The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1918-10-04

lowed with MANY gifts and graces
have been by nature poorly equipped
with the political virtues and politi-
cai genius. We have been always
for example, quite famous as q mill
tary race, but we have not shown
any political genius. Had we ex-
celled in the political art, the art of
living together, of combining for
good public purposes, of Loyalty obey
ing and wisely commanding, we
would long since have been in COM
mand of the Britannia Isles, with
Ireland as the head and heart of the
United Kingdom, That, by the way,
not separation and independence,
was Wolf Tones impossible dream.
"When in the year 1172 King
Henry ii came to ireland with an
army to take possession of the island
which had already been granted to
him by His Holiness the Pope, in
stead of resisting him, as we well
might have done had we been so in
clined, the whole Irish nation, the
kings and chieftains, the seaports and
walled towns and all the powerful
and independent monasteries accept
ed King Henry as their sovereign
lord. 1t was a national revolution
precipitated by his arrival. In fact
the whole country was tired of the
n~ever-ending wars, devastations and
fghtings of the half dozen royal fam
lies struggling for supremacy, a
state. of things that had lasted for
centuries. The O'Donnells, the
O'Neills, the O'Melaghlins, the o.
Rourkes, the O'Briens, the O'Con-
nors, were all so stout and warlike
that they could not be conquered or
ruled, neither was any of them able
to conquer and to rule the rest. The
modern patriot may groan over this
transaction, indeed has groaned owe
it a good deal, though SO many of
US derive our names and lineage
from Henry's earls and barons,
amongst whom he O proceeded to
divide the country. Obviously, 81
long as Ireland supported and main
tanned that Norman regime there
could have been no grooming about
the oppression of England, and Ire
land. The loyalty of Ireland to that
settlement was signally proved in the
Fourteenth century. Then the
Bruces., Robert and Edward, invaded
the country with a great Scottish
army. inviting the Irish to rebel
against their liege lord, Edward II.
The Bruces did succeed in filling the
country with confusion, but eventual
ly Ireland herself defeated and threw
out the Scots and ~re-established the
Dominion Of the Crown. Thence, to
the time of the Tudor conquest of
the great chiefs and earls, nc II in
Ireland denied that the king of Eng
land was his rightful lord.
with regard to these Tudor wars
often savagely conducted. and on
both sides, it is to be remarked that
always the weight of the Irish nation
was flung into the scale on the side
of the crown, although it is not stated
in any patriotic history that the Tu-
dor princess, especially Queen Eliza
beth, not only permitted but COM
PEELED the lords of Ireland to main
tain armed men always ready for
their service for the suppression of
her domestic and foreign foes, this
is a great historical fact which is
shamelessly ignored. by this very
modern and dishonest party. Ire
land, an armed nation, sustained the
cause Of the Tudor princes which
they felt also to be Ireland's cause,
and carried that cause on to victory.
And the reason is plain. Ireland, left
considerably to herself by the Plan
tagenet kings, and supplied with
abundant opportunities of erecting a
stable, solid and independent Irish
nation. was unable to do so; but on
the contrary, she erected some sixty
Independent chief-ships so that the
subsequent wars and devastatiOns
were worse than those which pre-
vailed before the Norman conquest.
LAS to the Tudor conquest of the
chieftains, it is further to be remark
ed that in a parliament attended by
all the lords, chiefs and other great
men of the island, Ireland unanimous
ly conferred the title of king upon
Henry VIII in substitution of his
previous style of dominus or lord,
and an equally representative parlla-
ment held by Sir John Perrott Q585)
confirmed the authority Of Queen
Elizabeth and sustained her policy.
"Not much grooming so far, evil
IDENTIFY.
Il have myself explained the why
and how of all this very carefully
in the preface to Pacata Hibernia
Downey's edition.. About the fact
there is no doubt whatever. Ireland
so far from grooming under English
oppression supported those Tudor
princes and carried their cause on
to final victory. In fact the Norman
so-called conquest was an internal
Irish revolution aimed at the sup
preston, with the assistance OF Hen
nv II of anarchical Irish kings. The
~so-called Tudor conquest was similar
ly an Irish revolution aimed at the
suppression Of a crowd: of tyrannous
and anarchical chieftalns n great
lords. So far then. that is through
four centuries, there has been no
grooming at ALL"