Ulick na gCeann Burke, 1st Earl of Clanricarde

The Earl of Clanricarde
The Earl of Clanricarde
Uilleag de Búrca
Member of the Irish House of Lords
	Hereditary Peerage; 1 July 1543 – March 1544
Preceded by	New Creation (Clanricarde)
Succeeded by	Richard Sassanach Burke
Personal details
Born	Ulick Burke
Died	1544
Nationality	Irish
Spouses	Grany / Grace O'Carroll (divorced); Honora de Burgh (divorced); Maire Lynch (before 1544);
Children	4, including Richard Sassanach Burke
Parent	Richard Mór Burke

Ulick na gCeann Burke, 12th Clanricarde or Mac William Uachtar, 1st Earl of Clanricarde (English: /ˈjuːlɪk ... klænˈrɪkɑːrd/ YOO-lik ... klan-RIK-ard; died 1544; styled MacWilliam, and na-gCeann, meaning "of the Heads", "having made a mount of the heads of men slain in battle which he covered up with earth") was an Irish noble and son of Richard Mór Burke, 9th Clanricarde (d. 1530) by a daughter of Madden of Portumna.^[1]

Biography

Ulick succeeded his father to the headship of his clan, and held estates in County Galway. In March 1541 he wrote to Henry VIII, lamenting the degeneracy of his family, which had rebelled against England in the mid-14th century, and "which have been brought to Irish and disobedient rule by reason of marriage and nurseing [sic] with those Irish, sometime rebels, near adjoining to me", and placing himself and his estates in the king's hands. The same year he was present at Dublin, when an act was passed making Henry VIII King of Ireland.^[1]

In 1543, in company with other Irish chiefs, he visited the King at Greenwich and made full submission in accordance with the King's policy of "surrender and regrant". He was confirmed in the captainship and rule of Clanricarde, and on 1 July 1543, he was created Earl of Clanricarde and Baron of Dunkellin in the peerage of Ireland. He was regranted the greater part of his former estates, with the addition of other lands. The grant of the English titles was conditional upon the abandonment of native titles, the adoption of English customs and laws, the pledging of allegiance to the English crown, apostasy from the Roman Catholic Church, and conversion to the Anglican Church. In his review of the state of Ireland in 1553, Lord Chancellor Cusake stated "[t]he making of McWilliam earl of Clanricarde made all the country during his time quiet and obedient."^[1]

He did not live long to enjoy his new English dignities, but died shortly after returning to Ireland in about March 1544. He is called by the annalist of Loch Cé "a haughty and proud lord," who reduced many under his yoke, and by the Four Masters "the most illustrious of the English in Connaught".^[1]

Marriages and family

Burke married three times. Firstly, he was married to Grany or Grace, daughter of Mulrone O'Carroll. This marriage was the only one declared valid and he eventually divorced her. They had a son:

Richard, who eventually succeeded him as Second Earl of Clanricarde.

Secondly, he married Honora de Burgh, sister of Ulick de Burgh. He later divorced her as well.

Thirdly, he married Maire Lynch. They had a son:

John Burke, who claimed the earldom in 1568.^[1]^[2]

According to Burke's Peerage, he had several other sons, Thomas "the Athlete" Burke (shot in 1545), Redmond "of the Broom" Burke (died 1595), and Edmund Burke (died 1597).^[1]

Legacy

As a result of his marriages and relationships, there were a number of candidates contending for the titles of Clanricarde and Earl. The eventual successor was Ulick's eldest legitimate son, Richard Sassanach Burke, 2nd Earl of Clanricarde.^[3]

Genealogy

Clanricarde (Mac William Uachtar) Genealogy

Richard an Fhorbhair de Burgh (d.1343)
- Sir William (Ulick) de Burgh (d. 1343/53), 1st Mac William Uachtar (Upper Mac William) or Clanricarde (Galway)
  - Richard Óg Burke (d. 1387), 2nd Clanricarde
    - Ulick an Fhiona Burke (d. 1424), 3rd Clanricarde
      - Ulick Ruadh Burke (d. 1485), 5th Clanricarde
        Edmund Burke (d. 1466)
        Ricard of Roscam (d. 1517)
        John mac Richard Mór Burke (d. 1536), 10th Clanricarde
        
        Ulick Fionn Burke (d.1509), 6th Clanricarde
        Ulick Óge Burke (d. 1520), 8th Clanricarde
        
        Richard Mór Burke (d. 1530), 9th Clanricarde
        Ulick na gCeann Burke (d. 1544), 12th Clanricarde, 1st Earl of Clanricarde (1543)
        
        Richard Bacach Burke (d. 1538), 11th Clanricarde
        
        Richard Óge Burke (d. 1519), 7th Clanricarde
        Sir Uilleag Burke (d. 1551), 13th Clanricarde
    - William mac Ulick Burke (d. 1430), 4th Clanricarde
  - Edmund de Burgh (d. 1410)

Arms

Coat of arms of Ulick na gCeann Burke, 1st Earl of Clanricarde
	Crest A Cat-a-Mountain sejant guardant proper, collared and chained Or. Escutcheon Or, a cross gules in the first quarter a lion rampant sable. Supporters Two Cats-a-Mountain sejant guardant proper, collared and chained Or.^[4]^[5] Motto UNG ROY, UNG FOY, UNG LOY (One king, one faith, one law)

Ancestry

Ancestors of Ulick na gCeann Burke, 1st Earl of Clanricarde

			8. Ulick Ruadh Burke, 5th Clanricarde



		4. Ulick Fionn Burke, 6th Clanricarde



			9.



	2. Richard Mór Burke, 9th Clanricarde



			10.



		5. Slaine Ni Con Mara (Slany MacNamara)



			11.



1. Ulick na gCeann Burke, 1st Earl of Clanricarde



			12.



		6.



			13.



	3. Margaret Butler



			14.



		7.



			15.

References

Citations

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Yorke, Philip Chesney (1911). "Clanricarde, Ulick de Burgh, 1st Earl of". In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 6 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 421.
^ Cokayne, G. E. (1889). The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom Extant, Extinct, or Dormant. Vol. 2 (1st ed.). London: George Bell & Sons. pp. 257.
^ "Burke, Ulick (de Burgh, Uilleag) ('Uilleag na gCeann') | Dictionary of Irish Biography". www.dib.ie. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
^ Burke, John; Burke, Bernard (1844). Encyclopædia of Heraldry: Or General Armory of England, Scotland, and Ireland, Comprising a Registry of All Armorial Bearings from the Earliest to the Present Time, Including the Late Grants by the College of Arms. H. G. Bohn.
^ Burke, Bernard (1884). The General Armory of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales; comprising a registry of armorial bearings from the earliest to the present time. University of California Libraries. London: Harrison & Sons.

Bibliography

Burke, John; Burke, Bernard (1844). Encyclopædia of Heraldry: Or General Armory of England, Scotland, and Ireland, Comprising a Registry of All Armorial Bearings from the Earliest to the Present Time, Including the Late Grants by the College of Arms. H. G. Bohn.
Burke, Bernard (1884). The General Armory of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales; comprising a registry of armorial bearings from the earliest to the present time. University of California Libraries. London: Harrison & Sons.
Cokayne, G. E. (1889). The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom Extant, Extinct, or Dormant (1st ed.). London: George Bell & Sons.
"Burke, Ulick (de Burgh, Uilleag) ('Uilleag na gCeann') | Dictionary of Irish Biography". www.dib.ie. Retrieved 21 December 2021.

Peerage of Ireland
Preceded by Richard Bacach Burke	Clanricarde 1538–1543	Succeeded by Richard Sassanach Burke
New creation	Earl of Clanricarde 1543–1544	Succeeded by Richard Sassanach Burke

[EB1911-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Yorke, Philip Chesney (1911). "Clanricarde, Ulick de Burgh, 1st Earl of". In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 6 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 421.

[2] Cokayne, G. E. (1889). The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom Extant, Extinct, or Dormant. Vol. 2 (1st ed.). London: George Bell & Sons. pp. 257.

[3] "Burke, Ulick (de Burgh, Uilleag) ('Uilleag na gCeann') | Dictionary of Irish Biography". www.dib.ie. Retrieved 21 December 2021.

[4] Burke, John; Burke, Bernard (1844). Encyclopædia of Heraldry: Or General Armory of England, Scotland, and Ireland, Comprising a Registry of All Armorial Bearings from the Earliest to the Present Time, Including the Late Grants by the College of Arms. H. G. Bohn.

[5] Burke, Bernard (1884). The General Armory of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales; comprising a registry of armorial bearings from the earliest to the present time. University of California Libraries. London: Harrison & Sons.

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[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

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