Daniel Charles O'Connell

Who was Daniel Charles O'Connell?

Daniel Charles, Count O'Connell was the uncle of Daniel O'Connell "the Liberator." He was from a noble family of Derrynane House, County Kerry, Ireland, but because of the Penal Laws of the time, which forbade a Catholic to have any education or profession, he, like many other ambitious young Irishmen, went to the Continent for an education, and remained abroad. He entered the service of the king of France in the Royal Swedish Regiment in 1761, and in 1769 was transferred to Lord Clare's Regiment of the Irish Brigade and served in Europe and Mauritius until 1778. Then he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel and transferred back to the Royal Swedish Regiment, with which he saw action at the siege of Port Mahon and at the Great Siege of Gibraltar. "At Gibraltar he was on board one of the famous floating batteries and was severely wounded." He was later appointed Colonel Commander of the Salm-Salm Regiment, and was created a Chevalier of the Order of Saint Louis. He also was appointed to a military committee charged with revising French infantry tactics.

Daniel Charles O'Connell was created Count O'Connell by Louis XVI in 1785.