Baron Athenry is one of the oldest titles in the
Peerage of Ireland, but the date of its creation is thoroughly uncertain; each of the first four Berminghams listed below is claimed by some writers to have been Lord Athenry, but the evidence is disputed. The title appears to have been given to the
de Birmingham family of
Birmingham, Warks, England as a reward for their help in the
Norman invasion of Ireland in 1172. Both
Sir William de Birmingham, and his son Robert de Birmingham, are variously claimed to have been involved in the invasion, but it is probable that, after the invasion, William returned to his home in England and left Robert their new lands in Ireland.