Margaret (FitzGerald) Butler (1472 - 1542)

Ancestors Descendants

Contents 1 Biography 2 Children 3 Research Notes 4 Sources

Biography

The well-known Margaret FitzGerald was the 2nd daughter of Gerald, 8th Earl of Kildare, known as "The Great Earl", and his wife Alison Eustace (the daughter of Roland FitzEustace, 1st Baron Portlester -- who was considered the most powerful Irish administrator in the 2nd half of the 1400s). Margaret appears to have inherited much of this political know-how from both sides of her family.

Margaret was called "unquestionably, one of the most remarkable women of her age and country"^[1] due to her fortitude in dealing with the political turbulence of the time; living precariously and at times on the run from invaders; managing the power struggles between the 2 most influential men of Ireland (her husband, 8th Earl of Ormond, and her brother, 9th Earl of Kildare); commissioning the construction of castles and schools; and promoting culture and the arts, all while giving birth to 9 children over a period of 20 years.

"Enough evidence survives in the form of official correspondence, the Ormond Deeds, and Kilkenny folklore to [characterise] her as able, intelligent, ruthless, and ambitious. If not quite the dominatrix of legend, she was an equal partner in her husband's hugely successful political and military enterprises."^[2]

Adapted from Margaret's profile in A Compendium of Irish Biography:^[3]

• Margaret is described by noted historian Richard Stanihurst (1547–1618)^[4] as "manlike and tall of stature, very liberal and bountiful, a sure friend, a bitter enemy, hardly disliking where she fancied, not easily fancying where she disliked" ... and helping to reclaim her husband's territories "from sluttishness and slovenry, to clean bedding and civility."

• Historian Rev. James Graves thus writes of her in his History of St. Canice's Cathedral:^[5] "Margaret, Countess of Ormonde and Ossory,.. the fairest daughter of the Earl of Kildare ... Large as is the place filled by the "Red Earl" [her husband] in the history of Ireland, in the traditions of the peasantry of Kilkenny his existence is utterly forgotten, whilst his consort stands vividly forth as "the Countess," or oftener as plain Mairgread Gearoid, forming with "Cromwell" and "the Danes" a triad to whom almost everything marvellous, cunning, or cruel is attributed. She is the traditional "builder" -- as Oliver Cromwell is the traditional "destroyer" -- of nearly every castle in the district; and by the peasant's fireside, numberless are the tales told of her power, her wisdom, and -- truth compels us to add -- her oppressions."

Margaret's profile in the Dictionary of Irish Biography offers a similar view of her personality, and of her long-running conflict with her brother, 9th Earl of Kildare.

The Dictionary of Irish Biography entry for her husband, Piers Butler, offers some insights into Margaret's determination and political astuteness:

• "[Piers] is perhaps the best exemplar of the use of naked ambition and political skill to achieve personal goals in late medieval Ireland ... Through drive, determination, and ability he advanced himself ... overcoming huge obstacles and reconstituting the authority of the earls of Ormond. The ability and skills of his wife Margaret were vital to this process, and neatly complemented his own. Butler showed an almost uncanny innate ability to navigate through the dangers of Tudor Ireland. His understanding that good relations at the English court were vital for future advancement is shown by his sending his son James to be educated there. He also repeated the policy used by [his father-in-law] the Great Earl of Kildare and created a large network of supporters, through the judicious use of marriage alliances between his children and the nobility of Ireland."

Margaret and Piers are buried in St. Canice's Cathedral, Kilkenny, with a large funeral effigy.

Upon Margaret's death in 1542, the role of family matriarch passed to her daughter-in-law Joan FitzGerald, married to James, 9th Earl of Ormond.

Children

In 1485, Margaret's father Gerald agreed to marry her to his foster son and political ally Piers Butler, although the marriage may not have occurred for a few years.^[6]

Children of Piers Butler and Margaret FitzGerald, in very approximate order, since by necessity many of the birth years are estimated from context:

• Margaret (1490-1540s) who married 3 times: 1) Thomas, 2nd son of Maurice, 9th Earl of Desmond; 2) Richard MacWilliam Burke, 9th Lord of Clanricarde, and 3) Brian MacGillaPadraig (later FitzPatrick), 1st Baron Upper Ossory

• Ellice (1491-1546) who married 1) Sir Oliver Morres^[7] and 2) Gerald FitzGerald, 3rd Lord Decies

• Catherine (1495-1553) married 1) Richard Le Poer, 1st Baron le Power, and, when in her 50s, 2) James FitzJohn FitzGerald, 14th Earl of Desmond

• James, 9th Earl of Ormonde (1496-1546, poisoned) married Joan FitzGerald,^[8] daughter and heiress of James FitzMaurice, 10th Earl of Desmond

• Richard, 1st Viscount Mountgarret (1500-1571) married 4 times, and had 11 children with his 4th wife, Eleanor Butler, daughter of his first cousin Theobald Butler of Neigham^[9]

• Joan (1501-) married James Butler, 10th Baron Dunboyne

• Thomas (ca.1505-1532), who apparently never married, was murdered in 1532 by his brother-in-law Dermot MacGillaPadraig (brother of his sister Margaret's 3rd husband, Brian) and the Earl of Kildare's men^[10][11]

• Eleanor (ca.1508-bef.1545), who married Thomas Butler, 1st Baron Cahir^[12]

• Helen (1510-1597)^[13] married Donough O'Brien, 1st Earl of Thomond, son of the last King of Thomond

Research Notes

Highlights from Margaret's Wikipedia profile:

• Margaret was also known by her Irish name of Mairgread Gearoid, or else playfully as Magheen or Little Margaret, due to her tall stature.^[14]

• Her union with Piers Butler was political, arranged to end the long-standing rivalry between the Earls of Kildare and the Earls of Ormond. In the early years of their marriage, Margaret and her husband were reduced to penury by James Dubh Butler or "Black James", an illegitimate nephew and agent of the absentee Thomas Butler, 7th Earl of Ormond, who resided in England and was rumoured to have been the wealthiest subject in the realm. Piers retaliated by killing James Dubh in a skirmish in 1497, and received a pardon for his crime in 1498.

• In 1498, Margaret and Piers seized Kilkenny Castle and made it their chief residence. Through her considerable efforts, the standard of living inside the castle was greatly improved.

• In 1528, Margaret's husband was persuaded to renounce his Ormond title in favour of the 7th Earl's grandson, Sir Thomas Boleyn, whose daughter Anne Boleyn was being courted by King Henry VIII. In 1522, there had been a proposal that Anne should marry James, the eldest son of Margaret and Piers, in an attempt to resolve the dispute over the earldom following the death of the 7th Earl (1515). With Sir Thomas Boleyn as Earl of Ormond, his daughter Anne would have brought her Ormond inheritance as dowry, and thus ended the dispute. The marriage negotiations ended in failure and the King shortly afterwards became enamoured of Anne. To elevate her in rank, Henry bestowed the earldoms of Ormond and Wiltshire upon her father. Aided by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, Piers was compensated by being made 1st Earl of Ossory that same year (1528).

• She signed herself "Margaret Fitzgerald of the Geraldines", and occupied herself in legal matters regarding her family and the Ormond estates, having worked with Piers in developing the estate, expanding and rebuilding manor houses. She also established Kilkenny Grammar School. She urged Piers to bring over skilled weavers and artificers from Flanders and she helped establish industries for the production of carpets, tapestries and "diapers".^[15]

• Margaret and Piers were responsible for commissioning significant additions to the castles of Kilkenny. Starting in 1501, they rebuilt Gowran Castle, originally constructed in 1385 by Piers' ancestor James Butler, 3rd Earl of Ormond, whose father was a great-grandson of King Edward I.

Sources

1. ↑ The Earls of Kildare, and Their Ancestors: From 1057 to 1773, in 2 volumes (Dublin, 1858-62), pp.74-77:
   • https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101072878489&view=1up&seq=86
2. ↑ Dictionary of Irish Biography profile for Margaret FitzGerald:
   • https://www.dib.ie/biography/butler-lady-margaret-a1269
3. ↑ Alfred Webb, A Compendium of Irish Biography (1878), entry for Lady Margaret FitzGerald, Countess of Ormond:
   • https://www.libraryireland.com/biography/CountessofOrmond.php
4. ↑ See Margaret's profile, and more of Stanihurst's comments on her, in The Earls of Kildare, and Their Ancestors: From 1057 to 1773, in 2 volumes (Dublin, 1858-62), pp.74-77:
   • https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101072878489&view=1up&seq=84
5. ↑ Rev. James Graves, History of the Cathedral Church of St. Canice, Kilkenny. (Dublin, 1857)
6. ↑ Dictionary of Irish Biography profile for Margaret FitzGerald:
   • https://www.dib.ie/biography/butler-lady-margaret-a1269
7. ↑ Sir Oliver Morres is believed to have been murdered by the MacGillaPadraigs (later FitzPatricks) ca.1523.
8. ↑ After James' death by poisoning in London in 1546, Joan was married to the much-younger Gerald, 15th Earl of Desmond, in order to keep the peace between the Ormonds and the Geraldines.
9. ↑ Theobald Butler of Neigham was the son of Edmund Butler (b. ca.1462), elder illegitimate brother of Piers, 8th Earl of Ormond.
10. ↑ The full account of the murder in Ballykeely, Co. Laois, and the complaint lodged by Thomas' eldest brother James, can be found in the Calendar of Ormond Deeds, Vol. IV, item #191, pp.159+
    • https://www.irishmanuscripts.ie/digital/Calendar%20of%20Ormond%20Deeds%20Vol.%20IV.%201509-1547/Calendar%20of%20Ormond%20Deeds%20Vol.%20IV.%201509-1547.pdf
11. ↑ 1526: Thomas Butler, son of the Earl of Ormond, receives grant of land in Foulksrath, Co. Kilkenny, from Elena Walsh alias Brenaghe, former wife of Thomas Purcell.
    • Richard J. Hayes, Manuscript Sources for the History of Irish Civilisation (1965), Vol. 3-4, p.519:
      • https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSH8-LQHN-T?cat=43679
12. ↑ This marriage ca.1530 between a Butler of Ormond and a Butler of Cahir (common ancestor James, 3rd Earl of Ormond) was particularly significant because it aimed to put an end to 80 years of hostility between the 2 branches. Paving the way for this marriage was the 1517 "Composition", a treaty whereby Thomas' father Edmund FitzThomas recognised Eleanor's father Piers' "lordship over the whole county". In exchange, Edmund received Cahir Castle for himself and his heirs -- including Thomas, who was ennobled as 1st Baron Cahir in 1543. For more context on this treaty of 1517, see Edmund's Wikitree profile, or consult the original document here:
    • Calendar of Ormond Deeds, Vol. 4, item #49, pp.43+
      • https://www.irishmanuscripts.ie/digital/Calendar%20of%20Ormond%20Deeds%20Vol.%20IV.%201509-1547/Calendar%20of%20Ormond%20Deeds%20Vol.%20IV.%201509-1547.pdf
13. ↑ The funeral monument (1597) for Lady Ellena Butler, 6th and youngest daughter of Piers Butler, at St. Canice's, Kilkenny, is catalogued by Paul Cockerham & Amy Louise Harris in Kilkenny Funeral Monuments 1500-1600: A Statistical & Analytical Account (p.186). Published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy: Archaeology, Culture, History, Literature, Vol. 101C, No. 5 (2001):
    • https://www.jstor.org/stable/25516289
14. ↑ The Geraldines: The House of Desmond and The House of Kildare, taken from A History of Ireland, by Eleanor Hull.
15. ↑ In former times, "diaper" was "a linen or cotton fabric woven in a repeating pattern of small diamonds."

• Margaret's tomb appears on the cover of Damien Duffy's book, Aristocratic Women in Ireland, 1450-1660: The Ormond Family, Power and Politics (Boydell & Brewer, 2021). Her family is covered extensively in the section "Family, Marriage and Politics: The 6 Daughters of Margaret FitzGerald & Piers Butler", pp.105-138:
  • https://books.google.nl/books?id=5EE3EAAAQBAJ&dq

• Dáithí Ó hÓgáin, "Two Geraldines as Butler Brides". Published in the journal Béaloideas of the Folklore of Ireland Society, Vol.78 (2010), pp.187–204:
  • https://www.jstor.org/stable/41412214

• The Butler Family of Lebanon, Connecticut (The Tuttle Co., Rutland, Vt., 1934) Page 13