Richard "the Iron" Bourke
Richard "the Iron" Bourke (Irish: Risdeárd an Iarainn Bourke; English: /bɜːrk/; BURK; d. 1583) was the 18th lord of Mac William Iochtar (Lower Mac William)
Richard Bourke 18th Mac William Iochtar | |
|---|---|
Risdeárd an Iarainn Búrca | |
 Arms of Bourke of Mayo | |
| Died | 1583 |
Burke was a son of David de Burca, 15th Mac William Iochtar, by his second wife, Finola Ni Flaithbertaigh. He was second husband to Grace O'Malley.
In English he was known as Richard Bourke, or "Iron Richard". In medieval Ireland Richard was a rare name, most found in Norman-origin families like the Bourkes. He was the father of several children, including Tibbot ne Long Bourke, 1st Viscount Mayo.
During the uneven anglicisation of Ireland in the 1500s, by the policy of "Surrender and regrant", Richard signed an agreement with the Crown in 1581 which uniquely left him in autonomous control of his part of County Mayo.
References
- The History of Mayo, Hubert T. Knox. 1908.
- Lower Mac William and Viscounts of Mayo, 1332-1649, in A New History of Ireland IX, pp. 235–36, Oxford, 1984 (reprinted 2002).
