Sir Mark Rainsford (c. 1652 – November 1709)[1] was an Irish Lord Mayor of Dublin and the owner of what was to later become the Guinness Brewery.

During his term as Lord Mayor, the King William III equestrian statue in College Green, Dublin was unveiled on 1 July 1701.

[6] His business manufactured 'Beer and Fine Ales' and he was succeeded by his son - also named Mark Rainsford.

[citation needed] In 1691, upon the death of his father-in-law, Giles Mee, Rainsford inherited water rights in the district around St. James's Gate and leveraged these rights to undertake his brewing business.

[7] Rainsford was married for a second time, to Isabella Bolton, on 16 May 1695 in St. Michan's Church Dublin.