Calvagh O'More (; 1540 – 27 March 1618), also known as Callagh, The Calough or Charles, was an Irish-born landowner of noble ancestry. He was raised in England. Upon returning to Ireland in his early thirties, he was granted an estate in Balyna by the Crown, which was owned by his descendants until 1960. His brother and father were Irish chiefs - the

Lord of Laois Lord of Laois is a title that belonged to the historical rulers of the Kingdom of Laois in Ireland. It was held by the O'More family and later the More O'Ferralls who ruled the kingdom. The title is first recorded as existing in 1016, in the Ann ...

- and his son

Rory O'Moore Sir Rory O'Moore (; c. 1600 – 16 February 1655), also known Sir Roger O'Moore or O'More or Sir Roger Moore, was an Irish landowner, and is most notable for being one of the four principal organisers of the Irish Rebellion of 1641. Early life ...

was a leader of the

Irish Rebellion of 1641 The Irish Rebellion of 1641 was an uprising in Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, initiated on 23 October 1641 by Catholic gentry and military officers. Their demands included an end to anti-Catholic discrimination, greater Irish self-governance, and ...

Early life

Calvagh O'More was born in 1540 in

Portlaoise Portlaoise ( ), or Port Laoise (), is the county town of County Laois, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Midland Region, Ireland, South Midlands in the province of Leinster. Portlaoise was the fastest growing of the top 20 largest town ...

Laois County Laois ( ; ) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medieval kingdom. Hist ...

. His father was Rory Caoch O'More, Irish chief and

, and his mother was Margaret Butler, granddaughter of

Piers Butler, 8th Earl of Ormond Piers Butler, 8th Earl of Ormond, 1st Earl of Ossory (26 August 1539) also known as Red Piers (Irish language, Irish ''Piers Ruadh''), was from the Polestown branch of the Butler family of Ireland. In the succession crisis at the death of Tho ...

. Upon Rory's death at the hands of his brother Giolla Pádraig, it seems that Margaret removed Calvagh and his siblings from Laois.

Time in England

O'More was brought up in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, and was called 'The Calough' by the English. As he describes himself as of

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

in 1568, he may be the John Callow who entered there in 1567. His loyalist tendencies were in stark contrast to his brother

Rory Oge O'More Rory Oge O'More (; – 30 June 1578) was an Irish noble and chief of the O'More clan. As the Lord of Laois, he rebelled against the Tudors' sixteenth-century conquest of Gaelic Ireland. Irish nationalists Patrick Pearse and Philip O'Sul ...

, a staunch rebel who became Lord of Laois in 1557, and returned to Ireland in the 1560s to lead his clan against the Tudor army.

Return to Ireland

In 1571,

Thomas Butler, 10th Earl of Ormond Thomas Butler, 10th Earl of Ormond and 3rd Earl of Ossory PC (Ire) (; – 1614), was an influential courtier in London at the court of Elizabeth I. He was Lord Treasurer of Ireland from 1559 to his death. He fought for the crown in th ...

petitioned for Calvagh O'More's return. Soon afterwards O'More came back to Ireland, and in 1574, was granted an estate at Balyna, near Moyvalley,

County Kildare County Kildare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the Local gove ...

.(Cal. State Papers, Irish Ser. 1574–85, pp. 392, 412) The estate was granted by

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...

in an attempt to stop the ongoing violence between the Tudors and O'More's brother Rory. In 1582, O'More was thought to be a sufficiently strong adherent to the English to receive a grant of land in Laois. He also possessed part of the ancestral property of

Owen Roe O'Neill Owen Roe O'Neill ( Irish: ''Eoghan Ruadh Ó Néill;'' – 6 November 1649) was a Gaelic Irish soldier and one of the most famous of the O'Neill dynasty of Ulster. O'Neill left Ireland at a young age and spent most of his life as a mercenary ...

County Armagh County Armagh ( ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It is located in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and adjoins the southern shore of Lough Neagh. It borders t ...

, and received grants of land in

Meath County Meath ( ; or simply , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is bordered by County Dublin to the southeast, County ...

and Dublin. In 1585, Sir Thomas FitzGerald of Laccagh posted bond for O'More, referencing his "good conduct ndappearance when called for."Calendar of the Irish Council Book, 1581-1586, edited by John P. Prendergast and David B. Quinn, Published by The Irish Manuscripts Commission Ltd., p.164, item 308

Personal life

O'More married Margaret Scurlock. Their son

Rory Rory is a given name of Gaelic origin. It is an anglicisation of the /''Ruaidhrí'' and /''Ruaraidh'' and is common to the Irish, Highland Scots and their diasporas. for the given name "Rory". The meaning of the name is "red king", composed ...

was born about 1600, either in

, or more likely at the Balyna estate. Another son was named Lewis.

Death and legacy

On 27 March 1618, O'More died in Balyna. His son Lewis inherited his Balyna estate, and it remained in the ownership of the O'More family until it was sold in 1960. O'More's son Rory went on to become one of the principal organisers of the

. Through Rory, O'More is a direct ancestor of

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William, ...

and, by extension, her son

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

Family tree

{{O'More family tree

References

1540 births 1618 deaths People from Portlaoise O'Moore family