Grace O'Malley
Grace O’Malley, or Granuaile as the Irish call her, was born in 1530 on the west coast of Ireland. Her family was a rare seafaring clan, whose motto was “powerful by land and sea.” She took to ship life early, and eventually became a captain, merchant, pirate and de facto chieftain, as well as a thorn in the side of the English overlords. One British governor labeled her “a woman that hath impudently passed the part of womanhood and been a great spoiler and chief commander and director of thieves and murderers at sea.”
Her exploits, real and perhaps exaggerated, are many. She reputedly gave birth to her fourth child at sea, and shortly after rose up from her captain’s berth to repel an attack by Algerian corsairs. She met with Queen Elizabeth to secure the release of her son from prison and continued as a pirate until her seventies.Her castles on Clare Island and at Rockfleet on Clew Bay still stand and her name has never been forgotten. She’s the only seafaring woman in history to have a museum dedicated to her: the Granuaile Heritage Centre in Louisburgh, Co. Mayo. |
