|
Patrick O’Hanlon
Of
Tandragee.
“Tóin Ré Gaoth”
Co. Armagh, Ireland.
No lens snapped them as they stamped
And churned their print in the thundering ground,
Lances flashing to the wild roar of “treise lámh!”
Or some would-be wrong righted,
Or supremency benighted beneath the flaying clash,
But their presence was stamped.
The darkening fields and low-set hills of a lurking
Autumn twilight process their negative.
The thundering clouds their roar.
Slieve Gullion still bears the hoary beauty
Of Culann’s daughters and the wild
Fancy that sent Finn flying
Into the murky waters for the honour
Of a hero’s geasa.
The peaks still thunder, their clenched fist
Raised in triumph or warning.
They are the breed of Balor,
Fierce, heartless, freezing time
In a Formorian stare, threatening
Those who dare to forget their pride
Their strength, their fierce nobility.
by
ó Aodh Ó Murchú
Slieve Gullion, that mighty mountain in South Armagh, is the
traditional mountain of the O’Hanlon clan. Many stories and legends
spring from its majestic peaks. It is said that the original Coat of
Arms of the O’Hanlons before the raparee, Count Redmond O’Hanlon,
appeared was a flaming mountain. In the days of warring clans when
danger threatened, a huge fire was lit on top of the mountain to
warn the inhabitants so, hence, a flaming mountain. For an O’Hanlon
to climb that mountain with the knowledge of the myths and legends
swirling around in the head is truly awesome. When the peak is
reached and the whole valley is spread out below you, a kaleidoscope
of colour, you know the meaning of being an O’Hanlon. The pride
swells up and over. For all the past, for all we lost and never
regained, we are still powerful. It is there in our name, in our
belief to believe in “other things”, to get on with life but hold
onto the past.
Just to top it off is the “Lake in the Sky” just a wee bit further
on along the ridge of the mountain. It is nestled in the core of an
ancient volcano and is said to be bottomless but if you reach the
bottom, you will emerge in “The Crooked Lake” at the foot of
Camlough Mountain. The water is freezing and the colour of peat but
so invigorating. It is a shimmering jewel beckoning you to indulge
her pleasures. The legend of the Cailleach Beara swims with you as
she awaits her lost love. You are O’Hanlon but beware, for to
venture near the Lake in the Sky or swim in her waters, your hair
could turn grey.
The Story of the Cailleach Beara of Slieve Gullion.
As told by
ó Aodh Ó Murchú
Culann had two daughters, both of whom were in love with Finn
McCool, then a dashing young hero. One of them was under a geasa, a
bond, whereby she could never have anything to do with an older man.
The other, wishing to gain an advantage over her, used the magical
powers of her Sí ancestry and turned herself into a deer and headed
for Mt. Almhain in Kildare, the main residence of the Fianna. Finn
and his two dogs, Bran and Sceolog, were out for a stroll, taking a
break from the feasting that was in progress. The deer presented
herself before them on the nearby hill, almost inviting capture.
As soon as the hounds caught sight of the deer, they took off after
it with Finn at their heels. The pursuit continued the whole way
from Kildare down through Naas, Drogheda, through the Muirtheimhne
Plain and Dundalk until they finally arrived at the top of Slieve
Gullion. At this point, the deer disappeared.
As Finn stood scratching his head in amazement, for never before had
any four-legged creature been able to outrun himself and his two
hounds, he heard a sound as of a woman crying. When he went to
investigate, he found a beautiful young maiden sitting on the bank
of the lake on the summit of Slieve Gullion weeping profusely. She
told him that a gold ring she had on her finger had fallen into the
water of the lake. She put him as a warrior of the Fianna under a
geasa to retrieve it for her. Finn stripped off his clothes and
dived into the lake.. On the fifth attempt, he found the ring and
headed to the bank. As he swam, the maiden cast a spell on the lake
waters and before Finn had his feet planted firmly on dry ground, he
was turned into a withered, greyhaired, feeble old man with scarcely
the strength to stand. The maiden grabbed the ring and disappeared.
Eventually, the other members of the Fianna, having followed the
tracks of the chase, arrived at the top of Slieve Gullion. Finn was
ashamed to tell them that he, now a wizened old man, was their
heroic leader. The Fianna were outraged at such a deed being done to
their leader, an insult to all the Fianna. They swore revenge.
Placing their shields carefully under Finn, they raised him on their
shoulders and carried him “Northwards” from the lake until they
reached Culann’s castle. The castle was underground in a Sidh, a
fairy mound. They called on Culann to come out and answer his
daughter’s treachery but he refused, so the Fianna began to dig into
the Sidh.
Seven days, without respite, the troop dug into the Sidh until
Culann came out before them from his cave. In his hand was discerned
a golden goblet full of wine which he gave to the Fianna king lying
prostrate on the hill. Finn drank without delay, the fairy quaff in
his hand and to his form again he returned, Finn the King but grey
of hair.
The Last O’Hanlon of Tandragee Castle.
Nestled in the historical County Armagh at Tandragee is a castle
built on land trodden by the ancient Kings of Ireland. The castle,
built in the early 17th century, was the ancestral home of the
O’Hanlon’s, a powerful Irish clan. Sir Oghie O’Hanlon, the last
chieftain to hold the estates died in 1623 after losing his lands
when his son, Oghie Oge, entered into a rebellion with Sir Caher
O’Doherty .
Soon after the Plantation of Ulster, Tandragee castle was given to
Sir Oliver St. John who rebuilt the castle. When the rebellion of
1641 broke out, the disinherited O’Hanlons endeavoured to repossess
their ancestral estates and the church and castle were both burnt.
From the St.Johns, the property passed to the Sparrows. As a result
of the marriage of the only daughter and heiress of Brigadier
General RB Sparrow of Huntingdonshire with Lord Mandeville, son f
the 5th Duke of Mandeville, the castle passed to the Montague
family. About 1836, the castle was rebuilt with stone from Tullyhue.
Tandragee castle remained the seat of Dukedom until 1939.
During the 2nd World War, the castle was requisitioned by American
troops. In 1955 the castle and grounds were purchased by Thomas
Hutchinson who set up a potato factory but in 1976, fire extensively
damaged the castle again. It lay in disrepair until 1989 when the
Hutchinson family rebuilt and refurbished it to its former glory. It
is now the home of Tayto potato crisps
There are few carrying the O’Hanlon name in Tandragee now although
there are many descendants with O’Hanlon blood in their veins and
proud of it.
Leaving Ireland
"Imagine", close your eyes and think the thoughts of those O"Hanlon
ancestors of ours, Patrick and Martha and their niece, Rose Gorrian,
arriving at Moreton Bay in their chosen country of Australia after
leaving behind their heritage in Ireland.
What were the aspirations and ambitions of those early pioneers of
Ipswich and Laidley? What were the reasons for leaving their
homeland? Was it politics, starvation, religion or the oppression of
the British, but no, apparently Patrick ran foul of the law and
Martha's parents who were pillars of the society in those days.
According to family stories, Patrick was a lively fellow. His family
supposedly had thousands of acres of land on which they raised
thoroughbred horses. He had a way with horses and purchased unruly
animals to retrain and resell, possibly back to the former owners.
One such horse owner resented this way of making a living and
charged Patrick with stealing horses with the result that Patrick
was forced to leave Ireland and fled to England. Because he was an
excellent horseman, he found a job as a “sweeper” which meant he
rode before the carriages of upper class people to sweep the roads
clear of any obstacles. I presume it was people, animals and things.
He proved very adept at that job and it wasn’t too long before he
was upgraded to the job of riding the horse of the carriage.
It was while he was doing this job for a church minister, Church of
England, he met Martha who rode in the carriage. There is a lot of
dissent in the family whether Martha was Catholic or Protestant. One
story has her in a convent and another has her as the daughter of a
Protestant minister. To discourage the romance, Martha was sent to a
Ladies School or a convent where she was locked away from Patrick.
But, don’t you think Patrick would be fooled for long. He found out
where she was and became a gardener in the school grounds where he
bided his time until he was able to become her knight in shining
armour, smash in the front door, cart her off (probably on
horseback), take her back to Ireland and marry her in Tandragee
where she came from in the first place. So, in 1853, Patrick
O’Hanlon married Martha Woods. Patrick was the son of Michael
O’Hanlon and Anne (McGlade) and Martha, the daughter of Daniel and
Bella Woods.
Now, maybe it was his horse dealings, maybe his love affair with
Martha, we don’t know, but, with “his backside to the wind”, he left
Ireland with a handsome purse of gold sovereigns in his hand and a
promise of a guinea a month for life and made their way to
Australia.
Standing on the bow of their ship entering Australia in 1853 with
314 other people aboard, more than likely they passed that infamous
prison, St Helena Island, in Moreton Bay where the prisoners
suffered horrendous treatment at the hands of their jailers. It must
have been a great relief to reach land after those hazardous months
at sea and to be able to count their blessings that they were free
settlers.
Patrick and Martha arrived in Moreton Bay which was then in the
Colony of New South Wales on the 14th November 1853 aboard the ship,
Caroline, which departed Liverpool, England on 7th July, 1853.
Caroline was a ship of 987 tons whose Captain was Captain Lawson and
the Surgeon Superintendent was Dr Scott. According to reports, all
the passengers were exceedingly healthy and had no complaints
although eleven infants died during the trip. Of the 372 immigrants,
(conflicting reports of this number), there were 94 adult males, 175
females, 31 males and 61 females between the ages of 1 and 14 and 5
infants. There were 16 births and 1 still born. The immigrants came
from England, Scotland and Ireland with the majority coming from
Ireland. Apparently, the ship had to pull into port in Sydney
because they had trouble with the seamen. Caroline was a sailing
ship, square rigged on all masts, with bow sprit and three masts,
each of which is composed of a lower mast, top mast and a top
gallant mast.
Patrick was 27 years old and Martha was 19 when they left Tandragee,
County Armagh, Ireland. Patrick was entered as an agricultural
labourer on the ship's log and could not read or write but Martha
could read. A niece of Patrick's, Rose Gorrian, who was 17 years
old, daughter of Sarah, Patrick's sister and James Gorrian, came
with them. Rose later married William Duncan and moved to the Gold
Coast. Patrick also had another niece, Mary Gorrian, Rose's sister
living in Sydney when they emigrated. According to the limited
records available, Patrick had another two sisters in Ireland. They
were Roseanna, born 14th July 1799 and Bridget, born 16th August
1801, but because of the loss of the Ballymore Church records
between the years of the early 1800’s and 1838, no other siblings
are recorded. Even though there is a difference of about twenty
years, it was not uncommon for large families during that time span.
It is said that there were four more brothers also--- John, Michael,
Daniel and James.
Patrick and Martha settled in Ipswich for ten years where their
daughters, Anne Isabella, Bridget and Martha were born, as well as
Patrick Joseph. As Patrick had that allowance given to him for life,
they moved to Laidley, Queensland, where they lived out their lives
on a farm called O'Hanlon's farm or Violet Hill on which he raised
pedigree horses. They had four more sons there, John, Michael, James
and Daniel.
“Violet Hill”, we have wondered on the significance of that for
quite awhile. Did it have a special meaning for Patrick and Martha
for them to name their farm Violet hill? Did they bring that name
from Ireland so that could still have a part of their homeland with
them? Surely, it must be a very important memory for them to bring
it to Australia. After mentioning this question to our friend,
Gerry, in Ireland, he pursued the subject with not much success
until out of the blue when he was visiting a library, there on the
wall was an old map of Tandragee with Violet Hill marked. It was
lying between Terryhoogan, where the Woods lived and Mullaghglass
and Lisbane where the O’Hanlons lived.
.
Martha died on the 18th August, 1880 from a fever that made her sick
for two months and because of the isolation of their farm, could
only consult their doctor by messenger. Patrick re-married on the
17th November 1886 to Ellen McGrath when he was 62 years old. Ellen,
or Nellie as she was called, was left the property when Patrick died
and when she died, a woman called Susan Kelly who they took in off
the streets when she had a baby out of wedlock, was the only
beneficiary interested in making a claim on the will.
Patrick and Martha lost their daughters Anne Isabella, aged 29 on
the 20th July, 1883, from some kind of convulsions and Bridget, aged
19, on the 30th 1879 from pneumonia which brought on premature
birth. Patrick died on 8th July, 1913. He was 89 years of age.
Patrick and Martha lay buried side by side in Laidley cemetery, on
top of the hill, together forever with hands clasped, with their
daughters, Bridget and Anne Isabella. Patrick Joseph, his wife Jane,
and their grandson, Vincent, son of Thomas and Lily are also buried
there. Their epitaph, on a broken headstone has only Martha, Bridget
and Isabella engraved on it.
The Tombstone Reads.
Of Your Charity
Pray For The Soul Of
MARTHA O'HANLON
Beloved Wife of Patrick O’Hanlon
Of Laidley
Died 18 August 1880
Native of Tandragee Armagh
Ireland
Also For Their Children
ISABELLA STOKES
And BRIDGET ENGLISH
Natives of Ipswich
May They Rest in Peace. Amen
Patrick now has his own headstone also, erected in June, 2005.
It says:-
( engraving of the family Coat of Arms)
PIONEER
PATRICK O’HANLON
Died 8-7-1913 Aged 89
Husband of Martha & Nellie
Emigrated from Tandragee
Co Armagh, Ireland
In 1853
Codladh Sámh
So it is the beginnings of our heritage with all the harshness,
glory and sorrow of living in this country of Australia with only
love and determination in their struggle to survive in a vastly
different way of life and climate. Oh, to be a fly on the wall, to
watch them go through their ups and downs, to live their way. They
had to be-----
" What Legends are Made of."
|