McCaul

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
MacCawell/McCaul (Irish: Mac Cathmhaoil)
Family name
Meaning "descendants of Cathmhaol"
Region of origin Tyrone, Ulster, Ireland.
Related names Cowell, McGirr, Campbell, Caulfield, McCall.
Parent house Cenél Fearadhaigh / Cenél nEógain / Uí Néill
Titles Chief of the Councils of the North, "Peace-maker of Tyrconnell, Tír Eoghain & Airgíalla", Taoiseach (Chiefs) of Kinel Farry (Clogher).

McCaul, also spelt MacCawell, is an Irish surname, derived from the Gaelic Mac Cathmhaoil, meaning the "descendants of Cathmhaol". The name Cathmhaoil itself is derived from cathmhaol which means "battle chief".[1] The Mac Cathmhaoil where a sept of the Cenél Fearadhaigh, of the Uí Néill, and where based around Clogher in modern day County Tyrone, Northern Ireland.[1] They were one of the seven powerful septs that supported the O'Neills. The name is now rare in Ulster as it has been Anglicised under various different forms such as Campbell, Caulfield, MacCall, Alwell, Callwell, McCowell , McCuill, Howell, MacCorless, MacHall,[2][3] and McQuade.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10] The MacGirr and Short surname originate from a branch of the Mac Cathmhaoil headed by Maelechlainn mac an ghirr meic Cathmhaoil, "Malachy, the son of the short fellow MacCawell".[1] The variant MacCawell is claimed as being the closest Anglicisation of the Irish name.[1]

The height of their power was in the 12th century where their territory covered most of modern County Tyrone, and deep into County Fermanagh.[1] By the mid fourteenth century their power in Fermanagh, was broken by the rise of the Maguires.[1] Having controlled the seat of power of the diocese of Clogher, the MacCawells provided many abbots, deans, canons etc. to it and neighbouring dicoeses including two bishops.[1] By the end of the sixteenth century there appears to have been a large migration of the sept into the modern counties of Down and Armagh.[1]

History

The MacCathmhaoil sept took their patronymic name from Cathmhaol in the 12th century, descended from Feradhach (or Fearadhaigh), son of Muireadhach, son of Eoghan (son of Niall Naoighiallach "Niall of the Nine Hostages"). They were the leading sept of Cenél Fearadhaigh, sometimes called Cenél Fearadhaigh Theas or Cinel-Farry, now the barony of Clogher, to distinguish them from the offshoots of Cenél Fearadhaigh who remained in Inishowen or thereabouts. After this expansion into mid Ulster with Cenél nEoghain the MacCathmhaoils were fixed in the Clogher area of County Tyrone. As Cenél nEoghain ("kindred" or descendants of Eógan mac Néill, son of Niall Noígiallach who founded the kingdom of Tír Eoghain in the 5th century), it was their function to hold a bastion for Cenél nEoghain against Cenél Conaill on the northwest and the descendants of the Three Collas on the south-west and south. In the Annals of the Four Masters, under 1185 (16 years after the Norman invasion of Ireland), the first mention if is made of a MacCathmhaoil with "Gillchreest MacCathmhaoil, head chieftain of the Cineal Fereadaidh and "the chief of the councils of the north of Ireland", who was slain by Teag O'hEighnigh (O'Heaney) chief of Fermanagh, aided by Muintir Chaonain (O'Keenan). That Gillchreest MacCathmhaoil, was also head chieftain of clan Aongusa (Magennis? McCann?) of eastern Ulster, clan Dubhinreacht, clan Fogarty O'Ceannfhoda (Cíneal Fógartaígh – Mac Artán (MacCartan)?),[11] and clan Colla of Fermanagh."

They receive mention in Ceart Ui Néill (see The Rights of O'Neill) being, along with MacMurchaidh and O'Devlin, classed as "fircheithearna" (i.e. "true kerns") of Ui Néill. A Kern (soldier) was a Gaelic soldier, specifically a light infantryman of Gaelic Ireland during the Middle Ages. From Ceart Ui Néill 14. "it is their duty to take and to guard hostages; and they are bound by their office to keep watch for the first three nights in camp and on a hosting..." and elsewhere "In his time, it was usual to for victorious conquerors to take captives, usually of exalted rank, as hostages for the good (i.e. subservient) subsequent behaviour of the vanquished".[12]

Later they became an important church family. They were also Brehons (judges of Irish law) in Cenél nEoghain (Tyrone), are famous in Irish history for their learning and the many dignitaries they supplied to the church. In Cenél nEoghain about this time, 1300, the Mac Cathmhaoils were the hereditary advisers of the king,[13] being one the seven main septs of the Cenél nEoghain Ui Neill. The familys importance is obvious from a glance at the events listed in connection with them under MacCathmhail in the index to the Annals of Ulster. Below are some entries from the Annals regarding the MacCathmhaoil (translated mostly as MacCawell) the leading sept of Cenél Fearadhaigh and further below some their descendants of today.

The Annals

There are several mentions of the Mac Cathmhaoil sept in the Annals of Ulster and The Annals of the Four Masters:

  • 1185, Gillchreest MacCathmhaoil, royal chief of the Cineal Fereadaidh, clan Aongus, clan Dubhinreacht, clan Fogarty O'Ceannfhoda, and clan Colla, and head of counsel of the North of Érinn, was slain by O'hEighnigh (O'Heaney) or O'Negnaidh (O'Neney), kings of Fermanagh and Oriel before the Maguire ascendence in 1202) aided by Muinter-Caemhain (O'Keenan); and they carried off his head, which was obtained from them at the end of a month afterwards.
  • 1216, Murchadh Mac Cathmail, royal chief of Cenel- Feradhaigh, died through miracle of St. Colum-cille.[14]
  • 1238, Flaithbertach Mac Cathmail, arch-chief of Cenel-Feradhaigh, crown of championship and generosity of the Gaidhil and arch-chief, moreover, of Clann-Conghaile and Ui-Cennfhoda in Tir-Manach, was killed by Donnchadh Mac Cathmail, his own kinsman, in treachery.[15]
  • 1252, Conchobur Mac Cathmhail, royal Chief of Cenel-Feradhaigh and of many territories besides, tower of hospitality and valour of the North of Ireland, peace-maker of Tirconnell, Tír Eoghain (Tyrone), and Airgíalla, was killed by the routs of the people of Brian O'Neill, while defending his protegees against them, he himself being under the safeguard of O'Gormly and O'Kane.[16]
  • Mac Cathmhaoil chiefs of Kinel-Farry (Cineal Fereadaidh), slain: Murrough 1215, Flaherty 1238, Donough 1251 (slain by the people of Airgíalla), Conor 1252, Donslevy 1262 (slain by Yellow Hugh Buidha O'Neill), Gillapatrick 1370.[17]
  • 1261, A great victory was gained by O'Donnell over Niall Culanagh O'Neill in a battle, in which many of the chiefs of Kinel-Owen, under the conduct of Mac Cawell, Chief of Kinel-Farry, and many other chiefs not mentioned here, were killed or taken prisoners. AFM [18]
  • Mac Cathmhaoils slain: Cu-Uladh 1346, Cu-Uladh, son of Gillapatrick 1370, Cu-Uladh son of Edmund 1519, Donough 1346, Donough son of Edmund (died of wounds) 1518, Thomas son of Edmond 1519[19]
  • 1355, a Cattle Raid example and a battle between O'Donnell and O'Neill (with Mac Cathmail) from 1366[20]
  • Brian Mac Cathmhaoil, Bishop of the Diocese of Clogher (1356–1358). He died of the plague in 1358.
  • 1362, Ruaidhri, son of Domnall Ua Neill, was killed by Maelechlainn (Mac Cathmaoil), with one shot of an arrow.
  • 1365, when Malachy of the Mac Cathmhaoil, the ruling house of Clogher, Tyrone, slew an O’Neill of Tír Eoghain, Malachy was known as 'Maelechainn Mac in Ghirr meic Mac Cathmhaoil'. Translated his name is 'Malachy the son of the Short-Fellow Mac Cathmhaoil'. This feat of slaying an O’Neill warranted a change of name so he became Malachy mac in ghirr or simply Malachy MacGirr. Later this family survived the Ulster Plantation, receiving a number of grants of lands at the time. They are to be found later in the 1660s as taxpayers in the Clogher Valley and elsewhere in Tyrone. Today the family is generally found as McGirr, McGerr, McKerr and in the English version as Short.[21]
  • Cu-Uladh Mac an Ghirr Mac Cawell ( -1368), chief of his own tribe and a son of his, who was a learned and illustrious professor of Sciences, died in England.
  • 1370, Gillapatrick Mac Cawell, Chief of Kinel-Farry; Cu-uladh, his son, and his wife, the daughter of Manus Mac Mahon, were treacherously slain by the sons of Hugh Mac Cawell. Murrough, his Gillapatrick's brother then became Chieftain of Kinel-Farry.[22]
  • Donough Mac Cawell, Chief of the two Kinel-Farrys, was slain by Maguire in 1404.
  • Art Mac Cathmhaoil, Bishop of Clogher (1390–1432) a pious man, who had kept a house of public hospitality for the poor and indigent, died, after penance in 1432.[23]
  • Duvcovla Mac Cathmhaoil, wife of Owen, died 1444. The old Irish name Dubh-choblaith pronounced Duvcovla means dark victory.[24]
  • 1492, Donnell, son of Henry, son of Owen O'Neill, and Gilla-Patrick MacCawell (MacCathmhaoil), were taken prisoners; and Edmond MacCawell was slain by the sons of Redmond McMahon of Airgíalla, i.e. Glasny and Brian. Many others besides these were slain and taken prisoners on that occasion. Donnell, however, made his escape from the castle of Muineachan (Monaghan) a week after his capture.
  • 1493, A brawl between the Cenel-Feradhaigh themselves in Clochar (of Ui-Daimin) and Aedh, son of Mac Cathmail, namely, son of Edmond, son of Brian Mac Cathmail, was slain there and Brian, son of Toirdelbach, son of Aengus, son of the Dwarf, was slain there also, namely, the Sunday before May Day.[25]
  • Eoghan Mac Cathmhaoil, Bishop of the Diocese of Clogher (1505–1515)
  • William Oge Mac Cathmhaoil, Son of Art, Dean of Clogher died 1508. (see Clogher & St. Marcartan's Cathedral, history 500–1970 and Dissolution of Monasteries in Ireland)
  • Aodh MacCathmhaoil (1571–1626), also called Hugh MacCaghwell, (Aodh means fire) trained at one of the bardic poetry schools (see Bardic Schools, Medieval Ireland) still operating in Ulster and was made tutor to Hugh O'Neill, The O'Neill's sons; went to Spain on defeat of the Gaelic earls, entered the Franciscan Order at Salamanca and later became Catholic Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of Ireland.

People

Family Tree

This is one version of a list of male descendants from Niall of the Nine Hostages to Raghnall MacCathmhaoil who is claimed as being the first to use the Mac Cathmhaoil surname, seven generations removed from the ancestor whose name he chose to bear:

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Robert Bell (1988). The book of Ulster Surnames. The Black Staff Press. pp. 139–140. 
  2. ↑ The Book of Irish Families: Great & Small By Michael C. O'Laughlin http://books.google.com/books?id=mZt3oGtk1KgC&pg=PA41&lpg=PA41&dq=mccall+mac+cathmhaoil+ulster&source=bl&ots=or1yAlSlwu&sig=nTCHMv6WQDJsyLvoAnTvBa63nyY&hl=en&sa=X&ei=lzTqUPb9K4ve8ASvm4CAAQ&sqi=2&ved=0CE4Q6AEwBg#v=snippet&q=maccathmhaoil&f=false
  3. ↑ Library Ireland http://www.libraryireland.com/names/macc/mac-cathmhaoil.php
  4. ↑ O'Hart, John. 1892 "Irish Pedigrees" http://books.google.com/books?id=2icbAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA519&dq=cathmhaoil,+o'hart&ei=P2KHSqvmE6fYkAT6_dT2CQ#v=onepage&q=&f=false
  5. ↑ Vol. IV, pp. 1667–1670 of Hudson-Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs, edited by Cuyler Reynolds http://www.schenectadyhistory.org/families/hmgfm/mcquade.html
  6. ↑ Mac Giolla Domhnaigh, Pádraig "Some Ulster Surnames"
  7. ↑ Connor, Bernard. 1808. Dublin. "Clan Cathmhaoil or Caulfield Family"
  8. ↑ MacLysaght, Edward. "More Irish Families"
  9. ↑ MacLysaght, Edward. "The Surnames Of Ireland"
  10. ↑ Colby, Thomas. Larcom, Thomas. 1837. "Ordnance Survey Of The County Of Londonderry, Volume 1"
  11. ↑ http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~irlkik/ihm/tribe_index.htm and http://dnausers.d-n-a.net/dnetcRrI/index.html
  12. ↑ Larkin Clan Site http://www.larkinclan.eu/niall.htm
  13. ↑ Hudson-Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs: McQuade http://www.schenectadyhistory.org/families/hmgfm/mcquade.html
  14. ↑ The Annals of Ulster http://archive.org/stream/annalauladhannal02royauoft/annalauladhannal02royauoft_djvu.txt
  15. ↑ The Annals of Ulster http://archive.org/stream/annalauladhannal02royauoft/annalauladhannal02royauoft_djvu.txt
  16. ↑ The Annals of Ulster http://archive.org/stream/annalauladhannal02royauoft/annalauladhannal02royauoft_djvu.txt
  17. ↑ Annals of the Four Masters http://books.google.com/books?id=4jlNAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA202&lpg=PA202&dq=Hugh+Mac+Cawell&source=bl&ots=XrfDuQ6CTf&sig=SiEmcqB_yzF-O472ifp8p_tdgIU&hl=en&sa=X&ei=CbnaUOiLNuqSiQL6gYHACw&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Hugh%20Mac%20Cawell&f=false
  18. ↑ http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~donegal/DonnellO.txt
  19. ↑ Annals of the Four Masters
  20. ↑ Annals of Ulster: 1155–1378. Ed. by B. MacCarthy http://books.google.com/books?id=oCkNAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA525&lpg=PA525&dq=Alexander+Mac+Domnaill&source=bl&ots=LwFQiuC7Xa&sig=OzZAxpgkx_GLDHiVk0UIOEsaHvQ&hl=en&sa=X&ei=QAn9UKPXBpLa8ASvlYDoCQ&ved=0CEQQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=Alexander%20Mac%20Domnaill&f=false
  21. ↑ Rootsweb County Tyrone Familys
  22. ↑ Annals of the Four Masters – McMahon site http://www.mcmahonsofmonaghan.org/macmahon_irish_annals.html
  23. ↑ Annals http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~donegal/T000004.txt
  24. ↑ Annals of the Four Masters
  25. ↑ http://www.ucc.ie/celt/online/T100001C.html
  26. ↑ Cuyler Reynolds, Genealogical and family history of southern New York and the Hudson River Valley http://www.ebooksread.com/authors-eng/cuyler-reynolds/genealogical-and-family-history-of-southern-new-york-and-the-hudson-river-valley-ony/page-94-genealogical-and-family-history-of-southern-new-york-and-the-hudson-river-valley-ony.shtml
  27. ↑ Irish Pedigrees: Or, The Origin and Stem of the Irish Nation, Volume 1 By John O'Hart http://books.google.com/books?id=2icbAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA519&lpg=PA519&dq=%22Irish+Pedigrees%22+by+O%27Hart+MacCathmhaoil&source=bl&ots=XUGrQCS7Sr&sig=TbcKwrc1AO9x6_HrKrRcxQlJiLw&hl=en&sa=X&ei=YUbqUPDrJ5PA9gT1_oCABw&ved=0CD0Q6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=MacCawell&f=false
  28. ↑ The Mac Cathmhaoils of Clogher by Seosamh Ó Dufaigh, 1957 http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/27695443?uid=3739560&uid=2134&uid=366779471&uid=2&uid=70&uid=3&uid=366779461&uid=3739256&uid=60&purchase-type=none&accessType=none&sid=21101529315821&showMyJstorPss=false&seq=22&showAccess=false

External links

General and history
Castles
Battles
Kindreds and septs
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.