Acknowledgements

The Last Lords of Ormond, ‘The Curse of Cromwell’, by Dermot F. Gleeson. New Edition with revisions by Donal A. Murphy. Published by Relay.

When their land fractions, allotted after 1657, then lost again in the Williamite wars, to the ‘Discoverers’. In Ormond some of the foremost of the Old Irish gentry took refuge in the remote and almost inaccessible valley of Glenculloo between Slieve Felim hills, from which their descendants to this day carry their dead to their ancestral graveyards in Ballinaclogh and Kilkeary. There are seven further references to Kilkeary in this publication.

The Ordinance Survey Name Books, which describes parish boundaries, the origin of place names and the monuments of historical value found in them referring to Kilkeary.

The Civil Survey of 1654-1656, Vol. II: carried out at the time of the Cromwellian confiscations, Kilkeary mentioned thus:

The Parish of Kylkeary, 1640. The Meares and Bounds of the sayd Parish at large sett forth with the severall Townships and parcells of land therein conteyned. And the Tythes of ye sd Parish of 120 Acres made up from 80 Arable, 10 meddow and 20 pasture. It also contains 10 Acres of bog. The Proprietors names given as Daniell mc Henry Kenedy of Lisheen and John Fyhola of Ballynamona.

During a personal visit to the area – Toomevara Parish have Kilkeary as part of their area of control, the state school and graveyard in 2009. Nenagh Co. Tipperary Council Highways are responsible for the upkeep of the graveyard and environs. Greenanstown House is the seat of Count D’Alton. 

The meaning of Kil or Cill before the place-name as in Kilkeary given in Collins Irish dictionary as nf2 church, graveyard, cemetery using the example of cill agus tuath, Church and State. There is no K in the Gaeilge language which directs us to the Latinized Cheire or Ciar pronunciation and their spelling as Ceary, Keary, or in places Kearey (Therefore Church of Keary is the correct English translation for Kilkeary) Once again resorting to Collins Gaeilge dictionary ‘Ciar’ (gsm céir, gst, compar céire) adj (hair) dark: (complexion) dark, swarthy, Gk Ierne. OCelt. Human population movement (Native) of Ireland from the Spanish Peninsular. 

A king of Ulster named Ciar. After banished from the court of Cruochan, sought refuge in west Munster. There he gained the territory of the first branch of the Carraige Tribe he called Luachre in County Kerry. Taken from: Irish Kings and High Kings p160, 236, and 247. By France John Byrne, third Edition, Dublin 2001. 

Investigations into family history has revealed that Kearey, or rather Keary or Ceary, translates, by the use of Gælic/Irish, from Ó Ciardha; closely related to the Cahill family of Connaught. 

From the late ninth century, surnames, were not passed down in Ireland, were patronymic – based on the father’s name and added after the first name, therefore Thomas Ó Ceary – Thomas the son of Ceary. Later, in the 12th century, when the Normans ruled and lived in Ireland they soon learned the language and this use of names. The English government passed a law that required all Englishmen in Ireland to have an English name and to speak English. Today the names beginning with O’ stemming from Ó means ‘the grandson of, or descendant of.

Around the year 1387 the O’Clery were traditional poets. When writing Gaelic or Irish the Ó has the sign or prefix above the O when writing English the prefix is after, O’ thus…

From early times the first-born son in the family was called Thomas. Thomas O’Ciardha, brother of Desmond O’Ciardha of Offaley, called Thomas Baintreabhachd (or Thomas “the Widower”), was the ancestor of “Keary,” of Fore, county Meath. This Thomas lived on the Hill commanding a view of the famous Abbey, founded at Fore by St. Fechin; and was killed at the burning of the Abbey by the Cromwellians, A.D.1654.

Commencing with the said Thomas, the following is the pedigree of this family: 1. Thomas had three sons, Thomas, Patrick, and James, three whom sought refuge, and found it, with Hugh O’Byrne, of Dublin - one of the Confederate Catholics; Patrick and James, died unmarried. The eldest son, Thomas married Mary O’Byrne, niece of the above-named Hugh, and had three sons: Thomas, Patrick, and Hugh. Both Patrick and Hugh went to Spain where Hugh, d1700, married Margaret daughter of Dermot O’Brien of Naas having five children: Dermot, Thomas, Patrick, John, and Mary.  Patrick entered Spanish service. John married in 1745, Mary daughter of Owen M’Kewen of Clontarf and Swords, and had one son, Thomas b1747, and a daughter Ellen, b1749, who married in 1780, Hugh O’Moore of the O’Moores of Longford.  Thomas married Julia, daughter of Roderick Murphy of Castledermot in 1815, having four children: Thomas, John, Patrick, and Michael.

Daniel O’Ciardha (or O’Cary), a nephew of Thomas and Julia, having conformed to the Protestant religion, called together the remnant of his family; and, in order to distinguish themselves from the said Daniel, they solemnly pledged to assume thereafter the name of Keary, and to abandon the prefix and the ‘Carey’ form of spelling the name.

Thomas married Mary daughter of John Keogh of Castlepollard in 1815; he was the first to omit the prefix O’ from the family name then O’Cary, and assumed the name, Keary. This Thomas died in Dublin in 1836 buried in the churchyard of Artane, where his tomb lies. Thomas and Mary had five children Patrick, John, Michael (d Liverpool 1870), Bridget, and Mary. Patrick married Anne, youngest daughter of James Butler of Fairview, Ballybough, Dublin, and died in 1884. They had ten children: Thomas, Frances, Michael, James, John, Peter, Joseph, Matthew, Patrick, and Mary-Anne. 

Patrick J. Keary (Cahill): son of Patrick (ninth son of Patrick and Anne) of Colville Terrace, Ballybough Road, and of Wellington Quay, Dublin, married Elizabeth only daughter of Patrick Cahill in 1875. They had four children William-Laurence Cahill Keary, b1877, John-Frances, b1887, Mary-E., and Christina.

History of the Ely O’Carroll. Printed by Boethius Press. Additional Material: Robert Books Limited, 1982, in TOOMEVARA PARISH:

The Last Lords of Ormond, The Curse of Cromwell’, by Dermot F. Gleeson. New Edition with revisions by Donal A. Murphy. Published by Relay.

The Ordinance Survey Name Books, which describes parish boundaries, the origin of place names and the monuments of historical value, found in them are references to Kilkeary.

Dioceses of Killaloe and Kilfenora. Page 37, No. 3, Kilkeary, Reet, Entire. Titled April 7th 1808, being one fourth of The Deanery. 

Typographical Dictionary of Ireland by Samuel Lewis. Volume 2. Published by S. Lewis and Co. Aldersgate Street, London.

Kilkeary is a Parish in the Barony of Upper Ormond, County of Tipperary and Province of Munster, 4 miles (south-east) from Nenagh on the road to Cashel containing 662 inhabitants, it comprises 2,524 statute acres: the land is generally good and mostly under tillage. Greenanstown House is the seat of Count D’Alton, the parish is in the diocese of Killaloe and is a rectory forming part of the union of Ballynaclough and corps of the Deanery of Killaloe: the tithes amount to £120 about 70 children are educated in a private school. (Recorded in 1837, page 75, Vol 2.)

The parish system in Ireland began in 700 and AD 1300. By the 12th century a system based on the local community – the tuath – perhaps tuath-church system, a mixture of rectories and vicarages incorporating both secular and ecclesiastical concerns established.

The Civil Survey of 1654-1656, Vol. II: carried out at the time of the Cromwellian confiscations.

Early Irish Saints by John J. Oˊ Riordȧin CSsR.

Wikipedia: Cathal Crobhdearg Ua Conchobair.

Kilkenny Archaeological Society 1855. The Life and Times of Cathal.

Annals of the Four Masters: M1205.10. Teige, the son of Cathal Crovderg Family Tree.

Library of Ireland, History Cahill family genealogy - Irish Pedigrees.

The Annals of Tigernach (being Annals of Ireland, 807 B.C. to A.D. 1178) by Abbot of Clonmacnoise, D.1088

Adomnȧn of Iona Life of St Columba Translated by Richard Sharpe. Penguin Classic 1995.

Kept close by, throughout all my studies of ancient Ireland, The Origins of the Irish by J. P. Mallory. The Course of Irish

A Guide to Tracing your Dublin Ancestors by James G. Ryan. Flyleaf Press 1988.

History by Moody & Martin (fourth Edition); A History of Ireland by Mike Cronin; John, Canon O’Hanlon (1821-1905); The Great Hunger by Cecil Woodham-Smith; The Age of Arthur by John Morris; and Omnium Sanctorum Hibernia, (2012-2015): Saint Cera (Ciar) of Kilkeary. 

I am grateful for their research and dedication. I am particularly thankful for the help of Tipperary Library who have always been most generous and to Michael Keary and his abundant studies. I have read the autobiography of Peig, written at the time of my birth to get a feel for the Gaelic/Irish speaker’s life, in outposts of Ireland’s southwestern countryside where the Ciariaidhe, particularly the O’Ciardha, made-for, to escape clan and foreign warfare.

It would be remiss not to mention John O’Hart, Irish Pedigrees or ‘The origin and stem of the Irish nation’, fifth Edition, in two Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co. 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4) first printed in Dublin 1880. (John O’Hart has made in the past a number of genealogical mistakes. I have removed two family trees which have been based upon O’ Harts writings. Alpha Editions 2019, or, The ‘Four Masters’ principally collected by the monk St. Francis, Michael O’Clery, during the period 1616-1682, and the work of Sir J. Bernard Burke, C.B., LL.D., Ulster King of Arms.

It would appear that ‘’Ciar’ was the ancestor of the people named ‘Ciariaidhe’ after whom the O’Conor (‘Kerry’) sept were the leading family of the Irian race - taking the name of one their great chiefs in the eleventh century - from both Con and Ciar, their great ancestor to form the name of Conor (Conior) page 228 County Kerry. ‘The Stem’ Part II, ‘The House of Ir’, pages 86 and 92. The House of Heremon, page 202, gives Carey (Keary) as a leading family. The Four Masters mentioned O’Carey, chiefs of Cairbre ‘Carbery’ page 282. The index converts the ‘C’ into ‘K’ covering both Keary, Ceary, Kieran, pages 896 and 897. Working with Herald Donal Burke to form the clan was most rewarding researching the history and choosing the armorial ensigns the culmination of the task...

The task to look back in time, prior to Thomas 1791-1860 and perhaps his parent’s James and Mary, has been given to Timeline Genealogy Ireland. 

https://www.keareyclan.org/

https://www.openwindowslearning.co.uk/

The statement or position, beneath, sent by the Chief Herald of Ireland received 18th May 2022 the family motto: ‘Truth be told’ to be added on the final document.

To all to whom these Presents shall come I, Colette O’Flaherty, Chief Herald of Ireland, send Greeting.

Whereas petition hath been made unto me by Terence Arthur Kearey of Petworth, West Sussex, England, born at North Harrow, Middlesex, the son of Albert Edward Kearey of North Harrow, Middlesex, the grandson of Alfred Kearey of Salem Gardens in the same country, the great grandson of Thomas Kearey of Sutton Street, Kensington in the same country, the great, great grandson of Thomas Kearey of North Row, Kensington in the same country, who was born in Ireland, setting forth that he is desirous that certain Armorial Ensigns may be duly marshalled and assigned by lawful authority unto him such as without injury or prejudice to any other he may forever bear and advance and praying I would grant and assign unto him and his descendants such Armorial Ensigns as aforesaid and that the Armorial Ensigns so granted and assigned may be duly ratified and recorded in the Office of the Chief herald of Ireland to the end that the Officers of Arms there and all others upon occasion may take notice and have Knowledge thereof.

Now I, the said Chief Herald of Ireland, having taken this matter into consideration am pleased to comply with the said petition and by virtue of the power vested in me in that behalf do by these Presents grant and assign until the said Terence Arthur Kearey the Arms following, that is to say, per fess rayonné Sable and Or on a chief Argent four crosses couped of the first and on a wreath of colours the Crest : a demi-panther incensed rampant guardant Argent semée of torteaux, hurts and pommes alternately, flames issuant from the mouth and ears holding in each paw a blacksmith’s hammer Proper on a helmet mantled Gules doubled Argent the whole depicted in the margin hereof with the motto ‘Truth be Told’. To have and to hold the said Arms unto the said Terence Arthur Kearey and to his descendants forever and the same to bear, use, shew, set forth and advance in shield or banner or otherwise each observing and using their due and proper differences according to the Laws of Arms and the practice of this Office and without the let, hindrance, molestation, interruption, controlment or challenge of any manner of person or persons whatsoever, excepting always the Authority of this Office.