The Lordship of Ireland continues to lie in the hands of the powerful Fitzgerald Earls of Kildare, who have dominated the country by means of military force and alliances with lords and clans around Ireland.

When the Black Death had arrived in Ireland in 1348, it had hit the English and Norman inhabitants, who mostly live in towns and villages, far harder than it had the native Irish, who live in more dispersed rural settlements.

Since its passing, Gaelic Irish language and customs have come to dominate the country again.

The English-controlled area has shrunk back to a fortified area—the ‘Pale—around Dublin.

Since the government in Dublin has little real authority, however, their Statutes do not have much effect.

Following the English king’s departure after his 1394-5 invasion of Ireland, fighting had erupted again, initially involving only the Irish.