Above : Map Of Leinster

Power of the Great Lords.—The story of the Norman settlement is not, however, to be found in the records of the appointments and dismissals of nominal Chief Governors in Dublin. It follows, indeed, no single course, but varies with the varying fortunes of the great families to whom had been granted the right of plunder in so many Irish territories. The history of the early Normans is the history of the great Lordships and of the families upon whom they were conferred. The grants had been accompanied by almost sovereign rights, and in their own territories the great lords made peace and war, granted lands, created nobles and officials, and erected castles, independently of the Crown. Over them the King’s governor had no control; he was merely a rival competitor. The events connected with the development and fate of the four great Lordships—that of Strongbow in Leinster, of De Lacy in Meath, of De Courcey in ” Ulster,” and of De Burgh in Connacht—comprise nearly the whole history of the Normans in Ireland during this period.