Al soon as Henry was informed of the death of Strong bow, he appointed William Filzandelin to the chief com mittal in Ireland. About the same time, a bull of Pope Adrian, constituting Henry its lord, was read before an as sembly of the Irish clergy at Waterford. One of the first acts of the new governor was to render the situation of some of the original adventurers so uncomfortable, that they went in quest of new settlements: hence were formed the set tlement of Ulster by John de Courcey, and that of Con naught by Milo de Cogan. The expedition of the former succeeded, though not without much difficulty, and several obstinate battles with the Irish. De Cogan, on the contra ry, was obliged to abandon his settlement.
As Ireland now began to assume the appearance of an important and valuable acquisition, Henry resolved to ap point one of his Sons Its feudatory sovereign. According ly, in the year 1178, John, his youngest son, was declared lord of Ireland, in a council of barons and prelates; but he did not go to Ireland till the year 1185, when he was 18 years old. It soon appeared, that neither he nor his fol lowers were qualified, tither by their behaviour or iQtcMi genre, to conciliate or improve the Irish. The Norman courtiers mocked and insulted the uncouth garb and man ners of the Irish lords ; and increased the indignation thus raised, by seizing the lands of such of them as held under English lords by English tenure within the pale, that is, in those parts which had been colonized by the English. The fiery temper and high spirit of the Irish being thus roused, they fled into those parts of Ireland where they were most likely to gain assistance. The British posses sions were invaded on all sides; so that, in less than a year, Henry found it necessary to recall his son, and appointed John de Courcey governor. The circumstances in which he was placed would probably have rendered his efforts to retrieve the misconduct of his predecessor unavailing, had not the Irish princes quarrelled among themselves. Even then he was unable to take advantage of the death of Ro deric, by gaining possession of Connaught ; and it was not without great difficulty that he maintained the English set tlements.
On the death of Henry in 1189, De Courcey was recall ed, and Hugh de Lancey appointed in his stead. De Cour cey, however, refused to obey the summons, and, retiring into Ulster, assumed the character of an independent chief.
The Irish princes, as usual, roused themselves as soon as they found that their English rulers were divided among themselves ; and, among these, Cathal, who succeeded Ro deric in the government of Connaught, was the most re markable for his enterprize and success. The English go vernment, weakened by dissensions, and by the sudden and repeated attacks of the Irish, was entrusted to different no blenirn, but with no derisive or permanent amelioration. At length, in 1199, Fitzhenry, descended from a natural son of henry I. of England, was appointed by John, who now filled the tilt one of that country, chief governor of Ireland. Ile was extremely well qualified for his situation ; but, op pcsecl by De Burgo, who held Linneric, he for some time was unable to cat ry into effect the plans he had formed for the tranquillity of Ireland, and the establishment of the Eng lish power. At last, in 1203, having succeeded in collect ing an army of native Irish, he marched against De Bur go, and compelled him and his Irish allies to renew their allegiance. As soon as this was effected, Fitzhenry re solved to reduce De Courcey, who still maintained an independent authority in the province of Ulster, and re fused to acknowledge King John. In this enterplize he also succeeded.
In 1210 John resolved to visit Ireland. His object is not clearly known ; but the only exploit which he perlbrined, during his stay of three months, was the reduction of the fortresses in Meath and Ulster, belonging to the Lades, who had incurred his displeasure. In one most important point, however, this visit of the English sovereign was high ly beneficial to Ireland, for a regular code of English laws was promulgated ; and, in order that these laws might not become a dead letter, through the want of proper and effi cient means to carry them into execution, courts of judica ture were established in Dublin. The territory which the English possessed was divided into counties, over which sheriffs and other civil officers were appointed. It does not clearly appear whether the English pale, as it was call ed, at this time comprised twel yea or fifteen counties, though it is probable that there wcre only twelve, in Leinster, u n ster, and Ulster : the three cithers, which lay in Connaught amid the southern parts of Munster, were soon a fte rw ants added.