I am not able to give all the matter kindly sent to me—which I hope Dr Grattan-Flood will make public—but append his observations on the most important points:—
"Henry Purcell, the composer, was the younger son of Henry Purcell the Elder; and was adopted at the age of six by his uncle Thomas. The puzzle, then, is: Who was the father of Henry Purcell the Elder and of Thomas Purcell?
"In order to answer this, I have made a systematic search in the Fiants of Elizabeth and James I, in the Calendars of State Papers, Ireland, 1623-1670, in the Inquisitions, Funeral Entries in the Office of Arms, etc., and have succeeded in tracing the father and grandfather of Henry Purcell the Elder. I had unusual opportunities of making this investigation inasmuch as I assisted Capt R. P. Mahaffy, B.L., in the editing of the Irish State Papers of Charles I and Charles II.
"Henry Purcell the Elder was the son of Thomas Purcell of Gortanny and Ballycross, Co. Tipperary, the son of Thomas Fitz Piers Purcell, cousin of the Baron of Loughmoe, and cousin of the Purcells of Croagh, Co. Limerick. Both Henry and Thomas Purcell were brought when quite young to England by their aunt, and placed in the Chapel Royal. Their aunt was a blood-relation of the Marquis of Ormonde, who was on intimate terms with King Charles I. Mrs James Purcell, their aunt, took for her second husband Colonel John Fitzpatrick, who was also a personal friend of Charles I and of Charles II. This lady was Elizabeth Butler, 4th daughter of Thomas, Viscount Thurles; her marriage jointure is dated 11 February, 1639. She returned from London in 1643.
At the Restoration, through the influence of the Marquis of Ormonde, who was created Duke of Ormonde on March 30, 1661, both Henry Purcell the Elder and his brother Thomas were given posts as Gentlemen in the Chapel Royal, and were in the immediate entourage of the Court, and not unregarded by the observant Pepys. Henry married circa 1651, and his eldest son, Edward, called after an uncle of the same name, was born in 1653."
"W. H. GRATTAN-FLOOD."
It will be seen Dr Grattan-Flood gives interesting particulars of the Irish family. On one point the suggestion that the elder Purcell and his brother Thomas were "placed in the Chapel Royal," I wish he could give some real proof, for it would, I think, explain all the ensuing musical success of Purcell's father, his Uncle Thomas, and himself. But I can only hope that Dr Grattan-Flood's further researches may end in completely clearing up the mystery of the ancestry of Henry Purcell.
J.F.B.
[[1]] Mr Hooper, the Organist, and Mr John Parsons, the Master of the Choristers, both had houses in the Little Almonry in 1616. Their names appear on a document of that time, a lease from Dr Montaigne and the Chapter.