The San Francisco call., 1909-09-14


situation of Ireland before the late
should remember that that condition
was the result of 700 years of spolia-
tion. Much in the way of destruction
can be accomplished in seven centuries
and the marvel is that the race sur
vived at all
The golden age" as it has been
called, when Ireland was the guardian
of western learning and the Christian
religion, lasted from the fifth to early
in the ninth century. Then the hrst
blow fell. BY rapid and ruthless In
vasions the Mortimer overran the
island, founding towns on the sea-
board from which they penetrated to
the interior. They destroyed every in
stitution of learning they found.
Schools and libraries, with their. price
less manuscripts, were burned, and
Irish civilization was all but extin-
guished.
After less than 200 years, however.
the residence of the race asserted
itself. The Danes, defeated more than
once, were decisively routed in 1914 by
Brian Boru, and the restoration of
Irish power was marked by remark
able renaissance of Irish literature and
art anu religion. MdnuScTlplS
piled, schools and churches were re-
built, and Irish Missionaries once more
penetrated barbarian Europe. Every
thing promised permanent revival
of civilization in the island, and had
the country been permitted to work
out its own destinies strong nation
would have been established. But fate
gave her no time. The English in
vasions began, and Ireland was doomed
to 700 years of unrest, oppression and
persecution.
The first "civilizing'' expedition from
across the Irish sea was that of Rich
ard. earl of Pembroke. better known
by permot MacMurrough, king of
Leinster, as an ally against Roderick
OConnor, high king" of ireland. 1t is
said that the invasion was sanctioned
by Pope Adrian ". Nicholas Break
speare, the only Englishman who ever
sat in the chair of st. Peter. At any
rate, Henry III soon followed Strong
bow, established himself for a short
time in Dublin and had himself recog
nized as overload of Ireland, asserting
his claim under the papaI bull.
This was the entering wedge, to be
driven home by $50 years OF invasion.
Almost without Interruption, during
this long period, a stream of English
colonists and adventurers poured into
the country. Gradually they estab-
lished a rude authority over a strip of
land on the east coast. called the Eng
lish Pale which extended, at it's great
est development, to not more than one
third of the area of the island. Out
side of that territory the English could
do no more than foster dissensions
among the Irish clans, and so prevent
a united attack
1t should be observed that in no
sense did the English conquer ireland
during these $50 years. Indeed, the
Pale" was in constant danger from
Irish incursions, and outside OF il Eng
nsh authority was unknown. More
over, there was no permanency of
settlement even within the Pale"
Most of the colonists and adventures
to whom grants of Irish land had been
made exploited the country as far as
they were able and then returned to
England, to be replaced by others
And those who remained became. in
two or three generations, quite assimi-
lated with the natives They adOpted
Irish customs and Irish dress. took
Irish wives and spoke the Irish Ian
guage. So dangerous to English
ascendency was this fusion of the races
that in 1867 statute was issued pun
ishing the acts specified by death or
imprisonment To widen the chasm
between the two peoples the Irish were
actually outlawed; except as a special
favor they could not claim the bene-
fits of feudalism, while they felt all
of its rigors.
Yet even this savage legislation did
not completely check the assimilation
OF the races. Moreover. there grew up
an intermediate people called the
Anglo-lrlsh,' who, the loyalists COM
planned, were more Irish than the Irish
themselves. These ATTACKED themselves
to powerful Anglo-Norman families.
dc r.
the Desmonds and the Burkes (De
Burgh), which in time usurped the
power of the crown within the pale.
and made alliances at will with the
great Gaelic. chieftains.
Thus by the end OF the fifteenth CEN
tury the Pale" had shrunk to a mar
row strip of country around Dublin.
threatened constantly by the proud and
turbulent lords of the Anglo-Irish,
while all the rest of Ireland had re-
verted to the old Gaelic clan system.
After more than 800 years the conquest
had failed.
But the next wave of invasion. to
extend over a period of 200 years. was
to be more successful, as it was more
ruthless than the last. The Tudor
sovereigns were merciless, but they
were fairly thorough. Under Henry
VIII English armies penetrated even
into Connaught. Henry VIII set him
selI Iesolutely TO break the power of
the Anglo-Irish mobiles as he had
broken the power of the English
barons. Having accomplished this. he
sought to establish peace In the dis
tracted country by conciliating the Gel
tic aristocracy. He won over some of
the great chieftains, gave them lands
taken from the monasteries. and con-
ferred upon them English titles-Earl
of Tyrone. earl of Tyrconnel. earl OF
Dunraven and so on. Thus, when in
1912 he assumed the title of king of
Ireland, the country was relatively at
peace and remained so until his death.
But this was not to last. Under Mary
and Elizabeth and the Stuarts the
policy of cQpciliation was abandoned
and a policy of plunder, oppression and
massacre substituted. 1t was decreed
that by force of arms Celtic civilization
should be wiped out, to be replaced by
English civilization. Where Henry VIII
had respected and protected native GUS
toms and laws it was ordered that
English laws and English institutions
should be made supreme. But the real |
core of the policy was that the soil of
Ireland should be coufiscated and then
planted with Englishmen
Under Queen Mary, Kings and Queens
were established from con-
flscated territory and English settlers
placed on the lands Under Elizabeth
the Desmonds were maltreated into re-