Biran Friel, Making History, Historical Background

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Making History: Background Research

. Geographical Background:

Area 1 is Tyrconnell - The area that O'Donnell ruled

Area 2 is County Tyrone - The area that O Neil ruled

Both of these are in the area that we now know as Northern Ireland.

Also marked on the map:

* Kinsale

* Derry

* Dublin

* Newry

* Sligo

* Dundalk

All these places are referred to in the play and are all non fictional.

2. Elizabethan English Occupation of Ireland:

The time after the horrible massacre that the English considered as the salvation of the savage Celts and is called the English Invasion was every bit as horrible as the war. The English, still considering the Irish to be savage beasts, treated them like slaves. One king who was infamous for his cruelty to the Irish people is Henry VIII.

From the beginning of his reign, Henry VIII undertook a self goal to destroy the very basic of Irish resistance by wiping out their culture. Ridiculous laws restricting marriage, fosterage, the use of native literature and language, and every other tradition of the Irish were reenacted.

Another of Henry's devices for the conquest of Ireland was the kidnapping of noblemen's sons and having them reared and educated in England, hostile to every tradition and instinct of their nationality. He would falsify papers that claimed he purchased land from an Irish landlord. In Irish tradition, the landlord did not have the right to sell land that the people lived on. This would cause a riot or rebellion against the landlord who would try to convince him of his innocence. Henry would send troops down to kill everyone in the town, labeling them 'rebels.'

The Reign of Queen Elizabeth was not much different, except that by her time, certain lords who had given allegiance to England had become quite powerful. She did not like that. She gave large gifts to some in order to insure their support, and then declared war against the others thus pitting Irish men against each other without loosing English soldiers. Then she either betray some of the remaining houses and start another war, or she would attempt to assassinate one of her allies.

Naturally the remaining Irish landlords with any power soon caught on and made no more alliances with Queen Elizabeth. In response, an army of eight hundred men led by Sir Walter Raleigh went in and slaughtered hundreds.

The head of the Burkes, Clanrickard, a 'queens' man, was seized and sent to Dublin. Then all the Burkes loosened their swords in their scabbards and sprang into rebellion. The rebellion grew. The English simply rounded up all the Burkian pacifist Catholics and killed them. This horror led to the surrender of several of the garrisons. They were killed. An army began to march, considering men, women, children, and elderly as 'rebels' to the crown. All were killed who stood in the way of Queen Elizabeth.
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(adapted from http://home.snu.edu/~dwilliam/f97projects/ireland/EnglishOccupation.html)

3. Battle of Kinsale & Nine Years War:

i) Background

The Nine Years War took place from 1594 to 1603 and is also known as County Tyrone's Rebellion. It was fought between the forces of Irish chieftains Hugh O'Neill (Earl of Tyrone), Hugh Roe O'Donnell (Earl of Tyrconnell) and their allies, against the Elizabethan English government of Ireland.

The war was fought in all parts of the country, but primarily in the northern province of Ulster. It ended in defeat for the Irish chieftains, which led ultimately to their exile ...

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