Richard Óg de Burgh, 2nd Earl of Ulster


Richard Óg de Burgh, 2nd Earl of Ulster and 3rd Baron of Connaught, called The Red Earl, was one of the most powerful Irish nobles of the late 13th and early 14th centuries.

Early life

Richard's father was Walter de Burgh, 1st Earl of Ulster and Lord of Connacht, who was the second son of Richard Mór de Burgh, 1st Lord of Connaught and Egidia de Lacy.
"Richard Óg", means "Richard the Young", which may be a reference to his youth when he became earl in 1271, or to differentiate him from his grandfather, Richard Mór.

Earl of Ulster

Richard Óg was the most powerful of the de Burgh Earls of Ulster, succeeding his father in Ulster and Connacht upon reaching his majority in 1280. He was a friend of King Edward I of England, and ranked first among the Earls of Ireland. Richard married Margaret, the daughter of his cousin John de Burgh and Cecily Baillol. He pursued expansionist policies that often left him at odds with fellow Norman lords.
His daughter Elizabeth was to become the second wife of King Robert the Bruce of Scotland. However, this did not stop him leading his forces from Ireland to support England's King Edward I in his Scottish campaigns; Edward captured Elizabeth in 1306, but in order to gain the support of Richard, Edward only put Elizabeth under house arrest. When the forces of Edward Bruce invaded Ulster in 1315, the Earl led a force against him, but was beaten at Connor in Antrim. The invasion of Bruce and the uprising of Felim Ó Conchúir in Connacht left him virtually without authority in his lands, but Ó Conchúir was killed in 1316 at the Second Battle of Athenry, and he was able to recover Ulster after the defeat of Bruce at Faughart.
He died on 29 July 1326 at Athassel Priory, near Cashel, County Tipperary.

Children and family

From the Annals of the Four Masters: