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The Act of Uniformity - Is
followed by "Hurley-hurleys" - Appointment of Dowdall as Primate - His
Rival the "Blind Bishop" - Tyrone's Letter to King of France - Rebellion
brewing in Ulster - Brereton's Independent Action - Tyrone complains -
Brereton sacrificed - Introduction of the Liturgy - Conference in Dublin -
Dowdall, Archbishop of Armagh, expostulates - The Primacy removed to
Dublin - Sir James Cusack's Survey of Ireland - His Report on Ulster.
With the passing and
enforcement of the Act of Supremacy it is not surprising that the
religious element became a more significant feature in the life of the
people, and gradually grew to be a fruitful source of trouble. The spirit
of reform was in the air, and under its influence a breeze developed into
a hurricane. The Protector was not satisfied to limit to England alone,
his activities in regenerating the subjects of the King; he must needs
extend the field of his operations to Ireland. In doing so he unwittingly
stirred up a nest of hornets. Lord Deputy Sir James Crofts became
impatient at the task allotted to him, and wrote to the Council deploring
the action of the busy-bodies. "If the Lords of the Council", said he,
"had letten all things alone in the order King Henry left them, and
meddled not to alter religion, the hurley-burleys had not happened."
The "hurley-burleys" began
with the death, in 1543, of Cromer, Archbishop of Armagh, the personal
friend, it will be remembered, of the Geraldines. Henry appointed George
Dowdall, an Irishman, to the primacy, he having surrendered the priory of
Ardee and taken the oath of supremacy. The Pope, however, nominated a
Scotsman named Robert Waucop, a very remarkable man, who was familiarly
known as the blind bishop, he being so strangely afflicted with myosis as
to give the impression that he was totally blind. Notwithstanding his
defective vision he attained to such eminence that he was regarded as one
of the most learned men of his age. The Society of Jesus, or the Jesuits,
were first intro- duced into Ireland, in 1541, by Waucop. At the Council
of Trent, in 1545, Waucop assisted, bearing the while the title of
Archbishop of Armagh, a diocese to which he paid his first and only visit
in 1550. He was in Ulster when Monluc visited O'Dogherty at his castle of
Innishowen, and endeavoured to sow the seeds of rebellion in the north;
but the conspiracy proved abortive, although the oath of allegiance to the
King of France was taken by O'Neill, O'Dogherty, and O'Donnell. "Tyrone",
we are told, "desired the French King to come with his power, and, if he
would so prepare to do, to help him to drive out the Jewish Englishmen out
of Ireland, who were such as did nothing to the country but cumber the
same and live upon the flesh that was in it, neither observing fast-days,
nor regarding the solemn devotion of the blessed mass or other ceremony of
the Church, the French King should find him, the Earl, ready to help him
with his men and all the friends he could make".
In the meantime Dowdall was
not idle. He kept an eye on his rival, Waucop, and reported to Dublin that
the Scottish friar was "a very shrewd spy and a great brewer of war and
sedition". His belief in the sinister intentions of Waucop was
strengthened by the receipt of a letter from Tyrone in which the Earl
acknowledged having received letters from the French Ambassador, and
stated that he himself had had an interview with "the blind doctor who
calls himself Primate". He denied that he had given him any encouragement,
and asserted that he had given no reply to the letters received from the
French King. Tyrone also declared that his loyalty was unshaken, and
requested the Primate to forward his letter to Alen, the Lord Chancellor.
O'Donnell, at the same time, wrote to Dublin, begging to be forgiven for
having entertained the blind bishop, who had, he explained, been "in other
places and countries in Ireland before he came into my country". O'Donnell
also denied having recognized Waucop's claim to the primacy. He admitted
having seen Monluc and also George Paris, FitzGerald's faithful follower,
but stated that they had entrusted to him no letters, knowing well that on
a previous occasion he had on receipt of such letters handed them to the
Government.
In forwarding Tyrone's
letter to Alen, Dowdall informed him that a combined Scottish and French
armament was in active preparation for the invasion of Ulster in the
summer. He asserted that the French had already "manned and stuffed with
ordnance two castles in O'Dogherty's country". He pointed out that Waucop,
who was with O'Donnell in Derry, was working in their interest. He
expressed his firm belief in Tyrone's loyalty, and added that, so long as
Tyrone was loyal, the hostility of the lesser chiefs might be ignored with
safety.
One of the able commanders
appointed by Bellingham was Sir Andrew Brereton, who was appointed to
guard and direct a colony of settlers in the district of Lecale, a portion
of the County Down which had long formed an outlying portion of the Pale,
and adjoined the territory of an Irish sept called MacArtan, who were
tributary to O'Neill. Brereton was a watch-dog in the English interest. No
French emissary could leave Tyrone's castle without Brereton's making an
effort to waylay him and relieve him of his despatches. On one occasion he
succeeded in intercepting a letter in which the Earl invited a French
invasion, and undertook especially to destroy the Lecale colony by
betraying Brereton. Brereton therefore had no love for Tyrone. About this
time (1551) the Earl of Tyrone became anxious on the score of rents due to
him by the MacArtans, and, seizing the only possible means to recover the
money in a district in which the King's writ did not run, he sent a body
of kerne to distrain for the amount due. This distraining party was
accompanied by two brothers of Lady Tyrone. This, however, did not shut
Brereton's eyes to the fact that the proceeding was flagrantly illegal,
and he accordingly attacked O'Neill's representatives and put them to
flight, the Countess's brothers being included in the number of the slain.
That Brereton was not actuated by any personal animosity to the Earl of
Tyrone is proved by the fact that although immediately after this melee,
one of the sept of MacArtan became somewhat obstreperous, thinking
doubtless that the English commander favoured his people, and he might be
as unruly as he liked with impunity, Brereton nevertheless resorted to
martial law and forthwith had the offender executed. In earlier years
Tyrone would have had recourse to arms; but, having grown wiser, he
abstained from taking the law into his own hands, and contented himself by
repairing to Dublin and laying his complaints before the Council. Like
many a representative of the Crown who has acted on the spur of the moment
in the best interests of the Government, and thereby saved the situation,
Brereton was made a scapegoat. He was called upon to give an explanation
of his conduct, and his only response was to draw up a statement of the
Earl's recent misdeeds. Thereupon Brereton was summoned to Dublin, and, at
a meeting of the Council, was told that he was accused by Tyrone of
murder; whereupon "he said he would make answer to no traitor, threw his
book [in which his list of Tyrone's misdeeds was written], and desired
that the same might be openly read". The Council, "considering the same
Earl to be a frail man, and not yet all of the perfectest subject, and
thinking, should he know the talk of the same Mr. Brereton, having of his
friends and servants standing by for it was in the open council-house it
might be a means to cause him and others of his sort and small knowledge
to revolt from their duties and refuse to come to councils", endeavoured
to pour oil on the troubled waters, and having come to the conclusion that
"such handling of wild men had done much harm in Ireland", they
reluctantly consented to " read the book, and do therein as should stand
with their duties".
The accusations of Brereton
put Tyrone in a towering rage. He again repaired to Dublin, and, appearing
before the Council, declared that he "took the name of 'traitor' very
unkindly ", and demanded justice; whereupon the Council apologized for
Brereton's conduct, reprimanded him and deprived him of his command, and
by so doing humoured an Irish chief at the expense of an honest servant of
the State. Brereton's vacated post was conferred on Robert St. Leger, a
son of the Lord Deputy.
With the exception of the
commotion caused by Brereton's action, Ulster was remarkably peaceful. The
Ulster chiefs MacGennis(who had been knighted by Henry VIII), O'Hanlon,
and MacMahon willingly paid an annual tribute to the Government. In
Clanaboy and in the Ardes, where English law hitherto had been flouted,
English Sheriffs were appointed. O'Neill, of Clanaboy, craved pardon in
the humblest manner for his misdeeds, and agreed to forfeit his captaincy
and all his lands "if ever he should depart from his faith of obedience",
or from such orders as he received from Dublin for the government of his
territory. He also, with the other chiefs named, undertook to cease to
employ Scots as mercenary soldiers.
The religious element
became more and more obtrusive. The reckless energy of the reformers,
which had brought England to the verge of chaos, was now bringing Ireland
to the brink of ruin. The religious changes which Cromwell had been
forcing on an unwilling dependency had, with his death, been allowed a
brief respite; with the accession of Edward the system of change was
renewed with great zeal. In 1551 the bishops were summoned before the
Deputy, Sir Anthony St. Leger, who had been instructed to hand them the
new English liturgy, which, though it professed to be written in a tongue
"easily understanded of the people", was compiled in a language as strange
to the native Irish as was Latin. Stringent orders were issued that the
liturgy should supersede the Latin service book in every diocese. The
result was an uproar of protest. St. Leger, whose sole object was to
ensure, if not peace, the semblance of peace, did what he could to pacify
the people. He not only permitted high mass to be said at Christ's Church,
in Dublin, but he also attended the service himself. "To make a face of
conformity he put out proclamations" for the use of the Prayer Book;
stating that an English version should be used where English was spoken,
and an Irish one where otherwise; but the Irish one was not used. When
Browne, Archbishop of Dublin, expostulated, St. Leger, tired of
controversy, tried to silence him, and irritably said: "Go to, go to, your
matters of religion will mar all ", and handed him "a little book to
read", which the horrified ecclesiastic found to be "so poisoned as he had
never seen to maintain the mass, with transubstantiation and other
naughtiness". The "hurley-burley" was acquiring volume!
The new liturgy was
publicly read in Christ's Church, Dublin, in 1551, and in the same year
the Primate consented to hold a conference with the Protestant authorities
at St. Mary's Abbey. The conference was held in the great hall of the
abbey, rendered historic by having been the scene of Lord Offaly's
resignation in 1534. The Primate, who was attended by a large number of
his suffragans, appeared as the Defender of the Faith, while Staples,
Bishop of Meath, acted as the Protestant champion. Browne, Archbishop of
Dublin, was not present, no doubt being notified that his controversial
methods were more likely to irritate than to convince his opponents. Sir
James Crofts, at whose instigation the meeting was held, followed the
proceedings with much interest and was occasionally appealed to on various
points. The discussion, as might be expected, led to no modification of
views on either side. Dowdall, when Staples asserted that the Church of
Rome had erred, indignantly exclaimed: "Erred! the Church erred? Take heed
lest you be excommunicated." "I have excommunicated myself from thence
already," replied Staples. A conference conducted on such lines served no
good end. As Dowdall himself admitted, it wasted time 4 'when two parties
so contrary met", and the conference broke up much in the same manner as
when Dowdall flung out of the Council chamber on a previous occasion when
asked to accept the liturgy, shouting as he went: "Now shall every
illiterate fellow read mass". Browne was so much enraged at the opposition
given by Dowdall to the introduction of the new liturgy, that he obtained
a royal charter transferring to himself the primacy of all Ireland; and
Dowdall, feeling that the cause was hopeless, and that he might possibly
lose his liberty or his life, fled to the Continent. "I never", said
Walter Savage Landor, "heard a discussion on religion, but religion was a
sufferer by it." Alas! not religion alone is a sufferer, but all the
amenities of life suffe^; and the discussion at St. Mary's Abbey was
followed by a senseless destruction of property saddening to contemplate.
The Irish Annalists recorded that the venerable churches of Clonmacnoise
were plundered by the English garrison of Athlone, and that "there was not
left a bell small or large, an image, an altar, a book, a gem, or even
glass in the window, which was not carried off"; and they added:
"lamentable was this deed, the plundering of the City of Kieran!"
In November, 1551, Sir
James Crofts wrote to the Duke of Northumberland begging him to name a
successor to Dowdall, and stating that at Armagh he wished to have "a
discreet man of war, to take charge as a commissioner in those parts".
After much diligent search, and many refusals to go to Ireland, a certain
Hugh Goodacre accepted the vacant post. He, however, only survived his
consecration a few weeks, being, it is stated, poisoned by a Roman
Catholic priest. Of this, however, there is no evidence.
In the last year of King
Edward's reign Sir James Cusack, who had been appointed Lord Chancellor on
the fall of Alen, became Lord Justice. He performed a work of inestimable
value in making a complete survey of Ireland. It is interesting to learn
that Ireland on the whole at this period was pronounced to be loyal,
prosperous, and improving, but it is matter for regret that the writer
declared that Ulster was the least satisfactory of the four provinces. The
O'Neills and O'Donnells had by their hostilities reduced the County Tyrone
from being the most prosperous part of Ireland to a barren wilderness.
Tirconnell was in much the same condition, while the Scottish settlements
on the east coast were spreading with alarming rapidity; Lecale, however,
was "for English freeholders and good inhabitance so civil as few places
in the English Pale ".
All these improvements
Cusack attributed to the liberal policy of the last two deputies. "The
policy that was devised for the sending of the Earls of Desmonde, Thomond,
Clanrickard, and Tyrone, and the Baron of Upper Ossory, O 'Carroll,
MacGehnis, and others into England, was a great help towards bringing
those countries to good order; for none of those who went into England
committed harm upon the King's Majesty's subjects." |
