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CLAN O'BYRNE HISTORY

We will be happy to post information on this page that might be helpful to researchers. We are listing here some publications which we have found useful or curious or which have in some other way crept into our shelves. Some are quite rare, but luckily the texts have normally been digitized and can often be found online free of charge with a little detective work. Titles are listed in no special order.

Leabhar Branach - The Book of the O'Byrnes, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (1944). A collection of poetry celebrating the O'Byrnes of Glenmalure, ca. 1550 to 1630. The poems are, of course, in Irish. This is quite a hurdle to many of us, but the script is romanised and there are excellent notes including topographical and historical notes by Liam Price.

The Trial of Billy Byrne of Ballymanus, Dee-Jay Publications (1996) ISBN 0951923927. A useful reproduction of the original edition ca. 1799 but somewhat edited and altered.

Matters of Felony by Margery Weiner, Heinemann (1967). Garrett Byrne and James Strange abducted two Kennedy girls in 1779, from Graiguenamana and paid the price of it. A slightly breathless but readable account including some useful historical details.

The Green Bough of Liberty by David Rees, Dobson (1979) ISBN 0234721871. Romantic historical novel based upon 1798 and the Ballymanus family.

Memoirs of Miles Byrne (various editions now available). Remarkable eye-witness record of the events of 1798 by an intelligent and honest participant, but written many years after the event.

Ranelagh - The Irish Warlord by Charles Artaud Byrne, Tate (2008) ISBN 9781606049839 Historical novel starting in 1580 and tracing through to the 19th century, then morphing into more conventional fiction.

The O'Tooles of Feracualan with some notices of Feagh MacHugh O'Byrne by John O'Toole, Sullivan (N.D.). Has 134 pages of preface! Followed by 116 pages which include much historical allusion.

Feagh McHugh O'Byrne, Journal of the Rathdrum Historical Society 1998. ISBN 0953482502 A collection of five outstanding essays of immense value. Probably hard to obtain, but worth obtaining through a major library if all else fails.

The Clan O'Byrne of Leinster AD 400 - 1700 by Paul J. Burns, House of Lochar (2001) ISBN 1899863834 "A Compilation of Available Historical Information".

Irish Pedigrees or The Origin and Stem of the Irish Nation by John O'Hart. Various editions readily available; an essential work but naturally enough it is less than reliable in the light of more detailed research.

The Annals of Ireland by The Four Masters. Readily available online, e.g. Cork University http://www.ucc.ie/celt/irlpage.html

The History of the Clan O'Toole and other Leinster Septs by Rev. P.L.O'Toole, Gill (1890). A magnificent tome, which will have inspired generations of budding family historians, not least through the extensive genealogical tables. One had always known that one was descended from Adam, but was a little hazy about Japhet, fascinated by Phunius Farsa and thrilled to learn of the voyaging upon the Caspian Sea. Surprisingly hard to obtain, but the most important genealogical table was reproduced in tiny form in The Clan O'Byrne of Leinster and can be read with a magnifying glass.

 

 

 

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