The Earl of Devonshire | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Lord Mountjoy c. 1594 | |
| Born | 1563 |
| Died | 3 April 1606 (aged 42–43) |
| Spouse | Lady Penelope Devereux |
| Children | Penelope Rich Mountjoy Blount, 1st Earl of Newport Elizabeth Blount John Blount |
| Parent(s) | James Blount, 6th Baron Mountjoy Catherine Legh |
Charles Blount, 1st Earl of Devonshire, KG (pronounced Blunt; 1563 – 3 April 1606) was an English nobleman and soldier who served as Lord Deputy of Ireland under Queen Elizabeth I, and later as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland under King James I.
He succeeded to the family title as 8th Baron Mountjoy in 1594, before commanding the Crown's forces during the final years of Tyrone's Rebellion. He was able to defeat Tyrone at the Battle of Kinsale, and captured his headquarters at Dungannon before peace was agreed at the Treaty of Mellifont in 1603.
The old title of Earl of Devon was recreated for him in 1603, after returning to England, but he is usually referred to as Lord Mountjoy, his title during the most important part of his career, in Ireland. Since it was much later decided that the "Devon" earldom had not in fact become extinct, but was merely "in abeyance" in 1603, he is usually now regarded retrospectively as the 1st Earl of Devonshire. He is not related to the later Cavendish Earls (then Dukes) of Devonshire from the second creation in 1618.