Knight of Glin

Coat of Arms of the Knight of Glin

The Knight of Glin (Irish: Ridire an Ghleanna;[1] dormant 14 September 2011), also known as the Black Knight or Knight of the Valley,[2][3][4] was an hereditary title held by the FitzGerald and FitzMaurice families of County Limerick, Ireland, since the early 14th century. The family was a branch of the FitzMaurice/FitzGerald Dynasty commonly known as the Geraldines and related to the now extinct Earls of Desmond who were granted extensive lands in County Limerick by the Crown. The title was named after the village of Glin, near the Knight's lands. The Knight of Glin was properly addressed as "Knight" (not, as one might expect, "Sir ______ FitzGerald").[4]

The family name "FitzGerald" comes from the (Norman) French "Fils de Gerald," i.e. "Son of Gerald."

The coat-of-arms of the Glin family is: Ermine: a saltire gules. Crest: a boar passant gules, bristled and armed. Motto: Sahnit a Boo. The arms of the various families in Ireland are similar. The Knights of Glin bear as supporters two griffins collared and chained, and have a second crest: a castle with two towers, issuant from the sinister tower a knight in armor holding in the dexter hand a key proper. The Glin family seat is at Glin, Glin Castle, County Limerick, Ireland.[5]

Like the Knights of Kerry, the Knights of Glin descended from one of the younger or illegitimate sons of The 1st Baron Desmond and Honora. There is confusion as to Honora's parentage, as one source claims her to be the daughter of Phelim MacHugh O'Connor Don, of the family of the Kings of Connacht. Alternatively, she is stated to be the daughter of Hugh O'Connor Kerry, a wholly different family.[6] Lord Desmond was also known as Sir John Fitz-John[7] or Seán Mór na Sursainge, and he lived c. 1260.[8] The last knight, Desmond FitzGerald, 29th Knight of Glin, died on 14 September 2011.[9]

  1. ^ "Cartlann Téacsanna".
  2. ^ Graves, James, and Samuel Heyman, editors. "Unpublished Geraldine Documents, The Whyte Knight." The Journal of the Royal Historical and Archaeological Association of Ireland, vol. IV, pg 37. Dublin University Press, Ireland. 1885, p. 3-27-37
  3. ^ "Burke's Genealogical and Heraldic History of Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage". 1850.
  4. ^ a b "BRITISH TITLES - KNIGHT". Burke's Peerage. Retrieved 4 June 2009.
  5. ^ Genealogical and family history of northern New York
  6. ^ Graves, James (1869). "The Earls of Desmond". The Journal of the Historical and Archaeological Association of Ireland. 1 (2): 459–498.
  7. ^ FITZGERALD Transcribed by Coralynn Brown from NORTHERN NEW YORK Genealogical and family history of northern New York: a record of the achievements of her people and the making of a commonwealth and the founding of a nation. New York: Lewis Historical Pub. Co. 1910.
  8. ^ The Glin Papers UNIVERSITY of LIMERICK OLLSCOIL LUIMNIGH Special Collections Library & Information Services Archived 2015-04-20 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ Irish Independent, "After 700 years, I'm the last of the Irish knights", pg 16.