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Grady-Outlaw Literary & Historical Association "Celebrating 76 years of Family Tradition" |
76th Annual Reunion - AUGUST 25 & 26, 2006
updated on AUGUST 14, 2006
GRADY
In 177 AD, A Viking, olliol Ollum became king of a part of of Ireland know as Munster. This was the Southwestern part of Ireland, what is now around County Kerry, County Cork, County Limerick, County Mayo and County Clare.
Ireland was divided into five kingdoms. each Clan leader swore loyalty to one of the five kings and these kings in return swore loyalty to the High King of Ireland at Tara. This King had a descendant that was know as Cas. While not a king, he was a member of the royal family. Cas was a contemporary of St. Patrick in the 5th century. The descendants of Cas were know as Dalcassions (pronounced Doll-Gosh in Irish). A prominent descendant of Cas was Brian Baro, Irish King of Thomond. Thomond was what was left of Munster and was in the Counties of Clare, Limerick, Kerry, and Mayo. Brian Baro later became the High King of Ireland and was know as one of Ireland's greatest kings.
A contemporary of Brian Baro was Gradaigh, the Irish name for Grady. The prefix "O" or "Mc" means 'descendant of,' thus, the Dalcassion Sept or group of families were the O'Briens, the O'Grady's , The O'Kellys, and the McNamaras. These families swore loyalty to each other and fought together for protection.
The Gradys received their coat of arms from Brian Baro. It is the same as Brian Baro's, except the colors of the lions are reversed and the shield is per pale, or divided with half of it being black.
The O'Kelly and McNamara coats of arms are very similar. The helmet at the crest of the coat of arms indicates the O'Gradys were esquires (sires or gentlemen). The O'Grady's located their stronghold at Inis Cealtra, on Lough [lake] Derg and surrounding area in County Clare. The O'Gradys built a number of castles, some of which can be seen today at Lough Derg and near Scarriff. As a result of a misunderstanding with the O'Briens, the O'Gradys moved their stronghold to Killballyowen, where the present clan chieftan still resides.
In 1509, King Henry teh VIII started punishing the Catholic peoples and promoting Protestantism. One of the O'Gradys, in order to win favor with the King of England, anglicized the O'Grady name and changed it to Brady. The grandson of the O'Grady that changed his name declared that he was a Grady and not a Brady and retook the ancient and respected name, but left off the "O," not wanting to claim decendancy y to the man that changed the name. That branch of the family has since been know just as the Gradys.
In the late 1600s when King James and King William fought the religious wars, Protestant against Catholic, the Grady clan fought with King William. King James won the war, so it was necessary for some of the Gradys to leave the area, along with many other important families. This exodus was known as "The Flight of the Wild Geese." It is believed that it was during this time that William Grady immigrated to america.
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if you have questions or comments, please e-mail Lori Ann Grady Worley
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