Don Constantino O’Neill: The Black Cross M. O’Neill

Oral history states that Don Constantino O’Neill is the progenitor of the O’Neill’s of Puerto Rico, and what we do know is that his descendants in Puerto Rico are of a Germanic origin due to the y-dna Haplotype and SNP we do know that there are unique and are the last of a bloodline that seems to have died out long ago. Currently this branch of the O’Neill’s of Puerto Rico is R1b1a2a1a1a5c L48/S162   L148- L48+ P107- U106+ U198- until further test.

Don Constantino O’Neill is oral history was described as a tall man with blue eyes, other accounts say he had brown eyes with dark hair.  He was described as a very violent man involved in piracy who would fight Bulls with a gun and shield for fun. It’s will not be known, if this was done for some religious practice, or it was just some part of Don Constantino O’Neill’s ways.  His family was said to have fought in the land were people wore Wooden Shoes and there were windmills (The Spanish Netherlands, modern day Belgium). This O'Neill's oral history show they lived in Spain before migrating to the Spanish Netherlands around the 1600's. There were men named Edmundo, Eamon or an Enrique Rua O'Neill ,Rocco (Richard or Ricard), Gill (Guillermo), Juan (Sean, John) ,and Don Constantino O’Neill was the head of the family  that was ruled or composed  by eight heads and all lived in one area where they would all meet after long campaigns or raiding.

One important detail that I over looked and now see to have been a big clue was the mention of Don Constantino O’Neill, and these other O’Neill’s, who sailed on a ship with a “Black Cross on a White Field.”

I have researched this and there are two possibilities:

     

1. The Teutonic Order Flag 
2.  The Kroaz Du of Brittany.

I have found no evidence that the Teutonic Knights were in Spain or that an order of Teutonic Knights were part of anything in the Caribbean or Spain. But I did find that the Breton Ships did use a Black Cross Flag, and this was also a standard of Breton soldiers. Also the Kroaz Du was the flag of Brittany. Now finding any record of a Don Constantino O’Neill is Brittany involved in piracy, or in the Admiralty of Brittany will be the a big find.

In an earlier blog post on Don Constantino, I found that a Don Constantino O’Neill in August of 1642 took to the sea from Rochelle with fifty soldiers in a ship laden with arms and powder. La Rochelle is a city in Western France and was the largest seaport on the Bay of Biscay, or the Atlantic coast of France. Where was this ship heading to? And was this Don Constantino O’Neill who was raised in Galicia, Spain? What is also known is that La Rochelle was a haven for French privateers, merchants, and pirates. The Caribbean was well known to these men example are the maps of the islands in the West Indies done in the early 1600’s. I have not found any evidence that a Don Constantino O’Neill sailed to the Caribbean during the mid-1600, and finding records of such a voyage is basically impossible for me to do.

What I do now know is that this Black Cross Flag was part of Don Constantino O’Neill our progenitor, and part of Brittany and its ships.  Also that in 1642 there was a Don Constantino O’Neill in La Rochelle with fifty soldiers and a ship.

Due to the fact that I’m doing all research by myself in my spare time overlooking certain facts becomes the norm , but I strongly believe there are those out there who read this blog , and I know exactly that there are those who know who was Don Constantino O’Neill.

Time will tell and I will find who Don Constantino O’Neill was!