Yes, it doesn’t tell the full story of the subsequent colonisation of Ireland, but I would definitely say that is a pretty fair characterisation of the initial events. Strongbow (Richard fitz Gilbert) was a powerful landowner from a prestigious family; he was a descendant of Richard Fitz Gilbert, lord of Orbec and Bienfaite, who had crossed with William the Conqueror to England in 1066 and had been rewarded with the lordships of Clare in Suffolk and Tonbridge in Kent. Further lands entered into the family’s control over the subsequent years.

By the time we get to Strongbow a century later his inheritance was to be quite extensive - the lordships of Orbec and Bienfaite (in Normandy), Strigeoil (his main estate in Wales), Pembroke (Wales), and numerous other estates throughout England (for instance Weston in Hertfordshire and Badgeworth in Gloucestershire.). However, unfortunately for Strongbow this inheritance was not to stay in one piece.

With Henry II’s and the Angevin factions' rise to power in 1154 Strongbow was deprived of a number of his estates. Upon his accession to the throne Henry took the lordship of Pembroke into his own hands and, a year earlier, he had granted Orbec and Bienfaite to Robert de Monfort. In 1164 he was deprived of further lands to which he had a claim. In that year Walter, Earl Giffard, died without male heirs. Strongbow and his cousin, Roger Fitz Richard, lord of Clare, each had an entitlement to the estate (as descendants of Rohesia Giffard). However King Henry kept these lands within his own possession until his death in 1189.

Clearly Strongbow was not exactly the flavour of the month at the Angevin court. He was also was not permitted the use of a comital title.There is evidence to suggest that prior to his campaign in Ireland he was actually in some financial difficulty - he had been obliged to mortgage some of his landed property, and was in debt to Aaron, an astoundingly wealthy Jewish money lender from Lincoln. When, about 1166—67, Diarmait Mac Murchada (the exiled king of Leinster) sought Strongbow’s assistance in Ireland it must have seemed like a fantastic opportunity to recover some personal wealth and power.

The specifics of the deal seemed to be that Strongbow would provide military support to Diarmait and restore him as king of Leinster. In return, Strongbow would be married to Diarmait’s daughter, Aífe, and would succeed to the kingdom of Leinster after Diarmait’s death.

According to Gerald of Wales, when Strongbow entered into this agreement he

‘had a great name, rather than great prospects, ancestral prestige rather than ability; he had succeeded to a name rather than possessions’

William of Newburgh provided a similar assessment of Strongbow's circumstances, stating that Strongbow went to Ireland because he had wasted most of his inheritance and was attempting to escape his creditors.

Arriving in Ireland in 1170 Strongbow quickly took control of Leinster and, as had been promised, married Aífe.Then, in 1171, Diarmait actually died on campaign and as a result Leinster passed to Strongbow. Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair, king of Connacht, and claimant to the high-kingship of Ireland besieged Dublin from June to August 1171, in an attempt to assert control over Strongbow. However, he was totally defeated and thus Leinster - including the important trading ports of Dublin and Waterford - was safely in Strongbow’s possession.

One key question is whether or not Strongbow had King Henry’s permission to go to Ireland in the first place. As an important tenant of the English crown Strongbow’s actions had very significant implications. According to Gerald of Wales Strongbow had indeed sought and obtained permission from Henry II to go to the aid of Diarmait Mac Murchada in Ireland, although Gerald also suggests that Henry gave it more in jest than in earnest. Gervase of Canterbury agrees with Gerald that Strongbow had secured the king's permission to go to Ireland but that, nevertheless, Strongbow's relations with Henry remained strained.

On the other hand, William of Newburgh suggests that just as Strongbow was about to sail for Ireland, persons acting on behalf of Henry II tried to prevent his departure, threatening him with sequestration of his estates (ie. seizing on behalf of creditors). Indeed, evidence from the pipe rolls of the Exchequer shows that his lands were indeed sequestrated.

As news spread of Strongbow’s conquests and sudden rise to power it seems that Henry II was rather concerned. He ordered the closure of the ports in Ireland and further decreed that all persons from his dominions who had gone to Ireland without permission should either return before Easter 1171 or face seizure of their estates. Again, there is evidence in the pipe rolls that some individuals were indeed fined as a consequence.

Henry had no intention of allowing one of his subjects to gain an independent kingdom in Ireland the way his great grandfather, Duke William of Normandy, had gained England. It was not simply Strongbow's uncontrolled activities within Ireland which might have worried Henry II. Perhaps even more important were the potential resources which Strongbow's Irish acquisitions placed at his disposal for creating trouble within Henry's dominions - particularly in terms of pressing his claim to Pembroke.

The king was therefore determined to enforce his own authority in Ireland from the outset. Strongbow travelled to meet Henry at Newnham in Gloucestershire after a lengthy argument agreed to surrender the city of Dublin and its adjacent territory, the coastal towns and all castles to the king. Strongbow was granted back the remainder of the land which he had acquired in Ireland to be held as a fief from the king.

The level of Henry’s concern at this situation is illustrated by the fact that he felt it necessary to travel to Ireland in person in 1171-72 in order to enforce his overlordship over Strongbow and the other English lords. For instance Hugh de Lacy was granted the former kingdom of Mide by Henry, as well as custody of Dublin city and castle; and it seems to have been intended that his de Lacy’s authority would balance the ever-growing power of Strongbow.

However, Strongbow in fact served the king loyally after this, helping to put down a rebellion in Normandy on Henry’s behalf in 1173. His reward was to be allowed to return to Ireland in 1173 as vices regis Anglie in Hibernia agens, the king's chief representative in Ireland; a position which he would hold until his premature death in 1176. Henry had also ceded back to Strongbow the town of Wexford and the castle of Wicklow.

Strongbow’s gamble therefore successfully paid off. In seizing lands in Ireland he transformed his fortunes, becoming favoured in the king's eyes where he had previously found none. He was permitted the use of a comital title, subsequently styling himself as comes de Strigoil. Where he had once been close to financial ruin, William of Newburgh reports that as a result of his acquisitions in Ireland he became celebrated for his wealth and great prosperity in England and Ireland.

Clearly then the king had some cause to be wary of the sudden rise to power of Strongbow and other lords and this is indeed reflected in the evidence. However, this was all mostly theoretical - ie. what Strongbow might have been able to do. There isn’t much evidence to say that he actively intended any of this, and subsequent developments show his loyalty to the king.

As Robin Frame concludes:

The story of the original move into Ireland by knights…associated with Strongbow lays a false trail. The free enterprise ended almost immediately, and from 1171 the Lordship was shaped by royal power and the politics of the metropolis.