The anglicisation of the Gaelic Irish nobility c.1169-c.1366

Abstract

This thesis explores the extent to which the Gaelic Irish nobility became acculturated in the circa two hundred years after the English invasion, and the forms which this Anglicisation took. The subject is examined in three parts, organised in progressive stages of Anglicisation. Part 1, ‘Interaction’, discusses the various types of close contact established between Irish and English families. In chapter 1 familial ties, that is, intermarriage, fosterage and gossipred, are examined. Although these bonds probably took place more often than is commonly acknowledged, evidence for fosterage and gossipred are frequently hard to prove, but can sometimes be inferred from epithets. Intermarriage appears to have been common throughout the period and can be found in all the strata of the Gaelic aristocracy. Chapter 2 examines tenurial ties between the Gaelic and settler populations. Many Irish kings and lords relied on English military support in their attempts to gain or maintain control over a region. Contact thus established offered Irishmen insight into English armoury, weaponry and strategies, and consequently to adaptations, as discussed in chapter 4. Part 2, ‘Imitation’, examines some of the adaptations following the establishment of relationships as described in part 1. The adoption of Anglo-Norman personal names among the Irish aristocracy can often be linked to the presence of an influential English neighbour. Members of the highest aristocratic levels appear to have been more reluctant in adopting Anglo-Norman names for their children, and, instead, keener to emphasise their family history by re-using family names. Slightly lower down the social ladder, such imitations were implemented with less reluctance and may have indicated a close personal alliance with an English family in the vicinity. Another imitation that occurred in medieval Ireland was the adoption of the use of certain weapons and armour brought to Ireland in the wake of the English invasion. Although in some cases the Irish were familiar with these ‘foreign’ items in the pre-invasion period, there is no evidence that they were used by the Gaelic Irish before 1169. Both items used in warfare and relatively new structures were initially taken and destroyed by the Irish, but over time re-used. Structures erected by the Gaelic nobility began to display English influences, and may have resembled English style constructions. The most advanced types of Anglicisation are discussed in part 3, ‘integration’. Chapter 5 concerns the integration of foreign imagery as displayed especially on seals and effigies, and examines the way in which such imagery reflected the changing nature of Gaelic lordship in the period. Whereas European-style charters and their accompanying seals, known to the Irish in the pre-invasion period, but used exclusively in a religious setting, became widespread, effigies did not. Especially when compared to royal and aristocratic seals from elsewhere in the Irish Sea region, it emerges that (with the possible exception of one Gaelic king) Irish rulers put themselves on a par with other aristocrats in the area, and not with other kings. Imagery on seals, including the use of (pre-)heraldic symbols, followed trends in England. The final chapter examines the influence of English com m on law on the Irish people and on Irish Brehon law. English law was an exclusive right, only available to those Irishmen and -women who had been given a grant of law, and facilitated access to the wider English world. A few of its benefits included the possibility of inheritance through the female line (if no male heirs survived), the easier buying and selling of lands, and the entitlement of dowers for widows. The integration of select clauses of English law into Brehon law signalled a truly advanced stage in acculturation. By the end of the period under consideration here, adaptations from English culture had become part of the daily life for a large number of Gaelic Irish aristocrats.