The Earls of Kildare AAR

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Inspired by Deaghaidh's AAR, I have decided to run my own little AAR using Ireland under IGC v2.3 for the time of the Kildare Earls. Unfortunately (well, more fortunately) I had installed the EU random editor and although I reset the defaults there seems to be difference in the Missions available to take (maybe outlandish in their feasibility, but fun to do all the same) and the option of colonial dynamism is available for the Irish. These changes may be part of IGC v2.3 and have nothing to do with the random generator as I had been playing previously with v2.0 (I thought colonial dynamism could be switched off, but I forget how - not that it matters much for the early part of the game).

The Clan Chiefs are no more, in their place are the Earls of Kildare - Gearoid Mor Fitzgerald, Gearoid Og and "Silken" Thomas. The Earls of Ormond, otherwise known as the Butler Clan - the sworn enemies of the Fitzgeralds, may play a role in game terms if there is any local unrest. The Earl of Ormond traditionally ruled from Kilkenny and Waterford over to Cork. The Earl of Kildare ruled from Kildare town down to the Wicklow Hills and over to the borders of Meath. Munster was ruled by the Earl of Desmond (also the Fitzgerald clan) and Ulster came under the jurisdiction of the O'Neills.

In the mid 15C, the Fitzgeralds were keen supporters of the Duke of York, who was sent to rule Ireland by King Henry VI to weaken the threat he posed to the throne. In 1459, Richard constructed an Irish parliament in Drogheda, free from the laws of London's parliament but still loyal to the crown. The Butlers were supporters of the Lancasterians, headed by the then Monarch Henry VI. In 1462, the 7th Earl of Desmond sacked the Ormond towns of Wateford and Kilkenny, and was appointed Deputy of Ireland in 1463. But he was to pay the price for his rule in 1468 when the Duke of York's son and then King, Edward IV made a demonstration of who really ruled Ireland, much to the pleasure of the Desmonds enemies in Ireland he was summoned to parliament in Drogheda and beheaded. This was to cause a considerable power shift in Ireland, as the Anglo-Irish Fitzgeralds garnered the support of the Irish people. Thomas's son, James, rose up in arms at the death of his father and ravaged the Kings lands of Meath in revenge. In 1470, after escaping capture for treason in 1468, the Earl of Kildare was made Deputy of Ireland which was the start of a dynastic rule that would last upto the death of 'Silken' Thomas.

James's son, Gearoid, succeeded as Deputy in 1477 and resided in Maynooth castle. Edward IV tried to replace Gearoid Mor "Thre Great Earl of Kildare" in 1478 with Lord Grey. But, Lord Grey was forced to return to England when Gearoid called parliament to confirm his rule. The death of Edward IV in 1483, the succession of his son, Edward V and the immediate asscenion of Richard, Duke of Gloucester to the throne following the internment of the young Edward to the Tower of London was the start of a brief 2 year rule. Richard III death in the last battle of the civil war in England brought to the throne the leader of the Tudor family, Henry VII. However, this did not weaken the support of the Yorkists in Ireland. In 1487 and 1491, the Irish leaders witnessed the crowning of Yorkist's pretenders in Christchurch, Dublin. Henry VII tried to 'resolve' the issue by sending Richard Edgecomber to Dublin to receive the Deputy's submission, but the Earl of Kildare broke all protocol and delayed talks for a month resulting in no resolution and no submission.

This kicks off the AAR. Gearoid Mor is located in Leinster (not quite Maynooth!). I am still a BIG freshman to this and have made small changes to the leadership files - providing the Earl of Kildare as a starting General for the Irish (Maneuver 1, Fire 2, Shock 2, Siege 0) - the stats reflect his charisma and leadership, although he would probably lack the technical strength of his English counterparts at the time. I will run this AAR until 1534 - when the Earls of Kildare rebelled. The primary reason for this was that I was unable to update and research the game files beyond that and I presume there is no easy way to change files once the game is begun (or is there?). No doubt they will be rebelling before that anyway

 

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It was the year 1492 and all was not well with the world.....

Gearoid Mor was a charismatic leader, fondly known by his Irish subjects as the "The Great Earl of Kildare". His rag tag army of 6000 infantry and 1000 cavalry was a mix of Yorkist sympathisers, gallowglasses, clan sons and French expatriates who had escaped persecution at English hands. The English king, Henry VII held in considerable respect and envy the support the young Fitzgerald had amongst his lowly countrymen. His respect for the man extended to the garrison of 10,000 of the kings best men kept in Dublin. Although a "loyal king subject" and the then Deputy of Ireland, the King knew better than to leave the Earl of Kildare to his own devices. The prior visit of Lord Grey to the Earl resulted in an undignified send off that the King was not wont to forget to soon....

In Ireland, the Earl's standoff with the King's envoy brought a breath of freshair and productivity amongst the common man, a true Irishism considering the potential for a "Kings visit" (Game: Early Renaissance in Trade research at 100% ). The Earl of Desmond had his most creative men busying themselves in the development of a new merchant ship that could double as a troop transport and spying vessel. The growing prosperity of Ireland sharply contrasted to the unease present in England following costly wars with France and continued political unrest after the civil war. Gearoid's plans were often ambitious (Game: Conquer Meath ) but he was an ambitious man.

The growing prosperity of Ireland was not lost on the various states of Europe, and it was not uncommon for merchants and state ambassadors to be seen wandering the cobbled streets of Belfast, Cork or Waterford. Many combined their trips with visits to Dublin while some were so welcomed that they left with the hand of a spouse. Even Gearoid's own extended family succumbed to the foreign charm on their shores (Game: Marriage to Brandenburg ). Rumor amongst the lay folk was that such marriages were necessary to cover for the sins of their deeds, and many a tussled bale of hay could be found on the estates of the Fitzgeralds and other neighboring clans.

By March of 1492, Henry VII had grown weary of the peace of Ireland and pulled his Dublin garrison back to Bristol for training. The clan Fitzgeralds relations with France and their king were improving, as many of his foot soldiers and cavalry had introduced their leaders to French ways and culture. Relations were further improved when a nephew of the Earl, his hair as red as the fury of his uncle, was married to a Bordeux princess.

Travellers from far and wide were coming to Ireland to share tales and information (Game: Exchange of Maps). Not since the File were stories of mystery lands and seas of sand exchanged with such passion over a tankard of porter next to a large peat fire.

Gearoid had wanted to improve relations with the Scottish clans as their alliance with England would make any attempt on the Pale difficult. The potential for a Scottish counter attack on O'Neills poorly defended Ulster was a threat Gearoid did not want to have as such an attack would be devastating to the Irish cause. Many envoys and consorts were sent to meet and 'engage' with the leaders of Scotland in Edinburgh, but all returned empty handed or no-handed. Scotland was proving to be as stubborn as its history.

By 1493, relations were France were at a high and Gearoid considered pushing for an alliance. His advisors pointed to recent (disasterous) history of English requests for supplies and troops from the yokels and artisans of Ireland. The loyalty of the Earl's people would not be enough to sustain an attack on the English Pale. Ireland's economic climate was fragile and would collapse if it needed to support the strain of a military campaign. In addition, Ireland could ill afford a call from an ally should such a request be made. By the summer, Ireland's towns were prospering (Infrastructure early Renaissance ) and Gearoid took the opportunity to raise a cobble tax on the people and more importantly, hired suitably loyal subjects to collect it (Bailiffs promoted in Leinster and Munster ). Scotland's princes had again turned down the love of an Irish cailin and were starting to get irritated with Irish attentions (dwindling relations ).

The first of many Irish merchants left home shores for foreign capitals (Trade established in Flandres ). Gearoid had started to focus in earnest on improving his army and providing them with the necessary weaponry to deal with any English or Butler rebellion (Investment. Land 0.9, Naval 0.1, Trade 0.7 others 0.0 ). The fiery passion of the Fitzgerald clan was appreciated in the courtrooms and bedrooms of many European states (further marriages to Venice and Tuscany ).

Henry VII had not forgotten about the Earl of Kildare, and a decision was made to remove him from his deputyship. In 1494, Edward Poynings army of 10000 men arrived in Dublin to meet with Gearoid. As happened before, Gearoid did not budge from his Leinster home and Edward Poynings was hastily called back to England (OK - history out the door, Poynings was to make a big impact in REAL Irish history, but not here! ). The O'Neill clan of Ulster had started to reap the benefits of Irelands boom and a cobble tax was implemented in the town of Belfast. The spread of goodwill was not lost amongst the northern Ulstermen but in June 1494, a littleknown Scottish prince by the name of Hamish McClure fell for a "wee" slip of a lass from the dregs of the Fitzgerald clan. A wedding was hastily conducted and the mother-of-all receptions celebrated that ensured the Scots did not see the stump from amongst the trees.

Flushed with Scottish success, Gearoid returned from Scotland to be given news that Portugal had attacked Spain. The war dragged in France, Savoy, Brittany and Persia on the side of the Portugese and Gearoid hoped for the English to join in the defence of Spain. Persia was a place alien to his knowledge of the developed world, but the war was not going to want and information was needed. The fertile Fitzgerald clan sent a young, forthright cailin to the Portugese court armed with uisce beaithe and a winning smile. Needless to say, her choosen Prince was not long in capitulating of not entirely his own will. The "Great Earl of Kildare" and his extended clan were developing quite a reputation across Europe.

All was not going well at home, orders for the "Great Fitzgerald Army" uniforms had the tailors and cobblers of Belfast and Cork up in arms when payment was not to be made until delivery (Random event: Half investment lost in infrastructure ). Income needed to be raised, so flushed of the success from the Flandres operations, merchants were sent to the competitive city of Venice to trade. Things were looking bad for Henry VII too. Rumblings in France forced Henry VII to move his men from border duty in Northern England and Ireland to southern England and Calais. For his failure in Dublin, Edward Poynings was sent to the Calais garrison where he was heard to exclaim that "the food and company in Calais were as bad as that which was to be found in Dublin.". However, Henry VII was not to leave Gearoid Mor unattended and following a rumor of a potential raid on Meath from the Earl of Ormond, he ordered Captain Norfolk and his 15,000 men to Dublin to await further orders. By August 1495, Edward Poynings had returned to London following a bout of food posioning and was dismissed to a trainee garrison in Bristol where he was to fade out of Irish history.

To be continued....

 

[Lord Durham]

Nicely written, FinnMcCool. You have a good style. I look forward to more.

 

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September 1494-

Gearoid Mor was watching the war between Spain and Portugal with great interest. The forthright, young, Irish-Portugese princess was sending regular news home on the war with Spain gathered from snippets from hushed conversations in the Portugese court. But the arrival of young Spanish prince to Cork had many of the young Desmonds in a flutter. It was not long in the waiting that another Royal marriage was celebrated and an important ally of Henry VII became a bedfellow of his most rebellious neighbour. Not wanting to upset Gearoid's Portugese family, words of congratulations were sent to Manuel I on his rise to the throne. The year was to close with the marriage of a Venetian clan merchant to a Modena princess and news of increased competiveness from Irish merchants amongst their rivals in Flandres, the tough upbringing of the Irish traders was in stark contrast to the foppish excessives of their competitors. The Earl of Kildare was living the high life, with the support of his people and the goodwill of his international neighbours (with the exception of England!) all was well in the clan Fitzgerald. This was in contrast to life within the Pale. Frequent cattle raids by bordering clan families, the lack of interest from London into the affairs of Dublin Castle and continued uncertainty as to Englands role on the continent was to lead to a tumultus new year.

Pale life was to take a more violent turn in April, 1496. After rumor that a new tax on cloth imports, otherwise known as the 'button tax' was to be introduced, sympathisers to the Earl of Kildare with the support of the once apathetic Pale tenants rose in arms and marched on Dublin. Unfortunately the rising was to be greeted with little success. Eager to assist, Gearoid Mor was advised against upsetting his fledgling nation with an army that was small and had little combat experience against the well versed English. It was to be a wise decision, Henry VII sent his best men under the leadership of Norfolk to deal with the "angry peasents". The scuffle on the lands of Dublin county was crushed ruthlessly, many of the rebels were hunted and slaughtered by the blood thirsty English as they tried to enter the lands protected by the Earl of Kildare. This did not dampen Irish hearts, and many English sympathisers, horrified by the actions of their soldiers, gathered what weaponry they could and marched on Dublin Castle in June. The second rebellion was dealt with more quickly and bloodily than the first. The aftermath of the attacks send shockwaves through the Irish clans. Many expressed disgust at the lack of support the rebels obtained from the Fitzgeralds, some of the smaller clans from Connacht refused to support the Earl further (Loss of merchants in Venice) and the Earl of Ormond was to be seen regularly in Dublin discussing the unrest in the country with the Monarchs representatives and general Norfolk himself. However, luck was to be on Gearoid's side, as France went on the offensive against Spanish interests in Northern Europe. Henry VII hastily recalled Norfolk and his men back to England, fearing an attack on Calais by the militant French. The English were to lose the initiative in conquering all Ireland, but the seeds of dissent were planted for future unrest.

Bullish news from Flandres (Irish merchants reach level 4, only the Spanish do better!, and then level 5 in the new year) helped put defeat in Dublin to the back of Irish minds. The development of improved cannon munitions and the increased interest in Irish trade overseas ( Land research 1.7, Naval 0.2, Trade 1.4, Income 0.4) helped restore some pride back into the bruised nation. However, the failings of April 1496 were a personal blow to Gearoid Mor, and a deep depression followed (Failed to conquer Meath). By June 1497, France accepted peace with Spain, obtaining the former Spanish interests of Luxembourg and Francha Comte. This now meant that England could relax again, and turn its attentions to Ireland once more.

A far off war in Turkey was all that Venetian merchants had to report of contiental affairs. It was greated with much relief by the merchants of Venice given the zeal at which the Turkish traders pushed their goods upon the unsuspecting. But the news of Turkey held little joy for Gearoid, as Norfolk and his new recruits of 15,000 men arrived in Dublin in November, 1497. The presence of Norfolk unsettled many inside and outside the Pale, and rumors started to cirulate that some trade ships had their goods stolen by English Privateers backed by Norfolk himself ( Trader lost in Venice ). Norfolk himself doesn't stay long in Dublin and the following month he returned to Bristol, satisfied with the uncertainty caused.

Gearoid's winter of discontent was to rise gently into a fresh, soft spring. Norfolks interfence in Irish trade interests was not enough to dampen the demands for Irish goods (Increase in merchant in Venice ) nor did it affect the guile and resourcefulness of the traders themselves (Traders compete away a Venetian trader from Venice! ). This was to lead to one extraordinary trip by a young buachiall of questionable age and sanity in June 1498. Conversations within the taverns of Cork told of a gentleman "as dark as the water of the burren", but of poor constitution and much chatter, ranting of the riches in distant lands. A map gambled away to a man-of-the-cloth revealed lands not heard off from the home of the Fitzgeralds. It was a from a drunken dare that the young man from Clare (all Clare people are crazy ) set off to visit these mysterious lands. No one expected to hear from him again and a memorial service was held in his name at the tavern where his journey began. As the summer faded to the golden colours of autumn news soon arrived that France had declared war on England......

 

[Deaghaidh]

I'm glad to see this one coming around as my AAR winds down. If you can keep this style and pace throughout, this is a very promising AAR indeed!

What is this thing you downloaded that was able to give Ireland Colonial Dynamism? If I'd known of it, I would certainly have used it (and for better or worse, my game would have been much different).

I'm suprised to see the English getting revolts in Dublin, usually they don't have much problems there. And its good to see good old Henry the VII still yo-yoing Norfolk in and out of Dublin every few months, like he did with me both times

Oh, and as the exiled descendant of two proud Clare clans, I can state with assurance that we are, indeed, quite mad.