This biography is republished from The Dictionary of Irish Biography and was written by Brian Griffin. Shared by permission in line with Creative Commons ‘Attribution’ (CC BY) licencing.
Born: January 1843, United Kingdom
Died: 18 April 1913
Country most active: United Kingdom
Also known as: Cecilia Corbett
Betham, Cecilia Maria Eleanor (1843–1913), archer, was born in January 1843 in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, the second child and only daughter of Molyneux Cecil John Betham (1813–80), archivist, and Elizabeth Betham (née Ford), the daughter of Sir Richard Ford, chief magistrate (1800–06) of Bow Street, London, and his wife, Marianne (née Booth), an amateur painter. The Bethams lived in London during Cecilia’s early childhood years; by 1846 they were residing at 123 Park Street, Grosvenor Square, and by 1851 at Clarges Street. Cecilia was educated at home. Although Molyneux Betham had been called to the bar, he did not practise; he was appointed Cork herald of arms in 1829, and deputy Ulster king of arms in 1834. He returned to Ireland with his family after the death (26 October 1853) of his father, the archivist and scholar Sir William Betham.
The Molyneux Bethams took up residence at Sir William’s house at Rockford, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, and while living there Cecilia developed her interest in archery. She, her father and other Betham relatives in the neighbourhood became keen members of one of Ireland’s leading archery clubs, the County of Dublin Archers, which was based at nearby Monkstown. Originally founded (c.1845) as the County Dublin Toxophilite Society, the club subsequently went into abeyance, before being resurrected as the County of Dublin Archers on 14 June 1857, with Molyneux Betham as captain. The club held shoots every Saturday from May to October, mostly on the grounds of Monkstown Castle, and it was probably at these regular sessions that Cecilia developed her archery skills. Her prowess as an archer first came to national attention when she was runner-up in the Irish women’s championship at the Carlisle cricket and archery ground in Bray in August 1863, the second time this competition had been held. The winner was Mrs Horniblow of Warwickshire, a dominant force in English archery; Betham ran her a close second, equalling Horniblow’s number of hits at the 50-yard distance but being outscored at the 60-yard distance.
The contest at Bray was the beginning of a keen rivalry between Betham and Horniblow that lasted for several years. Betham defeated Horniblow at the prestigious Leamington and Midland archery competition (15–16 June 1864), and at the Crystal Palace contest (30 June–1 July). Her greatest triumph in England in 1864 was her victory at the Grand National archery competition, for the British championship, which was held at Alexandra Park in London on 6, 7 and 8 July. She won her first Irish national championship shortly afterwards at the Leinster Cricket Club’s grounds, in Portobello, Dublin (27–8 July). Betham subsequently won British national championships at Clifton, Bristol, in July 1865; at Crown Point, near Norwich, in July 1866; and at Hereford racecourse in July 1868. She was runner-up in the British national championship contest at Preston, near Brighton, in July 1867, and placed fourth at the championship competition held at Aston Park, Birmingham, in July 1869.
Betham won the Scottish national title at the Stirlingshire Cricket Club grounds at Livilands, Stirling (August 1865). In competitions at the Exhibition Palace in Dublin, she won Irish national championships in June 1865 and in August 1867, and was runner-up – to Mrs Horniblow – in August 1866. She also won several Irish provincial championship titles, winning three Leinster championships, at Athy in August 1863, and at the Exhibition Palace in Dublin in September 1866 and August 1867; two Ulster championships, at Ulsterville, Belfast, in August 1866, and at Armagh in August 1867; and two Munster championships, at Limerick in September 1867, and at Cortigan, the property of Sir Denham Jephson-Norreys, near Mallow, in September 1868.
Cecilia Betham married (27 August 1874) in Devon her first cousin William Sheffield Betham (died 12 April 1876), an official in the Local Government Board and a member of the County of Dublin Archers; he was the eldest son of Sheffield Philip Fiennes Betham (1815–90), the Dublin herald. They had one child, Gertrude Cecilia Betham, and resided at 1 Tobernea Terrace, Seapoint, Blackrock. Cecilia married secondly (23 June 1891), in Market Drayton, Shropshire, John Edmond Corbett, a widower (died 8 December 1904, aged 56). They lived at ‘Everest’, Lillington Road, Lillington, near Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, with Betham’s daughter, Gertrude, and Mildred Corbett, her husband’s daughter. At some point after her second husband’s death, Betham moved to ‘The Beeches’, 69 Stafford Street, Market Drayton. She died there, aged 70, on 18 April 1913.