Results 1 to 4 of 4

Thread: Red Hugh O'Donnell; Spanish Dig for bones of the Fighting Prince of Donegal

  1. #1
    Veteran Member
    Apricity Funding Member
    "Friend of Apricity"


    Join Date
    May 2011
    Last Online
    @
    Ethnicity
    Irish
    Ancestry
    Ireland
    Country
    Australia
    Gender
    Posts
    17,457
    Thumbs Up
    Received: 25,099
    Given: 28,474

    2 Not allowed!

    Default Red Hugh O'Donnell; Spanish Dig for bones of the Fighting Prince of Donegal

    I really hope they find him and we get his dna.

    Red Hugh O'Donnell was chieftain of the O'Donnell clan, a powerful dynasty based in what is now County Donegal in north west Ireland.

    He helped to score a number of significant victories over the forces of Queen Elizabeth I, forming alliances with other clans to pose a serious challenge to English power in Ireland.

    He is often a romanticised figure and his exploits even inspired a 1960s Disney movie - The Fighting Prince of Donegal.
    As a boy of 15, Red Hugh was kidnapped and held hostage in Dublin Castle to discourage his family from rebelling against the crown.

    He escaped five years later with the help of another Irish chieftain, Hugh O'Neill, his future father-in-law.

    But as he fled home across the mountains in winter, Red Hugh suffered severe frostbite and lost a big toe from each foot.

    The O'Donnell and O'Neill clans were rivals, but they joined forces against the English in a series of battles known as the Nine Years War.

    In 1601, they persuaded Spain's Catholic King Phillip III to send thousands of troops to Ireland to help fight their common enemy - the Protestant Elizabeth I.

    But when Spanish ships arrived in County Cork, English troops surrounded the port of Kinsale and hundreds of Spaniards died in the siege.

    After suffering a heavy defeat at the Battle of Kinsale, Red Hugh travelled to Spain to ask the king to send more soldiers.

    O'Donnell died before his plea was answered - some accounts say he was poisoned by an English spy while others say he succumbed to infection.

    His body was taken to the king's palace in Valladolid, once the capital of Spain, where palace guards and state officials attended his funeral.
    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-52832801

  2. #2
    Veteran Member
    Apricity Funding Member
    "Friend of Apricity"


    Join Date
    May 2011
    Last Online
    @
    Ethnicity
    Irish
    Ancestry
    Ireland
    Country
    Australia
    Gender
    Posts
    17,457
    Thumbs Up
    Received: 25,099
    Given: 28,474

    1 Not allowed!

    Default

    Red Hugh had no children, and the O’Donnell family did not prosper after his death. He was succeeded as clan leader by his brother Rory who, along with their sibling, Cathbharr was part of the Flight of the Earls in 1607. They fled with Hugh O’Neill to the continent and their flight marked the end of Gaelic Ireland.

    A year later Rory and Cathbharr died within weeks of each other in Rome from fever. They had children, but their children had no children and so the family line died out. As a result, the Office of the Chief Herald, which adjudicates on old Gaelic titles, has determined that there is no “The O’Donnell” – or clan head.

    If there was one though it would probably be Vincent O’Donnell (75) from the parish of Inver in Co Donegal. He shares a common ancestry through Manus O’Donnell, the 21st chief, who was Red Hugh’s grandfather.

    Mr O’Donnell was the long-term secretary of the O’Donnell Clan Association, and the go-to man for all the ancestral family business. He only retired some months ago after being diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND).
    An ancestor
    There are branches of the family scattered across Europe. One branch were French counts. Another – probably the closest ancestors, according to Mr O’Donnell – made their fortune with the East India Company.

    “They are very British and have no interest in Irish history,” he says regretfully.

    One man who does take a keen interest is Francis Martin (Frank) O’Donnell who has penned a 750-page tome about the family history entitled The O’Donnells of Tyrconnell – A Hidden legacy.

    He is a descendent of Red Hugh’s half-brother Domhnall O’Donnell who was later killed by Red Hugh’s mother Iníon Dubh following a family dispute.
    Frank O’Donnell says the Spanish authorities should look no further than Don Hugo O’Donnell, a Spanish aristocrat and historian, for an ancestor if they are looking for DNA. A former diplomat for the United Nations, he believes Red Hugh’s body should be repatriated to Ireland with a State funeral and a burial in Donegal town.

    “You have to remember that he had no intention of being permanently in Spain.”

    He acknowledges that the city of Valladolid, which has gone to great expense and trouble to find Red Hugh’s remains, might have other ideas. As a compromise he cites the example of Frédéric Chopin, the composer, whose body is buried in Paris, but whose heart was repatriated to his native Poland.
    https://www.irishtimes.com/news/irel...nues-1.4266976

  3. #3
    Veteran Member
    Apricity Funding Member
    "Friend of Apricity"


    Join Date
    May 2011
    Last Online
    @
    Ethnicity
    Irish
    Ancestry
    Ireland
    Country
    Australia
    Gender
    Posts
    17,457
    Thumbs Up
    Received: 25,099
    Given: 28,474

    0 Not allowed!

    Default

    It will be interesting if they do find him to see where the bones will be buried. The Irish will most likely want him to be buried in Donegal.

  4. #4
    Veteran Member
    Apricity Funding Member
    "Friend of Apricity"


    Join Date
    May 2011
    Last Online
    @
    Ethnicity
    Irish
    Ancestry
    Ireland
    Country
    Australia
    Gender
    Posts
    17,457
    Thumbs Up
    Received: 25,099
    Given: 28,474

    0 Not allowed!

    Default

    As the excavation continues, the mayor of Valladolid Óscar Puente told The Irish Times that relatives of Red Hugh had already come forward offering DNA samples if needed.

    “If we find the remains, we have to do something that both countries find suitable,” Mr Puente. “We want to use this search to strengthen the bonds between Ireland and Spain. That is something we will have to discuss with the Irish Government. ”
    I hope they can do dna testing on him if they find him.

    Hugh Roe O'Donnell was born to the Gaelic Lord of Tyrconnell, Sir Hugh O'Donnell, and his second wife, Fiona MacDonald of Dunnyveg, in 1572.

    I would love to know if he is M222.

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads

  1. Replies: 4
    Last Post: 01-05-2019, 01:19 AM
  2. Replies: 0
    Last Post: 06-30-2018, 04:15 AM
  3. Replies: 3
    Last Post: 08-15-2012, 08:34 AM
  4. Replies: 0
    Last Post: 11-12-2009, 03:26 PM
  5. Replies: 3
    Last Post: 12-31-2008, 04:44 PM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •