Robert De Holywood
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Robert de Holywood (died 1384) was an Irish
judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...
and landowner who held the office of Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer. He was the ancestor of the Holywood family of Artane Castle, and of the St. Lawrence family, Earls of Howth. He was a substantial landowner with property in Dublin, Meath and Louth. He became extremely unpopular, and was removed from office after numerous complaints of "oppression and extortion" were made against him. These were apparently inspired ĺargely by his close association in the mid-1370s with Sir William de Windsor, the embattled Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.Otway-Ruthven, A.J. ''A History of Medieval Ireland'' Barnes and Noble reissue New York 1993 p.307


Career

He took his surname from the
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...
of Holywood (also spelt Hollywood), near
Balbriggan Balbriggan (; , ) is a suburban coastal town in Fingal, in the northern part of County Dublin, Ireland. It is approximately 34 km north of the city of Dublin, for which it is a commuter town. The 2022 census population was 24,322 for Bal ...
,
County Dublin County Dublin ( or ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and holds its capital city, Dublin. It is located on the island's east coast, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Until 1994, County Dubli ...
. He was a younger son: an
inquest An inquest is a judicial inquiry in common law jurisdictions, particularly one held to determine the cause of a person's death. Conducted by a judge, jury, or government official, an inquest may or may not require an autopsy carried out by a cor ...
in 1408 described him as the brother of William Holywood.''Patent Roll 9 Henry IV '' He was appointed Chief
Remembrancer The Remembrancer was originally a subordinate officer of the English Exchequer. The office is of great antiquity, the holder having been termed remembrancer, memorator, rememorator, registrar, keeper of the register, despatcher of business. The R ...
of the
Court of Exchequer (Ireland) The Court of Exchequer (Ireland), or the Irish Exchequer of Pleas, was one of the senior courts of common law in Ireland. It was the mirror image of the equivalent court in England. The Court of Exchequer was one of the four royal courts of jus ...
in 1348, his main task being to organise the Court records for the judges to read. In 1359 he was charged with organising the defence of
Leinster Leinster ( ; or ) is one of the four provinces of Ireland, in the southeast of Ireland. The modern province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige, which existed during Gaelic Ireland. Following the 12th-century ...
. Much of the
Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...
administration, including the Courts of Exchequer and
Common Pleas A court of common pleas is a common kind of court structure found in various common law jurisdictions. The form originated with the Court of Common Pleas at Westminster, which was created to permit individuals to press civil grievances against one ...
, moved from
Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
to
Carlow Carlow ( ; ) is the county town of County Carlow, in the south-east of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, from Dublin. At the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, it had a population of 27,351, the List of urban areas in the Republic of Ireland, ...
in about 1361, on the grounds that Carlow was more central and convenient for the English government (there was at the time no
capital city A capital city, or just capital, is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state (polity), state, province, department (administrative division), department, or other administrative division, subnational division, usually as its ...
of Ireland or seat of central government as such). Robert in his capacity as Remembrancer was one of the first officials to make the move.


Judge

He was appointed Chief Baron in 1363: he was superseded the following year, during a general "shake-up" of Irish officials. He was reappointed in 1367. He probably spent most of his time in Dublin, as conditions in Carlow had become extremely dangerous, due to regular raids by the Irish of
Leinster Leinster ( ; or ) is one of the four provinces of Ireland, in the southeast of Ireland. The modern province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige, which existed during Gaelic Ireland. Following the 12th-century ...
: the town was burnt in 1363, 1376 and 1391, and the
Exchequer In the Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil service of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's Exchequer, or just the Exchequer, is the accounting process of central government and the government's ''Transaction account, current account'' (i.e., mon ...
moved back to Dublin for a time in the 1360s. In 1376 his colleague John Brettan wrote that the situation was such that most of the Barons, other than Brettan himself, who was a local man, dared not travel to Carlow.''Close Roll 51 Edward III'' In 1376 Robert was finally dismissed from office as Chief Baron, and given his immense unpopularity with the ruling class, was probably lucky to avoid more serious sanctions. He died eight years later.Ball p.84 In 1361 he received a royal pardon for purchasing land without royal permission, something which was strictly forbidden for Crown officials. This pardon may relate to his purchase of Artane (originally called Tartaine) Castle, of which he was the first recorded owner and which remained in his family for two centuries (unlike many judges of the time, he was not in
holy orders In certain Christian denominations, holy orders are the ordination, ordained ministries of bishop, priest (presbyter), and deacon, and the sacrament or rite by which candidates are ordained to those orders. Churches recognizing these orders inclu ...
). In 1367 he sat on a powerful commission to determine whether or not the manor of
Rathkeale Rathkeale () is a town in west County Limerick, in Ireland. It is 30 km (18 mi) southwest of Limerick city on the N21 road to Tralee, County Kerry, and lies on the River Deel. The town is in a townland and civil parish of the same n ...
was Crown land, but it apparently never reported, since a similar inquiry was launched in 1374. Ball argues that while some of his fellow judges, notably John Brettan, willingly exposed themselves to the dangers of going on
assize The assizes (), or courts of assize, were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes ex ...
, Holywood preferred the comparative security of
Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
.Ball p.34 This may well be an unfair judgment since Carlow, the seat of the royal courts, was notoriously dangerous. Brettan himself remarked that many of his fellow judges were simply afraid to travel there: if Holywood preferred to stay in Dublin, he was certainly not unique. His fellow Chief Justice John Tirel was another judge who refused to go on assize "on account of the dangers of the roads". As for Brettan, while he undoubtedly showed considerable courage in braving the hazards of the journey, he was a Carlow man himself, and had long played a part in the town's defences. In 1373, in consideration of his good services to the Crown, Robert was given permission to found a
chantry A chantry is an ecclesiastical term that may have either of two related meanings: # a chantry service, a set of Christian liturgical celebrations for the dead (made up of the Requiem Mass and the Office of the Dead), or # a chantry chapel, a b ...
with five
chaplains A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a ho ...
at Holywood and in 1376 was given permission to allow them to choose a warden. The chaplains were required to pray for the
souls The soul is the purported immaterial aspect or essence of a living being. It is typically believed to be immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that describe the relationship between the soul and the bod ...
of Sir Robert himself, his two wives, and Queen
Philippa of Hainault Philippa of Hainault (sometimes spelled Hainaut; Middle French: ''Philippe de Hainaut''; 24 June 1310 (or 1315) – 15 August 1369) was List of English consorts, Queen of England as the wife and political adviser of King Edward III. She acted a ...
, the deceased wife of King
Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...
.


Downfall

In 1376 his career came to an abrupt end. The unpopular and combative
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the K ...
, Sir William de Windsor, was summoned to England in February of that year to answer numerous charges of
corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense that is undertaken by a person or an organization that is entrusted in a position of authority to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's gain. Corruption may involve activities ...
and maladministration and was suspended from office. At the same time a flood of complaints by the
Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...
nobility of "
extortions Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit (e.g., money or goods) through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, although making unfounded t ...
, oppressions and injuries" was directed against Holywood and the second Baron of the Irish Exchequer, William de Karlell, who were clearly seen as key members of the Windsor regime. Both judges were summoned to England, along with Windsor, Stephen de Valle,
Bishop of Meath The Bishop of Meath is an episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient Kingdom of Meath. In the Catholic Church it remains as a separate title, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with another bishopric. History Until the ...
, Sir
John Cruys Sir John Cruys or Cruise (died 1407) was a prominent Irish military commander, diplomat and judge of the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries. He was one of the most substantial landowners in County Dublin and County Meath and built Mer ...
of Thorncastle and others, to answer for their conduct. The English Privy Council, having examined them, dismissed them from office and sent them back to Ireland for further questioning by the English official Sir Nicholas Dagworth, who had assumed emergency powers of government during the crisis. However the matter ended there; the Anglo-Irish
nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...
seems to have been content with the two judges' dismissal. Holywood petitioned for repayment of the expenses of his journey to England, and it was ordered that these be paid on the appointment of the new Chief Baron. The judges' associate Sir John Cruys of
Merrion Castle Merrion Castle was a castle situated about 300m south of the present-day Merrion Gates, to the south of Dublin city centre. Built in the early fourteenth century, it was from the sixteenth century to the early eighteenth century the principal s ...
went on to have a highly successful career. Holywood, in a
petition A petition is a request to do something, most commonly addressed to a government official or public entity. Petitions to a deity are a form of prayer called supplication. In the colloquial sense, a petition is a document addressed to an officia ...
of 1379, asked for a suspension of any further
legal proceedings Legal proceeding is an activity that seeks to invoke the power of a tribunal in order to enforce a law. Although the term may be defined more broadly or more narrowly as circumstances require, it has been noted that " e term ''legal proceedings'' ...
against him, and for the restoration of his property. Holywood retired into private life, but Karlell was eventually reinstated and was himself appointed Chief Baron, a few months before he died in 1383. Holywood died in 1384.


Family and descendants

Robert's first wife was named Joan; his second wife, who outlived him, was called Nesta. In 1385 Nesta was granted the customary
licence A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another part ...
from the Crown to a
widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died and has usually not remarried. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The adjecti ...
to remarry whom she pleased. She also received one-third of her husband's lands as her
dower Dower is a provision accorded traditionally by a husband or his family, to a wife for her support should she become widowed. It was settlement (law), settled on the bride (being given into trust instrument, trust) by agreement at the time of t ...
. At Robert's death in 1384, his son Sir Christopher de Holywood (who must have been Nesta's son) succeeded to his estate: since Christopher was described as 24 years old in 1408, he must have been in his infancy when his father died. In 1401 he was appointed a justice of the peace for Dublin. In 1403 he received a
pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...
for all trespasses committed by him on royal land: this apparently means that he had entered his late father's lands before the Crown formally regranted them to him. In 1408 he also succeeded to the estates of his cousin John Holywood, son of William. Christopher became a distinguished
soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a Conscription, conscripted or volunteer Enlisted rank, enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an Officer (armed forces), officer. Etymology The wo ...
, and in 1413 he was appointed one of the commanders of the King's army in Ireland. He married c.1400 Katherine Preston, widow of William Lawless. He died in or about 1416. He was succeeded as the owner of Artane by his son, the younger Robert de Holywood, who was then a minor (he was born in 1401) and was made a Royal ward. Robert was given full control of his estates on attaining his majority in 1422. He served as Sheriff of County Dublin in 1426. He died in 1431, leaving three daughters, Margaret, Elizabeth and Eleanor, as his co-heiresses. Most of the Holywood estates passed to the Burnell family of Balgriffin towards the end of the fifteenth century. Christopher also had at least one daughter Eleanor, who married the 1st Baron Howth (his name is variously given as Christopher and Stephen), and was the mother of
Christopher St Lawrence, 2nd Baron Howth Christopher St Lawrence, 2nd Baron Howth ( died 1462 or 1465 ) was an Anglo-Irish nobleman. He was a key figure in fifteenth-century Irish politics, and one of the strongest supporters in Ireland of the House of York, who seized the English Crow ...
. Christopher's widow Katherine married as her third husband Sir Richard FitzEustace, Lord Chancellor of Ireland.''Patent Roll 9 Henry V''


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holywood, Robert de 1384 deaths People from Artane, Dublin Year of birth unknown Chief Barons of the Irish Exchequer