Marriage
of Strongbow & Aoife
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It was in the Cathedral on this site in 1170 AD that Strongbow, the Earl of Pembroke, married the Irish Princess Aoife, daughter of the King of Leinster. This marriage which was to change the course of Irish history forever was the result not of a love match, but of a political and military alliance. In 1166, Diarmait Mc Murchada, the then King of Leinster and great
enemy of Waterford He was successful in gaining the Kings permission and went about recruiting help. His call was answered by Richard de Clare, Earl of Pembroke, also known as Strongbow. Strongbow was not interested in monetary reward however; he had his mind set on land and would only fight for this. Diarmait therefore promised him the hand of his own daughter, Princess Aoife, in marriage, making him heir to the kingdom of Leinster. In return Strongbow agreed to come to Ireland with an army and reinstate Diarmait as King of Leinster. Under Brehon or Irish law of the time, Aoife could not be forced into an arranged marriage. In fact unlike English common law, an Irish woman could divorce her husband and demand the return of her dowry. However it seems that Aoife did fall in love with Strongbow and this arranged marriage became one of the great romances of Irish History. The marriage that took place here in the cathedral on August 25th 1170 marks neither a victory nor a defeat for any side, but the birth of a new and very different Ireland. It marked the end of the Viking age in Irish History and the beginning of English involvement in Irish affairs. In the mid 19th century Daniel Maclise tried to capture the enormous significance of the marriage in this painting. Originally commissioned to hang in the Houses of Parliament in
London, it is now in the National Gallery, Dublin.
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