FAMILY BACKGROUND The FitzGeralds of Desmond traced their descent from Maurice FitzGerald, son of Gerald of Windsor and the Welsh princess Nest. The original Norman conquests were confined to the eastern parts of Ireland, and the Anglo-Norman lordship as created by Henry II was based on a clear division of authority between this area and… Continue reading Death in Drogheda: Thomas Fitzgerald, 7th Earl of Desmond
Tag: Earls of Desmond
The Wandering Butler: John, 6th Earl of Ormond
FAMILY BACKGROUND The Lancastrian leader who faced – or failed to face – Thomas, Earl of Desmond, at the Battle of Piltown in 1462 was the fourth of the five children born to James Butler, 4th Earl of Ormond (otherwise known as the White Earl), and his countess Joan Beauchamp, daughter of William Beauchamp, Lord… Continue reading The Wandering Butler: John, 6th Earl of Ormond
Sassanachs don’t Like Mondays (allegedly)
Ormond versus Desmond In addition to the canonical list of battles, the sporadic chaos of the Wars of the Roses spawned one or two encounters between the heads of rival aristocratic families, of which the best known is the battle between the Berkeleys and Talbots at Nibley Green in Gloucestershire in March 1470. What is… Continue reading Sassanachs don’t Like Mondays (allegedly)
Eleanor: A reminder of the evidence
I know some people in Cairo are a little slow on the uptake, but there are several independent sources, as shown by the Revealing Richard III blog. In a recent series of articles in the Ricardian Bulletin, the team cite: Titulus Regius, as composed from the petition to the Three Estates on 26 June 1483;… Continue reading Eleanor: A reminder of the evidence
Plantagenet Ireland and Poynings’ Law
It is fair to say that most medieval English kings had little interest in Ireland except as a source of revenue. (The same was probably true about England and Wales but it seems too cynical to say it, and at least they did live there.) Prior to the Bruce invasion, Ireland yielded between £5000 and… Continue reading Plantagenet Ireland and Poynings’ Law
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