JOSEPH MANNION
Four Courts Press
€55
ISBN 9781801511209
REVIEWED BY Simon Egan
Simon Egan is a lecturer in Medieval Irish History at Queen’s University Belfast.
This very welcome book by Joseph Mannion offers the first monograph-length study of the impact of English colonisation on Connacht during one of the most formative periods in Irish history, taking the lordships of Clanrickard and Hy Many (Uí Mháine) as its core case-studies. These territories encompassed much of the modern-day counties of Galway and Roscommon and were controlled by the Burkes and O’Kellys respectively. Both dynasties were largely beyond the effective reach of the Crown at the dawn of the sixteenth century. As the author demonstrates, these two lineages make for ideal case-studies. The Burkes were of Anglo-French ancestry and descended from twelfth- and thirteenth-century conquistadors. Over the course of the later Middle Ages, this family ‘Gaelicised’: they remodelled their lordships along Gaelic lines, intermarried with the indigenous Irish and became monoglot speakers of Irish. Yet, from the perspective of the Tudors, the ‘English’ ancestry of the Burkes meant that they could be rehabilitated and returned to ‘civil’ governance. The O’Kellys, on the other hand, enjoyed no such luxury and their ethnicity played a significant role in shaping their relationship with the encroaching Tudor state. Above all, Mannion’s book is an investigation into regional lordship and follows in the mould of pioneering studies such as Vincent Carey’s work on the FitzGeralds of Kildare, David Edwards on the Butlers of Ormond, and Katharine Simms on the nobility of Ulster. Mannion, however, takes great care to place his examination within the context of the debates pertaining to later medieval and early modern Ireland. The book’s introduction is, in itself, a very useful guide to some of the recent (and often contentious!) debates on these issues.
The volume is structured both thematically and chronologically and explores how both families reacted to key events, such as the policy of surrender and regrant in the 1540s, the establishment of the Connacht presidency in 1569 and the impact of the Composition of Connacht in 1585. The first chapter examines the later medieval foundations of both lordships. It traces the decline of the de Burgh lordship following the murder of the last de Burgh earl in 1333, the emergence of the Clanrickard Burkes and the growth of O’Kelly power down to the battle of Knockdoe in 1504. The chapter also pays particular attention to the important role of Galway and Athenry. Both towns were considered vital outposts of English influence and helped to project the extension of English governance via the policy of surrender and regrant during the 1540s, a topic that is examined at length in Chapter 2. Mannion argues that an investigation of this policy in Connacht offers insights into the so-called ‘two-nations’ theory. This line of interpretation, popularised by Steven Ellis, argued that there existed two distinct ethnic groups in Ireland: the Old English (such as the Burkes and FitzGeralds) and the indigenous Irish. In this chapter Mannion points to the different way in which the Burkes and O’Kellys were treated by the Tudor administration as evidence for this theory. For instance, the nobility of Clanrickard and Hy Many submitted to the English lord deputy, Leonard Grey, in 1538 and the head of the kindred—Ulick na gCeann Burke—was eventually created first earl of Clanrickard by Henry VIII in 1543. Although the English sought to cultivate stronger ties with the O’Kellys, the rulers of Hy Many never received anywhere near the same level of recognition under the Tudors.
Chapter 3 moves on to consider how the English administration protected and supported their new clients in Connacht. It considers the difficulties faced by the Crown’s officers in asserting themselves in the affairs of the Burkes and O’Kellys, as well as the challenges presented by campaigning west of the River Shannon. Indeed, it was precisely this need to access Connacht more effectively that prompted the serving lord deputy, Henry Sidney, to construct a new bridge at Athlone in 1567. Sidney’s relationship with Connacht is explored in more detail in Chapter 4. The lord presidency of Connacht was established in 1569 with a view to increasing English power and influence across the province. Unsurprisingly, the initiative provoked widespread discontent and resulted in a series of major revolts in which the second earl of Clanrickard, Richard Burke, was nearly ousted by his sons. Mannion expertly reconstructs how the English responded to these mounting crises by promoting the O’Kellys as a loyal and effective counterbalance to the emerging situation in neighbouring Clanrickard. The final chapter explores the intensification of English government during the Composition of Connacht in the late sixteenth century. Set against the backdrop of rising political tensions and the looming Nine Years War, the chapter traces how the Burkes and O’Kellys navigated increasingly uncertain times. Mannion concludes that while both dynasties managed to negotiate the challenges presented by the growth of English power, it was ultimately the Burkes—thanks largely to their Anglo-French ancestry and their acquisition of an earldom—who emerged with their status largely intact.
Overall, this is a very impressive piece of scholarship and Joseph Mannion’s book represents an important contribution to the historiography of sixteenth-century Ireland.