Ulster Plantation

After defeat in the Nine Years War the Irish chieftains led by Hugh O’Neill were dissatisfied with the spread of English Power throughout Ulster. In an attempt to seek foreign help they left Ulster. This event was known as flight of the Earls.

Ulster was left leaderless and the Crown confiscated the land owned by the departing chieftains. It was decided to plant 6 counties with loyal English and Scottish settlers.

There were three main types of landowners in this Plantation; Undertakers, Servitors and Loyal Irish.

Undertakers and Setvitors were required to build a stone house or castle and a defensive enclosure or bawn to protect thir settlements from attack.

Undertakers agreed not to rent land to the Gaelic Irish and to bring in their own Protestant Settlers from either England or Scotland.

The government has difficulty presuading enough Undertakers to come to Ireland.King James forced 12 Londond trade guilds to assist in the Plantations in Co.Derry.

These businessmen formed the Irish Society and let out land to tenants. They also built towns LondonDerry and Coleraine.

Towns were viewed as centres of order and civilisation by the English and became very important features of the new Plantation. The towns were buolt to a simple plan with a diamond shaped market place in the centre and 4 roads leading off from the market.

Examples of plantations towns include Enniskillen Omagh and Belfast.

This was the first plantation that was succesful in Ireland. By 1618 there were 40,000 settlers in Ulster. Settles from Scotland were Presbyterian while English settlers were Anglican.

The plantation introduced English Common Law and customs. It also changed the nature of farming as tilage farming replaces the pasture farming of the Gaelic Irish.

However the Planters suffered from attacks from the native Irish who had lost their land. Travelling for example was very dangerous. In 1641 the native Irish revolted and massacred about 3,000 settlers.