The Dempsey name, which is also found spelt as Dempsie, Dimpsay or Dimpsey, is of Irish origin from the Irish Gaelic o'dimpsaigh meaning "estimable" or "son of the Proud". The Dempseys were descended from the O'Dempsey family, Clan Maliere. Lords of Clanmalier, the Dempsey's were for centuries, one of the most powerful families of Leinster. As the same stock as the O'Connors, of Offaly, they descended from Ros Lailghe, eldest son of Cathaoir Mor, Monarch of Ireland in the 2nd century. The Dempsey's territory, known as Clann Mhaoilughra, compromised a vast area on both sides of the River Barrow, encompassing the present day baronies of Portnahinch, County Laois, and upper Philipstown, County Offaly. From the time of the Anglo-Norman invasion of 1171 down to the 16th century Elizabethan Wars, the Dempsey's were famous for their consistent resistance to English Rule. O'Dempsey, Chief of Offaly, who won a decisive battle over Strongbow in 1172, slaying his son -in- law De Quenci was one of the few Irish Leaders to accomplish this military feat. Dermot O'Dempsey ( died 1193) Chief of the name, founded the Cistercian Abbey of Monasterevan St. Evin, who established the Church at Monasterevan, that bears his name, was the Patron Saint of the Dempsey's. During the reign of Elizabeth 1, the Dempsey's were on friendly terms with the English, and their estates escaped confiscation. Terence O'Dempsey was knighted in 1599, and in 1631 was created Baron of Philipstown and Viscount Clanmalier. However, later in the century, they were staunch supporters of the Irish cause. Three of the surname were prominent members of the Confederation of Kilkenny: Lewis O'Dempsey, Viscount Clanmalier; Edmund Dempsey, Bishop of Leighlin; and Barnabas O'Dempsey, and together with Lysagh O'Dempsey,were exempted from pardon by the Cromwellian victors in 1652. Their loyalty to the Catholic James the 2nd resulted in the forfeiture of their vast estates. During the penal times, there were a number of distinguished ecclesiastics. One of them John Dempsey, a relative of Viscount Clanmalier, wa Bishop of Kildare.
Darcy, O'Dorcey, MacDarcy
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your ancestor here-->This name is often spelt D'Arcy. this is historically correct in the cast of those families of the name which descend from Sir John D'Arcy who was Chief Justice of Ireland in the Fourteenth century, e.g., the Darcys of Hyde Park, Co. Westmeath, whose chief seat was Platten, Co. Meath; and it is reasonable to assume that the Darcys of the east midlands of Ireland are of that stock. It may be mentioned here that though Norman in origin, the name being originally D'Arci, form Arci a place in Normandy, these Darcys did not come to Ireland as early as the Anglo-Norman invasion. There is no justification for the Darcys of Munster and Connacht (with a few exceptions) using the form D'Arcy, because they were of native Irish stock and their name is a corruption of the Gaelic O Dorchaidhe, which was first anglicized as O'Dorcey. There was minor septs so called: one in Co. Mayo was located around Partry near Lough Mask; the other in east Galway was a branch of the Ui Maine. In the "Annals of Loch Ce" the name MacDarcy appears as that of a Co. Leitrim chieftain in the years 1384 and 1403. O'Donovan in his notes to the Four Masters under the date 1310 places the MacDarcy sept in the parish of Oughteragh, Co. Leitrim. The most distinguished of the name was the lawyer, Patrick Darcy (1598-1668), a prominent member of the Supreme Council of the Confederation of Kilkenny, and Patrick Count Darcy (1725-1779), Chevalier and Marechal-de-camp in the service of France, who was a mathematician of note as well as a famous soldier. Oliver Darcy was Bishop of Dromore from 1670 to 1674, having previously held the see of Ardagh. It has been proved by O'Donovan that the Darcys who became one of the Tribes of Galway were of true Irish stock, being descended from the O'Dorceys of Partry, Co. Mayo.
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