John de Courcy
John de Courcy (also John de Courci ; * around 1160; † before September 22, 1219 ) was an Anglo-Norman nobleman. He was a leader in the Anglo-Norman conquest of Ireland , served as Justiciar of Ireland and is considered one of the most ambitious, but also most unscrupulous Anglo-Norman conquerors of the island.
origin
John came from the Norman Courcy family named after the village of Courcy , his great-great-grandfather Richard de Courcy fought in 1066 in the Battle of Hastings . John came from a line of the family from Stogursey ( Stoke Courcey ) in Somerset . Presumably he inherited small estates near Middelton Cheney in Northamptonshire through his mother .
Conqueror of Ulster
John de Courcy did not come to Ireland until 1176, several years after the beginning of the Anglo- Norman conquest, with a second wave of Anglo- Norman barons under William Fitz Audelin . After he initially belonged to the crew of Dublin , he marched to Northern Ireland only a few weeks after his arrival with 22 other knights and 300 soldiers, contrary to the orders of William Fitz Audelin. In February 1177 he captured the mountain fortress and pilgrimage site Down . Without the permission of King Henry II, he killed the King of Dál nAraidi and in 1178 defeated the Irish of Ulaid, making him Lord of Ulaid . Although he suffered two defeats from the Fir Li and from the chiefs of Airgíalla and from King Ruaidrí mac Con Ulad Mac Duinn Sléibe , he consolidated his position with the building of castles such as Dromore or Jordan's Castle and by having his knights with parts of the enfeoffed conquered territory. Its main castle was the Carrickfergus Castle , built from 1180 . He married Affreca in 1180 , daughter of Godred II , the former Gaelic-Scandinavian King of Dublin and King of Man . De Courcy founded the towns of Downpatrick, Newry , Carlingford , Carrickfergus and Coleraine and reformed Irish monasteries with the help of English monks from Cumbria . He founded Inch Abbey and his wife founded Gray Abbey . In 1185, de Courcy claimed to have found the tomb of St. Patrick and of St. Bridget and Columban , and had the bones of the three saints again solemnly buried. The patron saint of the cathedral of Down he changed from the Holy Trinity in the of St. Patrick.
Justiciar of Ireland
Although he was deeply angry with his conquests King Henry II, the latter appointed him in 1185 to succeed Hugh de Lacy as Justiciar of Ireland . De Courcy minted his own coins with his image and that of St. Patrick. During the rebellion of John Ohneland , the Lord of Ireland, against his brother King Richard I , de Courcy remained loyal to the king. He supported Walter de Lacy against Johann's followers and Cathal Crobhdearg Ua Conchobair , the King of Connacht, against William de Burgh .
Fall and later life
When Johann Ohneland became king in 1199, he deposed de Courcy as justiciar and commissioned Hugh de Lacy , the son of Hugh de Lacys, to take de Courcy prisoner. In 1201, John swore allegiance to the new king, but the feud with Hugh de Lacy was not resolved. With the help of the new legal advisor Meiler FitzHenry , de Lacy first attacked Downpatrick and finally Carrickfergus, and de Courcy was defeated in 1203. He now refused to submit to King John again, whereupon he was expropriated. His lands fell to Hugh de Lacy. De Courcy finally fled to Aodh Ó Néill in Tyrone in May 1205 . With the help of Scandinavian mercenaries of his brother-in-law Ragnvald , the King of Man, de Courcy tried to regain his land. He besieged Dundrum Castle unsuccessfully before being beaten again by de Lacy and imprisoned in the Tower of London . The victorious de Lacy was made Earl of Ulster by the king .
Little is known about his future fate. According to legend, he is said to have defeated a French knight in a tournament for the king, which is why he was pardoned. In fact, de Courcy took part in King John's campaign in Ireland in 1210, during which Hugh de Lacy was expelled from Ireland. De Coury did not get Ulster back, however. He was buried in Canons Ashby , Northamptonshire , probably as requested . His marriage was presumably childless, and his widow Affreca received her widow's property from the royal legal advisor in September 1219. Miles de Courcy , who later became King Henry III. Kingsale received and became the progenitor of the Barons Kingsale was probably an illegitimate son of John de Courcy.
literature
- Sean Duffy: Courcy, John de . In: Medieval Ireland. To Encyclopedia . Routledge, New York 2005, ISBN 1-135-94824-0 , p. 181
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Christine Kinealy: History of Ireland . Magnus, Essen 2004, ISBN 3-88400-418-2 , p. 58
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | John de Courcy |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | John de Courci |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Anglo-Norman nobleman and lawyer of Ireland |
| DATE OF BIRTH | around 1160 |
| DATE OF DEATH | before September 22, 1219 |