Madeleine Birchfield
Banned
Suppose that Harold Godwinson defeated William of Normandy at Hastings. Would a continuing Anglo-Saxon England invade Ireland as the Normans did in 1169 OTL?
I doubt it, to be honest; up until that point, what relations between A-S England and Ireland that did exist seemed fairly benign (or at least, hardly adversarial) when compared to the Lordship of Ireland period, and given contemporary practices I can’t see that deviating too much without some sort of instigating factor. Even then, it wasn’t until Henry VIII that serious effort towards conquering and subjugating the Irish, with the Hiberno-Normans becoming quickly Gaelicized (“more Irish than the Irish”) in general, occurred.
"More Irish than the Irish" seems to have been a phrase made up by a later Irish nationalist politician, but I agree with the rest of what you said. Most English kings didn't really care about Ireland even after the initial invasion; English control of everywhere outside the Pale had lapsed by the late 15th century, without much effort made to reverse the decline. Ireland didn't have much in the way of either natural resources or strategic interest for the English (except for the possibility of its being used as a staging-post for an invasion of England, although I'd question how realistic that actually was), so absent Henry II's empire-building, I don't think an English invasion is particularly likely.
They would first deal with the problems of Scotland and Wales first - it might take a long, long time before they decide the Irish would become part of the Empire. The Irish could not survive as independent - unless they have a powerful allay such as France, Italy, or Scotland. But, considering marriages and alliances might change with the new leadership, Ireland might unite under a king who might marry into the English so you might get a union of Kingdoms situation.
Well, they had vassalized wales, and scotland was regularly paying tribute (or at least it did to Alfred I and his son whose name escapes me at the moment) so it's certainly on the table to establish tribute states in Dublin and Ulster. But, here's the thing: otl england was content with vassals for a while until they revolted. When they revolted, the English outright started conquering them and the plantations came to be to prevent revolts (ironic) so frankly:
why wouldnt they eventually? If anything it would be easier because scotland may well fall sooner if they dont have an alliance with France, which is entirely likely since Anglo-Saxon England wouldn't have the bad blood with France that Norman England does
The Scots had penetrated and settled Antrim and the McDonnell family had achieved hegenomy overy the north of that county by the late 1400s and that was with the English actively supporting the efforts of the O'Neill and O'Donnell clans to keep the Scots out. Once the Stuarts took over England as well as Scotland the Ulster Plantation took place.
England had better land than Ireland and a bigger economy so there was only elite settlement - e.g. The O'Gorman Mor gets beheaded for opposing the Crown and some English courtier is granted his estates and becomes Earl of Dunlough. However ,other than a few key servants and henchmen, his tenantry remain native Irish and life for the ordinary peasant goes on much the same.
Scotland has poorer and more marginal land than Ireland so, if Sir Walter Johnstone gets a grant of Irish land, there is wholesale resettlement with most tenants of the deposed Irish aristocrat being driven out or even killed and their farms allocated to tenants of his and allied Surnames (which is what they called their clans down in the Scottish Borders). They have a huge incentive to come with him and get better farmland as a reward.
The English courtier is probably a younger son with few or no tenants and they have very little incentive to come to where there are smaller farms and poorer land. So the new Earl of Dunlough brings over a steward and a chaplain (who would have had much more junior positions at home and are incentivised by the promotion) and a dozen hard men to act as rent collectors/enforcers/bodyguards (middlemen) -who would have been not terribly well off ex soldiers and who have each suddenly become tenant in chief for 4,000 odd of the Earl's 50,000 acres. However he wouldn't be able to raise 5,000 English peasants to take ten acre tenancies each in place of his native tenants whereas the Scots Laird could -and usually did.
Ireland's problem is that it sits on England's (and Scotland's) flank and (once it is discovered) between England and the New World. Doesn't matter whether Ireland's neighbour in any TL is Prydain, Anglelond, Great Mercia, Le Royaume Uni de France et Angleterre etc. etc. Any continental rival will try to draw Ireland into their camp or conquer her outright and "England" will react accordingly. If "England" is weak and divided then a continental power will seize/puppetise Ireland in some of TTL's power struggles. If "England" is stronger she will do the same as a defensive reflex.
Suppose that Harold Godwinson defeated William of Normandy at Hastings. Would a continuing Anglo-Saxon England invade Ireland as the Normans did in 1169 OTL?