He set about developing ancient Belfast into a more modern town, something that he hoped would make him huge wads of cash, primarily from rents and profit from trade on his land. Despite this he did not advocate the wholesale removal of the Gaelic Irish from the planted lands and they continued to live cheek by jowl with the planters until this very day. He presided over the Ulster Plantation and following the Flight of the Earls in 1607 he confiscated their lands and divvied them up between the Scottish and English settlers. Previously governor of nearby Carrickfergus, Arthur Chichester was granted “the castle of Bealfaste” in 1603 before being appointed Lord Justice of Ireland in 1604 by King James 1 st, henceforth to be known as 1 st Baron Chichester.
As such he was responsible for a scorched earth policy that helped end the war in typically brutal fashion, potentially earning him a reputation worse than Cromwell. He was knighted in 1595 for his role in the Irish wars, rewarded specifically for his efforts “to break up that barbarous nation by conquest and sow it with seeds of civility”Īrthur was the architect of the military policy in Ulster during the O’Neill Rebellion known as the Nine Years war between 15. Or maybe not.Ĭonsequently, he was forgiven for this “youthful indiscretion” and his military prowess meant he quickly rose through the ranks, becoming “Sergeant Major” of Elizabeth’s Irish forces, in other words a top general under Mountjoy, the supreme commander. Despite his crimes, he appeared to be a favourite of Queen Elizabeth and it’s easy to picture him as a Blackadder type, continually flirting with Queenie.
Carrickfergus coat of arms trial#
A soldier and adventurer, he moved to Ireland following a trial for highway robbery in England. It has not been verified whether their descendants went on to play for Glentoran or not.Īn Englishman whose family had puritanical sympathies, Arthur Chichester was a complex man who played a pivotal and controversial role in Irish history. However things were not to bode well for John Chichester, for later that year he was beheaded by the vengeful MacDonnell clan who then played football with his severed head. However the Castle was quickly retaken by Arthur Chichester’s brother John, who put those troublesome native Irish disembowelers to the sword. The native Irish had taken Belfast Castle back from the English Lords in 1597 in grisly fashion “all the Inglishe men in the ward were hanged and their throats cutt and their bowels cut oute of ther bellyes”. The first actual reference to “Bel-Feirste”, roughly translated as “mouth of the sandbank ford”, was in 1476 with a reference to the original castle being under control of the O’Neill dynasty.īy the end of the 16 th century, English rule in the north of Ireland was hanging by a thread to say the least. There have been settlements in the area since the Mesolithic era, but the first documented reference was in 668AD recording a battle between two tribes, the Ulaid and Cruithin at the “Fearsat” (sandbank) of the Lagan River. Much of the layout of today’s city centre is named in homage to them.īut before we discover just who Arthur Chichester was and why half the town is named after him, let’s have a quick potted history of Belfast. The Chichester family were the landlords of Belfast from the 17 th century until the mid 19 th century, having been granted the title of Earl of Donegall in 1647. They were named after family of perhaps the most influential character in the development of Belfast Sir Arthur Chichester. The giveaway is that the Belfast Donegall related place names are spelt with two ‘L’s, not one as with the north-western Ulster county. If you’d thought they’re named after County Donegal…you’re wrong, so go stand at the back of the class! Next time you’re walking, cycling or driving along Chichester Street, Donegall Square, Place, Road, Street, Quay or Pass, cast your mind as to who or what these vast tracts of Belfast city centre are named after.
0 kommentar(er)
