Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 28, 1917.djvu/473

 Collectanea. 439

Bay, to Rockfleet, Clew Bay, and Clare Island, and even to Dungrania on Inishbofin. No record shows that she had any connection with these places save with Rockfleet, or Carriga- howley, a lonely rude little peel tower, on a low shore, looking out to the crowd of whale-backed islets in Clew Bay, reputed to equal in number the days of the year.^ Her father, however, owned Chara, or Clare Island — I must abstract her history for comparison with the folk-tales. Grainne ni Mhaille, or " na gcearbach " 2 (of the gamblers), was daughter of Dubhdara Ua Mhaille, " chief of Upper Owle O'Malley," " the Ooles," Umhail, or the part of Murrisk Barony south of Clew Bay. Her mother, Margaret, was daughter of Conoghor O'Malley. Grainne first married Donnell O'Flaherty, chief of Connemara, and secondly Richard " an larainn " Bourke, chief of Carra and Burrishoole, on the north side of the bay, who had succeeded Sir John Bourke as "the MacWilliam Eighter" and died in 1583. Grania first appears in history as driving away a fleet sent to blockade Carrigahowley in 1572. Two years later Sir Henry Sidney writes of a visit to him from " a most famous feminine sea- captain called Granny Imally," her husband, too, was with her, but quite overshadowed by his formidable spouse ; she offered the services of three galleys and 200 men. In 1577 she was captured by Gerald Earl of Desmond (why or how is not related), who gave her to the safe-keeping of Drury, the Lord Justice, and she was imprisoned for a year and a half in Dublin Castle. Strange to say, her friendship to the English dates from this time, and, when her husband rebelled against them, she helped Malby to harass him.^ Stranger yet, she was recon- ciled to MacWilliam, and lived with him till his death, three years later. She established her residence at Carrigahowley and was suspected by the government of aiding her husband's

'They are called "37S islands" on fourteenth and fifteenth century portolan maps.

-So called in a contemporary poem on Shane O'Doherty, which O'Donovan regarded as the one contemporary record of Grainne (^O.S. Letteis, vol. ii. p. 249), but the Hardiman map, No. I, temp. Eliz. records " O'Male Grani."

^ Sir R. Bingham calls her " Grany Maly a notable traitress and nurse to all rebellions in Connacht for 40 years " {Cal. State Prs. Ireld. 1593, No. 18).