Gerald FitzGerald, 9th Earl of Kildare

Family

He was the son of The 8th Earl of Kildare and his first wife, Alison FitzEustace, daughter of The 1st Baron Portlester. In 1503, at Collyweston, he married Elizabeth Zouche, daughter of Sir John Zouche of Codnor and Elizabeth St John, a first cousin of King Henry VII, (her father, John St John, was the maternal half-brother of Henry's mother, Margaret Beaufort) with whom he had:

Thomas FitzGerald, 10th Earl of Kildare and

Lady Allice/Ellis FitzGerald (born circa 1508, died after 1540), who married Christopher Fleming, 8th Baron Slane. This was her aunt (Lodge I, 87, 92). See also Gerald FitzGerald, 8th Earl of Kildare

He married secondly Lady Elizabeth Grey, who was like his first wife a cousin of the King, though a more distant one, and had a further seven children:

Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Kildare,

Elizabeth FitzGerald, Countess of Lincoln,

Eleanor Fitzgearld ,

Edward FitzGerald who married Agnes Leigh granddaughter of Joyce Culpeper who was the mother of Catherine Howard fifth wife of Henry VIII, and was the father of Gerald FitzGerald, 14th Earl of Kildare,

Anne FitzGerald,

Margaret FitzGerald,

Catherine FitzGerald, who married firstly Jenico Preston, 3rd Viscount Gormanston; and secondly Richard St Lawrence, 7th Baron Howth; and

Mary FitzGerald, who married Brian O'Connor Faly, Baron Offaly. It seems she died in a 1596 shipwreck on the 2nd Spanish Armada.

Biography

Gerald FitzGerald, 9th Earl of Kildare was born in 1487 in Maynooth, County Kildare. He is referred to in the Irish annals as Gearóit Óge (the Younger Gerald) and as Garrett McAlison, after his mother, Alison FitzEustace, daughter of Rowland FitzEustace, 1st Baron Portlester.

In 1496, Gerald was detained by Henry VII at his court as a hostage for his father's fidelity. In April 1502, at the age of 15, he played the principal role in the funeral ceremony for Henry VII's eldest son Arthur, Prince of Wales in Worcester Cathedral.

In 1503, he was permitted to return with his father to Ireland, having married Henry VII's cousin Elizabeth Zouche. The next year he was appointed Lord Treasurer. In August 1504 he commanded the reserve at the Battle of Knockdoe, where his rashness and impetuosity were the cause of some loss of life. On the death of his father in 1513 he succeeded to the title, and was by the council chosen Lord-Justice. Henry VIII soon afterwards appointed him Lord-Deputy. His brother-in-law, Lord Slane succeeded him as Lord Treasurer.

Some of the Irish chiefs at the end of 1513 having ravaged parts of the Pale, the Earl, early in the following year, defeated O'More and his followers in Leix, and then, marching north, took the Castle of Cavan, killed O'Reilly, chased his followers into the bogs, and returned to Dublin laden with booty. This energetic action was so highly approved by the King that he granted the Earl the customs of the ports in the County of Down – rights repurchased by the Crown from the 17th Earl in 1662. In 1516 the Earl invaded Imayle in the Wicklow Mountains, and sent the head of Shane O'Toole as a present to the Lord Mayor of Dublin. He then marched into Ely O'Carroll, in conjunction with his brother-in-law the Earl of Ormond, and James, son of the Earl of Desmond. They captured and razed the Castle of Lemyvannan, took Clonmel, and in December he returned to Dublin "laden with booty, hostages, and honour".

In March 1517 he called a parliament in Dublin, and then invaded Ulster, stormed the Dundrum Castle, marched into Tír Eoghain, and took, the Castle of Dungannon, "and so reduced Ireland to a quiet condition". On 6 October of the same year his Countess died at Lucan, Dublin, and was buried at Kilcullen. Next year, 1518, his enemies having accused him of maladministration, he appointed a deputy and sailed for England. He was removed from the government, and Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk appointed in his stead. He appears to have accompanied the King to France in June 1520, and was present at "the Field of the Cloth of Gold", where he was distinguished by his bearing and retinue. On this occasion, he met the King's first cousin, Lady Elizabeth Grey, whom he married a few months afterwards, and thereby gained considerable influence at court.

Death

At this period, Kildare had partially lost the use of his limbs and his speech, in consequence of a gunshot wound received in an attack upon the O'Carrolls at Birr. He was again summoned to court; and in February 1534, at a council at Drogheda, in an affecting speech, he nominated his son Thomas, Lord Offaly, as Vice-Deputy, and then, embracing him and the lords of the council, set sail for England.

On his arrival in London he was arraigned on several charges, and was committed to the Tower. False rumors that he had been executed reached Ireland, sparking his son Thomas to impetuously commence a revolt against English rule. On hearing of his son's rebellion, and perusing the excommunication launched against him, he died "of grief" in the Tower on 2 September 1534. He was buried in the Chapel Royal of St Peter ad Vincula in the Tower.

Character

Lord Kildare was praised by contemporaries as "wise, deep, far-reaching and well-spoken". Later historians have described him, despite his ultimate failure, as a man of considerable intelligence, learning and diplomatic skill. In private life, he was a devoted husband and father, a generous host, a connoisseur of art and a great bibliophile.