The pirate craft is still shrouded in a romantic halo - sea, freedom, sails full of wind … And, of course, battles, blood, robbery, death of innocent people. It seems that there is no place for women in pirate romance - after all, everyone knows that on the ship they only bring misfortune. Granya O'Malley, also known as Granual, nicknamed the "Queen of the Pirates," truly brought misfortune to all those who dared to stand in her way.
THE LIVING LEGEND OF IRELAND
An image of a young woman, the first of the crew to jump onto an enemy ship with a musket in her hands, yelling at the same time: “Go ahead, guys! Trust me, giving birth is much worse! " looks like some kind of entertaining legend. Its origin aggravates the suspicion - who else would create such characters if not the Irish, the masters of inventing stories? Especially when it comes to the middle of the XVI century. Those were extremely bad times for Ireland, when the British conquered the once free lands with fire and sword, establishing their own order. Free "pirate queen" fighting for the independence of Ireland from the British dogs - a great myth! Until we come across a line in quite reliable British archives: "The famous woman-captain Grania Imalli appeared to me, offering the services of her three galleys and 200 soldiers." The text was composed, by the way,English captain Henry Cindy, which immediately proves two things: Granual was an absolutely real person, but she did not fight for the country's independence in principle. On the other hand, she knew how to negotiate like no one else - and not only with individual officials, but also with Queen Elizabeth herself! Although this story will require a certain preface. To begin with, you need to figure out how a woman could become a captain of a pirate fleet ?!how could a woman ever become a captain of the pirate fleet ?!how could a woman ever become a captain of the pirate fleet ?!
OWNER OF COUNTY MEIO
First of all, for such an amazing event, we should thank the foundations of Gaelic society, where women enjoyed much more freedom than in many other countries. Further, Grania was born into the O'Malley clan, hereditary seafarers who know no other life but the sea. They fished, traded, and fought with equal ease - there was no other way to survive in those parts. Grania's father, Owen Dubdara, who has no tea in his daughter, taught her the craft of both navigation and sea robbery. "Granual", by the way, is translated as "bald Grania". According to one of the most widespread stories, the girl received this nickname when she was thirteen years old, having cut her long hair so that her father would take her to the ship “like a man”. Three years later, Owen passed away, and the clan meeting appointed his son Domnall as the new leader.and Grania married a noble governor from a friendly clan. Initially, she did not resist, honestly ran the household and gave birth to her husband three children, but she simply could not calmly look at the idle fleet. While her husband was fighting on land against hostile tribes, Granual took command over the ships and plundered merchants along the entire coast not only of his native Mayo, but also of neighboring counties.
If the life of a reckless Irish woman prematurely ended in one of the battles of those times, she would still be remembered and sung in legends. But no - Grania lived for an unimaginably long time, not only for a pirate, but in general for a person of her time, invulnerable to blades, poisons and ailments. Here she is desperately defending her husband's castle from the British raid, ordering to melt the lead roof and pour red-hot metal over the heads of the attackers. Here she becomes the mistress of her own Clare Island, conveniently located at the intersection of trade routes, which allows her to expand her dominion at sea. Here he falls in love with the young English Earl Hugh de Lacy, who was carried ashore after a shipwreck, but six months later was killed by a hostile clan of McMagons. Here is terribly revenge for his death, seizing the castle Dunu and cutting out all the offenders at the root … Granual, not counting the incident in childhood,did not call herself a man - she was quite a sensual woman, not shy about her passion. But at the same time, he was a completely ruthless warrior and a born leader, who eventually took over the entire coast of County Mayo. Even the Grania flag betrayed a romantic nature - it featured a white seahorse. But they feared him more than the famous "Jolly Roger", because they knew that he belongs to a real sea witch.as they knew - it belongs to a real sea witch.as they knew - it belongs to a real sea witch.
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RECEPTION WITH THE QUEEN
But all pirate freelance comes to an end, especially when the British war machine gets down to business. The new governor of the province of Connaught (which included County Mayo), Richard Bingham, just taking up the service, declared war on the O'Malley clan and its indomitable leader. For three years of fierce confrontation, Bingham ravaged the lands of Granual, took prisoner and killed her son Owen, but he could not get her herself. Escaping British retaliation time after time, Granual received a new "title" - "the instigator of all the insurgencies in this province over the past forty years." But this could not go on indefinitely, and the queen of the pirates decided on a desperate step.
As if laughing in the face of Bingham, Granual took part in the defeat of the Invincible armada of Spain, which sailed past her lands. This did not in any way facilitate negotiations with the implacable governor, but her plan was aimed at a significantly higher figure. Having dealt with the Spaniards, Grania wrote a letter to Elizabeth herself, begging for protection and protection from the "arbitrariness of local officials" - and received an invitation to London. The conversation between the two women exposed by the authorities passed in quite friendly tones. After all, who other than the queen could better understand Granual's situation? By the highest decree, Bingham was restrained, the relatives of Grania were released, and she herself pledged to provide any assistance in the fight against Spain. Here and put an end. But life is not literature, and fate decreed otherwise.
TRAGIC FINAL
Grania returned to her native Ireland, where her relatives released from captivity met her, but the taste of this victory clearly smelled of betrayal. The local British authorities, led by Bingham, still put a spoke in her wheel, and the Irish clans hated Granual for the deal made with the invaders. When Count Tirconnel rebelled against the British, the "pirate queen" attacked him, but was defeated. Pursued by everyone, she took refuge on her island of Clare, where she spent the rest of her days. According to one version, she met death on the deck during a boarding, according to another, she died peacefully in her sleep and was buried in the family chapel.
Grania O'Malley's life fits so well into the text of the legend that it is breathtaking. But if you think about it, for herself, the story turned out to be extremely bitter. All of her sons either died or betrayed their mother, helping the British to round up her. The Irish, who once respected Granual as a strong leader, ended up spitting on her for treason. Yes, the "sea witch" lived an incredibly long life. Was it worth the dubious fame in life and after death? In any case, she will have no other glory. Pirate romance is unlikely to have a more suitable heroine than Grania O'Malley, boarding a Spanish frigate under a flag with a white seahorse.
Maxim Filaretov