Matthew O'Neill, 1st Baron Dungannon (alias ''Matthew Kelly'', alias ''Feardorcha Ó Néill''; 1520–1558), was an Irish aristocrat. He was accepted by Conn O'Neill as his natural son. Matthew was challenged by his half-brother Shane O'Neill over the succession to the Earldom of Tyrone and was murdered by some of his supporters.

Birth and origins

Mathew was born about 1510, a son of Alison Kelly (''née'' Roth) in

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...

, the wife of a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...

. At the age of sixteen, Matthew was presented to Conn O'Neill, with whom Kelly had previously had an affair. Tyrone accepted that Matthew was his natural son.

Marriage and children

Around 1536 Matthew married Siobhan, daughter of Cú Chonnacht (Constantine) Maguire, lord of Fir Manach. Matthew and Siobhan had three sons: #

Brian Brian (sometimes spelled Bryan in English) is a male given name of Irish and Breton origin, as well as a surname of Occitan origin. It is common in the English-speaking world. It is possible that the name is derived from an Old Celtic word me ...

(died 1562), called Lord Dungannon, ''de jure'' 2nd Earl of Tyrone, murdered # Hugh (c. 1550 – 1616), who succeeded as the 3rd Earl of Tyrone #

Cormac Cormac is a masculine given name in the Irish and English languages. The name is ancient in the Irish language and is also seen in the rendered Old Norse as ''Kormákr''. Mac is Irish for "son", and can be used as either a prefix or a suffix. ...

(died 1613) Matthew also had an illegitimate son: *

Art MacBaron O'Neill Art MacBaron O'Neill ( Irish: ''Art mac Baron Ó Néill'') (died 1618) was an Irish landowner and soldier of the Elizabethan and early Stuart eras. He is sometimes referred to as Arthur O'Neill. Biography O'Neill was part of the O'Neill dynasty ...

(died 1618)

Baron Dungannon

As part of the

surrender and regrant During the Tudor conquest of Ireland (c.1540–1603), "surrender and regrant" was the legal mechanism by which Irish clans were to be converted from a power structure rooted in clan and kin loyalties, to a late-feudal system under the English l ...

policy brought in during the reign of Henry VIII, his father was in October 1542 made

Earl of Tyrone The Earl of Tyrone is a title created three times in the Peerage of Ireland. It was first created as part of the Tudor attempt to establish a uniform social structure in Ireland by converting the Gaelic kings and chiefs into hereditary nobles of t ...

with Matthew confirmed as his heir and made

Baron of Dungannon The title Baron of Dungannon in the Peerage of Ireland was associated with the first creation of the title of Earl of Tyrone. History When Conn Bacach O'Neill. 1st Earl of Tyrone surrendered his Irish principality of Tír Eoghain to Henry VIII in ...

.O'Byrne, Emmett. "O'Neill (Ó Néill), Matthew (Feardorcha)", ''Dictionary of Iris Biography''
/ref> Both visited London to formally submit to the King.

Conflict with Shane O'Neill

This arrangement was disputed by Matthew's legitimate half-brother Shane O'Neill, who had a larger and more powerful following. Shane's violent response crushed the government's hope for a peaceful succession. Matthew was killed by Shane's men in 1558, a year before Conn O'Neill died. In his attempts to gain recognition of the title of Earl of Tyrone from the Crown, Shane suggested that Matthew had not really been Conn's son, and his real father was a

from

named Kelly. Shane tried to show Matthew's claims were weak under both the English law of primogeniture as well as the Gaelic custom of the strongest member of the family inheriting. Shane received some recognition of his role as head of the Ó Néills, but he was never made an earl. Shane died in 1567.

Notes and references

Notes

Citations

Sources

* * * – S to T * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dungannon, Matthew Ó Néill, 1st Baron 1558 deaths 16th-century Irish people Assassinations in Ireland Barons in the Peerage of Ireland O'Neill dynasty Peers of Ireland created by Henry VIII People from County Tyrone