CCS Junior Certificate History: The Plantations

•Plantations in Ireland

•Aims

•To understand the background to the plantations

•To give a brief outline of some plantations

•To undertake special study of the Plantation of Ulster

•To know the impact of the plantations in Ireland

•How was Ireland ruled around 1500?

1.The king of England was Lord of Ireland but he had little power.

2.The Pale was the only part of Ireland where the king’s officials had power. The Pale stretched around Dublin, from Dundalk in the north to Dalkey in the south.

3.The Anglo-Irish Lords: These were descendant of the of the Anglo-Normans. By 1500 they were largely independent of the English Crown. They used English common law and sometimes Brehon law.

1.Examples: Fitzgeralds of Kildare and the Fitzgeralds of Desmond (Munster)

4.The Gaelic Irish Lords: These were native Irish lords who followed Brehon Law. They ruled their own kingdoms.

1.Examples: The O’Neills of Tyrone, O’Donnells of Donegal, McCarthys of Cork.

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•What was English Common law?

•This was the law of the English. Under common law, the eldest son became the new lord.

•What efforts were made to conquer Ireland by the Tudors?

1.The Tudor Kings and queens of England wanted to conquer Ireland because they

•Wanted to protect England from attack by France and Spain

•Wanted to introduce the Protestant religion to Ireland

•Thought English culture was superior to Gaelic culture

2. The Tudors tried to conquer Ireland by

•Military conquest

•Surrender and regrant

•This was where Gaelic and Anglo-Irish lords surrendered their land to the king – when the lords promised to use English law, the king regranted the land to the lords and gave them English titles.

3. Both of these methods failed so a new policy was tried. This was called plantation.

What was plantation?

•Land was confiscated from rebellious chiefs and lords.

•The land was given to loyal settlers or planters.

•The planters would use English law, language and customs.

•The Plantation of Laois-Offaly

1.The policy was first tried in the Plantation of Laois-Offaly.

•Queen Mary established the first plantation in Ireland.

•Land of O’Moores & O’Connors was confiscated in Laois & Offaly.

•English government wanted to impose English law, protect the Pale and control the native Irish population.

•Queen’s County (Laois) & King’s County (Offaly) created.

•Land set aside for English planters- poorer land along the Shannon reserved for loyal Irish planters.

•Plantation failed – only 80 planters granted land; no planters came from England so Gaelic planters given land; O’Moores and O’Connors attacked the planters.

2. Lessons of Laois-Offaly Plantation used in the next plantation, Munster.

•The Plantation of Munster

1.Causes: Fitzgeralds of Desmond, led by James Fitzmaurice Fitzgerald, rose twice against English rule in Munster. Both rebellions were defeated.

•Land of the Fitzgeralds was confiscated.

2. Aims of Plantation: English government wanted to strengthen Munster against a Spanish invasion. It wanted to spread English language, culture & the Protestant religion.

3. Plan of Plantation: Confiscated land surveyed & mapped.

•Land divided into estates of 4000, 6000, 8000 & 12000 acres.

•Planters who got land were called undertakers because they undertook to carry out certain conditions.

-Bring in English farmers & craftsmen.

-Pay rent to the crown.

-Defend themselves after 7 years.

•Success of the Plantation

•New towns were developed such as Bandon & Mallow in Co Cork, Lismore in Co Waterford & Killarney in Co Kerry.

•New family names such as Browne, Carew and Denny came to Ireland.

•New farming methods were used – there was an increase in tillage and new breeds of cattle and sheep were introduced.

•Trade prospered as timber, wool & hides (leather) were exported through Youghal & Cork.

•Not enough English planters were attracted to Munster, so undertakers had to rent land to the Gaelic Irish & the Anglo-Irish.

•During the Nine Years War (1594-1603), many planters went back to England. After the war was over, new planters, such as Richard Boyle, Earl of Cork, took over some of the land. A wealthy Protestant landowning minority developed.

The Ulster Plantation (1609)

took place after the defeat of O'Neill and O'Donnell in the Nine Years War & the Flight of the Earls in 1607. Four Million acres were planted. Estates of 2000, 1500 & 1000 acres were given to undertakers, to servitors (who had served the crown) & to some trusted Irish gentlemen. London craft guilds were given Co 'Londonderry'. The Anglican Church & Trinity College received land.

Many planters came to Ulster. English farming methods, industry & trade brought prosperity. Well laid out plantation towns were built.
Long-term results included political, religious and cultural divisions in Ulster which persist to the present day.

•The Cromwellian Plantation

1.Cromwell conquered a rebellion which broke out in Ireland.

2.He confiscated the land of the rebels.

•In the Act of Settlement, rebel landowners lost all their land.

•Those who could not prove their loyalty were transplanted to Connacht.

•These were Catholic landowners.

•But Catholic tenants were left in their places.

3. Sir William Petty organised the Down Survey to survey all the confiscated land.

•The land was divided among adventurers who provided money to pay for Cromwell’s army and soldiers.

4. Cromwell’s plantation resulted in the transfer of land from Catholic landowners to Protestant landowners.

•They were landlords now to Catholic tenants.

•Some Catholic landowners who lost their land took to the hills to become outlaws or Tories.

•For the next 200 years power and wealth in Ireland remained in the hands of Protestants.

•What were the overall results of the Plantations?

1.Political: Conflict arose between Catholics and Protestants over land and religion.

Protestants controlled most of the power through the Penal laws, which forbade Catholics from owning land, voting or holding government positions.

The conflict between Catholics and Protestants continued during the 19th & 20th centuries.

They contributed to the Troubles in Northern Ireland at the end of the 20th century.

2. Religious: The planters were Protestants but they were in a minority in Ireland.

The majority of the Protestants were confined to Northern Ireland, especially Antrim, Down and north Armagh.

The land was now mainly owned by Protestants, while Catholics rented the land from them. In the 19th century, the Catholic tenants led a campaign which led to the Protestant landlords selling the land to the tenants.

•The plantations failed to crush the Catholic religion.

3. Cultural: The culture & language of Gaelic Ireland declined. English language & culture became more widespread. English common law became the law of Ireland. New farming methods, which depended more on tillage, were introduced. New towns were built.

SHORT QUESTIONS (HL and OL)

1. Name two British rulers who ordered plantations to be carried out in Ireland. (2010 HL, 2006 HL)

2. Name one group of people who received land in Ireland during the plantations. (2012 OL)

3. Name one area of Ireland where a plantation occurred and the ruler who carried it out. (2015 OL, 2011 OL)

4. Why did the plantations occur? (2011 OL)

5. Name two effects which the plantations had on Ireland? (2010 OL)

6. Explain one way in which Ireland changed because of the plantations. (2015 OL)

7. Choose one of the following terms about Ireland and Britain c.1500-1660 and give one fact about your chosen term:
The Pale The Armada Undertakers (2015 OL)

SOURCE QUESTION (HL)

Q.5C, 2009 HL

Name one of the plantations which you have studied and write about the effects of that plantation on two of the following: (2x8)

(i) Religion.
(ii) Political control.
(iii) Language and customs.

PEOPLE IN HISTORY (HL and OL)
For the Plantations, you'll always write your People in History answer on the Ulster Plantation, because it's the one you learn the most about. There are two different types of People in History question you could be asked on the Plantations, and they are:
A settler who received land in a named plantation.
(2015 HL, 2012 HL, 2010 HL, 2008 HL, 2006 HL, 2009 OL)A native Irish landowner who lost land in a named plantation. (2014 HL, 2011 HL, 2014 OL)

A person who came to Ireland during the Ulster Plantation
Your name is John Stewart

You were born in Scotland

You are a member of the Presbyterian Church

You are very loyal to your King

You came to live in Ulster in 1622

How you received the land

You are called a Servitor

You used to be an soldier in the King’s army

You are owed money by the King for your services

Given a 1000 acre estate in Count Fermanagh as payment

Rules you had to follow

Had to pay a rent of £8 per year

You had to build a house of stone

Had to surround house with a bawn (stone wall)

You could then rent parts of your land

You were allowed some Irish tenants

Your new home in Ulster

Build a large 2-storey stone and timber house

Roof made of slate,

Chimney built of red brick

Very different from houses of native Irish

You farming methods

You did not raise cattle like the Irish

You began to grow lots of crops

Introduced a new crop called the potato to the area

You cleared large areas of forest and drained land

Built lots of fences and ditches around fields

Your local town

Lots of new people have settled there

Many different craftsmen live there

Town was specially planned

Has wide, straight streets

Has a central Square and important buildings

Court House, Market House and Presbyterian Church

Markets are held in the town every Friday

Your fears

Feel that native Irish people really resent you

Many are angry over loss of their lands

Some of your friends have been attacked

You too are afraid - keep loaded muskets in house

Happy that English system of justice has been set up

Review Questions
1. Why did the English King and government wish to establish plantations in Ireland
2. Explain what was meant by “The Pale”
3. Name two powerful native Irish families in the 1500’s
4. What was the very first plantation in Ireland and what was the main result?
5. What happened during the Plantation of Munster?
6. How did a large part of Ulster become available for Plantation?
7. What was the “Flight of the Earls”?
8. How was the Plantation of Ulster organised?
9. Name the Ulster Counties that were to be planted?
10. Which English King was responsible for the plantation of Ulster?
11. Explain what was meant by the term “Undertaker” during the Ulster Plantation
12. Explain what a “Servitor” was
13. Where did most of the new settlers in Ulster come from?
14. What was the main religion of a majority of the new settlers?
15. How did Londonderry get that name?
16. Name three new towns built in the 1600’s
17. How were the new towns different than older Irish towns?
18. What happened to the native Irish people as a result of the Ulster Plantation?
19. Why was the Ulster Plantation the most successful?
20. What were some of the main results of the Ulster Plantation?

Answers

1. They wanted to have people in control of Ireland that they could trust to be loyal to England. These new loyal settlers would be Protestant and would introduce English laws and the English language.
2. This was the area around and including Dublin which was the only part of Ireland in the year 1500 that was under English control.
3. The O’Neill’s and the O’Donnells.
4. This was in Laois and Offaly. They were called King’s county and Queen’s County. Two-thirds of the land was to be re-settled with people from England. However the plantation was a failure because no settlers came from England and only eighty planters who were Englishmen born in Ireland actually came. This number proved to be too small.
5. The Earl of Desmond who owned most of Munster had just been defeated in a war. He was punished by the loss of his lands. The land was surveyed and mapped. It was divided into 36 estates. These estates were then to be given at low rents to people from England. However not enough people came and there was war between the Irish and the new settlers.
6. The two most powerful Gaelic chiefs, O’Neill and O’Donnell fled from Ireland which meant that a large part of Ulster was without strong leadership. The English King saw this as a good opportunity and he seized their lands and made plans to place new loyal settlers in Ulster.
7. This was when O’Neill and O’Donnell fled from Lough Swilly in Ulster to Europe in the year 1607.
8. The land was to be divided among three main groups: Undertakers, Servitors and Deserving Irish.
9. Derry, Donegal, Fermanagh, Tyrone, Cavan and Armagh.
10. King James I of England.
11. Undertakers were planters who were given very large Estates by the King. They had to take over at least TEN families. They were not allowed any Irish tenants. They had to build a stone castle with a barn.
12. Servitors were former soldiers in the English army who were owed money. They were also given land in Ulster.
13. Most came from the Lowlands of Scotland.
14. Majority were members of the Presbyterian church.
15. The city of Londonderry which was renamed after London merchants came to settle there.
16. Draperstown, Coleraine and Strabane.
17. These new towns such as Draperstown were carefully planned. They had a central Square or Diamond such as in Donegal Town today. The streets were wide and straight. All the main buildings were in the central area and included a Courthouse, a Jail, a Market house and a Protestant Church.
18. Many had their land confiscated from them and it was given to the new settlers. Some of the native-Irish became tenants on the estates of the new settlers from Scotland and England. However, others were forced to move away and they often led attacks on the new settlers.
19. Because more people from England and Scotland did come and they stayed. It also helped of course that Ulster was close physically to Scotland. Also a greater mixture of people came, farmers, tradesmen, former soldiers, ministers of religion etc.
20. Large numbers of people from Scotland and England moved to live in Ulster.

Around 40,000 people came

All were Protestants

Most Scottish were Presbyterian

Most English were Anglican

Planters brought new farming methods

Cleared many forest

Grew huge amount of crops

Flax grown for first time

Potatoes grown for first time

Over 20 new towns created

Towns were carefully planned

Donegal town and Enniskillen good examples

Each town had a church, courthouse, townhall

New and better roads built

Great bitterness created between settlers and Irish

Questions:

1. How do the English view Ulster?

2. Name the King who planted thousands of English settlers?

3. What size were the plots of land?

4. How much of Ulster remained in Irish hands?

5. What would the settlers forge on the banks of the River Foyle?

6. How, according to Dr. Fitzgerald, would the planters modernise Ulster?

7. What were the different tradesmen/guilds that were asked to go to Ulster?

8. From your understanding of the clip, what is cartography?

9. How many a) Freeholders ____, b) Englishmen _____, and c) Native Irish ___ are on the plantation according to the map of 1622?

10. Why does Fergal Keane describe this as “the mathematics of disaster”, in your opinion?

11. What was the problem that the London companies faced, according to Dr. Fitzgerald?

12. What religion were the Scottish who came to Ulster?

13. How did they see themselves?

14. Would this settlement be assimilated (become a part of) Gaelic society? Why not?

How did England try to Control Ireland in the 16th & 17th Centuries?