Wars of the Irish Kings (44 page)
Read Wars of the Irish Kings Online
Authors: David W. McCullough
CONNAUGHT AND CARRIES ON AN UNSUCCESSFUL WAR.
I do not find that after this day Norris again faced O’Neill. Setting out for Connaught he halted at Athlone and assembled all his forces. Thither came the Earls of Thomond and Clanrickarde; Na-long; and other Irish chiefs of the English party; the Anglo-Irish; the levies of Munster, Leinster and Meath; Irish and English veterans; and the reinforcements recently sent from England. He is said to have had about 10,000 horse and foot. O’Donnell mustered his forces of 5,000 against him. At this time there accompanied O’Donnell out of Ulster, the three MacSweenys and O’Doherty, bound to him by ancient ties of fealty, and the ever valiant Maguire; out of Connaught came O’Rourke, MacWilliam, O’Kelly, MacDermott, O’Connor Roe, O’Dowd. With him came also Murrough MacSheehy, a Munster gentleman of birth, with 300 men, who had been for about two years lurking in the woods in Munster and there raiding the heretics as opportunity offered and going through many trials in harassing them. There were also some ecclesiastics, especially Raymond O’Gallagher, Bishop of Derry, and Vice-Primate of Ireland, who absolved from the ban of excommunication those who went over from the Royalist army to the Catholics. Norris advancing from Athlone with his great and well-ordered army came to the village of Ballinrobe in MacWilliam’s country and halted there to the south of the river as O’Donnell was encamped on the other side thereof. On the first day and following night a brisk fire was kept up on both sides. On the following day Norris beat a parley, to which O’Donnell agreed. Out of the conference arose negotiations for peace. Every day under truces terms of peace were discussed, and the entire nights were spent in fighting, making attacks on one another’s camps, capturing outposts and scouts and fighting hand-to-hand and at long range. It happened that on one night when Na-long was on sentry, three hundred Royalists were killed. Some fled from Norris to O’Donnell, especially
Thady O’Rourke, The O’Rourke’s brother, who had lived with his kinsman the Earl of Ormond from his childhood. In treating for peace Norris offered O’Donnell, O’Rourke, MacWilliam and others, great advantages if they would return to the Queen’s allegiance. The treaty was delayed by the arrival at this time in Donegal of a Spanish ship urging O’Neill, O’Donnell and the other Irish chiefs in the name of his Catholic Majesty not to abandon the course they had begun, and assuring them of Spanish aid. And so when the negotiations had wasted a whole month, Norris being about to return, shifted his camp. O’Donnell followed him and seriously harassing his rear ranks and outside wings with missiles. Norris, however, decided not to help his distressed followers until the Catholics who were attacking them crossed the nearest hedge, thinking, indeed, that those who should cross the hedge might easily be cut off by his men. O’Donnell also seeing this, and being mounted on a fleet horse, rode up to the hedge and recalled his men who were eager to cross it. Norris baulked in this plan, railed with terrible imprecations against the fate which condemned him to lose in Ireland, the smallest speck of the wide world, that fame which his great valour and military skill had earned for him in France and Belgium, and complained sorrowfully that the enemy’s generals were not to be surpassed by him in military skill nor their troops to be excelled by his in stoutness and steadfastness. And fairly, indeed, might so great a general launch complaints against the fickleness of fortune. For in the opinion of all whom I have consulted in this matter, Norris was of all the English who flourished at this time, first alike in military skill and in valour, and in France and Belgium earned a great name by the success of his campaigns. Therefore I do not doubt but that it was Divinely ordained the Catholics should have most luck, but the Royalists, although stoutly and courageously fighting, should nevertheless be unfortunate. Nor is this strange, for I have no doubt but that the Irish Catholics in the Royalist army must have fought with a heavy conscience against the Catholic religion, and the English were not as strong and as suited for sustaining the burthens of war and battle as the Irish, and O’Neill studiously chose ground suitable for himself to meet Norris upon and where he fought at an advantage which seemed necessary to him, as he was inferior in point of numbers.
THE EXTRAORDINARY DEATH OF NORRIS.
Now I must notice events in Leinster which, although provided with meagre resources, yet joined the Catholic confederation with great resolution
and valour. After the removal by treachery of that resolute hero and relentless enemy of heretics, Fiagh O’Byrne, his sons Felim and Raymond took up their father’s arms. While Raymond headed risings against the heretics, started in Leinster, Felim went into Ulster, to O’Neill, to ask help, and having got from O’Neill nearly 300 foot under command of Brian O’More, surnamed Reagh, a Leinster chief, most opportunely came to the assistance of his struggling brother and after some successful forays recovered his entire patrimony, at this time nearly altogether lost. Thence Brian harassed with sudden raids those English who inhabited Wexford, and the Irish of the English party. As he was driving off a prey, four English companies with 400 Irish auxiliaries overtook him in an open plain. Brian having drawn up his column of 400 Irish foot (he had no more), hazarded a battle and by the Divine assistance conquered. The English were slain to a man, and not a few of their Irish auxiliaries were missing. The rest sought safety in flight. The risings in Leinster swelled when Owny O’More came of age. He was the son of Roderic, of whom we have made mention above, and having been concealed and reared by Fiagh O’Byrne was, with his brother Edmund, sent by Fiagh’s sons into Leix before he was of an age for war. Here, with the aid of some kinsmen and of some of his father’s tenants in Leix, he endeavoured to recover the patrimony of his ancestors from the heretics. Wareham St. Leger, Governor of Leix, endeavouring to suppress his young efforts, was defeated with the loss of about 50 men.
I have detailed these out of many incidents of the time of Russell and Norris, who were deprived of their government for their unsuccessful management of the war, and a successor was appointed. The Presidency of Munster was left to Norris, and he filled this office for three years until he met a most extraordinary death. It is said that as he was amusing himself by night at Mallow, a person of black visage and garments suddenly entered the room, with whom Norris, leaving his game, retired into his bedroom, whence all witnesses were excluded except one boy, who concealed himself near the door and heard the conversation which is said to have been somewhat as follows: “It is time,” said the black one, “for us to put the finishing touch to our plans.” “I don’t wish to do it,” said Norris, “until we have wound up the Irish war.” “On no account,” said the other, “will I wait longer than the appointed day which is now come.” Suddenly a great uproar was heard, attracted by which, those at play and the servants forced the door and burst into the room, when the Black one, who undoubtedly was the Devil, was nowhere to be found, but Norris was on his knees with his neck and shoulders so twisted that the top of his chest and his face were over his back. He was, however, still living and
ordered the trumpeters and drummers to be called to sound his death-knell, and whilst they were clamouring, he died about midnight. His body was embalmed with aromatic and fragrant perfumes, and sent into England. A propos of this incident, I am amazed at the folly of the heretics in bestowing this great honor on the corpse of an impious man, while they scatter the relics of saintly martyrs. It may, however, be seen how much the Good God helped O’Neill in not only often defeating Norris, the most skilled of the English generals and superior in every warlike equipment, but even in conquering the Devil himself, who it is thought agreed to help Norris.
ESSEX AND ELIZABETH
One consequence of the panic in London after the English defeat at Yellow Ford was that Queen Elizabeth dispatched Robert Devereux, earl of Essex, to Ireland as lord lieutenant. Essex (1567-1601), who is usually referred to rather smirkingly as the queen’s “favorite,” landed in Ireland with an army of sixteen thousand men in April 1599. Rather than confronting the rebels at their strongholds in the north, he marched his huge army around in circles in the south. Eventually ordered north by the queen, he met O’Neill alone in a stream on the border of Counties Louth and Monaghan and, rather than fighting, claimed—later—to have made a cease-fire agreement. Essex’s adventure was both a military and a personal disaster that ended with his recall to London, no longer a favorite. After a failed coup attempt in 1601, he was executed.
In the following exchange of letters, Essex describes his meeting with O’Neill to the queen, writing—like Julius Caesar in his
Gallic War—
in the third person. In her blistering reply, the queen upbraids him for wasting his military advantage, for keeping secret what O’Neill actually said, and for falling for the rebel chief’s now-familiar trick of stalling for time. It is also clear that in using phrases such as “you do but piece up a hollow peace,” the queen writes with a fine Shakespearean flair.
Sir John Harington (1561-1612), whose published papers contained these letters, was Elizabeth’s godson, a poet, translator, and inventor. A flush toilet he designed was installed in one of the queen’s palaces and was said to be the first such convenience in England. He accompanied Essex on his Irish adventure and is probably best known for an epigram that seems especially apt, considering his friendship with Essex: “Treason doth never prosper. What’s the reason? For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
KEPT FOR HER MAJESTY, THE QUEEN
… The L. Lieutenant marched with his army towards Ferny, and lodged the 2 of September [1599] betwixt Roberts Towne and Newcastel. The 3rd he went from thense to Ardoff, where he might see Tirone with his forces on a hill, a mile and a half from owre quarter, but a river and a wood betwixt him and us. The L. Lieutenant first imbattelled his army, and then lodged it uppon the hill by the burnt castel of Ardoff, and because theare was no wood for fyre nor cabines but in the valley towards Tirone’s quarter, his Lo [Lord Lieutenant] commaunded a squadron of every compagny to goe fetch wood, and sent 500 foote and 2 compagnies of horsse for their garde. Tirone sent downe some horsse and foote to impeache them and offer skirmish, but after directed them not to passe the foorde, when he sawe owre men resolved to dispute it. Some skirmish theare was, from one side of the river to the other, but to little purpose; for as they offended us little, so we troubled owre selvs as little with them.
The next day the L. Lieutenant marched thorough the playne country to the mill of Louthe, and incamped beyond the river towards Ferny, and Tirone marched thorough the woodes, and lodged in the next wood to us, keeping his skowtes of horsse in sight of owre quarter. At this quarter the L. Lieutenant being driven to stay for a supply of victuall from Dredagh, consulted what was to be donn uppon Tirones armie, or how theire fastnesse might be entred. It was protested by all, that owre army being farr lesse in strength, was not to attempt trenches, and to fight uppon such infinit disadvauntage: but a strong garrison might be placed at Louthe, or some castel thereabouts, to offend the bordering rebells, and defend the whole coumpty of Lowthe; and that since we were theare, we should one day draw owte and offer battayle, with oure 2500 foote to theare 5000, and with oure 300 horsse to theire 700.
According to which resolution the L. Lieutenant first viewed Lowthe, and found it utterly unfitt, theare being no fewell to be gotten neere it, nor any strength to be made in short tyme; and the same day, being the 5th of September, he had a gentleman sent unto him from Tirone, one Henry Hagan, his constable of Dungannon and a man highly favored and trusted of him. This Hagan delivered his masters desire to parly with the L. Lieutenant, which his Lo refused; but told Hagan he would be the next morning on the hill, betwixt both theire camps, and if he would then call to speake with him, he would be found in the head of his troupes.
With this answer Hagan returned, and the next morning, being the 6th of September, the L. Lieutenant drew owte 2000 foote and 300 horsse,
leaving a colonel with 500 foote and 20 horsse to garde owre quarter and baggage.
The L. Lieutenant first imbatteled his men uppon the first great hill he came to, in sight of Tirone; and then marched forward to an other hill, on which Tirones garde of horsse stoode, which they quitted, and theare owre army made good the place till it was neere 3 of the clocke in the afternoone. During which tyme Tirones foote never showed themselves out of the wood, and his horsemen were putt from all the hills which they came uppon betwixt us and the woode: by which occasion some skirmish was amongst the light horsse, in which a French gentleman of the Earl of Southamptons were all that were hurt of owre side.