Seamus Ó hÉilidhe
| Styles of Seamus Ó hÉilidhe | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| Reference style | The Most Reverend |
| Spoken style | Your Grace or Archbishop |
Seamus Ó hÉilidhe (Anglicised: James O'Hely, died 25 September 1595) was an Irish Roman Catholic clergyman. He was appointed Archbishop of Tuam by the Holy See on 20 March 1591.[1]
In 1592, as the Nine Years' War loomed, Ó hÉilidhe was dispatched to Spain by noblemen Red Hugh O'Donnell and Hugh Maguire, with the aim of obtaining military assistance from the Spanish.[2] He carried letters from O'Donnell and Archbishop Edmund MacGuaran, Primate of Ireland.[3]
Ó hÉilidhe met with councillor Don Juan de Idiáquez, the royal secretary,[3] who supervised King Philip II's dealings in the British Isles.[2] At the Escorial, Ó hÉilidhe presented the Council of War "with a complete account of the warlike potential and strategic possibilities of the confederate Irish". He described the forces controlled by O'Donnell (3,000 men plus his maternal family's Redshank mercenaries), Maguire (2,000 men), Brian Oge O'Rourke (1,000 men) and the Burke family (1,000 men).[3]
The archbishop emphasised to Idiáquez the persecution the Irish were suffering as fellow Catholics. He urgently requested between 8,000 to 10,000 Spanish soldiers to supplement Irish forces.[2] Ó hÉilidhe was supported by émigré Maurice Fitzgerald and Lisbon exile Cornelius O'Mulrian, Bishop of Killaloe.[3]
"The Irish archbishop of Tuam says that it will be of great importance for the success of the confederacy of Irish Catholics, that Your Majesty should write very affectionately to the earl of Tyrone, whose name is O’Neill to induce him to enter into the confederacy openly. He already belongs to it secretly, and he should be assured that Your Majesty’s aid shall not fail them. The archbishop begs Your Majesty to order a letter to be written to the earl to that effect."
Philip II thought these demands were heavy, but ultimately felt pity for the plight of Irish Catholics. Idiáquez was instructed to give the Irish "the very smallest aid that will be needed. If it be so small that we can give it, we will help them." Idiáquez arranged for a ship to take Ó hÉilidhe, Spanish experts and Irish émigrés, back to Ireland to gather intelligence and assist in the rebellion.[2] In March 1594, the ship was shipwrecked in a sandbar, on the coast of Santander, Cantabria, which halted any further lobbying.[2][3]
Seamus Ó hÉilidhe died in office on 25 September 1595.[4][1]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1986). Handbook of British Chronology (3rd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 443. ISBN 0-521-56350-X.
- ^ a b c d e f Morgan, Hiram (2013). Peduelo Martin, Eduardo; Rodriguez de Diego, Julia (eds.). "The establishment of the Irish-Spanish relationship" (PDF). Los Irlandeses y la Monarquia Hispanica (1529-1800): vinculos in espacio y tiempo. Madrid.
- ^ a b c d e f García Hernán, Enrique (2004). Morgan, Hiram (ed.). "Philip II's forgotten armada" (PDF). The Battle of Kinsale. Dublin: Wordwell Ltd: 45–58. ISBN 1-869857-70-4.
- ^ Cheney, David M. "Archbishop James O'Healy [Catholic-Hierarchy]". Catholic Hierarchy. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
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