O'Neill and O'Donnell accompanied Mountjoy to London where they were graciously received by James I (VI of Scotland). But when they returned to Ireland their position was different from what it had been. O'Neill was in a position to become a substantial landlord in large areas of Ulster, but he was no longer the chieftain. It had become obvious in cases affecting other chieftains that their authority over their underlings had been removed with the latter having become freeholders able to exercise English law to assert their position. Ultimately, the application of English law in a society previously governed by the traditional Brehon code would give outsiders, better aware of the new law, an advantage in asserting claims for territory previously held unquestioned by the Gaelic lords. This troubled O'Neill. He was also aware of suspicions harbored against him because his son served as colonel of a Spanish regiment in the Netherlands. In July 1607 he was summoned to London over a land dispute. Aware of the fate of others who had gone to London and never returned, he decided to board a ship that had come to Lough Swilly to take O'Donnell and other chieftains to the Continent. They ultimately made their way to Rome, where they were received with honor. However, O'Donnell died a few months after arrival. O'Neill survived until 1616, but never set foot in Ireland again. Such was the end of the Gaelic order in Ireland. While there would be brief efforts at recovery during the 17th century, such would only be a part of a general alliance of Catholics in Ireland and scarcely a struggle for the restoration of the old order.
World History
