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as was necessary, to arrest, imprison and punish all Proprietors refractory persons, and to do such other things as appeared necessary for the public peace. King Richard II. granted his licence,* dated at Trim the 23d of December in the 8th year of his reign (1385), to baron Almaric Gras lord of Grace's country, "for the better preservation of the peace of the county of Kilkenny," to marry Tibina, daughter of O'Meagher the dynast or prince of Ikerrin,† styled in the patent "an Irishman and captain of his nation or sept, all

to that penalty, but likewise the dominions of the O'Neals and the O'Donnels, who both inherited from a long line of ancestors, and in their formal intercourse with the English government, had been treated with as public enemies, rather than as rebellious subjects.

"Ricardus &c. omnibus Ballivis, &c. Sciatis quod de gratia nostra speciali et pro melioratione pacis nostri comitatos Kylkenniensis concessimus et licentiam dedimus Almarico Gras Baroni de Gras quod ipse Tibinam filiam O'Meagher Hibernici suæ nationis Capitanei ducere possit in uxorem, quibuscumque statutis, ordinationibus, &c. &c. Rot. Pat. Cancel. 0°. Ric. 2. m. 16.

+ Hy Kerin, autrement Ikerrin, territoire a present barronie dans le comté de Tipperary, bornè au couchant par l'Ormond superieur, an midi par la barronie d'Eliogurty, au nord et a l'est par les comtes du Roi et de la Reine, pays des O'Meaghers, de la race de Hibert, par Kiann fils d'Orioll-Olum (roi de Munster.) Mac-Geoghegan Hist. d'Irlande, tom. 1. p. 216.

The feudal dignities of captain and tanist were found to exist in Ireland on the Strongbonian invasion, and so late as the reign of queen Elizabeth, they were occasionally recognised as legitimate ranks, and even confirmed by royal patent to particular chieftains, Mac Morough Kavanagh was acknowledged captain of his nation, and, as such, was permitted to have a body guard of hoblers (horse) and kerns (foot) in the same patent that created him baron of Ballyan. In virtue also of eight successive royal patents from the 8th year of Edward III. confirmed by several other records, the heads of this family, as chiefs of their sept or nation, received down to the reign of Henry

Proprietors laws to the contrary notwithstanding.

By this marriage baron Almaric Gras had issue John Gras his

VIII. inclusively an annual subsidiary sum of 80 marks, granted in
perpetuity by the British crown for their services in maintaining the
British laws in their country. Their hereditary jurisdiction or cap-
taincy, with the right of coining money, are likewise acknowledged
by these patents. The captain or prince was the governing lord
and the tanist was the heir apparent of his power.
He was
simply denominated from the name of his sept, as the O'Meagher,
the O'More, the O'Neal, the O'Brien, the Mac Morough, &c.-
After the extinction of the regal title among the native Irish,
that of captain was the highest degree of pre-eminence to
which the immediate family or descendants of their ancient kings
aspired. Thus Shane Dymas O'Neal preferred it to that of earl of
Tyrone, which, as he accepted in his adversity for purposes of policy,
so he abandoned with contempt to resume and exercise the power of
his more princely title of O'Neal. The author of the Fairy Queen has
described the mode of succession to this elective family dignity, and
he might very possibly have been an eye-witness to what be so mi-
nutely details.

Eudox. What is this which you call tanist and tanistry? these be names and terms never heard of nor known to us.

Iren. It is a custome amongst all the Irish, that, presently after the death of one of their chief lords or captains, they doe presently assemble themselves to a place generally appointed and knowne unto them, to choose another in his stead, where they do nominate and elect, for the most part, not the eldest sonne, nor any of the children of the lord deceased, but the next to him in blood, that is, the eldest and worthiest, as commonly the next brother unto him, if he have any, or the next cousin, or so forth, as any is elder in that kindred; and next to him do they choose the next of the blood to be tanist, who shall next succeed him in the said captaincy, if he live thereunto.

Eudox. Do they not use any ceremony in this election, for all barbarous nations are commonly great observers of ceremonies and superstite rites?

Iren. They use to place him that shall be their captaine upon a stone, always reserved to that purpose, and placed commonly upon a bill; in some of which I have seen formed and engraven a foot, which they say was the measure of their first captain's foot; whereon hee standing, receives an oath to preserve all the auncient former customs of the countrey inviolable, and to deliver up the succession peaceably to bis tanist, and then bath a wand delivered unto him by some whose

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