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Irish nobility

 
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Ireland has had nobles or peers for millennia. They fall into a number of categories.

  1. Ancient Irish Gaelic nobles (pre-English rule, extant before 1171)
  2. Queens and noblewomen
  3. Peers of the Lordship of Ireland and the Kingdom of Ireland (created between 1171 and 1799)
  4. Peers of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (from 1801)

This list covers peerages possessed by Irish people from any of the three categories. The title is listed first, followed by famous figures associated with the family beneath. It does not include non-Irish people awarded Irish titles; for example, the Duke of Connaught, son of Queen Victoria. Another category would include Irish people bearing foreign noble titles, or having been ennobled through investiture into the nobiliary Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta (see Knights of Malta).

Historical titles have no special legal status in Ireland, unlike the United Kingdom. The modern state of Ireland does not confer titles of nobility, as under the Irish constitution, all citizens are considered equal. [1]

Contents

Gaelic Nobles

From 1943 until 2003 some of the modern representatives of the Gaelic nobility obtained a courtesy recognition as Chiefs of the Name from the Irish government. The practice ended in 2003 following certain scandals (Terence Francis MacCarthy) and under concerns that it was unconstitutional. Disputed titles, as well as those for whom recognition is still pending, are not listed. The Gaelic families are divided by race and sept, and by geography.

To this list may be added modern representatives of the Gaelic nobility who did not apply for recognition. The most notable of these is O'Neill of the Fews, Prince of Ulster, Don Carlos O'Neill, 12th Marquis of Granja. There is currently a dispute between him, O'Neill of Clanaboy (above), and the O'Neills of Puerto Rico, over who is the senior, with the matter appearing unresolvable. Not contesting is the newly restored Count of Tyrone (Jacobum de Tyrone, Comes - Vatican 2006).

There remain other Gaelic nobles who are not the senior descendants.

Some confusion persists in the case of the O'Rourkes, but the recognized heir apparent of the Prince of Tyrconnell, Fr. Hugh O'Donel, O.F.M., is Don Hugo O'Donnell, Duke of Tetuan.

The O'Neills (of the Fews) are further represented by the Johnson Baronets (see Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet), and the Uí Fidgenti by the O'Connell Baronets.

Not all titles have been in continuous use, and this has been at the roots of the scandals. The pedigrees of many remaining families not listed are just as reliable, but the attempt at reviving their titles has proven very tempting for imposters, and for people claiming titles which may never even have existed, and for other interesting characters.

People

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All individuals listed have surnames of noble origins and are notable people, the only requirements for inclusion.

Laigin

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The Laigin are arguably the most senior of the Irish races with currently recognized representatives. In historical times their lands were among the smaller, but evidence exists for their domination of half the island in the proto-historical period. As the province of Leinster was the most isolated, it became the frequent target of the expanding Uí Néill, which resulted in incredible antagonism between the dynasties. In the end the Laigin resisted successfully and the ancient core of their lands remained untaken until the Norman invasion of Ireland, when much of the province was granted to the Normans by Dermot MacMurrough, King of Leinster, in his attempt to take the high kingship. But this was not the end of the powerful Laigin families.

Dál gCais

The origins of the Dál gCais are obscure, but they have established themselves as one of the most powerful and enigmatic Irish kindreds of the last eleven centuries.

Éile

Like the Dál gCais, the Éile were once thought to be related to the Eóganachta. However, they appear to have originated among the Laigin.

Corcu Loígde

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The Corcu Loígde are the most widely known descendants of the proto-historical Dáirine. They were a famous power until defeated by an alliance of the Eóganachta and Uí Néill in the mid 1st millennium AD.

Uí Fidgenti

The Uí Fidgenti are sometimes counted among the Eóganachta but they appear to descend primarily from the Dáirine, like the Corcu Loígde.

Eóganachta

The ancestors of the Eóganachta were known as the Deirgtine, who may have arrived relatively recently from Gaul. They came to power in Munster around the 7th century AD.

Uí Maine and Airgialla

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The Airgialla and Uí Maine are sometimes counted among the Connachta and Uí Néill. The question of their origins is spectacularly complex.

Connachta

The Connachta, or more specifically the Three Connachta of Connacht, are considered to be close cousins to the Uí Néill.

Uí Néill

The famous Uí Néill are thought to belong to the ancient Connachta and to be close cousins to the Three Connachta of Connacht.

Uí Néill of Scotland

Not all of these have been proven to be Uí Néill, but they do all claim to descend from Ánrothán, son of Áed, son of Flaithbertach Ua Néill, King of Ailech and Cenél nEógain, died 1036. The MacSweeneys later appear in Ireland and one has recently petitioned the Irish government for recognition, investigation still pending as a result of the MacCarthy Mor scandal. The MacEwens, though an armigerous clan under Scots law, are listed because they appear to belong to the Scottish Uí Néill kindred in some way. It should be noted that Scottish clans are a great deal more heterogenous than Irish septs and so the majority of these Uí Néill will be so through marriages and other arrangements.

Clan Donald and Clan MacDougall

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Based in Scotland, these large and powerful clans, closely related, are composed of Airgialla, Dál Riata, and Norwegian elements. The Norwegian contribution is substantial, approximately 25%.

Hiberno-Normans

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Of uncertain classification

A number of surnames are shared by families of different or uncertain origins.

Ulaid and Dál Riata

These powerful Iron Age peoples, related to the Dáirine (above), were slowly replaced in Ireland by the Uí Néill and later by the Normans, but they continued to play major roles for some centuries, notably in the founding of Scotland. It is possible they had British origins and were not in Ireland for very long before the rise of the other kindreds, but they are also among the earliest documented speakers of Gaelic and may have been among the original speakers. This is hotly debated and a major source of contention. The Dál Riata are represented among the Scottish nobility to this day, by the Macleans (below) with the most self-confidence, and probably by others. The Scottish genealogical tradition is poor and so in most cases origins are determined by family traditions and location. A number of families clearly derive from a Dál Riata milieu. Formerly Clan Campbell and the Duke of Argyll were included but they now appear to be of Strathclyde British or Pictish origins and not Dál Riata. Clan Mackenzie and the Earl of Cromartie, Clan Mackay and the Lord Reay, Clan MacLaren, Clan Mackinnon, Clan MacLea, Clan Mackintosh with Clan MacDuff and the Earls of Fife, Clan Malcolm, Clan Matheson and the Baronet of Lochalsh, Clan Robertson, Clan Ross and the early Earls of Ross, Clan Scott and the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, Clan Scrymgeour and the Earl of Dundee, Clan Shaw of Tordarroch, Clan Skene, Clan Spens and the Baron Spens, and Clan Wemyss and the Earl of Wemyss and March, may all share a partial Dál Riata background.

Queens and noblewomen

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Some of the earlier may derive from historical women, and others may be entirely mythological, but many are considered ancestors by living noble families.

The following are completely historical.

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For further study

Peerages created by Kings of England/Great Britain/United Kingdom

see also Peerage of Ireland and Anglo-Irish.

  • The Duke of Leinster, (formerly known as the Earl of Kildare), Ireland's premier peer.
    • Garret (Mór) FitzGerald - viceroy under King Henry VIII
    • Garret (Óg) FitzGerald - son of the above and also a viceroy
    • Silken Thomas - son of the above, rebelled against Henry VIII and was executed.
    • Lord Edward FitzGerald - 18th century rebel associated with 1798 rebellion
Family seats: Carton House, Co. Kildare (until early 20th century) Leinster House, Dublin City (until beginning of the 19th century - now seat of Dáil Éireann)
  • The Duke of Abercorn - title created in 1868 for heir male of the Hamilton family
Family Seat: Slane Castle, Co. Meath.
Family Seat:Westport House, Westport, County Mayo
  • The Earl of Fingall (Plunkett)
    • The first Countess of Fingall was Elizabeth O'Donnell of Tyrconnell
    • The last Countess of Fingall - author of Seventy Years Young(title extinct 1984...distant kin to the Lords Dunsany)
Family Seat: Killeen Castle, Co. Meath (until mid 20th century. Castle burned by the Provisional IRA in 1981)
Family Seat: Dungannon and Blackwater Castle, County Tyrone.
Family Seat: Tullynally Castle (formerly called Pakenham Hall), Co. Westmeath.
Family seats: Powerscourt House, Co. Wicklow (until mid 20th century - house subsequently partially destroyed by fire, but restored and since 1961 owned by the Slazenger family, by marriage related to the present and 10th Viscount Powerscourt); Powerscourt House, Dublin (until 19th century - now a famous shopping arcade)
Family Seat: Dunsany Castle, Co. Meath
  • Baron Killanin
    • Lord Killanin - head of the International Olympic Committee
    • Michael (Mouse) Morris - successful Irish jockey and horse-trainer.

Notes

  1. ^ The Irish Constitution [1]

References

Chiefs and Peers

  • Burke, Bernard and Hugh Montgomery-Massingberd, Burke's Irish Family Records, or Burke's Landed Gentry of Ireland. London: Burke's Peerage Ltd. 5th edition, 1976.
  • Chambers, Anne, At Arm's Length: Aristocrats in the Republic of Ireland. New Island Books. 2nd revised edition, 2005. (interviews with selected families)
  • Curley, Walter J.P., Vanishing Kingdoms: The Irish Chiefs and their Families. Dublin: Lilliput Press. 2004. (includes several disputed and spurious)
  • Ellis, Peter Berresford, Erin's Blood Royal: The Gaelic Noble Dynasties of Ireland. Palgrave. Revised edition, 2002. (popular, uninformed; ranks the families foolishly)
  • Murphy, Sean J., Twilight of the Chiefs: The Mac Carthy Mór Hoax. Bethesda, Maryland: Academica Press. 2004.

Genealogical and historical

Irish kingship

  • Bhreathnach, Edel (ed.), The Kingship and Landscape of Tara. Four Courts Press for The Discovery Programme. 2005.
  • Byrne, Francis J., Irish Kings and High-Kings. Four Courts Press. 2nd edition, 2001.
  • Charles-Edwards, T.M., Early Christian Ireland. Cambridge. 2000.
  • Dillon, Myles, The Cycles of the Kings. Oxford. 1946.
  • FitzPatrick, Elizabeth, Royal Inauguration in Gaelic Ireland c. 1100-1600: A Cultural Landscape Study. Boydell Press. 2004.
  • Jaski, Bart, Early Irish Kingship and Succession. Four Courts Press. 2000.

Other

  • Coogan, Tim Pat, Michael Collins: The Man Who Made Ireland. Palgrave Macmillan. 2002. pp. 5-6.
  • Cusack, Sister Mary Francis, Life of Daniel O'Connell, the Liberator : His Times - Political, Social, and Religious. New York: D. & J. Sadlier & Co. 1872.
  • Duffy, Seán (ed.), Medieval Ireland: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. 2005.
  • Koch, John T. (ed.), Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia. 5 volumes or single ebook. ABC-CLIO. 2006.
  • Kortlandt, Frederik H. H., Italo-Celtic Origins and Prehistoric Development of the Irish Language. Rodopi. 2007.
  • Legrand, Caroline, Du tourisme généalogique dans l'Irlande contemporaine Revue de Synthèse. Volume 123, Number 1 / December, 2002. Pages 131-47.
  • Legrand, Caroline, La quête de parenté. Pratiques et enjeux de la généalogie en Irlande. Québec: Presses Université Laval. 2006. (documents the cult phenomenon)
  • MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families: Their Names, Arms and Origins. Irish Academic Press. 4th edition, 1998.
  • Mac Niocaill, Gearóid, Ireland before the Vikings. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan. 1972.
  • Ó Corráin, Donnchadh, Ireland before the Normans. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan. 1972.
  • O'Rahilly, Thomas F., Early Irish History and Mythology. Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies. 1946.
  • Rynne, Etienne (ed.), North Munster Studies: Essays in Commemoration of Monsignor Michael Moloney. Limerick. 1967.

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