at the Yale Law SchoolPosted on 10/19/2001 2:31:17 PM PDT by Ironword
The Avalon Project : The Bull of Pope Adrian IV Empowering Henry II to Conquer Ireland. A.D. 1155
at the Yale Law SchoolBishop Adrian, servant of the servants of God, sends to his dearest son in Christ, the illustrious king of the English, greeting and apostolic benediction. Laudably and profitably enough thy magnificence thinks of extending thy glorious name on earth, and of heaping up rewards of eternal felicity in Heaven, inasmuch as, like a good catholic prince, thou dost endeavour to enlarge the bounds of the church, to declare the truth of the Christian faith to ignorant and barbarous nations, and to extirpate the plants of evil from the field of the Lord. And, in order the better to perform this, thou dost ask the advice and favour of the apostolic see. In which work, the more lofty the counsel and the better the guidance by which thou dost proceed, so much more do we trust that, by God's help, thou wilt progress favourably in the same; for the reason that those things which have taken their rise from ardour of faith and love of religion are accustomed always to come to a good end and termination.
There is indeed no doubt, as thy Highness doth also acknowledge, that Ireland and all other islands which Christ the Sun of Righteousness has illumined, and which have received the doctrines of the Christian faith, belong to the jurisdiction of St. Peter and of the holy Roman Church. Wherefore, so much the more willingly do we grant to them that the right faith and the seed grateful to God may be planted in them, the more we perceive, by examining more strictly our conscience, that this will be required of us.
Thou hast signified to us, indeed, most beloved son in Christ, that thou dost desire to enter into the island of Ireland, in order to subject the people to the laws and to extirpate the vices that have there taken root, and that thou art willing to pay an annual pension to St. Peter of one penny from every house, and to preserve the rights of the churches in that land inviolate and entire. We, therefore, seconding with the favour it deserves thy pious and laudable desire, and granting a benignant assent to thy petition, are well pleased that, for the enlargement of the bounds of the church. for the restraint of vice, for the correction of morals and the introduction of virtues, for the advancement of the Christian religion, thou shouldst enter that island, and carry out there the things that look to the honour of God and to its own salvation. And may the people of that land receive thee with honour, and venerate thee as their master; provided always that the rights of the churches remain inviolate and entire, and saving to St. Peter and the holy Roman Church the annual pension of one penny from each house. If, therefore, thou dost see fit to complete what thou hast conceived in thy mind, strive to imbue that people with good morals, and bring it to pass, as well through thyself as through those whom thou dost know from their faith, doctrine, and course of life to be fit for such a work, that the church may there be adorned, the Christian religion planted and made to grow, and the things which pertain to the honour of God and to salvation be so ordered that thou may'st merit to obtain an abundant and lasting reward from God, and on earth a name glorious throughout the ages.
The bull of pope Adrian IV., long has been, and still is, an apple of discord among scholars. Is it a genuine document or not ? The question is a weighty one, for the transaction it bears witness to was the first step towards the annexation of Ireland to England-an annexation which really took place, after a warlike expedition, sixteen years later. That a papal bull was dispatched to England about this time and concerning this matter is certain. That this was the actual bull sent is doubted by many-I myself am not among the number-from the fact that in form and wording it differs from other papal bulls of the time. The question is still being investigated, and we are promised a word from a certain Berlin professor whose authority is very great in such matters.
It is interesting to note that the claim of Adrian IV., here advanced, to jurisdiction over all islands was founded, as we learn from John of Salisbury, on the forged donation of Constantine (v. Book iii. No. iii.). Urban II. had disposed of Corsica under the same pretension. Lord Lyttleton in his still valuable History of Henry II. (vol. v. p. 67) speaks as follows concerning this whole transaction: "Upon the whole, therefore, this bull, like many before and many since, was the mere effect of a league between the papal and regal powers, to abet and assist each other's usurpations; nor is it easy to say whether more disturbance to the world, and more iniquity, have arisen from their acting conjointly, or from the opposition which the former has made to the latter! In this instance the best, or indeed the sole excuse for the proceedings of either, was the savage state of the Irish, to whom it might be beneficial to be conquered, and broken thereby to the salutary discipline of civil order and good laws."
| Source: Henderson, Ernest F. Select Historical Documents of the Middle Ages London : George Bell and Sons, 1896. USMARC Cataloging Record |
This is where all the trouble began.
I'd say the IRA is fighting the wrong blokes.
If you accept the Bull as authentic, Henry still didn't move into Ireland until 1171, and that was to counter the aspirations and growing power of Richard (Strongbow) fitz Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Pembroke, Lord of Leinster.
But to get there, you've got to go back a bit. Dermot MacMurrough, the off again on again King of Leinster, actively sought help from Henry II in his running clashes with other Irish chieftans, including the High King, O'conner and his bitter rival, O'Rourke. Henry gave MacMurrough permission to recruit in England. MacMurrough met with Strongbow, who had been on the wrong side in Henry's claim to the crown and had who's title had not been recognized once Henry obtained the crown.
With few prospects in England, Strongbow took around 200 knights and a bunch of archers to Ireland to fight on MacMurrough's behalf. In return for coming to Ireland, he was promised MacMurrough's daughter, Aoife, and succession after MacMurrough's death. Strongbow came to Ireland in 1170, and proceeded to start winning battles. In 1171 MacMurrough died, and Strongbow asserted his claim to Leinster.
The success of Strongbow made Henry question Strongbow's intentions, and in 1171 he ordered Strongbow and the rest of the crowd to return to England. Strongbow did. To prove his loyalty to Henry, Strongbow presented all the lands around Dublin and Leinster to Henry. Henry kept Dublin, but granted Leinster back to Strongbow. Henry then went on to firmly establish his control over the Normans who had originally come to Ireland at MacMurrough's behest.
Strongbow supported Henry and participated in quashing the rebellion in Normandy, and for his service, Henry granted Strongbow additional titles and land in Ireland.
So, yes, you can blame the Pope and you can certainly blame Henry II. But you should blame Strongbow, who ceeded lands he conquered to Henry and pledged fealty. You have to also blame MacMurrough, he invited the lot of them over, after all. But you can also blame O'Conner, who executed MacMurrough's only son, which strengthend Strongbow's claim to Leinster, or you can blame O'Conner for later suing for peace and agreeing to be Henry's vassal with the Treaty of Windsor in 1175, and on and on and on. Plenty of bame to go around, and we haven't even gotten to Lizzy, Cromwell, Trevelyan, Russel and on and on and on.
But the fact of the matter is, after 800 years, the Brits still haven't been able to extricate themselves from the affairs of Ireland. You can look back to Henry II, but for the roots of the present troubles, you really don't have to look back farther than 1921.
And with that, I'm off to have a pint of plain and sing some rebel songs.
If Britain treated Ireland like they treated Canada, instead of endless 'paddywacking', there would be no troubles today.
The calender and tonsure controversies were gradually resolved between the seventh and tenth centuries, long before Adrian's time. Talk of "independent Celtic Christian congregations" largely derives from Protestant rationalizations for the continued subjugation of Ireland. It's not as though British Protestants could appeal to the authority of a Pope.
Well, it was about this time that the Bishops of Rome began feeling their oats -- the Celtic Christians were assaulted under Adrian, as a little over 100 years later were the Vaudois of the Piedmontese valleys by Innocent I (or III, maybe, I lose count sometimes).
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