- Gerald FitzGerald, 8th Earl of Kildare
Gerald Gearoid Mór Fitzgerald KG, the 8th
Earl of Kildare (d. c.3 September 1513 ), known variously as "Garret the Great" or "the Great Earl", wasIreland 's premiernobleman . He served asLord Deputy of Ireland from 1477 to 1494, and from 1496 onwards.Family
Gearoid Mór (meaning "Big Garret") was the son of
Thomas Fitzgerald, 7th Earl of Kildare andJane Fitzgerald , the daughter ofJames Fitzgerald, 6th Earl of Desmond . The Anglo-Norman Fitzgeralds had risen to become the premier "Old English" peers in Ireland. They were descended fromGerard de Windsor and Nest, the daughter of the lastKing of Deheubarth . One of his ancestors,Maurice Fitzgerald de Windsor , known as the "Invader of Ireland" had travelled to Ireland withRichard de Clare (Strongbow). Controversial Irish kingDiarmuid MacMorrough had given him the town ofWexford , only to have it confiscated again byHenry II of England . Another ancestor,Maurice Fitzmaurice Fitzgerald served asLord Justice of Ireland .Gearoid Mór Fitzgerald married Alison Fitzeustace, with whom he had two children:
*Gearoid Óg FitzGerald, 9th Earl of Kildare
* Margaret FitzgeraldHe later married Elizabeth St. John of County
Kildare and had a further five children:
* Sir James Fitzgerald of Leixlip
* Oliver Fitzgerald
* Richard Fitzgerald of Fassaroe
* Sir John Fitzgerald
* Walter Fitzgerald.Politics
Gearoid Mór Fitzgerald was appointed Lord Deputy in 1477, but was replaced by
Lord Grey on the supposition that an Englishman could do the job better. The lords ofthe Pale set up a breakaway parliament in protest, andEdward IV was forced to re-install Gearóid Mór. He inherited the title ofEarl of Kildare in 1478.Fitzgerald managed to keep his position after the York dynasty in
England was toppled and Henry VII becoming king, but Fitzgerald blatantly disobeyed King Henry on several occasions; he supported thepretender to the throne ofEngland and theLordship of Ireland ,Lambert Simnel , while defeating another pretender,Perkin Warbeck in battle inGalway . However, Henry needed Fitzgerald to rule in Ireland, and at the same time couldn't control him.He presided over a period of near independence from English rule between 1477 and 1494. This independence ended when his enemies in Ireland seized power and had him sent to London as a traitor. He suffered a double blow: he was imprisoned in the
Tower of London , and his wife died soon after. He was tried in 1496, and used the trial to convince Henry VII that the ruling factions in Ireland were "false knaves". Henry immediately appointed him asLord Deputy of Ireland , saying "All Ireland cannot govern this Earl; then let this Earl govern all Ireland." Gearóid returned to Ireland in triumph.He ruled with an iron fist. He suppressed a rebellion in the city of Cork in 1500 by hanging the city's mayor. He raised up an army against rebels in
Connacht in 1504, defeating them at theBattle of Knockdoe .On an expedition against the O'Carrolls, he was mortally wounded while watering his horse in
Kilkea . He was conveyed back to Kildare, where he died on or around3 September 1513 .The Legend of the Great Earl's Ghost
A legend, re-told by
Nuala O'Faoláin , says that Gearóid was skilled in the black arts, and couldshapeshift . However, he would never let his wife see him take on other forms, much to her chagrin. After much pleading, he yielded to her, and turned himself into agoldfinch before her very eyes. A sparrowhawk flew into the room, seized the "goldfinch", and he was never seen again.The Great Earl and his soldiers now slumber in a
cavern beneath theCurragh of Kildare , ready to awaken to defend Ireland in her hour of need. The Earl rises once every seven years onMay Day , and rides around the Curragh on his steed. When his horse's shoes are worn down to the thickness of a cat's ear, he will lead his army against the English, drive them out, and reign as king of Ireland for forty years.
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