Mary Butler (abt. 1422)

Born about 1422 in Ireland

Ancestors

Descendants

Died [date unknown] in Ireland

Biography

Siblings marrying siblings: John O'Carroll was married ca.1440 to Mary Butler, sister to Edward MacRichard Butler. Edward, in turn, married John's sister Catherine O'Carroll. The Butler siblings were grandchildren of James, 3rd Earl of Ormond.

John O’Carroll was the first Prince of Ely who lived at Leap Castle, and was probably responsible for the construction of the earliest sections of Leap Castle. ^[1]

John died at Leap Castle, and was succeeded by his son, Mulrony O’Carroll, "The Great".

Edited excerpts from the Dictionary of Irish Biography profile for Mulrony O'Carroll, father of John:^[2]

• John O'Carroll succeeded his father Mulrony as King of Ely upon the latter's death in 1443.

• Earlier, In 1432, James Butler, 4th Earl of Ormond, had returned from England and set about repairing his political position, which during his absence (1429–32) had become frayed under continual attack. The Four Masters record in 1432 that Mulrony O'Carroll [John's father] bore the brunt of Ormond's ire, when Butler forces and Donnchadh MacMurrough (d.1478), King of Leinster, invaded the midlands and the O'Carroll homeland. From the evidence, they defeated Mulrony and broke down 2 of his castles, forcing him to recognise Butler hegemony.

• In spite of this dispute, Ormond and Mulrony steadily tailored their ambitions to suit their common ends: Ormond was determined to shore up his position in west Leinster and the midlands, and the O'Carrolls were at the heart of his new midland policy. Thus, Ormond ensured the future O'Carroll attachment to the Butlers, contracting a double marriage alliance with the family of Mulrony. Concretely, this involved John O'Carroll and his sister Catherine marrying Butler siblings.

• Playing an important role in Ormond's plans was the Butler family of Polestown, whose significance was the location of their manor astride the strategic junction from Gowran and Kilkenny to Carlow. They were very much a frontier family, living on the pressurised northern frontiers of the Ormond earldom, facing the O'Carrolls as well as the MacGillapatricks and the O'Mores.

• For Ormond, it was therefore imperative that the Butlers of Polestown conclude marriage alliances to stabilise the northern borders. About 1440 Edmund MacRichard Butler of Polestown and his sister Mary respectively married Catherine and John O'Carroll (d.1489), the children of Mulrony. The O'Carroll alliance also drew the Butlers closer to the O'Connor Falys [of Offaly], O'Kennedys, and MacGeoghegans, the kinsmen of the O'Carrolls.

Sources

1. ↑ Leap Castle
2. ↑ https://www.dib.ie/biography/ocarroll-o-cearbhaill-maolruanaidh-a6295