Gaelic Resurgence

The decline of Norman power in Ireland and the resurgence of Gaelic influence, known as the Gaelic revival, were driven by a combination of political grievances and the devastating impact of successive famines. Forced into marginal lands by the Normans, the Irish engaged in subsistence farming, which left them vulnerable during poor harvests and famines, particularly during the period of 1311-1319.

As Norman authority waned outside the Pale, the Hiberno-Norman lords began to adopt Irish language and customs, eventually becoming known as the Old English. This cultural assimilation led to the phrase "more Irish than the Irish themselves" in later historiography. The Old English often aligned with the indigenous Irish in their political and military conflicts against English rule and largely remained Catholic following the Reformation.

The authorities in the Pale, concerned about the Gaelicisation of Ireland, passed the Statutes of Kilkenny in 1367. These laws attempted to prohibit those of English descent from adopting Irish customs, language, and intermarriage with the Irish. However, the Dublin government had limited enforcement power, rendering the statutes largely ineffective.

The English lordships in Ireland faced the threat of being overrun by Gaelic Irish kingdoms, prompting the Anglo-Irish lords to urgently request the King's intervention. In the autumn of 1394, Richard II embarked for Ireland, staying until May 1395. His army, exceeding 8,000 men, was the largest force deployed to the island during the late Middle Ages. The invasion proved successful, with several Irish chieftains submitting to English rule. This was one of the most notable achievements of Richard's reign though the English position in Ireland was only temporarily consolidated.

During the 15th century, English central authority continued to erode. The English monarchy faced its own crises, including the latter stages of the Hundred Years' War and the Wars of the Roses (1460-1485). As a result, direct English involvement in Irish affairs dwindled. The Fitzgerald earls of Kildare, wielding significant military power and maintaining extensive alliances with various lords and clans, effectively controlled the lordship, further distancing the English Crown from Irish political realities.

Meanwhile, local Gaelic and Gaelicised lords expanded their territories at the expense of the Pale. This era of relative autonomy and cultural resurgence for the Irish was marked by a divergence from English governance and customs, a situation that persisted until the Tudor re-conquest of Ireland in the late 16th century.