Notes
1.
Mount Ivers Castle.—Section 234 of the Act of Explanation, 17 &
18º Chas. II., cap. 2, provides that new names more suitable to the
English tongue should be inserted in the letters patent, with an ‘alias’.
The name of Ballyluddane East was then changed into Mount Ivers, and has
so continued. There are still visible some foundations of the old castle;
but most of the stones were worked into the modern mansion-house.—O’B.
2. Rosmanagher
Castle is said to have been built by John M‘Mahon-M‘Donagh
M‘Namara, but was returned in 1570 as one of the castles of the
Earl of Thomond.
Rossemoneherr, with two quarters of land, were included in the patent
of 19º James I. to Donough, Earl of Thomond. When Bunratty was, in
1646, besieged by the confederate army, a part of which was encamped at
Six Mile Bridge, Rosmanagher Castle was occupied by a party from Bunratty
under Captain Hunt; but they were compelled to surrender to the Confederates
on the 13th of May.
Abraham Dester, on the 22nd of December, 1675, obtained a lease from the
Earl of Thomond of the castle, and two plowlands, at £103 10s. rent.
This lease contained a covenant that the lessee should at general hostings
send a Protestant horseman, with a good horse, sword, and case of pistols,
provided for a month to attend the Earl. This ease was afterwards converted
into a fee farm, and the lands still belong to the same family, who have
assumed the name of D’Esterre.
The tower of the castle still remains in a tolerably perfect state.—O’B.
3. Cappagh
Castle was said to have been built by Convea M‘Cumara-M‘Shane-M‘Namara,
and was returned in 1570 as belonging to Shane M‘Namara.
Cappagh, with four plowlands, was passed in the Earl of Thomond’s
patent of 1620.
During the siege of Bunratty, Colonel M’Adam placed some musketeers
there, under Sergeant Morgan, who were captured by the confederates on
the 13th of May.
The foundations only of this castle now appear, the stones having been
removed for building a house near it. Here was the manor mill of Bunratty,
to which all the tenants on that manor of the Earl of Thomond were bound
to send their corn to be ground. It was a windmill, situated on a high
point of land. Some old millstones still mark the site.—O’B.
4. The
Wood of the Oyl Mills—The site of the Oil Mills is near the junction
of the fresh water with the tidal part of the river. No part of the ancient
wood now remains.—O’B.
5. Henry
Ivers, Gent., appears in Dr. Petty’s Census, 1659, as a “Titulado”
at Ballymolony, in the parish of Killokennedy. On 21st June, 30º
Chas. II., he obtained a patent of Ballyluddane East, adjoining Six Mile
Bridge, with power to hold a Saturday market, and two fairs yearly on
part of the land called Ballyrella, alias Mount Ivers.
By this patent, and others bearing date 17th June, 19º Chas. II.,
and 27th November, 30º Chas. II., he was granted altogether 5773
acres, statute measure profitable, which carried a larger extent of unprofitable
acres. In 1668 he was appointed agent to Colonel Daniel O’Brien,
3rd Viscount Clare, from whom he obtained leases of a considerable extent
of land.
He was married to the daughter of Captain Stephens, of Ballysheen, in
the county Clare, and was appointed Justice of the Peace for that county
in 1669, and High Sheriff in 1673. He was succeeded by his son John, who
was elected Member of Parliament for the county in 1715.
Although the great bulk of the estate has passed away from the family,
yet his descendant, Robert Ivers, Esq., still resides at Mount Ivers.—O’B.
6. The
lands of Tarbert, county Kerry, were, in 1666, possessed by Cornet John
Cooper, of Bunratty, a Cromwellian officer, to whom the mother of Sir
Donat O’Brien, of Dromoland, was married, by which means the estates
were rescued at the general confiscation. Thomas Fowle, of Dublin, obtained
a judgement for £1800 principal, against Cooper, on which execution
by elegit was issued to the Sheriff of Kerry: upon an inquisition held
at Carrigfoyle, a moiety of the lands of Tarbert were seized by the Sheriff
for the said Thomas Fowle. Afterwards Laurence Steele, as executor for
Fowle, let the said moiety to Henry Ivers at £100 per annum, to
be paid at Strongbow’s. tomb.—O’B.
7. This
town is situated on both sides of the O’Gearna river, at a distance
of six Irish miles from Limerick, by the old road across the mountain.
Here was formerly Castle Droichel, built by Murrogh Mac Turlogh O’Brien,
and the west side of the river is included in the Earl of Thomond’s
patent of 1620.
The Earls of Thomond were anxious to encourage Protestant settlers on
their estates, and several of the Earl’s tenants, and of the new
patentees, had houses in this town.
The rents paid in 1675 for houses and plots of ground bear a very high
proportion compared to the value of farms. £10 a year for a house
and shop, with a convenant to rebuild, and £52 a year for a malt-house,
represent the rents paid for considerable extents of land, even in the
vicinity of Six Mile Bridge.—O’B.
8. Teige
O’Brien, in 1656, was, jointly with Giles Vandeleur, tenant to the
Earl of Thomond for the six plowlands of Moihill, near Six Mile Bridge,
at £70 a year rent. Giles Vandeleur alone obtained a renewal of
this lease in 1675. Teige O’Brien had also obtained a patent of
some land near Tulla; but, having acted as Lieutenant in Lord Clare’s
infantry in 1688, he was attained, and his estate forfeited.—O’B.
9. On
25th June, 1668, Lord Clare executed a mortgage on his estate in the barony
of Moyarta, &c., in county of Clare, to Dyonisia Yeamans for £1742,
which was assigned to Hugh Persivale. In 1674, Lord Clare granted a lease
to Hugh Percival, of Kinsale, in the county of Cork, of certain lands
in the barony of Moyarta, further to secure the said mortgage. After the
forfeiture of Lord Clare’s estates, a claim was lodged at Chichester
House for the amount of the mortgage by James Clark, on behalf of Dixy
Percival, a minor, son of Hugh.
The family of Perceval were originally from France, and came to England
at the time of the Norman Conquest. The crest borne by one branch of the
family was the spancelled horse, being a canting play on the French name
for a horse.—O’B.
10. Rathfolan
Castle, alleged to have been built by Loghlin M‘Sheeda-M‘Teige-M‘Namara,
was returned in 1570 as the property of Donough O’Brien, of Dromoland,
third son of the first Earl of Thomond and Baron Inchiquin. It afterwards
passed to a family of the M‘Namaras, and in 1641 was in the possession
of John M‘Namara, who had other estates in the same barony. During
the Protectorate of Cromwell he was ejected, and Henry Colpoys was located
in the castle.
At the Restoration it was granted to Daniel M‘Namara, one of the
eight of that name who received grants of land out of the eighty-three
M‘Namaras who had been proprietors in that barony of Bunratty in
1641. It was again forfeited, in 1688, and sold to Sir Donat O’Brien,
of Dromoland. The last remaining wall of the castle fell about thirty
years ago; but a heap of ruins marks the site.—O’B.
11. Ballycar
Castle was said to have been built by Connor M‘Hugh-M‘Loghlin-M‘Namara,
but does not appear among the list of castles in 1570.
The Castle, and two plowlands, of Ballycarhy were passed in the Earl of
Thomond’s patent of 1620.
In 1655, a lease of Ballycar Castle, &c., “as heretofore held
by George Colpoys, deceased,” was made by the Earl of Thomond to
John Colpoys, with the condition to supply an armed Protestant horseman,
provided for a month. This lease was converted in 1714 into a fee farm,
and has now passed to heirs female.
The castle has disappeared, and the dwelling-house, not long since occupied
by John Colpoys, a true-hearted gentleman, an upright and popular magistrate,
and thorough sportsman is now a roofless ruin.—O’B.
12. Ballynacloghy
Castle now Stone Hall, is said to have been built by Donogh-M‘Connor-M‘Murtogh-Clanchy,
and in 1570 was returned as the property of Teige M‘Glanshy. The
M‘Clanchys, or Clanchys, were the hereditary Brehons judges, or
lawyers of Thomond, and many documents still exist attested by members
of that family. Before 1641, Ballyclough passed into the hands of Nicholas
Fanning whose estates were forfeited, and Thomas Cullen, Esq., installed
there as “Titulado” in 1656, having been appointed justice
of the peace under Cromwell.
Captain Thomas Cullen was one of a Civil Survey Jury at an Inquisition
held in Clare on 2nd March, 1635. Thomas Cullen, on 1st May, 30º
Charles II., obtained a patent of the lands of Ballyline more; and, in
1687, he and his wife settled their property by deed upon Bridget Crosby,
daughter of Sir Thomas Crosby, on her marriage with Philip Morgall.
After the Restoration, Ballyclough, with a large extent of property in
Clare, was granted to Sir Henry Ingoldsby, Bart.; and Stone Hall having
been acquired by Sir Donat O’Brien, he settled it on his sons by
his second marriage, with large estates. This family selected Stone Hall
as their residence, till they removed to Blatherwyche Park, Northamptonshire.
The castle no longer exists, and the dwelling-house is in ruins.—O’B.
13. Rathlaheen
Castle is stated to have been built by Teige M‘Convea-M‘Macon-M‘Namara;
but, in 1570, was returned as one of the castles of the Earl of Thomond.
This castle was the property of John M‘Namara in 1641, who had other
estates in the barony of Bunratty, which were all forfeited. It was granted
to Sir Henry Ingoldsby on 27th July, 18º Chas. II., not Sir William
King, from whom it passed to Giles Vandeleur, and his heirs. The castle
is still tolerably perfect. Sir William King was not patentee of any land
in the barony of Bunratty.—O’B.
14. Giles
Vandeleur’s name appears on the back of a deed registered in the
Peace Office, Limerick, during Cromwell’s time, and he obtained
a lease from the Earl of Thomond of the six plowlands of Moihill, near
Six Mile Bridge, in which town he had a house, but in the Petty Census
of 1656, he appears as “Titulado” at Moihill. Giles Vandeleur
was one of the Commissioners for applotting quit rents, and was High Sheriff
for the county in 1665. He likewise obtained a lease from the Earl of
Thomond of lands in the barony of Moyarta, and his second son John was
Rector of Kilrush and purchased the estates, now enjoyed by his descendant,
Colonel Crofton Moore Vandeleur, M. P. The senior branch of his family
were settled at Ralahine, which has passed to heirs female.
Their grandfather, Mr. John Vandeleur, having adopted the principles of
Socialism promulgated by Robert Owen, placed some labourers in his extensive
offices, agreeing to divide all profits in certain proportions with them.
One of the forms to which their industry was applied was the removal of
the surface rocks, the maiden earth proving very favourable for the cultivation
of the potato. His system soon broke down, the labourers preferring fixed
wages.—O’B.
15. The
blazing starr:—Mr. C. Mansfield Ingoldsby, in “Notes and Queries,”
second series, vol. ii., p. 316, says: “This comet appeared first,
of all observers of modern times, to Godfrey Kirch, at Coburg, in Saxony,
on November 14, 1680, in the constellation Leo. It was also observed in
different parts of Europe and America in the same month. The perihelion
passage occurred on Dec. 18. After being obscured by the sun’s rays,
it re-appeared, and was visible for months after Newton saw it on March
19, 1681. The time of reappearance is uncertain in the extreme; Encke
gives a period of 8800 years, Newton’s and Plomsteed’s observations
give 3164 years. Mr. Hind, however (“The Comets,” by J. Russell
Hind, 1842), remarks that the observations collected by Encke are reconcileable
with an elliptical orbit of 805 years, or with a hyperbolic one. It has
been proved that this comet is not identical with those of 1106, 531,
and before Christ 43.”—J. G.
16. Inis
Cealtra Island is situate in Scariff Bay, on Lough Derg, and soon after
the introduction of Christianity was selected for an ecclesiastical settlement.
In 653, a monastery and church were erected there by St. Caimin, from
which the church was called Temple Caimin, and his festival was observed
on the 24th of March. Cosgrach, surnamed Tuoaghan (the meagre), died here
in 898, having occupied the Round Tower for the purpose of carrying out
his penitential austerities, from whence it has been named the anchorite’s
tower. This island was plundered at different times by the Danes, but
was restored by Brian Boiromhe.
Like most of the chief Church Settlements of the Celtic Church in Ireland
the abbots are sometimes called bishops; and, in 1010, it appears united
to the bishopricks of Killaloe and Terryglass, with the former of which
it was probably permanently united at the Synod of Rathbraissell, in 1118.
The island formerly belonged to the county of Clare, but is now annexed
to Galway, the parish of Inishcaltra being divided between both counties.
The ruins of the Seven Churches are still to be seen, and the Round Tower
is in good preservation.
—O’B.
17. Now
Paradise, in the Manor of Crovreaghan, was leased by the Earl of Thomond,
in fee farm, to Richard Henn, and is now, after certain vicissitudes,
in the possession of Thomas Rice Henn, Esq.
It is situated at the end of a steep hill, overhanging the river, commanding
beautiful views of the Fergus, and its islands, and an immense range of
country, terminating with the mountains of Cork, Limerick, Tipperary,
Clare, and Galway.
Fort Fergus was the property of the Earl of Thomond, and leased, in 1656,
by the name of Rosscleave, to Lieut. George Rosse, who was one of the
trustees of the Earl of Thomond’s estates during Cromwell’s
Protectorate. His descendants assumed the name of Ross-Lewin.—O’B.
18. Henry,
the second of that name succeeded as seventh Earl of Thomond, 1657; he
was married first to his cousin, Lady Anne O’Brien, daughter of
Henry, fifth Earl of Thomond.
He married, secondly, Sarah Russell, third daughter of Sir Francis Russell,
of Chippenham, Cambridge, widow of the Cromwellian general Reynolds, who
had left her very rich, she having compounded with his heirs-at-law for
£5000 a year, and what arrears were due in Ireland. Her sister was
married to Henry Cromwell, through whose influence the Earl was allowed
to enter into possession of his estates before the Restoration.
He resided at Great Billing, in Northamptonshire, and, being a Protestant,
his estates escaped the general forfeiture, in which almost the entire
of the county of Clare was subjected.
In Royal fashion, in the documents of the day, he is styled Henry the
Second, Earl of Thomond, as may also be seen on the monument in Limerick
Cathedral, which is generally read to be the second Earl, whereas he was
the seventh Earl of Thomond.—O’B.
19. Now
Inishmacowney, in the barony of Clonderalaw, and was, in 1641, the property
of Gabriel Gallway. It was granted, 19º Chas. II., to the Earls of
Ossory and Arran, and Sir Arthur Gore, Bart., in trust for the 1649 officers.
It contains 225 statute acres, and is now the property of Colonel Vandeluer,
of Kilrush House.—O’B.
20. Coney
Island is now in the barony of Clonderalaw, and contains 225 statute acres;
but, by the Down Survey, it was in the barony of Islands, and called Inish-da-drom.
It was a benefice in itself, and included in the titles of the Præcentor
of Killaloe; but, in 1622, both the Rectory and Vicarage were returned
to the Royal Visitors as impropriate, in the gift of the Earl of Thomond.
The walls of the ruined church are still standing, and near them the foundations
of a still more ancient church.
Inish-da-drom is included in the Earl of Thomond’s patent of 1620,
and is now the property of Sir John Fitzgerald, K.C.B. There is a pointed
hill on the island, which rises 194 feet above the river. Near the summit,
a monument to one of the Fitzgerald family has been erected.—O’B.
21. The
Manor of Crovreaghan was one of the seven manors into which the Earl of
Thomond’s estate in the county of Clare, was divided.—O’B.
22. Inish
More, or Deer Island, contains 443 acres, statute, and is the largest
island in the River Fergus.
This island, and Inish Carker, form part of the Earl of Thomond’s
manor of Crovreaghan, but were claimed before the Royal Commissioners
in 1622 by Bishop Rider, as formerly belonging to the See of Killaloe.—O’B.
23. Inishneganagh
Priory, of the Order of Augustin Cannons, was founded here by Donald More
O’Brien, the last King of Limerick. It was anciently called Elanakanan,
and in the patent of Henry VIII., July, 1543, to Donogh O’Brien,
afterwards second Earl of Thomond, creating him Baron Ibrackan, the Monastery
of Eleannaganaghe, alias the Island of the Canons, “as the said
Donogh now possesses it,” was granted to him, with the lands and
tenements thereto belonging. As the Earls of Thomond possessed the rectorial
tithes of most of the parishes in the barony of Clonderalaw, those, as
well as a portion at least of the manor of Crovreaghan, may have belonged
to this priory.
This monastery was taxed as £1 6s. 8d. to the See of Killaloe. The
ruins are considerable, and the tower, still standing, serves as a mark
for navigating the river.—O’B.
24. Bunratty
Castle.—The first castle recorded at Bunratty belonged to Robert
de Mucegros, whose daughter and heir married Sir William Mortimer, who
by her obtained the Manor of Charleton, Mucegros, and other lands in England,
which, they dying without issue, passed to Edmund, Lord Mortimer, of Wigmore.
Robert Mucecros, in 1275, surrendered to King Edward his castle of Bouret
in Ireland, “to defend it against the Irish rebels.” The year
following, the king directed Geoffry de Gyemul, Lord Justice of Ireland,
to take for the king the Castle of Bawred, with the Cantred of Tradery.
The same year King Edward mad a grant of Thomond to Lord Thomas de Clare,
brother of the Earl of Gloucester.
De Clare had held high offices in England, and had planned and carried
into effect the escape of Edward, who, with his father King Henry III.,
had been made prisoners by the Earl of Leicester. De Clare came over to
Ireland in 1276, and married the daughter of Lord Offaley of Desmond;
when at Cork, Brian Roe O’Brien, who had claimed the principality
of Thomond, from which, however, he had been driven out, went to him,
and agreed to secure him in the Cantred of Tradery, which included a great
part of the present Barony of Lower Bunratty, provided de Clare would
recover for him the Chieftainship of Thomond.
Bunratty Castle was occupied by de Clare, and a civil war followed, in
which Brian Roe O’Brien was aided by the Desmonds, and his rival
and lawful chief, Prince Turlogh O’Brien, was assisted by the de
Burghos of Galway. This struggle was terminated in 1317, at the battle
of Dysert O’Dea, when De Clare’s son and grandson were slain,
and the family of Brian Roe banished from Clare.
One of the very few cases of the kind recorded in Irish history occurred
at Bunratty, where, in 1353, the Bishop of Waterford caused two Irishmen
of the clan of the Mac Namaras to be burnt for heresy. When the Earl of
Sussex was sent into Clare to uphold the rights of Connor Earl of Thomond,
according to the English law, he having recovered the Castles of Bunratty
and Clare, placed Connor in possession, and from that time Bunratty became
the chief seat of the Earls of Thomond in Clare.
A Parliamentary fleet, in 1646, having entered the Shannon, Bunratty Castle
was given up to them by the Earl of Thomond, who withdrew to England,
where he and his successors thenceforward generally resided.
The Confederates, then in possession of Limerick, were very anxious to
drive out the English from Bunratty, which was defended by 600 men under
Colonel McAdam. Being urged by the Nuncio, Rinuccini, who joined the camp
himself, the siege was commenced in April, and the garrison surrendered
on the 14 July.
Bunratty was one of the Manors of the Earl of Thomond, and from it the
name of the Barony was taken (having been originally called Dangan-I-Vigin)
when Clare was, in 1570, formed into a county. The walls of the castle
are still very perfect. Its position must have been very isolated before
the erection of the bridge, and the embankment of the neighbouring corcases,
which are of great extent.—O’B.
25. The
Barony of Ibrickane, Hy Brecain, was anciently a part of the kingdom of
Corca Bhaiscin, which subsequently merged in Thomond, the Mac Mahons becoming
chiefs in Clonderalaw and Moyarta, and the Mac Gormans in Ibrickane, and
they appear as such in the submission made to Richard II., in 1394.
When Murrough O’Brien surrendered his principality to Henry VIII.,
and was created Baron of Inchiquin, with remainder to his heirs, and Earl
of Thomond, with remainder to his nephew, Donough O’Brien, Donough
was also created Baron of Ibrickane, and this barony became thus a demesne
manor, under the name of Moih Ibreackan, the chief castle whereof was
Miock.
By the “Book of Distributions,” the whole barony was, with
the exception of one ploughland, the property of the Earl of Thomond,
in 1641.
The soil generally is very poor, but much has been reclaimed by the use
of sea sand.—O’B.
26. Although
a great deal of the land in the Barony of Corcomroe is poor mountain,
yet some of it is very good. It is told of one of the Patentees from Charles
II., that having obtained a grant of land, he proceeded with his wife
to inspect the land. Having reached Confin, he was so disheartened with
the rocky appearance of that territory that he refused to proceed any
further.
His wife, with more spirit, mounted her horse, and took possession of
what afterwards proved a valuable property.
This, and the Barony of Burren, formed the kingdom of Corca-Madhruadh,
tributary to both Thomond and Cashel. The O’Connors were kings here,
but having divided the territory, the chiefs of Burren assumed the name
of O’Loughlin; its extent is still defined by the Diocese of Kilfenora.
When the Earl of Thomond drove Sir Edward Fytton out of the county for
attempting to hold a Court of Sessions at Ennis, the banished Ex-Prince,
Donald More O’Brien, was taken into favour by the English, which
led to a compromise, by which he obtained the chieftain’s dues arising
out of the barony of Corcomroe, and was established at the Castle of Dough,
and thus the last rights of the O’Connors were extinguished. Several
of that name were proprietors at the time of the forfeiture in 1641, but
none of them obtained lands at the Restoration.
By the composition entered into with Sir John Perrott, 17 August, 1585,
it was covenanted that the Earl of Thomond should be paid five shillings
out of every quarter or plowland in the county, except the barony of Inchiquin,
which was assigned to the Lords Inchiquin, in compensation for the services,
duties, and cesses to which the chieftain was exhibited from the freeholders.
This composition rent arising out of 100 quarters in the barony of Corcomroe,
the Earl of Thomond leased to Sir Turlogh O’Brien, who, having taken
out a patent of his lands from Queen Elizabeth, became the founder of
the family of the O’Briens of Ennistymon.—O’B.
27. The
Castle of Carrigogunnell, situated on a basaltic rock, which has forced
its way through the surrounding limestone, forms a conspicuous object
from Limerick and the banks of the River Shannon, long below Bunratty.
It is situated in the Barony of Pubble Brien and the Parish of Kilkeedy,
which, anciently called Eschluona, was the manor of William De Burgho,
Governor of Limerick, in 1200, who, having married Eva, the daughter of
Donald More O’Brien, the last king of Limerick, attempted to set
up a petty principality, but was soon brought to submission by Meyler
Fitz Henry, then Justiciary of Ireland.
His brother-in-law, Donough Cairbreach O’Brien, although a younger
son, succeeded in obtaining the chieftainship of Thomond, and having paid
homage to King John, at Waterford, in 1211, he obtained, amongst other
things, a grant of the lands of Carrigogunnell, with the Lordship, for
himself and his heirs for ever, at a yearly rent of sixty marks.
From him descended Connor O’Brien, who was Prince of Thomond in
1399, and before that, occupied the position of tanist, or named successor;
while such, a license was granted by King Richard II., 8 December, 1388,
to the Earl of Desmond to send his son to him to be brought up or fostered,
and thus an alliance was formed between the O’Briens and the Fitz
Geralds, which was cemented by several intermarriages. His third son,
Brien Duff O’Brien, settled in the county of Limerick, and from
him sprung the Lords of Agherloe and Carrigogunnell.
In the State Papers of HenryVIII., it is stated in 1536, that Donough
O’Brien, afterwards created Baron Ibrackan, who had married the
daughter of the Earl of Ossory in opposition to his own father, who was
Prince of Thomond, and allied by marriage with the Earl of Desmond, whose
contests with the Earl of Ossory caused so much evil to the country, had
offered to take Carrigogunnell, which, it is added, “never belonged
to an Englishman for two hundred years,” if he had an English captain
and soldiers, and a piece of ordnance.
Sir Leonard Gray succeeded in putting a ward of soldiers into the castle,
and gave it by indenture to the man who had suggested the capture, but
he did not long enjoy it, “for the said castell by tradyment was
taken again by the persons who had possessed it before.”
It descended by inheritance to Sir Brien Duff O’Brien, Knt., who
married Margaret, daughter of Hon. Donough O’Brien of Dromoland,
and Lemeneagh, 1585, July. Brien Duff O’Brien of Carrigogunnell,
chief of his name in Pobelbrien, and Lord of Pobel-brien, surrendered
to the Queen his possessions of Carrigogunnell, and other lands in the
county of Limerick, and took out a patent for same, and was made a knight.
He died 11 July, 1615, and was succeeded by his son Donough, who died
without issue 20 June, 1632. Sir Brien had a daughter, named Margaret,
married to Richard Stephenson, of Dunmoylan, county of Limerick, who obtained
large grants of land in Connelloe.
Carrigogunnell, at Donough’s death, passed to a third cousin, Daniel
O’Brien of Doweyne, who married a daughter of Richard Stephenson,
but having taken part in the rising in 1641, the estate was forfeited.
After the restoration, Carrigogunnell, with four plowlands, was granted
1 May, 13º Chas. II., to Michael Boyle, Lord Archbishop of Dublin.
During the second siege of Limerick in 1691, the castle was occupied by
a force of 150 men for King James, but General Scravemore having been
sent by Baron Ginkle with a strong party, and four guns, the 150 soldiers
were marched to Clonmell prisoners of war, and Carrigogunnell converted,
by the use of gunpowder, into a ruin, still picturesque, and showing remains
of its former strength.
Carrigogunnell is generally translated Rock of the Candle, but Mr. O’Donovan
states the proper name to be Carrig-O-Gloinneal, Rock of the O’Connells.—O’B.
28. Knapogue
Castle: built by John Mac Macon Mac Shyda Mac Namara, and was, in 1576,
in the hands of Turlough O’Brien. In 1584 John Mac Namara was in
possession, who, 7th August, 1585, signed the composition with Sir John
Perrott, as John Mac Namara of Knappock, called Mac Namar of West Clancullen.
This branch of the family, who added Finn to their name, were lords of
West Clancullen, and possessed the castles of Dangan, Iviggen, which gave
the name to the barony before it was changed to Bunratty, and also the
castle of Cratloe, Moell, &c.
Knapogue was in possession of Daniel Mac Namara Finn in 1641, who died
in 1652, but his castle was given over by the Cromwellians to Arthur Smith,
Daniel’s son. John Finn having been declared a Protestant in 1655,
he obtained a settlement at Doonmulvihil Castle in Inchicronan parish,
and, after the Restoration, his son (36 Chas. II.) obtained a grant of
considerable estates.
From this branch of the Mac Namara sprung the Mac Namara of Doolen, now
represented in chief by Colonel Francis Mac Namara of Ennistymon. The
castle is covered in and occupied by Lord Dunboyne.
29. Ross
Roe castle was built by Shyda Camm Mac Namara, who was the person who
founded the Abbey of Quin in 1402. His son, Fingin Mac Namara, had a son
Loughlin, who had a son Florence, father of Florence, who died 1602, and
mortgaged it to Nicholas Stritch of Limerick. This Florence had a son,
Finneen Mirgagh, who died 1st May, 1621, leaving Nydar, his son and heir,
who redeemed Stritche’s mortgage, and obtained, on 5th June, 1629,
livery and seizin of his father’s possessions. He obtained license
to alienate to Daniel O’Brien, afterwards Lord Clare.
In 1564, during the contest between Donald O’Brien, the elected
Prince of Thomond, and the Earl of Thomond, the latter happened to be
staying at Ross Roe Castle, when Donald O’Brien, with the aid of
his younger brother, and the two sons of Lord Inchiquin, advanced against
the Earl, plundered the surrounding country, and burned the town of Ross
Roe. This lay in the middle of the Mac Namaras’ territory, who had
submitted to the Earl of Thomond, covenanting “that they should
ever conduct themselves faithfully and without malice towards the Earl
and his heirs,” and “that they would not wage war or oppose
the Earl or his heirs for ever;” thus admitting the new English
law of succession.
In faith of this undertaking, the whole of the east of the country, from
Scarriff to Rinanna, rose to aid the Earl, but the invaders having secured
a safe position, slew about 100 of the Earl’s soldiers; however,
not feeling able to contend against the increasing forces which were assembling
from all parts, and probably having done as much mischief as they intended,
they returned by night across the Fergus river, “carrying with them
their preys and acquisitions, without receiving wound or injury.”
By the Petty Census, it appears that Colonel William Purefoy was put in
possession of the Castle of Ross Roe, but at the Restoration it was granted,
19º, Chas. II., with Knock Bryan, to Viscount Clare, who mortgaged
it to George Mathews of Thomastown, and afterwards to Colonel Robert Maud
of Dundrum, which mortgage having been paid by John Clignett, he obtained
a lease in 1671 from Lord Clare.
Colonel William Purefoy did not altogether relinquish his claim; for in
1683 he had a suit with Lord Clare about Ross Roe, but the forfeiture
of Lord Clare’s estates and the new grants made to Burton, Westby,
and Mac Donnell, put an end to the matter, for Ross Roe and Knock Brien
were included in their grants.
30. “Robert”
is written in the margin here.
31. The
stream which flows from Ross Roe, Fenloe, and Ballycar lakes, is only
a small one in summer, passing under ground between Ballycar (late belonging
to Colpoys family) and Newmarket, and again under the demesne at Carrigoran,
the seat of Sir Augustine Fitz Gerald. There are several other instances
in the county of Clare arising form the cavernous formation of the limestone
which prevails through the centre of the county of Clare—the “Toomeens”
in the demesne of Kiltanon being the most remarkable in the county. In
wet weather, the inability of these passages to carry off the water causes
the numerous Turloghs which exist in Clare.
32. In
ancient times there was an abbey at this place, of which there is now
no vestige; but there is a record of the death of Scannlan, Abbot of Tuaim
Finlocha, i.e. the mound of the bright lake, in 944.
This parish formed a part of the territory of Traddery, which, in the
middle of the 10th century was taken possession of by the Norsemen or
Danes, with the intention of making it a garrison, from which to conquer
all Munster. To secure their position, they raised a fence, extending
from the Ardsollus river to near Six-mile-Bridge; and on the top of the
hill of Moonghaun, near Tomfenlough church, are still the remains of three
walls of circumvallation, enclosing a large space of ground, and called
the Danish Fort. From this point there is a view commanding the whole
plain country of Clare, from the boundary of Connaught to the river Shannon;
from Limerick to Foynes. Afterwards Traddery was occupied by the clann
Delbhaeth of the Ui Neill Buidhe, whose chief residence was at Fion Luaragh.
33. The
building of this abbey is dated from 1402, by some, but, according to
Ware, it was built in 1433, in which year Pope Eugene IV. granted a license
to Sioda Cam Mac Namara, Lord of Clancuillen, to place the friars of Strict
Observance in this monastery, they being the first alt="" of the Franciscan
Order who accepted those rules in Ireland. Mac Namara directed that this
should be the burial place of himself and of his tribe. He died in 1444.
In 1586, the castle of Quinhi was in the possession of Donough Mac Murrough
O’Brien, the monastery of Quin, with all its manors, advowsons,
lands, &c., having been granted to Sir Turlogh O’Brien of Ennistymon.
Dinely is wrong in stating that Sir Turlogh O’Brien’s son,
Teige, was slain at Quin, for though Teige did join in this raid, notwithstanding
the loyalty of his father, he was wounded at Inchicronan, and removed
to the Earl of Clanrickard’s castle of Leitrim, where he died about
a week after.
To this abbey retired William Burke, the blind abbot, who had claimed
to be the Mac William of Connaught, but being expelled by Sir Richard
Bingham, afterwards wandering from territory to territory, found refuge
here, and was buried in the abbey in 1598. On the accession of King James
I., when the Roman Catholics supposed their religion was to be restored,
they repaired this abbey.
1611. Sir William Fisher, Bart., obtained a grant of the friars’
mill and some land on the east side of the river the estate of the abbey.
Bishop Pocock states that it “was one of the most entire monasteries
that he had seen in his time in Ireland. The high altar was entire, with
an altar on each side of the chancel. On the south side is a chapel with
three or four altars, and on one therein is a Gothic figure in relief
of some saint. On the north side is a fine monument of one of the Mac
Namaras of Rane. On a stone by the high altar the name of Kenedy appears
in large letters.”
“The cloister is peculiar in having buttresses between the openings.
There are apartments on three sides of it—the refectory, the dormitory,
and another grand room on the north of the chancel, with vaulted rooms
under them all. To the north of the large room is a closet, which leads
through a private way to a very strong round room, the walls of which
are nearly ten feet thick. In the front of the monastery is a building
which seems to have been an apartment for strangers; and on the south-west
are two other buildings.”
“On the wall, near the high altar, is a representation of the crucifixion
in stucco.”
34. The
inscription on this monument is printed letter for letter with the original.
The last word may read
CONOGH [ER] M [AC] NAMARRA.
35. There
were several families of O’Mullonys proprietors in the barony of
Tulla previous to the forfeitures of 1641. Teige O’Mullony obtained
land under the Cromwellian Settlement at Killdonnelballagh, in the parish
of Tulla, of which lands he obtained a grant at the Restoration. Another
Connor O’Mullowny was settled by the Cromwellians at Knockadoon,
in the same parish.
To endow the church at Tulla, Mac Con Mac Namara, 20° Richard II.,
granted the then rector and his successors, 21 plough lands; amongst which
was Kiltanon, and an Inquisition was held by directions of Sir Richard
Bingham in 1585, who found that this alteration was against the Statute
of Mortmain. No action seems to have taken upon this till 1611, when an
Inquisition was held before Nicholas Kenny, the Escheator-general; but
he could not get the jurors to find the mortmain, for which they were
subjected to great trouble; but having afterwards summoned a more compliant
jury, the lands were declared forfeited to the Crown, by reason of mortmain;
and in 1613 granted to Nicholas White of Dublin, from whom Kiltenan and
other lands passed to Sir Rowland Delahoyd. His heir, Oliver Delahoyd,
having taken up arms with the Irish in 1641, lost the estate, which was
granted to Philip Bigoe. In 1713, William, Earl of Inchiquin, made leases
of an extensive tract of country to James Molony of Kiltannon, including
the Abbey of Corcomroe, in Burren, the fee of which was afterwards purchased.
The present generation are deeply indebted to the present James Molony
of Kiltannon, Esq., whose public spirit and generous expenditure has opened
for them the great tract of mountain country lying between Tulla and Galway;
which, though thickly inhabited, was almost inaccessible for traffic,
as well as for his efforts to introduce manufactures and the growth of
flax.
36. This
monument is not now extant. There were several families of the Mac Namaras,
who had considerable possessions in the time of James I., when the inquiry
took place as to the title fo the Clare proprietors, viz.
Mac Namara Reagh of Fartane, now corrupted to Fort Anne, represented the
principal branch, who had been lords of East Clancuilen. Mac Namara Finn
of Knapogue represented the lords of West Clancuilen. Mac Namara of Montallen,
of whom was Sir John Mac Namara, Knt.; Mac Namara of Ross Roe, before
mentioned; Mac Namara of Roslaragh; Mac Namara of Kilkishen; Mac Namara
of Danganbrack; Mac Namara of Ballynahinch; Mac Namara of Derrymore; Mac
Namara of Coolreagh; most of whose castles are still standing.
37. The
settlement of Donough Cairbreach O’Brien at Clonroad, was followed
by his founding the Abbey of Inis Cluána Ramfhoda, for Franciscan
Friars Minors, and received many subsequent benefactions from the Princes
of Thomond, who were generally buried here. In 1375 Edward III., moved
with compassion from the poverty of this house, and scarcity of provisions
in these parts of the country, granted a license for the guardian and
friars to enter the English Pale to purchase provisions.
In 1543, Dr. Nelan petitioned Henry VIII. for a grant of this monastery,
“not yet dissolved,” for having “travelled much,”
to induce O’Brien, Prince of Thomond, to make his submission, which
petition was granted, but only for a limited time, for the Crown was in
possession in 1577.
In 1621 William Dongan obtained a grant of the House of the Junior Brothers,
called Grey Friars of Innis, with one church, one belfry, one grave-yard,
one mill, one salmon weir, one eel weir, two messuages with stone walls,
and twelve cottages with land on Clonroad. All the land about Ennis belonged
to the Earl of Thomond’s manor of Clonroad, and almost wholly leased
to the Gore family in perpetuity.
38. Before
the English Invasion, the chief place in this district was at Dromcliff,
where there are still remains of a round tower. This was the territory
of the Hy Cormaic, whose tribe name was O’Hehir.
After the English took possession of Limerick, at the end of the 13th
century, the kingdom of Thomond, which had before then included all North
Munster, was reduced to the present county of Clare, and part of Tipperary.
Over this Donough Cairbreach O’Brien ruled as chief, and he located
himself at Clonroad, where he founded the monastery of Inish-Clonroad.
From that time Clonroad became one of the mensal castles of the chiefs
of Thomond; and during the disputed successions of the following century
the possession was the constant subject of contention.
In 1551, on the death of Murrough O’Brien, who had surrendered his
principality to Henry VIII., Clonroad was occupied by his nephew, Donough
O’Brien, who had succeeded to the Earldom of Thomond, while Murrough’s
son only succeeded to the barony of Inchiquin. This Donough was tanist,
and, by right of Irish succession, would have been prince; but as the
grant of the earldom had only been for life, he sought out and obtained
in 1552, a grant of the earldom to him and his issue male, and at the
same time obtained a grant of all the honours and land which his uncle
held in right of the chieftainships to himself and heirs.
His next brother, Donald, who was tanist, and therefore next in succession
to these mensal honours—for up to this time all the ancient customs
had been maintained, the new peers having still been “The O’Brien”
in this territory—became incensed at this deprivation, and being
joined by other uncles of Lord Inchiquin, then a minor, attacked Earl
Donough at Clonroad, when they burned and plundered the town, so that
the Earl was obliged to go into a tower to protect himself; but he did
not survive for more than two months, some accounts stating that he was
slain by Donald.
On the Earl’s death, Donald was inaugurated Prince, and possessed
himself of the castles of Clonroad and Clare, to the exclusion of his
nephew, Connor, now Earl of Thomond; but (1585) the Earl of Sussex having
entered Thomond, took the castle of Clonroad, and put the Earl in possession.
In 1570, when Earl Connor drove Sir Edward Fytton out of Thomond for venturing
to hold a Court of Justice in Ennis, thereby setting aside his chieftain
rights, the Earl of Ormond was sent by the Queen to chastise the Earl,
who, unable to compete with his force, surrendered Clonroad and all his
manors, except the barony of Ibrickane, and went to England to make submission
to the Queen. Sir Edward Fytton, in the meantime, revisiting Ennis, placed
a garrison in Clonroad. Earl Connor having been favourably received by
the Queen, was restored to his lands; but from that time Bunratty Castle
appears to have been the chief residence of the Earls of Thomond.
Not a vestige of the castle of Clonroad now remains—the last worked
stones having been removed during the present century, towards building
the house at Derrymore, and residue used in buildings in Ennis, or repairing
roads.
39. Clar-more
probably gave its name to the county of Clare in 1670, it having previous
to that been called Thomond, the Irish laws having continued in force
under the rule of the Earls of Thomond, and Clare castle was one of the
demesne castles of the Chief of Thomond for the time being.
When Donnell More O’Brien, on the death of his brother, the second
Earl of Thomond, in 1558, being Tanist, and following the ancient custom
of the country, was inaugurated Prince of Thomond, he took possession
of Clare Castle; but Connor, the third Earl who claimed, according to
the English law of primogeniture, to succeed his father, invoked the aid
of the Queen and the Earl of Sussex was sent into Clare; and, having evicted
Donnell More, he restored Clare Castle and Bunratty to the Earl.
In 1570, when Sir Edward Fytton endeavoured to introduce the English laws
into the newly-formed county of Clare, and proclaimed a Sessions at Ennis
for the purpose, the Earl of Thomond, then at Clare Castle, unwilling
to submit to the laws which deprived him of his rule as chieftain, not
only made prisoners of Fytton’s messengers, but drove him out of
the county, the newly-appointed Sheriff acting as his guide through the
difficult passes leading into Connaught. The year following Sir Edward
Fytton had his revenge, and deprived the Earl of the Castle of Clare;
but it was subsequently restored to him, and has remained ever since a
part of the property, though leased in fee farm.
It is now used as a military barrack, and the round and high square tower
joining it, though now reduced to the same level, are in good preservation.—O’B.
40. This
is in the parish of Killimer, barony of Clonderlaw, and was therefore
in the territory of East Corca Bhaiscin, the Lord of whom, 1585, who signed
the composition with Sir John Perrott, was Teige Mac Mahon; otherwise,
“MacMahon.” In the return of the castles of Clare supplied
to Sir Richard Bingham in 1586, the castle of Doneygrock was possessed
by Teige Mac Muircertagh Cam (Mac Mahon). In 1620, the Castle of Donogoroge
was included in the Earl of Thomond’s Patent, and was, in 1641,
in possession of his tenant, William Brigdale.
During the Cromwellian period, Mr. Walter Hickman was placed in this castle,
and after obtained from the Earl of Thomond a lease of same for ninety
years, with the condition to supply a Protestant horseman, with good horse,
sword, case of pistols, and other necessaries for a month; to plant 100
apple trees, and to cover the castle with a roof, with slate or shingle,
and also to erect a house 1½ stories 40 ft. by 18 ft.
41. Barrane
Lands, in the parish of Killimer, barony of Clonderalaw, was, previous
to 1641, the property of Sir Teige M‘Mahon, Bart., who succeeded
in finding favour with the Crown, and obtained some of the ancient patrimony
of the M‘Mahons of East Corca Bhaiskin. Here Thomas Clancy was located
under the Cromwellian Settlement, but the lands at the Restoration were
granted to James Nixon. Benjamin Cox, Esq., of Mount Pleasant, Kilrush,
J.P., is the present representative of Captain John Cocks, above mentioned,
though not the owner of Barrane.
42. This
was the chief seat of the M‘Mahons, Lords of West Corca Bhaiscin,
which composed the present barony of Moyarta, and part of Ibrickane. The
composition of 1585 was signed by Tyrrelagh M‘Mahon of Moyarta,
chief of his name in West Corcavaskin. When the rents under this composition
were sought to be collected, Teige Caech M‘Mahon, Lord of Carrigaholt,
committed outrages upon the crown collectors. As this not only affected
the crown’s claim of 10s. a quarter, but also the claim of 5s. from
each quarter, payable to the Earl of Thomond, he sent his brother to remonstrate,
but Teige being then absent in Kerry, the castle was occupied by his wife
and a beautiful daughter, to whom the Earl’s brother soon became
attached. Teige having returned when O’Brien was out hunting, ordered
that he should be seized on entering the courtyard, which was on the sea-side.
As soon as O’Brien was aware of the attempt, he leapt his horse
over the wall into the foaming sea, and although wounded, reached the
strand, which extends for a mile to the east of the castle. The Earl of
Thomond, in revenge, possessed himself of some of M‘Mahon’s
castles. In 1600, Teige Caech crossed the Shannon and joined O’Donnell,
who had marched to the south to meet the Spaniards, where he was soon
after killed accidentally by his own son Turlogh, who fled to Spain.
In 1601, July 8, Daniel O’Brien, brother of the Earl of Thomond,
received the Queen’s letter for a grant of the Castle of Carrigaholt,
and such manners, castles, &c., as Teige M‘Mahon and his son
Turlogh were seised of in West Corcavaskin, at the time of their entering
into rebellion. This Sir Daniel O’Brien was created Viscount Clare
in 1662. The large estate which had been acquired by the Clare family
were forfeited by Daniel, third Viscount, in 1688, and the estates sold.
Carrigaholt passed to the Burtons, one of the co-purchasers, and was the
residence of Sir Francis N. Burton, brother of the Marquis of Conyngham,
who repaired the castle, and his grandson now enjoys it.
43. Querin
is in the parish of Moyarta, and in 1620 was included in the Earl of Thomond’s
patent. Isaack Vanhogarden was placed here at the Cromwellian Settlement,
but at the Restoration, the Earl of Thomond leased the lands to John Wright
and Humphrey Rogers for ninety-nine years, with the condition that they
should build a stone house with chimneys, one and a-half stories high,
40 ft. by 18 ft., floored with boards, and covered with slate or shingles.
The improvements made by this tenant are stated to have cost £600.
44. Hog
Island lies between Scattery Island and Kilrush, and formed part of the
manor of Kilrush. Dinely has given no particulars of Scattery Island,
which has a long history of its own. Its ruins are fully described by
Dr. O’Donovan, in a letter dated 9th December, 1839, now deposited
in the Royal Irish Academy, with the documents from the Ordnance Office.
45. Cuchullin’s
Leap, in the parish of Kilballyowen, barony of Moyarta, Co. Clare. In
this remote parish there are remains of several churches of great antiquity.
46. There
is a stone in a field belonging to Mr. Kieran Molloy; a short distance
S.W. of the churchyard of Clonmacnoise, on which, if a person leaving
the country, turns on his heel, with the sun, he will, it is believed,
be sure to come back to his native place alive. This stone is called “Clogh-an-umpy,”
i.e. “cloch-an-t-iompodh,” “stone of the turning.”
This is a curious relic of our ancient sun-worship. Tempo in Fermanagh
is called in Irish “an t-iompodh deisiol,” i.e. “turning
from left to right.” Joyce’s “Irish Names of Places.”
p. 28.—J.G.
47. The
forfeiture of the property of Teige Caech M‘Mahon in 1601 promoted
further inquiry in this country. On the 27th of October, 1604, an Inquisition
took place of a remarkable character, for the jury found that Shinan M‘Girrygine,
late Bishop of Iniskatra (be it remembered that Scattery was united to
Killaloe previous to the English conquest, and if St. Seanan is the bishop
meant, he died in 544), granted to the Church for pious uses sixteen quarters
of land, including Kilrush, commonly called Termon Shannon, and that they
had been granted in lease by the bishops of Killaloe, but were declared
forfeited to the King because they were granted to the fraternity of Canons
against the Statutes of Mortmain.
1605, March 9. These sixteen quarters of Termon Shannon were granted to
John King, Clerk of the Hanaper, Dublin; and in March, 1609, were regranted
to Donat Earl of Thomond. And again in 1620, were, with other lands, formed
into the Earl’s manor of Kilrush by a new patent.
In 1622, John Rider, bishop of Killaloe, made a claim for these lands
to the Royal Commissioners; but having at the same time claimed almost
every denomination in the three baronies of Moyarta, Clonderalaw, and
Ibrickane, no notice appears to have been taken of it. This appears a
confirmation of the assertion that amongst the native chieftains in old
times the civil and ecclesiastical power were united in the same person,
those baronies having in ancient times formed the kingdom of Corca Bhaiskin,
whose kings having been expelled by the M‘Mahons, it became united
with Thomond.
By the Petty Census, Isaac Granger, John Arthur, and Peter White, appear
as “Tituladoes” in the town, with five English and eighty-four
Irish inhabitants.
The Earl of Thomond, after the Restoration, granted a lease of Kilrush,
with four and a-half ploughlands, to Isaack Granger, to expire in 1675;
and another in reversion in 1672 to Colonel John Blount, which contained
a covenant to lay out the town of Kilrush, and settle therein ten English
families, or in want of them, ten tradesmen, and to build no houses but
with brick or stone and lime, to be slated. At General Hostings to send
two horsemen armed and found for a month. If expelled from the premises
by war, to pay no rent but what he makes of the premises.
In 1656, Giles Vandeleur was tenant to the Earl of Thomond for Ballynode,
in this barony, and his second son, the Rev. John Vandeleur, was appointed
Rector of Kilrush in 1688.
48. The
kingdom of Corcomroe consisted of the present baronies of Corcomroe and
Burren, and were formed into an independent diocese, that of Kilfenora,
at the synod of Rathbraissil, in 1111. It became divided under two chiefs
of the O’Connors, one of whom assumed the name of O’Loughlin;
and their families increased to such an extent, that in 1641 there were
fifty-three proprietors of land in the barony of Burren of the name of
O’Loughlin notwithstanding several forfeitures and sales which had
taken place during the preceding reign.
The O’Loughlins had joined in the resistance to the Earl of Thomond’s
English succession by primogeniture; but he obtained their submission
by force of arms in 1599, notwithstanding their warlike nature and very
thick skulls, which was a type of the ancient race of O’Loughlins.
Some of this clan were admitted to occupy under the Cromwellian Settlement;
but the baronies of Burren and Inchiquin were appointed for the transplanted
Irish from Kerry who, in a petition to the Council, Sep. 5 1655, complain
that they had been assigned that part of the county that was most infertile
and waste, and they were also removed from the sea coast by the mile-line,
which was given to English settlers to prevent the Irish from intercourse
with any persons coming by ships. At the Restoration, Donough O’Loughlin,
of Killonehan parish, received a grant of seventy acres, the only one
of that numerous family that was admitted to favour.
Notwithstanding its infertile character, large quantities of cattle, fed
on the winterages of Burren, without the aid of artificial food or hay,
are disposed of at the Spring fair at Ballinasloe in such good condition,
that they are eagerly bought up by those who possess richer pastures.
The Pooldoody oysters still maintain their celebrity.
49. i.e.
Sea Holly.
50. 1606.
Act of Council was passed restraining the barbarous custom of drawing
ploughs and carriages by horses’ tails, on pain of forfeiture—for
the first year’s offence, one garron (horse); the second, two; and
for the third the whole team.
1613, July 27. Grant made 11° James I. to Sir William Uvedale of the
fines of 10s. to be forfeited for every plough drawn by horses’
tails, for which he was to pay a rent to the Crown of £100 Irish.
In 1613 a Commission was issued to inquire into the state of Ireland,
and among other things, as to disorderly practises, which reported “that,
notwithstanding the order of 1606, it was not put in execution for almost
five years, until, in 1611, Captain Paule Goare, demanding seven or eight
score pounds of his majesty for pay of certain soldiers entertained by
him and other services, did desire the benefit of this penalty in one
or two counties, which the Lord Deputy granted, limiting the charge to
10s. In 1612, the Lord Deputy ordered the penalty to be levied in all
Ulster, which, amounting to £870, was employed for public uses.
The profits under the grant to Sir William Uvedale within Ulster has produced
£800, though they were informed the charge on the people was more.
“Although divers of the natives pretend a necessity to continue
the said manner of ploughing, as more fit for stony and mountainous ground,
yet we are of opinion it is not fit to be continued.”
1620, May 18th. King’s letter states “that he had hoped the
barbarous custom would have been reformed, but that he had heard that
the agents, acting under his patent, more respecting their own profit
than our intention, have, by way of contract, drawn down the 10s., to
2s. 6d., and 2s., and so, by lessening the punishment, opened the way
for the rude and hateful custom to spread itself.” A Statute 10
and 11 Charles I., cap. 15, was afterwards passed that none should plough,
harrow, or draw by horses’ tails.
It is curious that Article 28, in the treaty of March 25, 1646, between
the Supreme Council of the Confederates and Lord Ormond, it was provided
that the Acts prohibiting ploughing by horses’ tails, and burning
oats in straw, should be repealed, proving what a hold these customs had
taken, when such great issues were at stake at that moment.
51. From
a rare book entitled “Beware the Cat;” it appears that these
brogues were fitted to the foot by a piece of the hide being laced on
when fresh from the beast.—J.G.
52. This
was one of the manors of Viscount Clare, in the barony of Moyarta; and
Colonel Daniel O’Brien, afterwards third Viscount, resided here
during his father’s life. Henry Hickman obtained a lease of Ballykett
from Lord Clare, Nov. 13, 1668, for three lives. It did not belong to
the Earl of Thomond, as stated by Dineley.
53. It
is curious to find early maturity, now held to be a result of high English
breeding, here set forth as a peculiarity of the “Irish cattle”
of Clare, one of the aboriginal breeds of Ireland.—J.G.
54. From
the circumstance of the Earls of Inchiquin having been created Marqueses
of Thomond, after the extinction of the Thomond branch, very few understand
the distinction of the two lines. Murrough O’Brien, who surrendered
to Henry VIII., was created Earl of Thomond only for life, the hereditary
title being that of Inchiquin. His nephew Donough, son of his elder brother,
was at the same time created Baron of Ibrackane, with remainder to the
Earldom of Thomond; and thus the heirs of Murrough were Inchiquins, while
the heirs of Donough were Thomonds; and between these two families there
was a feud of long duration, arising originally as an offshoot of the
wars between the Butlers and Fitzgeralds, Donough having married a Butler,
and Murrough a Fitzgerald.
At the composition with Sir John Perrott in 1585, a compromise was effected;
for while the Earls of Thomond obtained 5s. a quarter in lieu of chieftain’s
right from eight baronies, Lord Inchiquin was given 5s. a quarter for
every quarter in the barony of Inchiquin, the castle of Inchiquin being
then the residence of the lords.
Murrough, the first lord, possessed the castle and manor of O’Brien’
s Bridge, with nine quarters of land.
The sixth baron, created Earl of Inchiquin, obtained Rostellan, in the
county of Cork, which became the chief seat of that family. He died in
1673. The second Earl went as Governor to Jamaica, where he died in 1691;
and the third Earl resided at Rostellan. This third Earl leased away all
the manor of O’Brien’s Bridge to different persons, and the
reserved rents were afterwards sold.
55. The
O’Briens, who, after the banishment of the English out of Clare
in 1318, had succeeded as Princes of Thomond, were involved in frequent
wars with the Earls of Desmond, with respect to the territories, which
lay in the south side of the Shannon, and in 1466, Teige O’Brien
not only succeeded in obtaining the territory of Clanwilliam, but also
a chief rent out of the Co. Limerick, and a subsidy of sixty marks a year
for the city of Limerick.
After the defeat of M‘William of Clanrickard, and Prince Turlogh
Donn O’Brien, who had gone to his aid, at the battle of Knocktow,
in 1504, the city of Limerick could no longer be depended upon as a passage
from one part of Thomond to the other: so O’Brien, having obtained
assistance from the bishops of Killaloe and Kilfenora, built a bridge
across the river Shannon, at Portcrusha, in 1507. The Earl of Kildare,
Lord Justice of Ireland, partly destroyed this bridge in 1510. In 1534
Connor O’Brien, Prince of Thomond, having given his adhesion to
Lord Thomas Fitzgerald, the “Silken Earl,” Lord Leonard Grey’s
attention was directed to this bridge, “by which, in a manner, all
the English thereto adjoining had been subdued, especially the County
of Limerick, and that unless the bridge be in haste laid prostrate, the
O’Briens may be expected to encroach still further upon the territory
of the English.” It was not until 1536 that Lord Leonard Grey succeeded
in destroying the bridge, having “brought a Portugal piece, and
certain harquebusses and hand guns, with a great piece of iron, that shot
balls, as great in manner as a man’s head, with which the garrison
were driven out of their defences, and the bridge, which was fifteen score
paces long, was broken down with bills, swords, and daggers, with great
labour for lack of pickaxes and crows.”
After the death of Connor O’Brien, his brother Murrough, who succeeded
as Prince, no longer able to resist the increased power of the English,
not only surrendered his principality, but agreed to relinquish all claim
as chieftain beyond the Shannon.
56. Under
the ancient Irish rule, the ecclesiastical divisions were conterminous
with the territories of the principal chieftains, and Tuam Greine, or
Tomgraney, appears to have been chief church of the Dalcassian tribe of
Ui Bloid, who were settled on the north side of the Shannon. When Brian
Borumha selected Kincora, in the present town of Killaloe, as his chief
residence, in preference to Cashel, which his family were only entitled
to occupy in alternate succession with the Eugenian race, the church of
Killaloe sprung into importance. On the south side of the Shannon lay
another territory of the Ive Bloid, whose chief church was Tir de Glas,
or Terry Glass.
When the Papal Legate, Gillebert, bishop of Limerick, at the Synod of
Rathbrassil, in 1111, consolidated the minor bishoprics into regular dioceses,
Killaloe was selected for the centre of the diocese; and in 1195 the diocese
of Roscrea was added; and about the same time Inis-cattery, or Scattery,
which included the baronies of Moyarta, Clonderalaw, and Ibrickan, which
had been the kingdom of Corca Bhaiscin, was likewise united with Killaloe.
From the time of Brian Borumha, there is a tolerably regular account of
the successors to the See of Killaloe, some of whom are styled bishops
of Thomond. The death of the last bishop of Tir de Glas is recorded in
1152; and the last bishop of Inis-cattery recorded died in 1188. Charles
O’Heany, bishop of Killaloe, who died in 1193, being also bishop
of Inis-cattery.
In 1217, King John appointed Robert Travers, an Englishman, to the See,
and Geoffry de Mariscis, the Lord Justice, erected a castle at Killaloe
for his protection; but he was deprived by the Papal Legate in 1221; and
from that time until 1612 the See was occupied by bishops of Irish blood,
notwithstanding all the laws which had been passed against ecclesiastics
of the Irish nation.
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