Would someone mind explaining the term "Black Irish" to this Texan? Thanks, Jean [email protected]

Jean McCoy wrote from Texas: "....Would someone mind explaining the term "Black Irish" to this Texan?..." The idea of the "Black Irish" is a controversial one. There is an interesting (and again I wouldn't agree with it all) academic article about it at the website: http://www.darkfiber.com/blackirish/ There the writer outlines three usages: "...One such employment of the word 'black' in a racial sense is the reference to the "Black Irish" of the British West Indies, the mixed-blood offspring of 17th century Irish emigrants and African slaves who live on the island Montserrat, known also as the "Emerald Isle of the Caribbean." The term "Black Irish" is also currently used with a deprecatory meaning by the Catholic Irish to describe the Protestants of Ireland who have historically supported the British rule of Ulster. "Black" in this sense connotes the "religious and political bigotry" felt by the Catholics towards the "Prods." The third usage of the expression "Black Irish" ... refers to the dark (hence "Black") hair, eyes, and skin that supposedly marks a person of Irish blood as having descended from the conjugal relationship of a Spanish survivor of the Armada with an Irish woman." It is this last idea of a genetic input from Spanish sailors wrecked after the Armada that has seemed to become the popular story, becoming increasingly popular in recent years and spread widely on the internet. It is worth noting that the myth's origin seems to be in the USA and not in Ireland. We could speculate why. There are two simple historical responses to the myth; 1) The ancient racial mix of the people we now call Irish is extremely varied from all over Europe and probably north Africa. There is no problem in understanding a wide range of skin types, colouring, etc. 2) There were hardly any Spanish survivors of the Armada who landed in Ireland - those who did would have been a tiny addition to the gene pool. 1). Even before the Celts there were four or maybe five distinct migrations and/or invasions of European peoples into the island, from as early as 8000 BC. The Celts did not arrive until about 600 BC. There followed the various influences brought by Romans, Christianity and trade with Britain and Europe. The Vikings from Scandinavia conquered in the 9th century and the Norman French (through England and Wales) in the 12th century. All these migrants were themselves of course the result of their own ethnic influences. And this was before the English plantations of the 16th and 17th centuries. So there are many explanations for any sallow skinned, jet-black haired, dark-eyed, men and women. 2) There is a widespread belief that many Spanish sailors survived shipwrecks of the Armada and avoided being slaughtered when they came ashore. The historical evidence however goes the other way. It appears that most of the Spanish were drowned as their ships foundered on the coasts of Scotland and Ireland. The poor bastards were mostly in ships built for use in the Mediterranean; the Atlantic and the rocky west coasts proved fatal. They had not planned to return to Spain by this route and so they had no charts of the seas, the heavily indented coast and the myriad of islands. There were English garrisons on the mainland and the Spanish were of course the sworn enemy whose invasion had been feared and awaited for years. Not only was there a patriotic duty to slaughter the survivors but there was the promise of Spanish gold and valuables which the Armada had carried with them. Some romantics have assumed that the native Irish, being England's natural enemies, would have welcomed the Spanish and sheltered them. However here is an account by a Spanish captain who escaped back to Spain. He described the Irish as "savages [salvajes] who turned [the landing boat] up for the purpose of extracting nails or pieces of iron; and, breaking through the deck, they drew out the dead men...[whom] they stripped and took away the jewels and money which they had... The land and the shore were full of enemies who went about jumping and dancing with delight at our misfortunes; and when any one of our people reached the beach, two hundred savages and other enemies fell upon him and stripped him of what he had on until he was left in his naked skin. Such they maltreated and wounded without pity " There is evidence that six Spanish sailors survived in Donegal and later petitioned to be allowed to return to Spain. They claimed they were the only living survivors. Some others, maybe several hundred, escaped to Scotland. (Interestingly there is no corresponding myth of the "Black Scottish"!) There remains the completely different story of the "Black Irish" in the West Indies, in Montserrat and the Barbados. Banishment to the colonies was quite a common practise especially in the 17th century. But very little research seems to have been done on this and maybe, because many of those transported were priests who refused to renounce Rome, they had little affect on the population. Sorry to be so long-winded. Richard Callanan London England -----Original Message----- From: jean mccoy [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: 19 February 2001 18:30 To: [email protected] Subject: [IRL~CEMS] Black Irish Would someone mind explaining the term "Black Irish" to this Texan? Thanks, Jean [email protected] ==== IRELAND-CEMETERIES Mailing List ==== Always send your replies back through the list. Other people may be looking for the same information and your answer will be stored in the archives for future researchers.