JOURNAL OF THE COUNTY DONEGAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY and put in occupation of the craft of weavers: And these strangers and aliens were so ,greatly multiplied and increased within the town of Bristol that the king's lieg:e people within the town and in other parts were v1agrant and unoccupied, ·and may not have their labour for their living."* 3 THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES, tf>63 The struggfo ;between the manufacturers of .both countries continued during the retgns ot Henry VII and !Henry WI[ and reached its height under E'l.imbeth, when the Spanish Governor fotibade English cloth to come into the !Flanders market. The English were determined that the Irish should not ibe allowed to· take advantage· of this ·opportunity so they resolved to seize Irish wool, suppress Irish shipping, and ·ex>nfiscate :the whole woollen trade of Munster. In 1571 "E'lizabeth ordered that no one should export doth or stuff made in Ireland except a merchant living in a staple town, with, however, a special exception in favour of ·English merchants or strangers· who might receive cloth .in exchange for their own wares, and take it away with them. Meanwhile great quantities of yarn were carried to Eng'land. . . ." The Irish Parliament made a feeible protest against the e~port of yarns, and the consequent enfor:ced idleness of Irish weavers, but all to no purpose. A special lioenc·e was granted to ·English dealers to transport wool and yarns for the EngUc;h manufacturers. Some of the highest officers of the English Court were engaged in the tramc: amangst these were Lord Chancellor Gerard, his brother-in-law, the Master of the Holls, w:alsingham, Christopher Hatton, Lord !Deputy Fitz:william and many others. 3 After ten years the licence was withdrawn owing to· the abuses o·f the dealers, many of whom made immense fortunes, ·often by fraud and deceit, of which even the queen was a victim. But it had done its work in so far as the industry in Ireland was concerned. This country was drained of its yarns, which helped to •employ thousands of weavers in Manchester and else170 where while Irish craftsmen went idle and in poverty;3 Of the reign ot Elizabeth Professor George O'Brien says: " . . . Whatever may hav'e been the economic conditions of [rela.nd in the sixteenth century the whole economic structure of society was broken down by the disastrous Eliza1bethan wars. During the last quarter of the sixteenth century the country was deliberately and systematic.ally devastated, and farms were wasted and farm houses razed to the ground, and trade was completely par·alysed. :When peace was at last declared on the access!.on of .James I a. fresh start had to be made in Ireland. 7 • PAR.T II The pe·riod of the reigns of ·the first two Stuarts in the seventeenth century was a time of orderly and r;apid economic: progress in Ireland. These sovereigns with their representatives her·e worked strenuously to increase the wealth of Jreland as a preliminary to the augmentation of the royal revenue. Their moti"Ves were purely selfish, and ·they ·gave little or no thought to the interests of this country or its people. The vice-royalty of went,worth in the reign of Charles I may be taken as an example: Irish industri·es w<;.re vigorously pushed ahead. The linen industry espec.ial1y was ex- · tended and improved, and the foreign trade of the country was helped hy the measures adopted to clear the sea of pirates. But all this had one object, the advancement of the pecuniary interests of the king. Previous to this·\England had been obliged to purchase linen from her enemies, .HoUand,. Spain, and France. By ha:ving a plentfful supply at a cheap rate in Ireland she c13uld sav.e .cons.iderably, and at the same time strike a ;blow at the industries of her enemies. • The Irish woollen industry was suppressed with the same vigour as the others were pushed ahead. Irish manufacturers were ex-eluded from foreign markets, and in a short time our woollen trade was confined to the supply of rough
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NzQxNzU3