Origin of the Earls of Clanricarde

© Donal G. Burke 2013

The territory of Clanricarde covered an extensive area of southern Connacht, comprising much of what would be in later centuries central and eastern County Galway. The territory emerged from the medieval de Burgh lordship of Connacht, ruled by the Burkes, descendants of a junior branch of the de Burgh Earls of Ulster and Lords of Connacht. Another rival territory emerged from the same medieval lordship, about the later County Mayo, north of Clanricarde and ruled by Burkes, also descendants of a junior branch. The Anglo-Norman Burkes gradually adopted Gaelic customs and systems of governance as the power of the Anglo-Norman colony in Ireland declined from the fourteenth century. In the gaelicized society of late medieval Ireland the chieftain of Clanricarde became known as the MacWilliam Burke of Clanricarde or MacWilliam Upper and the chieftain of the Mayo Burkes known as the MacWilliam Lower.

In the early stages of the development of these territories, between 1333 and 1375, there was effectively only one dominant ‘MacWilliam’, the senior-most member of the name in Connacht, ancestor of the Mayo line but by the late 1300s a strong ruler emerged in Clanricarde to rival those of Mayo.

Both rival houses of Burke, of Clanricarde and of Mayo, descended from one man; Sir William liath de Burgh. This Sir William liath or ‘the grey’ (in Latin ‘Canus’) was cousin of Richard de Burgh the Red Earl of Ulster and Lord of Connacht and was a significant figure in the politics of the Anglo-Norman lordship of Ireland, acting as the Red Earl’s representative in Connacht and serving at one time as Deputy Justiciar of Ireland.

Ulick, ancestor of the Earls of Clanricarde

The prevailing view with regard to the descent of the MacWilliam Burke chieftains of Clanricarde and their descendants, the Earls of Clanricarde and the junior branches stemming therefrom, is that they descend from Ulick of Annaghkeen, son of Sir William liath de Burgh. The same view holds that, following the murder of William de Burgh, the Brown Earl of Ulster, in 1333, Sir Edmond Albanach, Ulick’s older brother achieved dominance over a large part of the former de Burgh lordship of Connacht and was generally acknowledged as the senior-most individual of his own immediate family and of the name in Connacht. As such he was known to the Irish by the Gaelic title of ‘MacWilliam’ or chieftain.

Richard og Burke, the first MacWilliam of Clanricarde

Until his death in 1375 Sir Edmond Albanach maintained that supremacy over other branches of the wider de Burgh family in Connacht. His dominance was challenged, however, by a family grouping known as the ‘Clann Ricaird’ and the principal individual among that faction from about 1355 or thereabout was one Richard og Burke. Following the death of Sir Edmond Albanach, this Richard og (ie. ‘the younger’) was acknowledged by the former’s son as a rival ‘MacWilliam’ in his own right, ruling a territory known as ‘Clanricarde’ comprising much of the later County Galway. While Sir Edmond Albanach’s descendants became later known as the MacWilliam Lower or ‘Iochtar’ (a reference to their territory in Northern or ‘Lower’ Connacht), the descendants of Richard og who would rule Clanricarde became known as the MacWilliam of Clanricarde or the MacWilliam Upper or ‘Uachtar.’ From the former descended the Viscounts and Earls of Mayo and from the latter the Earls and Marquises of Clanricarde.

The Irish annals, old pedigrees and contemporary records agree that the Burke chieftains who came to rule the territory of Clanricarde and the Earls of Clanricarde, descend from Richard og Burke, chieftain or ‘MacWilliam’ of Clanricarde. This Richard og first appears in the Irish annals in the year 1355 in opposition to Sir Edmond Albanach de Burgh and his allies. It is now generally accepted that both Sir Edmond Albanach and Richard og were descended from Sir William liath de Burgh. The evidence is also clear that Sir Edmond Albanach was the eldest surviving son of Sir William liath after the death in 1332 of Edmond’s elder brother Walter de Burgh.

The prevailing view found in many sources is that Sir Edmond Albanach was the second son of Sir William liath and that the third son of Sir William liath was Ulick of Annaghkeen, father of Richard og, thus explaining the ‘next-senior’ position within the politics of Connacht held by the descendants of Richard og in relation to those of Sir Edmond Albanach.

However, it is more likely and a more satisfactory explanation of events, that Richard og was a son of Ulick son of Richard, son of Sir William liath, and that the seniority of this latter Richard among the sons of Sir William liath has been overlooked.

The father of Richard og Burke, the first MacWilliam of Clanricarde

While it is generally agreed that Richard og was son of one Ulick, the identity of this Ulick has been controversial. Having reviewed the documentary and circumstantial evidence, the antiquary Hubert T. Knox was of the view that Richard og was son of Ulick of Annaghkeen, son of Sir William liath de Burgh.

Ulick of Annaghkeen

Many modern histories give Richard og as the son of Ulick of Annaghkeen, whose date of death is taken to be 1353. (Annaghkeen is an area near Headford near Lough Corrib in County Galway where an early de Burgh fortified house stood.)

The name of ‘Ulick of Annaghkeen’ is never mentioned in the Irish annals.[i] The seventeenth century Irish scholar Dubhaltach MacFirbisigh, in his ‘Great Book of Genealogies’, describes Richard og’s father as ‘Ulick of Annaghkeen.’[ii] O Clery’s seventeenth century ‘Book of Genealogies’ does likewise.[iii] The name again appears in a transcription of the Registry of Athenry under his obituary; ‘death of William de Burgo, called Uliog Anaghkeen, son of William the grey (ie. ‘liath’), Anno, 1353.’[iv] Below that entry in that same transcription was the obituary of his son, said to be Richard og; ‘death of Rickard de Burgo junior (ie. ‘og’) son of William of Anaghkeen, Anno 1387.’[v]

The transcription of the Athenry Registry in which these notices occur was included by Doctor Thomas Burke O.P. in his mid eighteenth century history of the Dominicans in Ireland; ‘Hibernia Dominicana.’ In giving the details of those families buried at the Dominican abbey at Athenry, he stated that he transcribed the obituaries verbatim from a manuscript of the Register of Athenry that he consulted. In addition, he gathered some of the information from his own inspection of the sepulchres there and some of the information, he stated, came ‘partly from the faithful tradition of the Fatherland.’[vi]

The manuscript that he consulted was at that time in the possession of the friars living ‘in a religious house of refuge in the neighbourhood’ about Athenry. He referred to it as ‘a Codex MS,’ a copy whose accuracy and faithfulness to the original was attested in writing on the copy by three individuals in 1619.[vii] Doctor Burke then included excerpts from this ‘Codex MS’ in his ‘Hibernia Dominicana.’

The original Register of Athenry has been lost, as has the ‘Codex MS’ seen by Doctor Burke. One other manuscript copy of the Register survived and was preserved in the British Museum.’[viii] This ‘British Museum MS’ is believed to be a copy written early in the seventeenth century as part of a volume of transcripts made for the antiquary Sir James Ware and undertaken by two or three people under his direction.[ix]

Doctor Burke’s ‘Hibernia Dominicana’ version of the Register agrees closely in many, although not all, cases with Ware’s ‘British Museum MS.’ Both contain the list of obituaries relating to various prominent members of the de Burghs, including those buried at Athenry.

Martin J. Blake made a comparison of the Burke obituaries listed in ‘Hibernia Dominicana’ and in the ‘British Museum MS.’[x] The ‘British Museum MS’ gives a list of obituaries for eighteen prominent Burkes, but not in chronological order and not all are accurate, in particular the earliest individuals such as Walter Earl of Ulster and his son and great-grandson the Red and Brown Earls. (Their correct dates were given, however, in the margins by Ware’s copyists.) ‘Hibernia Dominicana’ ‘shows a list of seventeen.

Crucially, only ‘Hibernia Dominicana’ gives a funeral entry dated 1353 for Ulick of Anaghkeen. No corresponding obituary was detailed for any Ulick dying in 1353 in the ‘British Museum MS.’ The accuracy of this entry is important to an understanding of the descent of the later Burke chieftains and Earls of Clanricarde.

Another early reference to Ulick of Annaghkeen, placing him in the context of ancestor of the Clanricarde chieftains, is provided by the Irish historian Dubhaltach MacFirbisigh (who also undertook some translation work in 1665 and 1666 for Sir James Ware). In his ‘Great Book of Genealogies’, compiled about the mid seventeenth century from information collected from various sources, MacFirbisigh gives ‘Ulick of Annaghkeen’ as father of Richard og, MacWilliam or chieftain of Clanricarde. While this agrees in part with the ‘Hibernia Dominicana’ obituary entry, it differs significantly in that MacFirbisigh gives his ‘Ulick of Annaghkeen’ as a son of ‘Richard an fhorbair’ son of William liath de Burgh.[xi] O Clery’s early seventeenth century ‘Book of Genealogies’ does likewise.[xii] ‘Hibernia Dominicana’ stated that Ulick of Annaghkeen was a son of Sir William liath.

Separate sources, the Irish annals, give the death of one Ulick son of Richard son of William liath as occurring in 1343. No place of residence was given for him and he was simply described in his obituary as ‘macaomh Ghaill Éireann’ or ‘the most illustrious of the English youths of Ireland.’[xiii]

Martin J. Blake, writing in 1902, was of the opinion that this Ulick, grandson of Sir William liath, may have been father of Richard og, the first MacWilliam Burke chieftain of Clanricarde.[xiv] Hubert T. Knox, writing about 1905, in his assessment of the contradictory evidence, was of the view that Ulick of Annaghkeen son of Sir William liath was father of Richard og, the first MacWilliam of Clanricarde.[xv]

Ulick of Umhall

The ‘British Museum MS’, in describing the burials within the Dominican friary at Athenry, mentions the burial of one ‘Johannes mac seonac burgensis filii Willic vyll filii Willielmi Cani de Burgo’ (ie. John son of Seonac son of Ulick ‘vyll’ son of William liath de Burgh).[xvi] This would appear to be a reference to a son of Sir William liath called Ulick, but known as Ulick ‘vyll’ or ‘of Umhall’ (a region about Clew Bay in County Mayo, known as ‘Umhall’ or ‘the Owles of Mayo).

It was suggested by Knox that in the ‘British Museum MS’ a blank space between the name ‘Willic’ and ‘vyll’ may have led the copyist to read what should have been some form of ‘Annaghkeen’ if legible as ‘vyll.’ He goes on, however, to discount this as unlikely.[xvii]

In the ‘Hibernia Dominicana’ copy of the burials, the same reference is rendered ‘Johannes Mac-Seonag Filii Ulici Anaghkeen Filii Gulielmi Cani (ie. ‘liath’ or ‘the grey’) de Burgo.’[xviii]

It is noteworthy that the pedigree of the Clanricardes produced by Dubhaltach MacFirbisigh agrees with the ‘British Museum MS’ burial entry in that it gives Ulick of Umhall as a son of Sir William.[xix] Knox acknowledged this, believing that MacFirbisigh either followed older sources in this or followed the ‘British Museum MS’ entry.

That at least two Ulick or William de Burgh’s co-existed at this time is verified in other documents. However, in relation to Ulick of Annaghkeen, Knox stated that he had seen a reference quoted concerning one Ulick of Annaghkeen dated 1324, but he had not seen the exact entry itself and was unable circa 1905 to verify if the words ‘Ulick of Annaghkeen’ had actually been used.[xx]

With regard to ‘Ulick vyll’, one ‘William de Burgh of Owyl’ held land in the cantred of ‘Owyl’ or ‘Umhall’, a region about Clew Bay in Mayo, in 1333.[xxi] It would appear to be reasonable to assume that the descendants of this William or Ulick of Owyl would be located primarily about that area of Umhall or ‘the Owles’ of Mayo in later years, wherein was located a number of minor septs of the name Burke.[xxii] It is almost certain that a prominent individual known as ‘Dabac dilmhain, captain of the kernes of Connacht’, who died in 1352, and described by the Irish annalists as a son of Ulick of Umhall was his son.[xxiii]

H.T. Knox was content that one Ulick of Umhall was ancestor to a number of septs about Umhall, such as the later MacMeylers of Umhall and the MacTibbots of Umhall, but did not agree that he was ‘Willic vyll’ son of Sir William liath.[xxiv] He was of the view that it was unlikely that the compilers of the obituaries quoted in ‘Hibernia Domicana’ ‘did not know what they were about’ and further unlikely ‘that they made an imaginative entry of Ulick of Annaghkeen’s death in 1353.’[xxv] (This, however, would imply that the entry in the ‘British Museum MS’ was inaccurate.)

He was therefore of the view that it should follow that Ulick of Umhall was a different individual, contending that he was the Ulick who died in 1343, son of Richard son of Sir William liath.

Informed by the conclusions of Knox and others, the prevailing view with regard to the descent of the MacWilliam Burke chieftains of Clanricarde and their descendants, the Earls of Clanricarde and the junior branches stemming therefrom, is that they descend from Ulick of Annaghkeen, son of Sir William liath.

The line of seniority among the sons of William liath

Advice given in 1327 to Elizabeth de Burgh, mother of the next heir to the earldom of Ulster and Lordship of Connacht regarding the lordship’s estates listed what would appear to have been the six most important members of the de Burgh family in Ireland. Foremost among the six was the Red Earl’s eldest surviving son Edmond, identified as Edmond fitz le Counte (i.e. Edmond son of the Count) whose lands lay about Castleconnell in Munster. [xxvi] The next was given as Walter de Burgh, who was listed with two of his brothers; ‘Edmond le cousin’ and ‘master’ Richard. After Walter in prominence appears to have been one Richard de Burgh le hore (‘the grey’) and one Hubert de Burgh.[xxvii]

Given the prominent position in the affairs of the lordship held in 1327 by Walter, son of the deceased Sir William liath de Burgh, he appears to be the second de Burgh listed in the ‘advice.’ (Together with Edmond fitz le Counte he was appointed one of the two Justices of the Peace or governors of the counties of Connacht, Limerick and Tipperary during the minority of the heir at this time.)[xxviii]

After Walter, the next eldest surviving son of Sir William liath de Burgh in 1327 appears to have been Edmond Albanach de Burgh. Edmond Albanach appears to be the same man as ‘Edmond le cousin’ listed after his brother Walter in the ‘advice’ document of 1327.[xxix] The only other brother of both Walter and Edmond mentioned in 1327 was one ‘master Richard.’ This would imply that this Richard de Burgh may have been the third surviving son of Sir William liath.

This Richard does not appear to have played a significant part in the politics of the territory in the aftermath of the Earl’s murder, suggesting that he may have been dead by the late 1330s or 1340s. As Edmond Albanach was closely associated with his younger brother Reymond in the late 1330s and 1340s it is possible that Richard may have died before that time.

This would suggest that Richard was an older brother of both Reymund and of Ulick, neither of whom were mentioned in the document of 1327. This would contradict the prevailing view that the next-eldest brother to Edmond Albanach was named Ulick.

It is a son of this Richard; Ulick, whom the Irish annals state died in 1343.[xxx]

Sir Edmond and his brother Reymund were pardoned together by the Crown in 1340 and that same year Reymond saw active service overseas fighting for the king. In 1347 the King wrote to both Sir Edmond and Reymond to come to help him in the war against France and to bring ten men at arms and sixty hobelers (ie. light horsemen).[xxxi]

The prominence of Reymund at this time would suggest that he was the next eldest son after Richard.  As Ulick son of Sir William liath does not appear to have taken any prolific part in the political affairs of Connacht during his lifetime, unlike Edmond or Reymund, he appears to have been a junior son.

Given Richard’s position as the next eldest to Sir Edmond Albanach among the sons of Sir William liath, Richard’s sons would be far more senior in line of descent to those of Ulick and, in theory, next in line to those of Sir Edmond Albanach. A line of descent from this Richard for the later chieftains of Clanricarde rather than from Ulick would provide a more satisfactory explanation of the senior position and part played by Richard og Burke from 1355 until his death in 1387. This would tie in with his being the son of Ulick, who died in 1343, son of Richard son of Sir William liath.

Dates of birth of Richard son of Sir William liath, etc.

Working on the average life expectancy of an aristocrat in the fourteenth century as between sixty to sixty five years, it is possible to place the approximate date of birth of this Richard son of Sir William liath.

Sir William liath was a contemporary of his cousin Richard, the Red Earl of Ulster. The Red Earl was the eldest son of Walter Earl of Ulster, while Sir William liath was son of Walter Earl of Ulster’s younger brother William og, killed in 1270 at Athanchip. Both Sir William liath and the Red Earl died within two years of one another, the former in 1324 and the latter in 1326. The Red Earl came into his inheritance about 1280 and was born about 1259 or 1260. As Sir William liath is taken to be the senior son of a younger uncle of the Red Earl’s it is likely that William liath may have been born shortly after the Red Earl, possibly about 1265.

If Sir William liath had his first son at the age of twenty years, that son may have been born sometime about 1285. The eldest son of Sir William liath has been taken to be Walter de Burgh, who died in captivity in 1333. Sir William liath, however, had two sons who were killed by the Irish of Leinster in 1311.[xxxii] Unless these sons were underage hostages, which is unlikely, they would have been of an age to take up arms or at least accompany a hosting. As the younger of these two was unlikely to have been much younger than about eighteen years, the younger may have been born by about 1293 if not earlier and as such were therefore elder sons of Sir William liath. As neither was described as his heir, it is possible both may have been younger than Walter but this is uncertain.

Edmund Albanach ‘the Scot’ would clearly appear to have been the next senior surviving son of Sir William liath. He died in 1375 after a tumultuous life and if given a generous lifespan of eighty years, would have been born about 1295. This would place the birth of the next eldest son; that ‘Master Richard’ mentioned in the document of 1327, as born circa 1297 or thereabout.

As the only son of this Richard mentioned in the Annals was that Ulick who died in 1343, it is likely that he was the eldest or senior son of Richard. If Richard was aged about twenty years when his eldest son was born, this would imply that Ulick may have been born about 1317, leaving him aged between about twenty-six years at his death in 1343. This would coincide with his description in the obituary by the annalists as ‘macaomh Ghaill Éireann’ or ‘the most illustrious of the English youths of Ireland.’[xxxiii] It was also coincide with what fact that he was of an age to be ‘expert in arms.’

With his father possibly dead by the 1330s and Ulick a young man in his teens during much of the interfamilial strife of that time, this would account for the lack of any prominent part played by this father and son in those years. In addition, a son of Ulick would have been born only shortly before Ulick’s death and would not have been of age to take an active part in the affairs of the county of Connacht until about the mid to late 1350s.

The earliest reference to Richard og Burke was in 1355, in which year he was said to have inflicted a defeat on the family of Edmond Albanach and on his allies, the O Maddens of Síl Anmchadha in east Galway, in which sixteen of the leading men of Síl Anmchadha and others were slain. (It is noteworthy that in that same year the Síol Anmchadha had killed Edmund son of William son of Richard Burke, who may have been a brother of Richard og.)

The above timeline is dependant, however, upon Edmond Albanach having lived to eighty years and Richard og being active about the age of eighteen in 1355.

It is unclear, however, at what precise stage that the line of Richard og began in opposition to that of Sir Edmond Albanach. Richard og may have been the first to actively oppose Sir Edmond Albanach but if this opposing stance had been taken by his father, no record of such early opposition appears to survive.

This line of descent for Richard og would agree with the pedigree of the Burkes of Clanricarde compiled by Dubhaltach MacFirbisigh in his ‘Great Book of Genealogies.’ While certain details of the earliest members of the wider de Burgh family are incorrect in MacFirbisigh’s pedigree, details of later members tend to be more accurate. Knox, however, pointed to the fact that MacFirbisigh’s knowledge and familiarity with the pedigree of the Burkes established in Clanricarde and about the later County Galway was inferior to his knowledge of that of the Burkes of Mayo and the descendants of Sir Edmond Albanach.

If the Ulick who died in 1343, son of Richard son of Sir William liath, was father of Richard og, then Ulick son of Sir William liath was not the ancestor of the Earls of Clanricarde but may have been that ‘Willic vyll’ or Ulick of Umhall son of Sir William liath mentioned in the ‘British Museum MS.’ This would correspond with his junior position among the sons of Sir William liath and with his position as the founder of a number of minor septs about Umhall in Mayo. This would agree with MacFirbisigh’s pedigrees also, which give Ulick of Umhall as a son of William liath.[xxxiv]

Knox makes Richard son of Sir William liath a junior son of Sir William liath, younger than Sir Edmond Albanach, Ulick and Reymund. He would appear to have done so on the basis that he equated the Ulick, who died in 1343, son of Richard son of William liath with Ulick of Umhall. As this Ulick of Umhall was founder of several minor branches of Burkes based about Mayo, Knox appears to have attributed a junior position to this Richard.[xxxv] However, this appears to contradict the contemporary evidence regarding the position of Richard among his brothers suggested by the ‘advice’ document given to Elizabeth de Burgh in 1327.

Historia et Genealogia Familiae de Burgo

MacFirbisigh’s account of the descent of the Burke chieftains of Mayo and of Clanricarde coincide for the most part with the pedigree of the families given in a genealogical and historical manuscript compiled about 1578 for Sir John Burke, MacWilliam Iochtar or chieftain of the Mayo Burkes. This source, entitled ‘Historia et Genealogia familiae de Burgo’ describes the Burke chieftains of Mayo as descended from Richard mór, son of the first William and the chieftains of Clanricarde descended from the same William’s junior brother, also known as Richard.[xxxvi] While this early section of the pedigrees was incorrect and, like MacFirbisigh, it gave Sir William son of William of Athanchip and William liath as two different men, it is noteworthy that this source also gave the line of Clanricarde as descended from Ulick son of Richard son of William liath.[xxxvii] This would suggest that this was the prevailing view of their descent among the Burkes in the late sixteenth century.

Conclusion

Noticeably, of those Burkes detailed in the ‘Hibernia Dominicana’ obituaries, many are given cognomens not found in the ‘British Museum MS’. For example, the former refers to Ulick ‘fion de Knocto’ son of Ulick ‘rufus’ and ‘Richard ‘magnus’ de Burgo ‘of Dunkellin’ son of William to whom the latter copy simply refers in their corresponding entries as ‘William de Burgo son of William ‘rufus’ and ‘Richard de Burgo son of William.’ This may suggest that the cognomens in the former were additions indicative of the later copyists understanding of the identity of these individuals rather than a verbatim copy of the original entry. As such the copyists may not have regarded this as an ‘unfaithful’ copy of the original but a ‘more accurate’ or ‘more informative’ record. This could also account for the entry of Ulick, whom the copyist may have given the cognomen ‘of Annaghkeen.’ Similarly, on reading ‘Willic ‘vyll’ son of William ‘Canus,’ they may have interpreted this as ‘Ulick of Annaghkeen’ from what they believed the case to have been. With regard to the difference in the date of death of this Ulick as 1353, it may simply be a scribal error that should correctly have read ‘1343.’

H.T. Knox made the point that ‘the tombs of these fourteenth century de Burgos did not bear their descriptions such as ‘Annaghkeen’ or ‘Grey’ and that when this notice of the tombs was drawn up these distinctions were added.’[xxxviii]

The place incidentally attributed in a document of 1327 to Richard as the next brother of Walter and Sir Edmond Albanach in the seniority of those brothers shows him to have been the third surviving son alive in that year of Sir William liath de Burgh. He was therefore more senior to both Reymond and a brother named Ulick. As such, Richard’s immediate descendants in the mid fourteenth century would be next in seniority to the descendants of Sir Edmond Albanach and account for the leadership position held by Richard og about 1355.

Richard og’s prominent position within the family from the mid 1350s is more understandable as the eldest grandson of Richard, the next brother to Edmund Albanach rather than as a son of Edmund’s younger brother Ulick, whose descendants would have held a relatively more junior status within the wider family.

It is therefore more likely that the later MacWilliam chieftains of Clanricarde and their descendants, the Earls of Clanricarde, descended from Richard og, derived their descent from Ulick son of Richard son of Sir William liath rather than the latter’s son Ulick.