Percy O'Reilly

{{Short description|Irish polo player}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}

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{{MedalSport | Men's Polo}}

{{MedalSilver| 1908 London | Team competition}}

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Captain Percy Philip O'Reilly (27 July 1870 – 3 July 1942) of Colamber Westmeath was an Irish polo player who competed at the 1908 Summer Olympics. Together with John Paul McCann, John Hardress Lloyd and Auston Rotheram, he was a member of the Ireland team that won a silver medal.[http://users.skynet.be/hermandw/olymp/cirla.html Olympians from Ireland (broken link)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070627125319/http://users.skynet.be/hermandw/olymp/cirla.html |date=2007-06-27 }}[http://www.databaseolympics.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=OREILPER01 www.databaseolympics.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070216163620/http://www.databaseolympics.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=OREILPER01 |date=2007-02-16 }} The Ireland team was part of the Great Britain Olympic team.{{cite web|url=https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/17981 |title=Percy O'Reilly |work=Olympedia |access-date=5 April 2021}} In 1911 he was an 8-goal handicap player. He was the only son of Philip O'Reilly and Anna Maria Nugent, the daughter of Sir Percy Nugent.

Captain Percy O'Reilly married Alice Eleanor Boyd-Rochfort of Middleton Park on 18 January 1900, she was the sister of Captain Sir Cecil Boyd-Rochfort royal horse trainer and daughter of Major Rochfort Hamilton Boyd-Rochfort.{{cite book |last1=Walford |first1=Edward |title=The county families of the United Kingdom; or, Royal manual of the titled}}

He was made High Sheriff of Westmeath in 1919.{{cite book |last1=Walford |first1=Edward |title=The county families of the United Kingdom; or, Royal manual of the titled}}

Captain Percy O'Reilly and Alice Eleanor Boyd-Rochfort had three sons and three daughters.{{cite book |last1=Oldfield |first1=Paul |title=Victoria Crosses on the Western Front, April 1915–June 1916}} Born in 1909 their son Captain Charles Valentine O'Reilly was awarded a Military Cross for his courage and determination in an action whilst crossing the Wietze river in the village of Reiningen in April 1945.{{cite web |url=https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C9466074 | title= Recommendation for Award for O'Reilly, Charles Valentine Rank: Lieutenant ... |website=National Archives | accessdate=8 November 2020}}

Their youngest daughter Viola born in 1907, married General Sir Miles Dempsey, commander of the British Second Army during the D-Day landings and invasion of Normandy.{{cite book |last1=Rostron |first1=Peter |title=The Military Life and Times of General Sir Miles Dempsey: Monty's Army Commander}}