Clan McGrath (Clann Mac Craith)
The Clan McGrath (Irish: Clann Mac Craith), is an Irish Clan and recognised as such by Clans of Ireland.[1] The name has its origins in Thomond (Irish: Tuadhmhumhain), a kingdom that existed before the Norman invasion in the area of North Munster. The most notable King of Thomond was Brian Boru (Irish: Brian Bóruma Mac Cennétig) c. 941 - 1014 and it is traditionally held that the Clann Mac Craith was a name bestowed upon the descendants of Brian's brother Ahearne. The Clan McGrath is thus a Clan of the Gaelic Irish tribe of the Dalcassian (Irish: Dal gCais). The Clan McGrath held a special place for themselves as hereditary poets and bards among the Dalcassian and served Brian and his descendants, the O'Brien princes of Thomond. The link to Brian Boru and the Clan O'Brien is perhaps best illustrated in the medieval period by the adoption of the three heraldic lions of the Clan O'Brien into the arms of the Clan McGrath.[2] The three lions was an heraldic device commonly used amongst the Dalcassian, including the Downey, McMahon, O'Grady, Coughlan, Considine and Clohessy Clans.
From its foundations in Thomond the Clan McGrath established two main Septs, one in Ulster in an area known as Termonmcgrath, that incorporates the counties of Donegal, Tyrone and Fermanagh. The other main Sept is located in Waterford, Wexford and Tipperary and straddles Munster and Leinster.
Tearmann Mac Craith
Termonmcgrath (in Gaelic: Tearmann hMac Craith) Termonmcgrath (also known as Termonmagrath) exists in the Barony of Tirhugh in South Donegal. The territory incorporates the modern town of Pettigoe and the ancient pilgrimage island and lake of Lough Derg. Termonmcgrath is also home to Castle McGrath (also known as Termon Castle). To the north of the McGrath territory and just outside Ballybofey is Carraig McGrath, the inauguration site of the McGrath Chieftains. The Clan McGrath were the hereditary Corabs of the famous pilgrimage island of Lough Derg and controlled the routes to the pilgrimage island and the revenues gained from pilgrims making their way from across Europe to the site. The Annals of Ulster detail the names and lineage of the McGrath Chieftains of Ulster from the 12th century until the eventual dispossession and confiscation of McGrath lands by the Cromwellian government in the 17th century. This valuable source also gives information on the Termon. The Termon was under the divine protection of the local Saint Davog (Dabhog) and the McGrath Chieftain. We find the annals describing this Termon as Tearmann Dabhog (St. Davog's Termon) until the end of the 15th century when in 1496 the Annals of Ulster begin to refer to it as Tearmann Mhic Craith (McGrath's Termon) from the Clan who held the hereditary office of Corab (in Gaelic: Comharba).
Archbishop Miler McGrath 1523 - 1622
Perhaps the most infamous of the McGraths of Termonmcgath is Archbishop Miler McGrath (1523–1622). Miler was the son of the McGrath Chief Donncha, and was destined for the religious life. He became a Franciscan and spent some time in Rome where he acquired the bishopric of Down and Connor. Although kinsman to the Gaelic Lord Shane 'The Proud' O'Neill, Miler was a master in the game of politics and alliances. In 1569 he conformed to the reformed faith and was granted the Protestant bishopric of Clougher, thus holding a Roman Catholic and Protestant bishopric at the same time. This continued until 1580 when he was eventually deprived of the Catholic bishopric for heresy.[3]
Miler would eventually expand his influence and power across Ireland and became Archbishop of Cashel in Tipperary. Miler brought 200 armed men from his ancestral home at Termonmcgrath, consisting mainly of his McGrath kinsmen.[4] Their descendants are still found today in Co. Tipperary. Miler patrolled his lands in Tipperary, carrying a sword and wearing armour, a sign perhaps of the dangers in which a man such as he found himself. Miler married Amy, the daughter of the O'Meara Chieftain and fathered four sons and two daughters.[5]
In 1622 aged 100 years Miler died. Prior to his death he commissioned his tomb stone which bore his effigy in the robes of a Catholic bishop. It is a tradition that Miler converted back to the Catholic faith before his death. Perhaps most interestingly from a heraldry point of view, Miler also had the arms of his house carved on his tombstone. These are re-created in the above artwork. You will note the heraldic antelope rampant, at the bottom right hand corner. This is somewhat different from the modern interpretation of the McGrath Arms we see reproduced today. Miler's arms are the earliest depiction of the McGrath Arms that we know of and are almost 500 years old.[6]
Annals of Ulster and Annals of the Four Masters
From the 13th century the story of the Termon has been the story of the Clan McGrath. The first Chieftain and Comharba is recorded in 1290. The following is the record of the McGrath Chieftains of Termonmagrath compiled from the ancient Annals of Ulster and the Annals of the Four Masters.
1290 - Giolla Adhamhnain Mac Craith, Comharba of Terman Dabhoig died. (Nicholas Mac Craith inherits title)
1340 - Nicholas Mac Craith, the Comhraba died.(Muiris Mac Craith inherits title).
1384 - Lucia, wife of Muiris Mac Craith Comhraba dies. (Mark son of Muiris inherits title)
1423 - The Mac Craith of the Termon (Chieftain) Mark, Son of Muiris dies. (Sean Mor, inherits title)
1435 - The Mac Craith of the Termon, Sean Mor died; "a gentlemen who maintained a house of hospitality for all". (Matthew, Sean's brother inherits the title)
1440 - The Mac Craith of the Termon, Matthew son of Mark died. (Sean Bui the fair haired son of Sean Mor inherits the title)
1463 - Torlough, son of Mark Mac Craith died.
1465 - Art, son of Sean Mor Mac Craith and dean of Lough Erne Deanery, died.
1469 - Sean Bui, son of Sean Mor died. (Diarmuid son of Mark, son of Muiris inherits title)
1470 - Catherine, wife of Diarmuid Mac Craith died.
1491 - Rory son of Diarmuid Mac Craith becomes Comharba and inherits title. Diarmuid is gravely ill.
1492 - The Mac Craith of the Termon, Diarmuid, son of Mark, son of Muiris died.
1499 - Grainne wife of The Mac Craith, Rory died this year.
1504 - Andrew son of the Chieftain of the Termon died, "And there was not, during his lifetime in Ireland at that time a Termoner's son that had greater respect and honour and kept a better house of hospitality than he."
1507 - Donncha Mac Craith at this time was Prior of Lough Derg.
1524 - Sean Bui, son of Andrew Mac Craith a man of most esteem and influence in Ulster, died.
1527 - William, son of Andrew Mac Craith, a man of wealth who kept a house of hospitality for all, and his wife both died within one day and one night.
1528 - The Mac Craith of the Termon, Rory son of Diarmuid, son of Mark, died, "And a noble Chieftain was that man, and he was generous to strangers, intelligent, informed, cheerful and virtuous. And he was a learned antiquarian and a man that kept a general guest house among Ulstermen." (Torloug, son of Andrew McGrath inherits title).
1538 - Annabel, daughter of The MacCraith died.
1542 - The Mac Craith of the Termon, Torlough son of Andrew, died.
1549 - Fr. Brian Bocht Mac Craith OFM, noted preacher and miracle worker, native of the Termon, died in Donegal Friary. This is also where Miler McGrath began his ecclesiastical career.
1562 - The Mac Craith of the Termon died. (Donncha Mac Craith inherits title).
1593 - Petition of Archbishop Miler McGrath for the surrender of the Termon lands of his Father to Queen Elizabeth I.
1596 - On 5 May, Donnchadh Mac Craith, "Chieftain of Termon McGrath, surrendered all his Termon lands to the Queen for reduction to English tenure and re-grant to himself and his Clan. On the 13th May the same lands were re-granted to Donnchadh by Queen Elizabeth I. These included all the lands of Termonmagrath as well as the lands of Termonnamongan. These lands spanned three counties and the diocese of Clougher and Derry."
1603 - Chieftain of Termonmagrath, Donnchadh Mac Craith died. (James, son of Archbishop Miler Mac Craith inherits title).
1610 - James McGrath, esq., Chieftain and Lord of Termonmagrath receives a Grant of Title of lands from King James I of England, VI of Scotland.
1641 - Castle McGrath comes under siege by the Lagganer's, a force of northern settlers who oppose the Kilkenny Confederacy. The Clan McGrath burn the castle rather than let it be used as a military post by the enemy. The Clan McGrath are disinherited.[7][8]
The Ulster McGrath Chieftains 1290 - 1641
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Giolla Adhamhnain Mac Craith
Nicholas, son of Giolla Mac Craith,
Muiris son of Nicholas Mac Craith
Mark son of Muiris Mac Craith
Sean Mor son of Muiris Mac Craith
Matthew brother of Sean Mor Mac Craith
Sean Bui 'the fair haired' son of Sean Mor Mac Craith
Diarmuid son of Mark, son of Muiris Mac Craith
Rory son of Diarmuid, son of Mark Mac Craith
Torlough, son of Andrew Mac Craith
The Mac Craith (First Name Unknown) Chieftain between 1549 and 1562
Donncha Mac Craith, Father of Archbishop Miler McGrath
James, son of Archbishop Miler Mac Craith
James, son of James Mac Craith
The Clan McGrath Today
The Clan McGrath today is divided into two Septs, these Septs are located in the ancient Clan territories of Ulster and Thomond. Both Septs are registered Clans of Finte na hEireann (Clans of Ireland). Each Sept is headed by a Chieftain or Ceann Fine. The Ceann Fine of the Clan McGrath of Ulster is Seán Alusdrann Mac Craith. The Ceann Fine of the Clan McGrath of Thomond is Dan McGrath.[10]
Arms
The McGrath family are armigerous in Ireland and in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The earliest recorded McGrath Arms are that of the McGrath Chieftain of Ulster. These are recorded as 'argent, three lions passant gules' in the book Irish Pedigrees: The Stem of the Irish Nation by John Hart[11] and in Irish Families, Their Names, Arms and Origins by Edward MacLysaght.[12] This description is three red lions on a silver (white) field. These arms appear in a portrait of Archbishop Miler McGrath dated 1570 and make up the 1st quarter of the arms that represent the current Clan McGrath. The lions depicted on Miler's tomb are 'three lions passant guardant, that is they are looking towards the viewer.
Heraldry in medieval Ireland could often be a movable feast, however the theme of the lion and cross pattee fichee still appears in McGrath heraldry as depicted in the personal arms of the current Ceann Fine of Ulster. Any person wishing to acquire a grant of arms or research arms they may be entitled to bear should contact the appropriate heraldic authority in their own country. In Ireland this is the Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland, in Scotland this is The Court of the Lord Lyon, in England, Wales and Northern Ireland this is the College of Arms.
"Armorial bearings, or coats-of-arms, originated during the late medieval period as a means of recognition on the battlefield and at the tournament. They were soon employed also to attest documents and identify property. Clearly, a system of identification, to be effective, required regulation because use of the same arms by more than one person would result in confusion. Specialists, known as heralds, were therefore employed to keep the necessary records and advise on all related matters. Such officers of arms have functioned for Ireland since 1382. The post of Ulster King of Arms, Herald of all Ireland, was created by the Crown in 1552 and continued under the name until 1943 when the Office of Arms was transferred to the Government of Ireland and renamed the Genealogical Office. Since then, the Office has operated as a branch of the National Library and under the direction of the Chief Herald of Ireland."[13]
References
- ↑ Clans of Ireland Register of Clans - http://www.clansofireland.ie/baile/?q=Clan_Register
- ↑ http://www.imecofarm.com/McGrath_Clan_Origins_Thomond_Clare_Imecofarm.htm
- ↑ Archbishop Miler Magrath, The Enigma of Cashel, Patrick J Ryan 2014
- ↑ Pettigo And Its People by John Cunningham
- ↑ Archbishop Miler Magrath, The Enigma of Cashel, Patrick J Ryan 2014
- ↑ Pettigo And Its People by John Cunningham
- ↑ http://www.ucc.ie/celt/online/T100001A/
- ↑ http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/T100005A/
- ↑ Pettigo And Its People by John Cunningham
- ↑ Clans of Ireland Register of Clans - http://www.clansofireland.ie/baile/?q=Clan_Register
- ↑ Irish Pedigrees: The Stem of the Irish Nation by John Hart
- ↑ Irish Families, Their Names, Arms and Origins by Edward MacLysaght
- ↑ Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland
- "The Dal gCais Tribe and Their Clans". Battle of Clontarf. Retrieved 29 November 2015.