St. Leger family historical importance was Gen. Anthony St. Leger. He was born in 1731, probably in Kildare, Ireland. He was one of a group of noblemen and gentlemen who in 1778 gathered for a private dinner party in an upper room of the Red Lion Inn, which stands in the market square in Doncaster. A horse race, which was to set the pattern for classic racing throughout the world, had been christened the St. Leger at the suggestion of Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham. The race, a sweepstake for three-year-olds, had been born two years earlier in 1776, at the suggestion
St Leger St Leger, 1st Viscount Doneraile several other members of his family, he served in the Irish House of Commons as the Member of Parliament for Doneraile, sitting between 1749 and 1776. On 2 July 1776, St Leger was created Baron Doneraile in the Peerage of Ireland. On 5 January 1785, he was created Viscount Doneraile, of Doneraile in County Cork, the title previously held by his maternal relations. He married Mary Barry, the daughter of Redmond Barry, and together they had six children, including Hayes St Leger, 2nd Viscount. St Leger St Leger, 1st Viscount Doneraile St Leger St Leger, 1st Viscount Doneraile (born St