Michael J. Carroll

On the 24th of May 2009 Michael John Carroll passed away.

Snippets from – ‘IRISH PIRATES AND PRIVATEERS’ – which was published in November 2007.

Names like Morgan, Kidd, Drake, Teach(Blackbeard), Gow, Anstis and Avery immediately come to mind when pirates are mentioned. Very little is documented or known about the Irish pirates or privateers who roamed the Seven Seas as captains or crews aboard their ships of plunder. Having watched most of the English and American documentaries on pirates I can’t remember one Irish person being mentioned except for Anne Bonney.

In fact, Irish pirates and privateers were to be found everywhere scouring the oceans for trading vessels which they could capture and plunder. The main areas of operation were, Brazil to Newfoundland, the Azores, Madeira, the Mediterranean Sea, the Indian Ocean, and the coasts of England and Ireland. The harbours and creeks of the south-west of Cork became the main base or den of operation for pirate activity from the 1580’s. Other locations were along the coast of Morocco, the coast of Cornwall, the Orkney Islands and the port of St. Malo in France on this side of the Atlantic. Many Irish joined the English and Dutch pirate and privateers’ ships calling into the Irish ports. Some of the vessels had a full Irish compliment. Others operating off the Irish coast recruited fishermen during the summer months when fishing was poor while others joined those ships heading for the east coast of America and the Caribbean Sea.

During my research I found references to two important related events, namely, the embarkation of 24 Irish, which included a number of families, at Crookhaven in 1594 destined for Venezuela where they set up a colony at Sinamaica. Another group of families numbering some 27 people set off also from Crookhaven in 1596 on a vessel destined for Brazil. Having settled in Caviana, on the mouth of the Amazon, they set up a trading colony. This colony still existed in 1620 as a dispute regarding trading rights arose in Flushing, Holland. It seems that a Captain Roger North had the rights of trading with this colony and this was disputed by a William Gaynor, an Irishman, who owned and lived on a plantation on that island. Some Irish, including a Mr. Daly returned some years later to Plymouth on a trading vessel.

I faced research into this subject with trepidation, worrying if I could be able to find sufficient information. However, as the weeks and months pass, I’m been fortunate enough to locate many sources which have revealed the importance of the Irish pirates and privateers in world history. Those who are interested in the subject will have to wait for the publication in November, ’07.

Some people might be of the opinion that Irish history is a boring and uninteresting subject. In fact, the contrary is true. Each day of research or reading reveals something new. For instance, how many people knew that the ‘warrior monks’ or the Knights Templar were established in Ireland during the 13th century, before I wrote the book called ‘THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR AND IRELAND’.

Most of my books deal with matters which have been hidden in historical obscurity or concern a subject or an event which has received little mention. Occasionally, I’ll publish a revised history on a certain subject, such as the castles of Munster which is a series covering each individual county. Three of these have already been published, namely, the castles of the counties Kerry, Limerick and the region known as West Cork.

One of my first books was ‘A BAY OF DESTINY’ which outlines the history of Bantry and the surrounding region from c.6.500 B.C. to 1920 A.D. as well as the history of Early Ireland and the Invasions of pre-historic times. Some of the facts revealed include: the Bantry Region had more megalithic monuments than any other part of Ireland or the Continent; that all the Invaders of Ireland in pre-historic times landed at Bantry Bay; that the population of the region in 1,000 B.C. was greater than that of the whole of Britain and that Christianity in the form of the Coptic Rite was well established here before the arrival of St. Patrick.

Another book which should be of interest to all readers is the epic story of ‘SIVE O’ LEARY’ which details to life of an orphan girl who is accepted as the reincarnation of the great mythological female warrior of the same name during the turbulent period of the Irish land wars. Her life journey bring us through her youth, teenage years, her warlike capabilities and leadership until she is captured and sent as a prisoner to New South Wales. Also covered is her life in the penal colony, her life with the aborigines, her escape and her eventual reunion with her family. Even though written as a historical novel this book is based on the lives of two individuals from West Cork.

For those of you who visit this website often I’m sure you noticed that we are in the process of making some design changes.

We anticipate that over the next month we will have added the ability to purchase via paypal (fingers crossed!)

We were thrilled and honored today to have Brian Crowley M.E.P officially launch Michaels latest publication, ‘The Knights Templar and Ireland‘.

I’m delighted to say that we received our first consignment of ‘The Knights Templar and Ireland‘ today - in all good bookstores now!

Welcome,

Thank you for taking the time to explore this website & blog. I hope these pages help you discover more about my books, their origins, the themes they explorer, as well as some bits and pieces about my life and my writing. It’s been a great journey bringing these books out, and I’m hugely grateful for the tremendous response my books receive. It’s everything a writer could hope for.

Do enjoy!

Michael