Irish rebellions Flashcards
What were their differences in scale and duration?
Most disturbances lasted for several years
Like bushfires
The scale of fighting increased
Until the 1590s, the Tudors underestimated the nature of the problem confronting local garrisons and the amount of money needed to keep effective control
What was the problem if an Irish chieftain was determined to resist English rule?
Little that could be done to stop him
What happened to the scale of fighting?
Edward Poynings, Henry VII’s Lord Deputy of Ireland in the 1490s, tried to defend English interests in the Pale with 400 troops
The Earl of Essex took 17,000 men and Lord Mountjoy 13,000 troops to combat O’Neill’s rebellion
What were Irish leaders not averse to and give examples:
Acting dishonourably when it suited him
The Earl of Kildare backed the pretended Simnel and made little attempt to apprehend Warbeck when he landed in Ireland
The Earl of Desmond spent five years in the Tower but it didn’t prevent him from taking part in the Geraldine rebellion in 1579
What was a truce regarded as?
A device to buy more time
When were Irish rebellions most likely to end and why wasn’t this guaranteed?
When the clan leader was killed
Desmond took Fitzgerald’s place and prolonged the rebellion for another four years
What factors influenced the nature and course of rebellions after 1534? 1/3
Henry VIII destabilised relations between English governments and Irish subjects and between Irish and Gaelic clans
English-born officials were appointed to key administrative posts
Crown no longer had an Irish family to safeguard its interest
Rival clans felt less intimidated
What factors influenced the nature and course of rebellions after 1534? 2/3
Gaelic clans were obliged to surrender their lands, renounce their customs, and have their lands ‘regranted’
Attempts to Anglicise interest led to general and national resentment
Gaelic tribes defended their culture and resented incursions on their lands
What factors influenced the nature and course of rebellions after 1534? 3/3
‘old’ English families resented attempts by the Tudors to introduce a Protestant Reformation
After her ex-communication, Roman Catholic missionaries arrived intent on whipping up anti-English sentiment
