Route, County Antrim
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Route () was a medieval territory in
Gaelic Ireland Gaelic Ireland () was the Gaelic political and social order, and associated culture, that existed in Ireland from the late Prehistory of Ireland, prehistoric era until the 17th century. It comprised the whole island before Anglo-Norman invasi ...
, located on the north-east coast of
Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...
. It stretched between
Coleraine Coleraine ( ; from , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, No ...
and Ballycastle and as far south as the Clogh River. Originally part of Twescard, a county of the Earldom of Ulster, it was later ruled by the MacQuillans and then the MacDonnells.


History

The territory of the Route was originally part of Twescard, a county of the Earldom of Ulster that at its height stretched from the Glens of Antrim to Inishowen. The murder of the Earl of Ulster in 1333 saw the Irish chiefdoms rebel and the Earldom of Ulster eventually collapsed, with it gradually almost all falling under Gaelic control. By the 1460s, the de Mandevilles, who held manors in Twescard, decided to abandon them and sold their land to the MacQuillans, who according to the ''
Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' () are annals of History of Ireland, medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinà ...
'' were already in the region warring with the O'Cahans as far back as 1442. The MacQuillans themselves had fled from their territory in Down, having originally come over to Ulster from southwest Scotland to aid the earls of Ulster as mercenaries. Both families had previously held the office of "constable of the bonnaght" for the Earldom of Ulster - a system adopted from the Irish where mercenaries were hired to act as a body of standing troops. Sir John Perrot, Lord Deputy of Ireland, successfully reduced parts of Ulster into allegiance to the English during the reign of
Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...
. He laid siege to Dunluce Castle, forcing its surrender on honourable terms. The MacDonnells subsequently took it back by "treachery", but in 1585 it was once more surrendered to the English by Sorley Boy MacDonnell, to whom it was returned in charge. Having made his submission, Sorley Boy obtained a grant to himself and his heirs of the greater part of the Route territory, between the rivers Bann and Bush (an area then called 'the Boys'), with certain other lands to the east, and was made constable of Dunluce Castle. A month beforehand, Sorley Boy's nephew had received a grant in similar terms of the greater part of 'the Glynns' (the Glens of Antrim). At the same time, in the Treaty of Berwick (1586), a clause was inserted recognising the right of the clan MacDonnell to remain in
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
. In 1584, as part of the shiring of Ulster, Sir John Perrott merged the territory of the Route with that of the Glens of Antrim and the greater portion of the territory of Clandeboye to create
County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, County Antrim, Antrim, ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, located within the historic Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the c ...
. He also divided it into baronies, with the Route being divided into the baronies of Dunluce Lower and Upper, the North East Liberties of Coleraine, and Toome Lower and Upper. In 1613, as part of the creation of
County Londonderry County Londonderry (Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry (), is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty-two Counties of Ireland, count ...
during the
Plantation of Ulster The Plantation of Ulster (; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster Scots: ) was the organised Settler colonialism, colonisation (''Plantation (settlement or colony), plantation'') of Ulstera Provinces of Ireland, province of Irelandby people from Great ...
, the northwestern portion of the Route, which formed the North East Liberties of Coleraine, was transferred from County Antrim so that the London companies could control both banks of the
River Bann The River Bann (from , meaning "the goddess"; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Bann Wattèr'') is the longest rivers, river in Northern Ireland, its length, Upper and Lower Bann combined, being 129 km (80 mi). The total length ...
.


McQuillan–O'Cahan feud

During the mid-15th to mid-16th centuries, a strong feud raged between the McQuillans of the Route and their O'Cahan neighbours to their west that would have dire consequences. According to the ''
Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' () are annals of History of Ireland, medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinà ...
'', it started in 1442 when the McQuillans, along with the O'Neills, invaded the O'Cahan territory. This resulted in several wars of shifting allegiances and various contestants. The O'Neills, Sweeneys, and O'Donnells would ally with the O'Cahans and the MacDonnells of the Glens would aid the McQuillans. In 1542 the McQuillans would appeal to the English for help, and seeing the opportunity to submit the O'Cahans to 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-Feudalism, feudal system under t ...
policy of King
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...
, the warden of Coleraine, John Travers, was ordered to attack the O'Cahans. The English would capture Limavady Castle and kill all the O'Cahan troops in the area, with Manus O'Cahan submitting partly to the Crown and signing an indenture of peace. The peace only lasted about two years before the O'Cahans and O'Donnells invaded the territory of the McQuillans, again capturing the castle at Ballylough, which was then besieged by the McQuillans and MacDonnells. By 1553, the territory of the O'Cahans was described as "for the most part waste". In 1559, already weakened by the ravages of war with the O'Cahans and their allies, the McQuillans were unready for the treachery that was to take place. Seeing an opportunity to expand his territory and influence, Sorley Boy MacDonnell, with the aid of levies from Scotland, launched a mass assault on the Route against the McQuillans. The final battle of this assault was at Aura, and saw the end of the McQuillans and the conquest of the Route by the MacDonnells. It is claimed that the McQuillans were betrayed to the MacDonnells by a piper named O'Cahan. The end result of this bitter feud saw the McQuillans destroyed and the O'Cahans weakened in the face of an ever-growing English presence.


References

{{County Antrim Geography of County Antrim Earldom of Ulster