Katherine (McGillapatrick) Grace (abt. 1520)

Born about 1520 in Ireland

Ancestors

Died [date unknown] in Ireland [uncertain]

Biography

Daughter of Joan O'Carroll (b. ca.1500), the first wife (until bef. 1533) of Barnaby FitzPatrick, later 1st Baron of Upper Ossory.

From History & Antiquities of the Diocese of Ossory:

• Regarding her father: "The Baron had a daughter, married before October 1537 to Robert, son and heir of Baron John Grace of Courtstown, and who was presumably the Katherine McGylpatricke [sic], wife of Robert Grace, granted English liberty, Jan. 4th, 1540-1 ... She cannot have been his daughter by Margaret Butler; neither was she his illegitimate daughter, for it is out of the question to suppose that Baron Grace's heir would marry an illegitimate daughter of the Baron of Upper Ossory. Hence it must be regarded as sufficiently certain that Brian, the first Baron of Upper Ossory, had been already married long before his marriage with Margaret Butler, the daughter of the Earl of Ormond."^[1]

Research Notes

To help future researchers avoid confusion: The surname became "FitzPatrick" ca. 1540, after their father adhered to the Tudor Surrender and Re-Grant policy. There were apparently 2 MacGillapatrick sisters who married 2 different Grace men: Honora married Thomas Grace, rector at Callan, County Kilkenny.^[2] Katherine married Robert Grace, son and heir of Baron John Grace of Courtstown (Carrigan). The 2 Grace men were almost certainly relatives, given that such close ties were typical among families of the Irish ruling class at the time.

Sources

1. ↑ Rev. William Carrigan's pedigree & biography of the Lord Barons of Upper Ossory, from Vol. 1 (Chapter IX) of his History & Antiquities of the Diocese of Ossory (1905). See p.82 for the reference to his daughter:
   • https://archive.org/details/historyandantiq02carrgoog/page/n122/mode/2up
2. ↑ The Peerage profile for Thomas Grace, referencing Burke's.