[A little history from the place I will soon call home; a repost from a while back]
In Eyre Square, the center of the old city of Galway, there hang 14 banners with the names of the tribal families of the region. On one of those banners is the name O’Flaherty. The O’Flahertys were the most notorious of the 14 families. Their men were known to be drinkers, fighters and ruthless killers. It’s said that when you were going to bed at night to say your prayers, after thanking God for all your blessings and forgiveness of your sins, you’d finish the prayer by saying, “God preserve us from the ferocious O’Flahertys,” because it was a real possibility, that on their way home from a night of drinking and carousing, if they passed by your house, the O’Flaherty boys might decide on a whim to break and and kill the lot of you.
Now what does that have to do with a Galway girl? Well, it has to do with the woman one of the O’Flahertys married. There was a young lady named Grace O’Malley (Gráinne Mhaol) nearly as infamous as the O’Flahertys. Little Grace was the daughter of a pirate. And rather than play with dollies and stay at home with her Mam, Grace craved to follow after her father’s footsteps. Her father of course, thought this was ridiculous and told her to settle down and be a good girl. Grace was having none of it.
So great was her desire to go to sea, that she cut off all her hair, stole the clothing of a neighbor boy and sneaked onto her father’s ship just as it was about to go out of port. It was only after they were far away from land that Grace revealed herself to her father. Her father, naturally, was angry, but he also saw Grace’s determination and ferocity. So he set about to take the girl under his wing and teach her the ways of pirating. Grace eventually took over the family business and became known as the Pirate Queen of Ireland.
Grace outlasted two husbands. The first -O’Flaherty- was killed after sustaining grievous wounds in a fight. The second -Richard Burke- was a wealthy lord and landowner. However, after just a year of marriage, legend says that O’Malley and her followers locked themselves in Rockfleet Castle and she called out a window to Burke, “Richard Burke, I dismiss you.” This effectively rendered them divorced. But she retained much of his holdings.
Later, after having dealings with Queen Elizabeth I, it’s said that the English Monarch developed a soft spot for Grace. Grace claimed that both of her husbands had abused her during their married lives and this evoked pity from the Virgin Queen, so much so that as Grace attained old age, the queen bestowed a pension upon the Pirate Queen of Ireland.
So let’s hear it for the Galway Girl. Cunning and fierce, wealthy and powerful. And as wicked as they come!
Here here to Galway Girl!
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Isn’t that awesome? I wanna be a lady pirate!
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😄 Me too!?!?!
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Hahaha! Let’s go!
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Love that girl! (and that first paragraph sounds like the neighborhoods near where I grew up -LOL)
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Oh damn! Wow, glad you got outta there!
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Me too! It’s worse today than back in my day. Back then it was tough boys, today it’s gangs with automatic weapons.
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Holy crap!!!
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Wow, fierce, brave and smart! My kind of girl 🙂
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Mine too. A girl who can kick my butt and then make mad love to me afterwards.
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Mine, too! I love this story!
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Nerdy Chimp loves this post. Yay Galway girl.
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Yeah! Who doesn’t love a lady pirate?!?
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I always love the part that the Queen took a shine to her and actually chose to parlay and negotiate with her!! Thanks for sharing this Meg. I love hearing about Grace! 🙂
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You know Grace! Of course you do! 😊 Thanks, Eric!
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There is a series on Netflix called “Women Warriors” It is hosted by Lucy Lawless.
there are 5 episodes..one of them is about Grace. You should check it out if you have not seen it.
But yes, of course, I have known about Grace for a long time! 😉 Have a great day, Meg!
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Oh I would love that! Thanks, again, Eric!
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Pirates are awesome, but a lady pirate? Epic! 😃
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Right?!? Such a great story!
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When you’re in the OBX, go down to the NC Maritime Museum at the Hatteras ferry site. Pretty cool and some pirate stuff too. The branch in Beaufort is supposed to display some of Blackbeard’s stuff once out of conservation. Really cool. Pirates are awesome!
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That sounds like just the thing. I’ll definitely check it out! Pirates are cool!
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Not too far from where y’all are staying. Hope y’all get decent weather. Can be dicey that time of year.
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I know… when my buddy Scott picked that week, all I could think of was hurricane. Nevertheless, I don’t mind stormy as long as we don’t have to evacuate. 😜
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Hopefully not. Could be chilly too, so pack a long sleeve or two as well. I’m still jealous, by the way. 😃
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Definitely! And rain gear. Gotta walk the beach at sunrise every day, come hell or high water! You could come! There’s one room left and a bunk room for the boys! 😃
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Don’t tempt me! I’ve been known to pick up and leave on a moments notice. 😃
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Ok, keep it mind! 😃
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Believe me, I’d LOVE to go. 😃
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Ooh, she sounds awesome!! I love that she wouldn’t settle down like her father wanted. Thanks for telling her story!
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Glad you enjoyed it, Vic! She sounds like my kind of girl!
I think I’ve gone to your spam folder… I commented on your recent poem and watched it disappear! 😩
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Oh no! I will check! I keep going to spam on Eric’s blog but no one else’s. WP needs to get its act together!!
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Eric went to my spam yesterday! Craziness. I went to Em’s spam too and Rob’s and Sandra’s. I regularly check mine anymore. What a pain in the ass.
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Ah! That’s so frustrating!! I hope it gets fixed soon.
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Me, too!
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This is so great! I want you to tell me bedtime stories! 🙂 I’ll have to look up that Netflix show about her that Eric suggested, too.
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Pulled this from spam. I’m going there myself and askimet is on vacation!
Anyway, thank you so much😃 I’m glad you enjoyed it!
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I want to be a lady pirate, too! I know just who I’d be sailing with… 😉
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You know it!
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Love this post and would love to have been there on June 11th. What a great gathering, and all that dancing, music, and sheer enjoyment!!
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I know! I would too. Looks like such a great time. Such a fun song!
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You never know Meg, you may get a chance to take part in a re run now!
I so much enjoyed seeing this again. Makes me so glad to be alive!
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Oh my word! That would be so cool! I love this video – so full of joy! Glad you enjoyed it, Peter. Thanks for reading again!
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Oh, I love her, kickass as we should all be 😀
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I love her, too. I want to be a lady pirate! 😀
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So do I! 😉
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A very interesting story. Grace was an extra ordinary girl, full of spirit and grit. I wonder how she fared in comparison to the men pirates of those days! We need more fiesty girls like her but i only wish she had been a good pirate! The video was fantastic and i loved it.
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Good I’m so glad you enjoyed! Thank you! There are lots of interesting characters in Irish history. The question is always how much of it is true and how much has been embellished over the years!
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Yeah you are right. There may be some truth but usually the locals embellish them to make them more interesting. There could be many versions of the same story too.
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I’ll have to do some research!
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By the way Meg, there is another writer like you who has recently opened an online bookstore. Her name is TammiePainter and she has mentioned some details about it which you might find interesting if you are considering opening a store yourself. Check her out if interested.
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I’ll do that. Thank you for the recommendation. 😃
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Most welcome Meg.
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Ooooo that’s so awsome! I love tales of lady warriors from back in the day! I will for sure look more into her.
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Thanks, Mark! She was definitely a colorful character. Enjoy your research!
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Great pirate tale and loved the video! Is your move “permanent”?
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Yes, we’ll be moving for my husband’s work. So as long as he has a job here, we’re staying!
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Love the history!!!!
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