Page:Life and death of the Irish parliament.djvu/18

18 master of England. It was on condition of allowing the Danes to have their own laws that he secured any- thing like allegiance. He had to fit out a fleet of three thousand boats yearly to check their depredations in the north, though, indeed, without ever bringing it into action, its appearance was enough to insure order.f It may not be denied, indeed, that there is mention of Ireland as subject to him. But this arose from the fact that the Danes were in possession of a great part of Ire- land, and particularly the maritime towns, and as the Danes in Northumbria made a show of submission to him, he thought, or they thought, their countrymen in Ireland may be included. In fact fifty years had not elapsed when Brien the “brave” had to engage in a death struggle with them. King Edgar’s successors sentno help. Why, England was overrun with Danish hordes at the time. By the way, one northman was deemed a match for ten Englishmen.{t Brian Boroimhe fought and fell, but conquered, yet a few cities were left to the Danes. Even two hundred years after, the love of kindred shown by the Danes in having their country- men in Ireland mentioned in King Edgar’s charter, was still manifested. For the Bishops of Dublin and Waterford, in the possession of the Danes, asked conse. cration from the Norman Archbishop of Canterbury, with whom they claimed kindred.§ Edgar, then, was not conqueror of Ireland; and the Danes themselves, the very descendants of those who called, or allowed themselves to be called, subjects of Edgar, fought des- perately against the English sent by Henry the Second.

Can we forget the bravery of the citizens of Dublin, the heroic efforts made by the saintly patriot, Laurence O’Toole, who, as some say, buckled on armour, but, by the admission of all, went among the dying to rescue them from the heel of the oppressor, and give them the ’ { Serm. sup. apud Hickes, 103, Ibid. § See Ussher’s Sylloge.