John O'Hart


John O'Hart was an Irish genealogist. He was born in Crossmolina, County Mayo, Ireland. A committed Roman Catholic and Irish nationalist, O'Hart had originally planned to become a priest but instead spent two years as a police officer. He was an Associate in Arts at the Queen's University, Belfast. He worked at the Commissioners of National Education during the years of the Great Famine. He worked as a genealogist and took an interest in Irish history. He died in 1902 in Clontarf near Dublin, at the age of 78.
O'Hart's 800-page, The Irish and Anglo-Irish landed gentry, was reprinted in 1969, with an introduction by Edward MacLysaght, the first Chief Herald of Ireland. Another work, Irish pedigrees; or, The origin and stem of the Irish nation, first published in 1876, has come out in several subsequent editions.
To complete his genealogies he used the writings of Cú Choigcríche Ó Cléirigh, Dubhaltach Mac Fhirbhisigh and O'Farrell, along with the Annals of the Four Masters, for the medieval pedigrees. He used the works of Bernard Burke, John Collins and others to extend his genealogies past the 17th century.

Stem of the Irish nation

In his Irish Pedigrees, O'Hart presents the legendary origins of the Irish people, from the Biblical Adam and Eve through the kings of ancient Ireland. Irish tradition holds that every Irish person is descended from the king Milesius who emigrated from Spain in approximately 1700 BC, according to the Annals of the Four Masters. O'Hart started each of his genealogies with Adam, recording Milesius as his 36th descendant.
From the start;
Adam, his son
Seth, his son
Enos, his son
Cainan, his son
Mahalaleel, his son
Jared, his son
Enoch, his son
Methuselah, his son
Lamech, his son
Noah, his son
Japhet, his son
Magog, his son
Baoth, "to whom Scythia came has his lot", his son
Phoeniusa Farsaidh King of Scythia, his son
Niul, his son
Gaodhal, his son
Asruth, his son
Sruth, his son
Heber Scut, his son
Beouman, King of Scythia, his son
Ogaman King of Scythia, his son
Tait King of Scythia, his son
Agnon, his son
Lamhfionn, his son
Heber Glunfionn, King of Gothia, his son
Agnan Fionn King of Gothia, his son
Febric Glas King of Gothia, his son
Nenuall King of Gothia, his son
Nuadhad King of Gothia, his son
Alladh King of Gothia, his son
Arcadh King of Gothia, his son
Deag King of Gothia, his son
Brath, King of Gothia, his son
Breoghan, King of Galicia, Andalusia, Murcia, Castile, and Portugal, his son
Bile, King of Galicia, Andalusia, Murcia, Castile, and Portugal, and his son
Galamh, King of Galicia, Andalusia, Murcia, Castile, and Portugal.
According to O'Hart's account, Milesius had four sons, Heber, Ir, Heremon, and Amergin, who were involved, with their uncle Ithe, in the invasion of ancient Ireland; Milesius, himself, had died during the planning. Amergin died during the invasion, without issue. It is from the four other invaders —
Heber, Ir, Heremon, and Ithe — from whom the Irish are alleged to descend. These, according to O'Hart, are the four lines from which all true Irish descend. Conn of the Hundred Battles was a descendant of Erimon, and Brian Boru was descended from both Heber and Conn.