FitzAldelm appointed Viceroy--De Courcy in Ulster--Arrival of Cardinal
Vivian--Henry II. confers the Title of King of Ireland on his son
John--Irish Bishops at the Council of Lateran--Death of St. Laurence
O'Toole--Henry's Rapacity--John Comyn appointed Archbishop of
Dublin--John's Visit to Ireland--Insolence of his Courtiers--De Lacy's
Death--Death of Henry II.--Accession of Richard I.--An English
Archbishop tries to obtain Justice for Ireland--John succeeds to the
Crown--Cathal Crovderg--Massacres in Connaught--De Courcy's Disgrace and
Downfall--His Death.
[A.D. 1176-1201.]
News of the Earl's death soon reached Henry II., who was then holding
his court at Valognes, in Normandy. He at once nominated his Seneschal,
FitzAldelm de Burgo, Viceroy of Ireland, A.D. 1176. The new governor was
accompanied by John de Courcy, Robert FitzEstevene, and Miles de Cogan.
Raymond had assumed the reins of government after the death of
Strongbow, but Henry appears always to have regarded him with jealousy,
and gladly availed himself of every opportunity of lessening the power
of one who stood so high in favour with the army. The Viceroy was
received at Wexford by Raymond, who prudently made a merit of necessity,
and resigned his charge. It is said that FitzAldelm was much struck by
his retinue and numerous attendants, all of whom belonged to the same
family; and that he then and there vowed to effect their ruin. From this
moment is dated the distrust so frequently manifested by the English
Government towards the powerful and popular Geraldines.
The new Viceroy was not a favourite with the Anglo-Norman colonists. He
was openly accused of partiality to the Irish, because he attempted to
demand justice for them. It is not known whether this policy was the
result of his own judgment, or a compliance with the wishes of his royal
master. His conciliatory conduct, whatever may have been its motive, was
unhappily counteracted by the violence of De Courcy. This nobleman
asserted that he had obtained a grant of Ulster from Henry II., on what
grounds it would be indeed difficult to ascertain. He proceeded to make
good his claim; and, in defiance of the Viceroy's prohibition, set out
for the north, with a small army of chosen knights and soldiers. His
friend, Sir Almaric Tristram de Saint Lawrence, was of the number. He
was De Courcy's brother-in-law, and they had made vows of eternal
friendship in the famous Cathedral of Rouen. De Courcy is described as a
man of extraordinary physical strength, of large proportions, shamefully
penurious, rashly impetuous, and, despite a fair share in the vices of
the age, full of reverence for the clergy, at least if they belonged to
his own race. Cambrensis gives a glowing description of his valour, and
says that "any one who had seen Jean de Courci wield his sword, lopping
off heads and arms, might well have commended the might of this
warrior."[304]
De Courcy arrived in Downpatrick in four days. The inhabitants were
taken by surprise; and the sound of his bugles at daybreak was the first
intimation they received of their danger. Cardinal Vivian, who had come
as Legate from Alexander III., had but just arrived at the spot. He did
his best to promote peace. But neither party would yield; and as the
demands of the Norman knights were perfectly unreasonable, Vivian
advised Dunlevy, the chieftain of Ulidia, to have recourse to arms. A
sharp conflict ensued, in which the English gained the victory,
principally through the personal bravery of their leader. This battle
was fought about the beginning of February; another engagement took
place on the 24th of June, in which the northerns were again
defeated.[305]
Cardinal Vivian now proceeded to Dublin, where he held a synod. The
principal enactment referred to the right of sanctuary. During the
Anglo-Norman wars, the Irish had secured their provisions in the
churches; and it is said that, in order to starve out the enemy, they
even refused to sell at any price. It was now decreed that sanctuary
might be violated to obtain food; but a fair price was to be paid for
whatever was taken. It is to be feared these conditions were seldom
complied with. The Abbey of St. Thomas the Martyr was founded in Dublin
about this time, by FitzAldelm, at the command of Henry II., one of his
many acts of reparation. The site was the place now called Thomas Court.
The Viceroy endowed it with a carnucate of land, in the presence of the
Legate and St. Laurence O'Toole. After the settlement of these affairs,
Cardinal Vivian passed over to Chester, on his way to Scotland.
One of Roderic O'Connor's sons, Murrough, having rebelled against him,
Miles de Cogan went to his assistance,--a direct and flagrant violation
of the treaty of Windsor. At Roscommon the English were joined by the
unnatural rebel, who guided them through the province. The King was in
Iar-Connaught, and the allies burned and plundered without mercy, as
they passed along to Trim. Here they remained three nights; but as the
people had fled with their cattle and other moveable property into the
fastnesses, they had not been able to procure any spoil on their march.
Roderic soon appeared to give them battle; but they were defeated
without considerable loss. Murrough was taken prisoner by his father,
and his eyes were put out as a punishment for his rebellion, and to
prevent a repetition of his treachery.
Another violation of the treaty of Windsor was also perpetrated this
year, A.D. 1177. Henry II. summoned a council of his prelates and barons
at Oxford, and solemnly conferred the title of King of Ireland on his
youngest son, John, then a mere child. A new grant of Meath to Hugh de
Lacy was made immediately after, in the joint names of Henry II. and
John. Desmond was also granted to Miles de Cogan, with the exception of
the city of Cork, which the King reserved to himself. Thomond was
offered to two English nobles, who declined the tempting but dangerous
favour. It was then presented to Philip de Bresosa; but though the
knight was no coward, he fled precipitately, when he discovered, on
coming in sight of Limerick, that the inhabitants had set it on fire, so
determined was their resistance to foreign rule. The territory of
Waterford was granted to Roger le Poer; but, as usual, the city was
reserved for the royal benefit. In fact, Sir John Davies well observed,
that "all Ireland was by Henry II. cantonized among ten of the English
nation; and though they did not gain possession of one-third of the
kingdom, yet in title they were owners and lords of all, as nothing was
left to be granted to the natives." He might have said with greater
truth, that the natives were deprived of everything, as far as it was
possible to do so, by those who had not the slightest right or title to
their lands.
Meanwhile De Courcy was plundering the northern provinces. His wife,
Affreca, was a daughter of Godfrey, King of Man, so that he could secure
assistance by sea as well as by land. But the tide of fortune was not
always in his favour. After he had plundered in Louth, he was attacked,
in the vale of Newry[306] river, by O'Carroll of Oriel and Dunlevy of
Ulidia. On this occasion he lost four hundred men, many of whom were
drowned. Soon after he suffered another defeat in Antrim, from O'Flynn.
The Four Masters say he fled to Dublin; Dr. O'Donovan thinks that we
should read Downpatrick. The latter part of the name cannot be correctly
ascertained, as the paper is worn away.
The Irish were, as usual, engaged in domestic dissensions, and the
English acted as allies on whichever side promised to be most
advantageous to themselves. The Annals record a great "windstorm" during
this year, which prostrated oaks, especially at Derry-Columcille, which
was famous for its forest. They also record the drying up of the river
Galliv (Galway), "for a period of a natural day. All the articles that
had been lost in it from the remotest times, as well as its fish, were
collected by the inhabitants of the fortress, and by the people of the
country in general."[307]
In 1179 Henry gave the office of Viceroy to De Lacy, and recalled
FitzAldelm. The new governor employed himself actively in erecting
castles and oppressing the unfortunate Irish. Cambrensis observes, that
he "amply enriched himself and his followers by oppressing others with a
strong hand." Yet he seems to have had some degree of popularity, even
with the native Irish, for he married a daughter of Roderic O'Connor as
his second wife. This alliance, for which he had not asked permission,
and his popularity, excited the jealousy of the English King, who
deprived him of his office. But he was soon reinstated, although the
Bishop of Shrewsbury, with the name of counsellor, was set as a spy on
his actions. These events occurred A.D. 1181. De Lacy's old companion,
Hervey de Montmarisco, became a monk at Canterbury, after founding the
Cistercian Monastery of Dunbrody, in the county of Wexford. He died in
this house, in his seventy-fifth year.
In 1179 several Irish bishops were summoned by Alexander III. to attend
the third General Council of Lateran. These prelates were, St. Laurence
of Dublin, O'Duffy of Tuam, O'Brien of Killaloe, Felix of Lismore,
Augustine of Waterford, and Brictius of Limerick. Usher says[308]
several other bishops were summoned; it is probable they were unable to
leave the country, and hence their names have not been given. The real
state of the Irish Church was then made known to the Holy See; no living
man could have described it more accurately and truthfully than the
sainted prelate who had sacrificed himself for so many years for its
good. Even as the bishops passed through England, the royal jealousy
sought to fetter them with new restrictions; and they were obliged to
take an oath that they would not sanction any infringements on Henry's
prerogatives. St. Malachy was now appointed Legate by the Pope, with
jurisdiction over the five suffragans, and the possessions attached to
his see were confirmed to him. As the Bull was directed to Ireland, it
would appear that he returned there; but his stay was brief, and the
interval was occupied in endeavouring to repress the vices of the
Anglo-Norman and Welsh clergy, many of whom were doing serious injury to
the Irish Church by their immoral and dissolute lives.[309]
Henry now became jealous of the Archbishop, and perhaps was not
overpleased at his efforts to reform these ecclesiastics. Roderic
O'Connor had asked St. Laurence to undertake a mission on his behalf to
the English court; but the King refused to listen to him, and forbid him
to return to Ireland. After a few weeks' residence at the Monastery of
Abingdon, in Berkshire, the saint set out for France. He fell ill on his
journey, in a religious house at Eu, where his remains are still
preserved. When on his deathbed, the monks asked him to make his will;
but he exclaimed, "God knows that out of all my revenues I have not a
single coin to bequeath." With the humility of true sanctity, he was
heard frequently calling on God for mercy, and using the words of the
Psalmist, so familiar to ecclesiastics, from their constant perusal of
the Holy Scriptures. As he was near his end, he was heard exclaiming, in
his own beautiful mother-tongue: "Foolish people, what will become of
you? Who will relieve you? Who will heal you?" And well might his
paternal heart ache for those who were soon to be left doubly orphans,
and for the beloved nation whose sorrows he had so often striven to
alleviate.
St. Laurence went to his eternal reward on the 14th of November, 1180.
He died on the _feria sexta_ at midnight.[310] His obsequies were
celebrated with great pomp and solemnity, and attended by the Scotch
Legate, Alexis, an immense concourse of clergy, and many knights and
nobles. His remains were exposed for some days in the Church of Notre
Dame, at Eu.
Henry immediately despatched his chaplain, Geoffrey de la Haye, to
Ireland, not with a royal message of consolation for the national
calamity, but to sequester the revenues of the archiepiscopal see of
Dublin. He took care to possess himself of them for a year before he
would consent to name a successor to the deceased prelate. St. Laurence
had happily left no funds in store for the royal rapacity; the orphan
and the destitute had been his bankers. During a year of famine he is
said to have relieved five hundred persons daily; he also established an
orphanage, where a number of poor children were clothed and educated.
The Annals of the Four Masters say he suffered martyrdom in England. The
mistake arose in consequence of an attempt having been made on his life
there by a fanatic, which happily did not prove fatal.[311]
The Archbishop of Dublin became an important functionary from this
period. Henry obtained the election of John Comyn to this dignity, at
the Monastery of Evesham, in Worcester, and the King granted the
archiepiscopal estates to him "in barony," by which tenure he and his
successors in the see were constituted parliamentary barons, and
entitled to sit in the councils, and hold court in their lordships and
manors. Comyn, after his election by the clergy of Dublin, proceeded to
Rome, where he was ordained priest, and subsequently to Veletri, where
Pope Lucius III. consecrated him archbishop. He then came to Dublin,
A.D. 1184, where preparations were making for the reception of Henry's
son, John, who, it will be remembered, he had appointed King of Ireland
when a mere child.
In 1183 the unfortunate Irish monarch, Roderic, had retired to the Abbey
of Cong, and left such empty titles as he possessed to his son, Connor.
De Lacy and De Courcy had occupied themselves alternately in plundering
and destroying the religious houses which had so long existed, and in
founding new monasteries with a portion of their ill-gotten gains. It
would appear that De Lacy built so far on his popularity with the
Anglo-Normans, as to have aspired to the sovereignty of Ireland,--an
aspiration which his master soon discovered, and speedily punished. He
was supplanted by Philip of Worcester, who excelled all his predecessors
in rapacity and cruelty. Not satisfied with the miseries inflicted on
Ulster by De Courcy, he levied contributions there by force of arms. One
of his companions, Hugh Tyrrell, who "remained at Armagh, with his
Englishmen, during six days and nights, in the middle of Lent,"
signalized himself by carrying off the property of the clergy of Armagh.
Amongst other things, he possessed himself of a brewing-pan, which he
was obliged to abandon on his way, he met so many calamities, which were
naturally attributed to his sacrilegious conduct.[312]
John was now preparing for his visit to Ireland, and his singularly
unfelicitous attempt at royalty. It would appear that the Prince wished
to decline the honour and the expedition; for, as he was on the eve of
his departure, Eraclius, Patriarch of Jerusalem, arrived in England, to
enjoin the fulfilment of the King's vow to undertake a crusade to
Palestine. As Henry had got out of his difficulties, he declined to
fulfil his solemn engagement, and refused permission to his son, John,
who threw himself at his father's feet, and implored leave to be his
substitute. Eraclius then poured forth his indignation upon Henry, with
all the energetic freedom of the age. He informed him that God would
punish his impieties--that he was worse than any Saracen; and hinted
that he might have inherited his wickedness from his grandmother, the
Countess of Anjou, who was reported to be a witch, and of whom it was
said that she had flown through the window during the most solemn part
of Mass, though four squires attempted to hold her.
John sailed from Milford Haven on the evening of Easter Wednesday, 1185.
He landed with his troops at Waterford, at noon, on the following day.
His retinue is described as of unusual splendour, and, no doubt, was
specially appointed to impress the "barbarous" Irish. Gerald Barry, the
famous Cambrensis, who had arrived in Ireland some little time before,
was appointed his tutor, in conjunction with Ranulf de Glanville. The
bitter prejudice of the former against Ireland and the Irish is a matter
of history, as well as the indefatigable zeal of the latter in pursuit
of his own interests at the expense of justice.
A retinue of profligate Normans completed the court, whom an English
authority describes as "great quaffers, lourdens, proud, belly swains,
fed with extortion and bribery." The Irish were looked upon by these
worthies as a savage race, only created to be plundered and scoffed at.
The Normans prided themselves on their style of dress, and, no doubt,
the Irish costume surprised them. Common prudence, however, might have
taught them, when the Leinster chieftains came to pay their respects to
the young Prince, that they should not add insult to injury; for, not
content with open ridicule, they proceeded to pull the beards of the
chieftains, and to gibe their method of wearing their hair.
De Lacy has the credit of having done his utmost to render the Prince's
visit a failure. But his efforts were not necessary. The insolence of
the courtiers, and the folly of the youth himself, were quite sufficient
to ruin more promising prospects. In addition to other outrages, the
Irish had seen their few remaining estates bestowed on the new comers;
and even the older Anglo-Norman and Welsh settlers were expelled to make
room for the Prince's favourites--an instalment of the fatal policy
which made them eventually "more Irish than the Irish." When the colony
was on the verge of ruin, the young Prince returned to England. He threw
the blame of his failure on Hugh de Lacy; but the Norman knight did not
live long enough after to suffer from the accusation.[313] De Lacy was
killed while inspecting a castle which he had just built on the site of
St. Columbkille's Monastery at Durrow, in the Queen's county. He was
accompanied by three Englishmen; as he was in the act of stooping, a
youth of an ancient and noble family, named O'Meyey, gave him his
deathblow, severed his head from his body, and then fled with such
swiftness as to elude pursuit. It is said that he was instigated to
perform this deed by Sumagh O'Caharnay (the Fox), with whom he now took
refuge.
The Annals mention this as a "revenge of Colum-cille,"[314] they also
say that "all Meath was full of his English castles, from the Shannon to
the sea." Henry at once appointed his son, John, to the Irish
Viceroyalty, but domestic troubles prevented his plans from being
carried out. Archbishop Comyn held a synod in Dublin during this year,
1187; and on the 9th of June the relics of SS. Patrick, Columba, and
Brigid were discovered, and solemnly entombed anew under the direction
of Cardinal Vivian, who came to Ireland to perform this function. During
the year 1188 the Irish continued their usual fatal and miserable
dissensions; still they contrived to beat the common enemy, and
O'Muldony drove De Courcy and his troops from Ballysadare. He was again
attacked in crossing the Curlieu Mountains, and escaped to Leinster with
considerable loss and difficulty.
In 1189 Henry II. died at Chinon, in Normandy. He expired launching
anathemas against his sons, and especially against John, as he had just
discovered that he had joined those who conspired against him. In his
last moments he was stripped of his garments and jewels, and left naked
and neglected.
Richard I., who succeeded to the throne, was too much occupied about
foreign affairs to attend to his own kingdom. He was a brave soldier,
and as such merits our respect; but he can scarcely be credited as a
wise king. Irish affairs were committed to the care of John, who does
not appear to have profited by his former experience. He appointed Hugh
de Lacy Lord Justice, to the no small disgust of John de Courcy; but it
was little matter to whom the government of that unfortunate country was
confided. There were nice distinctions made about titles; for John, even
when King of England, did not attempt to write himself King of
Ireland.[315] But there were no nice distinctions about property; for
the rule seemed to be, that whoever could get it should have it, and
whoever could keep it should possess it.
In 1189 Roderic's son, Connor Moinmoy, fell a victim to a conspiracy of
his own chieftains,--a just retribution for his rebellion against his
father. He had, however, the reputation of being brave and generous. At
his death Connaught was once more plunged in civil war, and after some
delay and difficulty Roderic resumed the government.
In 1192 the brave King of Thomond again attacked the English invaders.
But after his death, in 1194, the Anglo-Normans had little to apprehend
from native valour. His obituary is thus recorded: "Donnell, son of
Turlough O'Brien, King of Munster, a burning lamp in peace and war, and
the brilliant star of the hospitality and valour of the Momonians, and
of all Leth-Mogha, died." Several other "lamps" went out about the same
time; one of these was Crunce O'Flynn, who had defeated De Courcy in
1178, and O'Carroll, Prince of Oriel, who had been hanged by the English
the year before, after the very unnecessary cruelty of putting out his
eyes.
The affairs of the English colony were not more prosperous. New Lords
Justices followed each other in quick succession. One of these
governors, Hamon de Valois, attempted to replenish his coffers from
church property,--a proceeding which provoked the English Archbishop
Comyn. As this ecclesiastic failed to obtain redress in Ireland, he
proceeded to England with his complaints; but he soon learned that
justice could not be expected for Ireland. The difference between the
conduct of ecclesiastics, who have no family but the Church, and no
interests but the interests of religion, is very observable in all
history. While English and Norman soldiers were recklessly destroying
church property and domestic habitations in the country they had
invaded, we find, with few exceptions, that the ecclesiastic, of
whatever nation, is the friend and father of the people, wherever his
lot may be cast. The English Archbishop resented the wrongs of the Irish
Church as personal injuries, and devoted himself to its advancement as a
personal interest. We are indebted to Archbishop Comyn for building St.
Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, as well as for his steady efforts to
promote the welfare of the nation. After an appeal in person to King
Richard and Prince John, he was placed in confinement in Normandy, and
was only released by the interference of the Holy See; Innocent III.,
who had probably by this time discovered that the English monarchs were
not exactly the persons to reform the Irish nation, having addressed a
letter from Perugia to the Earl of Montague (Prince John), reprimanding
him for detaining "his venerable brother, the Archbishop of Dublin," in
exile, and requiring him to repair the injuries done by his Viceroy,
Hamon de Valois, on the clergy of Leighlin. The said Hamon appears to
have meddled with other property besides that belonging to the Church--a
more unpardonable offence, it is to be feared, in the eyes of his
master. On returning from office after two years viceroyalty, he was
obliged to pay a thousand marks to obtain an acquittance from his
accounts.[316]
John ascended the English throne in 1199. He appointed Meiller
FitzHenri[317] Governor of Ireland. It has been conjectured that if John
had not obtained the sovereignty, he and his descendants might have
claimed the "Lordship of Ireland." There can be no doubt that he and
they might have claimed it; but whether they could have held it is quite
another consideration. It is generally worse than useless to speculate
on what might have been. In this case, however, we may decide with
positive certainty, that no such condition of things could have
continued long. The English kings would have looked with jealousy even
on the descendants of their ancestors, if they kept possession of the
island; and the descendants would have become, as invariably happened,
_Hibernicis ipsis Hibernior_, and therefore would have shared the fate
of the "common enemy."
Meanwhile the O'Connors were fighting in Kerry. Cathal Carragh obtained
the services of FitzAldelm, and expelled Cathal Crovderg. He, in his
turn, sought the assistance of Hugh O'Neill, who had been distinguishing
himself by his valour against De Courcy and the English. They marched
into Connaught, but were obliged to retreat with great loss. The exiled
Prince now sought English assistance, and easily prevailed on De Courcy
and young De Lacy to help him. But misfortune still followed him. His
army was again defeated; and as they fled to the peninsula of Rindown,
on Lough Ree, they were so closely hemmed in, that no way of escape
remained, except to cross the lake in boats. In attempting to do this a
great number were drowned. The Annals of Kilronan and Clonmacnois enter
these events under the year 1200; the Four Masters under the year 1199.
The former state that "Cahall Carragh was taken deceitfully by the
English of Meath," and imprisoned until he paid a ransom; and that De
Courcy, "after slaying of his people," returned to Ulster.
Cathal Crovderg now obtained the assistance of the Lord Justice, who
plundered Clonmacnois. He also purchased the services of FitzAldelm, and
thus deprived his adversary of his best support. The English, like the
mercenary troops of Switzerland and the Netherlands, appear to have
changed sides with equal alacrity, when it suited their convenience; and
so as they were well paid, it mattered little to them against whom they
turned their arms. In 1201 Cathal Crovderg marched from Limerick to
Roscommon, with his new ally and the sons of Donnell O'Brien and
Florence MacCarthy. They took up their quarters at Boyle, and occupied
themselves in wantonly desecrating the abbey. Meanwhile Cathal Carragh,
King of Connaught, had assembled his forces, and came to give them
battle. Some skirmishes ensued, in which he was slain, and thus the
affair was ended. FitzAldelm, or De Burgo, as he is more generally
called now, assisted by O'Flaherty of West Connaught, turned against
Cathal when they arrived at Cong to spend the Easter. It would appear
that the English were billeted on the Irish throughout the country; and
when De Burgo demanded wages for them, the Connacians rushed upon them,
and slew six hundred men. For once his rapacity was foiled, and he
marched off to Munster with such of his soldiers as had escaped the
massacre. Three years after he revenged himself by plundering the whole
of Connaught, lay and ecclesiastical.
During this period Ulster was also desolated by civil war. Hugh O'Neill
was deposed, and Connor O'Loughlin obtained rule; but the former was
restored after a few years.
John de Courcy appears always to have been regarded with jealousy by the
English court. His downfall was at hand, A.D. 1204; and to add to its
bitterness, his old enemies, the De Lacys, were chosen to be the
instruments of his disgrace. It is said that he had given mortal offence
to John, by speaking openly of him as a usurper and the murderer of his
nephew; but even had he not been guilty of this imprudence, the state he
kept, and the large tract of country which he held, was cause enough for
his ruin. He had established himself at Downpatrick, and was surrounded
in almost regal state by a staff of officers, including his constable,
seneschal, and chamberlain; he even coined money in his own name.
Complaints of his exactions were carried to the King. The De Lacys
accused him of disloyalty. In 1202 the then Viceroy, Hugh de Lacy,
attempted to seize him treacherously, at a friendly meeting. He failed
to accomplish this base design; but his brother, Walter, succeeded
afterwards in a similar attempt, and De Courcy was kept in durance until
the devastations which his followers committed in revenge obliged his
enemies to release him.
In 1204 he defeated the Viceroy in a battle at Down. He was aided in
this by the O'Neills, and by soldiers from Man and the Isles. It will be
remembered that he could always claim assistance from the latter, in
consequence of his connexion by marriage. But this did not avail him. He
was summoned before the Council in Dublin, and some of his possessions
were forfeited. Later in the same year (A.D. 1204) he received a safe
conduct to proceed to the King. It is probable that he was confined in
the Tower of London for some time; but it is now certain that he
revisited Ireland in 1210, if not earlier, in the service of John, who
granted him an annual pension.[318] It is supposed that he died about
1219; for in that year Henry III. ordered his widow, Affreca, to be paid
her dower out of the lands which her late husband had possessed in
Ireland.
Cambrensis states that De Courcy had no children; but the Barons of
Kinsale claim to be descended from him; and even so late as 1821 they
exercised the privilege of appearing covered before George IV.--a favour
said to have been granted to De Courcy by King John, after his recall
from Ireland, as a reward for his prowess. Dr. Smith states, in his
_History of Cork_, that Miles de Courcy was a hostage for his father
during the time when he was permitted to leave the Tower to fight the
French champion. In a pedigree of the MacCarthys of Cooraun Lough,
county Kerry, a daughter of Sir John de Courcy is mentioned. The Irish
annalists, as may be supposed, were not slow to attribute his downfall
to his crimes.
Another English settler died about this period, and received an equal
share of reprobation; this was FitzAldelm, more commonly known as Mac
William Burke (De Burgo), and the ancestor of the Burke family in
Ireland. Cambrensis describes him as a man addicted to many vices. The
Four Masters declare that "God and the saints took vengeance on him; for
he died of a shameful disease." It could scarcely be expected that one
who had treated the Irish with such unvarying cruelty, could obtain a
better character, or a more pleasing obituary. Of his miserable end,
without "shrive or unction," there appears to be no doubt.
[Illustration: STALACTITE CAVE, TIPPERARY.]
[Illustration: KING JOHN'S CASTLE, LIMERICK.]
FOOTNOTES:
[304] _Warrior.--Hib. Expug._ lib. ii. cap. 17.
[305] _Defeated_.--Giraldus gives a detailed account of these
affairs.--_Hib. Expug._ lib. ii. cap. 17. He says the Irish forces under
Dunlevy amounted to ten thousand warriors; but this statement cannot at
all be credited. De Courcy took advantage of some old Irish prophecies
to further his cause. They were attributed to St. Columbkille, and to
the effect that a foreigner who would ride upon a white horse, and have
little birds painted on his shield, should conquer the country. De
Courcy did ride upon a white horse, and the birds were a part of his
armorial bearings.
[306] _Newry_.--See an interesting note to the Annals (Four Masters),
vol. iii. p. 40, which identifies the valley of Glenree with the vale of
Newry. In an ancient map, the Newry river is called _Owen Glenree
fluvius_.
[307] _General_.--This is mentioned also by O'Flaherty, who quotes from
some other annals. See his account of Iar-Connaught, printed for the
Archæological Society.
[308] _Says_.--_Sylloge_, ep. 48.
[309] _Lives_.--We give authority for this statement, as it manifests
how completely the Holy See was deceived in supposing that any reform
was likely to be effected in Ireland by English interference: "Ita ut
quodam tempore (quod dictu mirum est) centum et quadraginta presby.
incontinentiæ convictos Romani miserit absolvendos."--Surius, t. vi. St.
Laurence had faculties for absolving these persons, but for some
reason--probably as a greater punishment--he sent them to Rome. English
writers at this period also complain of the relaxed state of
ecclesiastical discipline in that country. How completely all such evils
were eradicated by the faithful sons of the Church, and the exertions of
ecclesiastical superiors, is manifest from the fact, that no such
charges could be brought against even a single priest at the time of the
so-called Reformation.
[310] _Midnight_.--"Itaque cum sextæ feriæ terminus advenisset, in
confinio sabbati subsequentis Spiritum Sancti viri requies æterna
suscepit."--_Vita S. Laurentii_, cap. xxxiii. The saint's memory is
still honoured at Eu. The church has been lately restored, and there is
a little oratory on the hill near it to mark the spot where he
exclaimed, _Hoec est requies mea_, as he approached the town where he
knew he should die. Dr. Kelly (_Cambrensis Eversus_, vol. ii. p. 648)
mentions in a note that the names of several Irishmen were inscribed
there.
[311] _Fatal_.--Dr. O'Donovan gives a long and most interesting note on
the genealogy of St. Laurence O'Toole, in which he shows that his father
was a chieftain of an important territory in the county Kildare, and
that he was not a Wicklow prince, as has been incorrectly asserted. The
family removed there after the death of St. Laurence, when they were
driven from their property by an English adventurer.
[312] _Conduct_.--This is mentioned even by Cox, who, Dr. O'Donovan
observes, was always anxious to hide the faults of the English, and
vilify the Irish. He calls Hugh Tyrrell "a man of ill report," and says
he returned to Dublin "loaden both with curses and extortions."--_Hib.
Angl._ p. 38, ad an. 1184.
[313] _Accusation_.--There can be no doubt that De Lacy had ambitious
designs. See Cambrensis, _Hib. Expug._ lib. ii. cap. 20. Henry II. heard
of his death with considerable satisfaction.
[314] _Colum-cille_.--Dr. O'Donovan remarks that a similar disaster
befell Lord Norbury. He was also assassinated by a hand still unknown,
after having erected a castle on the same _site_ as that of De Lacy, and
preventing the burial of the dead in the ancient cemetery of Durrow.
[315] _King of Ireland_.--During the reign of Richard all the public
affairs of the Anglo-Norman colony were transacted in the name of "John,
Lord of Ireland, Earl of Montague." Palgrave observes that John never
claimed to be King of the Irish; like Edward, who wrote himself Lord of
Scotland, and acknowledged Baliol to be King of the Scots.
[316] _Accounts_.--Gilbert's _Viceroys_, p. 58.
[317] _FitzHenri_.--His father was an illegitimate son of Henry I. When
a mere youth, FitzHenri came to Ireland with the Geraldines, and
obtained large possessions.
[318] _Pension_.--One hundred pounds per annum. Orders concerning it are
still extant on the Close Rolls of England.--_Rol. Lit. Clau._ 1833,
144. It is curious, and should be carefully noted, how constantly proofs
are appearing that the Irish bards and chroniclers, from the earliest to
the latest period, were most careful as to the truth of their facts,
though they may have sometimes coloured them highly. Dr. O'Donovan has
devoted some pages in a note (Four Masters, vol. iii. p. 139) to the
tales in the Book of Howth which record the exploits of De Courcy. He
appears satisfied that they were "invented in the fifteenth or sixteenth
century." Mr. Gilbert has ascertained that they were placed on record as
early as 1360, in Pembridge's Annals. As they are merely accounts of
personal valour, we do not reproduce them here. He also gives an extract
from Hoveden's Annals, pars port, p. 823, which further supports the
Irish account. Rapin gives the narrative as history. Indeed, there
appears nothing very improbable about it. The Howth family were founded
by Sir Almaric St. Lawrence, who married De Courcy's sister.