With the exception of a failed invasion by Aodh O'Conor in 1261, the early years of East Breifne were relatively uneventful. In contrast to the tumultuous decades of Cathal and Cúchonnacht, the kingdom exerted very little influence outside of its own borders. Following two combined attacks on his residence by the
McKiernans of Teallach Dúnchadha and the
MacGaurans of Teallach Eochaid in the late 13th century, King Ferghal moved eastwards to Tullymongan Hill, where he built a castle. This remained the residence of the O'Reilly king until the 17th century.
14th Century and its
Franciscan friary in the early 14th century Under his successor, Giolla Iosa Ruaidh, a town grew around the site and came to be known as "
an Cabhán", in reference to its topography as a hollow area between many
drumlins. He also founded the Franciscan friary where he retired to around the year 1327. The eldest of his 13 sons, Maelseachleann, died in 1328 and was listed as king in his obituary. Giolla Iosa Ruaidh remained in retirement and his second son Risdeard assumed kingship. Decades of succession stability followed, when Risdeard died his brother Cu Chonnacht became king. Cu Chonnacht retired in 1365 and passed the title to his brother Pilib. Upon his accession, Pilib confronted the
Bishop of Kilmore Riocard O'Reilly, his brother Maelseachleann's son. Complaints had been made to
the archbishop about Riocard's behavior, which included harsh treatment of clergy and a relationship with his first cousin. Pilib took matters into his own hands and seized the bishop's lands and revenue. Although the archbishop was against Pilib's intrusions, he was far removed in
Armagh and powerless to stop them. Pilib was briefly overthrown in 1369 and imprisoned at Cloughoughter castle by his nephew Maghnus, with the support of the
Clan Muircheartaigh and the McKiernans. The Maguires, who Pilib was allied with through marriage, along with the
MacMahons, sailed south on the
Erne and freed him. Maghnus and his plotters were then imprisoned in that same castle. 14th century East Breifne also saw the arrival of prominent Anglo-Norman families such as
Lynch and
Fitzsimons, as well as the Hiberno-Scottish mercenary clan
MacCabe, who became gallowglass warriors for the Maguires, MacMahons and O'Reillys. The Fitzsimons were an English merchant family that settled in
County Meath. Following a dispute with his family, one Richard FitzSimon journeyed to the Gaelic territory to seek the patronage of King Tomas Mór, who granted him lands in return for his services as a
Secretan, a role that primarily consisted of letter writing due to FitzSimon's literary proficiency. Tomas Mór provided refuge and support to rivals of King Tiernan Mór O'Rourke of West Breifne in the late 1370s and 1380s, prompting O'Rourke to invade East Breifne in 1390. Curiously, the Clan Muircheartaigh, who had been expelled from Breifne twenty years earlier through a combined offensive by both of West Breifne and Pilib O'Reilly of East Breifne, decided to fight alongside the O'Reillys against the O'Rourkes. Tiernan Mor raided deep into East Breifne but was defeated when his forces became bogged down and surrounded in early 1391, forcing him to surrender. On his way to
Drumlane to submit to Tomas Mór, the Clan Muircheartaigh attempted to assassinate Tiernan Mór, possibly in an unsuccessful attempt to curry favour with the O’Reillys and return from exile. Seoan O'Reilly was made king in 1392. In autumn of 1394
Richard II of England arrived in Ireland with a force of 8,000 at the behest of the
Anglo-Irish lords in and around
the Pale, who were in danger of being overrun by the Irish clans of
Leinster. The invasion proved to be one of Richard II's few successes and many Irish chieftains submitted to the English king. A future king of East Breifne, Sean's brother Giolla Iosa, met with Richard and promised to remain a faithful subject and refrain from attacking England's other subjects in Ireland. King Seoan himself did not submit to the English king but made a separate agreement with
Roger Mortimer,
Earl of March and
Ulster, to improve relations.
15th century Following Seoan's death in 1400, his brother and chosen successor Giolla Iosa died just one month into his reign. Giolla Iosa's unexpected death so shortly after his inauguration left a power vacuum which Maelmordha, son of King Cu Chonnacht (1349-1365), exploited to proclaim himself king with the support of the clans of East Breifne. This was in competition to Eoghan na Feosaige, Seoan's son, who was supported by the English government in Dublin and the Anglo-Normans in Meath. Eoghan na Feosaige reaffirmed his acknowledgement that he and his kingdom were lieges to England and vowed to observe and fulfill all agreements made between them and his late father. This ploy to get the English to support his claim alienated him from his kinsmen. The English invaded the territory in an attempt to install Eoghan na Feosaige as king but were repelled, as were the O’Rourkes of West Breifne who simultaneously attacked the east in order to capitalize on the situation. In 1403 the victorious Maelmordha was made king and ordered the assassination of one of Tighernan Mór O’Rourke's sons in retaliation for their opportunistic invasion. Eoghan na Feosaige was also banished from the kingdom that year. The O’Reilly sept and their allies continued to exclude Eoghan na Fesoagie from the kingship and elected Risdeard, son of King Tomas (1384-1392), as king following Mealmordha's death in 1411. After seven relatively uneventful years as king, Risdeard drowned along with his son and several others while sailing on
Lough Sheelin, only his wife Finnuala survived and swam to safety. With few suitable heirs available the O'Reilly nobles recalled Eoghan na Feosaige, who finally assumed the kingship in 1418.
Clan Mahon Rebellion 1427–1430 Eoghan na Feosaige's inauguration coincided with a war of succession that broke out in neighboring West Breifne where one of the O’Rourke claimants, Tadhg, had provocatively declared himself "
king of all Breifne" In response to this claim, Eoghan weighed in on the politics of the west and backed the claim of his rival Art O’Rourke, who reigned from the territory of
Carrigallen on the border with East Breifne. Eoghan stationed soldiers in Carrigallen to defend and support Art in 1419. However, like the O’Rourkes, the O’Reilly were also a deeply divided sept and a war of succession was about to unfold in East Breifne itself, forcing Eoghan to withdraw his soldiers just months later. The war's origins can be traced back to a disagreement between Sean and Fearghal O’Reilly. Both men were sons of King Tomas Mór (1385-1392) and were the chiefs of a branch of the O’Reilly sept known as Clan Mahon. Sean and his allies supported Eoghan na Feosaige as king, while Fearghal and his supporters argued that Fearghal was the rightful ruler of East Breifne. Fearghal continued to push his claim and garner support for a number of years. He eventually killed his brother Sean to solidify his position as the chief of Clan Mahon before launching a full-scale rebellion against Eoghan na Feosaige in 1427. Fearghal had assembled a seemingly insurmountable force that included the
MacCabes, a military clan from within East Breifne, King Tadhg O’Rourke of West Breifne, who had emerged victorious from the war of succession, as well as
Richard Talbot the
Lord Chancellor of Ireland. With a hostile O'Rourke in the west and Talbot marching up from the south, Eoghan found himself not only fighting rebellion internally, but on two separate fronts as well. Eoghan's forces were thoroughly routed by the rebels, who almost achieved victory in 1429 when Fearghal and Talbot captured and razed Cavan town. In what would become a watershed moment in East Breifne's history that would see it firmly align itself with Ulster and drift away from the sphere of Connacht, Eoghan na Feosaige departed the kingdom that year and turned out of desperation to
Eoghan O’Neill, King of Tyrone, for help.
Alliance with Tyrone was plundered in 1430 for claiming ownership of
parishes in East Brefnian territory O’Neill, eager to expand his kingdom's influence, happily obliged and entered the war along with his allied kingdoms
Airgíalla and
FirManach. The forces of O’Neill and his allies marched south and met with those of Fearghal, Talbot, O’Rourke and MacCabe at
Achadh-cille-moire. The battle ended in a crushing defeat for Fearghal and his rebel forces and O’Neill continued his march into Leinster, joined by Eoghan na Feosaige, inflicting defeats on the
Anglo-Normans of "
South Meath" and the
Plunketts and
Herberts of "
Westmeath" in 1430. Eoghan na Feosaige had defeated the rebellion against him and defended his title, but at a cost. Tyrone had a policy of offering military or financial aid to other ruling families in exchange for subservience and recognition of the O’Neill's overlordship of their kingdoms. Following Eoghan na Feosaige's allegiance to O’Neill, the O’Reillys appear multiple times in the annals partaking in Tyrone's various wars across Ulster, illustrating East Breifne's position as a vassal state of Tyrone. Eoghan na Feosaige died in 1449 and was buried in the monastery in Cavan. With the long disaffected claimant Fearghal still living, another dispute over the kingship was inevitable. Unlike in neighbouring West Breifne, where wars of succession were largely internal affairs decided by the clans of the kingdom, in East Breifne they were characterized by the prevalence of external forces and once again, Fearghal had the backing of some impressive allies. The English government in Dublin, headed by
Richard Plantagenet the Duke of York, who had been appointed the
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1447, renewed their backing of Fearghal. He also received the support of Eoghan na Feosaige's brother Domnall and
James Butler, 4th Earl of Ormond. Sean an Einigh, Eoghan na Feosaige's son, received the support of Tyrone, and with it the support of the other magnates of Ulster. What could’ve spiraled into a protracted war of succession was avoided when Domnall dropped his support for Fearghal and backed his nephew Sean an Einigh in 1450. The heavily indebted Duke of York commanded a force of no more than 600 men and was forced to return to England in late 1449. This left Fearghal without the support of the lord lieutenant and no local support within East Breifne, up against the formidable forces of Ulster. Fearghal's second attempt to claim the kingship had floundered, and with Butler's death in 1452 the Clan Mahon O’Reilly were left without allies. Their sept never again gained kingship of East Breifne.
16th century Rift with Tyrone Due to East Breifne's location, the O’Reillys historically held a unique position as mediators between the English and
Anglo-Irish of Leinster and the
Gaelic lords of Ulster. With the ever-present threat of further English expansion and its western rivals persisting with their centuries-old claim over the kingdom, political stability and the ability to balance strong alliances and play both sides were vital for the country's survival. (right) conquered East Breifne in 1560 East Breifne's nearly 100-year alliance with Tyrone collapsed in the 1530s with the latter's affiliation with the
Geraldine League. The league was an alliance that brought
Conn O’Neill of
Tyrone together with the Anglo-Irish
FitzGeralds of Kildare, traditional enemies of the O'Reillys. This left East Breifne alienated from both the north and south and anxious to secure good relations with England as a bulwark against the historical dominance of their Tyrone overlords. In 1533 King Fearghal mac Seaain appealed directly to the government in England for redress against Tyrone, bypassing the Fitzgerald
viceroy, who raided East Breifne in response to this circumvention of their authority. Maolmordha O'Reilly was inaugurated in 1534 to replace the ailing Ferghal mac Seaain, but was met with opposition and had to secure his position and unify the kingdom. His inauguration coincided with the FitzGerald Rebellion, a campaign initially led by
Manus O'Donnell to restore the 12-year-old
Gerald FitzGerald to his title in Kildare, but which later expanded into a war against
Henry VIII's encroachments in Ireland. Lord Deputy
Leonard Grey demanded that O’Reilly join the English against the rebel league, but he refused due to internal instability and the insecurity of his position. Grey's hollow threats against the kingdom only strained relations. In 1538 with his position secure, O’Reilly joined the English and gave strong support to their expeditions into Ulster against the Geraldine League. The rebellion collapsed following a heavy defeat at Lake Bellahoe in Monaghan and East Breifne was now regarded as one of the most dependable crown allies in Ireland. Maolmordha O’Reilly was an enthusiastic supporter of
surrender and regrant as a way of not only officially securing his own title, but securing greater independence from Tyrone. He arrived at the
parliament in Dublin in 1541 to take the oath of allegiance and initiate the process of surrendering his lands to be re-granted an English Lordship of them. O’Reilly continued to serve the crown's interests, arranging a meeting between Lord Deputy
Anthony St Ledger and Manus O'Donnell in Cavan in 1541, during which the latter agreed to travel to England and submit to the king. East Breifne sent soldiers to accompany Henry VIII's expedition into France in 1544 and in February 1546 during the
Rough Wooing period, he offered to send his eldest son Aodh Connallach to command the forces of the English king in Scotland. Tyrone would again cast its shadow over East Breifne during
Shane O’Neill's conquest of Ulster from 1559 to 1567. The virulently anti-English O’Neill took aim at every lord who co-operated with them and by 1560 was the undisputed ruler of Ulster "from Drogheda to Erne". The restrictions placed on the O’Reilly kings of East Breifne by the English to
rein in their power proved to be their undoing, as the kingdom's force of less than 600 men was decimated by O’Neill's army of over 5,000. The entire English garrison for the whole of Ireland at this time was no more than 2,500. East Breifne was burnt and pillaged by O’Neill, and the O’Reillys were once again forced to submit to a Tyrone king. Maolmordha died in 1565 and was succeeded by Aodh Connallach.
Rapprochement with England Aodh and the newly appointed Lord Deputy
Henry Sidney developed a close relationship. Upon coming to power he rebelled against Tyrone and supported Sidney against Shane O’Neill and his successor
Turlough Luineach in the early 1570s. In turn, Sidney helped Aodh crush dissent against his kingship domestically. Sidney regarded Aodh as "
the finest of Irishmen" and repeatedly recommended the establishment of an English shire in East Breifne. Aodh gave up his son John to Sidney in 1575. John was to be his agent in England and he travelled with Sidney to
Hampton Court to formally surrender his father's lordship. John remained in England for eight years, where he learned to speak and write English fluently and became well versed in
English law and agricultural practices. Due to the ruling O’Reilly elite's willingness to work within English institutions it was decided that East Breifne, traditionally seen as part of Connacht, was to be excluded from the first
Composition of Connaught in 1577. Instead, the Lord Deputy of Ireland was to deal directly with the kingdom. First the border disputes between East Breifne and
the Pale had to be resolved.
Attorney General William Drury travelled to the border town of
Kells in May 1579 to "
determine the hurt done" between the people of the frontier and the O’Reillys. At Kells he met with Aodh, who had travelled alone. Aware that the O’Reilly king lacked the power to properly police his own borders, Drury refused to negotiate and instructed Aodh to gather his sons and the nobles of East Breifne and return when they also agreed to settle the border dispute. Later that year the ailing Aodh, his son Pilib and Tánaiste Emon unexpectedly rode to Dublin with a band of horsemen to submit their lordship and apply for it to be made a shire. Following this, William Drury again travelled north and toured East Breifne to seal the agreement, after which Aodh travelled to England and was knighted.
Formation of County Cavan to
propagandise his achievements On 21 August 1579 East Breifne was officially shired as
County Cavan against the backdrop of separate rebellions in Munster and Ulster by
James Fitzmaurice and Turlough Luineach respectively. Unlike other counties such as Westmeath and
Queen's, there was no parliamentary statute passed to establish Cavan. It was instead created as part of an emergency defence act to protect the Pale from the aforementioned rebellions. As such, little progress was made in implementing English laws and institutions in the new county. One of the major pitfalls of dealing with the Tudor government which would consistently aggravate relations - its unaccountability - was obvious just months after the agreement was made. Sir Aodh wrote to Attorney General
Lucas Dillon in November to inform him that parts of his kingdom had been looted and destroyed by English captains, and that he "''being under his Majesty's laws''" should not be subject to such provocations. His grievances were not addressed by the government in Dublin. By 1580 Aodh's health had declined dramatically and he retreated from public life, although still officially the king. The country faced a potential crisis against an ascendant and hostile Tyrone and with John still in England, Aodh's second son Pilib became his
lieutenant and the chief defender of East Breifne. During this time Pilib demonstrated that he could capably lead the country through the turbulence. His proficiency in
Gaelic politics proved invaluable. He sealed an alliance with
the Maguires through marriage, continued to strengthen East Breifne's alliance with Tyrone's enemy
Tyrconnell, opened communications with the Fitzgeralds and even harmonized relations with
the O’Rourkes. The
Annals of the Four Masters record that Pilib crushed an attempted invasion by the O'Neills in 1581, before negotiating a peace with them later that year. The ability to project a show of strength was vital to the reputation of any Gaelic leader and as such, rather than depending on the lethargic Dublin government for security, he raised an army by drawing support from the military castes of East Breifne and reached out to every branch of the O’Reilly sept to unify the kingdom and steer an independent path between Tyrone and England. His time as de facto ruler of East Breifne made him the most powerful and popular figure in the kingdom. Pilib however, grew discontent with his position in English law as the second son. He had defended the kingdom during his brother's absence and his father's illness but was passed over when his brother returned. Pilib argued that he should be made king based on his merits: Had the Gaelic system of clan elections been in place, it's very likely Pilib would have been made king, however John returned when Aodh Connallach died in early 1583 and Pilib stepped aside. John's ascension was still contested by his uncle Emon, Aodh's brother, who asserted his claim to the kingship. The two men went to the
Privy Council for arbitration in June 1583, illustrating their willingness to assimilate into English customs. John's legal expertise allowed him to put forward a strong defence of his right to the kingship and it was decided by the council that he should receive the title. Emon was to continue his tenure as
Tánaiste (deputy leader). The decision left both Pilib and Emon disaffected and they continued to challenge John's rule. Although rivals, they were both united in their opposition to John. It quickly became clear to the new Lord Deputy
John Perrot that Sir John O’Reilly was incapable of controlling the situation and Perrot laid down plans for the permanent division of the O’Reilly lordship.
Composition of 1584 John O’Reilly's government put their position on the line in their determination to cooperate fully with the English authorities and assimilate East Breifne, shired as County Cavan in 1579, into the
Kingdom of Ireland in the face of severe internal opposition. O’Reilly and Perrot toured East Breifne and met with the ruling clans for over a year until late 1584. During their tour the boundaries of the county and its seven
tuaithe, which became baronies, were mapped. The two men negotiated and signed treaties to secure the division of East Breifne amongst its ruling elite and finalise a composition for the county. The controversial agreement was designed to hasten the transformation of Cavan into a fully-fledged English-style county. It involved huge concessions from O’Reilly but, having established himself as a shrewd diplomat with many powerful connections, John intended to resolve the internal instability of his kingdom with the agreement and secure his own position. Its implementation began in 1585 but was never fully realised and ultimately destroyed his domestic reputation. Under the terms of the composition, the power of "The O’Reilly" was greatly diminished, so much so that the chieftaincy itself was abolished, which included revoking his traditional claim as
overlord of the clans of East Breifne. He gave up roughly half of his kingdom as part of the agreement, agreed to a fixed annual crown rent, ceded land to political rivals within his own sept and recognized the proprietal independence of
freeholders within the lands which he still held. The office of
High Sheriff which was previously supposed to be held by an O’Reilly was given to Henry Duke, a nobleman from
Meath, who was appointed to ensure the composition's implementation. English garrisons were stationed across the county, although at the service of John O’Reilly. The position of
Tánaiste was also abolished. Two largely independent territories –
Tullyhaw and
Tullyhunco were incorporated into the county. These territories were historically part of
West Breifne and recognized the
O’Rourkes as their overlords and paid exactions to them, but by the early 1500s had drifted into the sphere of the O’Reillys, who since at least 1512 had provided military aid and protection to them. Both of these were made into
baronies and the ruling clans - The
MacGaurans in Tullyhaw and
MacKeirnans in Tullyhunco – remained in power, subject to the administration in
Dublin but independent of the O’Reillys in Cavan. Several prominent members of the O’Reilly sept were made freeholders. John's uncle and former Tánaiste Emon was granted the barony of Castlerahan and was put in charge of rent collection for the entire county. The barony of Clanmahon was divided between Cathaoir Gearr, John's other uncle, and the influential local magnate Pilib an Phrior of Clan Mahon. These territories also answered directly to the government instead of John O’Reilly. John's brother Pilib, as an heir to the chieftaincy, petitioned against the composition. Pilib had been agitating for the kingship ever since his brother's appointment and, in abolishing his own lordship, John was also abolishing the title Pilib was in line to receive and dismantling the kingdom he had worked so hard to unify. Pilib also posed a legal challenge to the composition, as under Brehon law the land was strictly owned by the whole clan, and John was merely a trustee. Although the division of the kingdom was meant to solve the political tension, Pilib and his supporters seemed willing to derail the agreement and seize the lordship through violent means. To appease Pilib, he was granted the barony of Clanchee and was to represent Cavan at the
parliament in Dublin. Despite these attempts to pacify Pilib, he continued to defy the agreement and used his position as an
MP to press for its revocation. Following his unruly behavior at
Parliament in 1586 he was kidnapped and imprisoned at
Dublin Castle for 6 years. Both John and the Lord Deputy had hoped this would put an end to the growing popularity at home for Pilib's proposed annulment of the composition, but support for him only increased during his incarceration. His arrest also bred public resentment of John and
bardic prose written during this time called for Pilib to be made king of East Breifne upon his release.
Breakdown of relations 1588–1594 In yet another blow to the composition, Emon broke ranks with John and the county administration in early 1588 and raided into
Longford where he and his men killed ten people. Despite its problems, the composition, and more generally the policy of
surrender and regrant, appeared somewhat successful for a brief period from 1585 to 1587. However the O’Reillys' determination to implement it was the exception, not the rule. It took place against the backdrop of collapsing English power across Ireland, particularly in
Ulster and
Munster, and the policy has been historically viewed as a failure. The clans of East Breifne, who were more amenable to English influence than any others in Ireland, gradually became more skeptical of their own policy of rapprochement with England. The attempts to assimilate East Breifne into English jurisdiction and law had dragged on for decades with limited progress and little to no visible benefit; even the most
anglophile Breifnians had grown disillusioned with the idea. The process of integration was a slow one and the
Tudor government did not give their administrators in Ireland the freedom to make concrete or fair agreements with the native lordships. As such, to many within East Breifne it seemed that their leaders were continually surrendering powers to the English and receiving no concessions from them. One of the primary ways in which Gaelic leaders in the 16th century showed their strength and credibility as rulers was through the retention of a large army and possession of spoils obtained from raids on neighboring kingdoms and lesser clans. By restricting both the size of their army and banning them from raiding, the Dublin government had removed a key pillar of the O’Reillys' power. Although England would go on to dominate Ireland, at the time this was not obvious. and restrictions placed on the maintenance of an East Breifnian army left the kingdom highly exposed to attacks Despite decades of conflict between England and
Tyrone, the
O’Neills were stronger than ever by 1590 and had made an ally out of their former enemy
Tyrconnell. A series of high-profile
rebellions in Munster in the 1570s and 80s and the existence of lordships that were totally independent of English rule in
Connacht and
Leinster made their grasp over Ireland look very tenuous. Just as it had done during
Shane O'Neill's rebellion in the 1560s, English policy had once again left East Breifne exposed to attacks from its hostile neighbours. The restrictions placed upon them coupled with the abuses of power by crown officials within the kingdom caused the O’Reillys to lose their faith in government officials and they grew resentful of their presence. John Perrot was recalled to England in January 1588 and
Sir William Fitzwilliam was re-instated as Lord Deputy in July. FitzWilliam replaced all of Perrot's staff and pursued a much more aggressive policy of conquest in Ireland. The growing animosity between the elite of East Breifne and the English government came to a head in 1589 with the appointment of Sir Edward Herbert as High Sheriff for a term of seven years. Herbert was unknown and unconnected in Cavan and exercised his power by expanding the number of officials, advisors and assistants working for him, all of which had to be paid for through East Breifne's public taxes. Herbert quickly garnered a reputation for brutality and suspended cooperation with the Gaelic judicial system and native lords, instead he ruled by
martial law. The O’Reillys composed a book of complaints detailing the misconduct of Herbert. Among the abuses listed were Herbert's
summary execution of John's son-in-law Brian MacFerrall, whose head was sent along with those of three others to Dublin. John O’Reilly's son Mulmurray was arrested for allegedly raiding a neighboring territory. Herbert also confiscated church property and illegally sold it off. A furious John O’Reilly complained directly to Fitzwilliam but his complaints were ignored. In January 1590
Chief Justice Robert Gardiner was instructed by the Queen's chief secretary
Francis Walsingham to draft a declaration restraining the use of martial law in Ireland by lesser officials such as sheriffs, captains, seneschals and governors. However, Walsingham died in April and the reforms outlined by him and Gardiner would not be revisited until June 1592. Herbert's tyranny was apparent, a government survey of the county in July 1592 found that its jails were overloaded with prisoners, including several from the O’Reilly sept.
Lucas Dillon wrote to Perrot (who was no longer in power) expressing his worry over the deteriorating situation in East Breifne, explaining that John O’Reilly and other high ranking nobles had written to him outlining their grievances. Fitzwilliam billeted his large campaign army upon East Breifne during his tour of Ulster in 1590, adding yet another financial burden on the kingdom. FitzWilliam's reckless behavior throughout Ireland was leading to an explosive situation. He overlooked
Richard Bingham's abuses in Connacht, particularly against the O’Rourkes of West Breifne. He appointed Captain Willis as High Sheriff of Tyrconnell and
Fermanagh and allowed his men to rampage across the territory, provoking the
O’Donnells and
Maguires. FitzWilliam also executed the MacMahon lord of
Monaghan and divided up his territory amongst planters, including
Robert Devereux, the
Earl of Essex. The English garrisons in "loyal" Irish lordships such as East Breifne, which were intended to be used as defensive deterrents against hostile lordships, were now being used as an arbitrary tool of oppression against the natives. Pilib escaped from Dublin castle alongside
Red Hugh O’Donnell in 1591 and returned to Cavan. O'Donnell continued to oppose English rule in his home country, whereas Pilib pledged to support the composition upon his return. Pilib joined forces with his brother John to wrest back control of the county from the restive factions within it. By 1594 Ulster had broken out into open rebellion, and with it parts of County Cavan, and Pilib reprised his role as the territory's chief protector against the rebel forces.
Nine Years' War 1594–1603 As the frontier between the government in
the pale and the rebel forces in Ulster, the English made holding County Cavan a priority during the
Nine Years' War. English garrisons were stationed in
Cavan town, which was used as a base of operations for raids against O’Neill and his allies. The English garrison led by Henry Duke and Edward Herbert marched north from Cavan into Fermanagh to put down the rebellion across the border, but were
soundly defeated by the forces of
Hugh Maguire and retreated back to Cavan town alarmed by the growing size of the rebel forces. Pilib was approached by FitzWilliam in December 1594 and was tasked with defending Cavan town and county. He was also tasked with raising soldiers from each barony for the English army. John O’Reilly had fallen into disrepute and was sidelined. Cavan town was devastated in a raid by the Maguires and MacMahons in 1595, government forces had reinforced the Franciscan friary and were able to hold it. Another reported attack destroyed "all but two castles" which belonged to the
MacBradys. By June 1595 the English had faltered in the face of the rebellion and had been almost completely pushed out of Connacht and Ulster after suffering a string of defeats. Much of county Cavan had been seized by the rebels and, with no further aid on the horizon, John and Pilib travelled north to
Dungannon to submit personally to
Hugh O’Neill and join the Irish alliance. John O’Reilly died of illness in 1596 and left two sons, Maelmora and Hugh. In defiance of English succession law, Hugh O’Neill proclaimed Pilib king of East Breifne. Pilib's first act was to reinstate
Brehon Law and
tanistry and ban all other laws. The English government had hoped to reach out to Pilib, who, having spent much of his life fighting against the O'Neills, was believed to harbour antipathy towards them. However, nothing came of this as that same year, before he could even be inaugurated, Pilib was accidentally shot and killed by a stray musket bullet fired by one of O'Neill's soldiers. His Tánaiste Eamonn, whose affinity for Tyrone was well documented, was made king that October in a traditional Gaelic inauguration ceremony on Seantóman Hill. Following John's death, his son Maelmora claimed the kingship but was swiftly exiled and moved to Dublin intent on repairing his family's relationship with England. He was received by Queen Elizabeth and granted a patent to become the
Earl of Cavan. He commanded a regiment of English cavalry in Ulster alongside
Marshal Henry Bagenal until both men were slain at the
Battle of the Yellow Ford in August 1598. Maelmora's death left Eamonn as the uncontested king, John's second son Hugh being too young to rule. As the clearest route between Ulster and Leinster, the war took a heavy toll on County Cavan and its populace. Between 1596 and 1602 the control of Cavan town changed hands between the Irish alliance and the English at least four times. Eamonn remained a committed member of the Irish alliance and reigned until his death in April 1601 at an advanced age: Eoghan (Owen) ruled for the remainder of the war and was killed during its reconquest, leaving his brother Maolmhordha as acting chief. Cavan was finally retaken during
Baron Mountjoy's campaign into Ulster during the last stages of the war. With over 18,000 English soldiers at his command, and the Irish alliance exhausted and fragmented, Mountjoy made stunning gains across Ulster in 1602, forcing O'Neill and the other rebel Irish lords to sign the
Treaty of Mellifont in March 1603.
Aftermath English victory in the Nine Years' War was a watershed moment in Irish history, often seen as the end of
Gaelic Ireland. For the first time ever the
Kingdom of Ireland was in control of the entire island and the destruction wrought by the war left the Gaelic kingdoms immeasurably weakened. Seeing the irrevocable changes in land and law being implemented across the island, and fearing for their safety, many Irish nobles left for mainland Europe, culminating in the
Flight of the Earls in 1607. By virtue of departing Ireland without permission these Irish nobles had broken their oaths to the Crown and as such the Crown attainted them and confiscated their lands. This formally began preparations for the
Plantation of Ulster.
Plantation of Cavan Due to its historic close relations with the government in Dublin, the people of Cavan were deemed more pliant than elsewhere in Ulster. As such, it was the first place Chichester visited prior to the plantation. When there, he asked English administrators in the conquered county to set up courts which would evaluate all land that had been freed up by those who had left in exile, those who had died during the rebellion, and those who had lost the rights to their lands through an
attainder. Nearly all high-ranking members of the clan had died during the war, but 52 lower members of the O'Reilly clan were still attainted. Of the few who were granted land, Sir John O'Reilly's grandson Mulmory was granted 3,000 acres along with two smaller estates which contained ancestral homes. The acting chief Maolmhordha had sought a pardon and was granted 2,000 acres. The age of the O'Reilly dynasty had come to an end. In a further attempt to stamp English authority onto the territory, Chichester ordered in 1610 for the castle on Tullymongan Hill, seat of the O'Reilly kings for over 200 years, to be seized and given to an English family. This was never acted upon, although the castle, which was ruined during the war, was later demolished. As was the case in the rest of Ulster, many other Irish clans had their lands confiscated as well and the county was opened up to wholesale plantation by English and Scottish
Protestant settlers. The first surveys undertaken were those of
Josias Bodley in 1609 and 1613 in which the county was divided into "good land" and "poor land" and re-distributed to planters and natives accordingly. Pynnar's Survey of 1619, which was commissioned to examine the progress of the plantations, lists the remaining landholding O'Reillys. Six specific persons were outlined in ''
Duffy's Hibernian Magazine'' in 1861. Having learned from the unsuccessful
Munster plantation, a much greater emphasis was placed on urbanization and the creation of towns as a means of successful colonization. To this end,
Cavan was the first town in Ulster to be granted a charter by
King James I in 1610, as it was already a relatively large pre-existing urban centre. Other towns such as
Virginia and
Killeshandra were founded during the plantations. There was also a general cap of 2,000 acres placed on good land estates, to avoid the estate becoming unmanageably large and falling into disrepair as was seen in Munster, where some individual plantations were as large as 70,000 acres. By 1618 it was recorded that 386 English families had settled in County Cavan. The native Irish, who were overwhelmingly Catholic, and the settlers, who were
Anglican and
Presbyterian, co-existed in an uneasy peace until the anti-Catholic
Long Parliament gained traction in England in 1640. Fear of invasion and prosecution by the English Protestants sparked the
Irish Rebellion of 1641 and the establishment of
Confederate Ireland, during which time Colonel
Philip O'Reilly, Sir John O'Reilly's grandson, raised an army of 1,200 men in Cavan to oppose English rule. His younger brother Myles was briefly styled as "king of East Breifne" once again. The Irish royalists were defeated during the
Cromwellian conquest of Ireland and further confiscation of land ensued. By 1670, 89% of County Cavan's land was in the possession of British settlers. ==Society==