Éile Explained

Éile (pronounced as /ga/; Irish, Old (to 900);: Éle, Irish, Old (to 900);: Éli), commonly anglicised as Ely, was a medieval petty kingdom in the southern part of the modern county of Offaly and parts of North Tipperary in Ireland. The historic barony of Eliogarty was once a significant portion of the kingdom.

Overview

The clan or people of Éile claimed descent from Cian, a younger son of Ailill Aulom and brother of Eógan Mór, and thus had kinship with the Eóganachta. It has been suggested that the Éile were actually of Laigin origin,[1] and that they may in fact have been the rulers of the Cashel area before the rise of the Eóganachta, as suggested by their role in Eóganachta origin tales,[2] [3] such as the Senchas Fagbála Caisil. Their name is also associated with Cruachán Brí Éile the original name of Croghan Hill. Historian C. Thomas Cairney, stated that the Ely were from the tribes known as the Laigin who also had a branch known as the Dumnonii and who were the third wave of Celts to settle in Ireland during the first century BC.[4]

By the 12th-century it was much reduced in size, bounded to the north by the Kingdom of Mide, to the south by Cashel, to the east by the Kingdom of Ossory and the Múscraige Tíre to the west in Ormond. It consisted of the baronies of Clonlisk, Ballybritt, Ikerrin and Eliogarty. The area then known as Éile was divided into two principal regions or lordships, the northern of which, called Éile Uí Chearbhaill (Ely O'Carroll), was ruled by the O'Carroll family. The southern lordship, called Éile Uí Fhogartaigh (Ely O'Fogarty), was ruled by the O'Fogarty family, who may have been of a different imposed lineage, possibly Dalcassian,[5] from the O'Carrolls. Alternatively, they were actually kindred but regional politics influenced later genealogists to associate them with different provincial dynasties at different periods. John O'Hart finds an Uí Néill descent from Fogartach mac Néill for the O'Fogartys.[6]

Ely O'Fogarty included the baronies of Ikerrin and Eliogarty, now in County Tipperary, Munster. After the Norman invasion of Ireland, these baronies were added to the Earl of Ormond's county palatine. The native lords, O'Meagher and O'Fogarty, were left in possession of their lands, but were obliged to pay tribute to the Earl of Ormond.[7]

Ely O'Carroll and the baronies of Clonlisk and Ballybritt were part of Munster until the early 17th-century (1606) but are now located in County Offaly and Leinster. This was done in the early Stuart period to remove the O'Carroll lands from the claim and control of the Earls of Ormond's County Palantine of Tipperary and from the Presidency of Munster. The former boundary between Ely O'Carroll and the ancient Kingdom of Mide is coterminous with the present boundary between the diocese of Killaloe and the diocese of Meath. That portion of County Offaly which belongs to the diocese of Killaloe was Ely O'Carroll and originally belonged to Munster.

Christianity

Several early Christian monasteries existed within the boundaries of the kingdom. This includes Birr established by St. Brendan of Birr (which held the Synod of Birr in 697) and Liathmore, which was established by St. Mochoemoc (a nephew of St. Íte of Killeedy). St. Crónán of Roscrea, who was born in the kingdom, established Roscrea in the 7th century. One of his monks created the Book of Dimma, which had a richly decorated cumdach created for it on order of the O'Carroll kings.

United States

The O'Carroll princes are survived to this day by the prominent Carroll family of Maryland in the United States.[8] Charles Carroll of Carrollton was a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence. His branch of the family has been seated at Doughoregan Manor for over two centuries.

Charles Carroll the Barrister, a cousin, descended from among the very last lords of Éile. Mount Clare was his home in Maryland.

Annalistic references

AI=Annals of Inisfallen. LC=Annals of Lough Ce. M=Annals of the Four Masters. C=Chronicon Scotorum.

See also

References

Notes and References

  1. Byrne, p. 133, 180-1
  2. Charles-Edwards, p. 546
  3. MacCotter, p. 212
  4. Book: Cairney, C. Thomas . 1989 . Clans and Families of Ireland and Scotland . Jefferson, North Carolina, United States, and London . . 78-82 . 0899503624.
  5. http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~irlkik/ihm/thomond.htm Tuadmumu, The Kingdom of Thomond
  6. O'Hart, p. 454
  7. Leabhar na gCeart, pp. 78, 79, note i.
  8. Hoffman and Mason

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