Beatha Aodha Ruaidh Uí Dhomhnaill
RIA 23 P 24. 17th century. Paper.
The Renaissance-style biography of Red Hugh O'Donnell was composed by Lughaidh Ó Cléirigh, a professional historian and third cousin of Mícheál Ó Cléirigh, in the early seventeenth century. The Four Masters relied on this text for their account of the Nine Years' War (1594-1603). The original version is not extant but this seventeenth-century account is probably in the hand of Cú Choigcríche Ó Cléirigh. Red Hugh is eulogized in the biography and great emphasis is laid on his heroic exploits on the battlefield with the author using articifically archaic language to imitate early Irish heroic literature. It ends on a note of lamentation, not just for the dead hero but for all the Gaeil: "Pitiable, indeed, was the state of the Gaels of Ireland after the death of the true prince, for they changed their characteristics and their dispositions. They gave up bravery for cowardice, courage for weakness, pride for servility…."
