Dublin, Waterford, Wexford, and their other possessions, hastened to pay him homage, and renew their oath of allegiance. Their example was soon followed by some of the native princes, who basely submitted instead of uniting in defence of their country's independence. Mac Carty More, king of Desmond (south Munster), was the first of these deserters. He presented himself to the king of England at Waterford, and paid him homage. Henry, after consulting with his English subjects on the means of reducing the island, assembled his forces, and marched to Lismore; whence, after a repose of two days, he advanced towards Cashel. He was met on the road, near the river Suir, by Donald O'Brien, king of Thomond (north Munster), who submitted to him. The example of these two leading princes of the south was followed by the other chieftains of Munster. Henry thereupon dispatched garrisons to Limerick and Cork, to take possession of these two cities surrendered to him. Thence he returned to Waterford, where he received the homage of Fitz-Patrick, prince of Ossery, and of O'Faolan, prince of the Desies. He treated all those princes with distinguished honor, made them magnificent presents, and guaranteed the possession of their properties and dignities. He also imprisoned Fitz-Stephen for the tyrannies and robberies exercised by him on the natives; but restored him to liberty on surrendering the town and territory of Wexford,

*Stan. de Reb. in Hib. Gest. Lib. I. p. 125.

which he had obtained as a present from the plunderer Dermod.

Henry, appointing Robert Bernard governor of Waterford, marched to Dublin, where his feudal sovereignty was acknowledged by several princes of Leinster. He loaded all these princes with presents, and strove to win them by caresses, in order to blind them to the chains he was preparing for them: he promised to maintain them. in their properties and dignities, though he had no intention of keeping his word.

O'Connor, seeing the general desertion of the chieftains, was necessitated to yield to the times. Henry sent him two ambassadors, Lacy and FitzAldelm, to negociate for an interview. In consequence the two princes met on the banks of the Shannon, without coming to any conclusion. O'Connor had his forces covered with bogs and woods, where Henry did not think it proper to attack him. But there was a treaty concluded between them at Windsor some time afterwards.

Having thus settled the affairs of the infant colony, and obtained from most of the native princes a sort of a feudal homage, which did not compromise their dignities, nor interfere with their authorities, laws or revenues, he returned to England at Easter, 1173, whence he shortly went to Normandy, where his son Henry, whom he had entrusted with the government of his French dominions, had revolted against him. Eleanor, his wife, resenting his numerous conjugal infidelities, excited her son Henry to claim the crown. The prince, aided in his rebellion

by his brothers Richard and Geoffry, was also supported by his father-in-law, Louis VII. and Philip Augustus, his successor. The consequence of this revolt was the invasion of several parts of his territories by neighbouring princes, and his own subjects. Verneuil, in Normandy, was taken in the time of Louis VII., and the city of Mans, his birth-place, was taken under Philip Augustus. His chagrin at losing the latter place caused him to blasphemously exclaim, "I wont love God any more, since he suffered my dear city to be ravished from me!"

Henry was too busy in his continental affairs to give personal attention to Ireland. As an able politician, he thought it prudent to interest the English subjects he had left there to support his pretensions. With a liberality only equalled by that of his countryman, Adrian IV., he bestowed the territories of the princes, who had acknowledged his feudal domination, in defiance of his solemn promises to maintain them in their property and dignity, and of the treaties which he had concluded with them. Notwithstanding his jealousy of Strongbow, he confirmed to him the donation of the kingdom of Leinster, made to him without any just title by his father-inlaw Dermod, except the seaport towns and some forts that he reserved for himself. This dona

tion of a property not his own was confirmed by a charter, granted by king John to William Marshall, earl of Pembroke, son-in-law of Strongbow; a copy of which is preserved in the Tower of London.

Strongbow, imitating the predatory liberality of his sovereign, distributed the greater part of Leinster, on military tenure, among his followers. But the grantees did not always obtain peaceable possession of the illegal donations. Marching to take possession of O'Dempsey's country, in Offaly (King's county), where he plundered and burned several villages, Strongbow had the mortification to lose his son-in-law and general, Quincy, who was slain in a defile where O'Dempsey attacked.

Unfounded as were the pretensions of Henry to the province of Leinster, he extended his liberality to countries no ways connected with that kingdom. He granted by a charter dated at Wexford, which was confirmed by king John, the large territory of Meath, east and west, to Hugh de Lacy, on condition of military service.

Hugh entered Meath to take possession, where not satisfied with dispossessing, he massacred a great number of the ancient proprietors; thence he made an inroad into Annaly (Longford), where he committed great depredations, and slew Donald O'Farrel, the chieftain, in a conflict.

O'Melaghlin, hereditary chieftain of Meath, afflicted at the outrages committed on his people, waited on Lacy, to make his complaints of this unprovoked aggression, who promised him an interview at Tara to explain matters. There the prince of Meath spoke much of the injustice of England's king, who, in spite of his solemn promises and treaties, by which he guaranteed

to him, and the other Irish princes, their properties and dignities, had sent a lawless banditti to plunder and destroy his people. The unfortunate prince of Meath paid the forfeit of his foolish confidence in the faith and honor of the invaders. He was assassinated at the conference, beheaded, his body was buried with the feet up, his head sent to Dublin, and thence to England. Stanihurst relates this calamity as having befallen O'Rourk, who he falsely imagined to be the prince of Meath. With all the venom of an English partizan he endeavours to gloss the perfidy and barbarity of Lacy; yet he acknowledges that there was a strong body of English troops placed in ambuscade, at a small distance from the place of interview, which must be to make certain the intended assassination. The assassin, in imitation of his master Henry, and of Strongbow, distributed the territory of the murdered chieftain among a number of vassals, on military

tenure.

Henry, pressed by his enemies in Normandy, sent orders to Strongbow to come to him speedily, with what forces he could collect. The earl, in obedience to his orders, passed over with some picked men, where he remained some time, as commandant of Gisors, as Regan says. The king considering the English colony as yet too weak, sent Strongbow back, in quality of governor, as soon as he could spare him, who was received in Dublin with great acclamations.

Meantime the plundered Irish, seeing no termination to the cruelty and rapacity of those