Ironside was Fellow, then Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, later becoming bishop of Bristol. He was not universally liked. A contemporary called his a ‘prating and proud coxcomb’ while another spoke of him as ‘forward, saucy, domineering, impudent and lascivious’. Another as ‘the roughest man I ever knew’. He died on 27 August 1701 and was buried in the chancel of St Mary Somerset church, in a silver coffin, so it was said. In 1867, the church was dismantled and the dead removed from the vaults. The remains of Bishop Ironside were found encased in lead, but with no trace of an outer silver coffin, which may have been stolen. By order of the burial board, the lead coffin was opened for identification of the body – this was so perfect that the skin was not broken. After identification, the lead was secured again and the coffin sent by rail to Hereford.
On Christmas Eve, 1867, in the presence of the dean, archdeacon and precentor, the bishop’s remains were laid in a vault in the southeast transept of the cathedral. The original black marble slab from St Mary Somerset church marks the spot.