Chronology of Irish History, Part One

Edited by C.Ward

Irish History 120 A.D. to 1799 A.D.

c120
Ireland appears on Ptolemy’s map of the known world.

432
St Patrick arrives in Ireland

500
The beginning of the ‘Golden Age’ of the Irish Church. Over the next century, monasteries are established throughout Ireland.

795
The first Viking raid in Ireland is made on the monastery at Lambay Island, Co. Dublin.

1014
Brian Boru defeats the Vikings of Dublin and Orkney, along with the Irish of Leinster, at the battle of Clontarf.

1169
Anglo-Norman forces invade Leinster at the urgent request of Dermot MacMurrough

1197
Rory O’Connor, the last High King of Ireland, dies and is buried at Clonmacnoise.

1205
Hugh de Lacey is granted all the land of Ulster.

1227
Richard de Burgo is granted the whole land of Connaught for an annual fee of 500 marks.

1250
The Anglo-Normans now dominate most of Munster and Leinster and have penetrated Connacht and eastern parts of Ulster.

1257
The Anglo-Norman advance northwards from Sligo into Ulster is stopped by the O’Donnells at the Battle at Credan.

1260
The joint armies of Connacht and Ulster are defeated at Downpatrick and Brian O’Neill is killed in battle.

1315
Edward Bruce claims the crown of Ireland. He lands at Larne with a large Scottish army, attacks the Anglo-Norman colony and causes widespread devastation.

1318
Edward Bruce is killed in a battle at Faughart by John de Bermingham.

1327
Robert the Bruce invades Ulster for a second time but he returns to Scotland by winter.

1339
The Dublin Annals state there is ‘general war throughout all Ireland.’

1348
The Black Death arrives in Ireland.

1349
The plague spreads throughout Anglo-Norman areas.

1350
The Black Death sweeps through Irish-held areas

1351
Brehon law is banned in areas under Royal control.

1366
The Irish Parliament passes the Statutes of Kilkenny, banning the use of Irish language, customs and dress by English and loyal Irish subjects.

1395
Art MacMurrough and other Leinster chieftains submit to Richard II near Carlow (February)

1405
First documented reference to Irish whiskey.

1435
Landowners in the part of Ireland under English control are forbidden to employ Irish bards and rhymers.

1443
A great festival of Gaelic poets and musicians is held at Killeigh and over 2,700 attend.

1446
The word ‘Pale’ is first used to denote the counties around Dublin still under the control of the Dublin administration.

1478
Garret Fitzgerald succeeds as Eighth Earl of Kildare – he dominates Ireland for the next 30 years and becomes known as the ‘Great Earl’.

1487
First recorded use of firearms in Ireland, when a soldier is shot dead in a siege in Donegal.

1494
Poynings’ Law is passed, asserting that no Parliament may be called in Ireland without the express permission of the King and his Council in England. This marks the end of the Middle Ages in Ireland and the beginning of the Modern Era.

1505
Red Hugh O’Donnell, King of Tyrconnell, dies after a reign of 44 years.

1511
Hugh Dubh O’Donnell, the Great Earl’s principal ally in Ulster, is knighted by Henry VIII.

1513
The death from gunshot wounds of Garret, the Great Earl of Kildare, the ‘best and foremost of all the Galls that had every arisen for power, renown and dignity’ (The Annals of Connacht).

1526
Garret Og, Earl of Kildare, is committed to the Tower of London on suspicion of treason.

1527
Garret Og is cleared of all charges and released.

1533
The Irish Parliament confirms the supremacy of the See of Armagh over Dublin.

1536
George Brown is appointed as the first Protestant Bishop of Dublin

1537
Silken Thomas Fitzgerald and five of his uncles are executed at Tyburn, London.

1539
The Irish Government is ordered to suppress all religious houses.

1541
The Irish Parliament changes Henry VIII’s title ‘Lord of Ireland’ to ‘King of Ireland’.

1547
Henry VIII dies. The ascension of Edward VI. The beginning of the ‘Edwardian Reformation’.

1551
The Book of Common Prayer is the first book to be printed in Ireland.

1553
Mary Tudor succeeds to the English throne and begins restoring the Catholic religion in Ireland (the ‘Marian Restoration’).

1558
Queen Elizabeth I succeeds to the English throne.

1560
The Acts of Uniformity and Supremacy restore the Protestant faith in Ireland and they enforce the use of The Book of Common Prayer

1567
The O’Donnells defeat Shane O’Neill at Farsetmore. He flees to the MacDonnells and is killed by them at Cushendun, Antrim.

1570
Elizabeth I excommunicated by Pope Pius V

1576
Grace O’Malley, the notorious ‘pirate queen’ of Mayo, visits the court of Elizabeth I.

1579
Rebellion breaks out in Munster.

1582
The scorched earth policy in Munster causes a famine that claims 30,000 lives in six months. There are reports of cannibalism.

1583
The Desmond rebellion ends.

1584
Dermot O’Hurley, Archbishop of Cashel, is hanged in Dublin.

1587
The Munster plantation begins and undertakers include Sir Walter Raleigh and the poet Edmund Spenser.

1588
At least 23 ships of the fleeing Spanish Armada are wrecked off the western coast of Ireland.

c1590
Sir Walter Raleigh plants t ships of the fleeing Spanish Armada are wrecked off the western coast of Ireland.

c1590
Sir Walter Raleigh plants the first potatoes grown in Ireland

1593
Hugh O’Neill is inaugurated as ‘The O’Neill’. Red Hugh O’Donnell leads a rebellion of O’Donnells and Maguires in Ulster.

1595
Hugh O’Neill openly joins the Ulster rebellion.

1598
The Battle of the Yellow Ford – the combined forces of O’Neill, O’Donnell and Maguire overwhelm an English army led by Sir Henry Bagenal outside of Armagh.
Rebellion breaks out throughout Ireland.

1601
At the battle of Kinsale, Lord Mountjoy routes the armies of Ulster.

1603
The death of Elizabeth I. She is succeeded by King James I.
The end of the Ulster rebellion, sometimes called the Nine Years War.

1606
The Brehon law code is formally abolished.

1607
The flight of the Earls – Hugh O’Neill, Rory O’Donnell and other Ulster lords flee Ireland for Spain. Large areas of the six Ulster counties are confiscated.

1609
Some 500,000 acres in Ulster are made available for settlement.

1610
The City of London undertakes to plant colonies in the area around Derry.

1612
The first borough of the Ulster plantation is founded at Dungannon. Cornelius O’Devany, Bishop of Down, is executed for treason.

1615
The Church of Ireland adopts the Confession of Faith.

1625
The accession of Charles I.

1629
Attempts to close Catholic churches and ban public services cause riots in Dublin.

1632
The pilgrimage site of St Patrick’s Purgatory on Lough Derg is destroyed by the local Protestant bishop.

1635
Micheal O’Cleary, assisted by three other historians, compiles The Annals of the Four Masters – a chronology of Irish history from Gaelic sources.

1639
The ‘Black Oath’ of conformity is imposed on Ulster Protestants by Wentworth.

1641
Rebellion breaks out amongst the native Irish population of Ulster. Protestants are massacred at Portadown, Blackwatertown and other plantation settlements.

1646
Monro is defeated by Owen Roe O’Neill at the Battle of Benburb.

1649
Oliver Cromwell arrives in Dublin. Drogheda is stormed and its inhabitants massacred on Cromwell’s orders.

1653
Thousands of destitute and vagrant Irish are rounded up and shipped to the West Indies.
Parliament declares the Irish Rebellion at an end.

1654
The celebration of Christmas is forbidden.

1655
Easter celebrations are forbidden.

1658
Oliver Cromwell dies in England.

1660
Charles II is restored to the throne of England and proclaimed King in Ireland on 14 May.

1662
The English Parliament forbids the export of Irish wool.

1666
The Act of Uniformity restricts religious, teaching and official positions to members of the Church of Ireland.

1668
Around 12,000 Irish people have now been transported to the West Indies.

1673
The Test Act demands that all office holders take Church of Ireland sacraments.

1681
Oliver Plunkett, Archbishop of Armagh, is convicted of treason on false evidence and executed.

1685
James II, widely considered to be sympathetic to Catholics, succeeds to the throne of England and Ireland.

1688
Apprentice Boys close the gates of Derry against Royal troops.

1689
William of Orange and his wife Mary ascend the English throne. James II arrives in Ireland seeking help to reclaim his throne.
1690
William of Orange lands in Ireland at Carrickfergus.
The army of James II is defeated at the Battle of the Boyne.

1691
The Treaty of Limerick is signed, allowing the defeated supporters of James II to leave Ireland and promising religious tolerance for Catholics. Sarsfield and other Irish officers depart for France, becoming known in later years as the ‘Wild Geese’

1692
Over 1,000,000 acres of land belonging to Irish supporters of James II are confiscated.

1695
Penal Laws are passed forbidding Catholics their rights to bear arms and to educate their children or open schools.

1697
Further Penal Laws ban burials in Catholic graveyards and exile all Catholic clergy.

1698
Catholic clergy are expelled en mass.

1699
Duties and restrictions are imposed on Irish wool exports to England

1700
The population of Ireland is now about 2,000,000

1704
Yet more Penal Laws are imposed – Catholic ownership and tenancy of land is restricted and Dissenters and Catholics are excluded from public office

1706
Following the plantations and confiscations during the previous century only 18% of Irish land now remains in Catholic ownership.

1711
The commencement of an era of recurrent warfare between tenants and landlords which lasts nearly two centuries.

1713
Jonathan Swift becomes Dean of St Patrick’s Cathedral.

1717
The population of Ireland approaches 3,000,000.

1718
Ulster Scots emigrate in large numbers to the American colonies

1719
The Toleration Act exempts Dissenting Protestants from the penalties imposed on Roman Catholics

1721
Ireland is excluded from East India trade, except through British ports.

1726
Jonathan Swift publishes Gulliver’ s Travels

1728
A new Act removes the franchise from Catholics. Catholics are forbidden to practise as solicitors.

1730
The potato is Ireland’s staple diet for about three months of the year

1737
The first issue of Ireland’s oldest surviving newspaper is published – The Belfast Newsletter

1740
There is a severe famine after a particularly harsh winter kills off livestock and crops

1746
Irish Parliament bans marriages between Catholics and Protestants

1748
France harbours a large number of clergy fleeing the Penal Laws – there are 39 Irish priests in the Gironde region alone.

1759
Arthur Guinness acquires a semi-derelict brewery at St James’s Gate from Mark Rainsford on a 9,000- year lease at 45 pounds per annum.

1766
Oliver Goldsmith publishes The Vicar of Wakefield

1775
The American War of Independence begins

1778
The threat of foreign invasion encourages Protestants to form Volunteer Companies in Belfast and Dublin. By the end of the year 40,000 Volunteers are enlisted.
Gardiner’s Catholic Relief Act restores the right to take long-term leases and inherit land.

1779
In New York, the first St Patrick’s Day Parade takes place

1780
The potato is now the staple diet for most of the rural population in Ireland
Ireland is allowed free trade with the colonies.
1781
Volunteers meet in Armagh and demand the reform of the Administration and independence for the Irish Parliament

1782
The Ulster Volunteers Convention in Dungannon calls for legislative independence and the repeal of all Penal Laws.
Gardiner’s second and third Catholic Relief Acts restore property rights and permit Catholic schools.

1783
The Renunciation Act is passed by the new Whig Government in Westminister, recognising the right of the Irish Parliament to legislate independently.

1784
The Belfast Volunteers invite Catholics to join their ranks and help fund the erection of St Mary’s Chapel.

1785
The population of Ireland has doubled since 1700 and now stands at about 4,000,000

1791
Irish Catholics petition the King for relief from oppression
Wolfe Tone publishes Argument on Behalf of the Catholics of Ireland.

1794
Dublin United Irishmen are suppressed. Wolfe Tone meets with French agents in Dublin.
Catholics are enabled by law to attend Trinity College, Dublin

1795
The United Irishmen turn themselves into a secret society dedicated to the military overthrow of English power. Wolfe Tone leaves for America.
Formation of the Orange Order in Loughall, Co. Armagh, after Presbyterians rout Catholic Defenders in the riot known as the ‘Battle of the Diamond’.

1796
Wolfe Tone arrives in France to seek aid for a rising.
The Orange Order holds its first Twelfth of July March in Lurgan

1797
Authorities impose Martial Law and proscribe the United Irishmen.

1798
A rising of United Irishmen is planned for May 23, Leinster United Irishmen leaders are arrested in Dublin(March). Lord Edward Fitzgerald (born 1763) is arrested in Dublin and dies of wounds received (4 June). The rising in the counties around Dublin fails. There are minor engagements at Naas, Prosperous, Kilcullen and elsewhere.
In Wexford, massacres of Catholics at Dunlavin and Carnew panic the population. Near Harrow, a small force of local Catholics led by Father John Murphy clashes with a militia patrol – sparking an insurrection. Rebel forces camp at Vinegar Hill (29 May) and capture Wexford (1 June). Insurgent detachments defeated at Bunclody and New Ross. The main army routes the British at Tubberneering and advances north towards Dublin. At the Battle of Arklow, the Wexford army is decisively defeated and retreats back to Vinegar Hill. General Lake’s army storms Vinegar Hill and Wexford town is recaptured on the same day (31 June).
The Ulster Rising, predominantly Presbyterian, is confined to Counties Down and Antrim. The United Irish of Antrim are routed on 7 June by Government troops (their leader, Henry Joy McCracken, is executed in July). The 7,000-strong Down United Irishmen army, which includes several thousand Catholics, is defeated at the Battle of Ballynahinch (13 June).
French forces under General Humbert land at Killala, Mayo (August). The Government garrison is routed in the ‘Races of Castlebar’. Humbert advances towards Dublin but finds little support and faces a much larger British army. He surrenders at Balllinamuck, Longford (8 September). The capture of Killala ends major resistance in Ireland (23 September).
The French invasion fleet is defeated off the Donegal coast, losing seven of its ten ships (10 October). Wolfe Tone (born 1763) is captured in Lough Foyle. He cuts his throat on 12 November when told he will be hung rather than shot as a soldier, and dies a week later.

1799
Prime Minister Pitt proposes the Parliamentary Union of Ireland and Great Britain. Castlereagh launches a campaign of bribery and persuasion to secure the Union in the Irish Parliament.

Edited by C.Ward

Irish History : History of Ireland
A chronology of Irish history, Part Two