions.
When in 1835 John Batman explored the area around Port Phillip Bay and the Yarra River where he discovered wonderful grazing land he proceeded to do some sort of barter or deal to lease or purchase the land from the local Aborigines.
Later Batman was to send John Fawkner with a party of six to settle on the land. After landing his party from his boat, Fawkner returned for provisions. This interaction between Batman and Fawkner has led to controversy among Australians as to who actually founded `Melbourne, ` Batman, or Fawkner`?
The Irish Pioneer Journalist, Edward Finn, wrote under the pen name of `Garryowen`. All with an interest in rugby football will be familiar with `a Garryowen` but it may not be known to all that Garryowen is a suburb of Limerick city in the parish of St. John. It is obvious that Finn had a Garryowen connection and could be described in the language of the Limerick city dweller as, - `one of our own`.
Writing in the chronicles of early Melbourne (1888) Finn declares: - “It was not Fawkner, but Fawkner’s party of five men and a woman, and the woman’s cat, were the bona-fida founders of Melbourne.”
On hearing of Batman’s dealings with the Aborigines and the putting in place the settlement on the Yarra River, Governor Bourke lost no time in acting in the interests of the Crown with the issuing of a `proclamation`.
By His Excellency Major General Sir Richard Bourke, K. C. B. Commanding His Majesty’s Forces, Captain General and Governor in Chief of the Territory of New South Wales and its Dependencies, and Vice Admiral of the same &c &c &c
"Whereas, it has been represented to me, that divers of His Majesty’s Subjects have taken possession of vacant Lands of the Crown, within the limits of this Colony, under the pretence of a treaty, bargain or contract, for the purchase thereof with the Aboriginal Natives; Now therefore, I, the Governor, in virtue and in exercise of the power and authority in me vested, do hereby proclaim and notify to all His Majesty’s Subjects and others whom it may concern, that every such treaty, bargain, and contract with the Aboriginal Natives, as aforesaid, for the possession, title, or claim to any Lands, lying and being within the limits of the Government of the Colony of New South Wales, as the same are laid down and defined by His Majesty’s Commission; that is to say, – `Governor Bourke then outlines the territories involved and ends with`,– is void and of no effect against the rights of the Crown, and that all Persons who shall be found in possession of any such lands as aforesaid, without the license or authority of his Majesty’s Government for such purpose, first had and obtained will be considered as trespassers, and liable to be dealt with in like manner as other intruders upon the vacant Lands of the Crown within the said Colony."
Given under my Hand and Seal, at Government House, Sydney, this twenty sixth Day of August, One thousand eight hundred and thirty five.
(Signed) “Richard Bourke”
What is interesting here, taken in the context of the period when communication to the homeland could take many months, Bourke had to use his skill and judgement in steering a steady course in the interests of the Crown as Governor of New South Wales?
The fact that a settlement was already up and running at this location was known to Bourke. Instructing his Assistant Surveyor General, Robert Hoddle to accompany him they arrived at the settlement on the 4th March 1837 for the purpose of laying out the town. It is quite apparent that Bourke took an active part in the planning of the town as there was a disagreement between Hoddle and himself as to the width of the main streets, Bourke believing them to be too wide and suggesting that they be reduced by quite a number of feet. On the other hand Hoddle was of the opinion that the streets leading off the main streets that Bourke had proposed, and were to be developed into `Mews` (for the well off), were much too narrow. In the end there was a compromise by the men with each having his way with regard to the streets. It is said that the people of Melbourne should be thankful to Hoddle for insisting that the wide main streets remain, for as congested as Melbourne is today it could be much worse had Bourke’s suggestion been acted upon. The Governors secretary suggested that the settlement be named `Glenalg` but Bourke overruled this and proposed that it be named `Melbourne` in honour, and as a complement, to Lord Melbourne the then Prime Minister of Great Britain. Governor Bourke wrote to the Prime Minister requesting permission to have the settlement named in his honour. In giving his permission, it is said that the Prime Minister added the remark, - “Nobody will ever hear anything of it”.
Bourke also named `Williamstown, in honour of King William IV, - it is the oldest suburb of Melbourne, and now a city in its own right. It is interesting to note that for a brief period during the First World War, the Bourke’s leased Thornfields to a family of `Gore`by name and soon to be related through marriage. When Gerard Gore, an only son, went off to war when only 18 years old and was killed in action, his grief stricken mother to help the war effort, gathered up what waste paper she could put her hands on within the confines of Thornfields. Included in the bundles of paper was the original map of Melbourne.
Before leaving the question as to who founded Melbourne, - there can be no doubt but Bourke had the city mapped out and named and having done so had the various properties (Which included Bourke Street, and Elizabeth Street, the latter after his wife) leased to interested parties in a series of auctions that followed. That being said however, there is equally no doubt, and is given recognition by the Australian Government in recent years, - that going back into the mists of time, here, in this place, roamed always, the native Aboriginal people. It is said also, that Bourke’s plan to give the Aborigines an education was met by much opposition and this was a determining factor in making up his mind not to seek a second term of office.
Dr. Hazel King’s account of Governor Bourke’s departure from Australia in 1837:
“On the day of his departure, so many gentlemen attended his `levee` at Government House that it took an hour for them to file past and make their farewell bows. The opposition press expressed amazement at the number of `respectable` persons who attended. With the scenes on the foreshore and on the harbour however, it was disgusted. For here, the `shirtless and shoeless friends of the Governor thronged to applaud him: the ruffians followed him by land-by water too. Those who had hats waved them triumphantly in the air; those who had not, contented themselves with shouts that rent the sky.
As his ship rode down the harbour followed by a crowd of little boats, Bourke stood on deck bareheaded, waving in response to the cheers. Never had a governor of New South Wales been so acclaimed”.
With my interest in Australian Parakeets I was most curious to know how `Bourke’s Parakeet` got its name. Having posed the question to a like-minded group on the `net` and with a suspicion that there may well be an Irish connection, perhaps a transported convict? Back came one reply to my query, - “there was a Bourke, a governor of New South Wales”.
One can imagine my surprise when only one week later, and quite by chance, I tuned in to a history programme on local radio, to find been interviewed, Gerard Bourke, the great, great, grandson of General Sir Richard Bourke. I was amazed to discover that here was an 82 year old, the last male in the line, and living in the same house that Sir Richard purchased all those years ago. I resolved that if at all possible I should meet with him.
With Gerard Bourke’s Autobiography in my possession, I made my way on a most pleasant late afternoon on Thursday 14th June 2004, to `Thornfields` Lisnagry, Co Limerick. The book, `Out on a Limb` had been the subject of the history programme referred to earlier, and in it Gerard gives an account of his childhood days at Thornfields. Later having gone to London, he discusses his interest in classical music, operas etc, having secured a job as a music critic with the Irish Times.
He states in his book that he knew at an early age that because of his orientation he was going to be the last of his line of Bourke’s, - he was not going to marry and live the lie, is how he puts it. On inheriting Thornfields in the early nineteen sixties, he, Gerard, with his partner George, returned to Ireland with the intention of selling the property. With an offer of no more than £3,000, which was less than a third of its value in Gerard’s estimation, (perhaps far less than this in real terms) the pair decided to remain on and restore Thornfields that was by now greatly run down and badly in need of repair. The £5 paid him by the `Irish Times` for a review of his night at the opera was never going to make him a rich man, and consequently, the restoration of the old house was going to mean a great deal of hard labour, ingenuity, great personal sacrifice, and inevitably, the sale of almost all of Sir Richard’s remaining artifacts and belongings.
As we drove along the winding avenue to the great house one could not help but notice a most magnificent clump of Gunnera manicata positioned as it was in the middle of the lawn and now with the setting sun; in deep shade. A plant normally associated with water, - because of its enormous spread on what appeared to be dry lawn it somehow looked out of place. Could it perhaps be one of Sir Richard’s original plantings and be here for more than 150 years that might well explain this exceptional clump of giant rhubarb?
The great house suddenly appears, surrounded you might say by many large trees and while the scale of it is impressive it is not very striking in its architecture, a plain house is how I would describe it. Its front porch a copy of the one that is now the Old Government House, at Parramatta, on the outskirts of Sydney, put in place after Sir Richards return home, gives some relief to what is a very basic structure. An addition to the rear of the building perhaps necessary to accommodate the thirteen children of Sir Richard’s daughter Ann who was married to Deas Thomas, the Colonial Secretary who were frequent visitors to Thornfields when on holiday to Ireland does not help matters; as the whole now gives the viewer a sense of being off scale, -which of course it is.
It was here at this rear section of the house, which is now self-contained, that my host Gerard Bourke, on the steps leading to the front door, greeted me warmly and ushered me inside. I was immediately struck by the spaciousness of the drawing room. Three large windows reached for the ceiling, which must be all of eleven feet from the floor. The windows with their large timber shuttering that took so much time and effort to restore are put to the use for which they were made before the occupant retires for the night.
By the wall nearest the door stands a magnificent desk and accompanying cabinets. A `cabinetmaker come undertaker` of Thomas Street, Limerick, made them for Sir Richard in 1817. Directly over the desk is an etching of the governor and on either side are the last remaining (Four) `Meissen` plates of a vast service that Sir Richard had ordered for his sojourns in South Africa and Australia.
Emblazoned on the plates is Sir Richards crest and various species of exotic butterfly.
At the desk, seated, Gerard Bourke, with Danny Quain
On returning home to Thornfields on holiday, Gerard would remark, -“these are a new lot of butterflies,” the others having been broken in the meantime. Gerard informed me that I was very lucky to have seen the desk as Mealy auctioneers had already been and taken some photographs for their catalogue. “I have decided to auction it”, he declared. It was at this desk that Sir Richard helped edit Edmund Burke’s letters and papers, - one been found in a drawer as late as 1952. Gerard visited Australia on a number of occasions in the 1980’s. He visited Old Government House at Parramatta that was to be Sir Richards’s residence for the duration of his time in office. On display here are portraits of the first ten governors, Sir Richard being the eight in line. Close by is St. John’s Cathedral and graveyard where Gerard visited the grave of his great-great-grandmother, very happy to pay his respects and place some flowers –“they came from Thornfields with my love and admiration”.
An invitation to Admiralty House, the Sydney residence of the Governor-General was the highlight of his visit. He was shown round the state dining room. Prominently displayed, - “were our two fine crested silver-plated candelabra, two wine coolers, and four candlesticks, by Matthew Boulton that the Australian Government bought at my auction at Thornfields”.
Much is written about Sir Richard during his period as governor of New South Wales and before, but what after his return to Thornfields, did he retire gracefully from public life and potter about in his garden?
On his return to Limerick, Sir Richard became a member of the Judiciary, subsequently he became High Sheriff, and he is credited with being a founder member of the `Athenaeum` when with others he donated £5 in 1852.
He is credited with helping William Monsell of Tervoe, (M.P. 1847) to establish an Agricultural College at Mungret.
General Sir Richard Bourke died at home at Thornfields in 1855, and is buried just two miles distant in the lovely village of Castleconnell on the banks of the Shannon.
When I informed Gerard that it was my intention to visit the grave of Sir Richard, he told me that just a few years ago, he was rummaging about in a drawer full of keys’ to find but one with a label that read `vault`. Whether it was curiosity or for some other reason, (it hadn’t been opened in the twentieth century) - Gerard himself says he was persuaded, in any event, he had a local man oil the lock and hinges.
“Inside; his coffin draped in purple, bordered with silver, looking completely undecayed. Six other family members keep him company in death. We laid flowers, prayed, and closed the vault.”
The vault made by James Pain is a square stone structure, with its roof raised from all four sides to form a point over the center. Stone steps that are guarded by an iron railing reach its entrance door below groundlevel. Over the door a plaque reads: -
THE BURIAL PLACE
OF
GENERAL SIR RICHARD BOURKE K.C.B.
AND OF HIS DESCENDANTS
I asked Gerard if he were aware that there was a grass parakeet named after his great ancestor. He told me that a London ornithologist had informed him of such on hearing that he was Australia bound. He told me of his disappointment at viewing a glass case full of stuffed birds in one of the corridors of Old Government House and not a Bourke’s parrot among them. He visited Sydney Zoo and asked at reception, - is there really a Bourke parrot. Yes, there is, sir, she said, - cage 13. She sent an attendant along with him to see how he would greet the Bourke emblem. What greeted him was a forlorn parrot, standing, as he was in a bunch of feathers, obviously in the severest throes of the moult, and looking all of what gives rise to the expression, -“as sick as a parrot”. Gerard was fortunate however, to receive a T-shirt showing two beautiful Bourke’s parakeets, a gift from a Limerick friend, bought in Bahrain and made in Thailand, - “it was the last one in the shop too!”
Footnote:
Thomas Livingston Mitchell – 1792 – 1855
Thomas Livingston Mitchell was born the son of a harbour master, at Craigend, Sterlingshire, Scotland in 1792. He was to join the army where he rose to the rank of Major. He had a distinguished career as a surveyor in the Napoleonic Peninsular Wars in Spain. He excelled as a surveyor and mapmaker; some of his maps are in use to the present day.
He succeeded on the death of General Surveyor Oxley in 1827, a post he held until 1851.
Major Mitchell carried out three extensive exploration expeditions in northern and western New South Wales between the years 1831 – 1837.
Exploring the McIntire River 1831. The Bolgan and the Darling 1835. Following the Lachlan, Murnumbridge and Murray down to the Darling to west of Discovery Bay, 1836/7.
Mitchell had encountered opposition to his exploration from some of the native Aborigines resulting in a small number of fatalities on both sides. It was his fear of attack from the Aborigines that Mitchell built a fort and named it after his governor `Bourke` in 1835. It would appear that this was not of a substantial construction however, as it soon disappeared, but not before a settlement grew up around it, that is now the town called `Bourke`. With a population of around 3,500 it is located on the Darling River in far Western New South Wales, and is 789 km. northwest of Sydney.
He was knighted, Sir Thomas Mitchell in 1839 and he died of pneumonia on the 5th October 1855.
The Wild Type Bourke’s Parakeet as Mitchell discovered it. Photo courtesy, Bob Fregeres.
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Bourke’s Parakeet––– Neopsephotus bourkeii
When Thomas Livingston Mitchell (1792 – 1855) set out from Fort Bourke in 1835* in yet another of his many journeys of exploration in New South Wales, - there is little doubt but on discovery of a new species of parakeet, (Neopsephotus Bourkeii – “New inlaid with pebbles.”) he was influenced in naming it after a `comrade at arms` serving seven years as Governor of New South Wales, - General Sir Richard Bourke, K. C. B. (1777-1855)
Two years on from the discovery of the Bourke’s parrot in 1837 Richard Bourke was to travel back to Ireland having served one term of seven years as Governor. He choose the circuitous route home calling at Fiji, then going up the Andes, across Argentina by mule, before finally leaving for Ireland from Rio de Janeiro that took him more than a year to complete.
Who was Sir Richard Bourke? The Bourkes from whom Sir Richard descends came to Ireland with the Anglo-Norman invasion of 1169/70, - then known as deBurgo, and to be more specific, - in a genealogical tree by John Sheehan of Castleconnell, for Gerard Bourke (of which more later) William Fitzadelm de Burgo, married Isabel daughter of Richard Coeur de Lion, and settled in Castleconnell Co. Limerick in 1199, having been viceroy of Ireland in AD. 1177.
The young Richard Bourke attended school at Westminster and while here he would on occasion visit and spend holidays with his relative (second cousin once removed) the statesman, Edmund Burke, at his home in Beaconsfield. He also studied at Oxford where he had taken a law degree. He opted for a career in the army. He joined the Grenadier Guards and when only a young ensign he was wounded in the battle of the Helde in Holland in 1801.
He was involved in three campaigns in the River Plate, Argentina, in 1806-1807.
He was superintendent of the military academy at High Wycombe where in addition to military matters, he taught Spanish, classics and law, and it was while in this post in 1811 he bought the house and estate of 180 acres then called `Shanavoy` (later renamed `Thornfields` by Richard) situated just six miles east of Limerick city.
It would appear that he enjoyed farming his small estate, (singularly not shared by any of his successors.) and had a keen interest in botany. Hundreds of trees are testimony to this, none more so than two magnificent `Cedar of Lebanon` that are today, standing sentinel over all beside the lawn.
After four months on the high seas, a journey that must have taken its toll on his beloved wife Betsy (who died just five months after arriving in Sydney) Richard took up his appointment as governor of New South Wales on the 3rd December 1831
We know that Richard was a most devout, liberal, and fair minded, of the Protestant faith. Shortly after his arrival in Sydney he discovered that there were moves afoot to have the Church of England declared the established church of New South Wales He moved against this position, no doubt his experience in Ireland standing him in good stead as two years prior to his departure for New South Wales, (1829) Catholic Emancipation was enacted through the House of Commons under the stewardship of its Irish born Prime Minister, the celebrated Duke of Wellington. But in fact ever before he left to go abroad Richard established a school for 70 pupils just across the road from Thornfields at Ahane in 1825. In documents recently discovered in a solicitor’s office in Limerick were a set of rules for the running of the school, and in the words of Gerard Bourke in his biography, “Equal tuition for both religions stands proudly first among them”. Bourke gave equality of religions through the Church Act of 1836.His reforms also extended to the Administration of Justice and Education. He decreed that education follow the Irish National Model in which the syllabus was agreed by Anglican, Catholic, and other protestant religions.
When in 1835 John Batman explored the area around Port Phillip Bay and the Yarra River where he discovered wonderful grazing land he proceeded to do some sort of barter or deal to lease or purchase the land from the local Aborigines.
Later Batman was to send John Fawkner with a party of six to settle on the land. After landing his party from his boat, Fawkner returned for provisions. This interaction between Batman and Fawkner has led to controversy among Australians as to who actually founded `Melbourne, ` Batman, or Fawkner`?
The Irish Pioneer Journalist, Edward Finn, wrote under the pen name of `Garryowen`. All with an interest in rugby football will be familiar with `a Garryowen` but it may not be known to all that Garryowen is a suburb of Limerick city in the parish of St. John. It is obvious that Finn had a Garryowen connection and could be described in the language of the Limerick city dweller as, - `one of our own`.
Writing in the chronicles of early Melbourne (1888) Finn declares: - “It was not Fawkner, but Fawkner’s party of five men and a woman, and the woman’s cat, were the bona-fida founders of Melbourne.”
On hearing of Batman’s dealings with the Aborigines and the putting in place the settlement on the Yarra River, Governor Bourke lost no time in acting in the interests of the Crown with the issuing of a `proclamation`.
By His Excellency Major General Sir Richard Bourke, K. C. B. Commanding His Majesty’s Forces, Captain General and Governor in Chief of the Territory of New South Wales and its Dependencies, and Vice Admiral of the same &c &c &c
"Whereas, it has been represented to me, that divers of His Majesty’s Subjects have taken possession of vacant Lands of the Crown, within the limits of this Colony, under the pretence of a treaty, bargain or contract, for the purchase thereof with the Aboriginal Natives; Now therefore, I, the Governor, in virtue and in exercise of the power and authority in me vested, do hereby proclaim and notify to all His Majesty’s Subjects and others whom it may concern, that every such treaty, bargain, and contract with the Aboriginal Natives, as aforesaid, for the possession, title, or claim to any Lands, lying and being within the limits of the Government of the Colony of New South Wales, as the same are laid down and defined by His Majesty’s Commission; that is to say, – `Governor Bourke then outlines the territories involved and ends with`,– is void and of no effect against the rights of the Crown, and that all Persons who shall be found in possession of any such lands as aforesaid, without the license or authority of his Majesty’s Government for such purpose, first had and obtained will be considered as trespassers, and liable to be dealt with in like manner as other intruders upon the vacant Lands of the Crown within the said Colony."
Given under my Hand and Seal, at Government House, Sydney, this twenty sixth Day of August, One thousand eight hundred and thirty five.
(Signed) “Richard Bourke”
What is interesting here, taken in the context of the period when communication to the homeland could take many months, Bourke had to use his skill and judgement in steering a steady course in the interests of the Crown as Governor of New South Wales?
The fact that a settlement was already up and running at this location was known to Bourke. Instructing his Assistant Surveyor General, Robert Hoddle to accompany him they arrived at the settlement on the 4th March 1837 for the purpose of laying out the town. It is quite apparent that Bourke took an active part in the planning of the town as there was a disagreement between Hoddle and himself as to the width of the main streets, Bourke believing them to be too wide and suggesting that they be reduced by quite a number of feet. On the other hand Hoddle was of the opinion that the streets leading off the main streets that Bourke had proposed, and were to be developed into `Mews` (for the well off), were much too narrow. In the end there was a compromise by the men with each having his way with regard to the streets. It is said that the people of Melbourne should be thankful to Hoddle for insisting that the wide main streets remain, for as congested as Melbourne is today it could be much worse had Bourke’s suggestion been acted upon. The Governors secretary suggested that the settlement be named `Glenalg` but Bourke overruled this and proposed that it be named `Melbourne` in honour, and as a complement, to Lord Melbourne the then Prime Minister of Great Britain. Governor Bourke wrote to the Prime Minister requesting permission to have the settlement named in his honour. In giving his permission, it is said that the Prime Minister added the remark, - “Nobody will ever hear anything of it”.
Bourke also named `Williamstown, in honour of King William IV, - it is the oldest suburb of Melbourne, and now a city in its own right. It is interesting to note that for a brief period during the First World War, the Bourke’s leased Thornfields to a family of `Gore`by name and soon to be related through marriage. When Gerard Gore, an only son, went off to war when only 18 years old and was killed in action, his grief stricken mother to help the war effort, gathered up what waste paper she could put her hands on within the confines of Thornfields. Included in the bundles of paper was the original map of Melbourne.
Before leaving the question as to who founded Melbourne, - there can be no doubt but Bourke had the city mapped out and named and having done so had the various properties (Which included Bourke Street, and Elizabeth Street, the latter after his wife) leased to interested parties in a series of auctions that followed. That being said however, there is equally no doubt, and is given recognition by the Australian Government in recent years, - that going back into the mists of time, here, in this place, roamed always, the native Aboriginal people. It is said also, that Bourke’s plan to give the Aborigines an education was met by much opposition and this was a determining factor in making up his mind not to seek a second term of office.
Dr. Hazel King’s account of Governor Bourke’s departure from Australia in 1837:
“On the day of his departure, so many gentlemen attended his `levee` at Government House that it took an hour for them to file past and make their farewell bows. The opposition press expressed amazement at the number of `respectable` persons who attended. With the scenes on the foreshore and on the harbour however, it was disgusted. For here, the `shirtless and shoeless friends of the Governor thronged to applaud him: the ruffians followed him by land-by water too. Those who had hats waved them triumphantly in the air; those who had not, contented themselves with shouts that rent the sky.
As his ship rode down the harbour followed by a crowd of little boats, Bourke stood on deck bareheaded, waving in response to the cheers. Never had a governor of New South Wales been so acclaimed”.
With my interest in Australian Parakeets I was most curious to know how `Bourke’s Parakeet` got its name. Having posed the question to a like-minded group on the `net` and with a suspicion that there may well be an Irish connection, perhaps a transported convict? Back came one reply to my query, - “there was a Bourke, a governor of New South Wales”.
One can imagine my surprise when only one week later, and quite by chance, I tuned in to a history programme on local radio, to find been interviewed, Gerard Bourke, the great, great, grandson of General Sir Richard Bourke. I was amazed to discover that here was an 82 year old, the last male in the line, and living in the same house that Sir Richard purchased all those years ago. I resolved that if at all possible I should meet with him.
With Gerard Bourke’s Autobiography in my possession, I made my way on a most pleasant late afternoon on Thursday 14th June 2004, to `Thornfields` Lisnagry, Co Limerick. The book, `Out on a Limb` had been the subject of the history programme referred to earlier, and in it Gerard gives an account of his childhood days at Thornfields. Later having gone to London, he discusses his interest in classical music, operas etc, having secured a job as a music critic with the Irish Times.
He states in his book that he knew at an early age that because of his orientation he was going to be the last of his line of Bourke’s, - he was not going to marry and live the lie, is how he puts it. On inheriting Thornfields in the early nineteen sixties, he, Gerard, with his partner George, returned to Ireland with the intention of selling the property. With an offer of no more than £3,000, which was less than a third of its value in Gerard’s estimation, (perhaps far less than this in real terms) the pair decided to remain on and restore Thornfields that was by now greatly run down and badly in need of repair. The £5 paid him by the `Irish Times` for a review of his night at the opera was never going to make him a rich man, and consequently, the restoration of the old house was going to mean a great deal of hard labour, ingenuity, great personal sacrifice, and inevitably, the sale of almost all of Sir Richard’s remaining artifacts and belongings.
As we drove along the winding avenue to the great house one could not help but notice a most magnificent clump of Gunnera manicata positioned as it was in the middle of the lawn and now with the setting sun; in deep shade. A plant normally associated with water, - because of its enormous spread on what appeared to be dry lawn it somehow looked out of place. Could it perhaps be one of Sir Richard’s original plantings and be here for more than 150 years that might well explain this exceptional clump of giant rhubarb?
The great house suddenly appears, surrounded you might say by many large trees and while the scale of it is impressive it is not very striking in its architecture, a plain house is how I would describe it. Its front porch a copy of the one that is now the Old Government House, at Parramatta, on the outskirts of Sydney, put in place after Sir Richards return home, gives some relief to what is a very basic structure. An addition to the rear of the building perhaps necessary to accommodate the thirteen children of Sir Richard’s daughter Ann who was married to Deas Thomas, the Colonial Secretary who were frequent visitors to Thornfields when on holiday to Ireland does not help matters; as the whole now gives the viewer a sense of being off scale, -which of course it is.
It was here at this rear section of the house, which is now self-contained, that my host Gerard Bourke, on the steps leading to the front door, greeted me warmly and ushered me inside. I was immediately struck by the spaciousness of the drawing room. Three large windows reached for the ceiling, which must be all of eleven feet from the floor. The windows with their large timber shuttering that took so much time and effort to restore are put to the use for which they were made before the occupant retires for the night.
By the wall nearest the door stands a magnificent desk and accompanying cabinets. A `cabinetmaker come undertaker` of Thomas Street, Limerick, made them for Sir Richard in 1817. Directly over the desk is an etching of the governor and on either side are the last remaining (Four) `Meissen` plates of a vast service that Sir Richard had ordered for his sojourns in South Africa and Australia.
Emblazoned on the plates is Sir Richards crest and various species of exotic butterfly.
At the desk, seated, Gerard Bourke, with Danny Quain
On returning home to Thornfields on holiday, Gerard would remark, -“these are a new lot of butterflies,” the others having been broken in the meantime. Gerard informed me that I was very lucky to have seen the desk as Mealy auctioneers had already been and taken some photographs for their catalogue. “I have decided to auction it”, he declared. It was at this desk that Sir Richard helped edit Edmund Burke’s letters and papers, - one been found in a drawer as late as 1952. Gerard visited Australia on a number of occasions in the 1980’s. He visited Old Government House at Parramatta that was to be Sir Richards’s residence for the duration of his time in office. On display here are portraits of the first ten governors, Sir Richard being the eight in line. Close by is St. John’s Cathedral and graveyard where Gerard visited the grave of his great-great-grandmother, very happy to pay his respects and place some flowers –“they came from Thornfields with my love and admiration”.
An invitation to Admiralty House, the Sydney residence of the Governor-General was the highlight of his visit. He was shown round the state dining room. Prominently displayed, - “were our two fine crested silver-plated candelabra, two wine coolers, and four candlesticks, by Matthew Boulton that the Australian Government bought at my auction at Thornfields”.
Much is written about Sir Richard during his period as governor of New South Wales and before, but what after his return to Thornfields, did he retire gracefully from public life and potter about in his garden?
On his return to Limerick, Sir Richard became a member of the Judiciary, subsequently he became High Sheriff, and he is credited with being a founder member of the `Athenaeum` when with others he donated £5 in 1852.
He is credited with helping William Monsell of Tervoe, (M.P. 1847) to establish an Agricultural College at Mungret.
General Sir Richard Bourke died at home at Thornfields in 1855, and is buried just two miles distant in the lovely village of Castleconnell on the banks of the Shannon.
When I informed Gerard that it was my intention to visit the grave of Sir Richard, he told me that just a few years ago, he was rummaging about in a drawer full of keys’ to find but one with a label that read `vault`. Whether it was curiosity or for some other reason, (it hadn’t been opened in the twentieth century) - Gerard himself says he was persuaded, in any event, he had a local man oil the lock and hinges.
“Inside; his coffin draped in purple, bordered with silver, looking completely undecayed. Six other family members keep him company in death. We laid flowers, prayed, and closed the vault.”
The vault made by James Pain is a square stone structure, with its roof raised from all four sides to form a point over the center. Stone steps that are guarded by an iron railing reach its entrance door below groundlevel. Over the door a plaque reads: -
THE BURIAL PLACE
OF
GENERAL SIR RICHARD BOURKE K.C.B.
AND OF HIS DESCENDANTS
I asked Gerard if he were aware that there was a grass parakeet named after his great ancestor. He told me that a London ornithologist had informed him of such on hearing that he was Australia bound. He told me of his disappointment at viewing a glass case full of stuffed birds in one of the corridors of Old Government House and not a Bourke’s parrot among them. He visited Sydney Zoo and asked at reception, - is there really a Bourke parrot. Yes, there is, sir, she said, - cage 13. She sent an attendant along with him to see how he would greet the Bourke emblem. What greeted him was a forlorn parrot, standing, as he was in a bunch of feathers, obviously in the severest throes of the moult, and looking all of what gives rise to the expression, -“as sick as a parrot”. Gerard was fortunate however, to receive a T-shirt showing two beautiful Bourke’s parakeets, a gift from a Limerick friend, bought in Bahrain and made in Thailand, - “it was the last one in the shop too!”
Footnote:
Thomas Livingston Mitchell – 1792 – 1855
Thomas Livingston Mitchell was born the son of a harbour master, at Craigend, Sterlingshire, Scotland in 1792. He was to join the army where he rose to the rank of Major. He had a distinguished career as a surveyor in the Napoleonic Peninsular Wars in Spain. He excelled as a surveyor and mapmaker; some of his maps are in use to the present day.
He succeeded on the death of General Surveyor Oxley in 1827, a post he held until 1851.
Major Mitchell carried out three extensive exploration expeditions in northern and western New South Wales between the years 1831 – 1837.
Exploring the McIntire River 1831. The Bolgan and the Darling 1835. Following the Lachlan, Murnumbridge and Murray down to the Darling to west of Discovery Bay, 1836/7.
Mitchell had encountered opposition to his exploration from some of the native Aborigines resulting in a small number of fatalities on both sides. It was his fear of attack from the Aborigines that Mitchell built a fort and named it after his governor `Bourke` in 1835. It would appear that this was not of a substantial construction however, as it soon disappeared, but not before a settlement grew up around it, that is now the town called `Bourke`. With a population of around 3,500 it is located on the Darling River in far Western New South Wales, and is 789 km. northwest of Sydney.
He was knighted, Sir Thomas Mitchell in 1839 and he died of pneumonia on the 5th October 1855.
The Wild Type Bourke’s Parakeet as Mitchell discovered it. Photo courtesy, Bob Fregeres.
In 1835, Mitchell is credited with the discovery and naming of the Bourke’s parakeet Neophema bourkeii, (Now more correctly called Neopsephotus Bourkeii. The Bourke parakeet has a distribution in the wild that extends to the southwestern part of Queensland and into western New South Wales, through central Australia and to the north of South Australia and parts of the inland of Western Australia.
* In a fine article on Bourke’s Parakeets written by Graeme Hyde in “Cage and Aviary Birds” dated 24th February 2005, the following is stated: “Major Sir Thomas L. Mitchell, the Scottish surveyor and explorer first sighted the beautiful Australian Bourke’s Parakeet in 1835, along the banks of the Bogan River in New South Wales, south-east of the present-day town of Bourke. He named it after Sir Richard Bourke, who was at that time governor of New South Wales (1831 – 1837).”
Copyright: Danny Quain © Cóis Má. 2004-2008
Acknowledgement: The Image of General Sir Richard Bourke K.C.B. Governor of NSW 1831-1837, Oil by Sir Martin Arthur Shee,held by the State Library of NSW, Sydney.
References: -
An interview with Gerard Bourke, June 2004.
Photograph: A beautiful Bourke’s Blue opaline hen by kind permission of Bob Fregeres.
* In a fine article on Bourke’s Parakeets written by Graeme Hyde in “Cage and Aviary Birds” dated 24th February 2005, the following is stated: “Major Sir Thomas L. Mitchell, the Scottish surveyor and explorer first sighted the beautiful Australian Bourke’s Parakeet in 1835, along the banks of the Bogan River in New South Wales, south-east of the present-day town of Bourke. He named it after Sir Richard Bourke, who was at that time governor of New South Wales (1831 – 1837).”
Copyright: Danny Quain © Cóis Má. 2004-2008
Acknowledgement: The Image of General Sir Richard Bourke K.C.B. Governor of NSW 1831-1837, Oil by Sir Martin Arthur Shee,held by the State Library of NSW, Sydney.
References: -
An interview with Gerard Bourke, June 2004.
Photograph: A beautiful Bourke’s Blue opaline hen by kind permission of Bob Fregeres.
Bob Fregeres: Renowned expert and breeder of Bourke’s mutations
R. L. O. A History Programme, with Tony Browne.
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The World Wide Web.
R. L. O. A History Programme, with Tony Browne.
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The World Wide Web.
“Out on a Limb”, by Gerard Bourke.
K.C.B. Knight Commander of the Bath.
