Wikipedia

Henry O'Neill (soldier)

Henry O'Neill (c. 1586 – 25 August 1610) was an Irish-born soldier and nobleman who primarily served in Continental Europe. He was relocated to Spain in 1600 at the age of 13.[1]

Henry O'Neill
Bornc. 1586
Ulster, Ireland
Died25 August 1610 (aged 23)
Aranda, Spain
FatherHugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone
MotherSiobhán O'Donnell

Family background

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Henry O'Neill was born c. 1586,[2][3][1] the second son of Gaelic lord Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, and his second wife Siobhán O'Donnell. He was descended from the O'Neill and O'Donnell clans of Tír Eoghain and Tyrconnell respectively.[1] Henry had several older sisters, Sarah, Mary[4] and Alice,[5] as well as an older brother Hugh.[6][7]

Career

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Henry's father Tyrone, leader of the Irish confederacy during the Nine Year's War, sought military assistance from Philip II of Spain. In April 1600, Tyrone stimulated the Irish-Spanish alliance by sending Henry to Spain.[8] Henry was escorted to Spain by one of the Philip's most trusted commanders, Don Martín de la Cerda. He was relocated to Salamanca for his education, and was given an allowance of two hundred ducats per month. Henry settled permanently in Spain.[1]

In 1601, Henry took the Franciscan habit, causing much concern amongst the Spanish Council of State.[9]

He became a colonel of an Irish regiment in Archduke Albert VII's army.[10]

Death

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Micheline Walsh states that Henry died on 25 August 1610, aged 23, in the Spanish town of Aranda.[11] Jerrold Casway agrees that Henry died in 1610.[12] Henry's older brother Hugh, who had succeeded Tyrone as Baron Dungannon, died in September 1609.[6][7]

Burke's Peerage states Henry died c. September 1617.[3] The Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland states he died c. 1620.[2] Historian Robert Dunlop states that Henry died c. 1626,[10] though Paul Walsh notes that it is clear Henry died sometime before the publication of Philip O'Sullivan Beare's Historia Catholica in 1621.[13]

References

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Citations

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  1. ^ a b c d Walsh 1957, p. 5.
  2. ^ a b Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland 1867, p. 459.
  3. ^ a b Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003. p. 3006
  4. ^ Casway 2016, pp. 71, 73, 78.
  5. ^ Cokayne 1910, p. 174.
  6. ^ a b Casway 2016, pp. 71–72.
  7. ^ a b Concannon 1920, p. 218.
  8. ^ Morgan, Hiram (September 2014). "O'Neill, Hugh". Dictionary of Irish Biography. doi:10.3318/dib.006962.v1. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  9. ^ Walsh 1957, pp. 5–6.
  10. ^ a b Dunlop 1895, p. 196.
  11. ^ Walsh 1957, p. 9.
  12. ^ Casway 2016, p. 72.
  13. ^ Walsh 1930, p. 30.

Sources

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Further reading

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