John FitzGerald, de facto 12th Earl of Desmond (died December 1536) was the brother of Thomas FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Desmond.Cokayne, George Edward, Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct, or Dormant. Volume III. London: George Bell & Sons. 1890. p. 86 Upon his brother's death in 1534, John disputed the claim to the earldom of his brother's grandson, James FitzGerald, de jure 12th Earl of Desmond.Webb, Alfred. A Compendium of Irish Biography. Dublin: 1878.
According to the Annals of the Four Masters, John FitzThomas FitzGerald was believed to have instigated the murder of his older brother, James FitzGerald, 8th Earl of Desmond in 1487, and had been expelled by his brother Maurice FitzGerald, 9th Earl of Desmond.Connellan, Owen. The Annals of Ireland (from A.D. 1171 to A.D. 1616), Dublin. Brian Geraghty, 1846, p. 309
John died in 1536.Webb, Alfred. A Compendium of Irish Biography. Dublin: 1878. His grandnephew, the de jure earl, died in 1540, and was succeeded by John's son, James FitzGerald, 13th Earl of Desmond.
Alfred Webb tells us of this earl that he, "being supported by a large faction, was de facto [12th] Earl. This Sir John died about Christmas 1536."Webb, Alfred. A Compendium of Irish Biography. Dublin: 1878.
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