Court of Appeal judge

this happened on the sixth day of december a parliament assembled at kilkenny on the twelfth of march following ordered their release and a peace was made between these powerful houses de burgh gave his two sons as hostages to fitzgerald and the latter surrendered the castle of sligo to de burgh from the period of this peace the power of the last-named noblemen outgrew anything that had been known since the invasion in the year twelve ninety one he banished the o'donnell out of his territory and set up another of his own choosing he deposed one o'neil and raised up another he so straitened o'conor and his patrimony of roscommon that that prince also entered his camp at meleque and gave him hostages He was thus the first and only man of his race who had ever had in his hand the hostages both of Ulster and Connaught.

When the King of England sent writs to Ireland, he usually addressed the Red Earl, before the Lord Justice or Lord Deputy, a compliment which, in that ceremonious age, could not be otherwise than flattering to the pride of de Bourgh.

Such was the order of summons, in which, in the year 1296, he was required by Edward I. to attend him into Scotland, which was then experiencing some of the worst consequences of a disputed succession.

As Ireland's interest in this struggle becomes in the sequel second only to that of Scotland, we must make brief mention of its origins and progress.

The nearer danger compelled Edward to march with forty thousand men, which he had raised up for the war in France, towards the Scottish border, whither he summoned the Earl of Ulster, the Geraldines, Butlers, de Verdans, de Gunvilles, Birminghams, Poers, Purcells, de Coggins, de Berries, de Lacy's, Dexeders, and other minor nobles, to come to him in his camp in early March, 1296.

The Norman Irish obeyed the call.

but the pride of de burgh would not permit him to embark in the train of the lord justice wogan who had also been summoned he sailed with his own forces in a separate fleet having conferred the honour of knighthood on thirty of his younger followers before embarking at dublin whether these forces arrived in time to take part in the bloody siege of berwick and the panic rout at Dunbar does not appear.

They were in time, however, to see the strongest places in Scotland yielded up, and John Balliol a prisoner on his way to the Tower of London.