Question

Write one to two paragraphs on the Irish careers of either James Fitzmaurice FitzGerald of the Second Desmond Rebellion or Earl Grey de Wilton.

Answer 1

Irish Career of James Fitzmaurice FitzGerald of the Second Desmond Rebellion

James Fitzmaurice FitzGerald was a member of the 16th Century ruling Geraldine Dynasty in the province of Munster in Ireland. He rebelled against the crown authority of Queen Elizabeth I of England in response to the onset of the Tudor conquest of Ireland. After the Desmond defeat at Battle of Affane in 1565, the 15th Earl and his brother, John of Desmond, were detained in England. During their absence, FitzMaurice became captain general of County Desmond with the warrant of the Earl. This meant he had authority over the soldiers retained in the service of Desmond Fitzgeralds.He led the first of the Desmond Rebellions in 1569. Though pardoned for his rebellion, he had been left destitute and landless in the aftermath. He was determined to reverse this situation by any means, he spent several years of exile in travelling throughout Europe and returned back with invasion in 1579.  He died on 18 August 1579. FitzMaurice was one of the first Irish leaders to use the Catholic cause as an explicit justification for rebellion against the crown. Fitzmaurice’s career and rebellion begin to high-light international Catholic intrigue, the uneasy loyalty of the Old English in Ireland and the lack of cohesion among the Gaelic and hibernicised Anglo-Norman families, and particularly the internecine strife among such families as the Fitzgeralds of Desmond, the Buders of Ormond, and the Burkes of Clanrickard, who controlled the province of Munster.

In 1575 Fitzmaurice travelled to the Continent to seek support for the Irish Roman Catholic cause.Philip II of Spain and Pope Gregory XIII both encouraged his plan for a Catholic invasion of Ireland, but offered no material aid. Fitzmaurice landed at Dingle on 18 July 1579, with a small forces of Italians and Spaniards, accompanied by the papal legate Nicholas Sanders.However, he was betrayed at the instigation of English.FitzMaurice was caught in a skirmish with the forces during which he was shot with a ball in the hollow of the chest.The battle was won, but close to the scene his injuries overcame him and he died.