The O'Grady family, also styled O'Grady of Kilballyowen, is one of Ireland's noble families and surviving

Chiefs of the Name The Chief of the Name, or in older English usage Captain of his Nation, is the recognised head of a family or clan (''fine'' in Irish and Scottish Gaelic). The term has sometimes been used as a title in Ireland and Scotland. In Ireland In Eliza ...

. Their title is ''The O'Grady'' in English and ''Ó Gráda'' in Irish.

Naming conventions

History

They belong to the

Dál gCais The Dalcassians ( ga, Dál gCais ) are a Gaelic Irish clan, generally accepted by contemporary scholarship as being a branch of the Déisi Muman, that became very powerful in Ireland during the 10th century. Their genealogies claimed descent fr ...

kindred and are distant cousins to the

O'Brien dynasty The O'Brien dynasty ( ga, label=Classical Irish, Ua Briain; ga, label=Modern Irish, Ó Briain ; genitive ''Uí Bhriain'' ) is a nobility, noble house of Munster, founded in the 10th century by Brian Boru of the Dál gCais (Dalcassians). After ...

, but have since the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

been based not in

County Clare County Clare ( ga, Contae an Chláir) is a county in Ireland, in the Southern Region and the province of Munster, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council is the local authority. The county had a population of 118,817 ...

, from where they originated, but in

County Limerick "Remember Limerick" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Limerick.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Munster , subdivision ...

. The seat of the family,

Kilballyowen Kilballyowen ( ga, Cill Bhaile Eoghain) is the name of both a civil parish and a townland within that parish in County Clare, Ireland. The name is also occasionally used for the slightly larger Catholic parish of Cross. Kilballowen parish is l ...

, is near the town of

Bruff Bruff () is a town in east County Limerick, in the midwest of Ireland, located on the old Limerick–Cork road ( R512). The town lies on the Morning Star river, with two bridges in the town itself. The horseshoe lake of Lough Gur is nearby ...

. The name Standish was often used by the family; it derives from the marriage in 1633 of Darby O'Grady, The O'Grady, to Faith Standish. Some of the O'Grady family converted to the

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...

(Anglican Communion) and produced a

Bishop of Meath The Bishop of Meath is an episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient Kingdom of Meath. In the Roman Catholic Church it remains as a separate title, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with another bishopric. History Unti ...

, Hugh Brady. The family also produced some prominent historians such as

Standish Hayes O'Grady Standish Hayes O'Grady ( ga, Anéislis Aodh Ó Grádaigh; 19 May 1832 – 16 October 1915) was an Irish antiquarian. He was born at Erinagh House, Castleconnell, County Limerick, the son of Admiral Hayes O'Grady. He was a cousin of the writer Sta ...

and

Standish James O'Grady Standish James O'Grady ( ga, Anéislis Séamus Ó Grádaigh; 18 September 1846 – 18 May 1928) was an Irish author, journalist, and historian. O'Grady was inspired by Sylvester O'Halloran and played a formative role in the Celtic Revival, publ ...

. The now extinct title in the

peerage of Ireland The Peerage of Ireland consists of those titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is one of the five divisi ...

, the Viscount Guillamore, was held by the family.

References

* Burke, Bernard and Hugh Montgomery-Massingberd, ''Burke's Irish Family Records''. London: Burke's Peerage Ltd. 5th edition, 1976. * Curley, Walter J.P., ''Vanishing Kingdoms: The Irish Chiefs and their Families''. Dublin: Lilliput Press. 2004. * O'Hart, John,
Irish Pedigrees
'. Dublin: James Duffy and Co. 5th edition, 1892.
Rough notes from the Araltas website
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External links

from ''Ordnance Survey Letters'' by John O'Donovan and Eugene Curry, 1839 {{Dalcassians Septs of the Dál gCais

Naming conventions

History

See also

References