What happened in the Flight of the Earls?

When the flight of the earls denuded Ulster of its Gaelic aristocracy in 1607, the government took the opportunity to confiscate six of the nine Ulster counties. The subsequent plantation of Ulster, introducing Protestant settlers from England and Scotland, laid the foundation of today’s divided island.

What happened in the Flight of the Earls for kids?

From Academic Kids Their intended destination was Spain, but they disembarked in France and proceeded overland to Italy. They never returned to Ireland. This journey, the Flight of the Earls, marked the final destruction of Ireland’s ancient Gaelic aristocracy and paved the way for the Plantation of Ulster.

What happened in the fight of the earls?

At a battle near Armagh in 1598 O’Neill took a government force unawares and killed hundreds of them, including their general. Hugh O’Neill hoped to argue his case again in London, but Red Hugh’s successor, his younger brother Rory O’Donnell, Earl of Tyrconnel, decided to get away abroad.

Who fought in the Flight of the Earls?

In one final attempt by the old order to reverse the tide of English power a decade or so earlier, an army was organised by Hugh O’Neill, chief of Tir Eoghain, and Red Hugh O’Donnell, chief of Donegal. They began a series of battles with the English which came to be known as the Nine Years War.

Why did the Earls leave Ireland?

Fearing arrest, they chose to flee to Continental Europe, where they hoped to recruit an army for the invasion of Ireland with Spanish help. However, earlier in 1607 the main Spanish fleet in Europe had been destroyed by the Dutch in the Battle of Gibraltar.

When the Earls fled Ireland in 1607 where did they go?

The Flight Of The Earls in 1607 The date remembers the day that the two remaining northern Earls of Ireland, along with nearly 100 family and followers, fled the small country to Spain, with no reason or explanation but with a lot of haste.

Who planted Ulster?

Part of 1602 map of south Donegal The departure of the Earls resulted in their lands being confiscated by King James. The Lord Deputy of Ireland, Sir Arthur Chichester, fearing the return of the Earls, planned the immediate colonisation of Ulster, beginning in earnest in 1609.

Did Hugh O’Neill ever return to Ireland?

Although O’Neill was confirmed in his title and core estates, upon his return to Ireland he immediately fell into dispute with Chichester’s Dublin administration. Under the 1603 peace agreement most of his land had been given to his former Brehon law tenants.