 He was the Patriarch of a numerous tribe in England and Ireland; one of his sons being Hugh, who took part in the English Invasion of Ireland in 1171 and became the founder of the House of Purcell in that country.According to O'Hart, this Hugh was the unnamed knight mentioned by Giraldus Cambrensis, as slain at Waterford.Hugh had been left in command of Waterford while the King departed for Dublin, 

In 1171 Sir Hugh Purcell was a knight who participated in the Norman invasion of Ireland, and around 1204 his grandson Sir Hugh married Beatrix, daughter of Theobald FitzWalter, Chief Butler of Ireland.