Lordship of Ireland

The Lordship of Ireland (English Lordship of Ireland, Irish Tiarnas na hÉireann, 1171-1541 ) was nominally an island comprehensive Irish State as a result of the Norman invasion of the east coast of Ireland in the year 1169th Despite this fact, the rule of power of the state was, in addition to some Norman strongholds, limited to a small area around Dublin; an area as The Pale should be known later.

Origin

The origin of the lordship lies in deciding Diarmuid MacMorroughs, a prince of Leinster, the Norman warrior Richard de Clare ( known as Strongbow ) to ask for help, his throne recover, the MacMorrough had lost a confederation under the new Irish High King. Henry II, ruler of England and parts of France, then was planning an invasion of Ireland to keep de Clare under control, which he viewed as a threat to the stability of his own kingdom - there were in England since the 10th century, the fear that Anglo-Saxon refugees Ireland and Flanders could use as a base for an attack on England.

Another reason for the invasion of Henry II was a bull of Pope Adrian IV, which allowed the English monarch to occupy Ireland. Ireland was dominated at that time still a Celtic- Christian faith, which was independent of the Catholic Church. Through an invasion of Henry the Pope could incorporate this church of the Roman Catholic Church. The right to distribute sovereignty over various islands of the monarch received the Pope through a document known as the Donation of Constantine. So he bequeathed the English monarch Ireland as Feudalgebiet under the supremacy of the Pope. This bull made ​​the King of England to the " Lord of Ireland" (Lord of Ireland).

After the conquest of a small part of the Irish coast, Henry took advantage of the country to a dispute within his family to settle. Henry had divided his territory among his sons, only his son Johann ( John Lackland, in English ) had previously received no area - therefore comes whose nickname John Lackland. Heinrich now bequeathed to his son John Ireland, who thus in 1185 for Lord of Ireland ( Dominus Hiberniae ) was. Ireland was thus the Lordship of Ireland.

However, the fate was responsible for the death of John's older brothers. Johann therefore became King of England and the Lordship of Ireland was instead a separate area that was dominated by a small English prince to a territorial part of the English crown. English monarch to use the title Lord of Ireland continue to underpin its claim to the island of Ireland.

In 1541 the title by the Act of the Irish Parliament in King of Ireland (King of Ireland ) was, and the name of the State in Ireland Kingdom (Kingdom of Ireland) changed. This was done at the insistence of Henry VIII, because it was originally granted by the pope the title and Henry VIII had been excommunicated from the Catholic Church, so that the title was no longer valid.