Grace O’Malley, The Irish Pirate Queen

Grace O’Malley (c. 1530 – 1603), the legendary Irish Pirate Queen, ruled the seas of western Ireland during the sixteenth century inspiring fear in the hearts of English colonizers for her tireless commitment to Irish sovereignty.

Daughter of the Chieftain of the O’Malley clan, Grace likely learned seafaring ways early in life. Her father ruled Umhaill, a coastal territory of Ireland, increasingly of interest to the English Crown. From an early age, Grace demanded respect and insisted upon accompanying her father on sailing expeditions. Legends of her cavalier exploits tell of a fearless leader impervious to gender norms and committed to protecting her people. When her father’s ship was attacked by the English, she is said to have saved his life by wrestling an English soldier to the ground. Grace inherited her father’s title of Chieftain upon his death. After two political marriages, a love affair with a shipwrecked sailor, and years of piracy against Spanish and English ships, Grace had become somewhat notorious, especially in the eyes of the English. Grace responded to their disapproval by aligning more closely with Irish clans in open rebellion against the English.

Two of Grace’s sons and half-brother were kidnapped in retaliation for her actions. Grace sailed for England to meet with Queen Elizabeth I, the woman who had dubbed her “director of thieves and murderers at sea.” Grace, ever the astute political strategist, managed to secure her sons and brother’s release despite a tense meeting and rumors that guards found a knife hidden in her skirts. With years of seafaring adventure behind her, Grace died of old age at Rockfleet Castle in County Mayo, Ireland. Far more than just a flame-haired symbol of Irish nationalism, Grace should be remembered as a woman who defied a patriarchal society and fought for her peoples’ sovereignty.