their fault on their knees and in open court. The high sheriff was sentenced to pay £1000, and was thrown into prison, where he died. Finally, to punish the general body of landowners, they were to lose one-half of their lands in the plantation, instead of one-fourth as originally intended. Terrorised by these measures another jury found a title for the Crown in April, 1637.
The penalties were afterwards reduced or wholly remitted; and in particular the idea of taking one-half of their property from the Gal way landowners was given up.
We learn from Carte that, as soon as the King's general title was found, an Act of the Council ordered that all who were possessed of lands in virtue of letters patent should enjoy their estates provided they produced their patents. Several did so and all were disallowed on the ground that the tenures in the patents were by common knight's service which was not warranted by the Commission. They were therefore voided as having been made in deceit of the Crown.
Those of Clare then immediately acknowledged the King's title to that county.[1]
Strafford writing from Limerick in August, 1637, to Lord Conway and Kilultagh says that "His Majesty is now entitled to the two goodly countries of Ormond and Clare … 'with all possible contentment and satisfaction of the people. In all my whole life did I never see, or could possibly believe to have found, men with so
- ↑ While the references to the plantation of Connaught and Clare are very few in the printed Calendars of State Papers there are numerous allusions to various projects for the plantation of Ormond and the adjoining Irish districts.
