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Irish peer

Henry de la Poer Beresford, 3rd Marquess of Waterford, (26 April 1811 – 29 March 1859), styled Lord Henry Beresford before 1824 and Earl of Tyrone between 1824 and 1826, was an Irish peer. Referred to as the "Mad Marquis", he is also remembered as an eccentric.

Beresford was born on 26 April 1811, the second son of Henry Beresford, 2nd Marquess of Waterford, and the former Lady Susanna Carpenter (died 1827), only daughter of the 2nd Earl of Tyrconnell and the heiress Sarah Delaval. From the latter the Beresfords inherited the Delaval estates in Northumberland, including Ford Castle. His sister, Lady Sarah, was married to the 18th Earl of Shrewsbury. Lord Henry became heir apparent to the marquessate on the death of his elder brother, George Beresford, Earl of Tyrone, in 1824. He succeeded to the marquessate on his father's death in 1826. He was educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford. Henry Waterford was perhaps the most notorious member of the harum scarum (i. e. "reckless", "impetuous") Anglo Irish Beresford family.

In the late summer of 1837, the Marquess and his entourage, took a pleasure cruise on the yacht Charlotte, belonging to the Royal Yacht Squadron, to the seaport of Bergen in Norway—allegedly with the goal to reach The North Pole. According to the contemporary report in The Times, the Marquess became, together with a local girl, involved in a disorder and he was given a blow on the head by the "morning star" of a local watchman. The Marquess' life was in danger, but he recovered after a period at the local hospital and his conduct was tried in court. It was reported that "The Marquis of Waterford is fully recovered, he was tried at Bergen and sentence passed, he was absolved from the accusation and the watchman from all further prosecution, the latter is to pay the costs"— following the intervention of the local British consul. Finally, on 18 September, The Times duly printed a brief update of affairs stating: "The Marquis of Waterford, who some time since received some serious injuries in what his Lordship and his friends are pleased to call a lark, at Bergen, is quite recovered, and has arrived we understand, in this country. One of the Marquis's party arrived at Douglas’s hotel here on Tuesday, and left next day for the south. We believe the whole party arrived in the Marquis's yacht at Aberdeen, from Norway."

A popular rumour that was in circulation as early as the 1830s claimed that Lord Waterford was the main suspect behind the "Spring Heeled Jack" phenomenon. However, as that character's acts continued after his death in 1859, Waterford cannot be given sole responsibility. That Lord Waterford had some role has been accepted by several modern authors, who suggest that a humiliating experience with a woman and a police officer could have given him the idea of creating the character as a way of "getting even" with police and women in general. They speculate that he could have designed (with the help of friends who were experts in applied mechanics) some sort of apparatus for special spring heeled boots, and that he may have practised fire spitting techniques in order to increase the unnatural appearance of his character. They also note the embroidered coat of arms with a "W" letter observed by the servant boy during the Ashworth incident, a notorious coincidence with his title's territorial designation. Indeed, Waterford was frequently in the news in the late 1830s for drunken brawling, brutal jokes and vandalism, and was said to do anything for a bet; his irregular behaviour and his contempt for women earned him the moniker "the Mad Marquess", and it is also known that he was present in the London area at the time the first Spring Heeled Jack incidents took place. He was pointed to as the perpetrator by the Revd E. C. Brewer in 1880, who attested that Waterford "used to amuse himself by springing on travellers unawares, to frighten them, and from time to time others have followed his silly example". An 1838 news report referred to "that turbulent piece of aristocracy" and his "nocturnal vagaries in the neighbourhood of Melton", adding that his "name in many quarters is regarded with as much terror as that of Spring heeled Jack himself".

Lord Waterford was a keen horseman and in 1840 he entered two horses in the Grand National Steeplechase, regarded today as the most famous race over jumps in the world. Waterford chose to ride one of the horses, The Sea, himself but was sent off in a field of thirteen runners as a totally unconsidered outsider. Reporters noted that, at one stage during the four and a half mile contest, The Sea was almost half a mile behind the leaders, but Waterford persisted and completed the course to finish last of four to complete the course.

In 1842, Lord Waterford married the Hon. Louisa Stuart, daughter of Charles Stuart, 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay. He and his wife settled at Curraghmore House in Ireland, where he reportedly led an exemplary life until he died in a horse riding accident in 1859. Spring Heeled Jack remained notionally active for decades after, which leads the aforementioned modern researchers to the same conclusion as Brewer's: Waterford may well have been responsible for the first attacks, while it was up to other pranksters who occasionally imitated him to continue the task.