The Story of Ireland

By Brian Igoe

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The Story of Ireland Irish History - The Beginning Irish History - Brian Boru Irish History - Brehon Aidan Irish History - Strongbow and the Normans Irish History - The Geraldines Irish History - Break with Rome Irish History - Derry adn Rory O'More Irish History - Cromwell and transport Irish History - Charles II and James II Irish History - Battle of the Boyne Irish History - Penal Laws Irish History - Grattan and Catholic Emancipation Irish History - Georgian Dublin Irish History - Year of the French Irish History - Daniel O'Connell Irish History - The Great Famine Irish History - Irish in America Irish History - Transport Revolution Irish History - The Fenians and Parnell Irish History - The Easter Rising Irish History - War of Independence Irish History - Civil War Irish History - De Valera Irish History - Sean Lemass to Paisley Irish History - Irelands call Irish Music and Theatre

Chapter 5 - 1366 - 1534. The Geraldines

One (perhaps prejudiced!) commentator on these early Geraldines wrote: 'When they tasted of the pure milk of Gaelicism they never forgot its savour, so they became kindly Irish of the Irish, root and branch.' The 4th Earl of Desmond even wrote verse in Irish. The Annals of the Four Masters record that he was 'A nobleman of wondeful bountie, mirth, cheerfulness in conversation, charitable in his deeds, easy of access, a witty and ingenious composer of Irish poetry, and a learned and profound chronicler; and, in fine, one of the English nobility that had Irish learning and professors thereof in greatest reverence of all the English in Ireland, died penintently after receipt of the sacraments of the holy church in proper form'. We have a translation of one of the poems he wrote 'Mairg adeir olc ris na mnibh' (translated as 'In Defence of Women'):

Speak not ill of womankind,
'Tis no wisdom if you do.
You that fault in woman find,
I would not be praised of you.

That is the first paragraph of the chapter, which then goes on to look at:
Normans, Saxons, Ireland, 'more Irish than the Irish themselves', English Common Law, The Geraldines, Gerald Fitzgerald who was Castellan of Pembroke Castle in Wales around 1170. His eldest son, Maurice Fitzgerald, 1366, Thomas Jefferson, Earldom of Kildare, Earldom of Desmond, the Butlers, Earls of Ormonde, James Butler, Statutes of Kilkenny, Plantagenet English Kings, Count Geoffrey of Anjou, William the Conqueror's grand daughter Matilda, 'The Hundred Years War', Agincourt, John of Gaunt, Peasants' Revolt, Wat Tyler's Rebellion, Wales, Owen Glendower, Wars of the Roses, Anglo Irish Earls, Geraldine Earls, Desmond, Kildare, Statutes of Kilkenny, fosterage, alterage, Brehon Laws, 8th Earl of Kildare, Gearoid Mr, The Great Earl, 1478, Lord Grey, Edward IV, Richard III, Henry VII, Henry VIII, Lambert Simnel, Roger Simon, Edward, Earl of Warwick, Christchurch Cathedral, Archbishop Fitzsimons, Sir Thomas Fitzgerald, Battle of Stoke Fields, Perkin Warbeck, Galway, Sir Edward Poynings, 'Poynings' Law', Tower of London, 1496, Lord Deputy of Ireland, Clanricards, Holinshed, O'Carrolls, 1513, Kilkea, Nuala O'Faolin, Earl Kildare, 'Silken Thomas', Elizabeth I, Lord Edward Fitzgerald, the O'More's, the O'Connors.

The Book is called 'The Story of Ireland'.

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©2008 - Brian Igoe