O'Neills of Clanaboy
Aodh Buidhe, son of Domhnall Óc Ó Néill, grandson of Aodh Meith O'Neill (Hugh the Fat), and great-gransdon of Áed in Macáem Tóinlesc, all kings of Cenél nEógain of the Northern Uí Néill, was the eponymous ancestor of the Ó Néill Cloinne Aodha Buidhe, or Clanaboy Ó Néill, line. He had come to an arrangement with the Norman Earls of Ulster which allowed his sons, particularly Briain, to consolidate Ó Néill power within The North at the expense of the O'Donnells. Aodh Buidhe was married Eleanor de Nangle, a kinswoman to his nominal enemy, Walter de Burgh, the Earl of Ulster and Jocelyn de Angulo; Aodh died in 1283. The lineage he established remained senior among the Ó Néill's, becoming semi-independent with a distinct territory. Having helped the Anglo-Normans barons in a rebellion against their fellow Norman lord, the Earl of Ulster, the family was granted land outside The North, in Ulster within what is now south County Antrim. That was the official establishment of the Lordship of Cloinne Aodha Buidhe, or the O'Neills of Clandeboye, though the English retained lordship over the much-reduced Earldom of Ulster.
The family fought on both sides of the wars that racked Ireland from the 1530s to 1690s, whose end result was a significant loss of territory and influence due to political alliances and an influx of new families flowing in from Scotland and England.
In the beginning of the 18th century Féilim Ó Néill (in English Felix O'Neill), senior male in linear descent of the line of Brian Ballach Ó Néill, Niall Mór Ó Néill's second eldest son, was dispossessed of all his estate through the confiscation applied via the Penal Laws, which led him to emigrate to France. He was a cavalry officer who took part in many battles with the heroic Irish Brigade of the French Army. He fought with the French against the British, the Austrians, and the Dutch (during the War of the Spanish Succession), in the celebrated Battle of Malplaquet, where he died on 11 September 1709.[1][2]
His son Conn (Constantine) O'Neill was an officer who spent his life in exile in France and married to Cecilia O'Hanlon. Their eldest son, João O'Neill (Shane O'Neill), was born in Richhill Village in the parish of Kilmore, Tyrone, and died in Santos o Velho, Lisbon, on 21 January 1788. He left France with his brothers and established their noble line permanently under in the Kingdom of Portugal. He was the titular head of the Clanaboy O'Neill dynasty, whose family have been in Portugal ever since. The current head of the Clanaboy O'Neill dynasty, a descendant of João, is Portuguese nobleman Hugo Ricciardi O'Neill, the son of Jorge Maria O'Neill; the family has been remarkable in the modern history of Portugal.
The issue of Sir Henry Ó Néill, who had been "granted" the Edendubhcarrig estate and majority of the Cloinne Aodha Buidhe lands by conforming to English ways and converting to Anglicanism, died out in 1855. At this time, the barrister Charles Henry Ó Néill of the Ó Néills of the Feeva, descendant of the last Tánaiste of Clanaboy, Sir Henry's uncle Con Mac Brian Ó Néill, became officially recognized as The Ó Néill Clanaboy. "The descendants of Prince Con MacBryan O'Neill, Tanist of Clanaboy, remained loyal, under every vicissitude, to the traditions of their house, and saved little out of the general wreck of confiscation. They seemed to have preferred fulfilling the solemn pledge of their ancestor, Donald O'Neill, King of Ulster, to 'fight out as long as life should last' rather than adapt themselves to altered circumstances, as the descendants of Shane MacBryan had wisely done," according to Burke's Peerage.[7] In fact both Sir Henry and his daughter Rose willed the Shane's Castle estate to the descendants of Prince Con mac Brian. While Charles Henry assumed the title, the Clanaboy Ó Néill estate was passed to William Chichester through his grandmother Mary Ó Néill – a move highly disputed. Charles Henry Ó Néill had his first and only child, a daughter named Elizabeth Catherine Theresa Mary Ó Néill, in 1845, during the Great Hunger, and had no further issue. From the death of Charles Henry Ó Néill until Jorge O'Neill assumed the chieftainship the family had no chief.
In 1896 Jorge O'Neill of Portugal submitted his genealogy to the Somerset Herald in London. Five years later, Sir Henry Farnham Burke, KCVO, CB, FSA, Somerset Herald stated in 1900 that "the only Pedigree at present on record in either of the Offices of Arms showing a lineal male descent from the House of O'Neill, Monarchs of Ireland, Kings of Ulster, and Princes of Tyrone and Claneboy, is the one registered in the fifty-ninth year of the Reign of Our Sovereign Lady Victoria, in favor of His Excellency Jorge O'Neill of Lisbon". He then recognized him as the Representative of the House of O'Neill and as the Representative of the Earldom created in 1542 for his kinsman Conn Baccagh O'Neill. All of this was granted under Letters Patent issued by the English College of Heralds. Later, the Ulster and Norroy King of Arms granted him the undifferenced arms as the head of the House of O'Neill. Upon that Letters Patent, Pope Leo XIII, the King of Spain, and the King of Portugal all recognized Jorge O'Neill as the Prince of Clanaboy, Tyrone, Ulster, as the Count of Tyrone, and the Head of the Royal House of O'Neill and all of its septs.[8] It was from this grant that the Chief Herald of Ireland recognized the family as the Princes of Clannaboy in 1945. The grandson of Jorge and present Prince of Clanaboy, Hugo, has not pressed his senior claim to the entire House of O'Neill out of respect for his O'Neill chief cousins and their own histories.
Hugo Ricciardi O'Neill is officially recognized by the offices of arms throughout Europe as titular Prince and Count of Clanaboy. He uses the title and style of The O'Neill of Clanaboy. The name Clanaboy (or Clandeboye) is a corruption of the Gaelic family name of 'Cloinne Aodha Buidhe' or 'Family of Fair-Haired Hugh'. The O'Neills of Bellaghy are of this line. Count O'Nelley of the Austro-Hungarian Army (circa 1750) is of this line and from the MacShanes, as are the O'Neills of the Feeva. The traditional title of the head of this family branch is The O'Neill Buidhe or The O'Neill of Clannabuidhe. The O'Neill of Clanaboy is the only O'Neill prince recognized as one of the hereditary Chiefs of the Name of Ireland. They are a dominant family to this day in Counties Antrim, Louth, and eastern Armagh.
O'Neills of Shane's Castle[edit]The castle at Edenduffcarrick now called Shane's Castle has long been a key family in the Clannaboy clan of O'Neills. Shane MacBrien O'Neill changed the name to Shane's Castle in 1722. After the Plantation of Ulster, some O'Neill families converted to the Church of Ireland and began to intermarry with the new nobility coming from England. One such union between Mary O'Neill, the daughter of Henry O'Neill the lord of Shane's Castle, and Arthur Chichester. It is through this marriage that the present day Barons of Shane's Castle trace their lineage to the royal family of O'Neill. The present day title of Baron O'Neill of Shane's Castle is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.[9] It was created in 1868 for the musical composer The Reverend William O'Neill. Born William Chichester, he succeeded to the estates of his cousin John Bruce Richard O'Neill, 3rd Viscount O'Neill, in 1855 (on whose death the viscountcy and barony of O'Neill became extinct) and assumed by Royal licence the surname of O'Neill in lieu of Chichester in order to inherit the lands of his cousin, despite not being descended in the male line from an O'Neill[10]., daughter of Henry O'Neill of Shane's Castle. Lord O'Neill was the patrilineal great-great-great-grandson of John Chichester, younger brother of Arthur Chichester, 2nd Earl of Donegall.[11] The latter two were both nephews of Arthur Chichester, 1st Earl of Donegall, and grandsons of Edward Chichester, 1st Viscount Chichester (see the Marquess of Donegall for more information). Lord O'Neill was succeeded by his eldest son, the second Baron. He sat as a Conservative Member of Parliament for Antrim.
His eldest son and heir apparent, the Hon. Arthur O'Neill, represented Antrim Mid in the House of Commons as a Conservative from 1910 until 1914, when he was killed in action during the First World War, the first MP to die in the conflict. The second Baron was therefore succeeded by his grandson, Shane O'Neill, 3rd Baron O'Neill (the son of the Hon. Arthur O'Neill). He was killed in action in Italy during the Second World War where he served as a Battalion Commander of the North Irish Horse regiment. His wife later remarried to the famous spy novelist, Ian Fleming.
As of 2017 the title is held by his son, the fourth Baron, Sir Raymond O'Neill who succeeded in 1944. He was Lord Lieutenant of Antrim from 1994 to 2008 for which he was knighted in 2014. As a descendant of the first Viscount Chichester he is in remainder to the barony and viscountcy of Chichester and, according to a special patent in the letters patent, the earldom of Donegall, titles held by his kinsman the Marquess of Donegall. Two other members of the O'Neill family have been elevated to the peerage. Hugh O'Neill, 1st Baron Rathcavan, was the youngest son of the second Baron O'Neill, while Terence O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of the Maine, Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, was the youngest brother of the third Baron. The family seat is Shane's Castle, near Randalstown, County Antrim where they are involved in the commercial cattle business
Aodh Buidhe, son of Domhnall Óc Ó Néill, grandson of Aodh Meith O'Neill (Hugh the Fat), and great-gransdon of Áed in Macáem Tóinlesc, all kings of Cenél nEógain of the Northern Uí Néill, was the eponymous ancestor of the Ó Néill Cloinne Aodha Buidhe, or Clanaboy Ó Néill, line. He had come to an arrangement with the Norman Earls of Ulster which allowed his sons, particularly Briain, to consolidate Ó Néill power within The North at the expense of the O'Donnells. Aodh Buidhe was married Eleanor de Nangle, a kinswoman to his nominal enemy, Walter de Burgh, the Earl of Ulster and Jocelyn de Angulo; Aodh died in 1283. The lineage he established remained senior among the Ó Néill's, becoming semi-independent with a distinct territory. Having helped the Anglo-Normans barons in a rebellion against their fellow Norman lord, the Earl of Ulster, the family was granted land outside The North, in Ulster within what is now south County Antrim. That was the official establishment of the Lordship of Cloinne Aodha Buidhe, or the O'Neills of Clandeboye, though the English retained lordship over the much-reduced Earldom of Ulster.
The family fought on both sides of the wars that racked Ireland from the 1530s to 1690s, whose end result was a significant loss of territory and influence due to political alliances and an influx of new families flowing in from Scotland and England.
In the beginning of the 18th century Féilim Ó Néill (in English Felix O'Neill), senior male in linear descent of the line of Brian Ballach Ó Néill, Niall Mór Ó Néill's second eldest son, was dispossessed of all his estate through the confiscation applied via the Penal Laws, which led him to emigrate to France. He was a cavalry officer who took part in many battles with the heroic Irish Brigade of the French Army. He fought with the French against the British, the Austrians, and the Dutch (during the War of the Spanish Succession), in the celebrated Battle of Malplaquet, where he died on 11 September 1709.[1][2]
His son Conn (Constantine) O'Neill was an officer who spent his life in exile in France and married to Cecilia O'Hanlon. Their eldest son, João O'Neill (Shane O'Neill), was born in Richhill Village in the parish of Kilmore, Tyrone, and died in Santos o Velho, Lisbon, on 21 January 1788. He left France with his brothers and established their noble line permanently under in the Kingdom of Portugal. He was the titular head of the Clanaboy O'Neill dynasty, whose family have been in Portugal ever since. The current head of the Clanaboy O'Neill dynasty, a descendant of João, is Portuguese nobleman Hugo Ricciardi O'Neill, the son of Jorge Maria O'Neill; the family has been remarkable in the modern history of Portugal.
The issue of Sir Henry Ó Néill, who had been "granted" the Edendubhcarrig estate and majority of the Cloinne Aodha Buidhe lands by conforming to English ways and converting to Anglicanism, died out in 1855. At this time, the barrister Charles Henry Ó Néill of the Ó Néills of the Feeva, descendant of the last Tánaiste of Clanaboy, Sir Henry's uncle Con Mac Brian Ó Néill, became officially recognized as The Ó Néill Clanaboy. "The descendants of Prince Con MacBryan O'Neill, Tanist of Clanaboy, remained loyal, under every vicissitude, to the traditions of their house, and saved little out of the general wreck of confiscation. They seemed to have preferred fulfilling the solemn pledge of their ancestor, Donald O'Neill, King of Ulster, to 'fight out as long as life should last' rather than adapt themselves to altered circumstances, as the descendants of Shane MacBryan had wisely done," according to Burke's Peerage.[7] In fact both Sir Henry and his daughter Rose willed the Shane's Castle estate to the descendants of Prince Con mac Brian. While Charles Henry assumed the title, the Clanaboy Ó Néill estate was passed to William Chichester through his grandmother Mary Ó Néill – a move highly disputed. Charles Henry Ó Néill had his first and only child, a daughter named Elizabeth Catherine Theresa Mary Ó Néill, in 1845, during the Great Hunger, and had no further issue. From the death of Charles Henry Ó Néill until Jorge O'Neill assumed the chieftainship the family had no chief.
In 1896 Jorge O'Neill of Portugal submitted his genealogy to the Somerset Herald in London. Five years later, Sir Henry Farnham Burke, KCVO, CB, FSA, Somerset Herald stated in 1900 that "the only Pedigree at present on record in either of the Offices of Arms showing a lineal male descent from the House of O'Neill, Monarchs of Ireland, Kings of Ulster, and Princes of Tyrone and Claneboy, is the one registered in the fifty-ninth year of the Reign of Our Sovereign Lady Victoria, in favor of His Excellency Jorge O'Neill of Lisbon". He then recognized him as the Representative of the House of O'Neill and as the Representative of the Earldom created in 1542 for his kinsman Conn Baccagh O'Neill. All of this was granted under Letters Patent issued by the English College of Heralds. Later, the Ulster and Norroy King of Arms granted him the undifferenced arms as the head of the House of O'Neill. Upon that Letters Patent, Pope Leo XIII, the King of Spain, and the King of Portugal all recognized Jorge O'Neill as the Prince of Clanaboy, Tyrone, Ulster, as the Count of Tyrone, and the Head of the Royal House of O'Neill and all of its septs.[8] It was from this grant that the Chief Herald of Ireland recognized the family as the Princes of Clannaboy in 1945. The grandson of Jorge and present Prince of Clanaboy, Hugo, has not pressed his senior claim to the entire House of O'Neill out of respect for his O'Neill chief cousins and their own histories.
Hugo Ricciardi O'Neill is officially recognized by the offices of arms throughout Europe as titular Prince and Count of Clanaboy. He uses the title and style of The O'Neill of Clanaboy. The name Clanaboy (or Clandeboye) is a corruption of the Gaelic family name of 'Cloinne Aodha Buidhe' or 'Family of Fair-Haired Hugh'. The O'Neills of Bellaghy are of this line. Count O'Nelley of the Austro-Hungarian Army (circa 1750) is of this line and from the MacShanes, as are the O'Neills of the Feeva. The traditional title of the head of this family branch is The O'Neill Buidhe or The O'Neill of Clannabuidhe. The O'Neill of Clanaboy is the only O'Neill prince recognized as one of the hereditary Chiefs of the Name of Ireland. They are a dominant family to this day in Counties Antrim, Louth, and eastern Armagh.
O'Neills of Shane's Castle[edit]The castle at Edenduffcarrick now called Shane's Castle has long been a key family in the Clannaboy clan of O'Neills. Shane MacBrien O'Neill changed the name to Shane's Castle in 1722. After the Plantation of Ulster, some O'Neill families converted to the Church of Ireland and began to intermarry with the new nobility coming from England. One such union between Mary O'Neill, the daughter of Henry O'Neill the lord of Shane's Castle, and Arthur Chichester. It is through this marriage that the present day Barons of Shane's Castle trace their lineage to the royal family of O'Neill. The present day title of Baron O'Neill of Shane's Castle is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.[9] It was created in 1868 for the musical composer The Reverend William O'Neill. Born William Chichester, he succeeded to the estates of his cousin John Bruce Richard O'Neill, 3rd Viscount O'Neill, in 1855 (on whose death the viscountcy and barony of O'Neill became extinct) and assumed by Royal licence the surname of O'Neill in lieu of Chichester in order to inherit the lands of his cousin, despite not being descended in the male line from an O'Neill[10]., daughter of Henry O'Neill of Shane's Castle. Lord O'Neill was the patrilineal great-great-great-grandson of John Chichester, younger brother of Arthur Chichester, 2nd Earl of Donegall.[11] The latter two were both nephews of Arthur Chichester, 1st Earl of Donegall, and grandsons of Edward Chichester, 1st Viscount Chichester (see the Marquess of Donegall for more information). Lord O'Neill was succeeded by his eldest son, the second Baron. He sat as a Conservative Member of Parliament for Antrim.
His eldest son and heir apparent, the Hon. Arthur O'Neill, represented Antrim Mid in the House of Commons as a Conservative from 1910 until 1914, when he was killed in action during the First World War, the first MP to die in the conflict. The second Baron was therefore succeeded by his grandson, Shane O'Neill, 3rd Baron O'Neill (the son of the Hon. Arthur O'Neill). He was killed in action in Italy during the Second World War where he served as a Battalion Commander of the North Irish Horse regiment. His wife later remarried to the famous spy novelist, Ian Fleming.
As of 2017 the title is held by his son, the fourth Baron, Sir Raymond O'Neill who succeeded in 1944. He was Lord Lieutenant of Antrim from 1994 to 2008 for which he was knighted in 2014. As a descendant of the first Viscount Chichester he is in remainder to the barony and viscountcy of Chichester and, according to a special patent in the letters patent, the earldom of Donegall, titles held by his kinsman the Marquess of Donegall. Two other members of the O'Neill family have been elevated to the peerage. Hugh O'Neill, 1st Baron Rathcavan, was the youngest son of the second Baron O'Neill, while Terence O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of the Maine, Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, was the youngest brother of the third Baron. The family seat is Shane's Castle, near Randalstown, County Antrim where they are involved in the commercial cattle business
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The O’Neill’s of the Fews.
Miles Hispaniae: Conn 'Baccach ' O'Neill 1st Earl of Tyrone had a illegitimate son with Alison Kelly (The wife of the Blacksmith of Dundalk) Parents of Matthew " feardorcha" O'Neill 1st Lord Of Dugannon married Joan Maguire Parents of 1. Brian O'Neill 2. Sir. Cormac O'Neill father of Conn O'Neill father of Hugh Oge O'Neill and Brian O'Neill 3. Aodh "Hugh" O'Neill = Catherine Mageniss of Co. Down Parents of a. Hugh O'Neill b. Colonel Henry O'Neill (Served in the Spanish Army). c. General John "Conde de Tyrone" O'Neill. d. Bryan O'Neill strangled by a English agent in Brussels 1617. 4. Sir. Art McBarron O'Neill. Father of a. Art oge O'Neill father of Hugh Dudh O'Neill , Governor of Limerick. b. Conn O'Neill Father of Brian O'Neill and Daniel O'Neill. c. Owen Roe O'Neill = Rose O' Dogherty Parents of a. Henry Roe O'Neill who married Elenor Fitzgerald Parents of Hugh O'Neill b. Brian Roe O'Neill father of Owen O'Neill , Earl of Tyrone c. Conn O'Neill father of Colonel Owen O'Neill ( Served in the French Army). Luaghadh (Lewis) O'Neill ( Served in the French Army). d. John O'Neill ( Became a priest). The question has always been was Feardorcha O'Neill a Kelly or a O'Neill and the true son of Conn Bacchach O’Neill. The Descendants of Feardorcha should be in France , the Caribbean, Netherlands and a possibility Co. Limerick, Ireland. There seems to be a strong connection among the Norman Fitzgerald’s and the O'Neill’s of Ulster. Con Mor O'Neill d. 1493 was married to Elinor Fitzgerald they became the parents to Conn 'Baccach' O'Neill 1480- 1559 , 1st Earl of Tyrone, he was the grandson of Thomas Fitzgerald , 7th earl of Kildare. Conn 'Baccach' O'Neill married Alice Fitzgerald daughter of Gerald Fitzgerald , 8th Earl of Kildare. One of the most powerful Norman Lords of Ireland. |
The O’Neill’s of the Fews.
In my research for my own family these O’Neill’s that many Irish and American Genealogist have not found . With help from the Spanish Archives and other various sources. I have found these men. Most have a strong military and naval background anyone believes or finds one of these men has part of their ancestors in any family Genealogical records . I would strongly suggest a Y-DNA test. 1. Michael O'Neill b. 1830 d. 1916 married Anne Finegan. Michael had older brothers who settled in Annacinda , Montana, USA. 2. Peter O’Neill b. 1897 married Rosetta Monaghan. (brothers Owen, Patrick, Hugh and Edward ). 3. Patrick O’Neill b. 1931 married Margaret Teresa Quinn. 4. Henry Felix Juan O’Neill b. 1845 in Paris , France. 5. Tulio , Felix, Mario and Pepe O’Neill all settled in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Sons of Captain General Felix O’Neill. 6. Colonel Jose O’Neill of the Irish Regiments in Spain. 7. Coronel Terence (Terencio) O’Neill b. 09.03.1759 eldest son Lt. Gen. Felix O’Neill. 8. Captain Brian O’Neill lived in France in the 1690s later fought in the Spanish Regiments. 9. Francis O’Neill married a Margaret? is believed to have had a large family. 10. Capt. General Juan O’Neill b. 1765 married Vicenta Gual y Vives de Cannanas. 11. Lt. General Brian O’Neill served many years with Owen Roe O’Neill in Flanders. 12. Col. Art Og b. 1622 d. 1663 married Leonora O'Moore . Fought in the 1640s rebellion. Colonel in the Regiments of Tyrone. Knight of Calatrava in 1622. 13. Domhnall O’Neill of Turroughlish sons Henry, Niall Og and Brian O’Neill father of Capt. Tirlough O’Neill in the Spanish Army. 14. Hugh O’Neill b. 1861 d. 1939 . 15. Hugh O’Neill d. 1845 married Sara Connolly descendants may still live or have origins in Co. Louth & Co. Armagh. 16. Brian & John O’Neill both married two cousins of Maguire , of Fermanagh. The descendants of these two men may still live in Brazil or France. 17. Thomas O’Neill who fought in the Spanish Netherlands. His descendants may still be in the Islands of Providencia & Santa Catalina in Colombia. In 1789 he was appointed Governor of Cartagena. 18. Enrique O’Neill of Tenerife , Canary Islands. Sub Liet. in 03.08.1796. Served in the Regimento de Infanteria Fixo de Cartagena de Indias. 19. The Leeward Islands lie East of Puerto Rico . Many O’Neill’s may still in the Islands of St. Nevitts, St. Kitts, Tortola, Anguilla, Martinique and many other Islandsin the Caribbean for 200 years the descendants of the Earl of Tyrone lived in the Island of Martinique. 20. Carlos Eugenio O’Neill Served in the Spanish Regiments his descendants may live among the various islands of the Caribbean. The Island of Granada is a possible strong choice. |
O'Neills of the Fews
"The Fews" (Irish: na Feadha) is an area in County Armagh that was a sub-territory under the O'Neills of Tyrone and is roughly equivalent to the area of the parish of Creggan. This O'Neill branch is related to the O'Neill of Tyrone through King Eoghan Mor, circa 1432–1436. The king's younger son Aodh (Hugh) pushed in the territory known as the Fews and conquered its various independent lordships. Aodh then established an independent chieftainship under his father and then brother.
In the rebellion of 1642, Sir Henry O'Neill, a member of the Fews O'Neills, sided with the English crown while his sons and brothers played a prominent part in the rising. Despite his choice of sides his lands were confiscated and divided among a number of Cromwellian settlers. The chief beneficiary was Thomas Ball, whose grants totalled more than 6,000 acres (24 km2). Sir Henry O'Neill was banished to Connacht, to land in County Mayo, Ireland. Exiled with him was his son Captain Sean/Shane O'Neill. Shane's sons took the surname MacShane, or son of Shane.[12] His grandson William anglicized the name to Johnson. He was a major-general in the American Colonial Army and fought the French at Niagara, New York in French-Indian War. For his significant victory he was granted a baronetcy and made Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet of New York in 1753. The present holder of that estate is Sir Colpoys Johnson, 8th Baronet of New York.
When the Williamite War began in Ireland in 1689, Sir Henry O'Neill's son Turlough was dead and so was Turlough's son Con. The heir to the family's Mayo estate was Con's son Henry, who was a minor and had been sent to France for his education. Despite their non-participation in the war, the O'Neill estates were seized by the Crown. Henry (1676-1745) should subsequently have recovered the confiscated lands; his relatives on the continent feared to send him back to Ireland to stake his claim and the property went by default and was sold in 1702-3.[13] Henry had a heroic career in the French army, rising to become a Lieutenant-Colonel in the Regiment of Clare. He was killed at the Battle of Fontenoy in May 1745, aged 69.[14] Henry was the last undisputed claimant to the lordship of the Fews.
Some O'Neill families today claim descent from this Henry O'Neill, but contemporary documentation show that he died without any leaving any descendants.[15][16] Following Henry's death, Felix O'Neill[17] (c1720-1792) was identified by contemporaries as the "person to whom the Lordship of the Fews in the North of Ireland in right and justice belongeth".[18]Indeed, Felix was considered to have a valid claim to be the Chief of the entire O'Neill clan. In his book "History of Ireland" (1758–62) Abbé James MacGeoghegan of the Irish College in Paris wrote of the house of the O'Neills that "the present representative is Felix O'Neill, the chief of the house of the Fews, and an officer of rank in the service of his Catholic Majesty".[19]
Felix O'Neill was born in Creggan in County Armagh. He descended from Aodh Buidhe O'Neill, brother of Sir Henry O'Neill. Felix left Ireland for a career in the Spanish Army and is well remembered for his rescue of Charles Edward Stuart("Bonnie Prince Charlie") following the Battle of Culloden. Felix became a lieutenant general in the Spanish Army and his four sons in turn all had honourable careers in the Spanish military.[20] While most of them did not marry and have families, the youngest son Juan O'Neill (1768-1809) married Vincenta Gual y Vives de Cananas from Palma, Mallorca, and took up residence on the island. Having attained the rank of Captain-General, he died aged 40 leaving a son Felix who was only a year old. Through this man the O'Neills of the Fews line continued in Mallorca in the 19th century and in Argentina in the 20th century.[21] The current day Argentinean descendants of Lieutenant General Felix O'Neill therefore have an historical claim to be leaders of this branch of the O'Neill dynasty.
A contrary claim to the leadership of the dynasty comes from Spanish nobleman Don Carlos O'Neill, 12th Marquis de la Granja, who has been described as "the Prince of the Fews". He claims direct descent from the last undisputed "Lord of the Fews" Henry O'Neill although contemporary evidence shows that Henry had no descendants.[15] While the family's precise link to the historical O'Neills of the Fews therefore remains unclear, their descent can be traced back to a certain 'Red' Henry O'Neill and his wife Hanna née O'Kelly, the daughter of counselor John O'Kelly of Keenagh, County Roscommon, whose children relocated to Spain in the 1750s and 1760s.[22]
Henry and Hanna O'Neill became the parents of Arthur O'Neill in 1736. He was born in Dublin, Ireland. He joined the Spanish army in 1752 and was known by the name Don Arturo O'Neill de Tyrone. He served over 20 years in the Spanish colonial service, becoming Governor of Yucatan in October 1792, and later Governor of West Florida. On his return to Spain in 1803 he was appointed to the Supreme Council of War (replacing Governor Miguel de Uztaraiz) and was awarded the title of the 1st Marques Del Norte two years later. Arturo's brothers included Lieutenant-Colonel Niall 'Nicolas' O'Neill y O'Kelly who died at Zaragoza in Spain, and Tulio and Enrique O'Neill y O'Kelly who both relocated to the Caribbean island of St. Croix in the footsteps of a deceased uncle. These two brothers were granted a license by the Spanish crown to create sugar plantations on the island of Puerto Rico in 1783, although they never availed of it.[23]
Tulio O'Neill y O'Kelly married Catherine O'Keefe y Whalen and became the parents of Arturo O'Neill y O'Keefe and Tulio O'Neill y O'Keefe. Don Arturo O'Neill y O'Keefe was born in March 1782 on St. Croix and married Joanna Chabert Heyliger there in April 1802. Arturo and his brother pleaded for permission to take up their father's right to land in Puerto Rico and this was granted in 1804. Arturo moved his family there in March 1810 and his descendants continue to reside there today as well as in Spain and the USA. Arturo became a Lieutenant Colonel on 17 August 1828 in Bayamón, Puerto Rico and inherited the title of Marques Del Norte from his uncle. He died on 7 September 1832 and is reportedly buried in the Roman Catholic Church of Frederiksted, Saint Croix.[24]
Don Tulio O'Neill y O'Keefe was born on St. Croix in September 1784. He became a General in the Spanish army and won distinctions during the Peninsular War fighting the French. He married Manuela de Castilla Quevedo, the daughter of a Spanish noble family, in 1819. However she died shortly after the birth of their son, Don Juan Antonio Luis O'Neill de Castilla. Tulio was promoted to Field Marshal in charge of the Royal Guard in 1828 and it was he who made the public announcement of the birth of a daughter to the King in 1830, namely the future Isabel II of Spain. Tulio died in 1855 and the family line was continued through his son who inherited his mother's titles (the Marques de la Granja, the Marques de Caltojar, the Marques de Valdeosera and the Count of Benajiar).[25] A later descendant of his also took the title of Marques Del Norte that had remained unclaimed by their relations in Puerto Rico. This branch of the family is often referred to as the O'Neills of the Fews of Seville and is currently headed by the Spanish nobleman Don Carlos O'Neill.[26] Any claim of theirs to represent the O'Neills of the Fews dynasty however must be viewed in light of their descent from the junior branch of the O'Neill y O'Keefe family as well as the absence of a proven lineage linking to the historical "Lords of the Fews".
"The Fews" (Irish: na Feadha) is an area in County Armagh that was a sub-territory under the O'Neills of Tyrone and is roughly equivalent to the area of the parish of Creggan. This O'Neill branch is related to the O'Neill of Tyrone through King Eoghan Mor, circa 1432–1436. The king's younger son Aodh (Hugh) pushed in the territory known as the Fews and conquered its various independent lordships. Aodh then established an independent chieftainship under his father and then brother.
In the rebellion of 1642, Sir Henry O'Neill, a member of the Fews O'Neills, sided with the English crown while his sons and brothers played a prominent part in the rising. Despite his choice of sides his lands were confiscated and divided among a number of Cromwellian settlers. The chief beneficiary was Thomas Ball, whose grants totalled more than 6,000 acres (24 km2). Sir Henry O'Neill was banished to Connacht, to land in County Mayo, Ireland. Exiled with him was his son Captain Sean/Shane O'Neill. Shane's sons took the surname MacShane, or son of Shane.[12] His grandson William anglicized the name to Johnson. He was a major-general in the American Colonial Army and fought the French at Niagara, New York in French-Indian War. For his significant victory he was granted a baronetcy and made Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet of New York in 1753. The present holder of that estate is Sir Colpoys Johnson, 8th Baronet of New York.
When the Williamite War began in Ireland in 1689, Sir Henry O'Neill's son Turlough was dead and so was Turlough's son Con. The heir to the family's Mayo estate was Con's son Henry, who was a minor and had been sent to France for his education. Despite their non-participation in the war, the O'Neill estates were seized by the Crown. Henry (1676-1745) should subsequently have recovered the confiscated lands; his relatives on the continent feared to send him back to Ireland to stake his claim and the property went by default and was sold in 1702-3.[13] Henry had a heroic career in the French army, rising to become a Lieutenant-Colonel in the Regiment of Clare. He was killed at the Battle of Fontenoy in May 1745, aged 69.[14] Henry was the last undisputed claimant to the lordship of the Fews.
Some O'Neill families today claim descent from this Henry O'Neill, but contemporary documentation show that he died without any leaving any descendants.[15][16] Following Henry's death, Felix O'Neill[17] (c1720-1792) was identified by contemporaries as the "person to whom the Lordship of the Fews in the North of Ireland in right and justice belongeth".[18]Indeed, Felix was considered to have a valid claim to be the Chief of the entire O'Neill clan. In his book "History of Ireland" (1758–62) Abbé James MacGeoghegan of the Irish College in Paris wrote of the house of the O'Neills that "the present representative is Felix O'Neill, the chief of the house of the Fews, and an officer of rank in the service of his Catholic Majesty".[19]
Felix O'Neill was born in Creggan in County Armagh. He descended from Aodh Buidhe O'Neill, brother of Sir Henry O'Neill. Felix left Ireland for a career in the Spanish Army and is well remembered for his rescue of Charles Edward Stuart("Bonnie Prince Charlie") following the Battle of Culloden. Felix became a lieutenant general in the Spanish Army and his four sons in turn all had honourable careers in the Spanish military.[20] While most of them did not marry and have families, the youngest son Juan O'Neill (1768-1809) married Vincenta Gual y Vives de Cananas from Palma, Mallorca, and took up residence on the island. Having attained the rank of Captain-General, he died aged 40 leaving a son Felix who was only a year old. Through this man the O'Neills of the Fews line continued in Mallorca in the 19th century and in Argentina in the 20th century.[21] The current day Argentinean descendants of Lieutenant General Felix O'Neill therefore have an historical claim to be leaders of this branch of the O'Neill dynasty.
A contrary claim to the leadership of the dynasty comes from Spanish nobleman Don Carlos O'Neill, 12th Marquis de la Granja, who has been described as "the Prince of the Fews". He claims direct descent from the last undisputed "Lord of the Fews" Henry O'Neill although contemporary evidence shows that Henry had no descendants.[15] While the family's precise link to the historical O'Neills of the Fews therefore remains unclear, their descent can be traced back to a certain 'Red' Henry O'Neill and his wife Hanna née O'Kelly, the daughter of counselor John O'Kelly of Keenagh, County Roscommon, whose children relocated to Spain in the 1750s and 1760s.[22]
Henry and Hanna O'Neill became the parents of Arthur O'Neill in 1736. He was born in Dublin, Ireland. He joined the Spanish army in 1752 and was known by the name Don Arturo O'Neill de Tyrone. He served over 20 years in the Spanish colonial service, becoming Governor of Yucatan in October 1792, and later Governor of West Florida. On his return to Spain in 1803 he was appointed to the Supreme Council of War (replacing Governor Miguel de Uztaraiz) and was awarded the title of the 1st Marques Del Norte two years later. Arturo's brothers included Lieutenant-Colonel Niall 'Nicolas' O'Neill y O'Kelly who died at Zaragoza in Spain, and Tulio and Enrique O'Neill y O'Kelly who both relocated to the Caribbean island of St. Croix in the footsteps of a deceased uncle. These two brothers were granted a license by the Spanish crown to create sugar plantations on the island of Puerto Rico in 1783, although they never availed of it.[23]
Tulio O'Neill y O'Kelly married Catherine O'Keefe y Whalen and became the parents of Arturo O'Neill y O'Keefe and Tulio O'Neill y O'Keefe. Don Arturo O'Neill y O'Keefe was born in March 1782 on St. Croix and married Joanna Chabert Heyliger there in April 1802. Arturo and his brother pleaded for permission to take up their father's right to land in Puerto Rico and this was granted in 1804. Arturo moved his family there in March 1810 and his descendants continue to reside there today as well as in Spain and the USA. Arturo became a Lieutenant Colonel on 17 August 1828 in Bayamón, Puerto Rico and inherited the title of Marques Del Norte from his uncle. He died on 7 September 1832 and is reportedly buried in the Roman Catholic Church of Frederiksted, Saint Croix.[24]
Don Tulio O'Neill y O'Keefe was born on St. Croix in September 1784. He became a General in the Spanish army and won distinctions during the Peninsular War fighting the French. He married Manuela de Castilla Quevedo, the daughter of a Spanish noble family, in 1819. However she died shortly after the birth of their son, Don Juan Antonio Luis O'Neill de Castilla. Tulio was promoted to Field Marshal in charge of the Royal Guard in 1828 and it was he who made the public announcement of the birth of a daughter to the King in 1830, namely the future Isabel II of Spain. Tulio died in 1855 and the family line was continued through his son who inherited his mother's titles (the Marques de la Granja, the Marques de Caltojar, the Marques de Valdeosera and the Count of Benajiar).[25] A later descendant of his also took the title of Marques Del Norte that had remained unclaimed by their relations in Puerto Rico. This branch of the family is often referred to as the O'Neills of the Fews of Seville and is currently headed by the Spanish nobleman Don Carlos O'Neill.[26] Any claim of theirs to represent the O'Neills of the Fews dynasty however must be viewed in light of their descent from the junior branch of the O'Neill y O'Keefe family as well as the absence of a proven lineage linking to the historical "Lords of the Fews".
