[1] Burnell was born to Henry Burnell and Lady Frances Dillon, third daughter of James Dillon, 1st Earl of Roscommon and his wife Eleanor Barnewall.
A Tragie-Comedy, as it was Presented in the New Theater in Dublin, with Good Applause, Being an Ancient Story.
His progressive attitude toward women, which can be seen in his daughter's extensive education, may be reflected in the play Landgartha, with a verse "Bodily force too in a woman (were it but to defend its own Fort) is a perfection, though it cannot be expected but from a few of you.
Though her father is known to have joined the confederacy, the Burnell family disappeared from the historical record following the war.
A Tragie-Comedy, as it was Presented in the New Theater in Dublin, with Good Applause, Being an Ancient Story, which was the last play in Ireland performed before the Civil War broke out.