With the exception of the city of Galway (a walled city of stately homes and prosperous merchants), western Ireland has been described as a wild and desolate land during this time, with few trading commodities and little industry. In 1502, fishing was the dominant industry on the west coast. Recognised internationally for abundant cod, hake and herring, the coastline attracted fishing fleets from as far as Spain. In a period characterised by individual power struggles and frequent conflict between neighbouring clans,

Clanricarde Clanricarde (; ), also known as Mac William Uachtar (Upper Mac William) or the Galway Burkes, were a fully Gaelicised branch of the Hiberno-Norman House of Burgh who were important landowners in Ireland from the 13th to the 20th centuries. Te ...

had experienced decades of stability brought by

Ulick Ruadh Burke Ulick Ruadh Burke, 5th Clanricarde or Mac William Uachtar (; ; ; ; died 1485) was an Irish chieftain and noble who was the son of Ulick an Fhiona Burke, 3rd Clanricarde (d.1424). Ulick succeeded his uncle, William mac Ulick Burke, 4th Clanr ...

and

Ulick Fionn Burke Ulick Fionn Burke, 6th Clanricarde or Mac William Uachtar (; ; ; ; died 1509) was an Irish chieftain and noble. Family background Ulick succeeded his father, Ulick Ruadh Burke, 5th Clanricarde (d.1485), as chieftain. The Annals of the Four ...

. In October 1502, records show Sir William Darcy of Platten, the newly appointed receiver general of King Henry VII's revenues (collected in Meath, Louth, Dublin, Kildare and Drogheda), presented his accounts to barons at the exchequer table. Revenue amounted to £1,110 - just half of that estimated by Hattecliffe as leviable. Commentators suggest the Lord Deputy (

Gerald FitzGerald, 8th Earl of Kildare Gerald FitzGerald, 8th Earl of Kildare KG (born – ), known variously as "Garret the Great" (Gearóid Mór) or "The Great Earl" (An tIarla Mór), was Ireland's premier peer. He served as Lord Deputy of Ireland from 1477 to 1494, and from 1496 ...

) was taking a substantial share of the revenues.

Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional ce ...

was renowned for spending the revenues at his pleasure during this time. Events from the year 1502 in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

Incumbent

Lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage ...

: Henry VII

Events

April April is the fourth month of the year in the Gregorian and Julian calendars. It is the first of four months to have a length of 30 days, and the second of five months to have a length of less than 31 days. April is commonly associated with ...

– Gerald FitzGerald, later

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant " chieftain", particu ...

, at the age of 15, played the principal role in the

funeral A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect ...

ceremony for Henry VII's eldest son Arthur,

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rule ...

Worcester Cathedral Worcester Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Worcester, in Worcestershire, England, situated on a bank overlooking the River Severn. It is the seat of the Bishop of Worcester. Its official name is the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Bless ...

Births

Deaths

References

Henry VIII of England Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

{{Year in Europe, 1502 1500s in Ireland

Years of the 16th century in Ireland