THE IRISH GENEALOGIST 1988 Page 433

The Ruttledge Families of Co. Mayo

By Thomas Ormsby Ruttledge

The surname Ruttledge occurs in Ireland from the reign of Henry Vl11 onwards, in various spellings - Rudleche, Rutriche, Rutlech, Ruttelege 1 etc. In 1568 there was a troop of twelve northern horsemen name Ratlege, 2 in 1585 a Thomas Rutledge was in occupation of the 'castle or stone fort of Ballymacgirraght' (Castle Coote) Co. Roscommon with an Andrew Rutledge near by, 3 while in 1596 a William Ruttledge is mentioned in " The English and Englished of Co. Roscommon". 4

These Ruttledges, whatever the spelling, probably all came from the Barony of Liddle in Cumberland. The forest of Liddle and the Debatable land to the south-west formed a `buffer state' between the kingdoms of England and Scotland and the inhabitants were noted for extreme lawlessness, the area being one of continual bloodshed and pillage between rival factions. When James VI of Scotland came to the English throne, he showed the utmost zeal in uprooting the inhabitants of Liddle, against whom he naturally bore a grudge. 5 In 1606 the most troublesome members of the Grame (i.e. Graham) clan were transported to Co. Roscommon, and it was hoped that as regards the rest, His Majesty ‘would stick such a terror into them that they would make haste after their friends into Ireland.' The other clans, including the Routledges were said to 'have been as offensive as the Grames though not so powerful. 6

The Main Sources

This short history of the Ruttledges of Co. Mayo is based mainly on the Ruttledge family papers in the Manuscript Library of Trinity College, Dublin. Chief among them is Genealogy No. 1, dated by the late Sir John Ainsworth to 'around 1750'. It seems to be a copy of an earlier genealogy made out around 1715.It says that 'Richd. Was the first that Came to Ireland' and goes on to detail the three earliest generations of Richard's descendants. Six more genealogies from the family papers, each of which can be accurately dated by its contents, but all of which are very similar, bring the history into the 19th century. They are supported by four sets of Family Bible entries, commencing respectively 1778, 1781, 1805 and 1851. And by other papers. Two Ruttledge pedigrees in other collections - the O'Reilly collection in Trinity College. Dublin (where the Ruttledge pedigree dates around 1825) and the Shannon papers' 8 (where the pedigree dates between 1836 and 1839) support and add to the accuracy of the seven in the Ruttledge papers.

The Early Generations

Richard Rutledge, the original ancestor, is well documented. He is recorded at Torman in Co. Roscommon in July 1607 9 . and in 1611 was Claiming a third part of the castle of Kenvoe (Canbo) and half the castle of Bally-murry in the same county. 10 Between 1616 and 1633 he is recorded in five more inquisitions. There was a patent grant in 1631 to Richard Rutledge to hold fairs in ………………

1. Fiants. Irel. Hen. V111, 415, Eliz. 328, 1787, 3460, 6459, 6560.

2. Arthur Collins (ed) Sidney Letters. (London, 1746), 1, on a page numbered l in the second part of the book. .

3. PROI, Exchq. inq., Rose. Eliz. no. 4, pp 69-78.

4. PRO, SP. 63/189. C.S.P.I. 1592-96, p. 525.

5. Cumberland and Westmoreland ; A & A. Soc. N.S.xi, 55-83. P H Reaney , A Dictionary of British Surnames, London, 1958.

6. HMC, Salisbury MSS, xviii, pp. 284-6, 293-5, 402 etc.

7. TCD MS 3391 (hereafter O'Reilly MSS.).

8. NLI, Ainsworth reports, no. 193 (hereafter Shannon MSS.). Ainsworth gives brief details of 8 Ruttledge deeds and mentions 61 others. Three of the eight he noted were missing when I examined the collection in 1974 and again in 1977.

9. PROI Court documents, co 555, & Chanc. inq.. Rose Jas. 1. no. 3, p. 278.

10. H. T. Crofton, Crofton memoirs (York, 1911). pp. 61-2; PROI. C.hanc. inq.. .. Rose Jas. 1. no. 10, p. 299.