Book of Ryans - The Middle Kingdom Years
The Sub-Infeudation of Leinster
"The King Henry then conquered all Ireland
By Papal dome, there of his royaltee
The Profytes and revenues of the lande
The Dominacion and the Soverayntee
For ewour which against the spirtuallee
They held full long, and would not be conecte
With heresyes, with which they were infecte."
Johannas Hardingus
A large portion of north Wexford, as well as adjoining parts of the counties of Wicklow and Carlow, were granted to Strongbow and his followers. County Kildare and a large portion of County Carlow, as well as large areas King's and Queen's County, were also divided into large estates. The initial impact of these feudal grants perhaps did not greatly impress the Gaelic chieftains who believed that the Normans would only temporarily occupy their tribal lands as the Danes had done before them. As the Norman conquerors settled into their new lordships, they brought with them colonists who forcible ejected the Gaelic tenants occupying their traditional sept lands. The districts of Fotherd, Idrone and Glascarrig on the east coast of Wexford were granted to Raymond le Gros. It appeared that Raymond maintained most of his holdings, but granted the barony of Idrone East to his nephew, William de Carew who erected two houses in the district. The erection of these castles forced many of the nobility from Leinster, further a small portion of land was divided among the remaining Leinster septs of which the Ryans of Idrone received a small tract of land.
In time the principle players of the invasion faded from the pages of history, and while a few went on to greater things most wasted away in obscurity. Dermod McMurrough died in Ferns in 1171 shortly after the Norman conquest, and Dervorgilla died at Mellifont Abbey in 1193 where she spent the remaining years of her life. Although Strongbow became Chief of the Leinster tribes through his marriage to Dermod's daughter, this kingship would be contested by Henry II who felt threatened by Strongbow's position. The Normans never fully defeated the Irish, but even so by 1195 they controlled over half of the island. The eastern part of the island was assimilating to anglicized ways while the western half of the island, principally Connaught where the Gael's resistance was strong, remained under Gaelic control.
O'Maoilrian Lineage
There are three who await my death
and are always close at hand
(I wish them hung on a gibbet!)
-Devil, Family, Maggot.
Translated by Thomas Kinsella
One theory, that the O'Mulryans moved to Tipperary long before the Norman invasion, can be indirectly supported by venerable documents, and was used by genealogists to confirm that the O'Rians and O'Maoilrians were of different lineages. Because of this claim, Dr. Donovan as well as others, believed that the Ryans of Carlow were descendants of Drone, fourth in descent from Cathair Mor; whereas, the O'Mulrians were believed to descend directly from Cathair Mor. Some genealogists even suggested that the O'Mulryans may have evolved from Munster origin, and they supported their theories using the fabricated lineages which were forged by the ancient annalists to link the Ryan's to the people of north Munster.
Many years after John O'Donovan's theory was introduced, historians began to draw the conclusion that the Sil Cormaic's (ancestral clan of the Ryans) overpopulation problem forced them to seek additional lands, and they encroached upon the neighboring kingship of Idrone after which they proclaimed themselves the "stylized princes of Idrone." [1] Between 792 and 809 the Sil Cormaic defeated the Ui Drona, confiscated their tribal lands, but interestingly retained the title "ri Ua Drona" or King of the Ui Drona.[2] The Sil Cormaic's subjugation of Idrone may have been guided by Laidgnen even though he died in 793; and Cairpre perhaps was responsible for consolidating the kingship and policing potential disturbances after the military overthrow. After the invasion by the Sil Cormaic into Idrone, the annals offer scarce details about Cairpre or his issue. This oversight may have been the result of their lesser status, though more likely it was the result of the Sil Cormaic, and the related tribes of the Ui Dega and Ui Drona, busily consolidating their position in these territories. The expropriation of Idrone from the Sil Alteni, the original possessors of the kingdom, occurred quite late in Ui Cheinnselaigh history, while the seizure of Ui Dega from its ancient owners occurred perhaps a century earlier. The Sil Cormaic assumedly under prince Dondgal led a successful takeover of Ui Dega which bounded their eastern borders. Dondgal became king of the tuath after the defeat of the Ui Dega, and later he was elected the provincial king of the Ui Cheinnselaigh. Dondgal was "a great-great uncle of Rian, whose people had taken over Ui Drona territory and the activities of this family in the late 8th century can be seen to represent a determined drive to overrun most of Carlow and Wexford."[3] These seizures gave the Sil Cormaic control of the entire mid-section of Leinster, and for the remainder of the 10th century they concentrated their efforts on establishing links to the peoples they conquered and getting their internal affairs in order. Although they became less noticeable, their actions continued to be recorded intermittently in the early annals as this entry from the Four Masters showed regarding a grandson of Cairpre:
Dunlaing, son of Aedh, lord of Ui-Drona was slain.[4]
There were other factors which forced tribes, such as the Sil Cormaic, to seek expanded homelands as Francis John Byrn noted, "Viking pressure from the Barrow estuary affected a power struggle among Leinster septs."[5] This Danish pressure caused the somewhat peaceful dynasties within the Ui Ceinnselaigh such as the Ard Ladrenn, Ui Felmeda, Sil Mael Uidir and the Sil Cormaic to contest Laigin ownership in an attempt to force weaker tribes to give up their sept lands. This turmoil inside the Ui Ceinnselaigh was a primary factor leading to the Sil Cormaic's conquest over the powerless Ui Drona (a related kingship which also claimed descent from Cathair Mor), and after the king of the Ui Drona was slain, the Sil Cormaic assumed their name and lands which they retained well after the Norman invasion. There were many cases documented where the new rulers took over the tribal identity and tribal name of those they conquered; consequently, this caused great confusion for historians trying to determine origins of families. Anncha O'Corrain noted that this practice was widespread, and went on to say that:
When new tribal or dynastic groups rose to power and overthrew a ruling dynasty, the genealogists often forged a link between them and their predecessors and in this way continuity and legitimacy were assured.[6]
Dynasties ruled by virtue of their descent to some remote august line, and their royal lineage was used to justify their rule within the kingdom. By proclaiming the title 'Ard Ri', a title which many minor kingdoms used until the 15th century, they justified their legitimacy to uncontested sovereignty. As the Ui Drona, an appellation which the Ryans began calling themselves, grew more numerous, they eventually split into two powerful families: the Ryans of Carlow and the O'Mulryans of Tipperary. In the kingdom of Idrone, lineage was drawn to Cathair Mor in an attempt to legitimize their relationship to Drone and the peoples of the Ui Drona; and in Uaithne ancient genealogists traced the O'Mulrians to Breasal Belach who was the progenitor of the tribes living in the territory. These historical revisions remained ingrained in Leinster tradition, and as the centuries progressed it became more difficult to separate factual ancestral lines from fictional hereditary. Eventually the genealogists assembled information from many disparate sources to unravel the Ryan's mysterious beginnings, and ultimately the single major issue unanswered centered around their departure from Leinster to Uaithne.