Tramore of Yore

The first time that Tramore appears to be mentioned in the extant historical sources is in relation to the lengthy conflict waged by the combined forces of the Powers and the O’Driscolls against the citizens of Waterford City, as told in one of the manuscripts of Sir George Carew, who lived from circa 1558 to 1629. The relevant chapter is entitled ‘Notes of certain exploits and hurts done by the Poers of the county of Waterford, and by the Hohidriskolls of the west part of Mounster, upon the citizens of Waterford, and the revenges of the said city upon them’. Carew was an English knight who spent much of his life campaigning in Ireland, during which time he built up an invaluable collection of papers relating to the history of Ireland, now to be found in Lambeth Palace.

According to the Carew manuscript, the Powers had a great hostility to the citizens of the city of Waterford on account of their ‘fidelity and good government’. On 4 September 1368, having gathered all their forces and being joined by Raymond O’Driscoll of County Cork with his gallies and men, they sailed towards Waterford with the intention of plundering the city. However, the mayor of the city John Malpas had been informed of their plans and prepared to resist them with a number of the best men of the city. To this end, he was accompanied by Walter Devenish, the Sheriff, and the Justices of the Peace of the county, Richard Walsh, Master of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, together with a number of merchants, strangers, and Englishmen. Malpas set himself at the head of his forces and sailed towards the enemy’s galleys. The two naval forces met off a place named Glenoradmore where the Powers with the aid of the western galleys, attacked the mayor and his forces, and dispersed several companies which then began to bicker among themselves, leading to a rout in which the Mayor, the Sheriff, the Master of the Hospital, thirty six of the ‘worthiest citizens’ and sixty merchants, strangers and Englishmen were slain. On the other side, the leader of the Powers, the Baron of Dunhill, his brother Bennet Poer, with many of their sept, and numbers of the O’Driscolls also fell in battle. It wasn’t until the 10 September that the body of the Mayor was brought to the city ‘all hewn and cut to pieces’ and was buried in Christ Church.

Glenoradmore, sometimes referred to as Clonecomanmore is a now defunct placename and has not been identified to the best of the writer’s knowledge. However, writing in the Journal of the Waterford and South East Ireland Historical and Archaeological Society in 1901, William H Grattan Flood was strongly of the opinion that a breech loading cannon recently dredged from the river Suir was one of the cannons employed in what he called the great naval ‘Battle of Tramore’ fought on 4 September 1368. The term ‘Battle of Tramore’ has been repeated more than once in recent times in relation to this conflict without any further explanation as to the provenance of the claim.

The same manuscript tells us that nearly a century later on the 19 June 1452, the Mayor of Waterford, Fowke Quemerford was informed of the arrival of the same O’Driscolls with galleys at Tramore, having been invited there by the Powers. The citizens of Waterford set forth to meet them in battle and on the following day, Mr Quemerford and Mr Peter Forstall, together with 31 of the citizens of Waterford were slain, while the Powers and O’Driscolls lost 26 men.

Nearly 10 years later O’Driscoll again returned to Tramore in alliance with the Powers. Having being informed of their arrival on 3 June 1461, the mayor and citizens of Waterford prepared themselves in warlike manner and set forwards towards Ballymacaw. There they came across the forces of the O’Driscolls and the Powers and observed them bickering amongst themselves or drunk depending on the sources, and so gave them battle and gained a complete victory. One hundred and sixty of the enemy were killed and many prisoners were taken, including young O’Driscoll with, six of his sons. Three galleys were captured and brought to Waterford. The feuding between these opposing forces continued into the middle of the sixteenth century when the O’Driscolls were finally subdued. However, Tramore is no longer mentioned in relation to the conflict in the historical record.