Richard Harris

You might think that the late actor Richard Harris was an Englishman. He certainly had the accent and his roles ranged from King Arthur to Dumbledore.

[the colonization of Ireland](https://www.britannica.com/place/Ireland/The-14th-and-15th-centuries#ref271138), where, under royal directive, British and Scottish Protestants settled in the Irish region of Ulster and gifted confiscated land. The Black and Tans (named for the colors of their uniforms) were recruited into the Royal Irish Constabulary. "When I read the script I said to Clint, 'You know it'd be great if I could do this, it'd be great if I could play this man as a very sort of upper-class fake. It's because of this colonization that Ireland has [an enduring Protestant population](https://www.rochester.edu/newscenter/partition-of-ireland-explained-477342/). When we first meet English Bob, he doesn't even spare words talking about the assassination of President James Garfield ("Unforgiven" is set in 1881, the same year as Garfield's death). The Black and Tans did contribute to the war's end, but not by stomping the rebellion out; sentiment turned against the British so much that they had to come to the negotiating table. Every trace of poshness from his accent is gone, revealing his lower-class roots now that he's got nothing to hide. The Black and Tans, recruited from the British population, were their reinforcements. ["Unforgiven"](https://www.slashfilm.com/953460/unforgiven-marked-the-end-of-an-era-for-clint-eastwoods-film-career/) as arrogant, jingoistic gunslinger English Bob. Whatever their origins, that doesn't change the brutality they inflicted once they were in those Black and Tan uniforms. He also studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and his sons Damian, Jared, and Jamie were all born in London. Despite his moniker "The Duke of Death," Bob turns out to be a total fraud — it's even hinted that he's not actually English.