The Pirate Queen

1. A woman in sixteenth
century Ireland was
expected to stay at home,
rear children and be utterly
obedient to her husband.
One woman, who had
different ideas and who
became a legend in her
lifetime was Grace O’Malley.
Certainly, Grace did marry
the chieftain Donald
O’Flaherry, she was a good
mother to their three
children, and she did her
share looking and
safeguarding their two castles in Connaught. But she was also a
natural leader, who quickly became a power in her own right and who
commanded the total respect and loyalty, not just of her own
followers, but of many of the surrounding clans (or tribes) as well.

2. She was a skilled and fearless sailor, with an expert knowledge of the
seas and rocky coastline of Connemara. With a force of 200 men and
at least eight galleys, she soon controlled most of the waters from
Mayo to Galway and Clare. Her living was earned by a mixture of trade
and piracy. She sailed her galleys to Scotland, Spain and Portugal
where she sold Irish goods and bought iron, glass, wines, silks and
spices. Grace was also a ruthless and very successful pirate, who
 swooped down upon large merchant ships to either relieve them of
their cargo or to demand a handsome fee in return for safe passage.

3. Grace was widowed around the year 1563. She later married the chief
of the Burke clan and moved to Rockfleet Castle beside Clew Bay,
County Mayo. At that time, the forces of Queen Elizabeth of England
were struggling with great difficulty to remove power from the Gaelic
chieftains and control Connaught. The activities of the pirate, Grace
O’Malley did not go unnoticed by them. In March. 1575, a large English
force under a Captain Martin sailed into Clew Bay to capture Grace and
her castle. With a great display of leadership and courage, she
successfully defended her fortress for many days and finally put the
enemy to flight.

4. Under Gaelic law, if a chieftain died, his wife could retain no more than
one third of his wealth and property. In fact, it was often the case
that widows were left with nothing. But when Grace’s second husband
died, she made sure that she kept everything by gathering her
followers and marching away with 1,000 head of cattle! The cattle
were not to remain in her possession for long, however, for the English
were determined to teach her a lesson. Grace was eventually arrested
and her herds taken from her. She now had to depend again on her
ships as her only way of making a living. And earning a living on the
wild seas became more and more difficult for an ageing woman whose
every move was being closely watched. Grace decided to go to the
Queen of England herself to argue her case. At the age of sixty-
three, she captained one of her own galleys and sailed around the
south coast and across the sea to the court of Elizabeth in London. It
was a dangerous and daring move, but it paid off. The Queen listened
with sympathy, and Grace’s requests for the return of some of her
property were granted.
5. Little is known of the remaining years of Grace O’Malley’s life. Even
her final resting place remains a mystery. But her name lives on in
story and legend, and her fortress, Rockfleet Castle, still stands proud
and strong at the edge of the great ocean.