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
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
O'Moore belonged to an
ancient Irish noble family descended from
Conall Cernach. He was born in either
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 ...
around 1600, or more likely at Balyna, his father's estate in
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 ...
, about 4km west of
Johnstownbridge. His father was
Calvagh O'More, son of nobleman
Rory Caoch O'More, and his mother was Margaret Scurlock (Sherlock).
O'Moore's uncle
Rory Oge O'More,
Lord of Laois, had fought against the
English during the
Tudor conquest of Ireland
Ireland was conquered by the Tudor monarchs of England in the 16th century. The Anglo-Normans had Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland, conquered swathes of Ireland in the late 12th century, bringing it under Lordship of Ireland, English rule. In t ...
. In 1556
Queen Mary I confiscated Clan O'Mores' lands and created "Queens County" (modern-day
County 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 ...
). Over 180 family members, who were peaceful and had taken no part in any rebellion, were murdered with virtually all of the leaders of Laois and Offaly by the English at a feast at
Mullaghmast,
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 ...
in 1577, Rory Óg and his wife Maighréad O'Byrne, sister of
Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne, were hunted down and killed soon afterwards. This led to the political downfall of the
O'Moore family; their estates in Laois were given to English settlers.
In contrast, Rory's father Callough/Calvagh, a lawyer, was granted his estate at Balyna in 1574 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 ...
. His descendants sold it in 1961, and it is now a popular hotel.
Leader of the Rebellion of 1641
Given the
causes Causes, or causality, is the relationship between one event and another. It may also refer to:
* Causes (band), an indie band based in the Netherlands
* Causes (company)
Causes is a for-profit civic-technology app and website that enables users ...
of the rebellion and the Crown's weakness during the
Bishops' Wars
The Bishops' Wars were two separate conflicts fought in 1639 and 1640 between Scotland and England, with Scottish Royalists allied to England. They were the first of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, which also include the First and Second En ...
into 1641, O'More planned a
bloodless coup to overthrow the English government in Ireland. With
Connor Maguire, 2nd Baron of Enniskillen
Connor (or Cornelius) Maguire, 2nd Baron of Enniskillen (; 1616–1645) was an Irish nobleman from Ulster who took part in the Irish Rebellion of 1641. He was executed for high treason.
Background
He was born in County Fermanagh, the son of Sir ...
he planned to seize
Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle () is a major Government of Ireland, Irish government complex, conference centre, and tourist attraction. It is located off Dame Street in central Dublin.
It is a former motte-and-bailey castle and was chosen for its position at ...
, which was held by a small garrison, on 23 October 1641. Allies in
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 ...
led by
Sir Phelim O'Neill would seize forts and towns there. The leaders would assume the governing of their own country and with this provision offer allegiance to King Charles. They were betrayed, and the plan was discovered on 22 October and the rising failed in its first objective. O'Neill had some success, and O'More quickly succeeded in creating an alliance between the Ulster Gaelic clans and the
Old English
Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
gentry in
Leinster
Leinster ( ; or ) is one of the four provinces of Ireland, in the southeast of Ireland.
The modern province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige, which existed during Gaelic Ireland. Following the 12th-century ...
.
In November 1641 the Irish forces
besieged Drogheda and a royalist force came north from Dublin to oppose them. O'More was one of the leaders of the rebel army that intercepted and defeated the relief force at the
Battle of Julianstown on 29 November.
In the ensuing
Irish Confederate Wars
The Irish Confederate Wars, took place from 1641 to 1653. It was the Irish theatre of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, a series of civil wars in Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, all then ...
, a major achievement by O’Moore was to recruit
Owen Roe O'Neill from the Spanish service in 1642. He commanded the Confederate forces in what is now
County 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 ...
and
County Offaly
County Offaly (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is named after the Ancient Ireland, ancient Kingdom of Uí ...
, which remained peaceful, and helped arrange alliances with
Inchiquin
Inchiquin () is a Barony (Ireland), barony in County Clare, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. This geographical unit of land is one of 11 baronies in the county. Its chief town is Corofin, County Clare, Corofin. It is administered by Clare County C ...
in 1647 and
Ormonde Ormonde is a surname originated in Ireland (Ormonde) and Scotland (Ormond (surname), Ormond), but also occurring in England, United States, Portugal (mainly in Azores, as a variation of the scottish surname Drummond_(surname), Drummond) and Brazil.
...
in 1648. The resulting larger alliance failed to stop the
Cromwellian invasion of Ireland (1649–53) in which an estimated third of the Irish population died.
The Irish historian
Charles Gavan Duffy wrote:
Final years
Bishop Michael Comerford wrote that after O'More's defeat at the
Battle of Kilrush in April 1642 he retired and died in
Kilkenny
Kilkenny ( , meaning 'church of Cainnech of Aghaboe, Cainnech'). is a city in County Kilkenny, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region and in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinst ...
city in the winter of 1642–43, having co-founded the
Irish Catholic Confederation there a few months earlier. However this ignores his contacts with Inchiquin and Ormonde in 1647–48. Others say that he fled to the island of
Inishbofin, County Galway after Galway city fell in 1652. St Colman's Church on the island once bore a tablet with the inscription:
Comerford quoted earlier historians who wrote that a similar watchword in Kildare was: "Our trust is in God and Our Lady, and Rory O'More".
Family
O'More married Jane, daughter of
Sir Patrick Barnewall, of
Donabate
Donabate () is an outer suburb of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, about north-northeast of Dublin, within the Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local government area of Fingal. The town is on a peninsula on Ireland's east coast ...
,
County Dublin
County Dublin ( or ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and holds its capital city, Dublin. It is located on the island's east coast, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Until 1994, County Dubli ...
and his second wife Mary Bagenal, and they had two sons and four daughters.
The Balyna estate was inherited from Calvagh O'More by Rory's brother Lewis. Balyna was passed down to Lewis' last surviving O'More descendant, Letitia, who was also descended from Rory O'More because her grandfather married a second cousin. Letitia married a Richard Farrell in 1751: this Farrell family henceforth took the surname More O'Ferrall.
His daughter Anne, married
Patrick Sarsfield
Patrick Sarsfield, 1st Earl of Lucan ( 1655 – 21 August 1693) was an Irish army officer. Killed at Battle of Landen, Landen in 1693 while serving in the French Royal Army, he is now best remembered as an Irish patriot and military hero.
Born ...
from an
Old English
Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
Catholic family from
The Pale. His grandsons included
Patrick Sarsfield, 1st Earl of Lucan, who led a
Jacobite force in the
Williamite War in Ireland
The Williamite War in Ireland took place from March 1689 to October 1691. Fought between Jacobitism, Jacobite supporters of James II of England, James II and those of his successor, William III of England, William III, it resulted in a Williamit ...
, and his brother
William Sarsfield, whose descendants include all the
Earls of Lucan and the 4th and all subsequent
Earls Spencer, through which Rory is an ancestor to
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, ...
.
Following the
Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence (), also known as the Anglo-Irish War, was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (1919–1922), Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and Unite ...
, the 1861 "Victoria & Albert Bridge" across the
River Liffey
The River Liffey (Irish language, Irish: ''An Life'', historically ''An Ruirthe(a)ch'') is a river in eastern Ireland that ultimately flows through the centre of Dublin to its mouth within Dublin Bay. Its major Tributary, tributaries include t ...
in
Dublin
Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
, was renamed the
Rory O'More Bridge in honour of him.
Family tree
Depiction in film
The film ''
Rory O'More'', made by the
Kalem Company
The Kalem Company was an early American film studio founded in New York City in 1907. It was one of the first companies to make films abroad and to set up winter production facilities, first in Florida and then in California. Kalem was sold to V ...
in 1911, directed by
Sidney Olcott and
Robert G. Vignola, set O'More's rebellion in 1798 rather than the 17th century, and moved the action to the Lakes of Killarney. O'More is portrayed in the film by
Jack J. Clark.
Notes
References
*
External links
* http://www.inishbofin.com/modern-church/
''Rory O'More''website dedicated to Sidney Olcott
*Rory O'More, the film https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJ0_Q1OJ518
{{DEFAULTSORT:O Mordha, Rory Og
People from County Laois
1600s births
1655 deaths
People of the Irish Confederate Wars
Irish generals
Irish Roman Catholic Confederates
17th-century Irish people
O'Moore family
Irish knights
17th-century Irish nobility
Irish Rebellion of 1641
17th-century rebels