JAMES FITZMAURICE FITZGERALD
(James FitzMaurice)
As a result of Henry VIII establishing himself as the head of the Church in England and Ireland in place of the Pope, Henry’s heirs also became head of the Church. And that was the role that Queen Elisabeth had inherited in addition to the Crown. Many of those loyal to the Pope found most offensive the fact that a woman was making decisions for men and women on matters of faith. A Papal representative travelled with FitzGerald and probably helped him compose this document of which this is but 2 sentences. He may have drafted it completely. The Pope was a factor in many of the Irish rebellions against the English, and this caused great suspicion of all English Catholics whose loyalty to the Queen was in conflict with their loyalty to the Pope who was plotting for a Catholic takeover of England and Ireland.
James FitzMaurice was a member of the 16th century ruling Geraldine dynasty in the province of Munster in Ireland. He rebelled against the crown authority of Queen Elizabeth I of England in response to the onset of the Tudor conquest of Ireland. He led the first of the Desmond Rebellions in 1569, spent a period in exile in continental Europe, but returned with an invasion force in 1579. He died shortly after landing.
