1588 was the Armada year. The King of Spain's great fleet was foiled in its attack on England, and many of the vessels, " flying from the wind and their enemies," doubled round the north of Scotland, and went to pieces on the rocky coasts of western and northern Ireland. The majority of the crews were drowned ; while, of those who came alive to land, not a few found foes more cruel than the waves awaiting them.   The English authorities hanged almost ... Read More

The New Earldroms were Kildare, Desmond, Ormonde. It was just when the last of the early Lordships disappeared that there rose into clear prominence three familks which from that time became the conspicuous leaders of the Irish of Norman descent. They were not late arrivals ; their founders had been amongst the earliest settlers, but hitherto they had occupied a secondary position to the Marshalls, De Lacys, De Burghs and others. Unlike most of these families, their interests lay altogether in Ireland, and ... Read More