Oliver Plunkett, 1st Baron Louth (d. c. 1555), was an Irish peer. He was the eldest son of Sir Richard (or: Patrick, Lodge vol. 6, p. 161) Plunkett of Beaulieu (died 1508),

High Sheriff of Louth The High Sheriff of Louth was the Crown's representative for County Louth, a territory known as his bailiwick. Selected from three nominated people, he held his office for the duration of a year. He had judicial, ceremonial and administrative func ...

, and his wife Catherine Nangle, daughter of Thomas Nangle, 15th

Baron of Navan The Barony of Navan was an Irish feudal barony which was held by the de Angulo family, whose name became Nangle.Otway-Ruthven p.193 It was a customary title: in other words, the holder of the title was always referred to as a Baron, and this priv ...

. He married firstly Catherine, daughter of John Rochfort of Carrick,

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 ...

and Genet Dexter, and had at least nine children. He married secondly Maud Bathe, daughter of Walter Bathe of Rathfeigh, and widow of Walter Golding of Piercetown Landy, and had six further children. After his death, Maud remarried Richard Bellew. Plunkett was raised to the Peerage of Ireland as

Baron Louth Baron Louth is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It has been created twice. History The title was created firstly c. 1458 for Sir Thomas Bathe, later Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer. Although he had at least one son, John Bathe of Ardee, the ...

in 1541, one of six new

peerages A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

created at the time: among the others were

Baron Dunboyne Baron Dunboyne was a title first held by the Petit family some time after the Norman invasion of Ireland. History Dunboyne was part of the Lordship of Meath. The Petit family also had land holdings in Mullingar. In 1227, Ralph Petit became Bisho ...

, and

Baron Upper Ossory Baron Upper Ossory was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 11 June 1541 for Barnaby Fitzpatrick. This was in pursuance of the Surrender and regrant policy of King Henry VIII. Under the policy, Gaelic chiefs were actively encou ...

. This was part of a calculated 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. ...

, on the advice of the

Lord Deputy of Ireland The Lord Deputy was the representative of the monarch and head of the Irish executive (government), executive under English rule, during the Lordship of Ireland and then the Kingdom of Ireland. He deputised prior to 1523 for the Viceroy of Ireland ...

, Sir Anthony St Leger, that the loyalty of the

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...

nobility could be better secured by "small gifts and honest persuasion rather than rigor". The policy was successful, at least as regards the Plunketts, who were noted in later generations for their loyalty to the

English Crown This list of kings and reigning queens of the Kingdom of England begins with Alfred the Great, who initially ruled Wessex, one of the seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms which later made up modern England. Alfred styled himself king of the Anglo-Sax ...

. He died circa 1555 and was succeeded in the barony by his eldest son Thomas.

References

*Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990. *

National Library of Ireland The National Library of Ireland (NLI; ) is Ireland's national library located in Dublin, in a building designed by Thomas Newenham Deane. The mission of the National Library of Ireland is "To collect, preserve, promote and make accessible the ...

Collection List No. 90 ''Louth Papers'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Louth, Oliver Plunkett, 1st Baron Barons in the Peerage of Ireland Peers of Ireland created by Henry VIII