Columbia iinitimttp 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
THE 
 
 CONFEDERATION 
 
 KILKENNY. 
 
 BY THE REV. C. P. MEEHAN. 
 
 "Hapless nation— hapless land — 
 Heap of uncementing Band ! 
 Crumbled by a foreign weight, 
 And, by worse, domestic hate." 
 
 De. Dbekitak. 
 
 NEW YORK : 
 FELIX E. O'BOURKE, 
 
 9 BARCLAY STREET. 
 1873. 
 
5 
 
 1523 
 
TO 
 
 CHARLES GAVAN DUFFY, 
 
 EDITOR OF THE NATION, 
 
 THE MAN WEO HAS ACHIEVED SO MUCH FOR THE 
 LITERATURE OF HIS NATIVE LAND, 
 
 THIS VOLUME, 
 
 UVDSBTAEEK AT HIS DESIXI, 
 19 INSCRIBED, 
 
 BT ONE WHO IS PROUD OP HIS PERSONAL FRIENDSHIP 
 
 AND A SINCERE ADMIRER OF HIS PUBUC 
 
 AlfD PRIVATE WOBTH. 
 
 8S. Miehad and Joh»% 
 
TO THE READERS OF THE LIBRARY OF IRELAM). 
 
 It was my most anxious desire that this Volume might 
 come from the Press without a single line of Preface or 
 Introduction. I feel, however, constrained to relinquish 
 my original intention ; but the observations I have to 
 make shall be few, and, I trust, satisfactory. 
 
 This volume, instead of preceding should have 
 followed, the "Rising of the North," commonly called 
 the " Great Popish Rebellion ;" but as the writer who 
 is to treat that important subject, has been prevented by 
 urgent public duties, from completing it, I exerted 
 whatever power in me lay to have the Confederation 
 ready for the month of August. 
 
 All the incidents which I have endeavoured to narrate 
 had their origin in two sources — one remote, the other 
 proximate ; the former is to be found in the " History of 
 the Confiscations during the reign of James I." and it is 
 presumed, that the readers of the '* Library of Ireland" 
 are already acquainted with that unparalleled system of 
 fraud and rapine so ably depicted by Mr. Mac Nevin. 
 The latter or proximate source is to be discovered in 
 the history of 1641 ; for out of the events of that year 
 sprang the remarkable Confederation, whose prelates and 
 military leaders shone out like stars in one of the darkest 
 and stormiest periods of our history. It is not my 
 province tc vindicate the men who originated that ex- 
 traordinary movement, so grossly misrepresented by 
 Warner, Temple, Borlase and others; that duty rests 
 with the man to whom this Volume Ijs dedicated, and it 
 would be difficult to find one more able or willing to 
 rescue the transaction of that period from the calumnies 
 in which interested parties have laboured to involve it. 
 I, therefore, will hasten to lay before the reader a 
 brief sketch of the events which have immediate reference 
 id the subject matter of tl»»6 volume. 
 
Tlie accession of Charles I. was hailed by the Catholics 
 of Ireland as the dawning of hope and tranquillitj, 
 after the terrific persecutions and rapacity of his prede- 
 cessor. They fondly indulged the belief that the rack 
 and the thumb-screw would fall into disuse, and that 
 their religion would no longer be a pretext for sacrificing 
 their lives, and stripping them of the remnant of pro- 
 perty which a crowned and disgusting pedant suffered 
 them to retain. With a fatal confidence in Charles I. 
 they imagined that he would cause measures to be enacted 
 which would supersede that infamous penal code which 
 has no parallel in the history of any other country. 
 But in reality they hoped against hope. Ussher, whose 
 character for erudition none may gainsay, was a rabid 
 bigot, and the representative of a class who held it to 
 be " a grievous sin to give toleration to the Catholics, 
 or to "consent that they should freely exercise their 
 religion." — Ussher, as well as the other bishops who made 
 this avowal, spoke the sentiments of the Puritans in 
 England and in Ireland. Yet, with this declaration in 
 their ears, the infatuated Catholics dreamed that the 
 good-will and kind intentions of the monarch would come 
 between them and their implacable persecutors. Pro- 
 mises, it is true, were plenty, but they produced no 
 beneficial measures. Long-sufferings and passive obe- 
 dience under the most withering oppression, brought no 
 redress. The monarch who could so freely promise 
 concessions, had not the remotest idea of realizing them. 
 One hundred and twenty thousand pounds sterling, 
 were subscribed by the Catholics as the price of the 
 concessions, known as " graces." Such an enormous 
 sum from a people so grossly robbed by James I. must 
 have well nigh ruined their resources. Charles took it, 
 and with that perfidy which characterized all his acts,. 
 gave himself no concern to alleviate their sufferings oi 
 ameliorate their condition. 
 
 In 1633 he commissioned Strafford to proceed tc 
 
Ireland as Lor J Deputy ; not indeed with tlie design ot re- 
 moving abuses, but ofperpetuating them. This man, wliose 
 name k, even now, a sound of dread and terror, enter- 
 tained an abhorence of the puritanic spirit so boldly 
 manifested by the Primate Ussher, and Bedel, Bishop oi 
 Kilmore. It was his ambition to extinguish it, but his 
 cherished project was to carry out the schemes of 
 James I., and a more terrible agent could not have been 
 found for the purpose. An exhaustless store for the 
 lovers of the marvellous and cruel, is to be found in 
 the history of the Spanish Inquisition ; but, disgusting 
 and terrific as its acts may have been, they furnish no 
 record of blacker guilt or more flagrant profligacy 
 tlian what may be collected from tl,.9 history of 
 Straflbrd's administration in Ireland. The promises 
 of the King, so often given to the Catholics, and so 
 warmly welcomed by them, were all violated on his 
 responsibility. The Commission of Defective Titles was 
 only another name for systematic plunder. The School 
 of Wards, with its insidious scheme for sapping the 
 faith of Catholics, was an apt instrument in the hands 
 of this unscrupulous Deputy, who hated the Irish as 
 much as he lusted after their substance. Nevertheless, 
 grant after grant was generously given, amounting in 
 all to three hundred and ten thousand pounds, in the 
 hope of securing themselves against persecution on the 
 jcore of religion, and having confirmed to them the 
 possession of their estates. But all in vain ; the statutes 
 known as those of "Uses" and "Wills" were passed in 
 the Irish parliament, and the religion of all Catholic 
 minors was left to the guidance of those who preached 
 extirpation of Popery as Gospel. 
 
 To suppose that Strafford's conduct elicited the dis- 
 pleasure of Charles I. would be a presumption not 
 warranted by history. On the contrary, the king who 
 participated in his guilt could not but applaud it. The 
 Commission of Defective Titles contemplated the 
 
viii 
 
 conflscatioii of the entire of Connaught— its ob- 
 ject was to subvert the title to every estate in the 
 whole province, and to e^aabUsh a ne^r plantation. 
 Compliant jurors were easily found, and Avhere they 
 were not, the Star Chamber, with its horrid engines, 
 was speedily resorted to. Tlie Lord Deputy Chichester, 
 in 1613, claimed the honor of this device, and it 
 succeeded, to Strafford's most sanguine Avishes, in 
 plundering the rightful possessors, and finding for tlic 
 crown. Nor did Strafford limit his sphere of evil action 
 to subverting the religion of the Irish Catholics and 
 divesting them of their patrimonial inheritance. The 
 Woollen Manufactures of Ireland were not suffered to 
 escape; they were pronounced injurious to English 
 speculation, and were consequently annihilated ; even 
 salt was adjudged a monopoly to the king, and the Lord 
 Deputy consoled himself with having sought to bring the 
 people to a conformity in religion, but above all, on hav 
 ing raised a good revenue for the crown. Hence, when 
 ne returned to England, and made a report of his con- 
 duct to the council, he was gratefully informed by the 
 king, that "if he had served him otherwise, he would 
 not have served him as he expected." 
 
 Strafford, or as he is yet known to the Irish peasantry 
 by the epithet of ' ' Black Tom, " was succeeded by Wandes- 
 ford, whose administration was too short-lived to be of any 
 benefit to the Catholics, if he ever contemplated such, or 
 of greater misery, which it is likely he meant to inflict. 
 Tyranny, less vexatious than this which we have glanced 
 at, would hare driven any other people to madness. 
 In fact, the Scotch Covenanters had no such provoca- 
 tion to rebellion, and yet they rose in might and 
 strength, and, in a great measure, brought about tl.at 
 terrible tragedy which commenced with the execution ot 
 S iraffbrd and terminated in the overthrow of the monarchy: 
 yet, withal, the Irish Catholics clang to the throne, as 
 if they had been its cherished objects j and, although it 
 
Ix 
 
 has been the wont of others to applaud them for raising 
 men and money to aid the king in his efforts to crush 
 the Scotch, our habits of thought, at the present day, 
 must be far from justifying that over- weening loyalty 
 vhich induced them to arm in the cause of despotism. 
 
 Wandesford was succeeded by Sir William Parsons 
 and Sir John Borlase, two Puritans, who seem to have 
 thought of nothing save pillaging the Catholics and 
 anathematizing their religion. The odious tyranny of 
 these men — their wanton invasion of the most. sacred 
 rights, and the utter disregard of all the obligations of 
 oaths and conscience, find no counterpart, even in the 
 terrible time of Strafford. Human patience had reached 
 its limit — the people goaded to desperation, prepared to 
 fling off tlie yoke— a plot for seizing the Castle of Dub- 
 lin was laid— treachery was at work — the conspiracy 
 failed, but a revolution speedily followed. Prom north 
 to south the masses rose, headed by Sir Phelim O'Neill 
 and other chiefs of the old nobility. In the December 
 of 1641, a coalition took place between the Anglo- Irish 
 Catholics of the Pale, and the " ancient Irish." Out of 
 hat coalition sprung the Confederation, the avowed 
 object of which was, to assert by force of arms the 
 free and independent exercise of the Cathohc religion, 
 and the restoration of the churches to their rightful 
 inheritors. Of course, both parties, " the Catholics of 
 '.he Pale" and the "Celtic tribes," were solemnly 
 pledged to win back tneir estates and homesteads, or 
 perish in the struggle. They were glorious objects and 
 well worth fighting for. A congregation of bishops 
 pronounced the war to be "lawful and pious;" and 
 the men who were engaged in it must have triumphed 
 had they been true to themselves and firmly banded 
 together; but they were not. Mutual jealousies, dis- 
 trusts, temporizing expediency, and wily diplomacy 
 broke their compact array, and left them victims to the 
 horrors which subsequently desolated the land. But 
 
even so ; in the annals of Europe it would be difficult 
 to find nobler devotion or more brilliant chivalry than 
 that wluch may be learned from this period of our 
 history. Could there have been a more spirit-stirring 
 motive for gallant achievements ? The faitli, for whose 
 independence those men drew their swords, was that 
 which our Apostle preached on the heights of Slane, 
 r,nd in the presence of the great assembly of Tara. The 
 lands of which the Catholics had been plundered were 
 theirs before the Norman set foot on our shores. The 
 descendants of the invaders who remained true to theii 
 religion, were robbed and tortured for their martyr-like 
 attachment to the ancient creed. Tlie churches which 
 the piety of Irish princes and Norman barons had ereeted 
 were in the gripe of usurpers, and were not the Irisi 
 Catholics justified before God and man in seeking to 
 expel them by force of arms ? In a country like Ireland, 
 at all times so fondly devoted to the Chair of St. Peter, 
 such events as these could not have been unaccompanied 
 by deeds of heroism which may have been equalled, but 
 certainly cannot be surpassed in the history of any 
 -ther country. Even now, after centuries of degrada- 
 vion and sufferings, are not the religious characteristics 
 of the Irish people still the same ? The love of their 
 religion, like that of Francesca, so thrillingly described 
 by Dante,* has endured and outlived bitter trial and 
 agonizing torment ; even now it docs not abandon them, 
 but seems to have been more closely wedded to their 
 hearts by the recollection of all the blood and tears it 
 cost them. That sublime passion brought death to the 
 *over and the loved ; but a resurrection has followed, 
 and Ireland is now the wonder and the admiration of 
 the world. Go where we will, we cannot meet any 
 section of tlie human race braver, purer, or more 
 generous ; their love of fatherland is only equalled by 
 their attaclunent to the ancient creed. Would you a^k 
 * Inferno. Canto V. 
 
tlie Irish peasant, wlietlier toiling for a livelihood 
 "beyond the Atlantic foam," or brooding in sullen 
 silence over his miseries in his own land, what hope is 
 nearest to his heart, he wiU tell you, it is that of laying 
 his bones within these grey old ruins which chronicle 
 the rise and fall of his country ? 
 
 But, heaven forbid that it should be inferred from 
 these reflections that I or any one else designed to stir 
 an angry passion, or shadow forth a desire of resorting 
 to violence for the possession of these grand old temples, 
 now no longer ours. Too much blood has been already 
 shed in the struggle to win them back. Who would 
 strike a blow for the casket while the gem is in our 
 hands ? Enough for us that these majestic monuments 
 still remain indisputable evidences of our former great- 
 ness and the antiquity of our faith. It is not by armed 
 violence that they will ever revert to us ; — no, that con- 
 summation is only to be hoped for when 
 " Europe, repentant of her parricide, 
 Siiall . . . sue to be forgiven." ♦ 
 
 But the age of the Confederation has gone by, and ex- 
 traordinary events have succeeded it. A Confederation of 
 another order has sprung up, and done much more for the 
 " dear old land" than all that the sword of Owen Roe 
 was able to accomplish; — " the voice and the pen" are 
 more potent weapons in the nineteenth century. Yet, 
 whilst we gladly acknowledge their efficiency, let us not 
 befool ourselves by seeking to disparage those who, in 
 the battle for liberty, resorted to the sword. The idea 
 of casting censure on Tell, or Hofer, or Hugh O'Neill, 
 is unworthy of a brave and generous people. In a coun- 
 try like this it would be dishonoring the memories of our 
 illustrious dead were we to depreciate that heroism which 
 held life not w^th possessing when deprived of the in 
 comparable blessings of freedom. All our hopes are now 
 
 • ChUde Farold. Canto lY. 
 
xii 
 
 jnked witli the great unarmed Confederacy which lias 
 brought mind and argument to combat irfjustice ; but 
 that Confederacy has reason to be guarded against the 
 weapons which ruined its martial predecessor. Even 
 now there is a Pale, the foundations of which are laid in 
 inveterate prejudices and hostile feelings. It is neces- 
 sary that it should disappear, and that all of us, of every 
 creed, be banded together in the peaceful determination 
 to " have oar own again," The fatalities which de- 
 stroyed the men of another period originated in crafty 
 diplomacy, soothing promises, and flattering expediency. 
 Heaven guard us against a recurrence of similar evils ! 
 Unity and untiring exertion are our only means of esta- 
 blishing our legislative independence. To use the Ian 
 guage of an eloquent writer — " There is now no statute 
 of Kilkenny — no Catholic Confederacy — no Protestant 
 Ascendancy, to keep us from entire nationhood. The 
 religion of each is free, — the golden gates of prosperity 
 open in the vista of our pi-edestined path j we must 
 enter them hand-in-hand, or not at all." * 
 
 One word more, and I have done. I know full well 
 how unequal I have been to treat this momentous sub- 
 ject; but, if I lacked the necessary ability, no one 
 ^an accuse me of want of industry. The volume which 
 will describe the wars of Cromwell is yet to be writ- 
 ten, and it will be the duty of the individual whose 
 province that is, to commence where I left off. The 
 congregation of the Prelates at Jamestown and Lough- 
 rea, as well as the Lorrain embassy, are intimately con- 
 nected with all that I have left untouched, and will be 
 fully developed in a subsequent volume. C. P. M. 
 
 * Jfation newspaper, Jund 27th, 18i3' 
 
 f 
 
CONFEDERATIOK OF KILKENNY. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 The twenty- third of October, 1G42, is a memorable 
 epoch in the annals of Ireland. On that day, the repre- 
 sentatives of the Irish Catholics, deputed by the cities, 
 counties, and towns, were assembling in the city of 
 Kilkenny, to deliberate on their actual position, and 
 organise a confederacy, the foundations of which had 
 been already laid. 
 
 It was a grand and solemn spectacle — nor does the his- 
 tory of any country record a more spirit-stirring scene 
 than that which was witnessed in the old city of St. 
 Canice,* at this momentous period. The rapid transition 
 from heart-breaking thraldom to bold and armed inde- 
 pendence, was never more convincingly manifest. Ire- 
 land, hitherto chained, and tortured by the most inhimian 
 enactments, beheld her sons, clergy and laity, repudiating 
 the despotism of Parsons and Borlase, who, in the 
 absence of Lord Leicester, held the reins of government, 
 and resorting to the only means left them for the redress 
 of their grievances — self-legislation and an appeal to 
 arms. 
 
 Who can adequately describe the feelings which, at 
 this moment, must have thrilled the hearts of the Irish 
 Catholics ? But thirty-nine years before, the Lord 
 Deputy Mountjoy, from the Castle of Dublin, sent an 
 insolent letter to the maj^r of Kilkenny, reprimanding 
 him for allowing the old abbey church of St. Francis to 
 be used for the celebration of the mass. His orders to 
 
 • >''</. fiVerisciue vero Canicopoli* nuncnpatur."— ^JS- •^^«»n- 204. 
 
14 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 close its gates were promptly obeyed, and the frightenei/ 
 worshippers were obliged to betake themselves to some 
 obscure spot in the dingy lanes of the city, to celebrate 
 the mysteries of their religion. The sanguinary edicts 
 of the times caused men to pray after the manner of their 
 forefathers, as though the moments of their existence 
 were to be counted by the duration of the sacrifice — for 
 that one act, life and property might be said to be at stake ; 
 for, in the unscrupulous calculations of such men as Mount- 
 joy, Parsons, and Borlase, it was deemed no sin to perse- 
 cute and plunder, in this world, those whom their gloomy 
 fanaticism excluded from all participation in the hap- 
 piness of the next. But what an extraordinary contrast 
 now presented itself— in less than one year how much had 
 been done to exalt the condition of the Catholic people of 
 Ireland ! Men, who were hitherto impatient of the yoke, 
 now bravely flung it oif. Mountjoy's malevolence, and the 
 intolerable dictation of the justices were treated with 
 scorn and contempt. Those who commenced the 
 struggle in the preceding October, knew well that 
 they had been driven from their sanctuaries and home- 
 steads, by fraud and violence, and were now deter- 
 mined to assert their rightful claims, even at the 
 sword's point. The struggle for independence was to be 
 resumed in a more formidable and combined manner ; 
 and, even now, they might behold some glorious results 
 from a warfare which had all the appearances of a 
 sudden onfall without any characteristic of well ordered 
 arrangement. On such an occasion, what heart could 
 have been indifferent to the exciting circumstances of the 
 time and place. From the towers of St. Canice and the 
 black abbey the gladsome pealing of the bells proclaimed 
 a new era. David Roth, bisliop of Ossory, ascended the 
 episcopal throne in the cathedral. The altars, which were 
 si^riip.gjously overthrown, were re-erected, and the 
 snrine of the saint was restored. A monument was set 
 ut: to rpp/-rd the fact, and the splendid old fane was once 
 more devoted to the ancient worship* — nor was this all — 
 
 f 
 * " Memoriae David Roth 
 Qui hanc eccl. cathed. 
 S. Canicio sacram 
 Pristino restituit cultu!." 
 
 O'PHELAH'f 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 15 
 
 eome of the monasteries which had been used for profane 
 purposes were again occupied by the religious bodies, and 
 the friar walked abroad in the habit of his order. Never, 
 in the history of anj' country, was there wrought so 
 wondrous a change in so short a time, and against such 
 fearful odds. 
 
 Nor are we to suppose that the joy created by these 
 extraordinary events was confined to those who wit- 
 nessed them at home. Some of the most chivalrous men 
 who had served in continental armies, were born in 
 Ireland. Religious persecution had driven them from 
 their homes, and they eagerly watched the moment 
 when they might return, and be useful to their own 
 land. That moment had come, nor were they slow in 
 sympathising with their kinsmen and friends. Owen Roe 
 O'Neill, who had distinguished himself in the Spanish 
 armies, relinquished his command, and was warmly 
 commended by the Pope for that zeal and love of father- 
 land, which prompted him to peril all he held dear for 
 the emancipation of his country and religion. Preston, 
 too, of the hou^e of Gormanstown, who had won his 
 laurels in 1636, under the walls of Louvain, apparently 
 actuated by the same feelings, and at the expense of Car- 
 dinal Richlieu, sailed with Or considerable number of 
 oflficers for the coast of Wexford, where he landed arms 
 and ammunition. From the banks of the Seine to 
 the Tagus, and thence to the Vatican, beyond the Tiber, 
 the news of the Irish rising had travelled with rapidity. 
 Philip IV., of Spain, extolled the boldness of his co- 
 religionists. France, chivalrous France, applauded 
 the bravery of the men who had arisen to smite 
 oppression ; and Urban VIII., at the tomb of the 
 apostles, invoked blessings on the arms of his faithful 
 Irish children. 
 
 But if anything could add to the joy of those who 
 beheld these occurrences from a distance, or raise still 
 higher the enthusiasm which reigned at home, it was an 
 event which had recently occurred : that event was the 
 coalition of the Catholic nobility and gentry of the Pale 
 with the Celtic or " old Irish." Let us pause to examine 
 the characteristics of both, ere we describe the causes 
 which brought them to struggle in the same cause, and 
 march under the same standard. 
 
16 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 " From time immemorial," says an accm-ate observer, "there always 
 existed among tlie Irish two adverse parties, ' the ancient and the 
 modem;' the former was ever opposed to the dominion of England, 
 and generally spealung, refused the investiture of church property, the 
 latter, on the contrary, aggrandised by tho spoils of the religious 
 houses andcathcdi-als, and bound to the King of England by obligation 
 no less than interest, neither sought nor desired anything but the 
 exaltation of the Crown." 
 
 In fact, the Catholics of the Pale were thoroughly Eng- 
 lish in all their sympathies, if we except those which 
 regarded religion ; they were strongly contrasted with 
 the ancient Celtic tribes, who had been plundered, even 
 with the connivance of their new allies ; nor did the two 
 races differ as to feelings and predilection only : the supe- 
 riority of the " old Irish," in the year 1641, was not less 
 striking, as to outward appearances, than in the days of 
 Hollinslied ; for, while the "Anglo-Irish" are described as 
 •♦ weak and low of stature," the " old Irish" we are told, 
 '• were tall, and of huge frame."* 
 
 Well may we wonder, that men of such different views 
 and predilections could be brought together within the 
 walls of Kilkenny. Yerily it must have been some 
 irresistible motive which could induce the two parties to 
 bury in oblivion the antagonism and mortal enmity of 
 400 years. No matter how ardently the mendacious 
 publications of the times sought to identify them with 
 the men who originated the rising of 1641, they did not 
 succeed in convincing any unbiassed mind. One who 
 was a conspicuous actor in these varied scenes, so 
 often bright with hope, and darkened by reverses, 
 has triumphantly proved that the Irish rising, so 
 ^ far from being countenanced by the nobility and gentry 
 of the Pale, had not a single individual of English 
 extraction concerned or implicated in it.f On the con- 
 trary, when the "old Irish" took up arms to resist the 
 Puritans, "who were Jpent on extinguishing the Catholic 
 faith, and plucking up the Irish nation, root and 
 branch, "t their brethren of the Pale earnestly besought 
 the justices to put them in possession of arms, that they 
 might march against them, and, if possible, crush 
 them.§ Sir Kobert Talbot, a Catholic, was rearlj, in 
 
 • Pdnuccini. f Castlehaven's Mem. 
 
 t Declaration o^ vh» Prelates at Jamesto^vn. § Carte's Oniv 
 
COKiEDERATION OF KILKENNY. \/ 
 
 I'ts hasty zeal, to proceed to the county Wicklow, and 
 outroot the septs of the O'Byrnes and O'Tooles, who 
 had been plundered by Sir William Parsons, and driven 
 to madness by the savage Coote. Lord Gormanstown, 
 and others of his order, such asDunsany and Netterville, 
 burned for an opportunity in which they might prove 
 their loyalty, by persecuting the men who had arisen to 
 beat down the most intolerable despotism — they sought 
 arms, but were denied tiiem,— they were treated with the 
 contempt which they merited, nor did the}- repent them 
 of their bloody purpose, till they found theuiselves in- 
 volved in the damnatory edicts which the justices pub- 
 lished against '' all Papists without distinction of any:' 
 Yet did tliey still indulge a hope that these denuncia- 
 tions might be mitigated in their behalf, but the hope 
 soon vanished. Their religion was a plausible pretext 
 for robbing them ; their estates were worth having, and 
 had long tempted the cupidity of Parsons and Borlase. 
 Indeed the sordid griping of those men stands without 
 parallel. Perfectly unscrupulous as to the means of 
 acquiring wealth, they hesitated not to smite, with 
 " axe and oath," all who stood between them and their 
 object ; nor can we find the counterpart of such unblusli- 
 ing plunderers, save amongst those whom Dante describes 
 in the eighth circle of the Inferno.' 
 
 But a new light began to break in on them, and 
 they were soon made aware of the danger which beset 
 them. A letter from the Earl of Essex to the justices, 
 suggesting the expediency of banishing the lords and 
 gentry of the Pale to the West Indies, was sufficient to 
 alarm and teach them to provide for their safety. They 
 had no alternative ; to stay any longer separated from 
 the national movement, perilled their lives and fortunes. 
 The rackings and torturings of their own kinsmen, and 
 the cruelties and the atrocities which they were 
 forced to endure in the Castle of Dublin, gave fearful 
 warning that a similar course of treatment was in reserve 
 for themselves. Remonstrances were vain, for they 
 were unheeded, — loyalty, and hoary age, Avere but 
 "scurvy pleas" at such a moment. Patrick Barnwellf 
 of Ki ll brew, and Sir John Read, were living witnesscja 
 
 » Inferno. Canto xxvlii. t Cai'te's Ormoni 
 
18 
 
 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 of the inhumanity of the executive : without the shadow 
 of a charge against their devotion to the Crown, they 
 had their sinews stretched, and their bones broken 
 in the torture-charaber of Dublin Castle. Their crime 
 was, that they were Papists, and, consequently, fit 
 
 , objects for the vengeance of Parsons and Borlase, No 
 matter how reluctant they might have been, the nobility 
 and gentry of the Pale had no other course open to 
 them, save that of joining with those who, in the 
 hypocritical slang of the times, were denominated 
 "rebels." Naturally enough, they dreaded to encounter 
 the pains and penalties to which their religion consigned 
 them, and they determined to abandon their vacillation, 
 and seek protection in the patriot ranks. Thus were the 
 lords of the Pale at length convinced that their kindly 
 feelings to England couJd not protect them when the 
 rack might be called in to support the suspicions and 
 confirm the jealousies of the justices, who had an interest 
 in their,-, destruction.* Their tenants on their own 
 estates had been wantonly pillaged, and their persons 
 wounded. Coote's thirst for blood was insatiable, and 
 his threat of not leaving a Catholic in Ireland began to 
 gain some truth, from the recollection of his barbarities 
 in Wicklow. Was the man who could smile and become 
 facetious when an infant was writhing on the pike of one 
 of his soldiers, incapable of any deed which diabolical 
 ingenuity could suggest ? 
 
 ^ Finglas, Clontarf, and Santry, were the scenes of the 
 most wanton murders, perpetrated by this man on people 
 whose proximity to the capital might have been sufficient 
 guarantee for their loyalty, or, at least, for their inability 
 to do the state any mischief When the humbler classes 
 of the Catholics were thus persecuted, what could tlieir 
 lords expect by tame acquiescence, or what solace could 
 they borrow from delusive hope ? But, above all, what 
 good could accrue to them from perpetuating the anta- 
 gonism which, alas ! had too long divided " the modern" 
 and the "old Irish." It was madness to continue it, 
 
 \and the meeting on the Hill of Crofty, in the county 
 
 ' Meath, was the result of their reflections. There, as on 
 an altar, Roger O'Moore and Lord Gormanstown, the 
 
 • Cartes Onn., p. 259. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 19 
 
 representatives of the two parties, plighted a solemn 
 vow, and swore to bury in oblivion the feuds and dissen- 
 sions which had long wasted their strength and now left 
 them a prey to the designs and hatred of the common 
 enemy. 
 
 Lord Gormanstown, and the other lords of the Pale 
 proceeded, soon after, to take measures which the 
 exigencies of the times necessarily demanded. Some 
 levies of men, badly equipped, and hastily disciplined, 
 were made in the various baronies. Commanders were 
 appointed, and orders were issued to raise such means 
 as were necessary for their support. The meeting on 
 Knockcrofty, and its immediate results, had two very 
 natural consequences : all hope of reconciliation with 
 'the justices was henceforth abandoned, and the "old 
 Irish," who had commenced the struggle in the north 
 and south, determined to persevere with redoubled 
 energy, now that they were joined by the men of the 
 Pale. Willing or unwilling, they were driven into a 
 position from which they could not recede. No matter 
 what their sympathy might have been for English domi- 
 nation, their religion was the grand plea for their 
 destruction: that they held in common with the "old 
 Irish," and in defence of the ancient creed they were 
 solemnly pledged to stand or fall. The objects of the two 
 parties now united were grand, and well worth a com- 
 bined effort. The Puritans of England meditated the 
 ruin of the monarchy : they were assisted in Ireland by 
 the machinations of the justices. Next to the ruin of 
 royalty, they ambitioned nothing so much as the extir- 
 pation of the Catholics. The preservation of the regal 
 , power was an object dear to the ancient and modern 
 Irish, but in every thing pertaining to religion, the Celt 
 knew no compromise, while his ally on the other hand 
 would be satisfied with mere toleration. Manifestoes, 
 calling on the leaders to arm in the common cause, were 
 forwarded to the principal towns ; a great portion of 
 Ulster had been already won back by Sir Phelim O'Neill ; 
 Lord Mountgarret captured Kilkenny ; Waterford opened 
 its gates to his son. Colonel Edmund Butler ; Koss and 
 Wexford declared for the national cause ; the O'Briens 
 were almost masters of Clare ; and, in the fastnesses of 
 iar-Connaught, there was a steady organisation in pro- 
 
20 
 
 CONFEDERATIOX OF KILKENNY 
 
 gress, which alarmed the Earl of Clanricarde, who, 
 wishing to preserve the good opinion of the justices, 
 stood aloof from the general movement. 
 
 But it was not till the 22d of March 1642, that the 
 Catholic prelates took any part in these momentous 
 proceedings. Of course their influence had been em- 
 ployed to exhort and encourage their flocks in fighting 
 the battle of the faith ; but, previous to that period, it 
 was quite impossible that they could have been synodi- 
 cally convened. Their presence was required in many a 
 hard fought field, to console and comfort those who 
 had fallen in the struggle ; nor had they time or oppor- 
 tunity to assemble and deliberate in councils. 
 
 ^ The provincial synod at Kells, convened by Hugh 
 O'iieilly, archbishop of Armagh, was attended by all the 
 bishops of the province, with the exception of Thomas 
 Dease, bishop of Meath, who, like Lord Clanricarde, 
 sought to extinguish the spirit of patriotism in the 
 hearts of his people. Dease, who was evidently influ- 
 enced by the Earl of Westmeath, had already done 
 serious evil to the Catholic forces besieging Drogheda, 
 by preventing supplies from reaching them ; his presence, 
 therefore, must have been anything but agreeable to tlie 
 patriotic primate and other prelates. Tiieir meeting was 
 brief, but of great moment ; after mature deliberation, 
 they pronounced the war undertaken by the Catholics 
 to be lawful and pious, and issued a spirited address to 
 their flocks, exhorting them to take up arms for their 
 religion, country, and king. A series of decrees against 
 murderers and usurpers of other men's estates, was pub- 
 lished by this synod, and the pains and penalties wliich the 
 bishops pronounced against all evil doers, fully cleared 
 them from the foul aspersions of the justices, who, in their 
 puritanical cant, declared that " they had walked invisibly 
 in works of darkness."* Before the prelates retired to 
 their respective sees, they sent a manifesto to those 
 bishops who had not been present, advertising them of a 
 national synod to be held at Kilkenny, on the 10th of 
 May following. The meeting of the prelates had 
 Bcarcely terminated, when two e'i'ents occurred which 
 were calculated to depress the hcttrts of men with iosa 
 
 • Carte's Orm. p. 325. 
 
GONFEDEAATION OT KILKENNY. 2\ 
 
 holy and inspiriting objects than those of the Irish Ca- 
 tholics. 
 
 The civil -war had not, as yet, broken out in England ; 
 the fire of revolution was still smouldering, and only re- 
 quired the breath of popular excitement to fan it into 
 flame. The hatred which the factions on the other side 
 of the channel entertained for the Irish Papists, 
 was fed and invigorated by printed catalogues of 
 forged murders and shocking atrocities, sworn by corrupt 
 witnesses to have been committed on the Protestants iu 
 Ulster, and the other provinces. If anything could add 
 to that deadly hatred, it was the event known as the 
 ''defection of the Pale." Charles I. gladly seized 
 an opportunity of turning the attention of the English 
 parties to the state of Ireland ; and, in a message to 
 the House of Commons, on the 8th of April, he signified 
 his desire of crossing the channel, to chastise the detest- 
 able rebels, and settle the peace of the kingdom ; pro- 
 testing, at the same time ' ' that he would never consent 
 to the toleration of the Popish profession, or the abolitior 
 of the laws then in force against Popish recusants. 
 The parliament, however, demurred, and the justices in 
 Ireland made such a representation of the state of the 
 kingdom, as was calculated to change his Majesty's 
 design of visiting it. A proposition, however, was 
 submitted to the king, of which he approved ; 2,500,000 
 acres were declared forfeited to the Crown, by the men 
 engaged in rebellion ; and in order to raise money for 
 prosecuting a war against the Irish on their own soil, 
 and against the king in England, the public credit was 
 pledged that for every sum advanced they should receive 
 a proportionate return of forfeited property.* This, how- 
 ever, was one of the many acts of English despotism 
 which might have been turned to a good account — for, 
 by it, the Irish people were reduced to the alternative of 
 crushing their tyrants, or perishing in the ruins of their 
 proscribed religion, and forfeited homesteads. 
 
 Cooped up within the walls of Dubhn, the justices 
 vainly represented to the English people the wretched 
 state of their troops, and the formidable array of the 
 rebels. Petition after petition was sent to England, 
 
 •Lingard, to« x. 
 
22 CONFEDKKATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 and many a supplication for supplies of old clothing 
 and arms, pathetically headed '' an affair of bowels,"* 
 was passed over unheeded. But in keeping the king 
 from the Irish shores, they had accomplished their 
 purpose, for they dreaded nothing so much as any 
 investigation of their cruel and perfidious acts. 
 
 The second of the events alluded to, was the arrival 
 of Munroe, who, with 2,500 men, landed at Carrick- 
 fergus on tlie i5th of April, where he was soon after 
 joined by Lord Conway, and Sir Arthur Chichester, 
 with a large supply of arms and ammunition. 
 
 But neither the king's insolent declaration, nor the 
 arrival of the Scotch troops in Ulster, had power to 
 turn the Irish from their purpose. 
 
 In the south and west ihe people were everywhere 
 crowding round the popular leaders, Clanricarde's 
 dictation could not restrain the enthusiasm of his pro- 
 vince. He had no hold on the affections of his people, 
 and as they knew that he was in correspondence with 
 ' the justices, they had little confidence in him. They 
 therefore thought it advisable to stand prepared against 
 . such horrors as Sir William St. Leger, the president of 
 Munster, was inflicting on the Catholics in his province. 
 That man, whose barbarities equalled those of Sir Charles 
 Coote, was supplied by the justices with money and 
 provisions, and ordered to execute martial law on those 
 who fell into his hands. Early in March he entered 
 *' Condon's Country," and having massacred the inha- 
 bitants, continued his march into the county of Wex- 
 ford ; nor did he return till he had burned the country 
 from Lismore to Dungarvan. In this work of devasta- 
 tion he was ably assisted by the Earl of Cork and his 
 sons, one of whom. Lord Kinalmeaky, is thus eulogised in 
 « letter from his father to the Earl of Warwick : — '^ And 
 now that the boy has blooded himself upon them, I 
 hope that God will bless him ; that as I now write but 
 of the killing of an hundred, I shall shortly write of 
 the killing 0/ tkousands."-\ Nevertheless, St. Leger and 
 the Earl of Cork could not have withstood the frequent 
 assaults of the masses, one-half of whom were not 
 armed, had there been unanimity amongst the leaders. 
 
 > 
 
 • Thorpe's Collect., E. D. S. t Smith's History of Cork. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 23 
 
 The appointment of generals was a never-ending sub- 
 ject of controversy. Undisciplined and badly equipped, 
 they divided their strength and made a simultaneous 
 attack on Youghal, Bandon, and Kinsale. Failure was 
 the result. Mountgarret and Barry invested Cork, but 
 were successfully resisted by St. Leger and Inchiquin, 
 and were finally obliged to retire into Leinster. 
 
 Notwithstanding these reverses, the natural result of 
 want of plan and well-combined arrangements, almost 
 every town in Munster was in the hands of the Irish. 
 The justices, however, were determined on crushing the 
 unorganised levies in the province of Leinster, and Lord 
 Ormond was deputed to command their troops. Thig 
 nobleman, though of Irish origin, was born in England. 
 At a very early age he was removed from the Catholic 
 school of Finchley, near Barnet, to the tutelage of thc- 
 Archbishop of Canterbury, under whom he soon 
 abjured the faith of his fathers. He tells us himsel; 
 that he was, not only by birth, extraction, and alliance, 
 but likewise in his affections, wholly and entirely au 
 Englishman.* With military talents of a superior order, 
 he was in every respect equal to many of the generals of 
 his time. In diplomacy, however, he excelled them all. 
 Witli the most fascinating and artful address, he easily 
 worked himself into the confidence of friends and foes ; 
 but under the guise of simplicity and candour he covered 
 a heart which was full of treachery and craft. The 
 justices had unbounded confidence in him, and he in 
 return made no secret of his love and honour for them. 
 He was the hope of that faction which desired nothing 
 so much as the ruin of the Irish Catholics, and it mat- 
 tered very little how many perished, provided Ormond 
 was spared to carry out the designs of his patrons. 
 In the opinion of the men whom he served, he is 
 described by a writer at the period of which we treat 
 as *' The Jewell of the Kingdom; not greater in name 
 than rare abilities." f 
 
 The justices were now aware that the time appointed 
 by the prelates for the national synod was nigh at hand ; 
 and, as it were anticipating the order and organizatioc 
 which they expected to result from the congregated pre- 
 
 • Caxte's Orm., v Ormond's Letters. i Thorpe Papers, R.D. S. 
 
24 CONI fcDEAATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 lacy and lay lords, they determined to strike a blow 
 which would leave the leaders comparatively powerless. 
 One, whose name and influence might have been consi- 
 derable, did not live to witness the new era which was 
 about to dawn. Lord Gormanstown, the chief of the 
 Catholic nobility of Leinster, a prey'to grief and vexa- 
 tion of spirit, died, and the command of the Leinster 
 levies devolved on Lord Mountgarret, This nobleman, 
 who was married to a daughter of Hugh, Earl of Tyrone, 
 had early distinguished himself in the wars of Queen 
 Elizabeth ; in 1559, he successfully maintained the cas- 
 ties of Bally ragget and Coleshill against her Majesty's 
 forces. In the parliament of 1613 and 1615 he was 
 fortunate enough to win the good will of James ; and in 
 1619 he got a confirmation of all his estates with the 
 creation of several manors and various lucrative privi- 
 leges.* He had not, however, the talents which were 
 necessary for a great military leader; and, like the other 
 lords who had lately joined the "old Irish," "he was 
 forced," according to his own confession, "into the ge- 
 neral cause by the example of those, who, as innocent 
 and free from infringing his majesty's laws as himself, 
 had been used in the nature of traitors." f 
 
 On the 2nd of April, Ormond marched out of Dublin 
 with 300 foot, 500 horse, and five field pieces. It was on 
 thii day that his castle of Carrick had been taken by 
 Colonel Edmund Butler, who caused all the prisoners, 
 including the Countess of Ormond, with her children, 
 and about a hundred Protestants, to be safely conveyed 
 to Dublin. Ormond's object was to victual several de- 
 tached garrisons, which were still held by the lords 
 justices. He t* ent forth with the usual commission to 
 pillage, burn, aiwd kill ; and notwithstanding the hu- 
 manity and forbearance with which his own people 
 had been treated, he did not fail to execute his or- 
 ders to the very letter. He advanced to Carlow, Strad- 
 bally, and Maryborough ; . from the latter place he sent 
 Sir Charles Coqte to reinforce the garrisons in Burri*- 
 Knockmenease' and Birr ; which service having beek 
 performed, Coote rejoined him at Athy on the 13th. 
 
 • Lodge, iv. p. 52. 
 t Mountgarret's lutter to Ormond, March 25, 1642. 
 
CONFEDERATIor? OF KILKENNY. 2? 
 
 Queen Henrietta Maria, princess of France, was 
 represented by the growing party as inimical to the 
 liberty of the subject, and bent on some contrivance 
 for the introduction of Popery. Reared in the heart 
 of a despotic court, her religion and pretended ascen- 
 dancy over the king, furnished ample themes for tlie 
 mal-contents, who argued that the marriage of 
 Charles was far from being sanctified by his Popish 
 queen. Her confessor was arrested, the service of her 
 chapel was dissolved, and she herself had retired to 
 Holland with a view of soliciting such means^ from 
 foreign princes, as would render her husband equal to 
 the exigencies which beset him.* 
 
 But in Ireland the success of the Catholics might have 
 been far more signal, had there been a combined system 
 between tlie leaders. There lacked not energy nor motive 
 to unite them. The views of the Puritan faction, repre- 
 sented by Parsons and Borlase, were unmasked, and 
 the opinion which had already seized the minds of the 
 Catholics, grew stronger, and struck its roots more 
 deeply day by day. There was now but one conviction 
 on their minds, and that was, that the faction who 
 were levying war against the throne, had set their hearts 
 on the extirpation of the Papists, and the confiscation 
 of whatever property they still retained. 
 
 It has been already stated that the provincial synod 
 of Kells had declared the war against the Puritans to 
 be " pious and lawful," but it may be readily conceived 
 what mighty advantages were to be derived from a 
 national synod of all the bishops and clergy of 
 Ireland. 
 
 According to arrangement, the synod met at Kil- 
 kenny, on the 10th of May. The Archbishops of 
 Armagh, Cashel, and Tuam, with six other bishops, 
 and the proxies of five more, besides vicars-general and 
 other dignitaries, were present, and the country anxiously 
 awaited the result of their deliberations. The subjects 
 which they had to treat were of a momentous nature. 
 They regarded war as well as peace, and we may easily 
 imagine that they would have stood aloof from all 
 matters regarding bloadshed, if the cir<mm&tancea 
 
 - » LiDjjard's Ilistory of England. toL x. pp. 172. 138. 
 
28 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 of the times did not imperatively demand their inter- 
 ference. Their flocks were exposed to the hate and 
 rapacity of unrelenting enemies ; nor could the epis- 
 copal character be compromised, if the hierarchy, under 
 such circumstances, laid aside the crozier for the sword. 
 The prelate does not give up the man, when the act of 
 consecration appoints him to watch over his people, 
 and an authority of great weight has decided, that 
 when the rights and liberties of one's country are 
 invaded, it is the duty of every man to gird on the 
 sword.* But it is worth remark, that the acts of 
 this synod were couched in a spirit of mildness which 
 does honour to the patriot prelates, and contrasts 
 with the edicts of Parsons and Borlase, as day does with 
 night. Before we transcribe that portion of them 
 which has immediate reference to our subject, it ia 
 necessary to premise, that the lay-lords and prelates 
 drew up an oath of association which was to be taken by 
 all tbe Catholics throughout the land. Without this 
 bond of union it was utterly hopeless to expect that tbe 
 Catholics of the Pale would cordially coalesce with the 
 "old Irish ;" and in fact, as the sequel will prove, the oath 
 of association was "the only essential tie"f between 
 the two parties. The oath itself was at once grand 
 and simple, nor did it oblige those wlio took it, to any 
 act incompatible with the Christian precept which 
 ordains, that we are to give to God the tilings that 
 are of God, and unto Caesar the things that are 
 Caesar's. But it is necessary that we submit it to the 
 
 THE OATH OF ASSOCIATION. 
 " "I, A.B., do profess, swear, and protest before God, and his saints 
 and angels, that 1 -nill. during my life, bear true faith and allegiance 
 ■0 my .Sovereign Lord, Charles, by the grace of God, King of Great 
 Britain, Franco, and Ireland, and to his heirs and lawful successors; 
 and tliat I will, to my power, during my life, defend, uphold, and main- 
 tain, all his and their just prerogatives, estates, and rights, the power 
 and privilege of the Parliament of this realm, the fundamental laws of 
 Ireland, the free exercise of the Koman Catholic faith and religion 
 throughout this land; and the lives, just liberties, possessions, estates, 
 and rights of all those that have taken, or that shall take this oath, and 
 perform the contents thereof; and that I will obey and ratify all the 
 orders and decrees'made and to be made by the Supreme Council of 
 
 * " 111 hostem PatiiiB omnis homo milea." — Tertuilian : quoted by 
 Dr. French in the bleeding Ipbigeuia. 
 t lliat. of the Kern. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 29 
 
 the Confederate Catholics of this kingdom, concerning the said public 
 cause ; and I will not seek, directly or indirectly, any pardon or pro- 
 tection for any act done, or to be done, touching this general cause, 
 without the consent of the major pai-t of the said council ; and that I 
 will not, directly or indirectly, do any act or acts that shall prejudice 
 the said cause, but will, to the hazard of my life and estate, assist, 
 prosecute, and maintain the same. 
 
 " Moreover, I do further swear, that Twill not accept of, orsubmlt unto 
 any peace, made, or to be made, with the said Confederate Catholics, 
 without the consent and approbation of the general assembly 
 of the said Confederate Catholics, and for the preservation and 
 strengthening of the association and union of the kingdom. That upon 
 any peace or accommodation to be made or concluded with the said 
 Confederate Catholics as aforesaid, I will, to the utmost of my power, 
 insi.st upon and maintain the ensuing propositions, until a peace, as 
 aforesaid, be made, and the matters to be agreed upon in the articles of 
 peace be established and secured by Parliament. So lielp me, God, 
 and his holy gospel. 
 
 Such was this solemn oath, or " faedus," which gave a 
 distinct appellation to those who bound themselves by 
 it, and whom we are henceforth to know as the Confe- 
 derate Catholics of Ireland. 
 
 Having issued a manifesto calling on all the Catholics 
 of the country to take the oath, in order that all " Irish 
 neers, magistrates, noblemen, cities, and provinces may 
 Ve tied together with the holy bond of union and con- 
 cord, and for the conservation and exercise of this 
 union," they ordained the following points : — 
 
 " I. — Whereas, the war which now in Ireland the Catholics do main- 
 tain against sectaries, and chiefly against Puritans, for the defence of 
 the Catholic religion, — for the maintenance of the prerogative and 
 royal rights of our gracious Iving Charles, — for our gracious Queen, so 
 unworthily abused by the Puritans, — for the honor, safety, and health 
 of their royal issue, — for to avert and repair the injuries done to them,— 
 for the conversion of the just and lawful safeguard, liberties, and rights 
 of Ireland, — and, lastly, for the defence of tlieir own lives, fortunes, 
 lands, and possessions; — whereas this war is undertaken for the fore- 
 said causes against unlawful usui-pers, oppressors, and the enemies of 
 the Catholics, chiefly Puritans, and that hereof we are informed, as 
 well by divers and true remonstrances of divers provinces, counties, 
 and noblemen, as also by the unanimous consent and agreement of 
 Rlmost the whole kingdom in tliis war and union, — we, therefore, de- 
 clare ttiat war, openly Catholic, to be lawful and just; in which war, U 
 ■ jome of the Catholics be found to proceed out of some particular and 
 unjust title— covetousness, cruelty, revenge, or hatred, or any such 
 unlawful private intentions — we declare them therein grievously to sin, 
 and therefore worthy to be punished and restrained with ecclesiastical 
 censures if, advised thereof, they do not amend. 
 
 "11. — Whereas the adversaries do spread divers rumours, do writ* 
 divers letters, and, under the King's name, do print proclamationa, 
 which are not the Kine'"s, by which means divers plots and dangeia 
 
30 CONFEDERATION OK KILKENNY. 
 
 may ensue unto our nation ; we, therefore, to stop the way of untnith, 
 and forgeries of political adversaries, do will and command that no 
 such rumours, letters, or proclamations may have place or belief untU 
 it be known in a national council, whether they tnxly proceed from the 
 King, left to his own freedom, and until agents of tliig kiugdom, 
 hereafter to be appointed by the National Council, have free passiige to 
 liis Majesty, whereby the kingdom may be certainly informed of his 
 Majesty's intention and will. 
 
 " 111. — We straightly command all our inferiors, as well churchmen 
 as laymen, to make no alienatimi, comparison, or difference between 
 provinces, cities, towTis, or families; and lastly, not to begin or foi-ward 
 any emulations or comparisons whatsoever. 
 
 " IV That in every province of Ireland there be a council made 
 
 up, both of clergy and nobility, in which council shall be so many 
 persons, at least, as are counties in the province, and out of eveiy city 
 or notable town, two persons. 
 
 " V — Let one general council of the whole kingdom be made, 
 both of the clergy, nobility, cities, andnota'ile towns, in which council 
 there shall be three out of every province, and out of everj- city, one; 
 or where cities are not, out of the chiefest towns. To this councU 
 the pr«vincial councils shall have subordination, and from thence to it 
 may be appealed, until this National Council shall have opportunity to 
 Bit together. 
 
 "VI — Let a faithful inventory be made, in everj' province, of the 
 murders, burnings, and other cruelties which are permitted by the 
 Puritan enemies, with a quotation of the place, day, cause, manner, and 
 persons, and other circumstances, nubscribed by one of public 
 authority. 
 
 " VII.— "We do declare and jnd;?o a31 and every such as do forsake 
 this union, light for our enemien, accompany them in their war, defend 
 Br in any way assist them, to be excommimicated, and, by these 
 presents, do excommunicate them. 
 
 " VIII. — We will and declare all those that murder, dismember, or 
 grievously strike, all thieves, unlawful spoilers, robbers of any goods, to 
 be excommunicated, and so to remain tiU they completely amend 
 and satisfy, no less than if they were namely proclaimed excom- 
 municated." 
 
 The national synod did not break up till about the end 
 of May, and long before that period the proclamations, 
 issued by the prelates and lay -lords, calling on the people 
 to take the oath of association, had the happiest results. 
 Agents from the synod crossed over into France, Spain, 
 and Italy, to solicit support and sympathy from the Ca- 
 tholic princes. Father Luke Wadding was indefatigably 
 employed collecting monies, and inciting the Irish of- 
 ficers serving in the continental armies to return, and give 
 theii' services to their own land. Nor was this all. The 
 most favourable terms were offered to foreign merchants, 
 who would undertake to land munitions of Avar on the 
 Irish shores ; men skilled in the manufacture of arms were 
 invited to come and reside amongst the Catholics. 
 
CONfEDERATIJN OF KILKENNY. 31 
 
 ^f)d to carry on their trade with exemption from 
 taxes, and other lucrative advantages to themselves and 
 families. Lord Mountgarret was appointed President of 
 the Council, and the October following was jBxed for a 
 general assembly of the whole kingdom. 
 
 Soon after the battle of Kilrush, Lord Lisle landed at 
 Dublin, with his own regiment of 600 horse carbiniers, 
 and another of 300 dragoons. A portion of these troops 
 was distributed between Drogheda and Dundalk, and 
 Lord Lisle lingered at Dublin awaiting orders from the 
 justices. At this time Letitia, Baroness Ophaly, 
 grand-daughter to Gerald, eleventh earl of Kildare, was 
 besieged in her castle of Geashill, in the King's County, 
 by the O'Dempsies, under the command of Lewis, lord 
 Clanmalier. This heroine, who inherited the chivalrous 
 spirit of the Geraldines, boldly resisted the overtures 
 and menaces of the besiegers, and finally contri\'^d to 
 send a messenger to Sir Charles Coote, then at Naas, 
 soliciting him to come to her aid. Her request was 
 granted ; and Lord Lisle was appointed to command the 
 expedition. He proceeded with Coote and a force of 600 
 men to Philipstown, and thence to the residence of the 
 baroness, from before which the O'Dempsies retired on 
 their approach. On their return they rendered assistance 
 to Sir John Giffard, at Castlejordan, " and burning the 
 country all the way as they marched,"* took the castle 
 of Trim, which had been abandoned by the Lords Fingall, 
 Gormanstown, Slane, and Trimbleston. When they were 
 about to retire, they left nearly 500 men in the neigh- 
 bourhood, who, rashly thinking they might recover the 
 castle, determined to attack the troops commanded by 
 the sanguinary Coote. Accordingly, on the 7th of May, 
 about daybreak, they invested that old Norman strong- 
 hold, and a sally was made by the garrison, in which the 
 be.siegers were repulsed with loss. But, if they had no 
 other success, they rid themselves of an implacable 
 enemy. Coote was shot dead, and, in the words of his 
 eulogist, " Trim was the tragic stage whereon he acted 
 his last part." f His body was conveyed to Dublin, where 
 it was buried, and as an acknowledgment of his services, 
 the justices, with the consent of the Earl of Leicester, 
 
 • Carte's Ormoncl, 131S. t Thorpe's Collection— R.. D. S. 
 
32 
 
 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 appointed his eldest son Provost Marshal of Co»i- 
 nautiht."* 
 
 But if the confederates had reason to regret their 
 losses in Leinstcr, they had also good reason to congra- 
 tulate themselves on the progress of events in the south 
 and west. The justices were cooped up in Dubhn, 
 importuning the parhament to send them supplies of 
 men and money. They could not carr> on the war 
 against the confederates on an extensive scale, and their 
 expeditions from tlie city into the neighbouring country 
 had more the character of border raids than a regu 
 lar warfare. In fact, the want of provisions was sorelj 
 felt in the city, and it required all the dexterity of Par- 
 sons and Ormond to repress the mutinous dispositions' 
 •which were every day exhibiting themselves amongst 
 the Puritan soldiers. 
 
 The defeat which the Irish had sustained before Cork 
 was soon succeeded by the capture of Limerick. Early 
 in June, Pierce Butler, Viscount Skerrin, Lord Mus- 
 kerry, and General Barry, with a numerous body of 
 ill-disciplined troops, sat down before the city ; the 
 inhabitants were weary of tyranny, and longed for 
 an opportunity of flinging off tlie yoke. Tiiey opened 
 their gates to the confederates, who immediately pro- 
 ceeded to attack the castle. Courtenay, who commanded 
 the place, determined to maintain it to the last extre- 
 mity. 
 
 The confederates commenced their attack by making 
 a boom across the river, opposite Mockbeggar-mear. 
 This boom—the object of which was to prevent sTipplies 
 being thrown into the castle by Stradling, who com- 
 man'ded some of the parliam.ent sliips in the Shannon — 
 was composed of long aspin trees, fastened by iron links 
 to two mill-stones on the Clare side, and, at the city, to 
 the tower on the quay. The fire from Courtenay's guns 
 delayed the completion of the work for awhile ; but the 
 object was finally gained : Stradling was unable to suc- 
 cour Courtenay. Muskerry ordered a gun to be mounted 
 on St. Mary's Church, from which he kept up an inces- 
 sant fire on tlie castle ; but it still held out. On the 
 21st of June, three mines were finished, and ready to 
 
 Carte's Oj-mond, 334. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KIIKEXNT. 
 
 bo Sprung. The order was giA^^en, and a breach v^as 
 made in the main wall of the castle. Courteiiay waa 
 allowed to capitulate, and the city of Limerick was in 
 the hands of the confederates. It was the most import- 
 ant advantage which they had as yet gained, and, 
 when we take into consideration their want of can- 
 non and ammunition, we may be better able to appre- 
 ciate the great results. Sir William St. Leger, on hear- 
 ing the defeat of Courtenay, did not long survive the 
 taking of Limerick. The news had a powerful effect on 
 his health. He died broken- hearted, and, if we except 
 his own partisans, no one mourned the death of the 
 man whose public career had been disgraced by the most 
 wanton murders, and rapacious exactions.* Nor were 
 the justices slow in appointing a successor to the late 
 lord president. The man selected for the military ad- 
 ministration of Munster was Murrough O'Brien, Earl 
 of Inchiquin. He was the eldest son of Dermid, the 
 fifth of that princely house who had worn an English 
 coronet. About the year 1628, ]Murrough, son of Dermid, 
 was made ward to P. Fitzmaurice, Esq. The proselytis- 
 ing spirit of the times had two grand objects, which 
 were fully carried out in the person of Murrough 
 O'Brien. The first was to denationalise the heart, and 
 the second to engender such an abhorrence of the Ca- 
 tholic religion, as was calculated to inflict the most un- 
 mitigated atrocities on those who adhered to the ancient 
 creed. An apt instrument in the hands of the Justices 
 was this recreant. His SAvord reeking with the 
 blood of the Munster Catholics, and his military ex- 
 perience, the result of his campaigns Avith the Spanish 
 army in Italy, recommended him to' their regards. It is 
 sad to think that a descendant of the illustrious house 
 of O'Brien could have been found ready and willing to 
 rival the barbarities of Coote, and walk in the blood- 
 stained track of St. Leger ; biit, alas ! such was tlie 
 fact. Although the blood of Brian flowed through the 
 veins of Murrough, it stirred a heart as savage and anti- 
 Irish as that of the Scandinavian, whom his great an- 
 cestor vanquished at Clontarf. Tradition still points to 
 m&ny a rifled fane, wnose blackened and roofless walls 
 
 * See Feirar's Hist, of Limerick. 
 
54 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 arc the mournful mementoes of this Irish Vandal, 
 Round the peasant's hearth, the record of his havoc and 
 burnings furnishes ample theme for the storj-teller. 
 When the storm sweeps over the ruined shrine of 
 Cashel, in the dark drear nights of winter, and the 
 lightning flashes wildly through the desecrated chancel, 
 the credulous fancy that Murrough revisits earth to re- 
 new the work of desolation. When mention is made of 
 him, his patronymic is forgotten, and an epithet, asso- 
 ciating his name with conflagration and carnage, is sub- 
 stituted. 'Twas a wise resolve to suppress the name of 
 O'Brien whenever men spoke of this degenerate son of 
 that splendid race. '^ Murrogh of the bvrnings" \rRs 
 the appropriate designation, significant as it is of the in- 
 cendiary's torch and assassin's poniard. As long as 
 the history of his crimes endures, so long shall he be 
 recognised by this epithet, and no other. 
 
 But the capture of Limerick was of the greatest 
 utility to the confederates. With the cannon* which 
 tliey had taken they soon battered almost every castle 
 and stronghold of their enemies in that county, with the 
 exception of Loghgur and Askeaton, the latter of which 
 belonged to the Earl of Cork. But though these trifling 
 diflttculties stood in the way, the entire granary of Mun- 
 ster was in possession of General Barry and Lord Mus- 
 kerry. Towards the end of July the two generals pre- 
 pared to march into the county Cork, to chastise 
 Incl)iquin, and rescue from his gripe the seaport towns 
 which were held for the Parliament by Lord Broghill, 
 Sir Charles Vavasor, Sir John Pawlet, and Sir William 
 Ogle. Lord Barrymore, who managed the civil adminis- 
 tration of the province, was cooped up in Youghal, and 
 proceeded to hold quarter-sessions, in which the chiefs of 
 the confederates were proclaimed traitors. f 
 
 While the Catholic arms were thus triumphing in the 
 i^outh, Owen Iloe O'Neill and Preston landed with officers 
 and arms — the former at Doe Castle, in the north, in the 
 Ujonth of July, and the latter on the coast of Wexford, 
 towards the end of September- In the west» three 
 
 * " One of the guns," says Carte (Orm, , p. 43, was oi so largo a 
 bore, that it was drawn by twenty-five yoke of oxen.", 
 t Smith's Cork. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 35 
 
 bishops, Malachy of Tuara, Francis Elphin, and John 
 De Burke of Clonfert, addressed a remonstrance to the 
 Earl of Clanricarde, importuning him to join tlie na- 
 tional cause, " wliichwas," in his opinion, "grounded upon 
 wrong and bad foundations."* In vain did Mountgarret 
 
 • and the bishops endeavour to convince him that he was 
 helping to ruin his country. ' ' No argument, " said they, 
 "though you should write it in our very blood, will 
 ever persuade the justices your affections are sincere, 
 while you bear about you those marks by which they 
 distinguish such as they have appointed for perdition 
 Let it not come to you to sprinkle your ancestors' graves 
 with the blood of such as will sacrifice themselves in the 
 justifiable cause. "f But they failed to gain him over, 
 and he adhered to the Lord President and young Sir 
 Charles Coote, who were spoiling the country and slay- 
 ing the people. 
 
 But Clanricarde's apathy, and the cruelties inflicted 
 on the people by Coote and Eanelagh, only served to 
 exasperate the minds of the masses. Young Murrough 
 Na Dubh O'Flaherty, at the head of a small band, 
 
 ^seized Clanricarde's castle of Aghenure, in jai -Con- 
 naught. An English ship, lying in the Bay of Gal- 
 way, was captured by the discontented populace ; she 
 had on board a considerable supply of arms and ammu- 
 nition. The young men who took the vessel entered a 
 church and bound themselves by an oath of union, in 
 which they swore that they would bear true allegiance 
 to the I\ing, and defend to the utmost of their power the 
 Roman Catholic religion. They then closed the gates 
 of the town, and determined to hold it. They were 
 
 . urged to this step by the example of the Catholics who 
 had been driven out of Cork and Youghal, "whose 
 miserable condition," said the mayor, "did put us in 
 mind of what we were to expect." A large body of 
 men from jar-Connaught were preparing to invest the 
 fortress of Galway, when Willoughby, who held a com- 
 mission from the Parliament, set fire to all the houses in 
 the east suburb, and wantonly consumed th6 property 
 in the neighbourhood. Clanricarde, with nearly a 
 thousand men, hastened to succour tliis ruthless incen« 
 
 • Clanricarde's Mem. 117 t Ibid. 17J 
 
35 CONFEDKRATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 diary, giving free quarters to his troops from Oranmoro 
 to Clare-Galway. He then proceeded to besiege tha 
 town, and was not long before it when Captain Asliley 
 entered the bay, in a ship of war, and threw supplies 
 into the fort. Willoughby thereon determined to bom- 
 bard the town, but was restrained by Clanricarde. ' 
 Articles were draAvn up between the " 3'oung men" and 
 the Earl, and in an evil moment Galway was sur- 
 rendered to liis lordship. 
 
 But they soon had reason to repent them of their 
 haste in submitting to the articles proposed by 
 Clanricarde. The fiendish malevolence of Wil- 
 lougliby and Ashley was not satisfied with what they 
 had already done. They were both violent parlia- 
 mentarians, and cared little for oath or fealty. Wil- 
 loughby's soldiers openly robbed the people, and Avithout 
 the shadow of reason executed martial law upon the 
 liarmless and unoffending. In a fit of puritanical 
 frenzy, he set fire to the suburbs, and burned houses 
 "which were set for more than a thousand pounds 
 a-year rent." He killed several of the inhabitants, 
 scaled the walls by night, and fired his cannon into the 
 town for an entire day. But the efiect was good ; 
 "for," says Mr. Ilardiman, "it occasioned and fastened 
 the general and successful confederacy which afterwards 
 ensued."* 
 
 On the 7th of August a squadron of ships, com- 
 manded by Lord Forbes, entered the Bay of Galway, 
 and he immediately put Iiimself in communication with 
 the fort. He declared against the late pacification, 
 and landed some men who began to burn and pillage 
 houses on the coast. Forbes, stimulated by Hugh 
 Peters, took possession of St. Mary's church, planted 
 guns against the town, and burned the surrounding 
 villages. He then dug up the graves in the church- 
 yard, and burned the bones and cofiins ; nor did ho 
 quit the bay till the 4th of September. Yet did Claa-- 
 ricarde temporize with the justices in Dublin, and theif 
 fiendish corsairs on the seas. But the hour of retribu- 
 tion was at hand. The clergy boldly exhorted the 
 
 ® Vide Ilardiman's Hist, of Galway, the work of one of the ablest o( 
 our antiqu.iries, wliose fr'endship 1 have good reason to cheiish au4 
 •■ppreciatc. 
 
CONFKDKRATIOV OF KH.KUVmr. 37 
 
 people to be true to themselves, and imitate the example 
 of their brethren in the south. Coercion failed to 
 check them ; the oath of association was cheerfully 
 taken by thousands, and they vowed in their hearts to 
 visit, in the fitting season, their persecutors with ven- 
 geance, for all they had endured. 
 
 The reduction of the minor castles in the county 
 Limerick engaged the confederate troops during the 
 month of July, and it was not till the 20th of August 
 that General Barry, at the head of 7,000 foot and°500 
 horse, penetrated into the county Cork. With this 
 force Barry sat down before the castle of Liscarroll, 
 which was garrisoned by Sir Philip Percival. The 
 confederate troops besieged at the same time Annagh 
 and another castle belonging to Percival. Liscarroll 
 was declared by Inchiquin to be the strongest fortress 
 m the kingdom, and such was the marshy nature of 
 the soil around it, that General Barry was obli<red to 
 dismount his guns in order to bring them within range. 
 Obstinate was the resistance of the defenders ; nor did 
 the place surrender to Barry till he had worn out the 
 garrison after thirteen days' siege. 
 
 It was an important victory for the confederates, and 
 struck terror to the heart of Inchiquin and the Earl of 
 Cork. The sept of the Condons were giving the con- 
 federate leaders the most effectual assistance in another 
 part of the county. Tlie castles of Cloghleigh and Coote 
 yielded to tlieir bravery, and, ^vlien we remember that 
 they were well garrisoned and supplied with the light 
 pieces called sakarets and falcons, we may well afford to 
 admire tlie valour and efficiency of men who had no 
 other arms than pikes and muskets. 
 
 But though it was necessary that the Irish should 
 possess themselves of these strongholds, we may, even 
 now, question the prudence of the act; it had been bet- 
 ter if they had fallen on Incliiquin's forces, which were 
 distributed in cantonments, nor given them time to 
 muster m strength. Had this been the case, Murrough 
 could not have brought an army into the field ; he was 
 lU supphed with provisions, and the time spent by the 
 confederates before Liscarroll and Annagh, gave him 
 opportunity to collect his forces. He accordingly took the 
 field on the third day of September, with 2,000 foot and 
 
38 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY 
 
 4(K) horse. The confederates, under Lords Roche, Mus- 
 Iterry, Skerrin, Dunboyne, and General Barrj, waited 
 his advance on an eminence in tlie vicinity of Lis- 
 carroU ; Incliiquin charged with impetuosity, and was 
 badly wounded in the attack. Kinalmeaky, of whose 
 canine ferocity we have already spoken, was killed by 
 liis side; but, after an obstinate resistance, the con- 
 federates broke and fled. Sir Charles Vavasour and 
 Inchiquin pursued them to a neighbouring bog, near 
 Kilbolane, where upwards of 700 of them were refused 
 quarter, and slain in cold blood. The loss in arras, 
 colours, and baggage, was considerable. But Inchiquin 
 dared not follow up his victory, and thought it advisable 
 to retire, and secure himself in Mallow. Notwithstand- 
 ing the boasted success of this action, Inchiquin made 
 very few prisoners ; and, as it will be seen, the result of 
 the battle of Liscarroll was nowise important to the 
 arms of the justices. Vavasour succeeded Kinalmeaky 
 as governor of Bandon, whence he sent detachments 
 into the surrounding country, making preys of cattle, 
 and wasting the crops.* 
 
 In Ulster, the arrival of Owen Roe O'Neill produced 
 the most signal result ; for it would appear that, about the 
 time of this event, Sir Phelim, and the other leaders, 
 < meditated following the example of Hugh O'Neill, and 
 escaping to the Continent. The name and reputation of 
 Owen changed their design, and determined them to 
 strike another blow for their native land. The Fabiusf 
 of his country, as he is justly called, convened a meeting 
 of tlie leaders, in the castle of Kinard, and he was imme- 
 ' diately declared the chief of the Ulster Catholics. 
 Munroe, J at the head of 10,000 men, occupied a strong 
 position in Carrickfergus, and contented himself vrith 
 seizing and imprisoning those who made any demonstra- 
 tion in favour of the king. The avowed object of the 
 parliament in sending the Scottish forces into Ulster, 
 was to circumvent his majesty, and prevent succours 
 from being sent to him, should he require them from the 
 northern shores. In the month of August, Lord Leven 
 arrived with a detachment for the Scotch general, and 
 addressed a letter to O'Neill, in which he expressed his 
 
 • Cox, V. 2, p. 113. t Smith's ffistorv of Cork. 
 
 I Carte's Ormoud . 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. S9 
 
 aatonishment "that one of his rank and reputation 
 ebould have come to Ireland to support so bad a cause." 
 O'Neill's answer Avas bold, and worthy of him : — "I have 
 a better right, my lord," he replied, " to defend my 
 own country, than your lordship has to march into 
 Englaiid against your king."* 
 
 Leven returned to Scotland, after having assured 
 Munroe that if Owen Roe succeeded in getting an army 
 together, he would be defeated. O'Neill, undaunted by 
 the imposing force of Scotch and English, began to 
 animate his followers, who hailed his advent as the pres- 
 tige of success. He set about fortifying Charlemont 
 against any sudden attack, nor did Munroe dare to 
 molest him ; not a moment did he lose in gathering 
 tr^gether those men who longed to be led by so gallant 
 a chieftain, and the month of September passed over in 
 disciplining and organising the forces which hitherto had 
 little appearance of a military footing. 
 
 Ths justices beheld Avith alarm these important oc- 
 currences. In their addresses to their colleagues in 
 England, they set forth that their condition was ruinous. 
 Like superstitious heathens, they trembled at everything 
 that appeared ominous. "Crows, seagulls, and ravens, 
 pcAvling and croaking over the castle towers, portended 
 disasters Avhich they could not divine, "f 
 
 But, in fact, the much-dreaded event was the general 
 assembly of the Avhole kingdom, the time for which was 
 near at hand. The retrospective vieAV we have taken of 
 these events was absolutely necessary, for the better un- 
 derstanding of those which folloAA'ed in rapid succession. 
 We noAv return to the moment at Avhich Ave set out — the 
 day before that fixed for the general assembly. It was 
 about this time that Lord CastlehaA'en, and others 
 escaped from prison, J and having arrived at the place of 
 rendezvous, took the oath and Avere enrolled amongst 
 the confederates ; nor did the city of Kilkenny at any 
 time previous Avitness such excitement and enthusiasm 
 as on the 23rd of October, 1642. One Avho Avas a 
 spectator of that scene, Avhich we would fain recal, 
 has left us a pithy account of it. He tells us that 
 
 » Einun ini. + Thorpe Papers, R. D. S. 
 
 t " From Shepes- street, Dublin, thro' Templeoage and over "Wick 
 frr mountains." — F/c/e Castlehaven s Metuoii-a. 
 
40 CONFEDERATION OF KILKEKKT 
 
 311 his arrival "he found every one actively engaged 
 preparing for war."* Nor does it require any great 
 ,y)wer of imagination to conjure up the figure and 
 irashion of those who were then assembling. The Celt 
 had not as yet generally adopted the English tongue and 
 English garb ; hence, it was easy to distinguish the 
 chieftains of the north and south from their brethren 
 of the Pale. The triiis barraid, flowing mantle, 
 and colun, were still retained by the Celtic chiefs; 
 while those of the Pale, rigidly conforming to English 
 mannerism, adopted the broad black cloth, and the 
 prevailing fashions of the English court. f In groups 
 through the busy streets might be seen men, whose 
 dusky aspects and foreign costume, pronounced them 
 cavaliers of another clime, — ^but they were the Irish 
 officers who had accompanied O'Neill and Preston from 
 the Continent. 
 
 What a scene for recollection! Prelates and 
 priests were there, who, educated beyond the seas, 
 brought home with them a knowledge of those languages 
 which Dante and Calderon have immortalised, and yet 
 were ignorant of the English tongue ; — men who spoke 
 the language of Spenser side by side with the O'Neills 
 from the north and the Macarthys from the south. 
 Happily, however, the language of the western church 
 was understood by them all. But in such angry times 
 it were needless to dwell upon the marks by which the 
 two races might be known, if one were not anxious to 
 bring vividly before the mind of the reader every 
 feature and peculiarity of those who have invested the 
 churches, cloisters, council chambers, arid towers of that 
 venerable city with such an intense degree of interest. 
 And surely even the earlier period of its history, when 
 
 "Phenecian, and Milesian, and the plundering Norman Peera" 
 ascended the sacred hill of St. Canice, presents no re- 
 miniscence so agreeable as that when the lords and 
 gentry of the Pale came to sit in council with the chief- 
 tains and representatives of the Celtic tribes. Memory 
 will ever love to dwell on that extraordinary conjunction, 
 ill-starred though it may have been, or otherwise : — 
 
 • Castleliavens Jlem. 
 
 t Vide Walker s Letter on the dress of the Irish of the Pale aad Ul 
 Celtic Tribes. 
 
COXFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 41 
 
 around that old city there is an atmosphere of hallowed 
 antiquity ; — through the vista of ages the forms of 
 Donald O'Brien and Strongbow are still visible, though 
 dimmed and obscured by time. Not so, however, with 
 tliese of whom we treat: they are visions palpably 
 before us, and it is time that we follow them to the 
 place of assembly. 
 
 It is the 24th of October, and within the walls of 
 Kilkenny are assembled eleven spiritual peers, fourteen 
 temporal, and two hundred and twenty-six commoners, 
 to keep watch and ward over the nascent liberties of 
 their native land. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 When the Catholic deputies were assembling in Kil- 
 kenny, to establish the federative government, and 
 adopt these administrative measures of which we are 
 now to treat, the war had broken out in England be- 
 tween the king and the parliament. Essex had the 
 command of the rebel army, and Charles the First, 
 summoning around him such of tlie nobles as yet stood 
 firm in their allegiance, raised his standard at Not- 
 tingham, and called on his subjects to " give to Caesar 
 his due."* 
 
 Those who Avere up in arms against their monarch, were 
 in close communication with the Lords Justices. They 
 understood each other well, and they mutually vowed 
 to turn all their strength on the Irish Catholics when 
 they had accomplished their designs in England. It 
 is hardly necessary to observe that the confederates 
 were well aware that in the din of arms, and thfe 
 confusion consequent on the collision between the king 
 and the parliament, they could hope for no ameliora- 
 tion of their condition, or concession of the "graces," 
 which had been so dearly purchased, and so long with- 
 held. To submit to the dictates of Parsons and Borlase, 
 was to sacrifice life and liberty, and nothing now 
 remained for them but to take the government into 
 their own hands, and save themselves and the couatry 
 • Lingard. vol. x. 
 
42 
 
 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 from the machinations of the Puritans. It was a wise 
 and bold resolve, and promptly was it carried into 
 execution. War with the justices was inevitable ; the 
 Nore now flowed between them and the Lords of the Pale, 
 and the latter were fully convinced that if they would 
 ever cross it to repossess themselves of their estates, 
 it would be necessary to do so, not as suppliants for 
 exemptions, but as bold men bent on maintaining their 
 own inalienable rights, and the lawful prerogatives of 
 the crown. 
 
 The first meeting of the confederates on this im- 
 portant occasion, is said to have been held in the 
 house* of Sir Robert Shea, in the Market-place of 
 Kilkenny. The great oaken floors, and massive 
 solidity of the walls, still attest the opulence of the 
 family who then possessed the mansion. Bellingf in- 
 forms us that the estates, spiritual and temporal, sat 
 in the same hall, and that a tier of benches, raised one 
 above the other, was deemed necessary in order to give 
 accommodation to the lords and commons. An upper 
 or private room was appropriated to the lords for con- 
 sultation ; and the clergy who were not qualified by 
 their sees or abbacies to sit in the house of lords, met 
 in an adjoining house, which was called the " house of 
 convocation." Mr. Patrick D'Arcy.J "bare-headed, 
 and seated on a stool, represented all, or some of the 
 judges and masters of chancery, that used to sit in 
 parliament upon the woolsack;" and Mr. Nicholas 
 Plunket represented the speaker of the house of 
 commons: to him both lords and commons addressed 
 their speeches. Thomas O'Quirke, § a Dominican friar of 
 the convent of Tralee, a man of eloquence and learning, 
 was appointed preacher and chaplain in ordinary to 
 both houses. The assembly had all the appearance ol 
 parliament, although the first act of the lay-lords, 
 
 • A part of this notable building is now occupied by a coachmaker, 
 and up to a very recent period the chair, said to have been used by 
 the speaker, was preserved, till broken up by the owner, who wished 
 to be rid of the importunities of visitors. Surely the authorities of 
 Kilkenny ought to look after the venerable residence of the Koth 
 family, nearly opposite, and if they do not, their city must soon 
 lose one of its most venerable mansions and greatest attractions. 
 tNan-ative of the War, Ap. Desid. Curiosa. liih. 
 
 1 Carte's Orm. Heynus. cited in the Ilib. Lorn. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 43 
 
 prelates, and commons was, to declare they did not 
 intend it as sucli, fearing to infringe on the prerogative 
 of the crown, to which belonged the privilege of 
 calling, proroguing, and dissolving the senate. It was, 
 however, a provisional government "to consult of an 
 order for their own affairs, till his Majesty's wisdom 
 had settled the present troubles."* 
 
 The interval between the first day of meeting and the 
 end of October was occupied in making these pre- 
 liminary arrangements and administering the oath of 
 association to such as had not yet taken it. On the 
 1st of November a committee was appointed, by the 
 estates spiritual and tempoi-al, to draw up a form of 
 the confederate government. The committee was 
 composed, amongst others, of Lords Castleliaven and 
 GormanstoAvn, and the lawyers, the chief of whom were 
 Patrick D'Arcy, Sir Plielim O'Neill, and Richard 
 Belling. On the fourth of the month the two houses 
 formally approved the acts of the committee, and on 
 the same day the prelates issued a mandate to 
 their clergy throughout Ireland, charging tiiem to 
 administer the oath of association to their respective 
 flocks, and pay due obedience to the new government, 
 the spirit of which may be easily found in the following 
 extracts : — 
 
 '^ Magna Charta and the common and statute laws of England, 
 in all points not contrary to the lloman Catholic religion, or incon- 
 sistent with the liberty of Ireland, were acknowledged as the hasis of 
 the new government. 
 
 " They resolved that each county should have its council, consisting 
 of one or tvvo deputies out of each barony, and where there was np 
 barony, of twelve persons elected by the countj' in general, •with 
 powers to adjudicate on all matters cognizable by justices of the peace, 
 pleas of the ci-own, suits for debts, and personal actions, and to restore 
 possessions usurped since the war ; to name all the county officers, 
 saving the high sheriff, who was to be elected by tlie supreme 
 council, out of three whom the council of the county were to recom- 
 mend. From these there was an appeal to the provincial councils, 
 which were to consist of two deputies out of each county, and were 
 to meet four times a year, or oftener, if there was occasion, to examine 
 the decisions of the county councils, to decide all suits like judges of 
 assize, to establish recent possessions, but uQt to interfere with otner 
 suits about lands except in cases of dower.f 
 
 "From these there lay a furtber appeal to the supreme council of 
 tTireHt>--four persons who were to be elected by the general assembly, 
 of which twehe were to be constantly resident in Kilkenny, jr 
 
 • Carte's Orm. + Cai-te's Orm. 
 
14 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 wherever else they should judse it to be most expedient, with equal 
 voices, hut two-thirds to conclude the rest ; never fewer than nine to 
 Bit in council, and seven to concur in the same opinion : out of these 
 twenty-four a president was to be named by the assembly, and waa 
 to be always one of the twelve resident, and in case of death or any 
 other serious impediment, the other residents out of twenty-four 
 were to select a president. " 
 
 It was also enacted—" That the council should be vested with 
 power over all {generals, military officers, and civil magistrates, who 
 were to obey their orders, and send an account duly of their actions 
 and proceedings ; to determine all matters left undecided by the 
 general assembly, 'i'heir acts to be of force till rescinded by tlie 
 next assembly ; to command and punish all commanders of forces, 
 magistrates, and all others of what rank and condition soever ; to 
 hear and judge all capital and criminal causes (saving titles to lands), 
 and to do all kinds of acts for promoting the common cause of the 
 confederacy and the good of the kingdom, and relating to the support 
 and management of the war.* 
 
 "And as the administrative authority was to be vested in the 
 supreme council, it was decreed that at the end of every general 
 assembly, the supreme council should be confirmed or changed, a? 
 the general body thought fit." 
 
 Ten days after these enactments had been sanctioned 
 by the general assembly of the confederate Catliolics, 
 they proceeded to elect the supreme council, when 
 Lord ;Mountgarret was chosen president. Six were 
 selected out of each province, and after the necessary 
 forms liad been gone through, the following were de- 
 clared duly elected : — 
 
 For Leinster — The Archbishop of Dublin, Lord Viscount Gormans- 
 town, Lord Viscount Mountgarret, Nicholas Plunket, Uiehard Belling, 
 James Cusack. Ulster — Archbishop of Armagh, liishop of Down, Philip 
 OKeilly, Col. Mac Jfahon, Heber Magennis, Tirlogh O'X'eill. For 
 Munster — Lord Viscount l^oche. Sir Daniel O'Brien, Edmund Fitz- 
 morris. Dr. Fennell. Robert Lambert, George Comyn. For Con- 
 naught — Archbishop of Tuam, Lord Viscount Mayo, Bishop of 
 Clonfert, Sir Lucas Dillon, Geoffi-ey Brown, and Patrick D'Arcy. 
 
 On these rested the great national responsibility, nor 
 rere they slow in taking such measures as they deemed 
 necessary for the welfare of the kingdom. Their first 
 act was to name the generals who were to command 
 under their authority. Owen Roe Mac- Art O'Neill was 
 .tppointed to command in chief all the Ulster forces. 
 Thomas Preston, those of Leinster. Barry was named 
 commander-in-cliief in Munster, and John Burke was 
 to be lieutenant-general in Connaught, reserving the 
 c'mef command to Clanricarde, who, it was thought, 
 would sooner or later declare for the confederation. 
 But as no act or instrument emanating from the 
 * Cox, Carte's Orm. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 43 
 
 Bupreme council could be of force, unless sealed vrith 
 their own seal, they caused one to be made which may 
 be thus described N—'Twas circular, and in its centre 
 was a large cross, the base of which rested on a flaming 
 heart, while its apex was overlapped by the wings of a 
 dove : on the left of' the cross was the harp, and on the 
 right the crown. The legend was at once happy, novel, 
 and classic—" Pro Deo, liege,- et Patria, Hiberni Uuaui- 
 mes."* 
 
 One of the first acts under the great seal of the 
 confederacy, was an order to raise thirty thousand 
 pounds sterling in Leinster, and a levy of thirty-one 
 thousand seven hundred men in the same province. 
 This force was to be drilled and disciplined by the 
 officers wlio had accompanied Preston, with the least 
 possible delay. The majority of the new levies was 
 to garrison such places as tlie confederates possessed in 
 Leinster, and the remainder was to be ready to take 
 the field as soon as circumstances might require. Mr. 
 Nicholas Plunket was appointed Muster-master-general, 
 and any locality refusing to contribute its due proportion 
 of men capable of bearing arms, Avas to be punished by 
 11 system of "free quarters." 
 
 A mint was ordered to be established at Kilkenny, 
 and those who were wealthy, and heart and soul in tlie 
 cause of their country, made large contributions of plate 
 to the National Treasury; in a very short time four 
 thousand pounds sterling, in half-crown pieces, "of tlie 
 value and goodness of English money" was coined. 
 The total absence of embellishment or legend on the 
 silver coin, is evidence of the haste in which it was 
 struck, for the half crown piece bears no mark save 
 that of the cross, and the figures indicating its value. 
 Tlie copper subsequently produced and circulated, is 
 far more elaborate, and the legend "Ecce Grex," 
 "Floreat Kex," together with the beautiful device, 
 must be convincing proofs of a more prosperous moment 
 in the afiairs of the confederates.<f Along with the 
 mint the Supreme Council caused a press to be set up 
 in order to publish their acts, proclamations, and 
 
 • Harold in Vit. Luc. Wadding. This motto is most incorrecfi/ 
 given in tiic 4th vol. of Moore's Hist, of Ireland, p. l'4y. 
 t Vide i)imons's Essay on Irish Coins. 
 
46 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 manifbstoes; nor were they insensible to the great 
 dearth of corn caused by the pillages and burnings 
 •vrliich had marred the labours of the husbandman 
 since the rising of 1641. 
 
 Anticipating that all the sea-port towns should soon 
 come into their possession, they ordained " that the duty 
 should be taken oflf wheat and corn imported from fo- 
 ^ reign countries, " till such time as the exigencies which 
 / then distressed them should be removed or alleviated. 
 I The same exemption was made to extend to such neces- 
 Isaries as "lead, iron, arms, and ammunition." At- 
 tracted by such advantages, which were calculated to 
 create a spirit of enterprise, a Dutch captain* had al- 
 ready landed a considerable supply of powder on the 
 coast of "Wexford. With the same object in view, they 
 offered ''the liberties and privileges of free denizens to 
 all ship-builders and mariners that would settle them- 
 selves in the kingdom." 
 
 They decreed, moreover, that the bishops and clergy 
 should pay a certain sum out of the ecclesiastical reve- 
 nues then in their possession, as well as out of the other 
 V benefices and church lands which might revert to their 
 rightful inheritors during the progress of the war. But, 
 /»as the means for prosecuting the struggle for nationality 
 I were precarious, notwithstanding the legislative enact- 
 l ments to procure them, they resolved to send agents to 
 I the Catholic courts to supplicate aid and succour for a 
 y people who had arisen to bjeat down the strong arm o! 
 English despotism, and free their native land. 
 
 Father L. Waddingf was named the agent of the Con- 
 federates at the Papal court. Who could take such a 
 serious interest in their cause as the annalist ? His all- 
 absorbing studies seem to have been forgotten for a time, 
 and the mighty pen Avhich he devoted to record the fame 
 and glories of his order, was now employed in drawing 
 up memorials to the Catliolic courts, and supplicating 
 them to look benignly on his suffering and struggling 
 country. Nor were his appeals unheeded. A sum of 
 "^ 26,000 dollars was placed at his disposal, and he sent it 
 
 • Captain Antonio Vandezepen.— F/rfe Cox. 
 
 t iMagee's Writers of tlie Seventeenth Century. See also Hurold, 
 Is vit Luc« "Wadding. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 47 
 
 by a ccnfldential agent to the National Treasury. * Two 
 thousand muskets were landed about this time on tlie 
 Wexford coast, and although most persons were inclined 
 
 V to ascribe this welcome gift to Pope Urban, it is quite 
 certain that the merit of the work must be given to 
 Father Wadding. The agent sent to the court of Spain 
 was Father James Talbot, an Augustine friar. He soon 
 
 ^^ collected a sum of 20,000 dollars in that land of chivalry ; 
 and having visited the French court, he succeeded in pro- 
 curing an additional sum, together with "two great 
 iron guns, casting balls of twenty -four pounds weight."* 
 Nor were these acts of the confederate Catholics done 
 in private, as if dreading the light of day ; on the con- 
 trary, in the face of heaven and earth, they proclaimed 
 by a manifesto, which was published at Kilkenny, "that 
 ithe Catholics of Ireland, driven by the perfidy and 
 I cruelty of the rebel Puritans, had arisen and taken arms 
 Vfor their religion, king, and country." The enemy they 
 had to combat was in each of the four provinces, and 
 they made no secret of their determination to expel him, 
 if God so decreed ; but in mentioning the fact, we may 
 be permitted to question the prudence of that arrange- 
 ment of the supreme council which committed the con- 
 k duct of the war to four generals quite independent of 
 each other. While the temporal peers were enacting 
 these measures, the prelates were actively engaged send- 
 ing instructions to their respective diocesses, rousing the 
 torpid and chiding such as thought that there was no 
 '^ hope for their country. The lay lords did not hesitate 
 to pronounce the severest penalties on those who refused 
 to rally round the confederate banners. Nor did the 
 bishops fear to declare such as did not take the oath, 
 traitors to their God, king, and country. Excommuni- 
 cation was decreed against all neutrals and such as as- 
 sisted the common enemy ; but, at the same time, the 
 severest penalties of the church were to be inflicted on 
 all those who made distinctions between the modern and 
 / ancient Irish, or wantonly committed murder, yiillage, 
 
 V or any act which was incompatible with the holiness oif 
 the object for which the Irish of the Pale and iho old 
 
 • Belllns 
 
4B CONFEDERATION OF KILKENITT* 
 
 Celtic tribes were soon to commingle their life-blood on 
 the fair field of battle. 
 
 Maligned and misrepresented as they were by the 
 parliamentarian despatches, and the gross calumnies 
 of the justices, the few extracts which have been 
 given must ennoble and exalt that Convention in the 
 eyes of every impartial man. How strangely do they 
 contrast with the bigoted and ensanguined edicts of 
 their enemies ? " Reilly, a prime popish priest," wrote 
 some accredited scribe at this period, to the disaffected 
 in England, ''like his father the devil, compasses the 
 earth, far and near, to draw into their conspiracy such 
 as had not before been therewitK acquainted."* This foul 
 aspersion is an evidence of that lynx-eyed malice with 
 which the assembly was watched, and the ardour and 
 devotion with which the prelates laboured to enlist their 
 people in the confederacy. In the annals of any other 
 country it would be hard to find a convention more pure 
 and patriotic, and certainly the history of the Irish 
 Catholics presents no more agreeable reminiscence than 
 that which is associated with the general assembly of 
 October 1642. 
 / Under the shadow of that old Cathedral, where 
 / Clarence's parliament had assembled to sow the seeds of 
 ^ division between the two races, the Norman robbers 
 and the plundered Irish, the representatives of both 
 parties were banded together by a holy league, ap- 
 proved by God, and deplored by those who would keep 
 alive that demon spirit of hate and dissension wliich 
 had fertilized the soil with torrents of rival blood. Oh I 
 that these jealousies and heart-rending distinctions of 
 caste had never been. But at the period of which we 
 are writing they were forgotten, and merged in oblivion. 
 Two grand objects were to be accomplished : for these 
 life and property, and all that endears both, were to be 
 set at nought, and they had sworn never to lay down 
 their arms till " the Roman Catholic religion was 
 restored to its full splendour, as it was in the reign of 
 Henry VII., and all the penal and restrictive laws 
 were annulled." As a corollary to the foregoing con- 
 ditions it was to be insisted on — 
 
 • Thorpe Papers. R. D. 8. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 25 
 
 Mountgarret, designing to intercept Ormond on his 
 return to Dublin, took up a position at the bridge of 
 Mageny, four miles from Athy. He had about 8,000 men, 
 badly armed, and far from being disciplined or provided 
 with cannon. These troops had but three or four com- 
 panies of horse, and were nowise formidable, save in 
 number. They were commanded by Mountgarret, 
 Lords Skerrin and Dunboyne, Eoger O'Moore, Hugh 
 Byrne, and Sir Morgan Cavanagh. Orn ChvA did not 
 move from Athy until the 15th, and, much against his 
 inclination, found that it was necessary to attack the 
 /virish. Three miles further on, was a very narrow defile- 
 through v/hich it was absolutely necessary that Ormond 
 should march. Mountgarret's men, being unencumbered 
 with baggage, rapidly advanced to seize the pass : but 
 a rising ground concealed from his view a corresponding 
 movement of the English forces ; he was mortified at 
 finding himself outmarched, and was obliged to halt; 
 he then took up a position on a neighbouring height. 
 Some ditches in his front gave him a considerable ad- 
 vantage over Ormond, who ordered Coote to advance 
 •^d dislodge his enemy. A well-aimed volley from the 
 Irish, staggered the advancing column. For awhile 
 they seemed sure of .success, till they saw Lucas and 
 Grenville on their left, with Ormond's cavalry. An 
 opening in a hedge, which had not been noticed by 
 Lord Mountgarret, gave access to Ormond's horse. The 
 Irish, thus taken by surprise, did not long resist the 
 cavalry ; but broke and fled to the bog at the foot of the 
 hill. Mountgarret, who commanded on the right, still 
 maintained his ground. Against him, Ormond and Sir 
 John Sherlock now led the main body, which was not 
 yet engaged. As they ascended they were met with 
 spirit, volley after volley sAvept their ranks; but, as 
 the two lines in front of each other were about to 
 " cross their pikes," Mountgarret's men Hod, nor stopped 
 till they jo' ned their companions who had taken refuge 
 in the bog. 
 
 In this fatal action, since known as the battle of Kil- 
 rush, the Irish are said to have lost 700 men, and some 
 of their most distinguished leaders. Mountgarret and 
 Lord Skerrin fled that night to Tullogh ; Roger O'Moore 
 and his brother Lisagh, to his own house "near the 
 
2G CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Boyne ;" and the O'Byrne of Wicklow to the fastnesses 
 of Glangaran. Orniond, even after this signal victory, 
 was in no mood to follow it up ; it was quite enough for 
 him that he forced his way to Dublin, where lie "was 
 Boon after congratulated by a message from the parlia- 
 ment extolling his braver}', and lauding his untiring 
 zeal in pillaging, murdering, and burning the crops. 
 
 Yet the heart of Ireland Avas only humbled by this 
 disaster — it was not crushed ; new energy and a bolder 
 spirit were soon to be infused. Those who listened to 
 the recital of that failure, did not despair. The tree of 
 hope, which they beheld prospectively blossoming and 
 laden with fruit, was but a sapling ; the storm had 
 only bowed it as it swept by ; and those who, to escape 
 the hurricane, had retired for awhile, were soon to rally 
 round it and guard it more faithfully. But after the 
 battle of Kilrush, one bright name* disappears: the last 
 time the inspiriting war-shout of his followers fell on his 
 ear was on that hill side. What reasons there may 
 have been for the retirement of the gallant chief, whose 
 name was linked with that of "God and our Lady," are 
 not apparent ; but it is said upon authority that he pro- 
 ceeded to the Fews, "and devoted the rest of his days to 
 peaceful pursuits in the bosom of his family."f 
 
 During these transactions in Ireland, King Charles I. 
 was actively engaged with his English subjects. It was 
 quite impossible that he could pay much attention to Irish 
 affairs, busied as he was with the factions who were 
 already meditating the ruin of his crown. The two houses 
 had voted a levy of 10,000 men, in opposition to the 
 king, who intended to levy war against the parliament. 
 The royal arsenal at Hull had been forcibly seized by 
 the parliamentarian party, and the arms removed to the 
 Tower. A forced loan, at eight per cent., paid in 
 money and plate, replenished the treasury. The Earl 
 of Warwick took the command of the fleet ; and the 
 Earl of Essex was appointed lord general, with a 
 solemn promise from both Lords and Commons that 
 they would live and die with him in the national 
 quarreL 
 
 • Roger O'JToore. Carte says he died at Kilkenny, 
 t V. the map of Ulster in the admirable History of the Conflaca 
 tion, by Mac Isevin. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. *9 
 
 "That all primates, archhishops, bishops, ordinaries, cleans, and 
 chapters, archdeacons, chancellors, vicars, and otiier pastors of the 
 Roman Catholic secular clergy and their respective successors, 
 Bhall have, hold, and enjoy all the ctiurchis and church liN-inss, in as 
 large and ample manner as the late Protestant clergj' respectively- 
 enjoyed the same on the 1st day of October, together with all the 
 profits, emoluments, perquisites, liberties, and their rights to their 
 respective sees and churches belonging.^as well in all places then in 
 possession of the confederated Catholics, as aV-^o in all other places that 
 shall be recovered by them from the ac*'. f?. party, saving to the 
 Roman Catholic laity, their respective riglits according to the laws 
 of the land." * 
 
 It is needless to dwell at any length on the altered 
 circumstances of the Irish Catholics at this moment. 
 We have seen that judicatories for the administration o( » 
 justice were established throughout tbo land, and that \ 
 officers were appointed to the various aepartments. A J 
 mint and a press were the creation of a moment. En- 
 Toys or ambassadors were sent to the foreign courts, and 
 their c redentials weFe recognised by Philip IV. of Spain, 
 Urban Viii., and Anne of Austria, during the minority 
 of Louis XIV. Richelieu, f who was then prime minis- 
 ter, seems to have taken a lively interest in their pro- 
 ceedings, but he did not live to witness the ulterior 
 movements of the confederates. Incredible do their ex- \ 
 ertions seem. They gave letters of marque, and char ] 
 tered some light vessels, which were to protect the shores, / 
 and sail under the confederate colours ; in a word, tliey / 
 took the government on themselves, and issued orders 
 for the levying of armies, and gave commissions under 
 their own seal to the generals who were to take the com- 
 mand. Cusack was named Attorne 
 ket held the office of Chancellor 
 other officers having been appoints 
 partments, civil and military. The declaration of their 
 independence, saving their allegiance to the crown of 
 Charles I., may be easily found in the following extract 
 from the manifesto which they published at the termina- 
 tion of the first General Assembly : — 
 
 " It is hereby declared that no temporal government or jurisdiction 
 Bhall be assumed, kept, or exercised in ticz kingdom, or witliin any 
 
 *- Unkind Deserter, p. 55 
 
 t lie died December 4. 1642, and was succeeded by Cardinal Mas 
 
 
 were to take the com- 
 !y-General, and Plun- \ 
 r of the Exchequer, | 
 ed to the various de- / 
 
50 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 county or province thereof, during these troubles, other than is befoia 
 expressed, except such jurisdiction or government as is, or shall be, 
 approved by the General Assembly, or Supreme Council of the Confe- 
 derate Catholics of Ireland."* 
 
 The last act of the general assembly was to draw up 
 u remonstrance to the King, declarative of their loyalty, 
 and reprobating tlie vexatious tyranny of the justices, 
 and tlie Irish parliament, which, composed for the most 
 part of men who were of the lowest and basest class, 
 thought of nothing but spoliating ani persecuting the 
 Irisli Catholics. The remonstrance detailed the whole- 
 sale plunder of the O'Byrnes in the county Wicklow, 
 and the bigotry of the justices who made it penal to 
 tolerate a Catholic school-master. It implored his 
 M?jesty to confirm the graces withheld by the artifices 
 of Parsons and Borlase, who, by bribing jurors, and 
 promising them a portion of the lands which they 
 contemplated confiscating, on the plea of defective 
 titles, left little chance for fair and impartial trial. 
 The many murders committed on the natives under the 
 semblance of law, Avere detailed at length, and means 
 were taken to transmit the remonstrance to his Majesty 
 and Queen Henrietta Maria, f The confederate as- 
 sembly did not break up till the ^ of January, and 
 the next general meeting was fixed for the 2pth of May 
 following. J 
 
 This manifesto is signed by Lord Jlountgarret, President, and S'l 
 ^isolas Shea, CJcrk cf the Supreme CouncU. 
 + Ciirte's Orm. L 270. % Walah, Second Part, First TrwtUe. 
 
cwKtuoitRxriozi Oh miLtLsynx, 
 
 61 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Before the general assembly rose the parliament waa 
 sitting in Dublin, and strange and unconstitutional were 
 its proceedings. The Catholics were unrepresented, 
 nor was there a friendly voice to speak in their favour 
 The justices, intent on forging new fetters, and extirpa 
 ting the Papists, were for suspending Poynjng's act, 
 and thus leaving themselves free to pass new penal law 
 without transmittiug the bills to England. In this, 
 however, they were opposed by Ormond, now made still 
 more in)portant by the title of Marquess, the patent having 
 been issued on the 18th of the preceding August. Kuf 
 was there wanting a representative of the fanatical 
 party in England to infuriate the enemies of the con- 
 federates, and canonise those who would march against 
 them. This man was Step hen J^^ rome : patronised by 
 the hypocritical justices, he preached in St. Patrick's 
 cathedral each morning at seven o'clock to the soldiers, 
 and on the 13th November, in Christ church, the " state" 
 and other persons of rank being present. "Empty, 
 illiterate, and turbulent,"* he was an apostle in the eyes 
 of his pay-masters ; nor did he spare the king, upon 
 whom he heaped slander and obloquy. To such a length 
 did he carry his invectives that it was thought desirable 
 to interpose the authority of Launcelot Bulkely, the 
 Protestant archbishop, who inhibited the spiritual 
 champion of Parsons and his colleagues. The justices, 
 it would appear, had little respect for the authority 
 of their diocesan ; nor did the preacher resign his 
 office till he found it inexpedient to continue. He 
 was the prototype of tliose enthusiasts, who, subse- 
 /quently, in the name of the God of charity, evangelized 
 
 / not peace, but strife — not mercy, but extermination ; 
 
 \ nor would his name be mentioned here were it not 
 necessary to show that the pulpit was employed by the 
 
 a.- 
 vs J 
 
 " Carte'i Onu. 
 
52 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 authorities to propound these rabid dogmas, of which a 
 Oiore enlightened age is happily growing weary. 
 
 But the proceedings of the confederates were calcu- 
 lated to alarm the justices. They wanted money to 
 pay their troops, who were daily becoming mutinous ; 
 their appeals to England were unheeded, and they 
 determined to take such measures as were likely to 
 st^U the clamour of their hirelings. Imitating the con- 
 /federates "they called in all the plate," which their 
 I partizans gladly gave them, and caused it to be coined 
 \ into half-crown pieces by John Neale, Peter Vander- 
 \;Lroven, and Gilbert Tongues, goldsmiths.' 
 
 These precautions were necessary ; for the levy of the 
 troops in Leinster, ordered by the supreme council, as 
 well as the alacrity with which the Catholic gentry and 
 their dependents furnished the national treasury, made 
 them tremble for their security. The poorest gave his 
 mite, and all were ready to gird on the sword. The ex- 
 / ertions of Preston's officers were beyond praise, and they 
 I hoped soon to be at the head of a large and well-disci- 
 plined force. True it is that tliey could not all be for- 
 nished with arras, if we except the pike, which was 
 readily procured ; but the artillery which Preston brought 
 /with him supplied manj'^ defects. One thousand five 
 / hundred nmskets of the two thousand landed at Wexford 
 ly^ were bestowed on him ; the remainder was apportioned 
 to Owen O'Neill. 
 
 Burke, who was to command in Connav^ht, was ac- 
 tively engaged in enlisting the sympathiis of his pro- 
 vince ; nor, indeed, had he much difficulty in drawing 
 multitudes into the confederacy. With a small band of 
 . followers, he entered the church of Athenry, and caused 
 ^ Clanricarde's chaplain to bless his banners. The fact 
 came to the knowledge of the Earl, and the chaplain wag 
 dismissed. But the petty tyranny and officious zeal uf 
 this nobleman could not stem the popular enthusiasm. 
 The bishops and clergy were to a man opposed to him, 
 ^and the recent barbarities of Willoughby made them 
 long for an opportunity in which they might expel the 
 English garrison. 
 
 in tlie south, Inchiquin had remained inactive sisice 
 
 * Carte 3 Onn. Simons's Essay. 
 
CONFEDERATION OP KILKENNY. 
 
 53 
 
 the battle of Liscarroll. Forbes, bowever, landed at 
 >^ Kinsale, and marched into the country, as far as Kath- 
 barry. A section of his forces consisted of a Scotch re- 
 giment ; and the peasantry, who were far from being 
 well armed or disciplined, rose and slew them in an am- 
 bush. Groves, who was a captain under lii^rbes, imme- 
 diately afterwards fell on this rude array, and forced 
 
 >^600 of them into the island of Inchidony, where, the tide 
 being in, tliey were all drowned.* Inchiquin, however, 
 remained shut up in Cork, in need of provisions; nor 
 did he dare to lake the field. 
 
 Nor did Owen Roe confine himself to Ulster. The 
 Scotch general had endeavoured in vain to bring him to 
 
 ^ an action, but as yet he had not sufficient strength to 
 meet liim. Munroe, hoAvever, had been compelled to 
 retire into Down and Antrim. Sir Robert Stewart, a 
 descendant of one of the most distinguished of the Scotch 
 
 V undertakers, had a strong force on the Donegal side ; 
 and CiSTeill retired for a while into Longford and Lei- 
 trim, with the intention " of nursing up an army in these 
 rugged districts" which would make him a match for his 
 enemies, f ,^ 
 
 Indeed, the chieftain of Ulster could not have selected 
 a fairer field for his enterprise than that which lay open 
 
 • to him in these two counties. The tyranny of such men 
 as Sir Frederick Hamilton, of Manor Hamilton, and 
 Coote, (under whose orders he appears to have acted,) 
 had driven the unfortunate peasantry to madness. The 
 
 (cruelties inflicted on the Christians of Spain by Aben 
 HumeyaJ and his Morisco captams, pale before the atro- 
 cities perpetrated by Hamilton on the inhabitants of Lei- 
 trim and Longford. His bawn, or castle, was the ren- 
 dezvous of a ferocious banditti, who spread death and 
 desolation around them. By day and night he sent from 
 within its walls a savage soldiery, who robbed and mur- 
 dered with impunity. When they returned to their 
 leader, the most acceptable gifts they could ofler were 
 the heads of the wretched people, which they brutally 
 severed from the bodies. Women and tender girls were 
 
 • Smith's Cork. 
 
 t Appendix^ the Poems of T. Davis. 
 X Vide History of Spain and Portugal, vol. v., p. 
 Cab. Cyclop. 
 
 65, in Lardner'f 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 not exempt from the horrors which this fanatic inflicted 
 in the holy name of God. Upon a hill near his castle ha 
 erected a gallows, from which every day a fresh victim 
 was suspended. The brother of the O'Rourke shared 
 this ignominious death, with his wife and dependents. 
 Nor was the%allant Sir Frederick ashamed to bequeath 
 \to posterity a journal which he kept of these barbari- 
 ties." The result may be easily imagined. The 
 O'Rourkes, O'Connors, MacGaurans, and other septs, 
 were only anxious for a leader. Their people were 
 ready — nay, constrained — to follow them ; and O'Neill'a 
 exertions were employed to bring them to a state of dis- 
 cipline and organization. 
 
 Such was the state of the country about the close of 
 November, 1642. The two hostile parties — the Confe- 
 . derates and ParUamentarians — ^were actively engaged 
 (.making preparation for the coming struggle. The en- 
 thusiasm of the Irish was at its height, and their ene- 
 mies, who calculated on a rich harvest of plunder, only 
 waited an opportunity of meeting them in the field. 
 
 While the respective generals were mustering their 
 troops and disciplining the new levies, the supreme 
 council remained at Kilkenny, anxiously watching the 
 progress of events. About the middle of December they 
 proceeded to Wexford, escorted by their guard of 500 
 "Toot and 200 horse. f Their object was to compose ani- 
 
 * This journal, or diary, ■written by Sir F. Hamilton, was printed in 
 London, 1643. It is to be found in the thorpe Papers, under this 
 title, " Another Extract of more Letters sent out of Ireland." A por- 
 tion of it has been since reprinted by my talented friend, Jlr. Bat- 
 tersby, in the Catholic Directory for 1846; 'tis a pity he did not give it 
 whole and entire in one number. We, must, however, content our- 
 selves with one extract from it, which cannot fail to exhibit the ani- 
 mus of Hamilton and his godly mercenaries:—" iMarch 17— Being their 
 patron St. Patrick's day, our colonel, sending fbr one of his prisoners, 
 the rogues being drawn up in a body right before us, we called to them 
 since they durst not come to perfonn their promise, and take the cas- 
 tle, they would rescue their countryman who was there to be hanged 
 in honoiu- of St. Patrick, which prisoner being hanged, and proving 
 but an old sack of straw, long stockings bei'ig sowed to it, as it was 
 throwne over the gallowes, our hangman sitting on the gallowes, call- 
 ing to them if they had charity in them to send the poors prisoner a 
 priest, they imagining that sack to be a man, fell aU on their kne^ in 
 9iir view praying for the prisoner "s soule. "' 
 
 t This force was to accompany them wherever they went, and ga> 
 oson whatevei town they visited. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 55 
 
 tuoaities, and release from prison those who had been 
 committed for offences against the government of the 
 justices. It does not appear what these^ dissensions 
 were, but the fact is recorded by one of themselves. 
 They feared any disagreement which tended to diminish 
 their strength, and certainly set great value q^ the heart 
 and nerve of the capital of that county, so signally re, 
 markable for its bravery and patriotism. " The towns- 
 men of Wexford," says Belling, " were naturally as vio- 
 (ient and stubborn at land as they were famous among 
 the nation for being daring at sea."* 
 
 It is at this period we have evidence of the growing 
 importance which the confederacy was attaining in the 
 estimation of foreign powers. When the supreme 
 council had arrived at Ross they were waited on by M. 
 de Overmere, a man of quality from Flanders, and a 
 ^relative of General Preston. This gentleman made the 
 supreme council an offer of frigates, on a proviso that he 
 was to command. They deliberated on the expediency 
 ot the proposal and finally declined it. Overmere was 
 a subject of Spain, and they feared to offend the French 
 and the United Provinces then actually at war with the 
 Spanish king. A number of light vessels soon after 
 /came from Flanders, to "which they gave letters of 
 I marque, and thus, in great measure, succeeded in inter- 
 \ rupting the passage between Chester and the Irish 
 ^coast.f From Ross they proceeded to Clonmel, for the 
 purpose of drawing Limerick into the confederacy; 
 for although the city and county had declared for the 
 national cause, such was the influence of the Earl of 
 y Thomond with the citizens, that they wished to maintain 
 themselves as "a free sjate." When the mayor was 
 advertised of their approach, he politely represented the 
 great dearth of corn which rendered it unsafe to intro- 
 duce any body of troops ; but the chief anxiety of the 
 confederates was for the castle of Bunratty and the 
 (other strongholds on the Shannon, then held by 
 
 * Belling's Narrative of the War, p. 163. 
 
 t Borlase, p. 97, lias a copy of a commission given by th^ 
 gupreme council to Francis Oliver, a native of Flanders, to command 
 the " St. ilichael the Archangel," a ship of 120 tons or lasts, em- 
 powering him to " prejudice all such as he shall meet of his Majesty's 
 eaeniies, and the enemies of Uie general Cathohc cause. " 
 
56 CONFEDERATIOK OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Thomond, wlio tliey feared was in league with the 
 parliament, and miglit be induced to admit their 
 garrisons. Tlie mayor, however, gave a solemn assu- 
 rance of his friendsy.ip, and that of the citizens, who 
 were determined to resist all overtures on the part of the 
 parliamentarians. This communication quieted their 
 apprehensions and they retired, after having given a 
 > commission to Sir Daniel O'Brien to seize on the castle 
 offiunratty, and on the person of the Earl of Thomond ; 
 for, it was resolved — 
 
 " Tliat if he coiild be forced to join the confederates without 
 toiichini; on his religion (as he was a Protestant), he should be in 
 tlie condition of their confederates ; or if he continued neuter, 
 without adhering to the enemy, a competent part of his estate 
 should be set apart for him, and no declaration made, by which 
 he would be subject to the penalties of neuters."* 
 
 Meantime the confederates were actively engaged 
 in Leinster. Preston Avas now at the head of about 
 6,000 foot and 600 horse, and Lord Castlehevan, who 
 acted as his lieutenant-general, burned for an oppor- 
 tunity to distinguish himself. The first encounter 
 between the new levies and the Puritan forces was at 
 
 (Ballinakil, in the Queen's county, wliich was a colony 
 of English, planted tliere by James I. The celebrated 
 Moncke, afterwards Duke of Albemarle, relieved the 
 place, and coming up with some detachments of the 
 confederates, defeated them at Tyraalioe. It Avas, 
 however, nothing more than a skirmish, for Preston 
 immediately afterwards proceeded to besiege the castle 
 yr of Burros, in the King's county, which surrendei^ed on 
 the 30th of December. Tliis partial triumph was 
 regarded as an auspicious termination of a year in 
 wliich Ireland had raised herself to such an extraor- 
 dinary eminence, and many a heart " beat high with 
 hope" for ultimate success, ere the year which was 
 now dawning had drawn to a close. 
 
 From Burros the Leinster forces marched to Birr, 
 
 /of which place the infamous Parsons was governor. 
 
 / Tiiey sat down before it on the 13th of January, and 
 
 V after a brave, but ineffectual resistance, it surrendered 
 
 to Preston. 'Nothing could equal the humanity of 
 
 tlie confederate generals on this occasion, for ihey 
 
 • Bellini's Nnn.^ti7e of the "\Tar. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNl. SJ 
 
 caused all the prisoners who had fallen into their 
 hands, amounthig to 800, men, women, and children, 
 to be escorted by detachments till they reached Athy.' 
 Bannagher was soon after besieged by Preston, and 
 yielded without firing a shot. From this place he 
 marched to Fort Falkland, on the 26th of January. The 
 garrison Avas strong, and such was the zeal of Clanricarde 
 for the justices, that he supplied it with provisions. 
 When the confederates were about to open a fire, the 
 governor. Lord Castlestewart, thought it better .to sur- 
 render, and Preston immediately took possession of the 
 fortress. " Thus," says Carte, " the confederate gene- 
 
 . ral having strengthened himself with new forces, reduced 
 
 ^ all the forts in the King's County, f 
 
 While these successes were attending them in Lein- 
 ster, the province of Connaught was up and stirring. 
 
 (Alarmed by the growing power of the Irish, Rane- 
 lagh, the lord president, accompanied by young Coote 
 and the other English commanders, fled out of the pro- 
 vince. This was in the beginning of February. On the 
 5th of that month, as they approached Dublin, they 
 halted at Rathconnel, where they were met by Preston, 
 
 CM'hose mercurial character could not forego the opportu- 
 nity of risking a battle, when he might have hung on 
 their march, and cut them up in detail. Eanelagh had 
 but a small force, and he fought with desperation. He 
 succeeded in repulsing Preston, and making his way to 
 Dublin, where he charged the justices with a dereUction 
 of duty in not sending him supplies. The withdrawal 
 of the lord president had a salutary influence on the men, 
 who were every day rallying round Colonel Btlrke. He 
 
 V proposed amicable terms to Willoughby, who still held 
 the fort of Galway ; but they were all rejected, and cir- 
 cumstances made it apparent that the garrison was in 
 the intersst of the parliament. This fact served to rouse 
 the people to more strenuous exertions, and about tlie 
 
 V middle of February Clanricarde's castle of Clare-Galway 
 was seized for the confederates by Captain Thomas 
 Burke, of Anbally, who was ably seconded by a Fran- 
 ciscan friar. When the lieutenant-general of the pro- 
 vince had information of this event, he called upon 
 
 • Cabtlehiiven's :Mem. t Carte, i. S82. 
 
 „ o 
 
58 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY 
 
 several gentlemen of the c(untry to levy forces and be- 
 siege tlie fort of Galway. * <i 
 
 The supreme council returned to Kilkenny -W'hen the 
 news of Preston's defeat at Eathconnel reached them. 
 There was an old prophecy that vi^ioever should win the 
 ■ battle of Eathconiiel should win Ireland. Tearing that 
 these absurd superstitions should damp the ardour of the 
 people, measures -were taken with promptitude to repair 
 the recent disaster. - Some of the new levies, who had 
 not yet seen service, were given to Preston, and in less 
 than a week he was in condition to take the field. 
 
 General Barry had mustered his forces in the south, 
 and had reduced Inchiquin to such straits that he was 
 obliged to drive all the cattle left in the baronies of 
 •Imokilly and Barrymore into the garrisons of Cork, 
 Kinsale, and Youghal. Such was his distress that it be- 
 came necessary to seize on part of the tobacco belonging 
 to patentees, of which there was a great quantity in the 
 above-mentioned towns, and sell R for the subsistence of 
 his troops. Purcell, who was lieutenant-general to 
 Barry, had orders to besiege Cappoquin, which Avas gar- 
 risoned by Lord Broghill for the parliament. Purcell 
 proceeded to execute his commission, when an event oc- 
 curred which ultimately delayed the reduction of the 
 place. ' 
 
 The justices found that they could not maintain their 
 troops in Dublin without producing famine ; and as they 
 had now some money in their hands, they made arrange- 
 ments with Ormond to take the command and bring in 
 provisions. Accordingl}'-, on the 2nd of March, the lieu- 
 tenant-general left Dublin with an army of 3,000 foot, 
 700 horse, two demi-culverins, and four field-pieces. 
 
 His instructions were to capture Wexford and Ross, as 
 the confederates were masters of the sea, and were daily 
 seizing barques laden with provisions as they were pass- 
 ing through St. George's Channel, f The justices agreed 
 
 * Hardiman's Galway, 120. .Mr. Moore, in liis account of the two 
 actions at Tymahoe and liathconnel, gives tiiera the most undue im- 
 portance. *' 1 he ominous victoiy" of Kathconnel did not "strike di*- 
 may into the hearts" of tliose ■wliom he calls "rebels;" on the contrarj', 
 they grew daily bolder and more determined. — Vide Hist, of Irelaad, 
 vol. iv. p. 254. 
 
 f Carte's Orm. 
 
 ' ^ 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNV. OT 
 
 lo send a ship laden with A'ictuals for Ormond's troops ; 
 and according to agreement this vessel was to anchor at 
 Duncannon. Having taken Cartle-Martin, in the county 
 Kildare, Ormond continued liis march towards Carlow, 
 and on the 4th of the montla he sat down before the small 
 castle of Timolin, which Avas garrisoned for the confe- 
 derates by four-score men. He called on them to yield, 
 and they stoutly refused. He then opened a fire on that 
 devoted band of heroes ; nor did they ask for quarter till 
 the blazing rafters were crackling about them. They 
 were then permitted to march out, and when they ex- 
 pected tlie same forbearance which they had shewn at 
 \Fort Falkland and Birr, they were massacred on the 
 spot. Elated with this victory, Ormond advanced on 
 Carlow, and having held a council of war, it was deter- 
 mined to lay siege to Koss. Orders were then issued by 
 ► the supreme council to abandon the siege of Cappoquin, 
 and Purcell was directed to throw 300 men into Koss, 
 which was greatly exposed. Belling tells us that it 
 had little or no fortification — a rampart of earth was 
 its only protection ; but within that feeble barrier there 
 were stern hearts. On the Ilth of March Ormond ap- 
 proached the toAvn, and sevA a herald to Nicholas Fitz- 
 harris, the mayor, -commanding him to surrender. -Fitz- 
 harris replied that he held it for his Majesty, and would 
 not yield. A second summons was as boldly rejected, 
 and "file townspeople immediately hoisted the confede- 
 rate colours. Ormond then opened his fire, and having 
 effected a breach in the earthen rampart, ordered his 
 men to advance. They did so, and were encountered 
 by the heroic people. Men and women guarded every 
 avenue, and repulsed the justices' soldiers ; again and 
 again did they push forward to gain an entrance, but a 
 shower of balls and stones drove them back. While the 
 people were thus engaged a vessel of war had dropped 
 down the river from Duncannon, and commenced bat- 
 tering the town ; but the bravery of the inhabitants was 
 not to be daunted. They brought some light pieces to 
 bear on the ship, and sunk her. Ormond, who wit- 
 nessed the devoted courage of the men of Ross, was con- 
 Bulting what step he should take, when word was brought 
 '^ him that Purcell was advancing with a large force from 
 
GO CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Cappoqiiin, and he felt himself constrahied to raise the 
 HiL'ge, alter having remained five days before the place. 
 Fearing to be cut off from his reserve, "which he 
 had left in Carlow, he sounded the march, and resolved 
 to get back to Dublin as he might. Preston advanced 
 ■with an army of 5,000 horse «nd foot to intercept him, 
 but in his haste he brought no cannon. He halted at 
 Temple Wodigan, about two miles from Ross, and 
 Avaited Ormond in a pass through which he should 
 
 ■^necessarily march. "The pass," says Castlehaven, * 
 " Avas at least half-a-mile through a bog, where no 
 more than four horses could march in a breast, with 
 M-ater up to the belly ; but Preston had not the patience 
 to expect the enemy's coming to him, which they must 
 do, or starve, but went over Jhe_pass to them, and put 
 
 ^himself under as great disacTvantage^as his enemy could 
 wish. Ormond took hold of this unexpected advan- 
 tage, and gave Preston no time to form his army, but 
 charged still as they went over, besides what he did 
 all along with his cannon, till at length, after a con- 
 Biderable loss of men, killed and taken prisoner?, he 
 Was wholly defeated and routed, "f Ormond, however, 
 rapidly retired to Dublin, quite satisfied that he was 
 ?iot totally destroyed. A better system of militaiy 
 
 ^Supervision would have removed Preston from the corn- 
 Hand ; as it was, however, he was censured by the 
 .,lipreme council, and his conduct pronounced uncir- 
 tumspect. He stood high in the estimation of Mount- 
 garret, whom he materially served, notwithstanding 
 his recent failure. Soon after the battle of Ross, he 
 marched with all his force on Ballinakil, (the property 
 of Mountgarret) which had been in the possession of 
 an English colony. Father Talbot, who had just then 
 arrived from his mission to the Spanish and French 
 courts, had brought Avith him suppHes of money, and 
 
 ^"two great iron guns." These Avere forwarded to 
 Preston, and he commenced battering the castle, which 
 goon yielded. The undertakers were i)ermitted to depart 
 whither they would, and l^Iountgarret got possession 
 of his estate. Could this circumstance have blinded 
 
 * Castleliaven's Jlem. S5. 
 
CONFEDEh.ATION OF KILKENNY. 61 
 
 cim to Preston's rashness and unfitness for such a re- 
 sponsible post ? 
 
 The eulogists and apologists of Ormond would have 
 us believe that he undertook the expedition to Ross 
 much against his will, and that the justices had a 
 secret design in sending him, which was, to prevent his 
 negotiating with the confederates. Be this as it may, 
 we cannot find any claim, on his part, to such hu- 
 manity as ever characterised the confederate armies, — 
 On every occa^on Avhere blood might be shed, he 
 knew no mercy, and Avhere the interposition of a 
 
 ' generous man might have saved many, Ormond was 
 an impassive spectator. All the apologies made for 
 him by Walsh, and O'Connor* who falls into the strange 
 blunder of calling him an Irishman, would not wipe 
 away his guilt, in permitting the wanton massacre 
 at Timolin. But a more congenial occupation than that 
 of war, now presented itself. England was in a flame, 
 and the king had got a check which induced him, on 
 retiring to Oxford, to consider the remonstrance which 
 the confederates had forwarded after the first general 
 assembly. He looked to the future, and began to cal- 
 culate on the succours he might derive from Ireland, 
 in case he succeeded in making terms with the 
 leaders. 
 
 Influenced by these considerations, and affecting to 
 believe that their demands were moderate, and the 
 representations which they^had put before him well 
 grounded, he issued a commission, under the great seal, 
 
 fon the 11 th of January, 1643, directed to the Marquis 
 of Ormond, the Earls of Clanricarde and Roscommon, 
 
 ^the Lord Viscount Moore, and others, any three or more 
 of them being authorised to meet and act for tlie 
 purpose aforesaid, namely, to receive in Avriting what 
 the petitioners had to say or propound. This docu- 
 ment was in the hands of Ormond on the 30th of the 
 month, but the justices, taking this commission for a 
 step towards the peace of the kingdom, and their own 
 ruin, "were displeased that a wish should be mani- 
 Tested by any one that the war from which they pro- 
 mised themselves revenge and fortunes, should in any 
 
 • Colombanus, whi) was ably handled by Plowdcn, passim. 
 
J^ CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Other way be ended, than with tlie blood and confisca- 
 tiou of all those whom they could propose to be guilty 
 of the defection." They, therefore, hit on an expedient 
 which was well calculated to promote their ends. The 
 supreme council was at Ross when a trumpeter was sent 
 lo inform them of this communication from the kin^r, 
 with a safe-conduct from Ormond and Parsons to such 
 as the council chose to employ to represent their 
 grievances to the above-named commissioners. When 
 the safe-conduct was submitted to the supreme council, 
 they were astonished on reading the following words, 
 which had been artfully introduced by the justices, with 
 the cognizance of their lieutenant-general : — " That, 
 albeit, his majesty hath not thought fit to admit any 
 of them to his presence who were actors or abettors of 
 80 odious a rebellion," they might regard themselves as 
 peculiarly favoured in being allowed to treat with his 
 justices. The answer returned to this lying fabrication 
 was worthy of these chivalrous men: — "We take God 
 to witness," said they, '* that there are no limits set to 
 the scorn and infamy that are cast upon us ; and we 
 will be in the esteem of loyal subjects, or die to a man." 
 In the heat of the moment they had resolved not to 
 treat with the commissioners, and stated ''that there 
 was a necessity laid upon tliem to absent themselves 
 from the meeting." Their answer was published, and 
 the people applauded their firmness.* 
 
 However, on more mature deliberation, they sus- 
 pected that the insulting words had been written, not 
 by the king, but by his enemies, and they appointed the 
 18th of March for a conference, to be held at Trim. 
 The justices, seeing that the confederates were, well- 
 disposed towards his majesty, resolved to try what 
 cruel and perfidious actions might do.f They, there- 
 fore, got the consent of the council in Dublin, to 
 an act which was calculated to put a stop to any- 
 thing like a treaty. 'At i::e battle of Rathconnel, 
 Lisagh O'Connor and the son of Garret Aylmer had 
 been made prisoners by Sir Richard Grenville; in 
 order to exasperate the Catholics, Parsons and hia 
 colleagues wrote to Sir H. Tichbourne to have them 
 
 • Belling's History of the War. f Carte's Onn. i. 407. 
 
CONPEDEUATIOA ^F RILKENNY. 63 
 
 executed by martial law. Nor did they confine them- 
 selves to this unwarrantable proceeding. At the very 
 time they had the king's orders to quiet troubles, and 
 bring about a peace, they sent their lieutenant-general 
 to attack Ross ; and when he should have been engaged 
 in pacific negotiations, he was actually in conflict with 
 General Preston, though he well knew that he was 
 doing the bidding, not of the king, but of Parsons 
 and liis council. 
 
 In fact, he undertook the expedition with the consent 
 of the justices, and at the desire of an English com- 
 mittee then sent over by^the parliament "to direct and 
 superintend the affairs of Ireland, against the king's 
 command."* Though expressly named ifi the commis- 
 sion, he was burning and spoiling the country without 
 opposition, on the very day when Lord Gormanstown, 
 Sir Lucas Dillon, Sir R. Talbot, John Walsh, Esq., 
 and others were assembling at Trim. . What wonder, 
 therefore, if the luish Catholics distrusted this man of 
 craft and faithlessness ? 
 
 The commissioners from the confederates were met 
 at the above-named place by the Earls of Clanricarde and 
 Roscommon, Sir Maurice Eustace and others, on the 
 part of the king. A remonstrancef of grievances 
 was produced, which entered* at great. length into a 
 history of the cruelties practised on the Catholics by 
 the justices and their adherents. " This remonstrance," 
 says Borlase, '* was solemnly received by his majesty's 
 commissioners, and by them transmitted to his ma- 
 jesty."J 
 
 But before it was sent to the king it came to be con- 
 sidered in the commons' house of parliament in Dublin, 
 (seemingly disliked by all, whereby the business growing 
 hot, the house was prorogued till the 6th of May. § 
 
 When the justices heard that Preston was besieging 
 
 i»Ballinakil, they sent Colonel Lawrence Crawford, with 
 
 f 1,300 foot and 150 liorse, to endeavour to beat up the 
 
 Leinster general's quarters. He set out on the 13th of 
 
 April ; but as he approached, he halted before the castle 
 
 • Borlases Irish Eeb. p. 142. 5 
 
 t This lengthy document is to be found in the Appendix to Cuny'i 
 Review. 
 t Ibid, p. 154, f Borlase. 155. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 of Ballybrittas. IJe called on the confederate garrison 
 to surrender, but he was soon beaten off. Castlehaven 
 was ordered to fall on Crawford as he was retiring. 
 Having got together 1,500 horse, he came up with the 
 English at Monastereven, charged and dispersed them. 
 As they were retreating over tlie Barrow, their comman- 
 der had his thigh broken by a musket-shot in his flight. 
 From Ballinakil, Preston proceeded with his army 
 into Westmeath ; and the English garrisons of Carlow 
 and the Queen's County, taking advantage of his absence, 
 alarmed the county Kilkenny to the very gates of the 
 city. Castlehaven took the field again and scattered these 
 marauding parties, which were commanded by Sir Mi- 
 . chael Ernie jftid Major Vernej. He subsequently took 
 ^ the castles of Ballynunry and Cloghgrenan, and relieved 
 the supreme council from any further apprehension. 
 Flushed with success, he passed rapidly into the Queen's 
 County, and besieged the castle of Ballylennan. Here 
 he was joined by Sir Walter Butler, who informed him 
 that a strong reinforcement, drawn from the English 
 garrisons, was on march to raise the siege. Castle- 
 haven, having reconnoitred the advancing troops, deter- 
 mined to give them battle in sight of the besieged ; and 
 finding that they dfd not amount to more than 600 foot 
 and 300 horse, he ordered Butler's cavalry to follow, 
 when they immediately betook themselves to flight, pur- 
 sued by the confederate light troops till they got shelter 
 in Athy. The castle, seeing those who had come to 
 their succour defeated, yielded on honorable conditions. 
 Thus, in the course of a few months, did the confede- 
 ^ rates prosecute the war in Leinster with the most signal 
 I success, taking almost every place of strength which iiad 
 V been held for the justices, who were terribly apprehen- 
 'sive of being ultimately shut up and starved in Dublin. 
 But their hopes of plunder, and undisguised desire ^f 
 shedding the blood of the Irish Papists, were doomed to 
 be disappointed. Whether Charles I. was made sensible 
 by the remonstrance recently forwarded of the evils in- 
 flicted on the Irish people by Parsons and Borlase, or 
 apprehensive that, by continuing them at the head of af- 
 fairs, he was only injuring himself, it is not our province 
 N to examine. He certainly saw that the justices would 
 ever stand in the way of any peace between him and kis 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. t^ 
 
 Irish subjects, and he determined to remove them. On 
 'the 23d of April, 1643, Sir Francis Butler arrived from 
 / England with a supersedeas for Parsons' government, 
 { and a commission to Lord Borlase and Sir Henry Tich- 
 bourne to be lords justices. Yet there may be question 
 whether this act of tardy justice on the part of the king 
 was ultimately beneficial to Ireland. There are many 
 who think that it was quite the reverse. Had Parsons 
 been allowed to retain the government, there never could 
 have been room for the craft and intrigue which followed. 
 j/ His love of pillage and hypocritical cant had roused such 
 f feelings of abhorrence and detestation in the breasts of 
 \the Irish Catholics, as must have ever stood in the way 
 of any accommodation between them and their tyrants. 
 From what we have seen of their success since the sit- 
 ting of the first general assembly, it is evident that they 
 were becoming daily more skilled in the use of arms, 
 and firmly bent on establishing their independence. The 
 open and flagrant vilianies of this man could not have 
 subdued their spirit, or checked them in their onward 
 march ; but it Avas reserved for the policy of one who 
 vras well skilled in the principles of Macchiavelli to break 
 that bond of union which must have rendered them irre- 
 Bistible and triumphant ; but let us not anticipate. 
 
 In the beginning of May, w^hilst Preston and Castle- 
 haven were reducing the strongholds of Leinster, Munroe 
 was obliged, by the most pressing want, to advance into 
 the neighbourhood of Armagh. Owen Roe occupied 
 Charlemont, which he had fortified and garrisoned — 
 / 'Twas Munroe's object to seize the Ulster general, and 
 ^ thus dash the hopes of his followers, who sanguinely 
 reckoned on his great military character for ultimate 
 success. So secretly did the Scotch general conduct his 
 march, that Owen Roe was out hunting with but fev of 
 •Kis staff when he was surprised. His first thought was 
 to escape by spurring rapidly back to Charlemont ; but 
 he was intercepted by a detachment of the Scotch. His 
 superior knowledge of the locahty was his only advan- 
 tage ; but even this did not prevent collision. Beset by 
 Munroe's men, in a lane thickly enclosed with copses, he 
 V fought, hand to hand, for an hour ; and such was the 
 ^steady bravery and coolness of his retinue, that Munroe 
 
60 CONFEDERATION OJ- KILKENNY. 
 
 shouted to his men, *' Cam awa frae awheen rebels,"* 
 
 ♦and suffered the great prize to elude his grasp. On the 
 
 following day he had reason to repent him of his teme- 
 
 (rity, for he was encountered by O'Neill and Colonel 
 Sandford, and routed with loss. A small army, under 
 ]\Iontgomery and Chichester, menaced him soon after ; 
 but the phlegmatic general was not to be provoked. 
 Ee knew that these officers were chiefly intent on making 
 preys, and he determined to husband his resources for a 
 better opportunity. He contented himself with having 
 secured the cattle from their foragers, and then retired 
 
 " into Leitrim. 
 
 In the west, the confederate arms were signally pros- 
 perous. The son and grandson of Lord Athenry, the 
 three Teige Kellys of Aughrim and Mullaghmore, to- 
 gether with Sir Roebuck Lynch, Sir V. Blake, and other 
 gentlemen marched, under Lieutenant-Colonel Burke, to 
 
 ' Galway. Willoughby was shut up in the fort, and in 
 want of provisions. He was obhged to send boats' crews 
 to pillage on the coast. They were intercepted, after one 
 of these predatory excursions, by the confederates, and 
 cut off to a man. The town undertook to defray the 
 expense of the siege, and two batteries were erected — 
 one on the west, and the other on the opposite point of 
 Rinmore. A chain was drawn across the harbour, and 
 access by sea was thus hindered. Clanricarde, who had 
 hitherto rejoiced at any. reverse sustained by the confe- 
 derates, "was," says Mr. Hardiman, "unable to affj^rd 
 any relief."! The condition of Inchiquin in the south 
 may readily be imagined from a letter which he sent in 
 the early part of May to the Earl of Cork :— 
 
 " Our present state falls out now to be more desperately misc rablo 
 than ever : in regard we have no manner of help or relief am onput 
 ourselves, and the provisions we depended on out of England do* h fail 
 as, which will put us to a terrible extremity, here being nothing to de- 
 liver foith on the next pay day. I request your lordship to i nd ot 
 borrow £300, for victualling those in Youghal. To-mon'ow, ith « 
 heavy heart, I shall march forth, to linger out a few days in th e tieUi 
 where I am not likely to continue so long as to enterprise anyt ing o; 
 advantage, for want of provisions for the men and money for tbs CI 
 ficer8."t 
 
 '^ * O'Neill's Journal, in the Desld. Curiosa Sib. 
 t Hist, of Galway, p. 120. 
 $ 1* rom an original letter. See Smith's Cork.. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY 
 
 o7 
 
 Nor, in fact, did he effect anything of advantage, save 
 seiLing some small supplies. His troops amounted to 
 4,000 foot and 400 horse. Some of them were sent into 
 
 ^ Kerry in order to forage, whilst he himself invested Kil- 
 mallock with 700 men. Purcell and Barry lield it 
 against him, and he was obliged to raise the siege and 
 go to the aid of his colleague, Vavasour, who, after com- 
 mitting the most revolting murders on those who sur- 
 rendered themselves, was preparing to meet Castlehaveu 
 on the borders of the county Limerick. 
 
 It was now the 20th of May, and pursuant to their 
 resolution, the general assembly had met in Kilkenny. 
 
 / The six months which mtervened between this and 
 j their first sitting, had witnessed the most extraordinary 
 * changes. By an act of the general assembly, the 
 supreme council was confirmed, nor were there any 
 material changes made in the administration. But, 
 as it M'ill appear, it Avas a moment of the greatest 
 importance to the Catholics of Ireland. Their armies 
 in the four provinces were preparing for a conflict, on 
 the result of which everything depended. The hopes 
 and enthusiasm of the Irish people never were higher, 
 and they hastened from the mountain fastnesses and 
 sequestred glens to swell the number of those who 
 marched under the confederate banners. On the 
 land and on the sea triumph^ and success had 
 followed their movements. The* eyes of Catholic 
 Europe watched their progress, for their fame had 
 travelled over the Alps and Pyrenees. The French 
 
 Vcourt sent M. La Monarie as its envoy, with all tlie 
 'powers of an ambassador ; he was soon followed by 
 MjJFuysot, a Burgundian, from the court of Spain, and 
 Tettei^lrom Father Wadding announced that Urban VIII 
 had determined to send an agent from the Vatican, with 
 supplies of arms and money. Charles I. no longer 
 published his intolerant threats against "Popish recu- 
 sants." Hampden was proposing to besiege him in 
 
 4 Oxford, whilst Essex was thundering at the walls of 
 Reading. His treacherous eyes were at last opened 
 to the perils that beset him, and the injustice whicb 
 he had contrived to inflict on the confederate Catholics. 
 He, therefore, resolved to pursue a different coutsq 
 
titi CONFEDERATION OP KILKENNY. ^ 
 
 hoi'd raaBe, according to the parliamentary pasquinades' 
 of tue times, had been plotting Avith the king since hia 
 return to Oxford, and lie Avas made the bearer of ai 
 important communication to Ormond ; it was a com 
 mission from the king to the .marquess, to treat with 
 his subjects, " and to agree on a cessation of arms foi 
 one year." 
 
 In an evil moment the supreme council consented to 
 entertain the proposal, and ordained that the Lord* 
 Gormanstown, Muskerry, and others, should be ap- 
 pointed their commissioners, with power and autho- 
 rity to treat with Ormond of a cessation for one whole 
 year, or shorter, upon such terms, conditions, or 
 
 ,^ articles, as to the commissioners aforesaid should be 
 thought fit and expedient. The promptness with which 
 the assembly caught at any overture of peace on the part 
 of the king, Avas ample evidence of their loyalty and 
 affection to the throne. But the message which elicited 
 their reply, is at once evidence of their strength and 
 Aveakncss. Had they determined to stand aloof from 
 .ill factions, parliamentary and royal, and struggle man- 
 fully for their country's independence, they must have 
 succeeded, and made themselves more than a match for 
 any army that could have been sent against them. 
 -But, alas ! the attachment of the Irish to the worthless 
 (jiouse of Stuart, was destined to be their bane and ruin. 
 But Ormond was in no hurry to carry out the inten- 
 tions of the king. There was one objection in the way 
 which he knew would prove insuperable to the confede- 
 rates. They had determined to insist on a dissolution 
 of the parliament, wliich Avas made up of '• Clerks, 
 soldiers, serving men, and others not legally, or not at 
 
 « all, chosen or returned," Avho had jiassed an act that 
 
 no person should sit, either in that or in any future 
 
 parliament, till hey had taken the oath of supremacy."! 
 
 Another coadition on which the confederate commis- 
 
 Bioneis were ordered to insist was, that they should have 
 
 ~, liberty to use arms against all such persons as should 
 make Avar against the contracting parties; but Ormond, 
 
 » ^';>-"urius Melaiicholicus. 
 
 t Remonstrance from Trim. Y.'arn. Irisli Ilcb. p. 21 
 
r^ 
 
 CO?/FEDEXATION OF KILKENNY. fiS 
 
 who kaew'well that this was meant to engage him against 
 the Scotch in Ulster, demurred, and caused the treaty 
 to be adjourned to the foUov.-ing month. 
 
 Daring these negotiations, the conflict between the 
 confederate generals and their enemies was raging in the 
 four provinces. Owen Roe, at the head of 3,200 men, 
 of which force 1,000 were immediately with him — the 
 rest being in attendance on a large collection of cattle — 
 was on his way into the county Leitrim, when he was 
 overtaken by Sir R. Stewart at Clonish, on the borders 
 of Fermanagh. Stewart had a large body of well-dis- 
 ciplined troops, commanded by Sir W. Balfour and Co- 
 lonel Mervyn. O'Neill posted his main strength in a 
 narrow pass, which he lined with musketeers. Stewart 
 determined to force it; but O'Neill's cavalry repulsed 
 him for the moment, and then rapidly retired. Stewart 
 immediately advanced at a gallop ; but had scarcely en- 
 tered the causeway when a terrible fusilade from within 
 scattered his men, and drove them back. A forlorn- 
 hope vras now ordered to seize the pass, and the battle 
 raged fiercely on both sides. A nephew of the English 
 commander engaged in single combat with Owen Roe ; 
 but the clansmen of the latter attached too much im- 
 portance to his life to suffer it to be risked in this species 
 of wild tournament. Stewart was struck by a shot, and 
 ' a dozen pikes pinned his horse to the ground. At this 
 moment Shane O'Neill advanced with some troops of 
 cavalry ; both parties then engaged, and the encounter 
 lasted fully half an hour, when the Irish retired, after 
 
 leaving many of their companions dead in the gap 
 
 Stewart did not venture to pursue his partial victory, 
 and, before O'Neill arrived at Mohill, he received an ac- 
 cession of men and arms, which more than compensated 
 for his loss.* 
 
 Twelve days after this much- exaggerated skirmish, 
 Owen Roe, at the head of a considerable force, marched 
 into the county Westmeath, within fifteen miles of Mui- 
 lingar ; whilst Preston, with 7,000 foot and 700 iiorse, waa 
 carrying everything before him in the King's County. 
 'Moncke was sent to oppose him, but dared not meet him ; 
 
 • ly tbls action Con Oge O'Neill was naurdered by a Preebyteriaa 
 Tdnlfter, after quarter given. — O.XeiU's Jvumal. 
 
CONFEDERATION- OF KILKENNY. 
 
 and thus left the Leinster general master of everj'' strong 
 place in that county, with the exception of Castlejor- 
 dan. The state of the English garrisons in av. ^ about 
 Dublin is described byt Carte and others to lia\ been 
 desperate. Tlicre was the greatest dearth of provisions, 
 and nothing but the saddest necessity could induce Or- 
 niond to attack tl)e confederates, who spread terror even 
 to tlie very walls of the city. Moncke was sent into 
 Wicklow to seize whatever corn and cattle lie could ; 
 but was soon recalled to reinforce Lord Moore, 
 ^who was sent to dislodge Owen Roe, — who, with Sir 
 ' James Dillon, held a strong position jfive miles from 
 Trim, at a place called Portlester-mill. O'Neill threw 
 up a breastwork, placed sixty men in the mill, and 
 waited patiently for the enemy. Moore* was about to 
 advance, when he was killed by a cannon-ball, and his 
 whole force fled, being routed with slaughter. O'Neill 
 was amply avenged for his loss at Clonish ;• and the way 
 to Dublin was open to him, had he been directed to ad- 
 vance. The victory at Portlester was the prestige oi 
 success, as well as a subject for mirth. Some " camping 
 chaplain" commenforated Moore's death in a distich, 
 which Borlase gravely remarks had more sallies or*wit 
 than skill. It is, however, too good to be lost: — 
 
 " Contra Ptomanos mores res mira Dynasta, 
 Morus ab liugenio canonizatus erat."t 
 
 Ormond, who had left Dublin at the head of 6,000 
 men, accompanied by Lord Lambert, failed to bring 
 ^ Preston to an action ; nor did the conduct of ihis general 
 'fail to engender suspicion, for he had an army which 
 was well supplied, whilst that of the marquess was, ac- 
 cording to the testimony of Carte, "ready to starve for 
 
 * He was of English descent, and his ancestors came in for a large 
 ihare of the confiscated church property in the time of Elizabeth. 
 
 t See Borlase, p. 129. The following is an attempt at the transla- 
 tion :— V. 
 
 " Tome's ancient rights are now but lightly prized, 
 Since Moore by Owen Eoe was canonized T 
 
 Lord Jloore, the subject of this distich, was a Protestant. I men- 
 tion the fact most respectfully, and simply because the Terses in Latin 
 or English would have no point if the religion oJ his lordtjliip wus 
 not known. 
 
CONFEDEBATIOIJ O? KlLKKNlfY. 
 
 7i 
 
 want of provisions." Far difi'erent, however, was the 
 Bpirit of the leaders in the west and south. The siege 
 of Gal way was pressed with vigour ; and so straitened 
 was Willoughbv, that he offered to surrender the fort to 
 the Marquess of Clanricarde after Rear-Admiral Brook 
 
 ' had failed to throw in supplies. Burke would not hear 
 of such an overture, unless the Marquess consented to 
 take the confederate oath, which he sternly refused, and 
 the parliamentary general surrendered the fortresses of 
 
 r Gal way and Oranmore ta^the heroic Burke on the 20th 
 of June. Three days afterwards a squadron entered 
 the bay ; but the colours of the confederates were stream- 
 ing from the flag-staff. The Archbishop of Tuam was 
 one of the parties who drew up the articles with Wil- 
 
 - loughby ; and this infamous murderer was permitted to 
 depart in peace. "Thus," says Mr. Hardiraan, "the 
 second fort of importance in the kingdom was in the 
 hands of the confederates."* 
 
 And now, to crown these signal triumphs, couriers were 
 spurting across the plains of Munster to announce to the 
 supreme council the intelligence of a defeat sustained by 
 [nchiquin and Vavasour. We have already said that 
 Castlehaven had marched to the borders of the county 
 - Limerick, and it is necessary that we should see what 
 he accomplished, Barry, the Munster general, was old 
 and infirm, f and perhaps had no greater value in the eyes 
 of the supreme council than that which resulted from his 
 local influence. 
 
 Castlehaven, who was beginning to grow tired of ad- 
 venture, seemed at first reluctant to take the command ; 
 nor did he move till urged by Lord Muskerry and the 
 assembly. Accompanied by Fitzgerald, commonly called 
 
 ^.Garret-Garrough, he marched hastily to Cashel, where 
 he was met by General Barry and Lieutenant-General 
 Purcell, with 700 foot and some troops of horse. His 
 whole force now consisted of about 3,000 men, together 
 
 • with a troop of boys, mounted on fleet horses. Vava- 
 sour was at Castle-Lyons, after allowing a number of 
 women and children to fall into the hands of one of his 
 officers, by whom they were stripped and murdered. 
 Inchiquin having notice of the approach of the confede- 
 
 « Hist, of Gal way. p 123. 
 K 
 
 f Ca^tlehtren's Mem. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 rates, sent orders from his camp to Moyalloe * for dt« 
 tachments to strengthen his lieutenant-general, but be- 
 fore they could arrive, Vavasour was set upon by squad- 
 rons of cavalry from the neighbouring hills. Fearing that 
 he would be surrounded, he sounded a retreat, and his 
 cannon and carriages were ordered to Fermoy, while he 
 himself rapidly crossed tlie Funcheon. His van was led 
 by Lieutenant King, the main body by Major Howell, 
 and the rear by Vavasour in person. Pierce Lacy, Cap- 
 tain Hutton, and Lieutenant Stadbury commanded the 
 forlorn hope. Their last man had not forded the Fun- 
 cheon, when the confederate cavalry was at their heels. 
 — The vanguard had ascended the hill which over- 
 hangs the river, and was dashing in haste through a 
 narrow defile which leads to Fermoy, when Vavasour 
 ordered a halt, and prepared to contest the pass ; but 
 that troop of boys, mounted on fleet horses, was press- 
 ing on the forlorn hope, not after the fashion of drilled 
 and disciplined men, but rather like "the Moorish and 
 Getulian horsemen," says Borlase, " mentioned by Salust 
 in Jugartli's war," In vain did the forlorn-hope strivef 
 to resist the impetuosity of their assailants. They were 
 driven in on the main body, ■;;rhich disordered those who 
 still held the pass. In a moment the rout wag univer- 
 sal. The confederates pursued the flying columns, and 
 cut them up in detail. All the cannon and colours were 
 taken. Vavasour and his officers were made prisoners, 
 and 600 of his best soldiers were sabred ^ci .vocu i]\e ivlan- 
 ning- water and Fermoy. It was a sad blow tolnchi- 
 quin, for by this action he wag reduccu lo abnut 2,500 
 men, and obliged to shut lilniself up in garrison. The 
 confederates soon after prepared to besiege Cappoquin 
 and Lismore, but abandoned the design when it was an- 
 nounced that the supreme council was negotiating a 
 truce with the Marquess of Ormond. 
 
 -Alas! that craft and intrigue should have stayed them 
 in their glorious career, for there never was a moment 
 Eo prosperous and bright with hope. Owen Koe was 
 master of the north, as far as the borders of Westmcatb 
 He had slaui Lord Mode, and driven Moncke within ih '. 
 
 * ^falTow. tht birih-pkce of my lamented Srleud, T. Duvia. 
 t Irish Kc-b 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 73 
 
 wails of Dablin. Preston liung on the outskirts of the 
 city, and threatened Ormond. The Munster army had 
 covered itself with glory. Drogheda, Dundalk, and the 
 garrisons in the north, were reduced to the direst want. 
 Was this a moment for diplomacy ? Certainly not. But 
 had the command of all the confederate troops been com- 
 mitted to Owen Roe, instead of dividing it between four 
 generals, Ireland would have achieved a glorious inde- 
 pendence, and must have been spared that long and 
 bloody catalogue of pains and sufferings, the recollection 
 of which must ever pain the heart, while it teaches us 
 that all our miseries have been the result of treachery 
 on the part of pretended friends, and disunion amongst 
 ourselves. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Aboct the middle of July, 1643, while the confe- 
 derates were gaining those important advantages which 
 we have described, there arrived on our coast a com- 
 missioner from ilie Holy See, who was sent by Urban 
 Vm. to report on the state of Irish affairs. This waa 
 Father Peter Francis Scarampi, a native of Piedmont, 
 and a priest of tlie oratory ; nor did he come empty- 
 handed. The Pontiff made him the bearer of a bull, 
 in which he lauded the zeal and earnestness with which 
 tlie Irish fuught for the independence of their religion, 
 inl Father Luke Wadding committed to his charge a 
 sum of 30,000 dollars, which he had collected from the 
 Barbarini,' Spada, and other noble families who took 
 an interest in the cause of the confederates. Nor did the 
 holy father confine his liberality to transmitting such 
 spiritual weapons as a jubilee, with a plenary indulgeace. 
 
 * In tli" library of this noble family there is i vast store of material 
 for Irish liistory. When tlie author of " Rome, under Paganism and 
 the Popes" visits the holy city again, it is to be hoped that he will turn 
 his attention to the archives of the IJarbai'iui palace. W'iio more equaJ 
 to the t«sk than the elo<juent and eradite L>r. Miley ? 
 
74 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 to all wlio had taken up arms in defence of religion.* 
 He also sent a large quantity of arms and ammunition, 
 •bf -which he knew tliere was then mucli need. When 
 the supplies had been safely landed, Scarampi at once 
 proceeded to Kilkenny, where he found the confederates 
 
 ^ engaged discussing the question of a cessation of arms. 
 Division and dissensions had manifested themselves in 
 the council, and the spirit displayed by the contending 
 parties, clearly evinced that the oath of association 
 was their only "essential tie." The Irish of tlie Pale 
 
 , . were tired of the war, whilst the *' old Irisli" were bent on 
 following up their success ; in fact, the former had been 
 drawn into the confederacy contrary to their inclination, 
 and were now anxious to make terms with Ormond. 
 The "old Irish," on the other hand, influenced by the 
 bishops and clergy, and fondly hoping to establish their 
 
 ^independence, were inexorably opposed to all overtures 
 which did not tend to secure to them freedom of conscience, 
 and the public exercise of their religion. Naturally 
 enough, Scarampi advocated the views of the bishops, 
 
 ^ and, in his capacity of envoy from the Holy See, ex- 
 horted the assembly, in the name of the Sovereign Pon- 
 tiff, not to recede an inch from their 'vantage, but to 
 prosecute the war and insist on such terms as a weak 
 and beleagured government could not dare to refuse. 
 And, although it has been the lot of this man to fall 
 under the censure of such writers as Carte and Leland, 
 he was perfectly right in principle; nor let us, who daily 
 echo tlie sentiment tliat " England's infirmity must be 
 
 4 Ireland's opportunity," dare to impeach the policy of a 
 friendly stranger, who, two hundred and three years 
 ago entertained the same view and gave utterance to a cor- 
 responding conviction. It has been the work of more 
 tlian two centuries to shake off these penal fetters which 
 must ever be a disgrace to English legislation. The 
 man who has done the mighty worlc stands proudly pre- 
 eminent as the greatest of his day. Had he done nothing 
 more than unrivet those chains, he shohld go down to 
 his grave canonized in the remembrance of his couutry- 
 
 • Borhise says that the Pope sent the Irish a pardon for all mannei 
 tf sins. The charge w;is repeated by Lord Orreiy, but ia nobly ro- 
 tated by Dr. I'rcnch in the " Bleeuhijj Iphigeiiiu." 
 
COIfFEDKRATION OF KILKENNY. 7^ 
 
 men ; and shall we join our own misrepresenters -when 
 they endeavour to cast blame on the head of him who 
 strove to do, in a moment of our greatest triumph, that 
 which O'Connell has effected after centuries of division, 
 weakness, and misrule? Forbid it, justice; for, come 
 honest counsel whence it may, or a helping hand from the 
 most distant region — be it Greek, Hindoo, or Roman — 
 we should not be ungrateful for kindness. And what Avaa 
 required in Scarampi's time? — unanimity, stern resolve, 
 and a march on Dublin. AVith an army in each of the 
 three provinces, and the most unparalleled enthusiasm 
 on the part of the people, and some great leader whose 
 command to "follow" all would have hearkened to— 
 what bitter ages of hate, and strife, awd degradation, 
 might we not have escaped ! But it was otherwise or- 
 dained — there was yet wanting a spirit of union ; and 
 even noAv, after so many painful lessons, what but the 
 same prolific source of evil stands in the way of our na- 
 tionality ? But, thank heaven, " we preach a land 
 awoken."* 
 
 We have already seen that the question of tlie truce 
 with Ormond had been adjourned for a month ; but, 
 although he had the king's peremptory order to carry it 
 into execution, he Avas in no hurry to comply with the 
 royal mandate. However, tlie reverses which he had sus- 
 tained began to make a deep impression on him, and 
 determined him to adopt another course. Want of 
 money and provisions had reduced him to the direst 
 straits; and. the condition of his troops and chief gar- 
 rison is thus described by an eye-witness : — " The state 
 and the army," says Sir P. Percival, "were in the 
 greatest distress. The streets of Dublin had no manner 
 of victuals many times for one day, so that the soldiers 
 would not move without money, shoes, and stockings; 
 for want of which, many had marched barefooted, and 
 had bled much on the road ; and others, through un- 
 wholesome food, had become diseased, and died." Yet, 
 notwithstanding this state of misery, Ormond was more 
 anxious to cater to the parliamentary faction than serve 
 the king ; but he hated the federative government, and 
 BCt his heart upon destroying it ; in fact, nothing, save 
 
 *Dnflfy, in the Sr'-it cf fiie Nation. 
 
76 CONFEDERATION OP KILKENNY. 
 
 the ruin which stared him in the face, could hare Induced 
 liim to resume the negotiation which liad been broken 
 off. Towards tlie end of June he called the richest of 
 the citizens of Dublin before him, when be delivered a 
 
 ^ motion in writing, " that if £10,000 could be raised, 
 the one-half in money, and the other in victuals, to be 
 brought in within a fortnight, he would break off the 
 treaty, and proceed in the war;" but the citizens were 
 unable to supply his demand. Sir H. Tichbourne, a 
 gloomy fanatic, then tried to raise £300 a-piece from the 
 members of the council board ; but he, too, failed ; and 
 yet, at this very moment, the confederates were well 
 supplied with men, arms, and money, and might have 
 overwhelmed the- designing Ormond and his faithless 
 colleagues, had the councils of the "old Irish" happily 
 prevailed. *' 'Twas the crisis of their affairs"* — the most 
 active moment of two conflicting principles, and the 
 conduct of the time-serving Pale lords, ruined and dis- 
 graced the country. They well knew that at this mo- 
 ment the country might have been their own, and that 
 they could have driven Ormond, Tichbourne, and their 
 famished mercenaries into the sea, and then flung them- 
 §elves heart and soul into the royal cause, and saved thp 
 monarchy ; but such was not their policy, for they lacked 
 the proper spirit. 
 
 But a rumour was industriously circulated by thft 
 Pale lords, that the king was inclined to dissolve the 
 , present parliament, and call a new one by the 10th 
 of November following, and Ormond was authorised 
 to assure them of his majesty's good intentions. The 
 latter was aware of the dissensions which were at 
 work, and by his agents artfully contrived to foment 
 
 ^them. Many, nay, nearly all the lords and gentry 
 of the Pale Avere his relatives or dependants, and he 
 cajoled them with soft words, and flattering compli. 
 ments. Astutely hiding his own distressed condition, 
 te pretended that he was acting Avith friendly feelings, 
 and his artifice prevailed to his satisfaction. 
 
 One event, however, had well night marred his plans. 
 
 Though the supersedeas for Parsons had long since 
 
 -come, it had not been acted on. Thus was this infamous 
 
 • Dntlin Review, June, 1844. Percival'B Statemei.t m ^mic. 
 
CONf liI>£RATION OF KILKENNY. i 
 
 raaji alloT'fid to take share at the council board iu 
 Dublin. A short time before that appointed for the 
 meeting between Ormond and the confederate commis- 
 sioners. Parsons wrote a letter to the supreme council, 
 touching an exchange of prisoners, couched in the 
 following terms : — 
 
 " We, the lords justices, do declare, that if Captain Fairer be re- 
 leased by the rebels, we ynll give orders for the releasincj Synnott 
 lately employed as captain among the rebels, the jailor's dues being 
 first paid." 
 
 'To this insolent document the supreme council re- 
 turned the following reply : — 
 
 "We do not know to whom this certificate is directed, neither shall 
 it be safe hereafter for any messenger to bring any paper to us con- 
 taining other language than suits our duty, and the atfections we beir 
 to his majesty's service, wherein some may pretend, but none sliall 
 have more real desires to farther his majesty's interests, than his ma- 
 jesty's loyal and obedieut subjects, 
 
 " MOONTGARRET. MUSKERRT." 
 
 Startled by this manly reply, which nothing but 
 insult could have drawn from them, Ormond became 
 alarmed. He did not know how soon Preston might 
 be on the north bank of tlie LiflTey, there was no 
 time to be lost, and he determined to strike a blow 
 which he knew would give pleasure to his friends and 
 partisans in the supreme council. Parsons, Loftus, 
 Meredith, and the veracious Sir John Temple, of 
 ghOst-seeing notoriety, were arrested. Parsons pleaded 
 impaired health, and the rest were committed prisoners 
 to the castle on charge of contravening the royal 
 amII. Sir Henry Tichbourne and Sir John Borlase 
 were appointed lords justices, and Mountgarret, Gor- 
 .manstown, and Muskerry openly boasted that they 
 had got rid of their most inveterate enemies. Ormond's 
 policy triumphed, and the question of the cessation was 
 immediately resumed. In vain did the few members 
 of the "old Irish" who were in the supreme council 
 inveigh against it ; they were in a minority from the 
 beginning, and tliose who were opposed to them placed 
 all their nopes in the genius of the marquess. 
 
 Perhaps there is no more humiliating scene in the 
 entire of these transactions than that which followed- 
 Oa the 16th September 1643, Muskerry, Dillon, Plunket, 
 
78 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Talbot, Barnwell, Neale, Brown, Walsh, and Maginnil 
 Btood bare-headed before Ormond's tent, at Sigginstown, 
 '' in the county Kildare, while ' ' he alone wore hat and 
 plume," prepared to sign a truce which was intended 
 to last an entire year. It will be necessary to ex- 
 tract some of the articles of this treaty for the satis- 
 faction of the reader, but before we do so, it is necessary 
 to premise, that before the ink in which it was written 
 dried, the confederate commissioners discovered that 
 Ormond had no notion of calling a new parliament, 
 although he knew that the present one was irregular 
 and illegal.* 
 
 ABBREVIATE OF THE TREATY. 
 "It was agreea that the Roman Catholics now in arms at any 
 time during the ceusation, may send to his majesty such agents as 
 they shiUI think tit, ana that the said agents shall have a free 
 coral uct from the chief governors of this kingdom. 
 
 " It is agreed that the Quarters in the province of Connaughtbe the 
 following, viz. : — that the county Galway, tlie county town of 
 Gaiway, the counties of Mayo, Roscommon, Sligo, and Leitiim, now 
 in pussession of the Roman Catholics, shall, during thu said 
 cess;ition, remain in their possession. 
 
 "It is agreed tKat the quarters of the province of Leinster be 
 the following, viz. : — that the county Dublin, the county of the city 
 of Dublin, the county of the city of Droghela, and the county 
 Louth, shall remain in possession of his majesty's Protestant 
 Bubjects. 
 
 " It is agreed that the county Tipperary, the county Limerick, the 
 coimty Kerry, the county Waterford, and the county Clare, shall be in 
 possession of the Roman Catholics, except Knockmorne, Ardmore, 
 Pilltown, Cappoquin, Ballinetra, Stroncally, Lismore, and Lisfinny. 
 "The quarters Ui Ulster are to be as followeth, viz. -.—That such 
 counties, baronies, tenements, hereditaments as are now possessed 
 by any of his majesty's Protestant subjects, o.' any that adhere to 
 them, and all places protected by any commainiers deriving autho- 
 rity from the king, shall be in their possession, excepting such 
 lands, castles, &c. &c. as are pow in possession of tlie Roman 
 CftthoUcs." 
 
 The rest of the articles regard traffic and free 
 intercourse between England and Ireland, and the 
 rules to be observed by both parties regarding the ex- 
 change of prisoners. 
 
 Sorely annoyed as were the "old Irish,'* by the 
 conchision of the truce, the parli-imentnry party did 
 not feel it less. The Karl of CoFl^, aocordin ,' to 
 Borlase, "took it so much to heart that he diedsoon 
 
 + Carte, iii. 430. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 79 
 
 after, as he did not ^vish to survive what he suspected 
 might not be conducible to the English interest." 
 jBroghill and Inchiquin were altogether opposed to it ; 
 -ind the latter, seeing it carried against his unavailing 
 /emonstrance, betook himself to England, and made 
 an offer of his services to the king. It is probable 
 that Charles set no value on his assurances; and as 
 soon as he learned that the presidency of Munster 
 ras about to be bestowed on the Earl of Portland, he 
 /•eturned to Ireland, confirmed in his hatred of the 
 faithless monarch. But as for Ormond, he had gained 
 all he could have wished. Jealousies and rancorous 
 feelings grew up amongst the confederates, and the men 
 who hitherto dared not to cross the Liffey without hazard 
 to their lives, became fawning courtiers " and expect- 
 ants of office; but to none did the cessation give less 
 satisfaction than to the Catholic inhabitants of Ulster. 
 The provisions which were made for that province gave 
 Munroe and his adventurers both claim and title to all 
 the lands and tenements which they then held, as they 
 did to those intruders who had long since hunted out 
 the rightful owners. Yet, as the orders emanated from 
 the supreme council, they were rigidly observed, though 
 the population smarted under a sense of the injustice 
 which was done them. 
 
 The advantages derived by Ormond from his able 
 diplomacy may be collected from the fact, that hitherto 
 the confederate ships intercepted all supplies, and left 
 Dublin in such a state, that upon search being made 
 in the city and suburbs, there could not be found 
 fourteen days' provisions for the inhabitants and 
 soldiers.* 
 
 But now the ports and the approaches to them were 
 left open, and he began to gather in supplies of corn 
 and other stores, which restored to him the confidence 
 of the soldiers and citizens, and made him a match for 
 any section of the confederate army which might be 
 induced to violate the cessation. One article of that 
 fatal instrument obhged Ormond to join his forces with 
 those of the confederates in punishing those who would 
 be guilty of the shghtest infraction of the treaty ; but 
 
 • Sir Phil. Percival's Statement. 
 
50 
 
 CONFEDERATION OF JiSHi&Wr. 
 
 we shall soon see how faithlessly he regarded it. The 
 Scotch forces, " recent and veterate," in Ulster at thipiuo- 
 
 / inent, amounted to 20,000 men; and " memorable Mun- 
 roe"* was in direct communication with the parlinmeut. 
 About the beginning of November the infamous Owen 
 Connolly (who betrayed the plot of Lord Maguiref and hia 
 brave associates to seize the Castle of Dublin in 1641) came 
 over with a commission from the parliament, and an or- 
 der to the Scotch to take the covenant as the parliament 
 had done on the 25th of September. On bended 
 knees, in the kirk of Carrickfergus, Munroe com- 
 plied with the wishes of the rebels, who sent him 
 supplies of money, arms, and provisions, with an in- 
 junction to denounce with lire and sword all who 
 sliould observe the cessation. 
 
 It was at this period that the Marquess af Antrim (m ho 
 
 t having escaped Ijom Carrickfergus and proceeded to 
 England) returned to Kilkenny. A zealot in the royal 
 cause, he gladly took the oath of association. He me-. 
 dilated being appointed to some high post of honour 
 amongst them. This nobleman found the supreme 
 council in every way favourable to his views, and ap- 
 parently intent on squandering their resOTirces. Antrim, 
 now created marquess by the king's privy seal, proposed 
 
 f to raise 3,000 men to assist Montrose in Scotland, and 
 they agreed to furnish him with 2,000 muskets, 2,400 
 pounds of powder, and 200 barrels of oatmeal, which 
 were to be ready by the 1st of May following, and 
 shipped to Scotland by Mr. Archer, a merchant of Kil- 
 kenny — an instance of fatuity which was quite in keep- 
 ing with the voluntary offering of £30,000, which was 
 
 ' not, in the strict sense, what its advocates pretended, in- 
 asmuch as it Avas to be levied on a people who had been 
 basely plundered by the ministers of the crown. 
 
 Another disadvantage which this cessation brought on 
 the Irish, was the departure from their coasts of most ol 
 
 ♦ the shijis which had been chartered by the supreme 
 
 • Legend of Montrose. 
 
 t Corn, lyiaguire ( Lord Enniskillen) was esecuted at Tyburn on the 
 20tb of February, l(i44. Ko martyr at the stake ever died more trne 
 to God and his faith. His trial is to be found at the eud of TeraHe't 
 Hist., and also in the State Trials. See Dub, Keview, March, 1845, whftre 
 there is a letter concerning him 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKEXWT. 81 
 
 coTincils in the earlier time of the war. Every creeh 
 and harbour suddenly became infested with the parlia- 
 mentary cruisers, so much so, that it was difficult to 
 Bend men or money out of Ireland. The orders is- 
 sued by the parliament to their partisans, on the land, 
 were only equalled by the Algerine ferocity of their 
 cruisers on the seas. Out of 150 men, who about this 
 time sailed for Bristol, and who were taken by one 
 Swanly at sea, seventy, besides two women, were 
 thrown over board because they were supposed to be 
 Irish.* Nor did the Irish retaliate; for, soon afterwards 
 falling in with a ship which had on board fifty kirk 
 ministers deputed to preach up and administer the co- 
 venant in Ulster, they contented themselves Avith 
 making them prisoners. This fatal truce was the source 
 of all these miseries, and the coast which hitherto liad 
 been so watchfully guarded, Avas now swarming with 
 rebel ships, "whose commanders sliowed no mercy to 
 such as had the misfortune to fall into their hands. "f 
 
 When the news of the cessation had reached Oxford, 
 the king determined to appoint the Marquess of Ormond 
 lord lieutenant of Ireland ; but, on account of the tem- 
 pestuous state of the Aveather, and the difficulty in ad- 
 justing the form of procuring the Earl of Leicester's 
 resignation, the commission was not issued till the mid- 
 dle of January, 1644. On the 21st of that month he 
 was sworn in with all proper forms and ceremonies. J 
 We have now arrived at the beginning of a year which 
 witnessed many sorroAvs and reverses in Ireland, and it is 
 necessary that Ave pass them rapidly in revicAv before us. 
 
 Ormond's elevation to the viceroyalty Avas calculated 
 to raise the hopes of that portion of the confederates who 
 placed all confidence in him, and naturally gave him a 
 fairer opportunity of deluding and deceiving them. The 
 "old Irish," on the other hand, did not reckon on any ad- 
 vantage to be derived from his administration. He had 
 no real sympathy Avith them, and they deeply deplored 
 the conclusion of the treaty, which was likely to giA'e 
 Jinother direction to the popular mind. Some Avere of 
 opinion that the truce tended to abate that martial ar- 
 
 » Ormond's Let. Collect, of his papers, vol. i. p. 48. 
 t Cartes Orm. vol. iil. p. 246. J Carte, i. 47S. 
 
62 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 dour which characterised the people since the rising of 
 1641 ; and others, like Father OTerrall,* bitterly re- 
 gretted that the lords and gentry of the Pale had ever 
 
 , been "trusted in so holy a league." That such should have 
 been the sentiments of the "old Irish" is only natural, 
 when we find it admitted, on the authority of Carte, that 
 they had nothing to get by a cessation, and " were only 
 fit to be sent to Scotland to deliver his majesty out of 
 his troubles." f In fact, such was the dislike entertained 
 by them for the entire proceeding, that De la Monarie, 
 the envoy from the French court, and Francisco deFos- 
 set, the envoy from Spain, had no difiiculty in getting 
 
 ^ men to embark in the service of their respective crowns, 
 
 " wl)ile the greatest reluctance prevailed against going into 
 England ; in truth, the continental courts had strong 
 claims on the affections of the Irish, for even a short time 
 before Ormond's inauguration his Catholic majesty had 
 forwarded 20,000 dollars to the confederates. This sum 
 was expended on arms and ammunition. Their agents, 
 too, were kindly received in the foreign capitals, and 
 were willingly aided by the nobility and gentry, who re- 
 garded them as engaged in a holy crusade. But the 
 lord lieutenant well knew that the treaty itself would 
 furnish ample material for dispute and bloodshed, and 
 he calculated wisely. The question of boundaries, which 
 was not well defined, was of itself fashioned to engender 
 broils between the parties ; but what cared he if the Ca- 
 tholics became broken up and disorganised ? Division 
 was his object, and he had copiously sowed its seeds. He 
 only looked to the dissohition of that union which was 
 once so formidable, and diplomacy like his was capable 
 of eflTecting it. 
 
 It was at tliis period that the supreme council com- 
 missioned Edmund O'DwyerJ to proceed to Home, and 
 
 , present to Pope Urban a memorial, signed and sealed by 
 
 * He was a Capuchin fiiar, and wrote a book with the following 
 title— " Modus Eversionis Cath. Religionis in Hibemia." Lynch, the 
 author of " Cambrensis Eversus," published a reply under the name of 
 " Eudoxus Alithinoloffus." It is quoted by Walsh in the Hist, of the 
 Rem., p. 740. 
 
 t Carte's Orm., 1. 477. 
 
 J He was afterwards Bishop of Limerick, and signalised himself when 
 Ireton besieged the city. 
 
CONPEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 83 
 
 them, praying his holiness to promote Wadding to the 
 college of cardinals. * 
 
 But that portion of it which must interest us most is 
 their report on the state of Catholicity in Ireland at tliis 
 period of the confederacy. It was thus described : 
 
 " It is now manifest to the whole Christian world with what fidelity 
 the Catholics of Ireland have cluns to their ancient faith, and how 
 tliey braved death, and exile, and the confiscation of their substance, 
 rather than renounce the religion of their ancestors. To you, most 
 holy father, it is particularly known how heroically the Irish people, 
 without arms or munitions of war, have struggled against the phalanxes 
 of those who, sworn enemies of the holy see, had vowed and sworn to 
 pluck up our religion by the very roots. Our holy war has had a glo- 
 rious result. The Lord God is now publicly worshipped in our temples, 
 after the manner of our fathers; most of the cathedrals have been re- 
 stored to our bishops; the relijxious orders possess the monasteries, and 
 seminaries have been opened for the education of our youth. This 
 great work has been accomplished through the goodness of God and 
 the many favors bestowed on us by you; verily, in future times the 
 brightest page in the history of your pontificate shall be, that you found 
 the Catholic religion despised and prostrate in our island, and ere that 
 pontificate closed beheld it raised up in splendoui-, and magnificently 
 attired, even as a bride for her spouse." t 
 
 During these transactions the supreme council held its 
 sittings at Waterford, and a question was raised as to the 
 prudence of pawning that portion of the kingdom then 
 in their possession to some foreign court, in order to raise 
 money. Owen Hoe was summoned to give his opinion, 
 when he repudiated the idea of giving any foreign power 
 •^ " an interest in Ireland." He then proceeded to Cliar- 
 lemont, where he remained some time with Theobald 
 Magauly, tlie governor of the fort, and finally fixed his 
 head-quarters at Belturbet. Lulled into false security by 
 the cessation, the supreme council proceeded to Galway, 
 and some of the other towns, to hear cases touching usur- 
 pations of property, and adjudicate on civil concerns 
 whicli, in the din of arms, could not have been properly 
 attended to. 
 
 Having returned to Kilkenny, a very considerable pe- 
 riod seems to have been wasted in collecting those sup- 
 plies which it was their intention to have transmitted to 
 England. It was agreed that the sum of £30,800 should 
 be paid by instalments of money and "beeves;" but it 
 
 * In the Writers of the Seventeenth Centur}- Mr. M'Gee haa beautl- 
 ' folly ti-eated this subject. 
 
 t Vide Ilib. I.'ora., in Append, p. 87G 
 
CONi-EDEKATION OF KII.KKNN^ 
 
 would appear that "lere was great difficulty in procuring 
 advances of kind and coin. Charges were made almost 
 daily of a violation of the articles of cessation by both 
 parties : and Ormond did not conceal his displeasure at 
 the slowness with which the confederates sent the beeves 
 ' to Dublin. One of the strangest of the charges advanced 
 against the supreme council at this moment was, that 
 they forwarded cattle of a very inferior description, and 
 took away 369 head of the choicest English cows and 
 
 * bullocks from the suburbs of Dublin, thus exposing the 
 inhabitants to the very danger from wliich it was the ob- 
 ject of the cessation to protect them. Tliis charge is made 
 upon dubious authority, for it is certain that the conre- 
 derates had the best intentions, however short-sighted 
 
 t their policy may have been. Perhaps no fact is more 
 calculated to vindicate tliem from such aspersions than 
 the conduct which Ormond was forced to adopt regard- 
 ing the forces which he sent to the king's aid in England. 
 When the cessation was concluded, several regiments, 
 drawn from the garrisons in and about Dublin, got orders 
 to proceed to Chester; " but such was the reluctancy of 
 the common soldiers, that the sharpest proclamations 
 
 • hardly restrained them from flying their colours, both 
 before and after their arrival in England." ' Indeed, to 
 such a state of insubordination and disaffection had they 
 been brought, that Ormond was forced to administer an 
 oath obliging his mercenaries to remain firm in tlieir al- 
 legiance to the king. Not so, however, with such of the 
 Catholics as could cross the sea, and stand by his majesty 
 in his struggle against the parliament. Their fidelity was 
 only equalled by their valour and chivalrous conduct 
 against the overwhelming forces under the command of 
 Fairfax. 
 
 But, as to the cessation, the only towns which can be 
 said to have obsei'ved it were Newry, Dundalk, and 
 
 , Drogheda. Munroe was encouraged by the parliament, 
 as we have already seen, to disregard it ; and, if he re- 
 quired any further stimulant, he had already got it in a 
 commission, under the parliament's broad seal, to com- 
 
 ^ mand in chief all the English as well as Scotch forces in 
 Ulster. On receipt of tlie commission lie commenced a 
 
 y- 
 
 • Borlase'a Hist, of the Irish Insur.. p. 135. 
 
CONFEDKRATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 campaign against the Catholics, who religiously obeyed 
 the orders of tlie supreme council, which, on the intel- 
 ligence of his perfidy, wrote to Ormond that these Cove- 
 nanters "were diverting them from assisting his majesty, 
 and eating further into the bowels of the country."* 
 This was obviously meant to induce Ormond to declare 
 ' Munroe and his followers rebels to the crown. But th« 
 Jrily lord lieutenant did not find it his interest to take 
 such a step. 
 
 A subject of the most momentous importance was 
 now mooted by the supreme council, regarding pro- 
 positions to be submitted to the king ; and in order to 
 take their attention from mere matters of war, Ormond 
 encouraged them to proceed to Oxford, and lay their 
 case before his majesty. At the very same time a cabal 
 in Dublin was maturing a scheme to counteract any ad- 
 vantage which the Catholics were likely to derive from 
 an interview with the king. Muskerry, MacDonnell, 
 ^Plunket, Sir Robert Talbot, Dermid O'Brien, Richard 
 ' Martin, and Severinus Browne, formed the deputation, 
 which Reached England about the beginning of April, 
 and, having arrived at Oxford, presented a statement oi 
 grievances, and earnestly prayed for the repeal of all 
 the penal restrictions, which not only disqualified them 
 from holding civil offices in the state, but weighed most 
 heavily on their religion and the practices it inculcated. 
 
 To all their demands the king gave willing ear, and 
 flattering assurances ; but one grand subject, which had 
 ^ been warmly debated by the council at Waterford, pre- 
 vious to the departure of the delegates, was regarded by 
 his majesty as little less than scandalous. This was the 
 secure possession of the churches then in their hands ; 
 , and the king declared that he would reserve it for his 
 future consideration. An earldom was offered to 
 Muskerry, which he declined, and the commissioners re- 
 tired from the royal presence with an abundance of soft 
 * words, but witliout a single practical result. 
 
 It is hard to imagine any state of greater difficulty 
 than that of the king at this moment ; for the confede- 
 rate commissioners had not left England, when Sir 
 , Cliarles Coote and others, deputed by the Protestants of 
 
 • Korlas*. 
 
fe6 i^NrSDERATION OF KILKENKT. ^ 
 
 jreland, presented propositions asking, amongst otbef 
 concessions, tliat " the king would abate his quit-vt.Ms, 
 and encourage and enable Protestants to replant the 
 kingdom, and cause a good walled town to be built in 
 every county for their security, no Papist being allowed 
 to dwell therein." The second demand was not less 
 extravagant. They prayed his majesty " to continue the 
 penal laws, and to dissolve forthwith the assumed 
 power of the confederates, and banish all Popish priests 
 out of Ireland, and that ncv Popish recusant should be 
 allowed to sit or vote in parliament." The king was 
 amazed at the peremptory manner in which these 
 propositions were enforced ; but it was conjectured that 
 they were concocted in London, with a view to obstruct 
 any accommodation with the Irish, and, in all pro. 
 bability, to induce them to a violation of the truce.. 
 But commissioners soon after came from the council 
 in Dublin, at the head of whom was Archbishop 
 Usher, who condemned Coote's extravagance, and 
 requested him to withdraw these revolting demands. 
 
 But, though Ai-chbishop Usher inveighed' against 
 the proposals of tliese fanatics, the propositions which 
 he submitted to Charles I. were not far removed from 
 the intolerant spirit of Coote. On the part of the 
 Irish Protestants, he desired: — "That all the penal 
 laws should be enforced, and all Papists disarmed." 
 The king clearly pointed out the impracticability of such 
 measures, at a moment when the confederate Catholics 
 possessed more than three parts of the kingdom. The 
 queen, too, influenced "the royal M'ill on this occasion, 
 and sought to impress on the mind of her consort, 
 that the Catholics were well worthy of his confidence. 
 Indeed, it is more than likely that whatever kindness 
 fee had shown the confederate commissioners, was the 
 result of her majesty's interference. And, before we 
 close this brief glance at this portion of our subject, 
 we may sum up in a few words the amount of his 
 good intenticiis towards the Irish Catholics. He waa 
 willing to pass h.a aH for removing from them any 
 iucapacvtv to purchase lands or offices, and had no 
 objection to allowing *' recusants their seminaries of 
 education." He wa^ content to call a new parliament 
 ill Jreland, but, without the suspension of Poyning'a 
 
COSfFEDERATION OF KILKENNY ^^ 
 
 law. In all matters regarding penal enactments, hg 
 stated that these statutes were too odious to be en 
 forced, and that his recusant subjects, on returning tr» 
 their duty, should liave no reason to complain. He then 
 dismissed them with a pathetic admonition to considef 
 his circumstances as their own. 
 
 Whilst the king was cajoling the commissioners 
 with these kind promises, on which they placed but 
 too much reliance, Munroe was carrying the orders of 
 
 * the parliament into execution. The general assembly, 
 alarmed by tlie imposing force of the Covenanters, sent 
 orders to Owen Roe to appear in Kilkenny on the 1st 
 of May. It was about this time that the Scotch 
 general had seized Belfast. O'Neill complained bitterly 
 of the distress of the men under his command, stating 
 that he would be obliged to quarter them on the oth-e? 
 provinces. He then made an offer to prosecute the 
 war against Munroe, if he was seconded by tlie supreme 
 council, for whom he promised to raise 4,000 foot and 
 400 horse out of his own province. The council ac- 
 cepted his offer, and agreed to give him 6,000 foot 
 and 600 horse. When the question of command was 
 raised, it was put to the vote, and Castlehaven was 
 declared by a majority commander-in-chief. O'Neill 
 took it seriously to heart, but subsequently went to 
 congratulate Castlehaven. But, even at this time, the 
 effects produced by the cessation were deplorably visible, 
 for the man who now was vested with the chief com 
 mand, declared that the troops who were to take part 
 in the approaching campaign, came to the rendezvous 
 "like new men half changed."* 
 
 Men and horses were untit for service ; and the accou- 
 trements were not in a better condition. With 2,000 
 men, Castlehaven marched rapidly into Connaught to 
 
 . enforce the orders of the supreme council, and soon 
 after detached some parties to reduce the Ormsbys, who 
 would not submit to the cessation. Owen Roe was en- 
 camped at Portlester about July, when Castleliaven 
 marched on Granard, in the county Longford, where 
 he was met by his main force, consisting of 3,000 horse 
 
 'wttd foot, with three field-pieces. He was soon informe/ 
 
 T CasUeliaven's Men). ^47. 
 
OS CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 that Munroe, with an army 17,000 strong, was marching 
 
 ' to meet him. Fearing to encomiter such superior num- 
 bers, he retired on Portlester. Munroe, having accom- 
 plished his object, which was to get preys of cattle, 
 marched back to tlie north, after having wasted the 
 
 country in his rear, and dealt death about him 
 
 Throughout these marchings and counter-marchings 
 there was a misunderstanding between the two com- 
 manders. In some skirmish with outposts, one Fennell, 
 who commanded under Castlehaven, stood passively by 
 
 ^ while some of O'Neill's kinsmen were hacked to pieces 
 before his face. O'Neill, who had been sick during the 
 action, styled Castlehaven's officers cowards, and the 
 commander bitterly resented it, when O'Neill repeated 
 the charge, saying: " This Fennell, the cowardly cock 
 with the feather, had the craven-heartedness to look on 
 whilst my relatives were being slain, and moved not an 
 inch to their succour — to the supreme council, who em- 
 ployed us both, he shall answer for this." 
 
 Castlehaven, soon after this occurrence, called on 
 O'Neill for the supplies he had promised ; but the latter 
 excused himself, saying: "That as soon as they had 
 
 , entered Ulster he would make good his word." They 
 then united their forces, and proceeded to Tanderagee, 
 and erected a fort to protect their magazine. Nothing 
 of consequence transpired during their progress ; they 
 were, however, engaged in perpetual skirmishes with 
 outposts ; nor did Munroe dare to face them. He had 
 advanced as far as Armagh; but soon broke up his 
 camp. Castlehaven finally grew tired of a war, which 
 
 , he had not patience or military talent to appreciate, and 
 hastened back to Kilkenny, where he boasted that the 
 confederacy owed its preservation to his skill and perse- 
 verance. The army under his command now amounted 
 to 8,000 men ; and commissioners were appointed to sec 
 them quartered in different parts of Leinster, within the 
 confederate boundaries. O'Neill, disgusted Avith tlie 
 
 ^ vapourings of the man wh had been preferred to him, 
 letired to the county Cav n, anxiously watching the 
 progress of events. 
 
 Scrupulously as the Irisli Catholics observed the ces- 
 ■ation, it was treated with contempt by Inchiquiu and 
 
 f Lord Broghill in the south. Early ^n July they for- 
 
CONFEDBKATION OF KILKEI<fj»^. (r^ 
 
 warded letters to the king, beseeching hira to proclaim 
 \he Irish, "rebels," and stating tliat they were resolved 
 to "die a thousand deaths" sooner than condescend to 
 any peace with thera.* They then set fortli that their 
 quarters, which extended from Youghal to Mogeely, and 
 thence to Cork, had been pillaged by the Catholics, who 
 were intent on prejudicing the royal cause. The par- 
 liament seconded Inchiquin's designs, as it did those of 
 Munroe in the north. One Mathews, a friar, was ac- 
 cused of a design to seize the city of Cork, and Inchi- 
 quin caused him to be tried, and soon after executed ; 
 nor did this miscreant content himself with these atro- 
 cities—aping the pharasaical cant of the parliament, he 
 justified all his barbarous proceedings by an appeal to 
 his religious sentiments, which taught him that "he 
 was acting for the gospel, and that if he died for it, he 
 should be held as a perfect martyr, "f Early in August 
 he collected a large body of troops, and expelled all the 
 Catholic inhabitants out of Cork, Youghal, and Kin- 
 sale. J The parliament applauded the act, gave him 
 promise of supplies, and hinted that he might be ap- 
 pointed to the presidency of Munster. It was idle to 
 think that the plundered and persecuted inhabitants 
 would not resent these cruelties ; and yet such was the 
 anxiety of the supreme council for the inviolate observ- 
 ance of the cessation, that they ordered Lieutenant- 
 General Purcell to punish those who had been guilty of 
 the slightest infraction. Ormond was importuned by the 
 confederates to enforce the obedience of Munroe and 
 Inchiquin ; but he was secretly encouraging the conduct 
 of those rebels, and rejoiced at every misery which befel 
 the Catholics. 
 
 And yet, in the midst of these multiplied troubles, the 
 confederates were not unmindful of the promises which 
 they had given to aid the king. It is true that the im- 
 poverished state of the kingdom would not allow them 
 to raise such an enormous sum as they had promised to 
 advance ; but they sedulously endeavoured to forward 
 
 » Borlase, p. 146. 
 
 t Inchiquin's letter to the parliament, in Eorlase, p. 149. 
 i '• Allowing them to take no more of tlieir goods with them than 
 rhat they could carry on tlieir backs."'— Jorte* Orm. 
 
90 CCNFEDERATION OF KILKENNT. 
 
 all t]iey could through the agency of Onnond. Th© 
 ♦troops which they had guaranteed to raise for Montrose 
 were tiiree months waiting for an opportunity of cross* 
 jng the sea, while the parliament sliips were watching to 
 hitercept them. Lord Antrim, liowever, contrived to 
 embark 2,500 men at Waterford and other ports, and, 
 though it be a digression, we may not overlook their ser- 
 vices.* 
 
 These men Avere commanded by a Catholic — Alexan- 
 der M'Donnell, alias Colkitto. When they arrived in 
 ^ Scotland, within Argyle's bounds, they marched to Cas- 
 tleblair, in Athol, where they were joined by Montrose, 
 " who went on foot, with his target and pike." On the 
 1st of September they were reinforced by the bowmen 
 under Lord Kilpunt, and encountered the Covenanters, 
 who had an army of 8,000 foot and 800 horse, at St. 
 JohnstoAvn. The' Covenanters j were three or four to 
 *• one, buff the Irish routed them with such fearful effect 
 " that men might have walked upon dead bodies to the 
 town, being two miles long from the place where the 
 battle Avas pitched." On the 13th of the same month 
 they defeated 3,000 foot and 500 horse, with three pieces 
 of cannon, at Aberdeen. They then marched to Glen- 
 garry and Inverloughy Castle, which they stormed, rout- 
 ing Argyle and Aghenbracke, and taking their stan- 
 dards, arms, and ammunition. J 
 
 Such signal valour made due impression on the king, 
 who did not fail to commend it in his despatches to Or- 
 mond. Indeed, he could have had no more convincing 
 reason for impressing on the mind of his lieutenant-ge- 
 neral the necessity of a speedy accommodation Avith his 
 
 • It is Arorth remarking that Clarendon, Avho disparages Lord An- 
 trim, has drawn an over-coloui-ed picture of Clanricarde. Ko one. 
 doubts the loyalty of the latter; hut viewing him as an Irishman, he 
 seems to have had little or no feeling of nationality. On the strength 
 of Clarendon's statement, Mr. Jloore, in the fourth volume of his His 
 tory of Ireland, calls Antrim " an absurd lord." Clarendon hated An- 
 trim personallj', as appears from Carte's Oim , vol. ii., p. "28'2. 
 
 + One's hand must tremble in transcribing the battle-cry of th&ia 
 ffinatics; but it is an evident proof of the frenzy to which that horriil 
 eatlmsiasm, so often mistaken for religion, can rais3 men's minda. 
 " Jesus and no quarter" were the ^tird.-s uttered by the Covenantors in 
 this engagement with Montrose. — Graing. biograph., vol. ii., p. 245. 
 
 % Collection of Original Papers, fouftd among the Duke of Ormond'l 
 Bftpers, vol. i., p. 73. 
 
CONPEDERATIOH OF KILKENNf. 5l 
 
 Irish Catholic subjects ; and it is likely that his desire 
 for concluding a peace with them originated in the con- 
 sideration of the effectual services of the men who hum- 
 bled these stern Covenanters on their own mountains. 
 Ere we close this rapid view of the events of this year, it 
 is necessary to observe that Urban VIIL, wlio had so 
 cordially befriended the confederates, died early in July, 
 1644, and was succeeded by Innocent X., on the 15th of 
 September of the same year. 
 
 The time for the expiration of the truce was now ap- 
 proaching, and the general assembly, which met in Au- 
 gust, appointed commissioners to treat with Ormond 
 for a renewal. Amongst those named to manage 
 it was Thomas Fleming, Catliohc Archbishop of Dub- 
 lin ; but as Ormond objected to him, Muskerry, Sir 
 R. Talbot, Browne, D'Arcy, Dillon, and Plunket, set 
 out on the 31st of August for Dublin. Upon their ar- 
 rival the cessation was renewed to Deccinber 1, and af- 
 terwards continued to a longer time. * 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 When the confederate commissioners returned to Kil- 
 kenny, Charles I. was congratulating himself on the bril- 
 liant victories achieved by Colkitto and Montrose in 
 Scotland. The hapless monarch naturally began to think 
 that nothing could prove so conducive to liis interests as 
 a peace witli the Irish Catholics ; but, well aware as 
 he was of their oath of association, he must have in- 
 wardly grieved at the idea of being obliged to purchase 
 it at such a price as the free and public exercise of the 
 - Catholic religion. Yet, in truth, the confederates, as it 
 ■^will appear, were the only loyal subjects in Ireland on 
 whose willing liearts he could place true reliance. Dis- 
 affection was contagious, and Inchiquin was already tam- 
 *pering with Lord Esmond, the governor of Duncanaon, 
 and persuading him to declare for the parliament, or sur* 
 
 • Ciirte, i., 51G. 
 
CONFEDERATION O? KILKENNV. 
 
 render that strong place to their forces. As to himself, 
 he had entered into a truce with General Purcell, which 
 
 , was not to expire till the 10th of April following. This 
 act, as precipitate as it was unwise, had heen done to 
 propitiate Ornicnd, who had an overweening notion of 
 Murrogh O'Brien. The consequence was, that he had 
 time to collect forces, and strengtlien himself in the 
 towns out of which lie had expelled the Catholics. The 
 truce which had heen renewed with Ornrond, left the 
 
 , supreme council free to look closely into their circum- 
 stances ; and they resolved to send their agents beyond 
 the seas to the courts of the Catholic princes. *• Their 
 design was, that tliey might know tliemselves what they 
 had to trust to, and what succours they might really de- 
 
 "pend on from abroad; and that, in case they sliould 
 be forced to serve God again in holes and corners, the 
 world might know they had laboured all they could to 
 prevent that misfortune." * For this purpose Father 
 Hugh Bourke was sent to the court of Madrid, to solicit 
 the King of Spain ; Belling, the secretary of the council, 
 had orders to proceed to the Vatican, to congratulate In- 
 nocent X., and to visit the Italian princes, and the Mar- 
 quess of Castle-Rodrigo, governor of the low countries. 
 Hartegan, a priest, remained as their envoy at the French 
 court. The articles of the treaty with Ormond were re- 
 ligiously observed ; and towards the end of December, 
 the king wrote to the lord lieutenant in the following 
 terms : — "I have thought to give you this order, to seek 
 to renew the cessation for a year ; for which you shall 
 promise the Irish, if you can have it no cheaper, to join 
 
 V with them against the Scots and Inchiquin." f Ormond, 
 
 * however, did not attach much importance to these orders, 
 and was in no mood to oppose either Munroe or Inchi- 
 quin ; on the contrary, he had already hinted to liis par- 
 tisans in the council that he meditated a peat e which 
 was calculated to prove advantageous to them. But the 
 flagitious acts passed in the parliament towards the end 
 of September caused the supreme council to take such 
 Bteps as were necessary for their immediate security. 
 Unprotected as the coast was at this moment, they knew 
 not how soon a descent might be made by their enemies; 
 
 • Carte's Oitn., L, 529. ♦ Eeliq. Sacra. Carol. 
 
( 
 
 CONFSDI BATrorf OF KILKENNY. 
 
 and the orders to execute all Irish-born and papists whz 
 might be found upon the seas, struck salutary terror into 
 iiheir hearts. The most important seaports then in their 
 possession were Watcrford, Wexford, and Gal way. The 
 loss of any of tliera must have done incalculable mischief; 
 and a rumour reached them that Esmond was about to sur, 
 render Duncannon. About the beginning of January, 
 Preston was ordered to blockade the fortress ; but this 
 proving too slow a process, he resolved to convert the 
 blockade into a siege. The weather being extremely 
 bad, and a whirlwind prevailing, " which blew the prim- 
 ing off the guns, filling the pans with dust," seriously 
 retarded the operations of the besiegers.* A flotilla was 
 ordered by the parliament to succour the place, but such 
 ■was the perseverance of the confederates that they finally 
 drove out the garrison, after ten weeks' siege. During 
 this time they expended 19,000 lbs. of powder, f and were 
 ably helped by the inhabitants of Hoss and Wexford. 
 Esmond, who was old and blind, died soon after, and 
 thus escaped a punishment which his disloyalty amply 
 deserved. Whilst the confederates were engaged at this 
 siege, the king sent an order to Ormond to conclude a 
 peace with the confederates. The general assembly, 
 which was then sitting, immediately despatched Sir Ni. 
 cholas Plunket and Lord Muskerry to confer vrith him, 
 on the 6th of March, 1645. Ormond, who was fully 
 empowered by the king to abrogate the penal statutes, 
 artfully concealed the royal orders, and referred the 
 commissioners to the decision of his majesty, who had 
 determined that these obnoxious statutes should not be 
 put in execution after the conclusion of a peace. He 
 ihen laboured sedulously to convince them that a sus- 
 pension of Poyning's law could not be conducive to their 
 interests. Amongst some new graces to which he yielded, 
 the Catholics were to be released from all the king's rents 
 an^ revenues which they had received since the begin- 
 ning of the war, with an abolition of all outlawries, at- 
 tainders, and indictments against any of them. The 
 king, he assured them, was willing to confer all places 
 of trust and honour indiscriminately on Catholic and 
 
 • Belling. 276. 1 Carta, i. 538. 
 
H 
 
 CONFEDKUATION OK KILKENNY. 
 
 Protestant subjects; but he indignantly denied that 
 ne liad any notion of employing? an equal number of 
 bo th parties. Witb this unsatisfaetor}^ arrangement, 
 the delegates hastened back to Kilkenny, to report 
 tlie result of their conference to the- assembly — 
 But as the lord lieutenant made no guarantee for 
 religious immunities, save such as the king might 
 be subsequently induced to cede, the great body of the 
 assembly would not subscribe a peace which did not 
 secui'c the public exercise of religion. Scarampi and 
 the bishops would not make any compromise, autl as tlie 
 peace on which Ormond reckoned made no real 
 provisions for the hereditary possession of the Catholics 
 of Ulster, a great majority of the confederates would 
 not hearken to the wily artifices of the viceroy. And 
 no wonder that such terms sliould be rejected witli 
 scorn. The clergy, who exercised the most unbounded 
 influence over their flocks, were secretly informed of 
 the king's intention to grant their most sanguine 
 demands, and, notwithstanding the unseeudy haste of 
 i*lunket and Muskerry to negotiate a peace with 
 Ormond, contrived to obstruct it. But, although tlie 
 commissioners, who favoured Ormond's views, desisted 
 from pressing it in the assembly, they managed to 
 carry on an under-hand negotiation with the lord lieu- 
 tenant in Dublin. Througliout the entire summer tliis 
 unhappy question furnished matter for acrimonious 
 discussion, and strengthened the animosities which had 
 grown up between the lords of the Pale and the " old 
 Irish," at the conclusion of the armistice in 1643. 
 
 But it is necessary to relinquish this important 
 matter for awhile, in order to witness events of 
 another character. The truce with Inchiquin expired 
 on the lOth of April, and the confederates were unani- 
 mous in tlieir resolve to destroy him and his adherent*. 
 For this purpose they ordered Castlehaven to proceed 
 into Munster with an army of 5,000 foot and I,6(X> 
 horse. In a very short time he reduced all the castles 
 in tlifi baronies of Imokilly and Barrymore. Cappo. 
 quin, Droniane, Mitchelstown, Castlelyons, Mallow» 
 Doncraile, Liscarroll, and Lismore surrendered on 
 articles. He next reduced Rostellan, and in it took 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 95 
 
 Colonel H. O'Brien* and Colonel Courtenay. Inchi- 
 qain could not resist, and was obliged to shut himself 
 up in Cork, pursued by Castlehaven, who wasted the 
 country to the very walls of the city. He then besieged 
 Youghal, but owing to some misunderstandings between 
 himself and Preston, he did not act with vigour, and 
 thus left the place in possession of Lord Broghill, who 
 had got a supply of arms and ammunition from the 
 parliament. Towards the beginning of September 
 Castlehaven returned to Kilkenny after disbanding his 
 forces. 
 
 The parliament in England, hearing of these move- 
 ments in the south, lost no time in strengthening 
 Munroe's forces in Ulster. Having nominated young 
 Coote to the presidency of Connaught, they sent over 
 £10,000 to the covenanters, with a considerable 
 supply of clothing. On the 8th of June Sir Charles 
 Coote presented letters from a committee of both liouses, 
 desiring Munroe to send 500 men into Connaught, who 
 were to be joined by Sir F. Hamilton's regiment, in 
 order to reduce Sligo. They complied, aft^r some 
 hesitation, and determined to march a body of 4,000 
 foot and 500 horse into the counties of Mayo and 
 Galway. Their progress was marked by carnage and 
 burnings. Sir Eobert Stewart took possession of 
 Sligo, and Coote set about raising 1,400 horse, in order 
 to overrun the entire country. Clanricarde, who had 
 been appointed president by Orraond, could offer but 
 little resistance. His apathy in the earlier period of 
 the war had so diminished his influence, that the people 
 had little regard for him, and Ormond beheld the 
 critical position of his friend with a stoic's indifference. 
 Clanricarde, however, got about 2,500 men to oppose 
 the overwhelming force which was now devastating the 
 cor.ntry, and appointed Lord Taaffe to the command ; 
 but he effected nothing of importance, his efforts being 
 confined to the reduction of such minor places aa 
 Castlecoote and Jamestown. The supreme council, 
 
 • This mxn c«used a Roman Catholic dean to be hanged a shorl 
 time befc-ri, .vid betrayed his tnist at Warcham in England, wnicli 
 hf- jlsldid to th'i paaiiament forces. He was brother to Inchiquia. 
 
Sff CONFEDERATION Ot KILKENNY. 
 
 ilarmed for the safety of Gahvay, ordered Sir James 
 Dillon and Malachy O'Kelly, archbishop of Tuam, to 
 .Irive the Scotch and English out of Sligo ; and they 
 attacked the place on Sunday, October 26th, with a force 
 f;ir inferior to their enemies. They succeeded in getting 
 mto the town, b-at word was brought that a large 
 forc^ was now coming to succour the garrison. The 
 confederates took alarm and fled, pursued by thp 
 Scotch. Malachy, archbishop of Tuam fell into their 
 hands, and was brutally murdered,* after quarter 
 given. The noblest Catholics of the province were 
 either slain or made prisoners, and Sligo was in the 
 hands of the parliament. 
 
 Now, long before these events occurred, the king, 
 feeling his difficulties daily increasing, and well 
 knowing that Ormond was so zealous a Protestant as 
 to be aijsolutely averse to granting the Irish confede- 
 rates such terms as they insisted upon, determined to 
 send them a Catholic envoy, in the person of Lord 
 Herbert, afterwards Earl of Glamorgan. He arrived 
 in Dublin about the end of July or beginning of 
 August.t Having conferred with the lord lieutenant, 
 Glamorgan soon after proceeded to Kilkenny, where the 
 supreme council was sitting, and discussing the terms 
 proposed by the lord lieutenant. Glamorgan had been 
 empowered by the king to treat with the confederates, 
 "and also to levy any number of men in Ireland and 
 other parts beyond sea, commanding of them, putting 
 officers over them, governors in forts and towns, and giving 
 him power to receive the king's rents." He, therefore, 
 in virtue of a commission given him by his majesty, 
 
 ♦ Bruodin, in the Ilib. Z)om.,p. 652, states, that the archbishop was 
 eut into bits by the Scots. — " In minutas sectus est partes, abscise 
 brachio dcxtero, etiam post datam fidem." Mr. Hardiman, in the 
 History of Galway, p. 12o, has this curious note on the subject: — . 
 " Here is a true tragidie of the unhappie expedition of ShgoCf 
 viK. : — Last Sunday our forces, after t.iking the abbie of SlJgoe^ 
 and hearing of tlie approach of Coote with a strong relief, began to 
 march bacli, and though they beat the enemie that day and the day 
 before, yet, then, a few horse of the said enemie put them most 
 shamefully to flight, in which flight (proh dolor) my Lord Archbishop, 
 Father 'I'eige Conel, Father Augustine Higgin, with other clergymen, 
 were killed and pittiftillie mangled, and so left ia the way aeof 
 Sligoe." 
 
 ^ Traosactlciui of Glazaorgan, pp. 60, 61> 67. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KlliKENKT. 8? 
 
 entered into a treaty with the confederate bodj, by 
 which it was agreed, and accorded by the said Earl, on 
 the part of his majesty, and Richard Lord Viscount 
 'VCountgarret, Donogh Lord Muskerry, as commissioners 
 appointed by the said confederate Catholics : — 
 
 *' I.— That all the professors of the Roman Catholic 
 religion in Ireland, shall enjoy the free and public use 
 arid exercise of their religion. 
 
 " II.— That they shall hold and enjoy all the churches 
 by them enjoyed, or by them possessed, at any time 
 since the 23rd of October 1641, and all other churches 
 in the said kingdom, other than such as are now 
 actually enjoyed by his majesty's Protestant subjects. 
 
 " III — That all the Roman Catholics shall be ex- 
 empted from the jurisdiction of the Protestant clergy, 
 and that the Catholic clergy shall not be punished or 
 molested for the exercise of their jurisdiction over 
 their respective flocks. And, also, that an act shall be 
 passed in the next parliament for securing to them all 
 the king's concessions. 
 
 ** IV. — Thattlie Marquess of Ormond, or any others, 
 shall not disturb the professors of the Roman Catholic 
 religion in possession of the articles above specified. 
 
 " VI — The Earl of Glamorgan engages his majesty's 
 word for the performance of these articles. 
 
 ♦< VII — That the public faith of the kingdom shall be 
 engaged unto the said Earl by the commissioners of 
 the confederate Catholics, for sending 10,000 men by 
 order and declaration of the general assembly at 
 Kilkenny, armed, the one-half with nmskets, and the 
 other half with pikes, to serve his majesty in England, 
 Wales, or Scotland, under the command of the said 
 Glamorgan, as lord general of the said army ; which 
 army is to be kept together in one entire body, and all 
 other the officers and commanders of the said army are 
 to be named by the supreme council of the said eon- 
 federate Catholics, or by such others as the general 
 assembly of the said confederate Catholics of Ireland 
 shall entrust therewith." 
 
 When these articles were signed by the supreme council 
 and Glamorgan, the general assembly, on the 28th of 
 August "ordered and declared that their union and 
 oath of association shall reoaia firm and inviolable. 
 
95 COUFEDERATION OF KILKERITT. 
 
 and in fall strength, in all points, and to all purpoacft 
 until the articles of the intended peace shall be ratified 
 in parliament, notwithstanding any proclamation of 
 the peace." But, in order to avoid the inconvenience 
 which the publication of these concessions might pro- 
 duce to the king, it was thought proper to be deferred 
 till the forces designed for his majesty should arrive in 
 England, when he might more confidently avow and con- 
 firm tlie concessions made, by his authority, by the Earl 
 Glamorgan."* 
 
 Such were the terms offered on the king's behalf by 
 Glamorgan, copies of which had been already sub- 
 mitted to the archbishops and other leading members of 
 the confederates. Ten weeks Avere spent - in Dublin 
 debating with Ormond on the articles which had nothing 
 to do witli this, which may be regarded as of a spiritual 
 nature. But the delegates from the supreme council 
 had likewise endeavoured to gain from the lord lieu- 
 tenant some concessions in favour of their religion, 
 as he had the public authority of his majesty, but, 
 not so ample a one, in that respect, as the Earl. 
 
 The commissioners were charged to hear of nothing 
 T^hich was contrary to, or inconsistent with, the private 
 concessions made by the Earl. But the terms which 
 the lord lieutenant would grant, especially with regard 
 to religion, were by no means such as were satisfac- 
 tory to them. While these matters were being nego- 
 tiated at Dublin and Kilkenny, anotlier event took 
 place Avliich aggravated the loss of Sligo. Towards 
 the end of tlie year a parliament flotilla sailed up the 
 Shannon, and the Earl of Thomond, who remained 
 neutral, and was not molested by the confederates, 
 (as it would appear that their orders had been rescinded,) 
 gave possession of his castle of Bunrattyf to the par- 
 liament's troops. The result was, however, in one 
 respect propitious, for Limerick abandoned its neutra- 
 •iity, and declared for the confederates. 
 
 But it is necessary that we follow the secretary. 
 Belling, to Rome, and introduce one who was destined 
 
 • Glairorgan's Transactions, p. 74. 
 
 t Bellinp describes Bunratty as " a noWe antient strncture, reput«id 
 ctrons: Avhea engines of batten- were nets? frequent." -yanxiiivc &' 
 
CONFEDERATION OV KILKENNY. 99 
 
 to 8.ct a conspicuous part in these important and 
 varying scenes. Belling reached Rome about the end 
 of February 1645, and was presented to his Holiness 
 Innocent X., by Father Luke Wadding, and received 
 as the accredited envoy of the confederate Catholics. 
 
 The Pontiff — who is described by jMuratori* as of 
 rough and repellent aspeoi, yet, still of majestic 
 manner, was suspected to be hostile to the policy of 
 the French court, and of a strong leaning to the interests 
 of Spain — succeeded in removing the apprehensions of 
 both parties ; and now seeing the war which had so long 
 desolated the Continent drawing to a close, scarcely 
 needed the memorial of the Irish Catholics to turn his 
 attention to their then far off region. But in applying 
 to the court of Rome, it is quite evident that they 
 calculated on finding unity and power in obedience 
 to the supreme chief of that religion which was 
 their only common bond, disunited as they were 
 in every other respect. His Holiness having heard 
 from Belling the actual state of affairs, determined to 
 forward to Ireland considerable supplies of arms and 
 money, and while the secretary was at the court of 
 Florence he resolved to send to the confederates 
 a minister with the high and influential dignity of 
 nuncio extraordinary. 
 
 V He first selected Luigi Omodei, whom he afterwards 
 made a cardinal, but in consequence of the objections of 
 Mazarin against the appointment of a prelate who, as a 
 IVIilanese, was a subject of Spain, he substituted John 
 Baptist Rinuccini, who, being of Tuscan origin, should 
 be regarded as belonging to a neutral power. Tliis dis- 
 tinguished prelate was born at Rome, on the 15th of 
 September, 1592. From his earliest years he manifested 
 a decided predilection for the ecclesiastical profession, 
 and commenced liis studies under the tutelage of the Je- 
 suits. In his eighteenth year he went to Bologna, and 
 thence to Perugia, to study canon law ; and in the latter 
 city, when but twenty-two years of age, he received hig 
 (ioetor's degree, and Avas at the same time elected a mem- 
 ber cf the learned academy, " Delia Crusca." He soon 
 
 • ^ninll DTtal-a, aao. 1644. 
 
100 COWFZDF.RATION OF RILXENNT. 
 
 afterwards returned to Rome, at the desire of his uncle, 
 the Cardinal Octavian Bandini ; and it appears tliatdur. 
 ing his sojourn in the Eternal City, immoderate appli- 
 cation to studies of a varied nature made such fearful 
 havoc of his health, that he never afterwards recovered 
 that strength and corporeal energy -which render life so 
 dear, and sustain it in great and arduous trials. * 
 
 To rep.air a constitution which had thus early suffered, 
 he retired for a while to the patrimony of his fathers, en 
 the banks of tht Arno ; but quiet and seclusion ill ac 
 cording with an active mind, he retraced his steps to 
 Rome, where he practised law under Monsignor Buratti, 
 a celebrated canonist in the court of Gregory XV. 
 
 In Rome, as elsewhere, he earned considerable cele- 
 brity, and was appointed by his holiness clerk of the 
 chamber, and M'as soon afterwards nominated one of his 
 domestic prelates, and secretary to the congregation of 
 rites. On the demise of Gregory XV., Urban VIII. was 
 called to the vacant throne, and the successor of Rinuc- 
 cini's first friend and patron, to evince the high esteem 
 he entertained for his piety and talents, conferred on him 
 the archiepiscopal see of Fermo, in the marches of An- 
 cona, then vacant by the death of Monsignor Dini, which 
 took place in the year 16*25. 
 
 His biographer informs us that his conduct in the ar- 
 chiepiscopal see was distinguished by the most exem- 
 plar}' piety and consummate wisdom ; and, as a proof of 
 his devoted attachment to the flock over which he pre- 
 sided, we learn from the same authority that he de- 
 clined the more exalted dignity of the metropolitan see 
 of Florence, which he was invited to accept by the pon- 
 tiff himself and the Grand Duke Ferdinand II. in the 
 year 1631. 
 
 This is not the place to enter into a critical analysis 
 of the character of the nuncio, Avhich should be learned 
 from the history of the events in which he took such a 
 prominent part. Were we to place implicit reliance on 
 the represetitations of his biographer, we might not he- 
 Bitate to pronounce him a man of genuine piety aitd 
 / g^eat political acumen. Without pausing, however, to 
 
 • Aiaczl, p. 10. 
 
^ 
 
 COICFKDERATIOII O? KlLKEMNy. ''v 
 
 examine the portraiture which is given of him by sue) 
 interested parties as Walsh and Callaghan, • we ma) 
 be allowed to borrow an eulogium from one who cannol 
 be accused of partiality to Rinucoini, which would reflect 
 honour on the character of any man, and is, perhaps 
 rarely deserved by those placed in similar circura- 
 ■stances : — " He Avas," says Carte, f " regular and eved 
 austere in his life and conversation, and far from anj 
 taint of avarice or corruption." 
 
 Having received his instructions from Pope Innocent 
 \., he set out from Rome early in the year 1645, and 
 proceeded to Elorence, where he was joined by the se- 
 cretary, Belling, who was so much astonished on learn- 
 ing that a nuncio had been appointed for Ireland that 
 
 /^ for three days he was unable to speak. Passing rapidly 
 through Genoa and Marseilles, he arrived in Paris on 
 the 22nd of May. According to the instructions wliich 
 he had received, he was led to believe that he should 
 hiive an opportunity of negotiating personally with the 
 Queen of England ; % but on his arrival at Paris circum- 
 stances transpired which totally removed the possibility 
 of a personal interview. Sir Dudley Wyat had been sent 
 to Paris to communicate to the queen and the French 
 
 Z. court the news of the overthrow of the royal army ; 
 and Rinuccini, seizing the opportunity of impressing on 
 her majesty's mind the necessity of making terms with 
 the confederate Catholics, offered to visit her in person, 
 and in his ministerial capacity. She, however, refused 
 to receive him, alleging that if she did so she woul J vio- 
 late the English la^, which forbade her to recognise him 
 and the confederate government of which he was tlie ac- 
 credited agent. Indeed, it is evident that some inte- 
 rested parties, who had no sympathy with the Irish, se- 
 dulously laboured to prejudice the queen's mind against 
 the nuncio and the Irish themselves. She had been 
 taught to believe that the object of Rinuecini's raissiou 
 ■^•A.% to usurp the prerogatives of the crown ; and the im- 
 pression does not appear to have been wholly efiaced, 
 notwithstanding his solemn declaration that the pope 
 
 * Tho author of the Vindicto Hibemonun. 
 
 t Onn. i. 558. 
 
 i She hod bee^ /crc»d to €iy oat of Eaglaud some time 
 
1U3 CONi'EWEUATlON O? KJLKSNrTjr. 
 
 was actuated by no other motives than hi,v ardent desiivj 
 of protecting the Catholic religion, and furnishing hi« 
 majesty with those aids which he required to sustain him 
 against the faction which had vowed the destruction of 
 Ireland. 
 
 A prey to grief and despair, the queen retired from 
 Paris to St, Germains, where the disastrous intelligence 
 of the king's defeat at Naseby was brought her ; and 
 changing her opinion of the confederate Catholics, whom 
 she hitherto designated with the ftdse epithet of " rebels," 
 she determined, if possible, to conclude a peace, which 
 would leave them free to send troops into England. 
 She sent to inform the nuncio that she regretted that she 
 could not receive him without the king's consent, and 
 earnestly desired that he would exert himself to conclude 
 a peace which would serve to release her royal consort 
 from the dangers which were impending. Sir Dudley 
 Wyat was the person selected to carry on this indirect 
 negotiation. He insisted, on the part of the queen, that 
 the peace should be concluded at Paris, and asserted that 
 she was ready to procure its confirmation on the part of 
 her husband, provided the nuncio sent to Ireland to have 
 it ratified by the supreme council. 
 
 Wyat insisted on the necessity of speedily coming to 
 an arrangement. He argued that the king's condition 
 was desperate, and that if he were obliged to make 
 terms with the parliamentary faction, the ruin of Ire- 
 land would be inevitable, as it was utterly hopeless to 
 think of resisting the combined powers of England and 
 Scotland. 
 
 To these entreaties on the part of the queen the nuncio 
 replied that he had nothing so much at heart as the con- 
 clusion of a peace which would secure to the Catholics of 
 Ireland the free and uncontrolled exercise of their reli- 
 gion, and the imme Uate removal of all the penal laws 
 by which tliey had been so long and so grievously af- 
 flicted ; and that nothing could give more heartfelt sati.^ 
 fection to the pope than to learn he had witnessed the 
 conclusion of a peace which would allow him to proceed 
 to Ireland to employ himself with the ecclesiastical con- 
 cern§ of the kingdom, exclusive of all political interfer-" 
 ence ; but he clearly saw that nothing really beneficiaJ 
 could result from sucli indirect negotiation, and he be- 
 
(20NFEDEKATI0N OF KILKENNY. IC»3 
 
 ^n to think that the promises of the queen were delu- 
 jive, and only meant to retard his departure. 
 
 It had been hinted that it was the object of the queen's 
 adherents to obtain from liim the supplies of arms and 
 money which were destined for Ireland, and have them 
 transported for the king's service into England ; and 
 Mazarin suggested to him the possibility of such an event, 
 at the same time that he deprecated the fruitless expen- 
 diture of those large sums which had been sent from 
 France for the support of the royal cause. 
 
 He was, moreover, strictly forbidden by Cardinal 
 Paufilio to consent to a private interview with Henrietta 
 Maria, on the groimd that he could not uncover his head 
 to a queen ; * and on being informed that she could not 
 receive him without this mark of respect to royalty, he 
 was driven to the alternative of employing Sir Dudley 
 Wyat and her majesty's chaplain to open this indirect 
 communication with her. There can be no doubt that 
 the queen was determinedly opposed to Einuccini's land- 
 ing in Ireland, for he informs us that when be sent one 
 of his retinue, Dominick Spinola, a Genoese of noble 
 birth, to present her with the pope's brief, she asserted 
 with considerable vehemence that the Irish in general, 
 and the secretary. Belling, in particular, were anxious 
 to renounce their allegiance to the king, on plea of their 
 devotion to the Catholic religion ; nay, more, that Har- 
 tegan, the agent of the confederates at Paris, had been 
 heard to boast that the Irish were determined to prose- 
 cute the war to the last extremity, if the terms on which 
 they insisted were not fully confirmed. In a spirit of 
 bitterness, which may readily be excused, when we re- 
 flect on the difficulties which then beset the king, she 
 deprecated the conduct of the Irish, "who," she eaid, 
 " seemed to rejoice at the reverses of her consort, when 
 they placed him in such a position as would make him 
 yield to their demands, on threat of their assistance be- 
 ing withheld." This, however, was but the passion of 
 the moment, for, from the correspondence which de- 
 scribes this ebullition of the queen's feelings, we learn 
 that, in a subsequent interview with Spinola, she ex 
 
 • Card. Paufllio'8 letter is Kmncd&i'a Correq?^, 450. 
 
:o4 
 
 CONFEDERATION OF KI1.*ENNT. 
 
 pressed her entire confidence in the iirmness and pnfc 
 dcDce of the nuncio, and his devotion to tlie royal cause. 
 
 Anticipating the application which would be mad© 
 en him for the monies which lie had brought from 
 Eome, the nuncio stated, that seeing the straits to 
 ■wliich the king had been reduced, the sums he had in 
 bis possession could be of little use, and as to any 
 agreement between the king and the parliament, Ireland 
 had little to fear from their combined eiForts, as she had 
 carried on a war against Elizabeth, in the time of Hugh 
 O'Neill,* for sixteen years, independent of thesyrapathy 
 Hith which she was now regarded by the pope and the 
 Catholic powers. It would appear, moreover, that he 
 was in concert with the English Catholics, who, declar- 
 ing their inability to be of any use to his majesty, 
 pointed to the effective aid of the Irish Catholics, who, 
 if seconded in their demand, would be ready at the 
 shortest notice to turn all their energies against the 
 parliament. Meantime letters from Eome chided him 
 for his delay in the French capital, and Scarampi had 
 written from Ireland to urge his departure. The 
 nuncio, for the last time, sent Spinola to wait on the 
 queen to renew his avowals of attachment to her cause, 
 and that of her consort, and with this mutual inter- 
 change of compliments terminated their negotiations. 
 
 The instructions which he had received on leaving 
 Eome urged him to proceed to Ireland with all possible 
 expedition, and strictly forbade him to hold any unne- 
 cessary intercourse with the English Catholics at the 
 queen's court, who, far from sympathising with the 
 Irish were more inclined to lament any triumph to 
 their arms, as they were afraid that they would, in 
 consequence, be deprived of those places of dignity and 
 emolument in that kingdom, which were the natural 
 accompaniment of superiority and command. 
 
 Cardinal Mazarinf was most anxious to detain him, 
 
 * See hfs life by Mitchel, one of the most bea^itifxJ pieces of biogra- 
 phy -wliich we possess. 
 
 t Jlazaiin commenced his career as a soldier, and commanded in the 
 Yalteline for the Pope. His character is variously estimated. Th« 
 Spaniards hated him, and Comeille immortalized him. He waa a 
 '.jberal patron of the arts, and introdiced tlie opera in Fraaice. U» 
 wofi made CardiDul in IC^S. 
 
corfedehation of Kilkenny. 105 
 
 and it vtm not till after repeated commands that the 
 nuncio resolved to leave Paris, after having been there 
 fully three months. He had not been long in France 
 when he received a prom-ise from the Duke de Ventadour 
 of 100,000 dollars for the purposes of the war in 
 Ireland, but the news of the king's reverses changed 
 his intention. Having got from Mazarin the sum of 
 25,000 livres, that is to say, 5,000 for the purchase of 
 some vessels, and 20,000 as a present, he left Paris for 
 liochelle, where he arrived about the beginning of Octo- 
 ber. On his arrival at Rochelle he was met by Galfrid 
 Earon, who brought him letters from the Earl of Glamor- 
 gan informinghim tfeat the confederates anxiously awaited 
 his arrival, as they stood in need of the military stores 
 which he was to bring them. This determined him 
 to make all the necessary arrangements for the voyage. 
 There seems to have been some misunderstanding as to the 
 means of transport into Ireland, for, Hartegan informed 
 the nuncio that Cardinal Mazarin had promised to 
 place four ships at his disposal to serve as a convoy for 
 himself and the supplies; whereas, when application 
 was made, he learned to his mortification, that there 
 was but one ship in the harbour, which would 
 require at least 1,000 dollars and six weeks to make 
 her ready fot sea. 
 
 To suppose that Cardinal Mazarin was not influenced 
 by some sinister motive on this occasion, would be to 
 differ presumptuously from those who have written 
 concerning the character of this remarkable man. He 
 must evidently have looked with, a jealous eye on any 
 enterprise which tended to involve the affairs of 
 Charles I., whose queen had all the sympathy of the 
 Prench court. It is likely, too, that he had formed a 
 hasty notion of the confederates, and apprehended that 
 they meant, to throw off their allegiance to the crown 
 of England. The man "who could listen to the murmurs 
 of the people, as one listens on the shore to the 
 noise of the waves of tlie sea,"' was not much 
 affected by the progress of events in Ireland ; it 
 afforded too small a field for the finesse of the great 
 Koinieter, who, whether riding in the trenches of 
 
 • "^'esiflsat Ksffisalt. 
 
106 CONFKPFRATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 OvVsal' with bullets whistling about him, or returning 
 to power, after having had a price set on his head, 
 proved himself to be the greatest politician of the day. 
 One thing, however, is certain, that Richlieu would 
 have taken a livelier interest in the affairs of Ireland. 
 
 The French admiral, the Duke de Brcze, then in the 
 harbour was applied to for a ship, but as he had no 
 orders to furnish one, it was not till considerable time 
 had elapsed that Rinuccini succeeded in purchasing the 
 San Pietro, a frigate of twenty-six guns. His retinue 
 consisted of twenty-six Italians together with a number 
 of Irish officers, and the secretary BelUng. On board 
 
 fthe frigate he embarked the following supplies : — 2,000 
 muskets, 2,000 cartouch belts, 4,000 swords, 2,000 
 pike-heads, 400 brace of pistols, 20,000 lbs of powder, 
 M'ith match, shot, &,c. &c.f 
 
 The money, which was considerable, he took with him 
 in Spanish gold. Wadding's generosity had not 
 abated, and he furnished 36,000 dollars, in addition to 
 Nthe sum contributed by Pope Innocent X. He weighed 
 anchor about the middle of October, and sailed from 
 St. Martin, in the Isle de Rhe. The two first days of 
 the voyage were prosperous, for they met no interruption, 
 but on the third they were alarmed by the appearance 
 of a flotilla, which was evidently in pursuit. The ex- 
 perienced eyes of the sailors pronounced them to be 
 the parliament's ships, under the command of one 
 Plunket, whom Belling calls "a noted scourge. "J Two 
 of the squadron soon made sail in the wake of the San 
 Pietro, whereon the Irishmen cast loose the guns and 
 cleared the deck for action ; having sent the non-com- 
 batants out of the way into the forepart of the ship. The 
 nuncio meanwhile was sick in his berth when word was 
 brought him that one of the pursuing vessels had dropped 
 
 * Bussy Memoirs. 
 
 t During his sojourn at Paris the nuncio was alloAved by the Pope 
 S,000 dollars for the maintenance of liimself and suite. On his an-iral 
 in Ireland, 200 dollars a month were assigned him, but he expended 
 during his stay l/).800 dollars, of his own private income. His biogra- 
 pher (Aiazzi) remai'ks that this was a great outlay considering the 
 low rate at which all tlie necessaries of life were then to be bad in 
 Ireland; a fact which is made still more clear by the letter of the 
 Cnncio's confessor, Arcamonl, i/i the Appendix to this voL 
 
 J KaiTatire of the W ar. 
 
COWFKDERATIOH OF KILKENNY. 107 
 
 astern ; but to his horror, they informed hira that the 
 larger vessel of the two was still making all sail on his 
 fVipate. The chase continued for more tlian a hundred 
 miles, and an hour before sunset tlie SanPielro lost sight 
 of her pursuer. In a transport of jubilee, the Italians 
 sang a hymn of thanksgiving, and the nuncio expressed 
 his joy that none had suffered, as he sickened at the 
 thought of seeing the blood of his Irish sailors staining 
 his decks. He attributed his delivery from Plunket to 
 a manifest interposition of Divine Pi'ovidence, and pro- 
 nounced it miraculous ; but he must have subsequently 
 iearned that the escape of liis pursuer was still far more » 
 v/onderful, for Plunket's cooking-room had caught tire, j 
 and being alarmed for his magazine, he was obliged to / 
 shorten sail, and thus suffer the San Pietro to distance / 
 him. On that night, owing to the darkness of the 
 weather they did not know their bearings, tliough 
 they had passed Cape Clear, but on the following day 
 they "wei'e visited by birds which gave them notice of 
 their approach to the coast ; and when the haze which 
 concealed the land from their view had disappeared, 
 they found themselves in the Bay of Kenmare, where 
 they dropped anchor on the 21st of October. Next 
 day the nuncio came on shore, and his first abode on 
 the Irish soil was in the hut of a shepherd, where he 
 celebrated mass on the feast of St. Mabilia, surrounded 
 by the peasantr\% whom the unusual sight of a dignitary 
 from the Vatican, and his Italian retinue, had brought 
 down from the fastnesses of the mountains.* 
 
 Having rested for some time, and taken ashore all 
 the arms and equipments at Ardtulh% he proceeded on 
 a rude litter towards Macroom, the frigate having 
 been sent round to Dnncannon. The supreme council 
 on intelligence of his arrival, despatched some troops of 
 cavalry to escort him through Inchiquin's quarters ; and 
 at Dromsecane,t on the Blackwater, he was joined by 
 Richard Butler, a Catholic, though brother to the 
 IMarquess of Ormond, Lord Netterville, and others. 
 From Dromsecaue they continued their route through 
 
 • Aiazzi. Nunziatara in Irlanda. Vide Appendix. 
 t A strong castle of the O'Keeffs'ft, ubout fourteen miles frixu 
 Maciwjm. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Kilmallock to Limerick. Here, in the cathedral, he 
 celebrated the obsequies of Malachy, arclibisliop of 
 Tuam, and was received with generous hospitality by 
 tlie municipal authorities. At the door of the cathedral 
 the bishop of Limerick presented him with the mitre, 
 saying: — " Ab Ecclesia apostolica haec recepi, nunc 
 jidem ecclesisB prompte restituo," His instructions 
 charged him to proceed to Kilkenny without delay, and 
 /laving congratulated the people of Limerick on their 
 recent acknowledgment of the confederate government, 
 he journeyed slowly to his destination, and on the 12th 
 of November rested at a village, distant three miles 
 from Kilkenny. 
 
 The confederates had resolved to receive him with every 
 demonstration of respect, and deputed four gentlemen, ac- 
 companied by the secretary Belling, to bid him welcome. 
 Next morning, having ascended his litter, surrounded 
 by thousands of the gentry and peasantry, together 
 with a vast concourse from the neighbouring counties, 
 he set out for the city. Conspicuous amongst this vast 
 assemblage was a troop of fifty students on horseback, 
 irmed with pistols, the leader of whom, in a dis- 
 inguished costume, and wearing a crown of laurel, 
 ecited some Latin verses, and conveyed to him the 
 tompliments and congratulations of his companions. 
 
 At a short distance from the gate he descended from 
 the litter, and having put on the cape and pontifical 
 hat, the insignia o^ his office, he mounted a horse 
 >aparisoned for the occasion. The secular and regular 
 clergy had assembled in the church of St. Patrick,* 
 tlose by the gate, and when it was announced that the 
 nuncio was in readiness, they advanced into the city 
 In processional array, preceded by the standard-bearers 
 of their respective orders. f » 
 
 * Tlie site of this church mny still be traced in the graveyard adjoin- 
 ing tlie modern pai-ochial church of St. Patrick, outside the city wall. 
 
 f That Ireland was rich in ecclesiastical furniture is quite evident 
 ft'om the splendid collection in tlie Royal Irish Academy. Pugin, in 
 ♦is grand work on Ecclesiastical Ornament and Costume, p. 77, S] eaks 
 ■•of a cope (i cloth of gold of the fifteenth centuiy, with excellent 
 jrphreys, and hood of needle-work," which was discovered not long 
 go in the cathedral of Waterford. It is now in England. One of 
 Jie banners probably carried in the procession, has beeQ preserved by 
 fc -o^njQerable gentleman in Kilkenny, who is as learned in the antiqai* 
 V Af hia native city, as be is affable and kind.— I uttm Mjr. B. Scot*^ 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 109 
 
 \ Under the old arch, called St, Patrick's gate, he was 
 met by the vicar-general of the diocese of Ossory and 
 the magistrates of the city and county, who joined in 
 the procession. A canopy was held over him by some 
 citizens, who remained bare-headed, although the rain 
 descended in torrents. The streets were lined by 
 regiments of infantry, and the bells of the Black Abbey 
 and the church of St. Francis pealed a gladsome 
 chime. 
 
 In the heart of the city, and nearly opposite to the 
 ancient residence of the Roth family, there stood across* 
 of beautiful workmanship and great antiquity. Here 
 the nuncio halted, while a young student pronounced an 
 
 y appropriate oration in the Latin tongue. The procession 
 then moved on till it ascended the gentle eminence on 
 which the splendid old fane, sacred to St. Canice, is 
 erected. At the grand entrance he was received by the 
 venerable Bishop of Ossory, whose feebleness prevented 
 him walking in the procession. After mutual saluta- 
 tions, the bishop handed him the aspersorium and incense, 
 and then both entered the cathedral, which, even in the 
 palmiest days of Catholicity, had never held within its 
 precincts a more solemn or gorgeous assemblage. The 
 nuncio ascended the steps of the grand altar, intonated 
 the " Te Deum," which was caught up by a thousand 
 voices, till crypt and chancel resounded with the psal- 
 mody, and when it ceased he pronounced a blessing on 
 the immense multitude which crowded the aisles and 
 nave. Three years before the occurrences here narrated, 
 David, Bishop of Ossory, had erected a monument to 
 commemorate the restoration of St. Canice's cathedral 
 to the ancient worship, and it needs no flight of fancy to 
 suppose that on this memorable occasion he may have 
 eclioed the \wrds of the canticle, " Now dismiss thy ser- 
 vant, because my eyes have seen thy salvation, and th«j 
 glory of thy people, Israel." These ceremonies con- 
 cluded, he retired for awhile to the residence prepared 
 for him in the city, and shortly afterwards was waited 
 
 • on by General Preston and Lord IMuskerry. He then 
 proceeded on foot to visit Lord Mountgarret, the presi- 
 
 • This cross was barbarously throAvn down in the year 1771. Itboi« 
 dAltt MCCC. Its site ia now occo^ed \>y d piuup ! 
 
110 CONFBDERATTON O? ICILIIBNWII , 
 
 dent of the assembly. The reception took place h\ the 
 ?astle. At tlie foot of the grand staircase he Avas mettj 
 Thomas Fleming, Archbishop of Dublin, and Walsb, 
 Archbishop of Cashel. At the end of the great gallery* 
 Lord Mountgarret was seated, waiting his arrival, and 
 when the nuncio approached, he got up from his chair, 
 without moving a single inch in advance. The seat 
 designed for Riimccini was of damask and gold, with a 
 little more ornament than that occupied by the presi- 
 dent. He tells us that it was placed on the right of 
 Mountgarret's, but yet so situated that it looked rather 
 to the left, and thus made it a matter of doubt as to the 
 personage who held the most central position. The 
 nuncio immediately addressed the president in Latin, 
 and declared that the object of his mission was to sustain 
 the king, then so perilously circumstanced ; but, above 
 all, to rescue from pains and penalties the people of Ire- 
 land, and to assist them in securing the free and public 
 exercise of the Catholic religion, and the restoration of 
 the churches and church property, of which fraud and 
 violence had so long deprived their rightful inheritors. 
 He implored those who heard him to banish from their 
 minds the insinuations of some who were artfully endea- 
 vouring to misrepresent the motives of the pope in send- 
 ing him, and concluded his remarks by solemnly asseve- 
 rating! that, far from wishing to do injury to King 
 Charles, it was his earnest anxiety to prop up his tot- 
 tering throne. Heber MacMahon, Bishop of Clogher, 
 to whom Rinuccini had been specially confided by the 
 holy see, followed the nuncio in a spirited appeal, and 
 echoed the sentiments to which the papal minister had 
 given utterance. After mutual compliments, the assem- 
 bly broke up, and the nuncio retired to his residence, 
 accompanied by Preston, Muskerry, and the troops. 
 The cold formality of Mountgarret did not escape his 
 observation, for, in writing to his court, he nientions 
 that, as he retired from the gallery, the president never 
 
 • Little now remains of the castle as it was in Rinuccini's time, save 
 the towers at the grand entrance. The gallery must have been splendid 
 that elicited the praise of a man who had seen the Vatican and Medi- 
 cean palaces. 
 
 * " In verbo principis," says Callaghan, in Vlndic. Hib., won hie f»" 
 Torite expression. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. HI 
 
 moved an inch from his place. But tlie supreme council 
 goon after did not fail to impress on the pope's mind the 
 advantages the people of Ireland might derive from his 
 prudence and counsels. The following is their letter : — 
 " Most Holy Father — One of the first acts of your pon- 
 tificate has been to send to us a nuncio from your court, 
 in the person of John Baptist, Archbishop of Fermo, and 
 we hasten to return our acknowledgments of the pater- 
 nal solicitude thus shown us. If we have been unable to 
 receive so exalted a personage with that pomp and splen- 
 dour which the occasion called for, we humbly pray that 
 the joy and overflow of heart with whicli we have hailed 
 his advent, may make amends. Grateful for the supplies 
 which the nuncio has brought us from you, we earnestly 
 implore that your paternal bounty may not be withdrawn 
 till the most Holy Innocent sliall have beheld the Catho- 
 lic religion flourishing in our isiand, and the enemies of 
 our faith vanquished by the ;^otent arm of the God of 
 hosts."* 
 
 Now, it so happened that Muskerry, Plunket, and the 
 other commissioners did not return from Dublin till the 
 r2th of November, the day before Rinuccini's entry into 
 Kilkenny. That their chagrin must have been great, can- 
 not be questioned, for they learned from the events 
 which had transpired that the "old Irish" in the 
 assembly would be animated by more hostile feelings to 
 their projects by the interference and influence of the 
 nuncio. Muskerry, and those of his party, had toiled 
 with unwearied exertions all the summer to conclude the 
 peace, and were Avilling to sign it, without obliging Or- 
 mond to any concession of a religious nature, save such 
 as the king might be pleased to grant as a " grace" when 
 triumphant over his enemies. But, without pausing to 
 examine the prudence of this resolve, the "old Irish" 
 had begun to tire of begging favours and immunities, 
 when they felt themselves in a position to insist on them 
 as rights. Elated by the magnificent promises of the nun- 
 cio, they looked beyond the seas for sympathy and sup 
 port. The Head of the Church, it was expected, would 
 use all his influence to sustain them. The impassioned 
 oratory of the Italian conjured up prospects as bright ta 
 
 * Vidt Borlase's Dismal Effects of the Irish Insan-ect.. t>. J&4« 
 
il2 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY, 
 
 ever passed before the mental vision of Celtic bafd. 
 In the recesses of his domicile bishops listened to hid 
 plans ; and the enthusiastic Heber of Clogher already 
 fancied that he saw the " thieving Scot" driven out of 
 Ulidia, and the temples and possessions of the Catholics 
 restored to their rightful owners. It was no Avonder that 
 estrangement should soon have grown up between the 
 parties who, long before now, were mutually opposed. — 
 Those who adopted the nuncio's views bitterly regretted 
 that all that Rinuccini dreamed of had not been accom- 
 plished before his coming. Surely, thought they, if 
 craft and intrigue had not marred our progress, all might 
 have been realised. Fond enthusiasts ! brave hearts ! 
 grand and simple souls I little did ye then think of the 
 storm which was soon to burst on the land and destroy 
 your brightest hopes I As in every other feud, the par- 
 ties who were now to work the ruin of the country be- 
 gan to be recognised by the names of their leaders. — 
 Those who were ready to swear by Rinuccini, were de- 
 nominated Nuncionists ; and those who placed reliance 
 on the lord lieutenant, Avere designated Ormondists. The 
 solemn vow recorded at Knockcrofty, to merge all divi- 
 sions in the struggle for fatherland, was forgotten or un- 
 heeded ; and the demon strife had come from tlie abyss 
 to exercise his power. Alas ! for tliose who dream of 
 nationality with hate and dissension rankling in their 
 hearts ! 
 
 To add to the embarrassment of the Ormondist party, 
 they were now informed that the nuncio, during his so- 
 journ in Paris, had received a memorial from Rome, 
 which had been transmitted thither from the English 
 Catholics, representing their grievances, and desiring 
 that the Irish would insert among the articles of the 
 peace, about which they were treating with the king, 
 some conditions in favour of tlie Catholics of England ; 
 and that the peace be concluded upon such terms as 
 might secure the Irish in their own country, and at the 
 same time enable them to come to his majesty's assist- 
 ance in England witli an arm}', whicli should be joined 
 by the English Catholics. The conditions laid down in 
 this memorial Avere the following ; and they were re- 
 garded as the most effectual : — 
 
 I. That the Irish do not come to England with lesi 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. \\h 
 
 than 10,000 or 12.000 men ; that they may subsist of 
 themselves without any fear of being cut off even by 
 those English Protestants who serve under his majesty. 
 
 II. That two seaport garrisons be delivered up to 
 them. 
 
 III. That the general and all the officers be named by 
 the Irish. 
 
 IV. That the general be subject only to the immediate 
 orders of the king. 
 
 V. That tliis army be kept together m a body, and 
 not obliged to go upon any particular service, except 
 by order from the general and council of war. 
 
 VI. That the English Catholics, by the king's com- 
 mand and authority, have a power of meeting in a body, 
 and with a corps of horse, answerable to the Irish foot, 
 forming one army. 
 
 VII. That the Catholic general of this body of English 
 horse be such a man as shall not be distrusted by the 
 Irish, but approved of by the Irish general. 
 
 As the necessary consequence of those conditions, the 
 English Catholics had pledged themselves that nothing 
 should be omitted which was essential and necessary to 
 the complete establishment of the Catholic religion in 
 Ireland.* 
 
 This subject afforded ample room for discussion in the 
 assembly, and a considerable time was spent by the Or- 
 mandists and the party opposed to them in debating on 
 the practicability of such proceedings. 
 
 But, for the elucidation of this matter, it is necessary 
 that we know in what relation Glamorgan stood to the 
 king and the Irish people. He was a Catholic, and son 
 of the Marquess of Worcester ; for the king he en- 
 tertained the most chivalrous devotion, and had already 
 advanced, in conjunction with his father, £200,000 
 towards the maintenance of the royal cause. He was 
 married to Margaret O'Brien, daughter of Henry Earl 
 of Thomond ; and his religion and connexions gave the 
 king good reason to believe that his influence in Ireland 
 should be considerable. As it has been already stated, 
 his majesty was well convinced that Ormond would 
 make no terms with the confederates which they would 
 
 • Glamorgan's Transactions, pp. 41. 42. 43. 
 
114 CONFEDERASIOK OF KILKENNY. 
 
 regard as satisfactory. He, therefore, entrusted Gla« 
 morgan with a commission to levy men, coin money, 
 and to use the revenues of the crown for their support. 
 He gave a warrant to him to concede to the Catholiea 
 such terms as it was not prudent for the king or Or- 
 mond openly to make, and a solemn pledge to ratify 
 whatever engagements he (Glamorgan) might conclude. 
 He also furnished him with letters to the pope, the nun. 
 cio, and the Catholic princes from whom he expected 
 aid. When the nuncio arrived in Kilkenny, the earl 
 produced the commission, empowering him to treat Avith 
 the confederates. This letter, dated April 30, 1645, 
 expressed the king's hope " That the work commenced 
 by the late pope, in behalf of the Irish CathoUcs, would 
 have a happy accomplishment in the hands of his present 
 minister, aided by the assistance of his dear cousin 
 (Glamorgan), with whom he was at liberty to make 
 whatever terms he thought best, all of which he (the 
 king) would ratify on Glamorgan's return." He in- 
 formed the nuncio "that an acquaintance of twenty 
 years had confirmed his love and respect for Glamorgan, 
 and that whatsoever he promised in his name, he would 
 feel himself obliged to ratify as the price of the favours 
 he received." "Depend, therefore, on him," concludes 
 this authentic document, "but on the understanding 
 that the whole matter is to be kept strictly secret, since 
 you see that necessity demands silence, this being the 
 first document which we have ever addressed to any 
 Papal minister, but hoping that it is not to be the last. 
 Signed, Charles R., from our court of Oxford, 30th of 
 April, 1645." — Nor less curious is the warrant which 
 Glamorgan produced to the nuncio and the council, con- 
 cerning tlie authenticity of which document there cannot 
 be any doubt: — 
 
 " Charles R. 
 "Charles, by the grace of God, King of England, 
 Scotland, France, and Ireland, Defender of the faith, 
 to our right trusty and right well-beloved cousin, Edward 
 Earl of Glamorgan, greeting. We, reposing great and 
 especiai trust and confidence in your approved wisdom 
 and fidelity, do by these (as firmly as under our great 
 seal to all intents and purposes) authorise and give you 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 i\a 
 
 power to treat and conclude with the confederate Roman 
 Cathohcs in our kingdom of Ireland, if upon necessity 
 anything be to be condescended unto, wherein our lieu- 
 tenant cannot so well be seen in, as not fit for us at the 
 present publicly to own ; and, therefore, we charge you 
 to proceed according to this our warrant frith all possible 
 secrecy ; and for Avhatsoever you shall engage yourself 
 upon such valuable considerations as you in your judg- 
 ment shall deem fit, we promise in the word of a king 
 and a Christian to ratify and perform the same, that 
 shall be granted by you, and under your hand and seal, the 
 said confederate Catholics having, by their svrpplies, tes- 
 tified their zeal to our service : and this shall be in each 
 particular to you a sufficient Avarrant." 
 
 But all these concessions depended on the landing 
 of the troops in England ; nor was there a single favour 
 to be conceded unless this agreement was fully carried 
 out. 
 
 Along with the foregoing documents, which Glamor- 
 gan produced, he exhibited to the nuncio another in the 
 king's hand, addressed to " Our most Holy Father, In- 
 nocent X." With such assurances, as to political advan- 
 tages on the one side, and the concessions made in be- 
 lalf of the Catholic religion on the other, Rinuccini 
 xbund it impolitic to resist the inclination of tlie confe- 
 derates for the conclusion of peace , yet he seems all 
 through to have had some misgivings as to the sincerity 
 of the king, and, in a private interview with Glamor- 
 gan, he got a solemn assurance that, when the term of 
 Ormond's vice-royalty had expired, his successor should 
 be a Catholic j and that the Catholic bishops should be 
 entitled, as soon as a free parliament could be assembled, 
 to sit as spiritual peers, and take part in all matters con- 
 cerning the well-being of the kingdom. Glamorgan had 
 no difficulty in satisfying the nuncio on all these parti- 
 culars, provided the negotiation was kept strictly secret 
 till the king, relieved from his present embarrassments, 
 might be at liberty to confirm all the articles in tlie light 
 of day. The nuncio, not fully satisfied with the solemn 
 promises of Glamorgan, urged that some contingency, 
 Buoh as shipwreck, or the death of Glamorgan himself, 
 might prevent the transmission of the troops, in which 
 case the king would not be bound by a promise which 
 
116 CONFEDERATION OF KILSENNT. 
 
 TTas purely conditional. He insisted, moreover, that in 
 case the English Catholics did not assist the Irish levies, 
 a failure of the enterprise might result ; but Glamorgan, 
 overruling all these considerations, bound himself by 
 oath, in the presence of the nuncio, that the 10,000 Irish 
 infantry, for which he stipulated, should not strike a 
 blow before the treaty had received the royal signature ; 
 and in case the king might withhold his consent, the 
 troops should be put to sea, and landed again in Ireland. 
 But it was useless to continue in opposition to the under- 
 hand negotiation carried on by the abettors of the peace. 
 Mountgarfet and Muskerry urged the necessity of 
 speedily sending the succours ; and Doctor Leyburn, on 
 the part of the queen, charged the Irish people with 
 cruelty in insisting on too much, and sought to convince 
 them that a bare toleration of their religion was as much 
 as they might reasonably demand from a king so strait- 
 ened as was his Majesty Charles the First, Apprehen- 
 sive of some failure of Glamorgan's treaty, the nuncio 
 had gained over nine bishops, who signed a protest 
 against any arrangement with Ormond or the king, 
 which did not fully guarantee the maintenance of the 
 Catholic religion ; and this was to be kept in reserve, 
 and afterwards produced as occasion might require. 
 This precaution was necessary, inasmuch as he saw that 
 no power of persuasion could moderate the desire of Or- 
 mond's adherents for a peace, and more particularly as 
 they were now enabled to point to the letters exhibited 
 by Glamorgan, in which Charles promised, on the M'ord 
 of a king and a Christian, to make good, to all intents 
 and purposes, whatever he should perform. " And al- 
 though you exceed," said his majesty, "what law can 
 warrant, or any powers of ours extend to, as not know- 
 ing what you have need of, yet it being for our service, 
 we oblige ourself not only to give you our pardon, but 
 to maintain the same with all our might and power."* 
 
 A considerable time had been spent in the negotiations 
 with Glamorgan, and it was not till near the close of 
 December that he set out for Dublin, accompanied by 
 two commissioners from the supreme council, to treat 
 »)rith Ormond on the levying of troops, and their tran"- 
 
 • "i'tde langard, in Appendix to vol. x. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNT. 
 
 snigsion to England. The king's condition was every 
 day becoming worse, and Cliester, the only city by which 
 he could maintain a communication v/ith Ireland, was 
 besieged by the parliament army. Glamorgan was 
 aware of the urgent necessity of immediately relieving 
 that place, and confidently calculated on being furnished 
 with three thousand infantry, as an instalment of the 
 ten for which he had stipulated in the secret treaty. 
 
 Meanwiiile the nuncio turned his thoughts to tlu; 
 state of Ireland. He did not hesitate to tell the supreme 
 council that the time which had been consumed in 
 armistices and cessations Avith Ormond, had been prc^' 
 ductive of the most disastrous results. The popular 
 ardour was beginning to cool, and gave their enemies 
 leisure to recruit their forces and strengthen the 
 fortresses which had fallen into their hands. Peace or no 
 peace, he had determined to make a vigorous attack on 
 the Scotch, in Ulster. Cork, Youghal, and Kinsale 
 were garrisoned by the troops of Murrogh O'Brien, 
 Lord Inchiquin. Sligo had been recently reduced by 
 the Scotch, which was of the greatest advantage to 
 them, inasmuch as it was favourably situated for com- 
 municating with Ulster and Scotland. In Ulster, the 
 Scots, under Munroe, held nearly all the principal 
 places, and extended their incursions to the very borders 
 of Leinster, which were but feebly protected by the 
 troops under Preston. The success of Munroe in 
 Ulster was attributable in a great measure to a want 
 of unanimity in its generals, as there was a dispute 
 between Owen O'Neill and his kinsman Sir Phelim, on 
 the question of precedency. Thus were the keys of 
 three provinces in the hands of the avowed enemies of 
 the Catholics, who, by temporising policy and subser- 
 viency to Ormond, were made to forget the value of the 
 adage, " Aid yourselves, and God will aid you." 
 
 Rinuccini's views were those of an uncompromising 
 prelate. He had learned to appreciate the impulsiveness 
 of the true Irish character, and determined to convince 
 the confederates that they had within their own body 
 ill the materials which were required to insure success. 
 He set his mind on one grand object, the freedom ol 
 the church, in possession of all her rights and dignities, 
 
118 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 and the emancipation of the Catholic people from th« 
 dj^gradatiou to which Enghsh imperialism had con- 
 (lemned them. The churches, wliich tlie piety of 
 Catholic lords and chieftains had erected, he determined 
 to secure to the rightful inheritors. His mind and 
 feelings recoiled from the idea of a people worshipping 
 in crypts and catacombs. He abhorred the notion of a 
 priest or bishop performing a sacred rite as though it 
 were a felony ; and, spite the wily artifices of Ormond 
 and his faction, he resolved to teach the people of 
 Ireland that they were not to remain mere dependants 
 on English bounty, when a stern resolve might win for 
 them the privileges of freemen. His estimate of the 
 Irish character was correct and exalted. He formed 
 it in the proper quarter. On the Janiculum at Rome 
 stands the Franciscan convent of St. Peter ; many an 
 hour did he spend there listening to Wadding, as he 
 narrated the history of his own dear land — the per- 
 secutions of her children, and their constancy to the 
 Catholic ftiith. What place more fitted for the recital ? 
 On that same hill, Tasso, who sung of her rugged war- 
 riors marching to Palestine, oft reposed ; and within 
 the church that crowns its summit was the tomb of 
 Hugh O'Neill, whereon the history of Erin's chivalry 
 may be said to have been epitomized.* 
 
 It was, therefore, with evident and cogent reason that 
 he regarded the flattering attention of the modern Irish 
 as tlie homage that is paid to the treasurer of a prince, 
 whilst he received the spontaneous and heartfelt devo- 
 tedness of tlie ancient race as a manifest declaration of 
 their love for the religion of which he was a minister, 
 and one in whom they expected to find a deliverer from 
 penalties and persecutions. And why should he not 
 cherish an ardent admiration for the representatives of 
 the old Celtic tribes, and a cordial abhorrence for the 
 sickly policy of the Catholics of the Pale ? Ormond had 
 charmed, as never did any magician, " with spell and 
 philters,"! these ductile men and silken lords, who were 
 
 • All these inscriptions are to be found h\ " Home Ancient 
 Modem," by Dr. 1 onovan. 
 i Unkind Vo^Qvier. 
 
COKFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. lift 
 
 lulling to make terms Avith him which a noble and per- 
 secuted race scorned to accept. Their religion was a 
 dearer consideration than tlieir plundered liomes and 
 confiscated estates. The war Avhicli they had waged was 
 iu the cause of that religion, for those whom they had 
 met foot to foot in many a bloody field had vowed its 
 destruction ; and, now that a treacherous king and his 
 faithf'd lieutenant were driven to the alternative of 
 throwing themselves on the protection of that people, 
 had they not an incontrovertible right to seek — nay, to 
 demand — terms which would secure and guarantee tlie 
 exercise of their religion, unfettered by those penal enact- 
 ments which were worthy the ministers of a Nero or 
 Domitian ? 
 
 Having maturely considered the state of the country 
 and its immediate exigencies, the nuncio concluded that 
 a bold and unanimous etFort would, in one campaign, 
 drive the enemy out of the three provinces before the 
 parliamentary faction could send troops to Ireland. He, 
 therefore, caused all the arms and ammunition which 
 he brought Avith liim to be transported to Kilkenny. 
 Meanwhile the party in the interest of Ormond busied 
 themselves in nominating bishops to some of the vacant 
 sees, and coadjutors to those prelates who, by reason of 
 age or infirmity, were unequal to the episcopal duties. 
 Six of those named by them were men who were 
 the creatures of their masters, and in the same re- 
 lation to them that Walsh was to Ormond, " what the 
 shadow is to the substance."* But the nuncio firmly 
 denied that any power was vested in them to nomi- 
 nate the bishops or their coadjutors; and in vindi- 
 cating this grand principle, he taught the Irish Catho- 
 lics that their hierarchy could never be more pure and 
 independent than when it was free from the patronage 
 and control of secuhir dominion. But expectation was 
 on tiptoe, and, now that the year 1645 had drawn to a 
 close, the confederates anxiously awaited iutelligenoa 
 ijrcm Ormond and Glamorgan. 
 
 • Ures of Irish Wrltrra . 
 
l^ CONFEDEEATION OF KILKENNT. 
 
 CHAPTER VI, 
 
 It wras about the 1st of January, 1646, that the tW6 
 couiraissioners who had accompauied Glamorgan re* 
 turned in hot haste from DubUn to Kilkenny. Few 
 were prepared for the intelligence which they brought. 
 On St. Stephen's day, about dinner hour, GlamorgaJi 
 had been arrested by the order of Orraond, and com- 
 mitted a close prisoner to the castle on a charge of high 
 treason. Had the fleet of the parliament anchored in 
 the bay, it could not have caused greater alarm than 
 that which v/as feigned by Ormond and Digby on this 
 occasion. The gates of the city were closed, and none 
 were permitted to depart, save the confederate commis- 
 sioners. They, too, had been brought to tlie castle ; and 
 Digby, in the presence of Ormond, informed them that 
 they had reason to congratulate themselves on their 
 escape from the severities which were in store for the 
 unfortunate earl. " You must know," said he, " that a 
 document* has lately come into my hands, which was 
 found on the person of Malachy, Archbishop of Tuam, 
 who was slain at Sligo by the Scots. This paper, which 
 w signed by the Archbishop of Cashel, certifying that it 
 is a true copy, is the following : — 
 
 '•Whereas much time hath been spent in meetings 
 and debates betwixt his Excellencie Ja. Lord Marquesse 
 of Ormond, lord lieutenant and general governor of 
 his majesties kingdome of Ireland, commissioner to his 
 most excellent majesty, Charles, by the grace of God, 
 king of Great Britaine, France and Ireland, &c , for the 
 
 » A copy of all the papers had I een found on the person of the 
 Archblsliop of Tuam, when killed at Sligo by the Scots. It vras for- 
 warded to England, and published by order of the parliament, under 
 the title of '• Tlie Earl uf Glamorgan's Negotiations and Colourable 
 Commitment in Ireland'." Sir Thomas Faiifax was the man who 
 seized the captain of the ship in which tlie papers had been sent. Tha 
 Cviptain was a native of Wateiibrd, aad was arrested ct Padstovr, in 
 Com wall.— r. Appeadii. 
 
CONFEDEUATIOK OF KILKENNY. 121 
 
 treating and concluding of a peace in the said kingdome : 
 of his majesties humble and loyall subjects, the confe- 
 derate Roman Catholiques of the said kingdome of 
 Ireland, of the one part, and the Right Honourable 
 Donnog. Lord Viscount Muskery, and other commis- 
 sioners deputed and authorized by the said confederate 
 Roman Catholique subjects, of the other part; andtliere- 
 upon many difficulties did arise, by occasion whereof, 
 sundry matters of great weight and consequence neces- 
 sarily requisite to be condescended unto by his majesties 
 said commissioner, for the safety of the said confederate 
 Roman Catholiques were not hitherto agreed upon, 
 which retarded, and doth as yet retard the conclusion 
 of a firm peace 'and settlement in the said kingdome. 
 And whereas the Right Honourable Edward Earl of 
 Glamorgan, is intrusted and authorized by his most 
 excellent majesty to grant and insure to the said confe- 
 derate Roman Catholique subjects farther graces and fa- 
 vours which the said lord lieutenant did not, as yet, in 
 that latitude as they expected, grant unto them. And 
 the said earl having seriously considered of all matters, 
 and due circumstances of the great affairs now in agita- 
 tion, which is the peace and quiet of the said kingdome, 
 and the importance thereof in order to his majesties 
 service, and in relation to a peace and settlement in his 
 other kingdomes, and hereupon the place having scene 
 the ardent desire of the said Catholiques to assist hia 
 majestic against all that doe, ur shall oppose his royall 
 right or monarchique government, and having discerned 
 the alacrity and cheerefulnesse of the said Roman Ca- 
 tholiques to embrace honourable conditions of peace, 
 which may preserve tlieir religion, and other just in- 
 terests; in pursuance thereof in the twentieth of his reign, 
 granted unto the said Earle of Glamorgan, the tenour 
 whereof is as followeth, viz. Charles R — Charles, 
 by the grace of God, king of England, Scotland, France, 
 and Ireland, defender of the faith, &c. To our right 
 trusty and well-beloved cousin, Edward Earle of Gla- 
 morgan, greeting. Wee, reposing great and especiall 
 trust and confidence in your approved wisdome and fi- 
 delity, doe by these (as firmly as under our great seal, 
 to all intents and purpose) authorize and give you powe? 
 to treat and conclude with the confederate Roman Ca. 
 
122 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY, 
 
 tlioliques in our kingdome of Ireland, if upon >necessitac 
 anything be to be condescended unto, wherein our lord 
 lieutenant cannot so well be seen in, as not fit for us 
 at this present publicly to owne, and therefore we charge 
 you to proceed according to this our warrant, with all 
 possible secrecies ; and for whatsoever you shall engage 
 yourself, upon such valuable considerations, as you in 
 your judgment shall deeme fit, we promise in the worJ 
 of a icing and a Christian, to ratifie and performe the 
 same that shall be granted by you, and under your hand 
 and seal, the said confederate Catholiques having by 
 their supplyes testified their zeal to our service ; and 
 this shall bee in each particular to you a sufficient war- 
 rant. Given at our court at Oxon, under our signet, 
 and royall signature, the twelfth day of March, in the 
 twentieth year of our reigne, 1644. To our right truly 
 and well-beloved cousin, Edward Earle of Glamorgan, 
 It is therefore granted, accorded, and. agreed, by and 
 between the said Earle of Glamorgan, for and on the 
 behalf of his most excellent majesty, his heirs and suc- 
 cessors on the one part, and the Right Honourable 
 Richard Lord Viscount Mountgarret, lord president of 
 the supreme council of the said confederate Catholiques, 
 and the said Donnogh, Lord Viscount Muskery, Alex. 
 Mac Donnell, and Nicholas Plunket, Esquires ; Sir 
 Robert Talbot, Baronet ; Dermid O'Brian, Jo. Dillon ; 
 Patr. Darcy, and Jeffrey Browne, Esquires ; commis- 
 sioners in that behalf appointed, by the said confederate 
 Roman Catholique subjects of Ireland, for and in the 
 behalf of the said confederate Roman Catholiques of the 
 other part, in manner following, that is to say : 
 
 " That an act shall be passed in the next parliament 
 to be held in tliis kingdome ; the tenour and purport 
 whereof shall be as followeth, viz. An act for the re- 
 lief of his majesties Catholique subjects of his highnesse 
 kingdome of Ireland. Whereas by an act made in par- 
 liament held ill Dublin, in the second year of t^ie reigne 
 of the late Queene Elizabeth, intituled, an act for re- 
 storing to the crown the antient jurisdiction over the 
 btute ecclesiasticall and spirituall, and abolish all for- 
 raigne power repugnant to the same, and by another 
 statute made in the said last mentioned parliament, in- 
 tituled, an act for the uniformity of common prayer and 
 
CONPEDEUATION OF KILKENNY. 123 
 
 fttTTice in the church, and the administration of the sa- 
 craments, sundry mulcts, penalties, restraints, and in- 
 capacities, are and have been laid upon the professors of 
 the Roman Catholique religion in this kingdome, in and 
 for, and concerning the use, profession, and exercise of 
 iheir religion, and their functions therein, to the great 
 prejudice, trouble, and disquiet of the Roman Catholiques 
 in their liberties and estates, to the general disturbance 
 of the whole kingdome; for remedy whereof, and for 
 the better feeling, increase, and continuance of the 
 peace, unity, and tranquillity of tliis kingdome of Ire- 
 land, his majesty at the humble suit and request of the 
 lords and commons in this present parliament assembled, 
 is graciously pleased, that it may be enacted, and bee 
 it enacted by the kings most excellent majesty, the lords 
 spirituall and temporall, and commons in this present 
 parliament assembled, and by authority of the same, 
 that from, of, and after the first day of this session of 
 parliament, it shall and may be lawful! to, and for all 
 the professors of the Roman Catholique religion, of 
 what degree, condition or quality soever, to have and 
 enjoy the free and publike exercise and profession of the 
 said Roman Catholique religion, and of their severall 
 and respective functions therein, without incurring any 
 mulct and penalty whatsoever, or being subject to any 
 restraint or incapacity concerning the same, any article, 
 clause, sentence, or provision in the said last mentioned 
 act of parliament, or in any other act or acts of parlia- 
 ment, ordinances, law or usage to the contrary in any- 
 wise notwithstanding. And be it also further enacted, 
 that neitlier the said statutes, or any other statute, act, 
 or ordinance heretofore made in your majesties raigne, 
 or in any the raigne of any of your highnesse most noble 
 progenitors or ancestors, and now of force in this king- 
 dome, nor all, nor any branch, article, clause, and sen- 
 tence in them, or any of them contained and expressed 
 shall be of force and validity in this realme, to extend 
 to be construed or adjudged to extend in anywise to en- 
 quiet, prejudice, vexe or molest the professors of the 
 said Roman Catholique religion, in their persons, lands, 
 hereditaments, or goods, for anything, matter, or cause 
 whatsoever touching, and concerning the free and pub- 
 Jic^ue use, exercise and enjoyinfi; of their eayd religion. 
 
124 
 
 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 function, and profession; And be it also further enacted 
 and declared by the authority aforesaid that your ma- 
 jesties Roman Catholique subjects in the said realme 
 of Ireland from the first day of this session of parliament 
 shall be and be taken, deemed, and adjudged capable of 
 all offices of trust, and advancement, places, degrees, and 
 dignities, and preferments whatsoever withhi your said 
 realme of Ireland, any act, statute, usage or law, to 
 the contrary notwithstanding. And that other acts shall 
 be passed in the said parliament, according to the tenour 
 of such agreement or concessions as herein are exi)ressed, 
 and that in the meantime the said Roman Catholique 
 subjects, and every of them shall enjoy the full freedom, 
 benefit, and advantage of the said agreement or conces- 
 sions and of every of them. 
 
 " It is accorded, granted, and agreed by the said earle, 
 for and on the behalfe of his majesty, his heirs and success 
 sors : that his Ex. the Lord Marques of Orniond, lord 
 lieutenant of Ireland, or any other or others authorized 
 by his majesty, shall not disturbe the professors of the 
 Roman Catholique religion in their present possession, 
 and continuance of the possession of their said churches, 
 jurisdiction or any other the matters aforesaid in these 
 articles agreed and consented unto by the said E. untiU 
 his majesties pleasure be signified for coifirming and 
 publishing the grounds and agreements hereby articled 
 for, and condiscended unto by the said earle. And the 
 said earle of Glamorgara doth hereby ingage his majes- 
 ties royall and publique faith unto all and singular the 
 professors of tlie said Roman Catholique religion within 
 the said kingdome of Ireland, for the due observance 
 and performance of all and every the articles, grounds 
 and clauses, herein contained, and the concessions 
 herein mentioned to be performed to them. 
 
 " It is accorded and agreed that the publique faith of 
 the kingdome shall be engaged unto the said earle by 
 the said confederate Catholiques for sending 10,000 rnen 
 to serve his majesty by order and publique declaration 
 of the generall assembly now sitting : and the supreme 
 councell of the said confederate CathoUques shall en- 
 gage themselves to bring the said number of men armed, 
 the one-half with musketts, and the otlier half with 
 pikes, uato any port within this realme within the eleo- 
 
CONFEDERATION *F KILKENNY. 12« 
 
 tion of the said earle, and at such time as he shall ap-» 
 point to be by him shipfled and transported to serve his 
 majesty in England, Wales, or Scotland, under the 
 command of the said Earle of Glamorgan, as lord gene- 
 rail of the said army : which army is to be kept together 
 tn one entire body, and all otlier the said officers and 
 commanders of the said army are to be named by the 
 supreme councell of the said confederate Catholiques, or 
 by such others as the severall assembly of the said confe- 
 derate CathoUques of this kingdome shall entrust there- 
 with. In witness whereof the parties of these presents 
 liave hereunto enterchangeably put their hands and seals 
 the 25th day of August, 1643. 
 
 " Glamorgan. 
 ** Copia vera coUata fideliter originali, 
 
 Thomas Cashell, P. Partricius, 
 
 Waterford and Lismore." 
 
 Digby denied the authenticity of the document — and 
 asserted that it was either forged or surreptitiously 
 obtained. In a tone of indignation which subsequent 
 events must prove to have been affected, and without a 
 particle of sincerity, he told the commissioners that their 
 offer of the subsidies, on the terms which they proposed, 
 should be scornfully rejected. "And for my part," 
 continued he, " sooner than counsel his majesty to accept 
 your assistance on the terms which you have made with 
 Glamorgan, I would sacrifice the lives of my wife and 
 children. Go back to Kilkenny, and inform the presi- 
 dent of the federative assembly that the Protestants of 
 England would fling the king's person out at his window, 
 if they believed it possible that he lent himself to such 
 an undertaking." * 
 
 When the commissioners returned with this strange 
 intelligence, consternation and amaze seized every one 
 Avho heard it. At the time there were but few of tho 
 confederates in the city ; the rest Avere spending the 
 Christmas holidays in their homes, and anxiously await- 
 ing the result which, they fancied, would restore peace 
 to Ireland, and leave them free to succour the Tinfortu- 
 
 ki^.-/.\, p. 86. 
 
;26 
 
 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 nate king. The nuncio immediately summoned itk 
 many of them as he could collect, for the purpose of 
 ascertaining what was to be done in such a critical 
 emergency. All of them protested vehemently against 
 the injury which was inflicted on Glamorgan ; and some 
 were of opinion that they ought to march en Dublin, 
 and demand his liberation from an unjust imprisonment, 
 which they regarded as an insult put upon themselves. 
 Far from regarding Glamorgan's powers as fictitious, 
 they avowed their belief that he had been commissioned 
 by the king to treat with them, and that the conditions 
 on which they had agreed could not but be pleasing to 
 his majesty, as they stipulated nothing which they had 
 not a right to demand. Five of the confederates waited 
 on the nuncio in his own house, to learn from him what 
 supplies he could give in case they came to a resolution 
 to besiege Dublin (an enterprise which he anxiously de- 
 sired) ; but on hearing from him that he could not give 
 an exact account of the money till his agent, Invernizi, 
 had returned from Flanders, where he was sent to pur- 
 chase some frigates, their ardour began to cool. Mount- 
 garret and Muskerry gave a different version of the ar- 
 rest, and, in their overweening estimate of Ormond's 
 probity, sought to screen him from any suspicion which 
 might reflect on his honour and loyalty. But, notwith- 
 standing the palliation which they offered for the conduct 
 of the lord lieutenant, a great number of the confede- 
 rates were for active measures, and were fully satisfied 
 with the answer they subsequently received from the 
 nuncio, who asserted that at the time he could take 
 upon himself the expenses that might be incurred by a 
 campaign in any one of the provinces, if they could 
 assure him that it would tend to bring about a peace on 
 the conditions which they had already made. 
 
 Nothing could be more acceptable to the prelates* and 
 people than this proposal. They had long since lost all 
 respect for the promises of Ormond ; but that section of 
 the confederacy which called itself the Ormondist party, 
 fearing tliat they might *!e involved in a war, laboured 
 against the popiilar feeling, and pressed their resolution 
 to have the whole matter submitted to the general 
 assembly. 
 
 This resolution had not the concurrence of tfca 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 127 
 
 prelates or the people, for although the truce with 
 Ormond could not expire till the 17th of January, they 
 regarded the recent transactions as justificatory of an 
 infraction. But there were, of the confederates, some 
 who did not hesitate to avow that, in case of hostility, 
 the marquess would make terms with the parliamenta- 
 rians, and turn all his powers against the assembly. 
 "Whether this might have been the case or not, certain 
 it is that if they had resolved to advance on Dublin, 
 it could not have stood a siege of eight days, open as it 
 Avas to attack, and the castle without means of holding out 
 against a vigorous effort.* Meanwhile, the nuncio Avrote 
 to the English queen and Cardinal Mazarin, informing 
 tliem of Glamorgan's arrest, and deploring the state of 
 insecurity into which the artifices of Ormond had drawn 
 the Irish people. In his letter to Henrietta Maria, he 
 assured her of the devotedness of the Irish Catholics to 
 the interests of the king, and lamented the interruption 
 which the expedition under the command of Glamor- 
 gan had met, by reason of his incarceration. 
 
 According to their resolutions, the assembly of the 
 confederate Catholics met at Kilkenny early in January. 
 The prelates and clergy approached the meeting with a 
 feeling against Ormond, which was only embittered by 
 his recent proceedings; and, now that Glamorgan's 
 peace had been set aside, they calculated on terms to be 
 proposed by the lord lieutenant, to which their oath 
 of association, and the sweat and toil of five years in 
 the cause of Catholicity, forbade their assent. 
 
 Their first act was to write to Ormond threatening to 
 suspend all further negotiation, if the Earl of Gla- 
 morgan was not immediately freed from arrest. The 
 release of the prisoner, they said, was absolutely neces- 
 sary for the relief of Chester. Three thousand men 
 were ready to embark, f and only waited the transports; 
 all was at a stand by his imprisonment, and further 
 delay compromised the king. Sir Robert Talbot was 
 
 * At this moment Ormond was in concert with Munroe in the north, 
 and in great want of prdvisions. The castle, which at that time waa 
 the principal magazine of Ireland, had not arms or food to resure ti 
 siege. — Jiinuccini's Corresp. 
 
 t These troops had been d'-awn out of the armies in the throo 
 
123 
 
 CON'yEDEBATION OF KILKKNNy. 
 
 »ent hy the confederates to second this letter^ ajid ua 
 the 2'2ad of January an order was given for his Jxjing 
 bailed upon .£40,000 sterling, seeiirity, given by the 
 Earl of Kildare and the Marquess of Clanricarde. He 
 was also bound to appear before the board within thirty 
 days after notice. Nor need it be wondered at tliat 
 Ormond could thus dismiss the nian whom he im- 
 I)eached of high treason, for he was a party to the 
 collusion, and professed himself quite satisfied with 
 Glamorgan's commission, which had subjoined to it 
 a defeasance* or starting hole, stipulating that the king 
 sliould be no further bound than he liimself might 
 think fit, after he had witnessed the efforts of the Irish 
 Catholics in his favour. Nothing can be more clear 
 than that tlie whole transaction was meant as a blmd 
 for the English Protestants, and a delusive hope for the 
 Irish Catholics. 
 
 On his release, Glamorgan proceeded to Kilkenny, 
 where he was received by the assembly. Far from 
 resenting the treatment he had received from Ormond, 
 he praised and extolled his conduct, declaring that, 
 under the circumstances, he could not have ac&ed 
 otherwise. 
 
 But these professions were far from satisfying the 
 nuncio and the prelates. They immediately concluded 
 that there Avas something fraudulent in the transaction, 
 and determined to receive any proposition, which Gla- 
 morgan might advance, with greater caution for the 
 future. 
 
 The assembly was now unhappily divided into two 
 parties. The clergy were obstinately opposed to any 
 peace which did not secure the free and open exercise of 
 the Catholic religion. Their oath of association, they 
 asserted, bound them to identify the interests of religion 
 with the support of the king : nor would they accede to 
 any terms which did not stipulate the restoration of all 
 the cathedral and parochial churches with the revenues 
 which had been wrested from them by "the reforma- 
 tion." 
 
 On the other hand, the lords and gentlemen of the 
 Pale insisted on a peace, which, committing this import- 
 
 • 7he nuncio seoms to hare been igntxraat of this defeasance. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY, 
 
 129 
 
 ant question to the ulterior decision of the king, would 
 leave them free to succour him immediately. Tliis ex- 
 pedient, they contended, was a sufficient security for the 
 church, and the only means of effectually uniting the 
 Protestant loyalists with the Catholics. They contended, 
 moreover, that the articles of Glamorgan's private 
 treaty (provided it was a bona fide transaction) were 
 ample, and in every respect satisfactory. But the recent 
 imprisonment of the earl had shaken tlie confidence of 
 the clergy, and they regarded the devotion of Mus- 
 kerry and Mountgarret to the interests of Ormond as the 
 necessary consequences of their connexion with hjm. 
 So generally did this feeling of distrust pervade the 
 popular class, that Emerus, bishop of Clogher, was 
 obliged to write to the Ulster chieftains, rebuking their 
 adherents for having come to a determination not to join 
 the troops intended to be sent to Chester. * 
 
 The division which now reigned in the assembly was 
 nothing less than the reflex of the popular feeling. The 
 old nobility, slighted by Ormond, and excluded from any 
 participation in the management of the treaty, had iden- 
 tified themselves with the clergy, and preferred all the 
 horrors of civil war to what they termed an ignominious 
 peace. The nobility and gentry of the Pale were chiefly 
 concerned for the security of their temporalities and the 
 toleration of their religion, beside which they had no- 
 thing in common with the indigenous population. So 
 deeply rooted was the aversion of the latter to the king's 
 representative, that they hailed the nuncio's arrival as 
 that of a general Avho was to raise the pontifical stand- 
 ard, and lead them against Ormond and the puritans, 
 whom they identified in hostility to their cr^ed and 
 country.! It required no trifling labour, on the part of 
 the nuncio, to remove the erroneous impression under 
 which they laboured. It was industriously circulated 
 that he came to make the pope protector of Ireland; and 
 deep as was their sense of loyalty, they required no sti- 
 mulus to shake oflT a yoke which misrule and tyranny 
 had rendered intolerable. False, however, as it was, 
 
 • Vindiciae Hibemonim. p. 77. 
 
 ♦ Amongst others, Clarendon. 
 
130 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 the impression had been made, not by Einnccini, but hy 
 his enemies ; for any siich overture on his x^art would 
 have been in direct opposition to the court of Eome, 
 which was far more interested for the unfortunate 
 Chnj-les tlian those who propagated the slander. 
 
 But the mod- ate party was determined to conchide 
 with Ormond, and in order to swell the number of tluir 
 votes, they caused ex officio niembers to be elected to 
 the council. This informality, however, could not 
 produce the desired clTect, for the clergy were deter- 
 mined, if they could not prevent the publication, a' 
 least to have it postponed. 
 
 They contended that Glamorgan's treaty was not to 
 be depended on, as it contained no positive guarantee 
 for its fulfilment. All his promises were dependent on 
 two contingencies . the good will of a capricious 
 monarch, and his ability to realize tliem. Moreover, 
 Glamorgan could not now be regarded as an agent free 
 to treat on behalf of his majesty, inasmuch as he was 
 bound to appear before the council board within thirty 
 days after notice, so that they knew not how soon he 
 might be summoned, and be obliged to leave the treaty 
 without the royal sanction. 
 
 On the other side it was as vehemently argued that 
 the Marquess of Ormond's powers to treat with the 
 confederates, should terminate on the first of April, 
 and in case they could not conclude with him, the king 
 might revoke his commission, and thus deprive the 
 country of such a valuable acquisition. They were 
 empowered to state, on the lord lieutenant's behadf, that 
 if the treaty was concluded, he would join with the 
 confederates in expelling the Puritans, and the Marquess 
 of Clanricarde would come to their aid. A more 
 urgent argument advanced by the Ormondist party was, 
 that if, instead of a peace, they only made a truce, the 
 soldiers who were destined to proceed to Chester, might 
 refuse to march, fearing that on landing they might be 
 treated as rebels by the royal troops. 
 
 But these arguments were strenuously combated by 
 the clergy. They insisted that it was easy for liie 
 Marquess of Ormond to procure a renewal of his patent, 
 nor could they conceive how the. royal troops could 
 
 at the Irish soldiers as rebels, without injuring the 
 
CON-FEDERATIOX OF KILKENNT. 31 
 
 royal cause. The three thousand who were now ready 
 to march and embark, were but an instahnent of the 
 ten for which Glamorgan had stipulated, and it was not 
 witliin the range of probabiiities that they would be 
 maltreated by the royalists, as such conduct on their 
 part would clearly prevent the rest from setting foot in 
 England or Wales. 
 
 Whilst these discussions were pending, an incident 
 occurred which was' calculated to confirm the clergy in 
 their opposition to Ormond's peace. The nuncio pro- 
 duced letters from Rome which had been despatched 
 early in November, informing him that a treaty was 
 about to be concluded between the pope and the queen* 
 of England, on behalf of the Irish Catholics. Sir 
 Kenelm Digby, the queen's agent at the papal court, 
 had been fully empowered to make terms for the Irish 
 Catholics, which having received the approval of the 
 head of the church, could not but be highly advanta- 
 geous and honourable. The treaty, which was so 
 materially to benefit them, included the English 
 Catholics, and should of course rouse them to more 
 strenuous efforts in the king's cause. Glamorgan, in 
 order to give more weight to tliis argument, asserted 
 that whilst he was detained in custody, Digby informed 
 him that in case the holy see advanced an annual sum 
 for the king's support, his majesty would extend the 
 benefit of the pontifical treaty to the English Catholics. f 
 
 It would appear that the president of the confederates 
 had been notified of the proceedings at Rome ; but, as if 
 attaching little or no importance to them, he did not di- 
 vulge the intelligence to the council. 
 
 Muskerry and Mountgarret affected to believe that 
 this negotiation was nothing but a fiction, and meant to 
 delay the publication of the peace with Ormond. Ley- 
 
 * At this moment there was a memorial sent to the queen by Col. 
 Rtzrwilliara, praj-ing her majesty to vouchsafe to prevail with liis 
 majesty to condescend to tlie just demands of his Irish subjects, the 
 confederate Catholics, at least in private, and the colonel undertook to 
 bring an army of 10,000 men or more into Enghmd. He required tliut 
 he should be appointed commander-in-chief, &c., -with a month's pay 
 In advance for the men on tiieir landing. Ihe queen expressed her 
 gatisfaction, but the money was not forthcoming.— ^or^ow, 155. 
 
 t Hinuccini, 06. 
 
132 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 burn* denounced it as non-existent, and was sliarply re- 
 buked by the nuncio, and the general feeling of the 
 laity in tlie assembly was, that such a negotiation on the 
 part of the queen consort, herself unautliorized, was nu- 
 gatory and futile. 
 
 Notwithstanding this acrimonious controversy, the 
 nuncio induced the bishops to sign an agreement, by 
 which they bound themselves to accept no other terms 
 ^ut what Avere stipulated in the pontifical treaty. He 
 at the same time caused Glamorgan to avow that he 
 would not any further pursue liis own private treaty, 
 but insist on the new project as more conducive to the 
 king's welfare and that of the Catholics of Ireland. — 
 The argument of the nuncio was, tliat it did not become 
 a true son of the church to put liis own peace in compe- 
 tition with that approved by the pope ; and he therefore 
 should wait for the original from Konie. 
 
 On the 7th of February the nuncio addressed the 
 council, extolling the queen's negotiation with his holiness, 
 who had already contributed a considerable sum to Sir 
 Kenelm Digby for the maintenance of the king. He 
 produced the heads of the treaty which had not as yet 
 been signed, and expatiated on the good-wiU which the 
 pope entertained for the English Catholics, evidencing 
 the fact by the offer which his holiness had made of con- 
 tributing annually one hundred thousand crowns for the 
 maintenance of the royal troops, till the king, in a free 
 parliament, would be able to repeal all the penal laws 
 against the English Catholics. On the word of a prince 
 he assured them that the conclusion of these articles 
 might be hourly expected, as it was probable that Sir 
 Kenelm Digby was already on his way. 
 
 But nothing could abate the eagerness of Lord 
 
 * This Dr. Leybum was an Englishman, and one of the queen's 
 chaplains. He may be said to have been tlie leader of a small faction 
 of the clergy who opposed the niincio's views. This faction consisted 
 of Walsh and a few otliers, whom the nuncio represents as preachuig 
 tliis slavish doctrine : — '■ 1 he Jewish people were years v^ithout 
 a Temple— Our Lord instituted the eucharistic sacrifice in a private 
 domicile; why, therefore, should the Catholics insist on the restitution 
 of their temples ?" The real state of tlie case, however, was simply 
 this : — Kinuccinj was deteiTnined, in due time, to enforce the monastic 
 nile in all its rigom', and eiTatic spirits like W alsh's and Caron^i 
 dreaded Uie observances to which it would hiive bound them.— T. Min. 
 
CONFEDERATION OV KILKENNY 
 
 135 
 
 Ormond's adherents for the peace. For fuUy five days 
 the assembly had more the appearance of a conclave 
 concerned with abstract speculations, than real practical 
 measures, and it was not till the fifteenth of the month 
 that Glamorgan succeeded in appointing seven of the 
 confederates to confer with the nuncio "for removing 
 mistakes and reconciling differences." 
 
 On the 18th Glamorgan signed an instrument in 
 which he ratified the articles between the queen and 
 the pope, and undertook that they should be confirmed 
 by the king, provided that, if the original articles of 
 that treaty arrived by the first of May, the said 
 instrument was to be void ; and in the mean time to be 
 kept secret, unless the political articles of the peace 
 with the lord lieutenant should be published before. 
 In order to put an end to the debate, a convention 
 was signed on the eighteenth, between the nuncio and 
 the seven deputies, whereby it was stipulated " to con- 
 tinue the cessation till May the 1st, in expectation of 
 the original of the pope's treaty, and then the nuncio 
 should ratify what he and Glamorgan would agree on, 
 that there might be no further delay of an honourable 
 peace." But this should be no obstruction to the con- 
 federates treating with Ormond about political matters, 
 provided they came to no conclusion or publication of 
 articles, nor proceeded to any alteration of the civil 
 government, nor did anything to the prejudice of the 
 transaction between Glamorgan and the nuncio.* 
 
 Glamorgan, who Avas now more urgent than ever for 
 the immediate relief of Chester, took an oath that he 
 would stand by the nuncio against all opposers of the 
 pope's treaty, and the nuncio's measures for the good of 
 religion, and the service of the king — for which end he 
 promised to procure from France a supply of ships, 
 arms, and money, which were to be placed at the 
 disposal of the confederates. This was given under lus 
 hand and seal the 19th of February. Two days after- 
 wards the nuncio came to the assembly, exhorting them 
 to adopt vigorous measures against the parliamentarians, 
 and promising them a peace within two months. More 
 than two months had now been consumed in thes<f 
 
 • Carte, i. 666. 
 
134 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 debates, and it was not till the 28th of March that the 
 articles of Ormond's treaty vrere signed by the marquess, 
 on the king's behalf; and the Lord Muskerry, Sir 
 Robert Talbot, John Dillon, Patrick D'Arcy, and 
 Geoffrey Browne, on the part of the confederates. At 
 the same time with these articles was signed a con- 
 ditional obligation, whereby the confederates engaged 
 to transport 10,000 foot into England or Wales ; 6,000 
 by April 1st, and 4,000 by May 1st, following; and 
 till the men were shipped, the articles were to be 
 deposited in the hands of Clanricarde, and not to be of 
 force or published till the 1st of May, nor then, unless 
 upon sending of the men. And in case the above- 
 mentioned forces were not sent (unless hindered by 
 reasonable cause, allowed as such by the Marquess of 
 Ormond), the articles were to be of no effect, and their 
 counterparts returned to the respective parties. 
 The following is an abbreviate of the articles : — 
 
 1 . " That the professors of the Roman Catholick reli- 
 gion in the kingdom of Ireland, or any of them, be not 
 bound or obliged to take the oath of supremacy, ex- 
 pressed in the second of Queen Elizabeth, commonly 
 called the oath of supremacy. 
 
 2. " That a parliament may be held on or before the 
 last day of November next ; and that these articles 
 agreed on, may be transmitted into England, according 
 to the usual form, and passed, provided that nothing 
 may be passed to the prejudice of either Protestant or 
 Catholick party, other than such things as upon this 
 treaty shall be concluded. 
 
 3. " That all acts made by botn or either houses of 
 parliament, to the blemish or prejudice of his majesties 
 Roman Catholick subjects, since the 7tli of August, 
 1641, shall be vacated by acts of parliament. 
 
 4. " That no actions of law shall be removed before 
 the said parliament, in case It be sooner called than the 
 last of November ; and that all impediments which may 
 hinder the Roman Catholicks to sit in the next parliament, 
 shall be removed before the parliament sit. 
 
 5. " That all debts, do stand in state, as they were in 
 the beginning of these troubles. 
 
 6. " That the plantation in Connaught, Kilkenny 
 ll>«.re. Tliomond, Tipperary, Limrick. and Wicklo' 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 ibQ 
 
 inay be revoked by act of parliament, and their estates 
 secured in the next sessions. 
 
 7. " That the natives may erect one or more inns of 
 court in or near the city of Dublin, they taking an oath ; 
 as also one or more universities, to be governed as his 
 majesty shall appoint ; as also to have schools for edu- 
 cation of youth in the kingdom. 
 
 8. " That places of command, of forts, castles, garri- 
 sons, towns, and other places of importance, and all 
 places of honour, profit, and trust, shall be conferred 
 with equal indifferency upon the Catholicks,as his majes- 
 ties other subjects, according to their respective merits 
 and abilities. 
 
 9. " That £12,000 sterUng be paid the king yearly, 
 for the court of wards. 
 
 10. '• That no peer may be capable of more proxiea 
 than two. And that no lords vote in parliament, unless, 
 in five years, a lord baron purchase in Ireland £200 
 per annum, a viscount £400, and an earl £600, or lose 
 their votes till they purchase, • 
 
 11. "That the independency of the i>arliament of 
 Ireland on the kingdom of England shall be decided by 
 declaration of both houses, agreeable to the laws of the 
 kingdom of Ireland. 
 
 12. " That the council table shall contain itself within 
 its bounds in handUng matters of state, as patents of 
 plantations, offices, &c., and not meddle with matter be- 
 twixt party and party. 
 
 13. ♦' That all acts concerning staple or native com- 
 modities of this kingdom shall be repealed, except wooli 
 and woollfels ; and that the commissioners, the Lord 
 Mountgarret, and others, named in the twenty-sixth ar- 
 ticle, shall be authorized, under the great seal, to mode- 
 rate and ascertain the rates of merchandize to be ex- 
 ported and imported. 
 
 14. '• That no governor be longer resident than his 
 majesty shall find^ for the good of his people, and that 
 they make no purchase, other than by lease, for the pro- 
 vision of their houses. 
 
 15. y That an act of oblivion may be passed, without 
 extending to any who will not accept of this peace. 
 
 16. **That no governor, or any other prime ministe.f 
 
136 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 of state in Ireland, shall be farmers of his majesties 
 customs. 
 
 17. "That a repeal of all monopolies be passed. 
 
 18. "That commissioners be appointed to regulate the 
 court of castle-chamber. 
 
 19. " That acts prohibiting plowing by horse tails, and 
 burning of oats in straw, be repealed.* 
 
 20. '• That course be taken against the disobedience of 
 the cessation and peace. 
 
 21. " That such graces as were promised by his majesty 
 in the fourth year of his reign, and sued for by a commit- 
 tee of both houses of parliament, and not expressed in 
 these articles, may, in the next ensuing parliament, be 
 desired of his majesty. 
 
 22. "That maritime causes be determined here, with- 
 out appeal into England. 
 
 23 ' ' That the increase of rents lately raised upon the 
 commission of defective titles be repealed. 
 
 24. " That all interests of money due by way of debt, 
 mortgage, or otherwise, and not yet satisfied since the 23d 
 of October, 1641, to pay no more than £5 per cent. 
 
 25. "That the commissioners have power to deter- 
 mine all cases within their quarters, until the perfection 
 of these articles by parliament, and raise 10,000 men for 
 his majesty. 
 
 26. "That the Lord Mountgarret, Muskerry, Sir Da- 
 niel O'Bryan, Sir Lucas Dillon, Nicholas Plunket, 
 Richard Bealing, Philip Mac Hugh O'Relie, Terlogh 
 O'Neal, Thomas Flemming, Patrick Darcy, Gerald Fen- 
 nel, and Jefifery Brown, or any five of them, be for the 
 present commissioners of the peace, Oyer and Terminer, 
 and gaol-delivery, in the present quarters of the confede- 
 rate Catholicks ; with power of justise of peace. Oyer and 
 Terminer and gaol-delivery, as in former times of peace 
 they have usually had. 
 
 27. "That none of the Roman Catholick party, be- 
 fore there be a settlement by parliament, sue, implead, 
 or arrest, or be sued, impleaded, or arrested, in any 
 court, other than before the commissioners, or in _ the 
 
 * This article needs some explanation, as it is hard to reconcile such 
 barbarous usages with a period so enlightened. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNT. 137 
 
 eerferal corporations or other judicatures within their 
 quarters. 
 
 28. "That the confederate Catholicks continue in 
 their possessions until settlement by parliament, and to 
 be c(^mmanded by his majesties chief governour, with 
 tlie advice and consent of the commissioners, or any five 
 of them. 
 
 29. ' ' That all customs, from the perfection of these 
 articles, are to be paid into his majesties receipt, and to 
 liis use ; as also all rent due at Easter next, till a full 
 settlement of parliament. 
 
 30. *' That the commissioners of Oyer and Terminer, 
 and gaol-delivery, shall have power to hear and deter- 
 mine all offences committed or done, or to be committed 
 or done, from the 15th day of September, 1643, until 
 the first day of the next parliament." 
 
 Such was the result of these negotiations by which the 
 Catholics of Ireland were left in the strange condition of 
 an alliance Avith the king through his private agent, and 
 of suspended hostility through his lord lieutenant. 
 
 It has been asserted by Clarendon, that tlie nuncio 
 consented to the treaty which was now concluded with 
 Ormond ; but that assertion is not founded on fact. He 
 steadily opposed it ; and early in February caused the 
 bishops to sign a protest against any treaty which did 
 not guarantee the free exercise of religion, and the re- 
 storation of the church property, as well as the appoint- 
 ment of a Catholic lord lieutenant to succeed Ormond. 
 In fact, he could not, with any degree of consistency, 
 have assented to that peace ; for, of its thirty articles, 
 the only one which touched the question of religion is 
 the first, by which it was agreed " That the professors 
 of the Roman Catholic religion in this kingdom of Ire- 
 land be not bound to take the oath of supremacy ex- 
 pressed in the second of Queen Elizabeth," whilst the 
 vital subject was remitted to the consideration of his 
 majesty. 
 
 The meeting of the general assembly, before breaking 
 up, passed two resolutions, which tended much to expe- 
 dite business and remove abuses. By the first it was 
 determined, tliat for the future the supreme council 
 should be reduced to nine members ; that is to say, each 
 province was to return two, who, with the secretary 
 
138 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 made nine. This was found to be matter of great ad. 
 vantage, as much inconvenience was tne result of the 
 great number who sat in their former assemblies. The 
 second resolution ordained that the clergy should fur- 
 nish, through their own hands, two-thirds of the church 
 revenues for the maintenance of the war, as many frauds 
 had resulted from a system which, in this particular, 
 needed much reform. 
 
 The supreme council remained at Kilkenny, and the 
 nuncio, seconded by the bishops, set about remedying 
 the deplorable state to which the country had been re- 
 duced by armistices, and the jealousies which were fo- 
 mented by the contending parties. The adherents of 
 Ormond, more intent on sending supplies to England 
 than securing themselves, had sadly neglected the mili- 
 tary affairs of Ireland. The time which they consumed 
 disputing in their cabals, had been turned to good ac- 
 count by Munroe in the north, and the parliamentary, 
 lord president in Connaught. Kinuccini urged the su- 
 preme council to establish a military tribunal, to which 
 ail the generals and officers commanding the confederate 
 troops should be amenable. Hitherto the commanders, 
 as well as inferior officers, had been elected by their re- 
 spective provinces. Clanricarde remained neutral, and 
 the nuncio indulged a hope of drawing him into the 
 confederacy. • In fact, the neutrality of Lord Clanri- 
 carde was his reason for not presenting him with a bull 
 which he had brought from Rome. In the person of the 
 Archbishop of Tuam the confederates experienced a 
 great loss, and the record Avhich the nuncio has left of 
 his character, cannot but be pleasing. " This prelate," 
 says he, "when proceeding to Sligo took leave of his 
 friends, quoting some old prophecies concerning the 
 church over which he presided, (in sooth, the peo- 
 ple of this country are much given to predictions,) and 
 stating that he was destined to return no more. When 
 surrounded by his enemies, he boldly declared that ha 
 rejoiced to lay down his life for religion ; and gloriously 
 has he closed the period of his labours, which have er« 
 now procured him a reward in heaven."* 
 
 After the bishop's death, the command devolved on 
 
 * BlnacclQi Konziataro, p. fis. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 139 
 
 Hie heroic Bourke ; and it was resolved that he should 
 not be removed. Preston, who commanded in Leinster, 
 
 was far from being high in the esteem of the nuncio 
 
 Although an experienced soldier, he had not much love 
 for the representatives of the "old Irish." He was a 
 man of whimsical character, and full of all the preju- 
 dices which the Catholics of the Pale had ever nourished 
 for their Celtic brethren. Alternately swayed by his 
 attachmejit to Ormond and his love for the Catholic re- 
 ligion, he did not possess those attributes which belong 
 to a man of bold and decided views. His hatred of 
 Owen Roe was another cause of the nuncio's distrust ; 
 for although O'Neill and Preston had served from early 
 youth under the same standard, there existed the most 
 rancorous hatred between them. O'Neill despised the 
 Leinster general, and he in return did not fail, on all 
 XJcasions, to depreciate and ridicule his rival. Strange 
 taat at such a time these feelings of jealousy and mutual 
 hatred should have existed 1* The province of Ulster 
 was overrun by the Scotch ; and, as we have already 
 stated, the rival pretensions of Owen Roe and Sir Plic- 
 lim had done incalculable mischief. Indeed, nothing 
 short of the delegated majesty of Rome could have 
 brought about a reconciliation.! 
 
 Munster was almost entirely in the hands of Inchi- 
 quin, and the defection of Thomond aggravated the mis- 
 fortunes of that province. Castlehaven, in the recent 
 campaign, had not acted with spirit, and, in complai- 
 sance to Ormond, did not press the siege of Youghal ; 
 the fortress of Duncannon had been totally neglected ; 
 ■»nd, although it commanded the entrance to Wexford 
 and Ross, the bickerings of the confederates did not give 
 them time to garrison or strengthen it. 
 
 Rinuccini bitterly inveighed against this state of 
 things, and charged the supreme council with indiffer- 
 ence to matters of such mighty moment. But the 
 Bpring had now come, and he resolved to strike a blow 
 which was calculated to convince the Irish that they 
 
 • Sir Phelim O'Neill was married to Preston's daughter. Henr7, 
 the son of Owen Roe, was married to the daughter of Luke FitZe*- 
 laid, and was slain in the year 1655, in the noith, after quarter given- 
 — Morrisons Threnodia. 
 
 t r. Ai.azzi, p.l36. 
 
i-i CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 ehojki place more reliance on their own swords and 
 energies than on the delusive promises of a king " who 
 had nothing of faith or generosity in him." * Before 
 distributing the arms and money which he had caused 
 to be brought to Kilkenny, the nuncio submitted his 
 plan of a campaign to the council. He inclined to make 
 Ulster the seat of war, for the following reasons:—. 
 First — Its vicinity to Scotland gave easy access to the 
 enemy. Secondly— The devotion of its inhabitants to 
 the Catholic religion was more fervent and sincere than 
 that of the other provinces. It was now the granary of 
 Munroe, who was continually detaching parties of his 
 marauders into Connaught. But the more powerful 
 reason was the superior generalship of Owen Koe, who 
 confessedly surpassed all the others in military know- 
 ledge. 
 
 Moreover, it was easy to supply the wants of the men 
 who were now crowding round his standard. "The 
 Boldiers of Ulster," says he, "and, in some parts, those 
 of Connaught, naturally accustomed to suffering, and 
 habituated to the frosts of that northern climate, have 
 few wishes and few wants. Caring but little for laread, 
 they live upon shamrock and butter. Their drink is 
 milk, and, as a great luxury, usquebaugh. Provided 
 they have shoes and a few utensils, a woollen cloak 
 serves for their covering, more zealously careful of their 
 sword and musket than of their personal comfort. They 
 seldom touch money, and therefore complain but little 
 about it."f In the latter respect they stood in strange 
 contrast with the Leinster troops under Preston, for 
 they served for pay, which was regulated according to the 
 Flemish standard. 
 
 Muskerry and Mountgarret did not relish the nuncio's 
 partiality for tlie men of Ulster ; nor were they roused 
 to a sense of the dangers which threatened that pro- 
 A'ince, till the fugitives who were driven before Munroe's 
 bands took shelter under the walls of Kilkenny, and 
 foreshadowed the fate which menaced themselves, if not 
 ipeedily averted. 
 
 Moved by these considerations, the nuncio made up 
 
 • Lucy H^itchinson's Memoiraof her Husband, p. 66. 
 t Aiazzi, p. S39. Vide Lublin Ennin'x, June, 1844. 
 
CONFEDERATION Of XILKPZNNY. 141 
 
 his mind to give the entire of the supplies to the army 
 under Owen Roe. But, to prevent the ill-feeling which 
 he was told should result, he consented, however re- 
 luctantly, to bestow two- thirds of the arras, ammunition, 
 and money on General Preston. The council, moreover, 
 voted £3,000 to Ormond, on a proviso that he would 
 immediately march into the east of Ulster, and operate 
 against the Scotch. 
 
 Clanricarde, alarmed at the advance of Coote, con- 
 sented to take the field in his province ; and, in the ab- 
 sence of an enemy in Leinster, Preston was commanded 
 to proceed and act under him. Muskerry, whose mill- 
 tary acquirements were not of a grand order, was to 
 proceed to Munster, and recover the castles delivered by 
 Thomond to the parliament, and, if possible, to over- 
 whelm Inchiquin. 
 
 The nuncio had already sent one of his retinue to 
 report on the state of tlie fortress of Duncannon ; and, 
 when informed of its immediate wants, he obliged 
 Preston to look after its defence. Many and bitter have 
 been the reproaches cast on the head of Rinuccini ; but, 
 nevertheless, it must be admitted, that he sought to 
 convince the Irish that they had within themselves re- 
 sources which, if properly directed, might have insured 
 success. To use his own sentiment, he found them 
 ** dazzled by the splendour of England, and chilled by 
 the shadow of her greatness." If he failed in every 
 other respect, does he not deserve some praise for having 
 striven to teach the confederates that they might have 
 obscured that glittering despotism which had so long and 
 so fearfully ground them ? 
 
 Of all these arrangements, nothing gave the nuncio 
 greater satisfaction than the settlement of the question 
 between Sir Plielim O'Neill and his great kinsman. 
 " The generous reconciliation" which had been effected 
 through him gave promise of some grand result. In a 
 spirit savouring of the prophetic, he announced to the 
 assembly that Ulster should soon be rid of its invaders, 
 and the cathedral of Armagh restored to the ancient 
 worship. There was nothing wanting to perfect these 
 plans, but the presence of Invernizi, with the light ves- 
 eeis which were meant to cruise along the coast, an'l 
 
14-. 
 
 confedehation of Kilkenny. 
 
 Intercept the supplies which the parliament Avas 
 lending to their adherents in the seaport towns. 
 
 Nor was the solicitude of the nuncio and the confede- 
 rates for the king's relief in the least diminished by the 
 more urgent exigencies of Ireland. By order of the su- 
 preme council 4,000 men were drawn out of the stand- 
 ing armies of Leinster and Munster, and 2,000 more cut 
 of the other provinces, and a day was appointed for their 
 , embarkation at Passage, in the county of Waterford. 
 An order was issued for levying four thousand more, 
 who were to be transported into England as soon as pos- 
 sible. That the troops might be sent without delay, an 
 embargo was laid on all vessels in the river of Waterford 
 and in the harbours of Wexford and Dungarvan. 
 
 But when everything promised fair, intelligence was 
 brought to Glamorgan that the king had disavowed hira 
 as far back as the 29th of January ; and soon after came 
 the news of the capture of Chester by the parliament. 
 There Avas now no place for the Irish to land on the coast 
 of England, and the men returned to Clonmel and Cashel. 
 Three hundred of them followed Lord Digby, to form a 
 body-guard for the Prince of Wales, who was said to have 
 taken refuge in Jersey; and a larger body sailed for 
 Scotland, to assist Montrose, under whom they per- 
 formed prodigies of valour. 
 
 Rinuccini did not conceal his feelings on this occasion ; 
 for, although he grieved over the king's losses, he was 
 heartily rejoiced that those troops were not sent out of 
 Ireland, where their serA'ices were so much required. 
 Moreover, such a force could be of little avail to Charles, 
 DOAv that his enemies were in the ascendant ; and sup- 
 posing that the Irish troops had effected a landing in 
 England or Wales, without cavalry to cover them, or 
 strong places to receive them, their destruction must 
 have been inevitable, for, by an act passed in October, 
 1644, it was ordered *' that no quarter should be given 
 to any Irishman, or papist born in Ireland.'^ 
 
 Of the 300 men who accompanied Digby, 100 wert 
 left to garrison Scilly, and facilitate the communication 
 between Ireland and the Continent; and it was now 
 tliought that the remainder would return with the Prince 
 of Wales to Ireland ; but the prince's advisers objecting 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 143 
 
 'O such a step, he fled to the queen at Paris, whither ho 
 <ras soon followed by Digby, who had left the Irish so!- 
 aiers to sirift for themselves. Digby was received by the 
 queen with the most flattering assurances of regard for 
 himself and Ormond. He exaggerated the anxiety of 
 his colleague for the king's welfare, and deprecated the 
 *' absurd pretensions" * of the Irish Cathohcs, who would 
 not accede to the lord lieutenant's terms. An active 
 partisan of Ormond, and a virulent opponent of the just 
 claims of the Irish Catholics, he represented them in the 
 falsest light, and succeeded in getting from Cardinal 
 Mazarin the sum of 10,000 pistoles, " to enable the Mar- 
 quess of Ormond to satisfy his Protestant officers, and dis- 
 place those whom he had cause to distrust." The queen, 
 who was averse to the prince's landing in Ireland, prcv 
 mised a supply of further sums, and, at the same time, 
 declared that she would never sufier Sir Kenelm Digby 
 " to hearken to anything on the subject of the pontifical 
 treaty with Ireland, as the business of thftt kingdom was 
 already in those hands that were best able to manage it, 
 and that whatsoever was sought for should not be ex- 
 pected from any one but the lord lieutenant."! 
 
 The promise made to the nuncio of waiting till the let 
 of May for the arrival of Sir Kenelm Digby, who had not 
 come, caused the commissioners, when they signed the 
 peace on the 28th of March, to agree that it should lie 
 as an escroll in the hands of Clanricarde, till they had 
 Bent the 10,000 men into England, and it should be 
 thought proper to proclaim the peace ; but now that that 
 time had elapsed, the supreme council instructed Plun- 
 ket to repair to Dublin, in order to convince Ormond of 
 the impossibility of sending the forces for which they 
 stipulated. Mr. Plunket was charged to desire the lord 
 lieutonant to declare his judgment of such impossibility 
 in writing, according to the proviso in the defeasance. 
 He was likewise instructed to declare the necessity of the 
 nnion of the entire nation ; and, if the present publica- 
 tion of the articles of peace was necessary for that pur- 
 
 * Such has ever been the vrhlnin? tone of men like Curry, and 
 others, who, yielding to expediency, overlooked the grand principle oi 
 jastice and right. 
 Carte's Orm. 
 
J4* CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 pose, to show that they could not avoid publishing, at 
 the same time, the articles with Glamorgan, for fear of a 
 rupture among themselves, and to prevent the stopping 
 of foreign supplies ; but in case his excellency did not 
 think the present the fitting moment to proclaim the 
 peace, Mr. Plunket was to beseech him to act as a peer 
 of the realm in the meditated attack on the Scots. 
 
 The occasion of the latter instruction was, that Sir 
 Charles Coote, with the Laggan forces, had penetrated 
 into the counties of Roscommon and Galway, with tlie 
 intention of bringing supplies into Thomond, for the 
 relief of Bunratty. But fearing that the attempt might 
 fail, the parliamentarian general contented himself with 
 burning the crops about Portumna and Loughrea, and 
 then returned to his quarters with large preys of corn 
 and cattle. 
 
 Irritated by the rapacity, and the wanton butchery 
 of Coote, Clanricarde appealed to Ormond for redress, 
 and called on him to proclaim Sir Charles and his 
 adherents traitors and rebels. There was no palliation 
 for their guilt, but Ormond urged that the council 
 would not consent to such a proposal, as the most of 
 them, and he in particular, were far from wishing to 
 offend the parliament and the faction in England. 
 Strange fact ! The man whose exuberant loyalty 
 would have prompted him to proclaim tlie Catholics, 
 was squeamish and punctilious in all matters which 
 might lessen his fame in the eyes of Cromwell's myrmi- 
 dons. He had an object to attain with the avowed 
 enemies of the king ; and the confederates, according to 
 him, were not to be trusted. But the secret of Ormond's 
 craft and intrigue was simply this : by proclaiming 
 Coote he would have openly declared war against the 
 parliament, and obliged himself to act against the faction 
 in unison with the confederates, and the overtlirow of 
 the Puritans must, of necessity, have strengthened the 
 hands of the Catholics, and made their demands irre- 
 sistible. Ormond would perish sooner than concede, 
 and he well knew that the ruin of the Catholic body 
 should be productive of immense advantages to his own 
 aggrandisement. 
 
 Thus, when it was expected that Ormond would 
 take the field against the Scots, as he had promi^ea, 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Tvheu the federative assembly had "wted him thrt\ 
 thousand pounds for tlie purpose ; tliey clearly per 
 ceived that he had no such intention, and that his re^ 
 object -was to delude and deceive them. He was now 
 informed that the king: had placed himself in the hands 
 of the Scots at Newark, The intelligence reached him 
 about the 19th of May, and he dismissed the comtiiis- 
 sioners to the committee of instruction at LiraeriA^'k, 
 with assurances that they should, soon hear from him 
 by persons whom he would send to them fully autWo- 
 rised and instructed for that purpose. Thus, for the 
 present, was the publication of the peace postponed. 
 
 Ormond had played his part adroitly, and won hia 
 game. The king was now at the mercy of the Scots; 
 "they were the greatest opposers of the Irish peace, 
 having all along entertained hopes that Ireland should 
 be given up to them,"* and come vrhat might of the king, 
 Ormond had done nothing to compromise himself, with 
 his majesty's enemies. That the king was in reality 
 desirous of a peace, is evident from his letter of the 25th 
 of April, wherein he expressed the desire ; but if proof 
 were wanting, it is to be found in Clanricarde's commvi. 
 nication to Ormond, telling him that his excellency was 
 satisfied that such was his majesty's avowed wish.f 
 During these negotiations the nuncio was anxiously 
 awaiting the articles of the pontifical treaty, and had 
 to labour hard to convince the adhei-ents of Ormond 
 that it might be speedily expected. He sent to Rome 
 to remonstrate against the delay, and to his mortifica- 
 tion, was informed by the Cardinal Barberini, that Sir 
 K, Digby was at Paris with the queen, and that in the 
 event of concluding with her, he would proceed to Rome 
 instead of hastening to Ireland. J 
 
 It was now determined that the cessation should con- 
 tinue till June, and the nuncio, accompanied by some 
 members of the supreme council, proceeded to Limerick 
 about the middle of May. 
 
 The troops which were to have proceeded to England 
 under the command of Glamorgan, had been unsuccess- 
 fully employed to reduce Bunratty castle since ApriL 
 
 » Carte's Oi-mond, vol. iii. 
 
 t This lettei i: dated the 3rd of June following 
 
146 CONFEDEllATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 He liad marched at the head of three thousand men 
 from Limerick to Six-mile Bridge, where he pitched hi« 
 camp, and proceeded to invest the fortress, which had 
 been garrisoned and provisioned by the parliament forces. 
 By a vigorous sally from the garrison, he was beaten off 
 and driven to the walls of Limerick, and then retired 
 on Clonmel. Rinuccini caused the Earl to be superseded 
 by Lord Muskerry, and accompanied the army in 
 a second assault on this stronghold, which, after a close 
 siege of twelve days, surrendered to the confederates. 
 This was his first essay in military tactics, and the 
 speedy reduction of the place was mainly attributable 
 to him. Immediately after the surrender of Bunratty 
 he caused the captured banners to be borne in triumph 
 to Limerick, and the effect produced by the display was 
 to exalt him in the esteem of the popular party. 
 
 Inchiquin, maddened by the advance of the confe- 
 derate army, was burning the crops and inflicting the 
 most heart-rending barbarities on the peasantry of Mun- 
 ster, and the supreme council solicited Castlehaven who 
 had been a spectator of the operations against Bunratty, 
 to take command of their cavalry and march against 
 him. He reluctantly accepted the command, for he was 
 not disposed to offend Ormond who was far from being 
 pleased with the success of the confederates, and he 
 proceeded to Cloghnoftye, " on the mountain that runs 
 oetween the counties of Cork and Limerick," and found 
 himself at the head of one thousand horse, Mac Thomas 
 was his second in command, and having divided their 
 whole force into squadrons, they hung on the flanks and 
 rear of Inchiquin, and finally prevented the destruc- 
 tion of the crops by compelling him to retire to his gar- 
 risons. * 
 
 Whilst the confederates were gaining these advantages 
 in the south. Sir Charles Coote was perpetrating the 
 most wanton barbarities in the west, and this notwith- 
 standing the cessation. It was in vain that Clanricarde 
 expostulated with Ormond, and required him to pro- 
 claim this sanguinary man, who under the title of lord 
 president of Connaught, was carrying death and havoc 
 throughout the province. But Ormond was in treaty 
 
 » Castlehaven's Mem. $6. 
 
^FEDERATION OF KILKENNY. H^ 
 
 frith Coote, " in full assurance to make advantage of it,"* 
 and would neither proclaim the parliamentarian lord 
 president, nor march against his colleagues in Ulster. 
 
 Preston, who ha 1 consented to act under Clanricarde, 
 had entered the province at the head of about three 
 thousand men. He calculated on exciting the peasantry 
 against the Scotch, and recovering Siigo. But he did 
 not receive that cordial co-operation from Clanricarde 
 whicli he was led to expect, and the result of a month's 
 campaign was the capture of the Castles of Roscommon 
 and Clunibrun, which capitulated after he had cut to 
 ieces 350 of their horse. But if the confederates were 
 not crowned with success against Coote in Counaught, 
 and Inchiquin in the south, they had reason to congra- 
 tulate themselves on the victory which was won by 
 Owen Roe in Ulster. Brilliant as was the career of the 
 grand nephew of Hugh O'Neill on the continent, he 
 never did so highly distinguish himself as in that pro- 
 vince where his ancestors ruled as kings. Munroe had 
 been supplied with monies and ammunition by the par- 
 liament commissioners, and calculated on beating O'Neill's 
 army if it agam appeared in the field , but dreadful was 
 the retaliation which was in store for the Covenanter. 
 
 The main body of O'Neill's army had already assem- 
 bled on the confines of Leinster, and having heard that 
 Robert Munroe Avas marching into Tyrone, he resolved 
 to go in quest of him. Having given orders that each 
 soldier should carry with him provisions for sixteen days, 
 he commenced his march, and advanced sixty mi'^les 
 into the interior of Ulster. On the 2nd of June, Munroe, 
 informed of O'Neill's onward march, called a council of 
 war and determined "to make to the fields with a 
 month's provisions." *' This movement," says Munroe, 
 "was necessary for the preservation of our quarters."! 
 The Scotch general had ten regiments of infantry, and 
 fifteen companies of foot, followed by fifteen hundred 
 waggons containing ammunition, and baggage with six 
 fielding-pieces. Colonel Munroe was ordered to join the 
 general (Robert) at Glasslough with three troops of 
 horse, and 240 musquetiers, whilst Auchinbreck'6 troops 
 were to follow in the rear of his columns. The English 
 
 • Cttie's Orm. iii. 463. f Munroe's Deacatcli. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 commissioners had engaged with the Scotch general to 
 send the Laggan forces into Connauglit to intercept an/ 
 supplies which might be sent from that province to the 
 aid of the confederate troops, and maintain a commu- 
 nication with the Scots in Ulster. Having promised 
 to comply witli all the orders of the parliamentary com- 
 missioners, Munroe took leave of them on the ■second 
 night of his march near Dromore. 
 
 On the morning of the 4th of June, he ordered se^ 
 venty-two horsemen, under the command of his lieute- 
 nant, Daniel, to cross the Blackwater at Beinburb and 
 scour the fields, and certify Colonel Munroe that he 
 would fix his head-quarters -at Glasslough. On the 5th 
 of June, this body of cavalry fell in with a party of 
 O'Neill's skirmishers, and took a prisoner near Armagh, 
 from whom they learned that the confederate general 
 had encamped the night before at Glasslough, and was 
 marching in full force with an army of 5,000 foot and 
 twelve troops of horse, to take up a position at Bein- 
 burb and Charlemont. Being thus informed, Munroe 
 broke up his camp, and marched six miles further, to 
 make a junction with Hamilton's troops, which were 
 encamped four miles from Armagh, and at the same 
 time ordered messengers to recall the cavalry, which he 
 had sent to advertise Colonel Munroe of his movements. 
 
 Meanwhile O'Neill had encamped at Beinburb, be- 
 tween two small hills. The rear of his army was pro- 
 tected by a wood, and the right by the river Blackwater. 
 He had also possessed himself of the bridge, and con- 
 cealed his sharpshooters in the " scrogs and bushes."* 
 Owen Roe was well informed of Munroe's plans ; and in 
 order to prevent a junction of George's forces with those 
 of his brother, he despatched Colonels Bernard Mac Ma- 
 hon and Patrick Mac Neny, with their respective regi- 
 ments, to anticipate their design. This commission they 
 executed to the satisfaction of their commander. But 
 now, when everything that the ablest general of his day 
 could devise to insure a glorious result had been carried 
 into effect, there was a scene on the hill of Beinburb 
 solemn and stern — " The whole army, after having con 
 fessed, and the general, along with the other officers, 
 
 • Miinroe'a Derpatch, in the Thorpe Parera, R.D.S. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENKV. >i^ 
 
 Having received the most holy communion, tlie cliap* 
 Inin, deputed by the nuncio to the spiritual care of the 
 army, made a brief exhortation, gave them his bless^ 
 ing, and, \^'ith loud cheers, they prepared for action."* 
 
 Munroe, having reconnoitred O'Keill's position, and 
 seeing that lie could not force the bridge or ford, con- 
 vened his officers, to consult on what course they should 
 adopt ; -whereon it was resolved to march in view of 
 the confederate troops, and pass the Blackwater at Kin- 
 ard. As they advanced they were met by Colonel 
 Eichard O'Ferral, who occupied a narrow defile through 
 which it was necessary for the Scotch troops to pass in 
 order to face the Irish, The fire of Munroe's gui* com- 
 pelled O'Neill's ofiicer to retire. And now the two 
 armies stood front to front ; and never did two hostik 
 hosts meet with more enthusiastic rivalry or deadly ha- 
 tred. The Scots, impelled by gloomy fanaticism, beheld 
 an army of idolaters before them — the Philistines, whom 
 the power of Gideon was to overthrow. The confede- 
 rates, animated by the love of country and their reli- 
 gion, and led by a chieftain whose name was a spell- 
 word in their ranks, looked on the present as the mo- 
 ment to rescue their homes and altars from thraldom 
 and disgrace. "All our army, horse and foot," says 
 the Scotch general, "did earnestly covet fighting, which 
 was impossible for me to gainstand without reproach of 
 cowardice, and never did I see a greater confidence than 
 was amongst us." 
 
 Lieutenant-Colonel Cunningham having cleared the 
 pass for the Scotch horse, who were commanded by the 
 Lord Viscount of Ardes, in the absence of Colonel 
 Munroe, the whole army advanced to dislodge Owen 
 Roe; but a shower of bullets from the " scrogs and 
 bushes," which coA'ered O'Neill's infantry, checked them; 
 and then the Scotch cannon opened its fire with little 
 effect, as owing to the admirable position of the Catholic 
 troops only one man was struck by the shot. In vain 
 did Munroe's cavalry charge — with the river on their 
 right and " a marish bog" on the left, it was hopeless to 
 think of stirring the confederates. For fully four hours 
 did the Fabius of his country amuse the enemy with 
 
 * BinQccinL 
 
150 CONFKDER\TION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 skirmishing. During all that time, the wind rolling the 
 smoke of Munroe's musketry and cannon in tlie face of 
 the Irish ranks, concealed the adverse lines from their 
 sight, and the sun had shone all day in their eyes, blind- 
 ing them with its dazzling glare ; but that sun was now 
 descending and producing the same effect on the Scotch, 
 when Munroe perceived the entire of the Irish army 
 making ready for a general assault with horse and foot. 
 
 It was the decisive moment. The Irish general, 
 throwing himself into the midst of his men, and point- 
 ing out to them that retreat must be fatal to the enemy, 
 ordered them to pursue vigorously, assuring them of 
 victory. "I myself," said he, "with the aid of hea- 
 ven, will lead the way : let those who fail to follow me 
 remember that they abandon their general." This ad- 
 dress was received with one unanimous shout by the 
 army. The colonels threw themselves from their 
 horses, to cut themselves off from every chance of re- 
 treat, and "charged with incredible impetuosity."* 
 
 Munroe had given orders to a squadron of his horse to 
 break through the columns of the Irish foot as they ad- 
 vanced ; but that squadron was panic-stricken by the ter- 
 rible array of the Irish battalions, and retreated disorderly 
 through their own foot, pursued by O'Neill's cavah-y. 
 Nevertheless Munroe's infantry stood firm, and ''received 
 the Irish, body to body, with push of pike," f till at 
 last their cavalry reserve, being routed in a second 
 charge, fell, pell mell, amongst his infantry, which, being 
 now broken and disordered, had no way to retreat but 
 over the river which lay in their front. 
 
 Terrified by the fate of their fellows, who perished 
 under their eyes in the Blackwater, the surviving Scots 
 vainly sought to conceal themselves in the thickets that 
 covered the country in the vicinity of the battle-field ; 
 nor was the darkness of the night able to protect them 
 from their victorious pursuers. Pike and skein did 
 what the musket had left unfinished, till they were cut 
 to pieces, and the lowest soldier of the Irish was wearied 
 with carnage, and oppressed with plunder. Three 
 thousand two himdred and forty-three bodies were 
 counted on the field ; the infantry was completely cut 
 
 ♦ Munroe's Despatch. * Kinucciai. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNF. 151 
 
 off by the straggling parties on the two following days ; 
 and very few of the cavalry escaped. AH the giins 
 Were taken by the Irish, together with the tents, 
 colours, baggage, and fifteen hundred draught horses. 
 Amongst the slain was found the body of Lord Blauey. 
 The Lord Viscount Ardes was made prisoner. INIunroe 
 fled to Lisnegarvy, leaving his cloak and wig on the 
 field, and twenty-one officers in the hands of O'Neill's 
 army. Of the Irish troops only seventy were slain in 
 the action, and one hundred wounded, amongst whom 
 was a distinguished gentleman of Ulster, who served as 
 a volunteer. The victorious army proclaimed that their 
 success was attributable to the supplies given them by 
 the Pope; and SirPhelim O'Neill, on being asked for the 
 list of his prisoners, swore that he had not even one, as 
 he had given orders to his division to give no quarter 
 to the Scotch. * 
 
 The news of Owen Eoe's victory did not reach Lime- 
 rick till the 13th of June. Father Hartegan, one of the 
 priests deputed to the spiritual care of the army, was 
 the bearer of the joyful intelligence. 
 
 On the following day (Sunday) at four o'clock, a.m. 
 all the troops in garrison at Limerick assembled before 
 the church of St. Francis, where the nuncio had 
 deposited thirty-two standards taken by the Irish 
 general from the Scotch. These trophies were then 
 borne in solemn procession by the chiefs of the nobility, 
 followed by the nuncio, the Archbishop of Cashel, and 
 the bishops of Limerick, Clonfert, and Ardfert. After 
 these came the supreme council, the mayor, and the 
 magistrates, with the entire population of the city. The 
 procession moved on till it reached St. Mary's cathedral, 
 where the Te Deum was chanted, and on the next day 
 a mass of thanksgiving was offered to the Lord, " Who 
 fought among the valiant ones, and overthrew the 
 nations that were assembled against them, to destroy 
 the sanctuary. "f 
 
 Thus, while the Irish attributed the winning of that 
 day to the interposition of heaven, the Scotch general, 
 writing from Carrickfergus, on the 11th of June, to the 
 parliament commissioners, ascribed his defeat to the 
 
 • EinucciJjl. 138, 13S. t Fi-'e Ep. Inn. P. in Bib. Dom. 
 
152 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY, 
 
 anger of " the Lord of hosts, who had a controversy with 
 them, to rub shame on their faces till once they should be 
 humbled ; for it behooved them to taste of bitterness, as 
 well as others of both nations."* Yet, it does not appear 
 that O'Neill made that use of his victory which he might 
 had he commanded an army as disciplined as his people 
 were brave. Instead of pursuing Munroe he allowed him 
 to fortify himself in Carrickfergus, whence he wrote to 
 London for supplies, *' Now that they were humbled be- 
 fore God, and increased in courage and resolution, and that 
 the enemy had not prosecuted their victory within the 
 Scotch quarters, being more inclined to spoil than pursue 
 them." His appeal was soon responded to by the parlia- 
 ment, and a paper was printed, and posted in the streets 
 of London, giving an account of " the bloody fight at 
 Blackwater, on the 5th of June, by the Irish rebels against 
 Major-General MunrOe, where 5,000 Protestants were put 
 to the sword. "f O'Neill's army now increased to upwards 
 of 10,000 men, as he found on the field, arms and am- 
 munion sufficielit to equip the new levies that flocked to 
 him from all quarters. Rinuccini sent to congratulate 
 him on his victory, and transmitted decorations for his 
 officers, and surgeons to take charge of the wounded. 
 On the return of his messengers he was somewhat sur- 
 prised to learn that O'Neill had determined to call 
 his troops the "Catholic Army," and emblazon the 
 cross and keys on the banners of the red hand." It 
 was an ill-timed testimony of his homage to the church, 
 for, it was calculated to create division between him- 
 self and Preston, whenever their mutual co-operation 
 might be required. But the phlegmatic disposition of the 
 Ulster general could ill brook contradiction. Yet, if 
 the victory at Beinbui-b had not all the fruits which 
 might have been reaped from that bloody harvest, it 
 secured the existence of the confederates.^ On the 
 
 * Munroe's Dispatch, 
 
 t This document, printed by Jane Coe, London, June isth, gives 
 the following list : — " Taken, seven pieces of ordnance, 5,000 armes. 
 4,000 foot, and upwards, killed, taken, and routed, 600 horse routed. 
 Lord Blaney taken, and dead ; Lord Montgomerj' and Lord Ardes 
 taken and dead, and almost all the officers." 
 
 t Nunziatura in Irlanda, p. 138. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 153 
 
 person of Lord Montgomery was found the order of 
 inarch, and he himself declared that it was the inten- 
 tion of Munroe to penetrate to Kilkenny whilst the 
 confederates were en>ployed elsewhere, and make him- 
 self master of that city ; nor is it at all unlikely that 
 Ormond was privy to the design. 
 
 On the 2nd of June, whilst the nuncio was pressing 
 the siege of Bunratty, Sir George Hamilton and Colonel 
 Barry were sent by the lord lieutenant to Limerick, to 
 acquaint the confederate council that he was well 
 aware of the necessity of a union against the common 
 enemy, but that he could not join with any party not 
 deriving authority from his majesty; nor could any- 
 thing further be done towards a union till the articles 
 of peace were published, about which he had not, as 
 yet, received his majesty's pleasure. With regard to 
 Glamorgan's articles, he could not, either witli safety 
 to his conscience or honour, admit the publishing thereof, 
 *' his majesty having already publicly disavowed any 
 power given by him to warrant them ;" for which 
 reason he expected from them a declaration of their 
 iftsolution not to publish them. 
 
 It was now obvious that Muskerry and his party were 
 flxious to publish the political articles concluded on the 
 SSth March, and, if possible, to publish at the same time 
 the articles of Glamorgan's treaty ; but, when Nicholas 
 Plunket and Brown presented themselves to Rinuccini 
 to notify him of their intention of proceeding to Dublin 
 for that purpose, he prodvijcd the protest of the nine 
 bishops against any conclusion with Ormond which 
 did not stipulate the free exercise of religion, and the 
 retention of all the churches, which, up to the present 
 moment, were in the hands of the confederates. The 
 production of this protest, as it was signed without the 
 knowledge of the lay members of the assembly, alarmed 
 and confounded the commissioners. They urged that 
 Glamorgan's articles were sufficient to satisfy the clergy, 
 and that they would insist on the publication of them. 
 Rinuccini scouted the idea, pointing to the king's dis- 
 avowal of the Earl, and then warmly inveighed against 
 the folly of committing themselves, soul and body, to 
 Ormond, at a moment when they stood in the attitude 
 
?»{ CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 of armed men, who should enforce their rights instead 
 of craidng favours. 
 
 - When the confederate commissioners received this an- 
 swer, they communicated witli the council, who imme- 
 diately sent eight of their body, and the secretary, Bel- 
 ling, to induce the nuncio to consent to the publication 
 of the political treaty. The grand argument adduced 
 for the purpose was, that the king, as he was now in the 
 hands of the Scotch, would be induced to make war on 
 Ireland, than which nothing was more desired by the 
 parliament. They sought, moreover, to convince him 
 that the publication of the political articles should be re- 
 garded as a means to an end, rather than a definitive 
 agreement with the lord lieutenant ; and that they them- 
 selves would be ready to take arms agahist Ormond, if, 
 in progress of time, he did not cede all the advantages 
 which they contemplated for religion. 
 
 But these arguments were unavailing. The nuncio 
 was unbending. In a spirit which had something pro- 
 phetic in it, he implored them not to rely on the pro- 
 mises of Ormond or the sovereign of England. He ap- 
 pealed to the history of the past, and dwelt at length on 
 the tyranny and oppression exercised by the English in 
 Ireland, and chided the pusillanimity of the men who 
 were intent on signing an instrument which doomed them 
 to dependence on the pleasure of a treacherous and faith- 
 breaking monarch. Glamorgan was present on this oc- 
 casion, and laboured to refute a singular argument ad- 
 vanced by the confederate commissioners, who asserted 
 that tlie laws of England did not permit the monarch to 
 revoke the concessions which he had once made in favor 
 of the Catholics.* 
 
 But the earl put an end to the discussion by declaring 
 tliat he would no longer insist on the publication of his 
 own treaty, until he had received further powers from 
 tlie king. 
 
 Nevertheless, the supreme council determined to pub- 
 lish tlie articles of Ormond's peace, and, to gratify the 
 lord lieutenant, agreed to omit all mention of Glamor- 
 gan's concessions. These instructions were signed ''-:i 
 
 » RlnacclnJ, 142 
 
CONFEDEUATIOK OF KILKENNY. 155 
 
 the 12th of June, and Sir Nicholas Plunket and Mr. 
 Brown were deputed to proceed forthwith to Dublin. 
 Before leaving Limerick they waited on the nuncio, 
 who, when informed of their intention, received them 
 coldly, and inveighed bitterly against a proceeding which 
 Avas meant to put Ormond in possession of all the garri- 
 sons and strongholds belonging to the confederates, and 
 thus compromise their own existence. His words had 
 such eflfect on Plunket that he took ill, and Brown was 
 obliged to go without him. When he arrived in Dublin 
 he was mortified to learn from Ormond that, by a letter 
 from Newcastle, his majesty had ordered him '♦ to pro- 
 ceed no further in the treaty of peace, nor to engage him 
 ipon conditions with the Irish after sight of those or- 
 ders." This letter was sent through the English com- 
 mittee of Ulster to Ormond, on the 26th of June, and 
 Brown at once returned to Limerick to receive further 
 instructions. Alas ! it is pitiful to reflect on the tem- 
 porising and vacillating conduct of the Catholics of the 
 Pale at this moment. With three armies in the field, 
 and the people roused to enthusiasm, snch as had never 
 been witnessed, they wasted, in intrigue and diplomacy, 
 more time than was sufficient to raise themselves to a 
 position of independence. 
 
 Whilst the voUied thunders of Beinburb were still 
 pealing in their ears, they were clamorous for Ormond's 
 hollow peace. Apprehensive of losing the church pro- 
 property, of which many of them were proprietors, 
 they were now jealous and distrustful of the clergy, 
 although the nuncio was empowered to confirm the 
 transfers, as Cardinal Pole had done in the reign of Mary. 
 O'Neill's victory served to embitter their inveterate and 
 deep-rooted hatred of the Ulster Irish. They were 
 well aware that no provision had been made for ' ' the 
 men of the north," and that they would never consent 
 to lay down their arms till restored to their plundered 
 estates. 
 
 These considerations determined Muskerry and 
 Mountgarret and the rest to place all their hopes in 
 Ormond, who would secure them in the possession of 
 their estates, and connive at the toleration of the Ca- 
 tholic religion. They were satisfied to live in fetters, 
 provided they were not butchered by legal enactment! 
 
156' CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 against their persons and creed. Alas! how sadly did 
 they contrast with the "old Irish," who, scorning to 
 live as aliens in their native land, had determined to 
 perish in the assertion of their just rights. 
 
 Tired of delay, the nuncio wrote to Rome in the 
 middle of June, declaring that, as Sir Kenelm Digby 
 had not come with the articles of the pontifical treaty,* 
 his means of preventing the publication of the peace 
 with Ormond were utterly exhausted. He clearly 
 told the cardinal secretary of state that a foreign 
 protectorate Avas desired by many amongst the Irish, 
 and that O'Neill and Preston had offered to march on 
 Dublin, and take possession of the city, as it was easy 
 to foresee that, in case of pressure from without, Or- 
 mond would surrender it to the parliament. He, at the 
 saine time, wrote to Henrietta Maria and Cardinal 
 Mazarin, imploring them to expedite the treaty, and 
 thus prevent the disruption of parties and the total loss 
 of the country. 
 
 But Sir Kenelm never came. Some imprudent ex- 
 pressions in Rinuccini's letters, betrayed by the nuncio 
 at the French court to the English queen, awakened 
 her suspicion ; and it would appear that she had deter- 
 mined to abandon any further negotfation with Sir 
 Kenelm Digby and the court of Rome. 
 
 Yet, strange to say, even in his captivity the unfor- 
 tunate Charles did not abandon hope of succour fron: 
 Ireland. With that systematic duplicity which charac 
 terized his actions, he wrote to Glamorgan, telling hia 
 to raise money by pawning his kingdoms, which h( 
 would repay if ever be won them back. " And tell thf 
 nuncio," said he, " that if I once come into his and your 
 hands, which ought to be wished for by you, both foj 
 the sake of England as Ireland, since all the rest despise 
 me, I will do it ; and if I do not say this from my heart, 
 may God never restore me to my kingdoms in this 
 world, nor give me eternal happiness in the next." This 
 letter he sent to Glamorgan. At the same moment h$ 
 wrote to Ormond, through Lord Digby, that "he should 
 
 • It is now notorious that the heads of this treaty were already 
 drawn up. Those who assert that there was no such treaty mat 
 find it either in Kinuccinia Nuiiziatura or in the TraQsactiOOa * 
 Qlamorgan. 
 
rOHFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. IS? 
 
 not proceed any further in the treaty of peace with the 
 Irish." 
 
 Ormond was fully satisfied in his own mind that the 
 king was desirous of peace on any terms ; but- well 
 knowing that the council in Dublin was averse to any 
 overture which might assist the monarch, he catered to 
 their feelings, and contented himself v'7th saying, that 
 he would carry out to the very letter ihe instructions 
 he had received from the king at Newcastle. 
 
 Mr. Brown had not reached Limerick when George, 
 Lord Digby, arrived in Dublin on the 4tM of July. He 
 affected "surprise on learning that the articles of peace 
 had not been perfected, as his majesty, " cince his being 
 at Newcastle, had redoubled his positive orders to the 
 lord lieutenant for the speedy conclusion of the peace, 
 upon dispensation with the condition of the confederate 
 Catholics of Ireland sending the men undertaken for 
 them." 
 
 Digby immediately wrote to Ormond that the Scots 
 had violated all their promises to the king-, depriving 
 him of liberty, and banishing from him all who were in 
 his confidence. He then proceeded to show that the let- 
 ter dated Newcastle was either surreptitiously obtained 
 or a manifest forgery, but in every respect most con- 
 trary to what he knew to be his majesty's fre« resolu- 
 tion and uncontrolled will." He concluded by declaring 
 that, if the peace were any longer interrupted, " the 
 hinderers of it would be the occasion of subverting the 
 main foundation resolved and laid by his majesty for 
 the recovery of his crown and posterity's rights, whe- 
 ther by way of accommodation or war." 
 
 On 'the '28th of the same month, Digby drew up and 
 signed a declaration, wherein he offered himself to be 
 detained a prisoner until such time as his majesty shouli. 
 be at liberty to express freely his unconstrained will ; ani 
 then, says the declaration, " if his majesty shall not jus- 
 tify me to have declared it faithfully, I submit myself to 
 Buffer death; and I desire that this declaration be en- 
 tered in the council-book, that I have discharged my 
 duty, in case the mischiefs herfe set down shall be occ?^ 
 sioned by deferiing the peace of this kingdom upon the 
 aforesaid letter of the 11th of June." The council at 
 Dublin seemed to attach little importance to Digby 
 
CONFEDERATION OF RrLKENNT. 
 
 nor were their objections removed, till Ormond entered 
 another declfiration on the council-bbok, stating "that 
 he was satisfied that he had full authority to coiiclude 
 the peace upon the articles deposited with the Marquess 
 of Clanricarde," and took upon himself to be sole judge 
 thereof, expecting only their assistance for causing it to 
 be duly observed. 
 
 The articles were finally delivered by both par- 
 ties on the 29th of July : those of the confederates by 
 Lord Muskerry, Sir Kobert Talbot, John Dillon, Patrick 
 B'Arcy, and Geoffry Brown, in the presence of Lords 
 Clanricarde, Digby and Taafie, Daniel O'Neill, and De 
 Moulin, the French envoy. The council, on the same 
 day, ordered a proclamation to be issued ratifying the 
 articles of peace, and enjoining all persons to pay due 
 obedience to the same. 
 
 Thus did Ormond triumph. The confederation was 
 virtually dissolved. The grand object for which the Ca- 
 tholics had taken up arms was referred to the ulterior 
 decision of the king. The only concession in the treaty 
 touching the vital question of religion released the Irish 
 Catholics from taking the oath of supremacy. No pro- 
 vision was made for the plundered inhabitants of the 
 north, who had been ruined by the Scotch and English 
 undertakers ; and as if to cap the climax of their folly, 
 it was agreed by the Lords Mountgarret and Muskerry, 
 that the "confederate Catholics should be commanded 
 by his majestj'^'s chief governor until settlement by act 
 of parliament." It was a base desertion of principle, 
 this surrender of their rights ; but, in this betrayal of 
 trust, do we not see something typical of that parricida* 
 act by which, in after times, a corrupt and venal senate 
 sacrificed the country to the imperialism of England ? 
 
 On the 1st of August the peace was solemnly pro- 
 claimed in Dublin, although the Protestants showed the 
 greatest aversion to it.* On the 6th the Marquess of 
 Ormond sent Dr. Roberts, Ulster-king-at-arms, to pro- 
 claim it at Waterford and Kilkenny. He executed his 
 office at Kilkenny, Fethard, Callan, and Cashel ; but 
 was absolutely hunted from the towns of Waterford and 
 Clonmel. 
 
 •OniLTol. tl.p. 10. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 159 
 
 On the 20th the Ulster-king-at-arms amved in Lime- 
 rick, and, attended by the mayor in his regalia, pro- 
 ceeded to publish the peace. But so indignant Avere the 
 people that they assembled at the market-cross, headed 
 by Alderman Fanning, and Lynch the warden of Gal- 
 way, and prevented the proclamation. Such was tlie 
 popular feeling that they removed the mayor from office 
 and elected Fanning in his stead.* 
 
 It would be idle to imagine that this peace gave satis- 
 faction to tlie people of Ireland. On the contrary, it 
 was soon ascertained that it gave them no guarantee 
 for these rights which aroused them to take up arms 
 and maintain a war of five years* duration. It was 
 indignantly rejected by the whole province of Ulster, the 
 cities of Waterford, Limerick, Clonmel, and Dungarvan. 
 Twenty of the great Irish families in the province of 
 Munster, signed a protest against it. Galway, with 
 twelve noblemen and gentlemen, refused to receive it 
 and in the province of Leinster it was treated with con- 
 tempt by all the heads of the " old Irish, "f It was a 
 fearful moment for Ireland. The wily policy of Oranond 
 lud accomplished his designs. Divisons reigned in the 
 council of the confederates ; and the bishops and 
 clergy, headed by the nuncio, determined to convoke a 
 By nod at Waterford, to submit the treaty, clause by 
 clause, to their consideration. O'Neill, at the head of 
 his victorious army, was pursuing the Scots when the 
 intelligence of the peace reached him at Tanderagee. 
 Preston was at Birr; and, concluding that the treaty 
 had the approbation of all parties, caused rejoicings to 
 be made in his camp. 
 
 But he soon found his mistake, Avhen he learned that 
 O'Neill's troops were marching in haste to the borders 
 of Leinster, and thereon sent to express his regrets for 
 the misunderstanding. 
 
 It has been constantly argued that Owen Roe was 
 lolicited by the nuncio to relinquish the prosecution of 
 his victory after the battle of Beinburb, and move his 
 army to protect the assembly at Waterford, and silence 
 
 * Fanning perished heroically, being taken by Ireton after the alege 
 of Limerick, and hung for his intrepidity against the CromweUimis. 
 t VideEib. Dom. ad Sapp. 1. S7S. 
 
100 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENWr. 
 
 all opposition to their resolutions. This, howerer, in 
 not substantially true, for O'Neill, without the order of 
 the confederate council, had increased his forces to 
 10,000 men, with more than 1000 horse, and desired 
 nothing so much as an opportunity of taking signal 
 vengeance on the adherents of Ormond, by Avhom he 
 supposed he had been excluded from the possession of 
 his estates in Ulster. Actuated by such feelings, })e 
 did not await any summons from the nuncio, but 
 marched at the moment when he heard of the peace, 
 well knowing that the bishops and clergy would not 
 respect it. His intention was to sack Kilkenny, and he 
 would, doubtless, have carried his design into effect, 
 had he not been dissuaded by Rinuccini from shedding 
 innocent blood.* His troops, however, were now self- 
 styled " The Catholic Army," and Owen Roe proclaimed 
 himself the right arm of the clergy. 
 
 The synod of the bishops and clergy met at Water- 
 ford, on the 6th of August. It was composed of three 
 archbishops, ten bishops, five abbots, two vicars 
 apostolic, fourteen representatives of the religious 
 orders, and the provincial of the Jesuits. f They were 
 all unanimous in their abhorrence of the peace, and on 
 the 12th of the same month, ihey issued the following 
 decree " from the congregation of the secular and regular 
 clergy convened at Waterford on the 6th of August :" 
 
 "As to the question between us moved, and for many 
 days discussed, whether such as would accept of that 
 peace contained in the tliirty articles remitted unto us 
 from the supreme council, are to be declared perjurious, 
 and consequently, whether as perjurious, they are to be 
 excommunicated ; we having given ear to each one's 
 opinion and sentiment on this matter, as also having 
 read the writings of some doctors of divinity, it is 
 decreed, and by each one's vote in particular, (none 
 contradicting), that all and every one of the confederate 
 Catholics that will adhere to such a peace, and consent 
 to the furtherers thereof, or in any other manner or 
 way will embrace the same, shall be absolutely as per- 
 
 •Rionccni, p. 224. 
 
 f Tbo Archbishop of Cashel seems to >'ave doubted the expwliejiej 
 of htnuccini's measures, but finally acqtuesced, saying, — "lnverb« 
 too lazabo rete." 
 
CONFEDERATIOK OF KILKKKNT. lUl 
 
 jurious esteemed, chiefly inasmuch a? there is no rEl.i^ 
 tiou made in the thirty articles, nor promise for the 
 Catholic religion or safety thereof, nor any resi)ect had 
 for the preservation of the kingdoms privileges as were 
 promised in the oath of association, but on the con- 
 trary, all remitted to the king's will and pleasure, 
 (from whom as the case stands at present with his 
 majesty) no certainty of benefits can be had or expected ; 
 yet, in the mean time, all the arms, armies, fortifica- 
 tions, even the very supreme council of the Catholic 
 confederates are to be subjected to the authority and 
 rule of his majesty's council of state, from whom that 
 we might be secure we have taken that oath. 
 
 ** Out of which, and several other reasons, we (moved 
 thereunto by conscience) would have it known, to all 
 and each person, as well the Irish natives as the foreign 
 nations, that we gave no consent, nor never will, to any 
 such peace, if they will not grant us further, surer, and 
 safer conditions for our religion, our king, and country, 
 according to our oath of association. 
 
 " And to the end, our flocks and lAl the confederate 
 Catholics, who in their general assemblies required our 
 sentence in this spiritual matter appertaining to our- 
 selves as ecclesiastical judges, may know for certain 
 what is by us determined herein, and as godly and 
 faithful Catholics, obeying their pastors, may concur 
 with us, we have ordered this decree to be written, and 
 published everywhere in the English and Irish tongue. 
 Given under our hand and seal,Waterford, this 12th day 
 of August, 1646, Nicholas J'rench, Chancellor."* 
 
 The result of this decree may readily be imagined ; 
 never was there a more decided reaction. The people 
 unanimously rejected the peace ; nothing could have 
 given more pleasure to the general of the Ulster forces 
 than this declaration of the bishops ; and Preston, who 
 had been vacillating hitherto, fearing the censures and 
 hating the secretary, Belling, at once declared for tho 
 nuncio and the clergy. 
 
 Shut up in Kilkenny, whither they had gone after 
 the publication, Muskerry and Mountgarret, with the 
 
 • I have given this ft-om the " Unkind Deserter," as it i> probably tho 
 tranacript of the onginaj. j 
 
ir2 
 
 CONySDERATION OF KILKENNY 
 
 other councillors, prepared an appeal from the censures, 
 and sent to Waterford to persuade the clergy to adopt 
 some other course less objectionable to their patron 
 Ormond. But, in this instance, they discovered their 
 own weakness, and found out, when too late, that the 
 power which tliey possessed when leagued with the 
 hierarchy, had forsaken them. The contederate soldiers 
 positively refused to obey them ; and when the deputies 
 returned from Waterford with word that Rinuccini and 
 the bishops insisted on the appointment of Preston as 
 general of the horse, and O'Neill as major- general of 
 the army, they sent for Ormond to come to Kilkenny, in 
 the hope that his presence might create a diversion ia 
 their favour.* 
 
 Ormond eagerly embraced the proposal, and sent 
 some persons to treat with O'Neill, and, if possible, 
 gain him over to the peace. But the Ulster general 
 spurned the overtures of the lord lieutenant, and sent 
 him back an indignant refusal. The nuncio had for- 
 warded him at this time a sum of about £9,000 which 
 nad been borrowed from Diego della Torre, the Spanish 
 envoy. 
 
 Ormond, however, set out from Dublin on the 28th of 
 August, with 1,500 foot and 500 horse. He arrived 
 at Kilkenny on the 31st of the same month, and was 
 joyfully received by his adherents ; but great was his 
 mortification on learning that the troops which were 
 drawn into the city after the siege of Bunratty, had gone 
 over to the party of the nuncio and clergy at Waterford. 
 From Kilkenny the lord lieutenant, accompanied by 
 Clanricarde and Lord Digby, proceeded into Munster, 
 foolishly thinking that he might conciliate Inchiquin, 
 and prevail on him to join his forces with those of his 
 own party against the troops of O'Neill; but in his 
 progress through the country Ormond had ample evi- 
 dence of the popular disinclination to submit to him 
 on the terms of the Dublin treaty. Many of the towns 
 shut their gates at his approach, and the mayor of 
 Casliel sent to implore that he would not enter that city, 
 18 Owen O'Neill, who had encamped on the 9th of 
 September at lioscrea, had sent to inform the magis* 
 
 • Carte. 1. 679 
 
CONFEDIiRATION Ol'' KILKKNNV. 
 
 1G3 
 
 trates, that if they received the lord lieutenant lie would 
 storm the place. Digby's overtures were rejected by 
 Inchiquin, who, in answer to a letter forwarded to him, 
 replied, "that the peace now concluded by his majesty's 
 authv/rity, to the utter ruin of all that profess the 
 Protestant religion, or submitted thereto, had to all the 
 world evidenced the just grounds of his separation from 
 what he (Digby) was pleased to call his duty."* 
 
 To add to Ormond's disappointment he had now 
 learned that Piers Fitzgerald, alias Mac Thomas, Avho 
 formerly served under Castleliaven, had collected a 
 strong body of cavalry and declared for the Waterford 
 resolutions. Indeed, the Marquess's expedition into 
 Munster was far from successful, and on the 11th of 
 September he was informed by Sir Richard Talbot, that 
 he sliould take precautions to secure the ford of Moygany, 
 the only place Avhere he could cross the Barrow without 
 marching through the counties of Carlow and Kildare 
 to Munstereven. O'Neill's emissaries were already in 
 the county of Wicklow raising the O'Byrnes and 
 O'Tooles, and it was likely that they had been in- 
 structed to intercept him if he returned by their country 
 to Dublin. 
 
 Ormond was now apprehensive that O'Neill meditated 
 some design against his person, and determined to 
 return to the metropolis. He, therefore, sent Sir Luke 
 Dillon and Dr. Fennell to the prelates at Waterford, 
 to state "that he considered his commission for con- 
 cluding a peace was determined by that which he had 
 already made, and that if it did not take place, there 
 was no possibility of renewing a treaty for another, 
 and was apprehensive that his return to Dublin should 
 put a stop to all further negotiations." 
 
 Having sent this message to Waterford, Castlehaven 
 came to inform him that he had not a moment to lose, 
 as Preston and O'Neill were rapidly advancing to cut 
 him off. Ormond fled to his troops, stationed at Callan. 
 where they were faced by 400 horse under Mac Thomas. 
 Thence he dispatched orders to Sir Francis Willoughby, 
 who was at Gowran, to march with all possible speed 
 ftad secure Leighlin Bridge. When the major-general 
 
 • Irish Tracts. R.D.S. Thorpe Pajjers. 
 
'64 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 jame within tliree miles of the place he was tohl thai 
 Sir Walter Bagnall, with a l)undred men, held the fort 
 •' at the bridge ej-.d," and he thereon sent to know if he 
 might find that officer a friend or enemy, and received 
 an answer, that the pass lay open to him. He crossed 
 the bridge and left a detachment of las men to await 
 Ormond on the Carlow side. Two hours before day the 
 marquess, having joined these troops, fled to Kilcullen. 
 thence to Ballymore-Eustace, and on the 13th entered 
 Dublin, to the surprise of the citizens, who verily 
 believed that he had been made prisoner by O'Neill and 
 Preston. He had reason to be grateful to Bagnall, for 
 if he held the bridge against him for half-an-hour longer 
 he must have fallen into the hands of Owen Roe. 
 
 When Ormond was about to return to Dublin, he left 
 Digby at Kilkenny, to learn the result of his negotia- 
 tion with the bishops at Waterford ; and, presuming on 
 his powers, the latter made a proposition that, if the 
 nuncio and three or four of the bishops would consent to 
 the peace, and cause it to be observed by all over whom 
 they had power, and join, under the lord lieutenant, 
 against the common enemy, if they might privately receive 
 a firm assurance of the repeal of the penal laws, and that 
 the Catholic clergy should not be put out and molested 
 in their ecclesiastical possessions before a new parliament 
 was called, the said assurance should be procured them 
 collaterally, severed from the articles of the peace, to 
 which the lord lieutenant had no power to add. But this 
 proposition was rejected, and expediency abandoned. 
 The bishops had no guarantee for the fulfilment of the 
 conditions offered, even were they inclined to receive 
 them ; and they feared that in the present, as well as in 
 a former instance, Digby and Ormond could find a 
 " starting hole" whereby the king might escape any ob- 
 ligation, as in the treaty with Glamorgan. When Digby 
 received the refusal, he did not think it safe to remain 
 any longer, and set out for France to solicit arms and 
 monies to crush the men who were now bent on main- 
 taining the independence of Ireland. 
 
 The destinies of the country were at this moment in 
 the liands of the clergy and Owen O'Neill. The nuncio, 
 elated with his temporary triumph, sent his dean to 
 Home, to convey to Poise Innocent the re.iutionof aiFaira 
 
CONFEDEUATION OF KLLKENNY. 
 
 lai 
 
 and procure aids for the prosecution of what he regarded 
 a glorious crusade against the Puritans. To give greater 
 stability to the new confederation, he determined to pro- 
 ceed to Kilkenny, and establish his head-quarters there. 
 The way was open for him. Owen Roe lay encamped 
 within three miles of the city ; his army consisted of 
 12,(XK) foot, and 1,500 horse ; his troops were refreshing 
 themselves, after storming Koscrea Castle, oa the 17th 
 of September. 
 
 On his approach to the city Rinuccini was joinod by 
 Preston and Diego della Torre, at the head of tlie gentry. 
 He did not now enter as a messenger of peace ; on this 
 occasion he appeared as a triumphant general, surrounded 
 by the military, and hailed by the acclamations of the 
 soldiers. " The victor of Beinburb" on one side and 
 Preston on the other, he had reason to feel proud of his 
 escort. But his first act was one of harshness and im- 
 prudence. He no longer tliought of conciliation ; and 
 yielding to the suggestions of Preston, who had a per- 
 sonal dislike to many of the old council, he caused them 
 to be committed to tne castle of Kilkenny, on the 18th, 
 the day cf his entry. 
 
 Colonel Bagnal, who had connived at the escape of 
 Ormond, and Sir Robert Talbot, were likewise impri- 
 soned ; and of the old council, D'Arcy and Plunket were 
 the only exceptions to this impolitic proceeding. 
 
 The nuncio and clergy now assumed the government 
 to themselves, and on the 26th, by a solemn decree, ap- 
 pointed a new council, consisting of four bishops and 
 eight laymen, ordering all the generals to be subject to 
 their orders, and investing them with the same powers 
 as the former council. The unanimous voices of those 
 who signed the decree at Waterford appointed Rinuccini 
 to the presidency, intending thus to do greater honor to 
 the court of Rome, on whose sympathies they were now 
 to place all reliance. Never did any event give greater 
 cause for joy to the chieftains and people of the "old 
 jrish" than this change of the confederate government. 
 The grand object which engrossed their cares for so many 
 years, they fancied was now achieved. He who was now 
 the head of the government could not feel less interest 
 for the cause of religious independence than themselves. 
 Unbending and uncompromising as they knew the nuncio 
 
1G6 CONFKDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 to be, they no longer feared the craft and fatal influence 
 of Ormond. Religious as the character of the war had 
 been, it was now to be doubly more so ; — the moderator 
 of the council was a minister of the Vatican, and the ge- 
 neral of the army was the champion of the church. 
 
 The enthusiastic devotion Avith which the Jews honored 
 Iheir leader, Maccabeus, was not more intense than that 
 with which the '* old Irish" now regarded " Owen Roe." 
 He it was whose right hand was to restore the temple, 
 and avert the captivity of the people who had been dis- 
 persed. Heaven, they believed, had nerved the arms of 
 his soldiers on the day of Beinburb ; but now, when they 
 paw the cross and the keys interwoven on the banners of 
 the red-hand, they looked on him with a feeling of vene- 
 ration. 
 
 '• This age," wrote the nuncio to Pope Innocent X., 
 ** has never seen so unexpected a change. I should com- 
 pare it to the most famous successes in Europe. The 
 clergy of Ireland, so much despised by the Ormondists, 
 were, in the twinkling of an eye, masters of the king- 
 dom. Generals, officers, and soldiers, strove who should 
 fight for them ; and, at last, the supreme council, de- 
 prived of all power, was confounded with amazement to 
 «ee all authority devolve on the clergy/' * 
 
 Muskerry being now removed from the command of 
 the confederate troops in Munster, Glamorgan was ap- 
 pointed in his stead, and the nuncio wrote to Rome in- 
 timating that as soon as Ormond was driven out of 
 Dublin it was the intention of the new council to create 
 the former lord lieutenant. The reasons assigned for the 
 appointment of Glamorgan were the high consideration 
 in which he was held by the Catholics, and his unflinch- 
 ing fidelity to Rinuccini's views ; moreover, the nuncio 
 never relinquished his design of sending troops to Eng- 
 land, and he thought that he could not commit the 
 leadership in this affair to any one more seriously con- 
 cerned for the interests of tiie king. The idea of ap- 
 pointing an Irishman to that high post was fraught with 
 danger, inasmuch as it would have created jealousies 
 and rivalry, which it was the object of all to avoid, that 
 the great cause might not sustain any injury from the 
 
 • Nunziatura in Irlanda. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KXLILENIiY. 
 
 167 
 
 -inflict of parties. But a stronger reason was founded 
 ;^ the king's letter from Newcastle, in which he insi- 
 nuated that he contemplated coming to Ireland and 
 ^ladng himself in the hands of Glamorgan and the 
 
 ''"Th^new council was to continue in existence till the 
 next general assembly, and orders ^^re immediately is- 
 Bued for levying troops and raising monies for the main- 
 ?enance of three armies. For these purposes there was no 
 ack of compulsory enactments; where the arm of the 
 flesh fa'leT the spiritual weapon was m readiness; 
 but neither was required to awaken the energies and 
 hatred of the Catholic population against Ormond 
 The grand object was to seize Dublin, and secure 
 it LafnJt the parliament. It was well known that 
 Ormond was in concert with them, and anxious to su^, 
 render the government to any but the confederates^-. 
 A^d so desirous was he to secure the city against Neill 
 and Preston that, on his return from Ki kenny, he set 
 :S^ut repairing the fortifications "/rom the CoUeg^ to 
 St "R-pven's and so to St. James's Gate. n\e mar- 
 
 chioness of Srmond. with several ladies of quality 
 St be seen carrying baskets of earth to the workmen 
 
 '"A\TtCre'Lld not have been any doubt of Or- 
 
 - was incensed against the Irish rebels and that he 
 had offered to capitulate with the kings enemies, bo 
 Lnsible was he of the necessity of giving D^blm to 
 them and of prosecuting the war in connexion with the 
 mrUament, against the Irish, that Captain \V lUoughby 
 Snd r^n?a n Wood, two sea captains with whom he 
 had son?e overtures,' had very good reason to believe that 
 f wou'd deliver Dublin to them both, and cause to be 
 delivered the rest of the garrisons in Ireland in his power 
 
 ^V^^^e aJ'airat'rre'fro™ DuWin and are witU 
 jj^ DavL, "ufficie'nt pledges of the reaUty of tins truth. 
 
 • Irish Tracts, R. D. S. 
 
 t Carte's Ona. 
 
108 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 that the Marquess of Ormond doth really intend to com-, 
 ply with tlie parliament against the rebels. That he 
 desired fifty barrels of powder to be sent to Dublin to 
 secure it against the Irish, and satisfaction being givea 
 by the said gentlemen coming to, and remaining with 
 us, there are twenty barrels sent, and thirty barrels more 
 are to be sent afterwards. It is desired that the supplies 
 of soldiers from Liverpool and Bristol be sent over to 
 Dublin and other parts possessed by Ormond and his 
 party to secure them for the parliament."* 
 
 Nor were the confederates ignorant of Ormond's in- 
 trigues with the parliamentarians. Tiiey knew that 
 Dublin was ill provided against a combined attack. The 
 Wicklow clans were well inclined to swoop down on 
 the city from the south side, and only waited the pre- 
 sence of O'Neill and Preston on the north bank of the 
 Liffey. Within the walls the lord lieutenant could not 
 muster more than 6,000 men, so that to make it tenable 
 against the confederates, with his customary duplicity 
 he invoked the aid of those who were at war with the 
 king to crush the men whom he had the hardihood to 
 designate rebels. 
 
 When the confederates were made aware of Ormond's 
 designs, they concluded tliat further delay was fraught 
 with danger, and they detcnmned to march at once, and 
 if possible save the city before the arrival of the sup- 
 plies from England. But the rivalry and mutual hatred 
 of Preston and O'Neill, caused them to pause before the 
 armies were marched from their camps. The nuncio 
 had reason to doubt Preston's sincerity. His conduct, 
 whilst acting under Clanricarde in Connaught, was cal- 
 culated to awaken suspicion in the minds of those who 
 were the avowed enemies of Ormond. A considerable 
 sum, part of the monies brought by Lord Digby from 
 France, had been given to Preston, and this circum- 
 stance was of itself sufficient to create fears for the fide- 
 lity of the Leinster general. 
 
 When, however, it was debated in the council whether 
 Preston should have any share in the siege of Dublin, 
 French, bishop of Ferns, argued that it would not be 
 
 • Irisli Tracts, R. D. S. Extracts of Letters from Chester, and pab- 
 Mlhcd by order of the Parliament. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 politic to exclude tlie Leinster general from the com- 
 mand of his troops in liis own province, and that he 
 should co-operate with O'Neill in the enterprise. Finally, 
 it was concluded that the two generals should iiave joint 
 command ; and the nuncio, who never forgave Preston's 
 rejoicings on the publication of the peace, made him 
 take an oath that he would act faithfully and sincerely 
 in the operations against the city. Preston's heart was 
 not in the cause, and he positively refused to take the 
 oath till the following clause was added, namely, tliat 
 they would not attack the city without first having 
 sought more ample concessions from the lord lieutenant, 
 and that all their movements should be regulated by h'n 
 declaration. Long before either of the two armies moved 
 from their cantonments, the Leinster general asserted 
 that he feared O'Neill's design was to attack him, 
 and destroy his troops. The nuncio's partiality for Owen 
 Roe was a cause of perpetual disquiet to him, and if 
 anything were required to confirm it, it was the un- 
 equal distribution of the monies, for Pi,inuccini on the 
 22nd of December, bestowed 8,000 dollars on O'Neill's 
 forces, when the sura which he gave Preston was only 
 about £150. 
 
 The two armies marched from their respective quar- 
 ters at the end of October. The united forces amounted 
 to 16,000 fuot and 1,600 horse. O'Neill's troops took 
 Maryborough, Stradbally, Grange, Mellan, and all the 
 strong places in the Queen's County, till he came- to 
 Athy, where he crossed the Barrow, and was joined by 
 the nuncio. Preston, whose route lay through the county 
 Carlow, declined storming the castle of the town, though 
 feebly garrisoned, and lingered on his way to the capi- 
 tal, lie complained bitterly that tlie troops under the 
 command of O'Neill were garrisoning the various strong 
 places which tliey had seized in the province of Lein- 
 ster, and gave out that the attempt on Dublin was all 
 but justifiable. From Harristown they continued their 
 march to Nass, and on the 9th of November encamped 
 at Lu'ian, in order to arrange their plans. There it was 
 agreeu that Preston's head quarters should be at Leixlip, 
 and O'Neill's at Newcastle. The winter had set in witti 
 unusual rigour, and all the country, for miles around, 
 presented the appearance of a dreary waste. Ormond, 
 
170 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 terrified by their approach, at the suggestion of Castld* 
 haven caused the mills to be burned and the crops de- 
 stroyed. The citizens were dreadfully alarmed, and the 
 exag:5erated reports of the ferocity of O'Neill's creaglits, 
 determined many of them to embark for England. To 
 quiet their apprehensions, the lord lieutenant had writ- 
 ten to Munroe, in Ulster, to send him aid, and the pow. 
 der sent by the parliament was looked on as an earnest 
 o£ their good feeling to the inhabitants of Dublin. Such 
 was the weak condition of the defences about the city, 
 that the inhabitants wondered that the two armies did 
 not advance and seize it in the broad day ; but their 
 wonder grew more strong, when they beheld from the 
 battlements of Christ Church, and the high ground 
 about the castle, two hundred watch-fires blazing in the 
 night time on the other side of the Liffey. 
 
 Where the confederate armies fancied they would find 
 an abundance of provisions, they now discovered that 
 the foresight of Ormond had ruined their hopes. A 
 flood in the Liffey, swollen by the heavy rains, had car- 
 ried away the bridges, and thus prevented tlie supplies 
 from being brought from tlie county Wicklow. The 
 rains were succeeded by snow and frost; and from 
 twenty to thirty of the soldiers, night after night, 
 perished at their posts.* Indeed, nothing sustained 
 them, save the hope of good quarters in Dublin, which 
 they now regarded as in their grasp. But tliere was a 
 more deadly enemy within their camps than the storm 
 which raged without — dissension and fear of each other. 
 They sent to Ormond, demanding admission of Catliolic 
 troops into Drogheda and Dublin, and a free and public 
 exercise of the Catholic religion, such as Catholics en- 
 ioyed in other countries. Their proposition being re- 
 garded as "too scandalous," did not get even a reply 
 from the lord lieutenant. When they should be up and 
 stirring against him, the two confederate generals were 
 taking precautions against each other. O'Neill accused 
 Preston of intriguing with the lord lieutenant, and me- 
 ditating a plan which would have put him in a position 
 to be attacked by Orniond from the city and tlie Lein- 
 fiter general from his camp. Preston, on the other 
 
 • Fiblopater Irsea. 
 
COKFEDSIRATION OF RILKliNNY. 171 
 
 hand, affirmed that he believed O'Neill's design was to 
 destroy him and cut off his army. The nuncio clearly 
 6»w the impossibility of reconciling the two generals, 
 and summoned the council to consult whether it was not 
 best to seize and imprison Preston. The opinion! 
 varied. Some thought it best to inflict that punish- 
 ment, as all they held dear was jeopardized by the 
 vacillating conduct of the Leinster general. But, at 
 ar unfortunate moment, it was decided, contrary to the 
 nuncio's sentiment, that such a course would be fatal. 
 Under such circumstances, the nuncio deemed it his duty 
 to prevent bloodshed between the two armies, wisely con- 
 cluding that the loss of Dublin was inconsiderable, when 
 compared to the result of a conflict between O'Neill and 
 Preston. It was a strange sight to see the president of 
 the council going from camp to camp of the confederate 
 armies, endeavouring to effect a union between the 
 respective leaders. But if the fact moves us to pity, 
 and excites our contempt for the temporizing Preston, 
 it conveys to us a moral, never too often repeated, that 
 in union there is hope, and in everything beside reverse 
 and ruin. 
 
 On the 11th of November Clanricarde came to Pres- 
 ton's quarters, and laboured to persuade the nuncio and 
 council, through him, to sign a peace with Ormond. He 
 engaged to obtain a repeal of all the penal enactments, 
 and that the queen and prince should confirm the arti- 
 cles until the king would be at liberty to declare his as- 
 sent in a free parliament ; but the fear of committing 
 himself to such uncertain conditions, induced the nun- 
 cio to withhold his consent. It was evident that Or- 
 mond feared the loss of Dublin, else he would not have 
 commissioned Clanricarde to negotiate with the nuncio , 
 and the former knew well that every delay on the part 
 of the confederates added to his chances of holding the 
 city against them. Contrary to Owen Roe's avowed re- 
 quest, Rinuccini, accompanied by Heber Mac Mahon and 
 the Bishop of Ferns, visited Preston in his tent, and 
 vainly sought to induce him to lay aside his apprehen- 
 Bions of O'Neill's good will and sincerity ; but the nun- 
 cio, perceiving that he could not succeed, charged the 
 Leinster general with having formed a design to seize 
 his person, and commit him and the Bishop of Clogher 
 
172 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY 
 
 to the custody of Orniond. Preston did not deny the 
 cliarge, but merely asserted that he never would consent 
 to the arrest. 
 
 They were now fully twelve days before Dublin with- 
 out having made any attempt on it. Provisions. were 
 every day becoming more scarce ; and the council 
 was once more summoned to suggest some decisive step. 
 The two generals were present ; and one day, while the 
 council was urging an advance, and all were assembled 
 to discuss it, some ofte knocked at the door of the cham- 
 ber, and Preston rose suddenly to open it ; having heard 
 three or four words from the person without, he returned 
 in a fright, and said the English were already in Dub- 
 lin. In a moment Owen lloe and the others sprang up 
 from their seats, as if a serpent had stung them,* and, 
 thinking each man of himself, departed from his com- 
 panions. The generals signalled by cannon fire that 
 every man was to return to his post ; and O'Neill having 
 "made a bridge of trees and house timber over the Liffey 
 at Leixlip, returned with his troops into Meath, and 
 tlience into the Queen's County. This occurrence took 
 place on the 16th, and the next morning the members of 
 the council fled to Kilkenny in the utmost alarm. 
 
 The nuncio*remained three days at Lucan after the 
 departure of O'Neill ; during that time the Marquess of 
 Clanricarde made several propositions, and informed him 
 of the falsehood of tlie report of any English having 
 landed. Tlic only concession which Ormond authorized 
 Clanricarde to make, was the admission of Preston's 
 troops to garrison Dublin, on condition that they 
 would unite witli the troops under Ormond, and compel 
 the council to accept the peace, with the addition of 
 Clanricarde's engagement. The nuncio, however, pro- 
 posed the free exercise of religion as an indispensable 
 condition, but as Ormond was opposed to the insertion 
 of any such agreement, the negotiation ended in smoke. 
 Preston had accepted Ormond's proposal, and according 
 to his agreement with Clanricarde, a day was appointed 
 on which he was to unite his troops with a detachment 
 led by the latter from the gates of Dublin. But in the 
 mean time the nuncio had expostulated with tho 
 
 • Nunzlatura \n IiLiu'^a- 
 
''OKFEDEHATTON OF KILKENNY. 17«J 
 
 v^inster general, who expressed his sorrow for having 
 made such terms, so that Clanricarde, on the day 
 appointed for the rendezvous, found a letter of excuses 
 instead of an army of allies, and with loud indignation 
 returned disappointed to Dublin. 
 
 Rinuccini soon afterwards followed the council to 
 Kilkenny, where he caused O'Neill and Preston to sign 
 a mutual agreement, by which they bound themselves 
 to forget all past aissenslons, and whether acting singly 
 9r collectively for the future, to have but one object 
 present to their eyes— the independence of their 
 religion, and the deliverance of their common country. 
 
 Nothing could have given greater joy to the members 
 of the old council imprisoned at Kilkenny, than the 
 failure of the siege of Dublin. Whenever they received 
 news of any disaster to tlie confederate arms, they 
 drank to their losses in beakers of beer. They 
 naturally concluded that their liberation was nigh, 
 and as the government, in the hands of the clergy, was 
 only temporary and provisional, they calculated on a 
 crisis which would again restore them to the power 
 which they had lost. 
 
 It was now resolved to call a general assembly of the 
 kingdom, as it was urged that such a proceeding avouM 
 give greater satisfaction to the people who were anxious 
 for the formation of a government in which the 
 representatives were not elected solely by the clergy. 
 Contrary to the wishes of the nuncio, the members of 
 the old council were now released from imprisonment. 
 Belling entered on a defence of his own conduct and 
 that of his colleagues in the matter of the peace con- 
 eluded with Ormond, and published in August. He 
 asserted that in signing the peace he had done nothing 
 more than what was sanctioned by Pope Innocent, who, 
 in the presence of Luke Wadding, cautioned the 
 delegates* of the confederates against seeking more than 
 his majesty was able to concede in his difficulties. This 
 was an assertion which required more than the word of 
 BelUng for its confirmation, and the nuncio denied that 
 his holiness had ever made any such statement, as it 
 was totally irreconcilable with the instructions he had 
 
 * PLiiop. IrasQ. 
 
► 74 CONFEDERATION OF K^LKENNT. 
 
 received from Rome, which charged him not to abata 
 a single tittle of the jus*:- demands of the Catholics. 
 
 In the meantime Ormond was carrymg on a negowation 
 with the parliament commissioners, Clotworthy, Mere- 
 dith, King, and Salway, who had anchored in the bay of 
 Dublin on the 13th of November. At the prayer of the 
 citizens he invited them to land on the 14th, and fixed 
 their quarters at Ringsend and Baggotrath, and on the 
 day following opened a treaty with them which was 
 carried on till the 23rd of the month. The terms which 
 they proposed not being agreeable to the lord lieutenant, 
 they embarked a few days afterwards, and carried 
 their supplies to the Scots in Ulster, who, in the 
 absence of O'Neill, had sent 700 men from Lisnegarvy, 
 and ravaged the counties of Cavan, Monaghan and Louth, 
 and amongst other places, demolished Carrickmacross. 
 
 The result of the negotiation with the parliament 
 commissioners was prejudicial to the lord lieutenant j it 
 6owed such seeds of jealousy and discontent* that the 
 citizens of Dublin refused to contribute further to the 
 payment of his troops, so that he was forced, in the cold 
 and wet wintei*, to draw out his half-starved and half- 
 naked army and march into the county Westmeath, to 
 procure provisions. The defection of Preston, who, in 
 his excuse for not adopting Ormond's offer, asserted 
 that his troops were not "excommunication proof," was 
 a sore blow to him. His object was to act with the 
 Scots in Ulster, and having gained over the unsteady 
 Preston, to annihilate O'Neill, and thus force the 
 observance of the peace. In his present circumstances 
 one incident saved him from the army of Owen Roe. 
 While he was keeping " a melancholy Christmas"t at 
 Trim, a short cessation, proposed by Muskerry, was 
 agreed to, else *' the half-starved and half-naked" army of 
 Dublin must have made a sorry figure before the Ulster 
 general. 
 
 Thwarted in his scheme, he did not despair for i 
 moment, and the assurance sent nim by his kinsman 
 Muskerry, "that in the approaching general assembly 
 matters should be arranged agreeably to his pleasure," 
 consoled him for the uneasiness and trouble he exi)eri 
 enc£d in the vicinity of O'Neill's army. 
 
 • Borlase. t Cox. 
 
COSFEDEUATIOM OF KILKENNT. 
 
 Nor was Preston's vacillation useless to the lord 
 aeutenant; on the contrary, Orniond had strong reasons 
 for calculating on the sympathies of the Leinster general. 
 His enmity to O'Neill, however it might have been 
 masked, must sooner or later develope itself, and as he had 
 but little feeUng for the "old Irish," he knew that the 
 nuncio would eventually distrust him. One thing was 
 certain, and that certainty could not but be grateful to 
 Ormond : the two generals who had quarrelled under the 
 walls of Dublin, were so divided by the antagonism of clasa 
 that their cordial co-operation could not be looked for. 
 On leaving Dublin the lord lieutenant had been induced to 
 believe that by making an attack on Athlone, he might 
 get possession of that important fortress. It had been 
 surprised early in September, and taken by one of 
 O'Neill's officers from Lord Dillon, who held it for 
 Ormond. Dillon had made his profession of faith 
 on the 6th of December, and was received into the 
 Catholic church by the nuncio, who entreated Owen 
 Roe to reinstate hira in the command. But, so deter- 
 mined was the Ulster general, that he could not be 
 induced to comply, and sent Richard OTerrall and 
 Roger Maguire, with positive orders to hold the place 
 against Ormond and every one else. 
 
 The day of the general assembly was now at hand, and 
 on the result of the meeting the fate of Ireland depended. 
 The subject which had hitherto divided the council of 
 the confederates was that of religion ; and, as if anti- 
 cipating the decision of the majority, Ormond wrote to 
 Digby, who was setting out for Paris, that the com- 
 mands to be forwarded to him by the queen and the 
 Prince of Wales, touching that vital question, " shoidd 
 not thwart the grounds he had laid to himself." 
 
 " For, in that matter," ran the instruction of the lord 
 lieutenant, "I shall obey by suffering, and particularly 
 that there be no concession to the Papists to perpetuate 
 churches or church livings ;" but, as far as regarded the 
 quiet exercise of their religion, it might be free for his 
 majesty to tolerate it, if he could see anything in 
 them but ' Irish rebels.' " 
 
 Thus the sum of all they had struggled for was to 
 be the toleration of their creed. The blood and sweat 
 of five years were to be rewarded by a connivance at tua 
 
practice of their conscientious convictions, in the rucV 
 but and "up in the mountain solitudes." At the tittiug 
 time the cathedrals and the ecclesiastical revenues were 
 to be given back to the Protestant clergy, who had 
 already petitioned Ormond for stipend till they were 
 restored to their benefices. Out of tliese sacred edifices, 
 whicli the piety of their forefathers had erected, the 
 t^athohc clergy M'ere to be expelled, to propitiate the 
 lord lieutenant. The craven-hearted Catholics of the 
 J. a e seconded his views, and as they were his adherents 
 and sycophantic clients, he looked on them as his mo«< 
 useful instruments in creating division and disunion 
 iiut tliey were destined to discover their error when 
 1 was irremediable, and find that the man on whom 
 they placed such hopes and confidence was ''an in- 
 constant friend and an unforgiving enemy."" 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Nkver did that city seated on the " stubborn Nor<^" 
 contain within its walls a more august or brilliant 
 assemblage than on the 10th of January, 1647. The 
 morning of that memorable day beheld the represen- 
 tatives of the confederate Catholics assisting at hio-li 
 mass in the cathedral of St. Canice. It was a solemn 
 scene, such as memory loves to dwell on. David, 
 Bishop of Ossory, was the officiating priest, and a choir 
 oi Italians sung the responses. On the left of the 
 grand altar sat the nuncio on a iofty throne, arrayed in 
 glittering cope and jewelled mitre ; around him sat 
 eleven bishops, with the primate, Hugh O'Reilly, at 
 their head. Immediately behind the bishops, sat the 
 temporal peers, attended by their erquires. Diego 
 della Torre and Du Moulins, the envoys from the 
 Spanish and French courts, had distinguished places 
 near them. Two hundred and twenty-four gentlemen, 
 
 •"Amicus levissimus , inimjcus gr3.^U^sixiiivi :'- Froverb quoted in thi 
 UnJcmd J)eserter. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNT. 
 
 i77 
 
 representing the Commons of Ireland, occupied the 
 remaining space about the richly ornamented altar. 
 The cheering ray of the winter sun shone feebly 
 through the great eastern window." whose brilliant 
 tints had excited the artistic cupidity of Rinuccini 
 The piety and chivalry of the land were represented 
 within the sacred edifice, and above the heads of that 
 glorious assemblage, were suspended the torn banners 
 of Beinburb, for they had not as ytt been sent as votive 
 offerings to the holy see. 
 
 Thei-e they knelt around that altar which they had sworn 
 to uphold. Many an illustrious name has been preserved 
 to us of those who were on iiiat day invoking blessings 
 on the cause of their religion and country. M'Carthy 
 Riagh and O'SuUivan More, from the south ; O'Donnell 
 and M'Gennis, from the north ; O'Conor Don and 
 O'Conor Sligo, from the west ; Preston and Talbot 
 from the plains of Leinster, with the descendant of 
 Pheagh Mac-Hugh O'Byrne, from his fortalice of Bally- 
 nacoiT, in the Wicklow mountains. The " ite missa 
 est," pronounced at the conclusion of that day's solem- 
 nity, sent them forth to struggle for their homes and 
 altars on their own soil, and on almost all the battled-fields 
 of the continent. But of all who were now kneeling 
 beneath the roof of St. Canice, onef alone was destined 
 to find a grave within its precints. Little did they then 
 think of that fearful storm which was soon to sweep 
 their native land and desolate their homesteads; but 
 if they could have anticipated how fondly aftertimes 
 should cherish the recollection of their virtues and 
 leroism, it might have consoled them for the bitter 
 trials and heart-burnings they had to endure. Sir 
 Phelim O'Neill perishing on the scaffold, a martyr to 
 'ruth,j; and Terence Albert O'Bryan, the Bishop of 
 
 •This -nindow was the gift of Bishop Ledred; and Grose in his 
 Antiquities states tliat Kinuccini offered 70G1. for it, in order to send it 
 to lUinic. it -Nvere tetter he had succeeded in purchasing it, for it 
 would have been preseiTed though at a distance fi-om us. ^Vhea 
 Axtel was governor of Kilkenny in Cromwell s time, his savages 
 smashed it, in a fit of holy indignation against popish saints and 
 Dictxxres. 
 
 i iioortcaiTet, who died In 1651 . Vide Ilib. Dcm 
 
l78 CONFEDERATIOW OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Emly, in sight of the gibbet, pronouncing in the eare 
 of Ireton, the prophecy of his death by pestilence, are 
 facts which cannot be forgotten. Irish genius has yet 
 to make them glow on canvass in the temple of 
 nationality ; nor shall distinction of creed prevent us 
 doing honor to the men whose love of fatherland must 
 endear them to the recollection of all. 
 
 But the scene is changed, and the bishops, nobles, and 
 commons are assembled in the great gallery of Kilkenny 
 castle. 
 
 The nuncio was the first to address the assembly. 
 Adverting to the congregation of the prelates and clergy 
 at Waterford, he solemnly declared that necessity alone 
 had compelled him and the bishops to adopt that course, 
 which M'as indubitably agreeable to the people at large, 
 however otherwise it might have been to tlie adherents 
 of Lord Ormond. Much contrary to his own wish he 
 had been induced to take the conspicuous and onerous 
 part of president of the congregation, which he was now 
 ready to resign, in order to bring about an indissoluble 
 union of parties. In terms which were any thing but 
 flattering to the commissioners engaged in the late ne- 
 gotiations with Ormond, he repudiated the articles of the 
 peace which they had concluded. They had done this, 
 he affirmed, without the consent of the prelacy and peo- 
 ple of Ireland ; but as it was now evident that laity and 
 clergy longed for repose, he exhorted them to proceed to 
 the conclusion of an honorable peace, which fully guar- 
 anteed the independence of their religion. " Soanxious," 
 he continued, " is Pope Innocent for the security of your 
 religion and country, that he has recently sent from 
 Eome the Dean of Fermo, with supplies of money and 
 paternal assurances of his good will towards you. The 
 benevolence of the holy father is only commensurate with 
 the joy he has experienced on receiving news of youi 
 victories ; and if proof be wanting, see it here in the re- 
 quest which I am commissioned to convey to you, that 
 ■^u will send the standards* captured from your enemies, 
 
 * " These standards," -writes the nuncio to Cardinal Paufilio, "were 
 BO torn in the death-struggle at Beinburb and elsewhere, that he was 
 obIi|?ed to remove some of them from the staffs m order to forward thea 
 to Konie." — Rimwcini. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKKNNT. 
 
 173 
 
 that thej may be hung up in the basilicas of Rome, to 
 record your devotion to the holy see, and the indomita- 
 ble bravery of the Irish people." 
 
 He concluded his address by assuring them that hij 
 feelings were all opposed to any position which would 
 impose on him tne burden of temporal concerns, as his 
 solicitude was for the weal of that religion for which 
 they had taken up arms. Yet, if any thing in the history 
 of the events which had transpired remained to console 
 him, it was the timely victory won by the men of Ulster ; 
 "for," said he, with marked emphasis, "if heaven had not 
 fought on the side of O'Neill, on the memorable day of 
 Beinburb, tlie representatives ofthe Catholic confederates 
 would not be to-day assembled in this goodly city. 
 The churches must have been desecrated — the priesthooc' 
 scattered — and the peers temporal and spiritual who now 
 listen to my voice, either sacrificed by the swords of the 
 Puritans or languishing in prison." 
 
 The address concluded, and received with acclamation, 
 a most important point wa,s now to be discussed before 
 entering on the consideration of other matters. There 
 was, indeed, a unanimous desire amongst all parties ioi 
 the conclusion of peace ; but the condition** on "N'hich it 
 was to be drawn up constituted the str.mbinig-block be- 
 tween the clergy, and Muskerrj and Mountgarret, who 
 thought of notliing so much as catering to Ormond. 
 
 Smarting under the blow inflicted by the edict of Wa- 
 terford, which denounced them as perjurers, the com- 
 missioners now sought to justify their proceedings in the 
 matter of the treaty, and disprove the crime which tho 
 declaration of the prelates meant to attach. In this dis- 
 cussion three weeks were consumed, and the heat of the 
 ■contending parties was near bringing about the most 
 disastrous consequences to the entire body. The demon 
 of discord was amongst them, and when it was moved by 
 the Bishop of Ferns that Preston should be impeached, 
 as conniving with the adherents of Ormond, swords and 
 daggers were near being drawn on both sides. * In this 
 matter it required the joint influence of the prelates, and 
 Plunket, the chairman, to suppress a most unseemly 
 tumult. 
 
 a PhEop. IraBO. 41. 
 
l?,ij CONFEDEaA^TIOH OP KILKSNKT. 
 
 Day after day was the unhappy question of the Water« 
 ford declaration raised and discussed; — the commis- 
 sioners, on the one side, vindicating their conduct in the 
 ■jansaction witli Ormond, and the prelates, on the other, 
 jefending tlie course they had adopted. In self-defence 
 t was argued by the commissioners that their consent to 
 the thirty articles was founded on the secret concessions 
 of Glamorgan, and therefore the charge of perjury was 
 not sustainable. This assertion was far from satisfactory 
 to the prelates, who maintained that when the commis- 
 sioners were subscribing the treaty tliey must have 
 known that Glamorgan had been disavowed. In order, 
 however, to terminate such rancorous recriminations, 
 the commissioners now agreed to condemn the peace ; 
 and, for that purpose, an instrument was drawn up 
 ■which embraced both points — the evacuation of the 
 peace and the vindication of their own conduct. The 
 resolution, published tlie 2nd of February, set forth that 
 the commissioners had acted honestly, and pursuant to 
 their instructions, in making the peace, and that the 
 clergy had acted conscientiously in rejecting it. It is 
 hard to reconcile such contradiction, but as the commis- 
 sioners could not be induced to reject the peace on any 
 other terms, the resolution was agreed to. It was now 
 necessary that the assembly should advertise Ormond of 
 what they had done by a public manifesto, and on the 
 same day it was almost unanimously resolved, that " they 
 would not accept that peace, and therefore they pro- 
 tested against it as invalid and of no force, and that the 
 nation would accept of no peace not containing a suffi- 
 cient security for the religlwa, lives, and estates nf the 
 confederate Catholics." 
 
 This resolution was published t\rj or three days after 
 Lord TaafFe and Colonel Barry had got a safe conduct to 
 come into the confederate quarters. They brought a 
 letter from Ormond to the chairman of the assembly, 
 urging the necessitj^ of adhering to the peace concluded 
 in August, and asking £1,000 per month for the subsist- 
 ence of the king's troops ; but before the deputies were 
 granted an audience they learned that, out of three hun- 
 dred, twelve alone were for Ormond's peace, and they 
 f»oT»spo»'«'>'tiv declined pr«v«'en'^<"" th^ lord iieutenant'8 
 
COKFEDEBATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 It was no"w moved, that a new oath should be admi 
 nistered to all persons for the continuance of their union 
 till all the propositions which were annexed to it should 
 be obtained and secured. The nuncio successfully 
 pressed the matter, and it was finally subscribed by the 
 peers, spiritual and temporal, and all the commons, 
 without dissent. The' propositions annexed were pre- 
 cisely tliose which had been drawn up by tlie prelates 
 in the assembly of Waterford, and of wliich no mention 
 was made in the thirty articles of Ormond. They were 
 as follows : — 
 
 1. "That the Roman Catholic clergy and laity have 
 and enjoy the free and public exercise of the Roman 
 Catholic religion throughout the kingdom, as it was ir 
 the reign of Henry VII. or any other Catholic king, his 
 predecessors. 
 
 2. " Tliat the secular clergy of Ireland, viz., pri- 
 mates, archbisliops, bishops, ordinaries, deans, chapters, 
 archdeacons, and other dignitaries ;_vicars, and all other 
 pastors of the secular clergy, and their respective sue- • 
 cessors, sliall have and enjoy, all and every of them, all 
 manner of jurisdiction, privileges, and immunities, in as 
 full and ample manner as the Roman Catholic clergy 
 had or enjoyed Avithin this realai at any time during the 
 reign of the late king, Henry VII., king of England 
 and lord of Ireland, any declaration of law, laws, sta- 
 tutes, power, or any other authority to the contrary not- 
 withstanding. 
 
 3. " That all laws and statutes made since the time of 
 King Henry VIII., whereby any restraint, penalty, 
 mulct, or incapacity, or other restriction whatsoever, is 
 or may be laid upon any of the Roman Catliolics, eitlier 
 of the clergy or laity, for the said exercise of the Ro- 
 man Catholic religion within this kingdom, and of tlieir 
 several functions, jurisdictions, and privileges, may be 
 repealed, revoked, and declared void in the next parlia- 
 ment, by one or more acts of parliament to be passed 
 therein. 
 
 4. " That the primates, bishops, ordinaries, deans, and 
 chapters, archdeacons, chancellors, treasurers, chanters, 
 guardians of collegiate churches, prebendaries, and 
 other dignitaries, shall have, hold, and enjoy all the 
 churches and church-livings in as large and ample man- 
 
(82 COHFEDEBATIOK OF KILKBNNT. 
 
 ner as the late Protestant clergy respectively enjoyed 
 the same on the 1st day of September, 1641, together 
 with all their rights, profits, emoluments, perquisites, 
 liberties to their respective sees and churches belonging, 
 as well in all places now in possession of the confederate 
 Catholics, as also in all other places that shall be re- 
 covered by them from the adverse party within this 
 kingdom, saving to the Roman Catholic laity and their 
 respective rights, according to the laws of this king- 
 dom." 
 
 Such were the conditions on which peace with Ormond 
 was to be sought. Henceforth they were solemnly 
 sworn to preserve their allegiance to the king intact, but 
 9ever to lay down their arms till the aforesaid articles 
 were fully ratified. A proclamation, enjoining all Ca- 
 tholics to contend for these their chartered rights, was 
 published by order of the general assembly on the 8th 
 of March, and all who refused to take the oath with the 
 annexed conditions, were denounced as traitors to theit 
 God and country. 
 
 But if any proof were wanting of the overweening 
 loyalty of those men who were denounced by Ormond 
 as Irish rebels, it is to be found in the history of the 
 transactions of the confederates during this meeting at 
 Kilkenny. Amongst other questions there discussed, 
 was that of the appointment of the bishops to Irish sees. 
 The Catholic lawyers, amongst the most conspicuous of 
 whom was Mr. D'Arcy, contended that the right of pa- 
 tronage was vested in tlie crown, and that the choice of 
 bishops and incumbents should be made in a settled 
 form between the supreme council (who acted at 
 present in the king's right) and the metropolitans and 
 chapters.* The novelty of the doctrine startled the 
 nuncio, who imagined at first that it was a scheme on 
 the part of the Ormondist party to introduce into the 
 vacant sees their own clients and adherents ; but he was 
 >oon made aware that the four lawyers who advanced 
 die proposition, vesting the right of nomination in the 
 crown, were really sincere in their opinion. Taking 
 away that right, they contended, would amount to a 
 breach of their allegiance, as they had sworn to main- 
 
 • Hib. Dom. Unkind Deserter. t Ein. p. 500. 
 
CONFEDEKATIOX OF KILKENNY. 183 
 
 Sain inviolate all his majest^-'s just prerogatives, rights, 
 tnd jurisdiction. Auother argument insisted on was, 
 that thi!y had no other means left them of preventing 
 Protestants being appointed to tlie vacant sees, if it was 
 not admitted that tlie jus patronatus, or power of ap- 
 pointing, was actually vested in the crown. Conceding 
 that power to the Pope, they said nothing could be ex- 
 pected from a Protestant monarch or executive. In 
 vain did Rinuccini endeavou* to convince them that no 
 such power belonged of right to the crown. Granting 
 that at any point of time such privilege belonged to it, 
 that privilege must have been granted from the Holy 
 See ; and now that the King of England professed no 
 longer the doctrines of Rome, the power of nominating, 
 if it ever granted such, must naturally have reverted to 
 the fountain head. 
 
 The nuncio repudiated their pernioious dogmas, and 
 after times has put the seal on his decision. But yet 
 •* so stiff" were the lawyers in their opinion, that he 
 was forced to move the article might be set aside till he 
 had consulted the court of Rome on the subject. But 
 it was a foregone conclusion, and having satisfied the 
 importunity of these over loyal men, whose temporizing 
 failed in this instance, he assured them that any recom- 
 mendation emanating from the supreme council should 
 be treated with marked respect by tlie Holy See, which, 
 however, would not acknowledge the right of election 
 vested in any other than the representative of the 
 " Fisherman." 
 
 Having settled this point, the other debates turned on 
 the obligation of the oath recently taken ; in regard of 
 which it was moved — " That though the propositions of 
 the clergy were ratified and approved by the assembly, 
 and annexed to the oath, yet the assembly should not 
 by any of these propositions be excluded from assenting 
 to any medium to be agreed to by vote of that body, 
 and inserted by them in their instructions about churches 
 or ecclesiastical lands, in parts and places possessed by 
 the Protestants, at the conclusion of any peace or accom- 
 modation to be made with the lord lieutenant, or any 
 other persc- empowered by his majesty."* 
 
 • Bin. p. 201 ; Carte Orm. p. 587. 
 
'84 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 The assembly now set about considering tlie proposi- 
 tions submitted by Barry on behalf of Ormoud, The 
 })eace was. pronounced as of no force, but they consented 
 to a cessation for three weeks, till March the 13th, and 
 soon after to a month longer, allowing the lord lieutenant 
 to enlarge his quarters in the county of Dublin in lieu of 
 .he money which he demanded for the maintenance of 
 his troops. 
 
 As soon as the cessation was concluded, a proposal was 
 made in the general assembly to treat the question of a 
 peace, as it was now no longer doubtful that Ormondhad 
 written on the 6th of February to the parliament com- 
 missioners, offering to deliver the towns and garrisons to 
 such as they should depute to receive them. For this 
 purpose Geoffry Brown and Dr. Fennel were ordered to 
 proceed to Dublin to propose a conjunction of the con- 
 federate forces with those of Orraond, on the distinct un 
 derstanding that both armies should act independently of 
 each other, and under their respective leaders. The pro- 
 positions annexed to the oath were to be an indispensable 
 condition to this arrangement, and the confederate troops 
 were to be admitted into the king's garrisons, or to have the 
 towns put into their hands. Ormond, who was willing to 
 lend a ready ear to any accommodation with the parlia- 
 ment, scouted the proposals of the confederate deputies ; nor 
 did he condescend to give them a formal answer till the 
 assembly sent Theobald Butler to press him on the sub- 
 ject, when he declared that he would not assent to the 
 propositions. 
 
 Thus, when all hopes of a peace were entirely 
 frustrated, the assembly turned their attention to the 
 re-appointment of the generals who were to com- 
 mand their troops in the various provinces. The trea- 
 sury was empty, and the crops wasted, and a solitary 
 chance was left to console them in the anticipation of 
 many evils. The Dean of Fermo had not yet appeared 
 with the monies which had been given by the Holy See, 
 and collected by the indefatigable industry of Luke 
 Wadding. His coming was hourly looked for, and the 
 assurances given by Mazarin led the confederates to 
 thick that the Queen of England was interested in their 
 cause, and consequently would not fail to succour them, 
 now that they stood in arms against the parliament — • 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 185 
 
 Conflicting and various were the communications from 
 the court of the English queen ; at one moment it was 
 rumoured that she designed coming witli tlie Prince of 
 "Wales, and that she inclined to the demands of the Ca- 
 tholics in the matter of their recent treaty with the lord 
 lieutenant, and that the latter, far from negotiating 
 with the rebels in England, was determined to hoidDublia 
 for her majesty and the prince. But the more energetic 
 of the council clearly perceived tliat it was to be a death 
 struggle between them and the parliament, and took 
 their precautions accordingly. It was now referred to a 
 select committee of the confederate council to devise 
 means for the support of tlieir troops, till th^g supplies 
 which they Avere expecting had arrived. The exigency 
 was promptly met, and a resolution of the committee 
 determined that, along with tlie ordinary contributions, 
 a tenth of all fruits and chattels should be given by tlie 
 laity, and an eighth by the bishops and clergy, secular 
 and regular. Everything that could tend to replenish 
 their exhausted coffers was readily effected, and the 
 chalices and church furniture were turned into money. 
 
 At the same time it was resolved that "Owen Roe" 
 should have the command of the Connaught, as well as 
 the Ulster forces. Preston, feared and distrusted by the 
 nuncio and elegy, was re-appointed to command in 
 Leinster ; and, much to the annoyance of Muskerry and 
 his party, Glamorgan was to head the troops of 
 Munster. 
 
 Never did the confederates apprehend greater danger 
 of their existence than at this moment. The storm 
 which so long lowered was about to burst on the land ; 
 nor did it need the wit of a seer to foretell the havoc and 
 ruin which were suspended above their heads. The blow 
 which was struck by O'Neill in Ulster had only stunne<^ 
 the Covenanters ; the supplies sent by the parliament 
 had recruited Munroe's strength, and he now burned 
 for revenge. From the south there came disastrous 
 news. Inchiquin was up again, merciless and infuriated ; 
 and the Marquess of Ormond, folsely stating that the 
 ••insolent demands of the Catholics" had compelled him 
 to treat with the king's enemies, was about to open the 
 gates of Dublin to that ruthless faction. 
 
 At such a moment, and when so much lay at stake. 
 
180 CONFEDESATIOJT OF KILKENNr. 
 
 no practicable alternative was adopted by the nuncio of 
 the lord lieutenant. The former was not a man for the 
 doctrines of expediency ; or, in other words, he was too 
 much the statesman of principle. He did not care to 
 bring about a union between the Catholic and Protestant 
 aristocracy, but devoted all his energies to realize aa 
 imaginary project. Yet he might have perceived that in 
 the council of the confederates tliere were fatal jealousies 
 and false friends, and that tho bond of their common 
 religion alone kept them for the while together. Were 
 it not for this, into how many sections must they not 
 have been divided ? Nevertheless, let us not throw the 
 blame on the confederates, or stigmatise them as the 
 cause of all the evils which came on their native land. 
 The fatal policy of Ormond was not less culpable than 
 that of Rinuccini. The assembly had continued their 
 meetings ten weeks longer than at any other period, in 
 the hope of inducing him to forego his coquetry with 
 the parliament, but all in vain. He hated the Catholics 
 with an intense hate, and would rather ha^e seen the 
 crescent flying from the Castle of Dublin than the stan- 
 dard of the confederates. He higgled too long, says his 
 eulogist O'Connor, and allowed the seasonable opportu- 
 nity for action to elapse. Had he thrown the weight of 
 his influence into the scale against the Puritans as against 
 the nuncio, Preston and O'Neill would have joined him 
 against the Scots. The nobility and gentry would liave 
 been with him to a man, and the monarchy would have 
 been saved.* 
 
 All other resources failing, it was now determined 
 by the confederates to have recourse to the sword. 
 Freedom of conscience, and the restoration of the 
 churches and the plundered estates of the Catholic 
 nobility and arentry, weretlie objects which banded them 
 together. The exhortations of their clergy cheered 
 them to the struggle, and the poor but faithful pea- 
 santry flocked around their standard wherever it was 
 raised. 
 
 The last act of Ormond cleared away all doubt as to 
 his intentions towards the parliament. His second son, 
 Lord Richard Butler, with the Earl of Roscommon, and 
 
 Culufiit). II. 228 
 
ertT.FTT'V.n ATIOS OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Bir James Ware, had been sent a* hostages for his per- 
 formance of the articles, in consideration of which, 
 he was to surrender Dublin to the English rebels.* 
 The assembly resolved, therefore, to break up iu tiao 
 ijcgmning of April, and before adjourning they ap- 
 pointed their next meeting to take place on the 12th 
 of November following. A new supreme council ol 
 i-v. enty-four was now elected ; all of whom, with the 
 exception of Muskerry and three others, were inflexibly 
 opposed to the Marquess of Ormond. 
 
 The hostages had scarcely arrived in England when 
 1 ,000 foot and 400 horse were marched from Ulster, and 
 received by Ormond into the garrisons of Drogheda and 
 Dublin, where they were allowed their own form of 
 worship, and had churches assigned to them as well as 
 ministers. Colonel Castle had already been admitted 
 to the city with his regiment which had lately arrived 
 fi-om England, and the letters forwarded by Ware and 
 the Earl of Roscommon gave Ormond to understand 
 that he would soon receive reinforcements from the 
 traitors on the other side of the channel. 
 
 Yei, such was the inclination of the Irish Catholics 
 for peace, and their zeal for his majesty's service, that 
 they gladly availed themselves of an incident which 
 they thought was calculated to promote it. Indeed, 
 any honourable peace could not be too dearly purchased 
 by them, for their treasury was empty, and the country 
 reduced to a state approaching sterility. 
 
 The truce with Ormond expired on the 10th of April, 
 and Preston marched his forces into the county Carlow, 
 and sat down before the castle, which he took by storm. 
 It was evidently the intention of the confederates to 
 march on DubUn, and repair the errors that had been 
 committed there in the last winter. Their object was 
 to take the city out of the hands of Ormond, and 
 prevent the landing of the parliamentary troops. Indeed 
 the lord lieutenant would freely have ceded it to any 
 power save the confederates, and was now begging the 
 intervention of the terrible Inchiquin, who had an army 
 of 5,000 foot and 1,500 horse at his command, with the 
 
 » Notwithstanding the king's command, " not to submit to thed as 
 «ny terms. " 
 
88 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY 
 
 promise of supplies from England. He had already 
 taken Dromana, Cappoquin, and Dungarvan, which were 
 but feebly, garrisoned by the confederates. In order, 
 therefore, to oppose him, it was settled that Preston, 
 ir.stead of carrying the war into the quarters of the 
 lord lieutenant in Leinster, should at once proceed to 
 Munster and act with the troops under the command of 
 Glamorgan. The incident which favoured this design 
 M'as tlie arrival of Dr. Leyburn, who, under the assumed 
 name of Winter Grant, had recently come from the 
 court of the English queen with instructions for tho 
 lord lieutenant; it was, therefore, resolved, on the 10th 
 of May, that the confederates should embrace the 
 opportunity of Grant's coming, and renew their over- 
 tures for an accommodation. ^ 
 
 Lord Digby, who was at Leixlip on May the 12th, 
 wrote to Ormond, advertising him of Grant's arrival, 
 with despatches from the queen of an urgent nature. 
 Grant immediately afterwards presented himself in 
 Dublin, and having consigned the despatches to the lord 
 lieutenant, assured him, that the queen and prince had 
 Buch unbounded confidence in him, that not even the 
 reports wliich were hourly reaching them of his negotia- 
 tions Avith the parliament, could shake or diminish. 
 The notion of delivering Dublin to the king's enemies 
 was farthest from their suspicions. But Leyburn, who 
 had so much confidence in Ormond's integrity, was 
 soon undeceived, for he did not scruple to inform him 
 " that if there were necessity, he would rather give up 
 tlie city and the places under his command to the 
 English, than to the Irish rebels."* 
 
 Leyburn, who aflected to believe that OrmonJ 
 would never submit to the parliament, and that a sue 
 cessful negotiation might induce him to join the 
 confederate troops, was now commissioned to procure a 
 cessation between the lord lieutenant and the Catholics. 
 Ormond freely consented to a cessation for three weeks, 
 well knowing that, ere that time had elapsed, the 
 additional reinforcements and troops should have arrived 
 Jrom England. His object was to gain time, and when 
 Leyburn was about proceeding to Kilkenny, ' ' he desired 
 
 • Leyb. Jlem- 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKKNNT. 18D 
 
 to knovr from his excellency what he should say in ca^se 
 it was objected by the confederates, that he consented 
 to so short a cessation only that he might gain time to 
 receive more forces from the parliament." To which 
 he got an answer, "that he should receive orders on the 
 way, if, on consideration, there was cause." Accordingly, 
 on the next day, a courier overtook him with a letter 
 from the lord lieutenant, which empowered him "to 
 undertake to the confederates that if a cessation should 
 be agreed upon, he would not receive into the garrisons 
 under his command, forces from the parliament during 
 three weeks ; but ]\L Leyburn was to use his utmost 
 endeavours to procure a cessation without that con- 
 dition, or at least that it should be kept private ; which 
 last he was to engage them in before he consented to 
 the said condition.'* 
 
 But on the arrival of Leyburn in the confederate 
 quarters, . he was astonished at finding that they were 
 already aware that Ormond was in treaty with the 
 parliament, and that he had upwards of three thousand 
 of their men long since admitted invo the city and 
 other garrisons where his orthodoxy did not exclude 
 them from the free exercise of their religion. The 
 confederates soon perceived that this nianoeuvre on tlie 
 part of Ormond was of a piece with his accustomed 
 duplicity, and they forthwith objected to so short a 
 cessation ; but at the same time proposed to lengthen it 
 to six months, provided his lordship would, in the 
 meantime, admit no more of the parliament forces into 
 Ais garrisons. But Herod and Pilate were now friends. 
 The extermination of the confederates was Ormond's 
 ambition, and he positively refused to accede to their 
 requests. 
 
 Nor can it be said that Rinuccini exercised any 
 influence in this negotiation carried on by Leyburn, 
 on behalf of Ormond, with the confederates. He had 
 been absent during that eventful period, and solely 
 occupied with ecclesiastical aifairs in Wexford and 
 other towns. When the final answer of Ormond 
 reached the supreme council resident in Kilkenny, he 
 hastened thither, only to learn that Leyburn, as well 
 as the queen, had formed an exaggerated notion 
 ef Ormond's loyalty and sincerity.' The terms on 
 
190 CONFEDERATION OF KIJLKENNY. 
 
 Wiiich the confederates insisted, •were in his ey(n 
 utterly impracticable. The propositions regarding 
 religion and settlement of a peace, which would enabia 
 him to act with the truly loyal Catholics against the 
 parliament, he heartily despised ; and all negotiation 
 was put an end to when he declared that their proposals 
 were fitter to be treated on in a league offensive and 
 defensive, between neighbouring princes, than between 
 his majesty's governor of a kingdom, and his subjects 
 of the same, declined from their obedience."* 
 
 It has been asserted, though no mention of the fact 
 occurs in Rinuccini's despatches, that Ormond was at 
 this time carrying on a negotiation with O'Neill, on 
 whose honour he placed great reliance. But it is 
 difficult to understand how this could have been the 
 case, as there was no provision made for the restoration 
 of the forfeited lands in Ulster : moreover, the Ulster 
 general had too much reason to dread Preston, to place 
 himself, as it were, between two fires, as he must have 
 done had he marched into Leinster, and taken up a 
 position between Preston and the city. However the 
 case may be, Kinuccini is charged with having detained 
 the Ulster general's nephew at Kilkenny, when he was 
 sent by Owen Roe to persuade the council to an 
 accommodation, f 
 
 Every expedient had now been tried which was calcu- 
 lated to preserve Ireland from the English rebels ; but 
 Ormond was in their confidence, and clearly saw that 
 the king's circumstances were irretrievable. For awhile 
 it had been argued that the advent of the Queen and 
 Prince of Wales might have created a salutary re- 
 action, and brought about a union of parties, which 
 n^ould throw difficulties in the way of the parlia- 
 snentarians. But that hope was soon abandoned. The 
 capital M'as in the hands of the enemy. Ormond was, 
 in reality, at their mercy ; and it is stated, on the autho- 
 rity of many, that he sought to dissuade the queen from 
 Buch an enterprise, if she ever really meditated it, 
 urging that the step would render her husband's ene- 
 mies still more implacable. 
 
 Ail hope of taking Dublin out of Ormond's hands Imd 
 
 • Carta. t rwiip. lra» 
 
CONcEDERATION OF KILKENNY. ISl 
 
 COW vanished. O'Neill asserted that fifteen days -would 
 have been sufficient to seize it ; but tlie reluctance of 
 the people of Leinster to receive his army, and the want 
 of money and provisions, determined liiin to make no 
 attempt. Fifty thousand dollars, forwarded by tlie Holy 
 See for the confederate armies, were still on the coast of 
 France. The parliamentary cruisers stood in the way, 
 and these succours, so desirable at this moment, awaited 
 a fa.vourable opportunity of being brought to their desti . 
 nation. 
 
 In the beginning of June, the supreme council pro. 
 ceeded into Munster, and made their head quarters a*i 
 Clonmel. Inchiquin was dealing death and devastation 
 along the sea coast, almost into the county Cork. The 
 jealousies of the confederate generals had given him 
 time and opportunity to place one-half the province 
 under contribution. Glamorgan awaited orders to act, 
 as well as money to pay Ms troops ; and a great portion 
 of the army reluctantly obeyed a general who had su- 
 perseded Lord Muskerry. Several regiments mutinied, 
 demanding that he should be re-appointed, whilst others 
 tlireatened to take his life. At the very doors of the 
 council-chamber these clamours were kept up, till, on 
 the 12th of the month, as they were debating on the 
 best way of suppressing the insubordination, Muskerry 
 went out, and getting on horseback, as if he were going 
 to take the air, proceeded to the camp ; in an hour's 
 time the whole of the army declared for him, and turned 
 Glamorgan out of the command. The next day he en- 
 tered Clonmel, attended by a guard, and Glamorgan, 
 by way of reparation to his honour, was reinstated for a 
 few days, and then ceded the command to Muskerry. The 
 latter immediately resigned in favour of Lord TaafFe, a 
 creature of Ormond, witlwut any character for military 
 achievements. 
 
 Thus was Muskerry enabled to give his whole atten- 
 tion to political affairs in the supreme council ; and the 
 troops in Munster were completely at the beck of his de- 
 pendant, who was in the interest of the unsteady Pres- 
 ton and the faithless Ormond. The nuncio soon after, 
 wards proceeded into the province of Connaught, tt 
 concert with Owen Roe whatever measures were most 
 aecessary against the perils which they knew must foU 
 
192 CONFEDEUATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 low the surrender of Dublin. Nor had they long to w&\% 
 for that base and perfidious act, which was, in a great 
 measure, the cause of the death of the unfortunate, 
 Charles ; and, what is far more to be lamented, the un- 
 deniable cause of all those horrors which subsequently 
 came upon unhappy Ireland. But Ormond, in the spirit 
 of a well-known distich, would rather see the loyal and 
 faithful Catholics exterminated by the swords of the 
 Puritans, than admitted to hold the city against those 
 men whom he subsequently pronounced to have been 
 the murderers of the king's person, usurpers of his 
 rights, and destroyers of the Irish nation ; by whom 
 the nobility and gentry of it were massacred at home, 
 and led into slavery or driven into beggary abroad."* 
 
 And yet this very man had already entered into terms 
 with the ruthless faction, which he thus characterized ; 
 for, on the 7th of June, their commissioners came into 
 the bay of Dublin with 600 horse and 1,400 foot. At 
 this moment, Ormond was well awai-e that the king's 
 person liad been sold to the parliament by tbe Scotch, 
 md still he did not hesitate to sign and conclude a treaty 
 with his enemies on the 19th, by which he obliged him- 
 self to surrender the sword on the 28th of tlie following 
 month, or sooner, upon four days' notice. An incident, 
 which is worthy of being recorded, occurred at the 
 time. Smith, who was then lord mayor, and at the 
 venerable age of four score years, waited on Ormond, 
 when he heard that he was about to deliver the city into 
 /the hands of the parliamentarians, and sternly informed 
 / him that he held the king's sword, and would never re- 
 I sign it to rebels. Whereon Ormond checked him, 
 I and ordered him to withdraw. The patriotic mayor was 
 subsequently sent for, and Ormond, never at a loss for 
 gtratagera, read a letter from the king, artfully suppress- 
 ing the date and circumstances under which it was writ- 
 ten, and thus imposed on the credulity of the old man 
 who would have died to sustain his country and sove 
 reign. 
 
 Digby and Preston remonstrated in vain. The latte\ 
 was ready to make a junction with the forces in Munstei 
 under Taaffe, and hold tne city against the invaders; 
 
 * Ci^ite's Ortu. Appendix, p. 13. 
 
e:C^!!7KT>^nXT£GVt OF KILKENNY. ISS 
 
 but all to no purpose. Ormond declined ah overtures 
 which might have averted the pending destruction; 
 "because, forsooth, he held it by no means safe." Hfe 
 was greedy of gain, and knew that he could not expect 
 anything from the king, who was now in imminent dan- 
 ger of his life. He could not serve two masters, and 
 therefore bowed to mammon. On the 16th of July, he 
 got notice to remove with his family from the castle, and 
 deliver the regalia within four days ; but, as the messen- 
 y ger, who was commissioned to give him £5,000 for liis 
 treachery, had not yet arrived, he did not depart for 
 a few days. The messenger finally came, and having 
 got his reward, and a promise from tlie parliament of 
 / £2,000 per annum, he sailed from the city on the 28th 
 of July. 
 
 It is recorded of him that he indulged in a histrionic 
 performance before the Irish coast had " failed his sight," 
 hkening himself to Hannibal when recalled to Carthage, 
 and predicting to those around him that he would one 
 day return in power to that city whicli he had basely 
 and treacherously surrendered ; but, alas ! ere his ship 
 had reached the raid channel, Jones, with his myrmidons, 
 were in Dublin, and the fate of Ireland was sealed. Yet' 
 this baseness of Ormond did not open the eyes of his 
 ^ dupes and adherents. They were foscinated by him ;_ 
 they hoped in him and swore by him. Nor did his kins- 
 man, Muskerry, discover the duphcity and heartlessness 
 of the viceroy till, when stretched in the last agonies on 
 his death-bed, he declared to those about him that " the 
 heaviest fear that possessed, his soul, then going into 
 ^^ eternity, was his having confided so much in his grace, 
 who had deceived them all, and ruined his poor country 
 and countrymen." * 
 
 Indignation and alarm seized the minds of the people 
 when the news of Ormond's conduct travelled through 
 the land. Hitherto they had warred and struggled fbr 
 their relj^ion, but now, M-hen the swords of the parlia- 
 mentarians were at their throats, they began to learn 
 that they were to fight for their very exi3^e"nce. 
 
 In vain was Clanricarde importuned to take his place 
 iu their ranks. His influence was great, but his sympa- 
 
 * Unkin I Deserter. 
 
IM CONFKDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 thy with Ormond was greater still. He did not hesitatt 
 to impute to the confederates the crime which any un- 
 prejudiced man must have thrown on the lord lieute- 
 nant, and he determined to preserve a strict neutrality. 
 Owing to the imbecility of the gasconading Taaffe, 
 who had command of the Munster forces, Inchiquin, 
 with a small army, thinned by disease, was destroying 
 by fire whatever he could not reach with the sword. 
 Owen Koe was in the heart of Connaught, without 
 Money ; and such was the feeling created by Muskerry 
 against him in the south, that the inhabitants of Mun- 
 ster would more willingly have received the troops of 
 
 ^ the grand seignor into their province than those he com- 
 manded.* 
 
 An effort, however, was to be made to recover the ca- 
 pital, and the faction who had adhered to Ormond de- 
 clared that it should be regained with as much ease as it 
 Chad been lost. The undertaking was committed to the 
 hasty and rash Preston, who fancied that he would eclipse 
 the military genius of his rival by capturing Dublin. 
 Nor could the success of his enterprise be separated from 
 the anticipation of O'Neill's destruction. Muskerry 
 urged him to advance without delay on the city, and 
 promised that he should be immediately joined by the 
 troops under Taafie, and that their combined forces 
 should then proceed toattack O'Neill, — the grand obstacle 
 to the project which they now contemplated, the recall 
 of Ormond. 
 
 Jones had scarcely established himself in Dublin, when 
 he sent orders to the north to Coote and Conway to put 
 their troops in motion, and join him in Leinster. The 
 forces under his command did not amount to more than 
 
 \ 4,000 foot, two regiments of horse, with two demi-cul- 
 verins, "one saker, and four sakaruts." He marched 
 from Dublin on the 1st of August, and took up his quar- 
 i*ers in the village of Swords. On the next day he con- 
 tinued his march through Hollywood to the Naul, and 
 thence to Garretstown, where he got notice that the 
 fortres from the north were en route to join him. On the 
 4th he pitched his camp on the hill of Skreene, where he 
 was met by Colonel Moore with the Dundalk troops, an-^ 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY, 
 
 soon aftervrardsby Titchbourne, with those of Drogheda, 
 and Conway, with a party of the old British,— making al- 
 together 700 horse and 12,000 foot, with two pieces of 
 ordnance. 
 
 Here they held a council of war, and whilst they were 
 debating, Cadogan and Graham came from Trim to in- 
 form them that Preston had on that morning raised his 
 camp, and marched with his entire force, consisting of 
 7,000 foot and 1,000 horse, to a place called Portlester, 
 five miles west of Trim. On the same day Jones put his 
 troops in motion, and advanced to the hill of Tara, where 
 he reviewed the army, and on the next day proceeded to 
 Skurlockstown, within a mile of Trim, where he quar- 
 tered for the night. 
 
 Next day he resumed his march and advanced on 
 Trimleston, where Preston had left a feeble garrison, 
 and the parliamentarian general having surrounded it in 
 hopes of drawing Preston to a fight, sent out a party of 
 fifty horse to ascertain his movements. They soon 
 brought back word that the confederate general had 
 broken up his camp at an early hour, and was crossing 
 the country towards Kilcock, with the intention of throw- 
 ing himself between Dublin and Jones's army. 
 
 The march was immediately sounded, and before the 
 parliamentarian columns crossed the Boyne, the garrison 
 of Trimleston surrendered. Great was their joy, and 
 on they went singing hymns to the Lord of Hosts, 
 till they reached Lynch'fe Knock. * Preston was 
 strongly fortified on Dungan Hill, not more than a mile 
 from their position. This was on the 8th of August, 
 and the sanguine hopes of Preston and the adherents of 
 
 • Lynch's Knock, with its ruined castle, may be seen within the 
 beautiful demesne of Suramerhill . The property was given some tune 
 after the action here narrated to the brother of Colonel Jones, who 
 was appointed Bishop of Meath. There are some traditionary stories 
 concerning the battle preserved in the neighbourhood ; and the pea- 
 suntry point out a grave on the brow of the hill, which they call Col- 
 kitto s burial-place. It is evidently that of some distinjjuished man of 
 ^ Preston's army, but not of the chivalrous Alexander. Were it not for a 
 neat little volume, published by l>r. Butler, Protestant rector of Trim, 
 it might be difficult to identify the locality, which is in the townland of 
 3>rumlargin. Trimleston Castle is a most interesting ruin, aort 
 might be easily restored, were such the wish of its lord. 
 
KtnMrr-tri-^iiirmr-f 
 
 c 
 
 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Ormond, who calculated on triumph, were soon to be 
 completely frustrated. A steady general, such as 
 O'Neill, would have harassed the parliamentary troops ; 
 but Preston was the Marcellus, choleric and n)ercurial, 
 and the Fabius was not where he should have been. 
 
 Jones advanced in full force to the foot of the hill, 
 but Preston's guns being badly pointed, did little execu- 
 tion. The action commenced at ten o'clock, a.m., 
 and at twelve, when the confederate general grew weary 
 of skirmishing, he determined to charge down the hill 
 and overwhelm the phalanxes that were forming at its 
 base. His infantry were met with undaunted bravery, 
 and, notwithstanding the exertions of Alexander Mae 
 Donnell, surnamed Colkitto, were thrown into confusion, 
 and driven back to their former position. Again and 
 again did they come to the charge, and as often were they 
 broken. Preston's cavalry, which was badly placed, their 
 horses being fetlock-deep in the raarsliy ground, spurred 
 to protect the foot, but they were encountered by Jones's 
 cavalry, when the whole force was driven into an adjacent 
 bog. They were now surrounded by the entire strength 
 of Jones, Moore, Conway, and Titchbourne, and a wither- 
 ing fire from their guns and musketry, literally mowed 
 down the devoted men to whom no quarter was given. 
 With a desperate effort some of the confederate foot 
 forced their way out of the bog, but they were hacked 
 to pieces by Jones's dragoons ; and Preston, seeing all 
 hope vanished, fled precipitately from tlie scene of 
 slaughter, leaving his carriage and papers in the hands of 
 the enemy. On the field and about the hill were 
 reckoned of the confederates killed about 5,470, of 
 whom 400 were the "redshanks" belonging to the brave 
 Mac Donnell of the Isles. 
 
 In his retreat, followed by about five hundred foot, 
 the wreck of liis army, Preston burned Naas, Harristown, 
 and Moyglare. He did not even make an effort to re- 
 cover his four guns, "each carrying a twelve-pound 
 shot," and sixty -four fair oxen, which attended his 
 train. The parliamentarians had only twenty killed 
 in the action, and very few wounded. Immediately 
 afterwards Jones retired to Dublin with his prisoners, 
 colours, and baggage ; " nor would he allow the standards 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 197 
 
 V 
 
 taken from the confederates to be brought in triumph 
 
 to the city, for that would be attributing to man the 
 
 ■Nvork which was due to the Lord alone."* 
 
 On his arrival in the city he was met with good news 
 from the parhament; they had forwarded him £1,500 for 
 the temporary sustenance of his forces, and £1,000 as a 
 reward of his good services against the rebels. 
 
 Disastrous as was this blow, the confederates did not 
 despair ; many a man, who had hitherto shrunk from 
 the contest, was now ready to gird on the sword ; but if 
 anything could make us look with contempt on the fol- 
 lowers of Ormond who had calculated upon signal sue- 
 cess, it is the expression of obsequious respect with 
 which they now turned to Owen Roe. Indeed he had had 
 melancholy proof of his rival's inferiority, and bitterly 
 
 eniarked, when the news of Preston's defeat reached him, 
 that he acted without judgment, and needlessly sacri- 
 ficed his troops. But all hope was not lost while O'Neill 
 had an army ; nor has the poet exaggerated the esteem 
 in which the descendant of a hundred kings was held at 
 tliis moment by his countrymen. f Yet, sad it is to be 
 obliged to say that the destruction of Preston's army 
 was the salvation of O'Neill's. Yes, the Fabius of Ireland 
 still lived, and had he commanded at Dungan's-hill, the 
 "red hand" must have floated from the Castle of 
 Dublin. 
 
 The craven-hearted crew who had hitherto affected 
 to despise him, now sent to implore his protection and 
 aid. The army of Leinster was annihilated ; tTiey liadi 
 no longer a single garrison between Dublin and Kilkenny, 
 and well might they tremble for their safety. A few 
 months before Muskerry and the Butlers were loud in 
 tlieir denunciations of O'Neill. The cruelty and the ra- 
 pacity of his soldiers were their constant theme ; and 
 wlien a few women had been plundered in the vicinity of 
 Kilkenny by some marauders, they came to the council- 
 Xoom to represent their grievances to Muskerry, who 
 ordered them to proceed to the residence of the nuncio. 
 
 • Irish Tracts, R. T). S. 
 
 t " Sagest in the council was he, kindest in the hall, 
 Sure we never won a battle — "twas Owen won them all." 
 
 Spirit of the Nation, 4to ed. p. 3. 
 
( 
 
 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 ana laform him of the unbridled licentiousness of hia 
 favourite general. But all this was now forgotten in their 
 hour of need. Flushed with victory, Jones was once more 
 in the field, and no one knew at what moment he would 
 be thundering at the gates of Kilkenny, In this state 
 of things the Bishop of Ferns was despatched to Owen 
 ■Roe, who was about to besiege the Castle of Enniskillen 
 and force his way into the heart of Ulster, and solicited 
 him to advance immediately and intercept Jones. The 
 suggestion was cheerfully adopted, and the Ulster ge- 
 neral, at the head of 12,000 men, came with lightning 
 speed and pitched his camp on the ground where Preston 
 had been defeated. It was the salvation of the confe- 
 derates ; for, as Rinuccini remarks, the Fabius of his 
 country, in the midst of bogs and marshes, kept Jones in 
 such check by the rapidity of his movements, that for 
 four entire months he was obliged to confine himself to 
 his quarters, nor dared he meet the invincible chieftain.* 
 Fearing a surprise which might utterly destroy him, 
 Jones retired into Dublin, and Owen Roe's light troops 
 advanced even as far as Castleknock, getting plunder 
 and provisions go leor, and reducing the English within 
 the city to the direst distress, f 
 
 Never was there a more unfortunate appointment than 
 that of Taaffe to the command of the Munster troops. 
 He was totally unfit for it, and in every respect inferior 
 to Preston. When Glamorgan, who was really a chival- 
 rous man, was removed from the command, he consigned 
 a fine army to Taaife, consisting of 12,000 foot and 800 
 horse, with an excellent park of artillery. He was 
 keeping up a correspondence with Ormond, who had 
 gone to France and remamed utterly inactive, whilst 
 Inchiquin was destroying every thing about him. But 
 he was doing the work of Ormond, who meditated com- 
 ing back at no distant period, and calculated on finding 
 Taafie's troops ready to march with hiiu and second his 
 views. 
 
 Inchiq^uin, after having put the counties of Limerick 
 and Clare under contribution, entered Tipperary on tlie 
 3rd of September. He had no artillery with him, and 
 his soldiers had no more provisions than they could 
 
 * Rinuccini, 336. t O'Neill's Journal, in the Desdd. Ciu% Hib. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. J 'J.7 
 
 carry in their haversacks. He stormed ten or twelve 
 small castles, and then crossed the river Suir near Cahir, 
 a fortress deemed impregnable by the English as well as 
 Irish troops. But an accident led to the capture of it. 
 One of Inchiquin's foragers had been hurt under its Myalls, 
 and was permitted, at his own request, to send for a sur- 
 geon to dress his wounds. One Hippsley, an ingenious 
 man, who knew something of the healing art, assumed a 
 disguise, and was admitted to the interior of the for- 
 tress, where the wounded man lay. But, being better 
 skilled in the science of fortification than surgery, he ob- 
 served a point in the outward bawn where the castle was 
 assaultable, and when he returned reported the fact. It 
 was thereon agreed tliat he should lead an attack ; and 
 the pusillanimity of the Munster guards was such that, 
 on seeing the outworks and some turrets taken, the 
 governor appointed by Taaffe surrendered the whole 
 place in a few hours after. Thus was reduced a castle 
 which, in 1599, held out for two months against the 
 Earl of Essex and an army of 20,000 men — thus was the 
 most important fortress in all Munster lost, by the want 
 of discrimination in the hot-headed fool who now was to 
 oppose Inchiquin. Had there been at the time a well- 
 organized system of military affiiirs in Ireland, he 
 should have been shot, to prevent greater disasters. 
 
 Inchiquin, having fortified himself in Grthir, began to 
 make continual incursions into the surrounding country. 
 His soldiers, who a short time before had nothing but roots 
 to subsist on, were now abundantly supplied with every 
 necessary ; the finest county in Ireland lay open to 
 them ; and in a very short time they destroyed £20,000 
 worth of corn. It may not have been tlie case — yet it 
 Q'would appear that there was a bloody collusion be- 
 / tween the arrogant TaafFe and the inhuman Inchiquin. 
 ( Whenever the latter advanced, the former fled ; nor did 
 \Me fire a shot while the ferocious Murrogh was butcher- 
 ing the peasantry, and burning their crops. 
 
 There is not on record a more appalling tragedy than 
 that of Cashe], and the guilt is to be thrown on Taafie 
 as well as Inchiquin. Towards the end of September, 
 when the confederate general heard of his approach, he 
 fled, leaving a feeble garrison in the city of King Cor- 
 mac. Soon after, Inchiquin sat down before its ^jates. 
 
'Z\)\) CONFEDKKATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 and sent to tlie municipal authorities, to state, that if be 
 did not get £3,000 and a month's pay for his troops, he 
 would take the place by storm. The messenger brought 
 back word, that the autliorities would not accept his 
 terms ; Inchiquin opened a fire on the crumbling 
 wall, and then dashed into the town. Short was the 
 struggle, but, oh ! it was revolting and bloody. The feeble 
 garrison laid down their arms, and were butchered in 
 cold blood. Those who remained in their houses were 
 dragged out by Murrogh's soldiers, and basely mur- 
 dered at their own doors. In the midst of the carnage 
 a multitude fled to the cathedral on the rock. As they 
 hurried to the sanctuary, their feet plashed in the blood 
 of their relatives and friends ; but they thought that th? 
 sanctity of the place might protect them, and they 
 grouped aromid the altars and concealed themselves in 
 the crypts. On came the savage Inchiquin : supplica- 
 tions and cries for mercy were unavailing : the banditti 
 who followed at his heels took possession of the doors 
 and windows ; volley after volley was poured into the 
 church ; and when the ringing of the musketry and the 
 groans of agony had ceased, in went the murderers, and 
 dragged forth from their hiding-places the few who 
 survived. The old man stricken in years was hacked to 
 piec;es on the floor : the tender girl and the venerable 
 / matron shared the same fate. Twenty priests, who 
 were concealed under the altars, were pierced by the 
 pikes of these savages, and when the work of slaughter 
 was done they fired the town. Three thousand human 
 . beings had ceased to live, and this bloody deed was done 
 by an Irishman who had been brought up in the ''school 
 . of wards," and had every germ of humanity and nation- 
 y/^ ality plucked from his heart by the anti-popish educa- 
 tion which he received. 
 
 Oh 1 if-^on that fatal night when the cruel Murrogh 
 ret'jed. i,dmQ wayfarer, attracted by the fitful glare 'of 
 the b'lrning roof-tree half quenched in blood, had 
 entered the city, he must have concluded that it had 
 been visited, not by the wrath of man, but that of God,' 
 for some dire outrage against his majesty. 
 
 On went this destroying demon, unopposed by TaafFe. 
 Ere he reached Fethard, the townspeople had heard 
 of the butchering in Cashel : they dared not resist. 
 
CONFEPERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 201 
 
 and they surrendered at discretion. Clonmel was yet 
 to be taken — but there was within its walls as gallant a 
 heart as ever throbbed beneath the plaid — that man 
 was Alexander Mac Donnell of the Isles. lie had 
 escaped from the slaughter at Dungan-hill, and with a 
 single regiment of his followers, he closed the gates, and 
 dared Inchiquin to the contest. But " Murrogh of the 
 burnings," well knowing the stubborn foe he had to deal 
 with, retired from before the town. Oh I shame and 
 degradation. This gallant chieftain, with a small body 
 of troops, was able to scare away Murrogh, whilst the 
 Quixotic Connaught general was retreating with 7,000 
 men. But Inchiquin was glutted with blood, and 
 retired to Cahir ; and Taaflfe continued his march into 
 the county Cork. 
 
 The parliament was well satisfied with the achieve- 
 ments of their proselyte ; and as he had complained that 
 Lord Lisle was about to supplant him in the presidency 
 of Munster, they dreaded to displease him, and thereon 
 refused to renew Lord Lisle's commission. Inchiquin 
 was, therefore, proclaimed president, and he hud scarce 
 retired from Clonmel, when he received large supplies 
 of men and money from England.* 
 
 It was a moment of dreadful suspense for the con- 
 federates. Jones was cooped up in Dublin by the 
 watchful vigilance of O'Neill, who was encamped at 
 Trim. But they knew not the hour when Inchiquin 
 would take the field again and march straight upon 
 Kilkenny. 
 
 Taatfe was the only hope they had in Munster, and 
 now that the time for the next general assembly was 
 fast approaching, that general received orders towards 
 the njiddle of October, to watch Inchiquin's movements, 
 and if possible to destroy his army. It was warmly 
 a!gued in the council at Kilkenny, that the season was 
 tec far advanced to resume hostilities, but the party 
 wh^ch was ever doubting the sincerity of Ormond's 
 adherents, prevailed, and orders were immediately 
 is; v-td, commanding Taaffe to attack Inchiquin if any 
 ffivourable opportunity presented itself. Early in 
 November the latter took the field. He advanced 
 
 Ludlow's Mem. 
 
202 
 
 COVFKDERATION OF KILICENNV 
 
 towards Mallow, and lay encamped there till the 12th 
 of the month. Taaffe had no alternative, and he 
 determined to fight- His army consisted of 6,000 foot 
 and 1,200 horse. Inchiquin's troops did not amount tu 
 more than 5,000 foot and 1,200 horse, with an excellent 
 train of artillery. Taaffe quitted his quarters at 
 Kanturk, and on the 12th, eflcamped on tlie hill of 
 Knockninoss, commonly called Kuock-na-gaoU, or 
 Englishman's Hill, a few miles west of Mallow. There 
 was an old prophecy connected witli this spot Avhich 
 induced him to pitch his camp on it. The prophecy 
 ran, that the representative of the Mac Donagh should 
 win a battle there and recover his patrimony. Now it so 
 liappened that Taaffe's grandfather had got all the 
 possessions of the Mac Donaghs "as the reward of his 
 services against the rebels in the late wars," and by a 
 strange sort of logic, he concluded that he was the 
 representative of the clan Mac Donagh in a far more 
 agreeable sense than that of lineage. The vain man 
 regarded this as the prestige of victory, and therefore 
 strongly entrenched himself on the hill. He had with 
 him Lieutenant-General Purcelland the brave Colkitto: 
 irrespective of the prophecy, his position was a good 
 one, and a better general would have held it against 
 twice the number which Inchiquin brought into action. 
 Inchiquin was but little disposed to risk a battle under 
 such disadvantages; but, at the instance of Colonel 
 Semple and some other officers recently come from 
 England, he was prevailed on to march against the 
 confederates. Both armies were in view of each other 
 at one o'clock on the 13th. Inchiquin seeing the 
 danger of attacking his enemy on the hill, encamped 
 at a place called Garryduff, and sent this characteristic 
 note to Taaffe : — 
 
 *' My Lord — There is a very fair piece of ground 
 (betwixt your lordship's army and ours, on this side the 
 brook, whither if you please to advance, we will do 
 the like. We do not so much doubt the gallantry of 
 70ur resolution, as to doubt you will not come ; but do 
 give you this notice to the end, you may see we do 
 stand upon no advantage of ground, and are willing to 
 dispute our quarrel upon indifferent terms, bein^- con 
 
CONFEDERATION 01; KILKEXKY. 
 
 2U3 
 
 fident that the justness of our cause will be, this daj, 
 made manifest by the Lord, and that your lordsliip's 
 judgment will be rectified concerning your lordship's 
 humble servant, 
 
 *'Inchiquin. 
 
 " Ganyduff, Nov. 13th, 1647." 
 
 As no answer was sent to this communication, 
 Inchiquin determined to advance and take a position 
 on the right of the hill, where he brought up his guns 
 and opened a heavy fire on 3,000 Scotch and Irish, 
 commanded by Mac Donnell, and two regiments of 
 horse, led by Purcell ; Taaflfe himself being on the 
 left with 4,000 infantry and two regiments of cavalry 
 as a reserve. The troops under Mac Donnell, after a 
 few voUies, dashed impetuously down the slopes, and 
 throwing away their muskets, slew the artillerymen 
 with their broad swords, and seized the guns, and then 
 attacked the left of Inchiquin's position, which they 
 chased oflf the field for a distance of three miles, killing 
 2,000 of them while they lost but five. Lord Castle- 
 connell's regiment now advanced from its position on 
 the hill to attack Inchiquin in front, but they were so 
 vigorously met by the latter, that after a few voUies 
 they broke and fled, and were immediately followed by 
 the rest of the Munster troops. In vain did Taaffe call 
 on them to rally : with his own hand he killed many of 
 the fugitives, but they were panic-stricken and could 
 lot be brought back. The cavalry, under Purcell, 
 Tollowed the infantry, and Inchiquin turned his whole 
 force on the few brave men who had seized his guna. 
 So sure were those brave fellows that Incliiquin was in 
 full retreat, that they were resting on the ground and 
 had not time to load when they were shot down and 
 piked. The heroic Alexander, who was now returning 
 to his men, was met by fourteen-' of Inchiquin's 
 cavalry, and having killed four of them witli his own 
 hand, was treacherously assassinated while parleying 
 with an officer. It was a disgraceful flight, and .only 
 to be remembered as a stain upon the national character. 
 The loss to the conff derates amounted to 1,500 men, 
 not to mention officers and the materiel ; whilst that of 
 Inchiquin was comparatively trifling, if we take into 
 
204 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 ^consideration tlie booty that was found on the field. It 
 was a lamentable day for the confederates, for it cost 
 them the life of the ardent and chivalrous Colkitto, to 
 whose valour Inchiquin did not fail to do honour ;* for 
 in his letter to Lenthal, the speaker of the House of 
 Commons, he states "that none truly fought but the 
 regiments commanded by Alexander Mac Donnell, the 
 rest having fled to LiscarroU and New Market."f 
 
 Gratefully was the news of this victory received in 
 England. Every reverse which the confederate arms 
 sustained, was hailed with the most frantic plaudits. 
 Tlie fanatics from their pulpits, and tlie dictaters in the 
 parliament, bore testimony to the heroic prowess of 
 Murrogh the burner, whom they regarded as fighting 
 the battle of the Lord, against the unrighteous; and 
 they soon after sent him £10,000 for his army, and a 
 present of £1,000 for his own good services. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 The defeat at Knockninoss Avas communicated in a 
 few days afterwards by Taaflfe to the general assembly, 
 which had met at Kilkenny on the r2th of November. 
 
 Pending the election of the representatives, every nerve 
 was strained by the Ormondist party to return members 
 who were favourable to their views : nor were they dis- 
 appointed. They had toiled with incredible activity to 
 carry their point, and they could now command a ma- 
 jority in the federative assembly. Ulster, whicli used to 
 send sixty- three members, now sent only nine ; the state 
 of the country interfered with the election, and the nine 
 .iemanded to have sixty-three voices. The other pro- 
 vinces, for the same reason, were also defective, but not 
 in an equal degree ; and the demand of the Ulster mem. 
 
 * There is, says Smith, (Hist, of Cork) a very odd kind of music 
 well known in Munster by the name of Mac Allisdrum's march, being 
 a wild rhapsody made in honour of this commander, to this day much 
 Cfltocmed by toe Irish, and pla^i^xl at all their feasts. 
 
 t Iriah Tracts, 11. D. Societ- 
 
CONFEDERATION Of KILKENNY. -"JO 
 
 bcrs was silenced, on the plea that the other provinces 
 might insist on a similar privilege. The Ulster members 
 were opposed to peace, and, although they sat in the 
 assembly, they declared that their province would 
 regard the decisions of the council as invalid, and of no 
 force. 
 
 Tlie only opposition which was now dreaded by the 
 Ormondist party was that of the bishops elect. The 
 bulls from the holy see had already arrived, nominating 
 to eleven vacancies. The new prelates, with the excep- 
 tion of John * of Tuam, were all in the interest of tlie 
 nuncio ; for he was a De Burgho, and warmly attached 
 to the policy of Clanricarde. The neAv bishops, how- 
 ever, were an important addition to the nuncio's party ; 
 and much did the Ormondists dread the influence they 
 were likely to command. They were admitted to the as- 
 sembly, in right of their sees ; but Muskerry objected 
 to the bishop of Koss, whom he declared not qiialified to 
 take his place amongst the spiritual peers, as he had not 
 been recommended by the supreme council ; but, cir- 
 cumstanced as the confederates were at that moment 
 (for they were meditating a negotiation with Rome), the 
 objection was not pressed, and the bishop elect was ad- 
 mitted to his place. 
 
 Never before did the council of the confederates meet 
 under more gloomy auspices. Wailing and lamentat4on 
 might be heard throughout the length and breadth of 
 the land. Within four months they had lost two armies, 
 and the ravages of war were such that the country re- 
 mained unfilled, and looked as if it had been struck 
 with the curse of sterility. One gallant heart was yet 
 undismayed, and beat high with hope. From the rock 
 of Dunamase to the northern bank of the Lifiey did 
 his faithful clansmen carry his standard. That man 
 was Owen Roe. Inchiquin, flushed with recent victory, 
 might have marched on Kilkenny, if he did not d.-ead 
 Jhe celerity of movement and the masterly ..,^tl2s of 
 O'Neill. Jones dared not to cross the LiflTey, ..or he 
 would have driven him back with slaughter ;— and yet 
 there was in this new council many a man who sighed 
 for O'Neill's ruin as the only hope for Ireland, j'^atu- 
 
 *■ He wa?» the very antipodes of his predecessor llalachi'. 
 
206 CONFEDERATION Ol KILKENNY. 
 
 rally enough, the first question submitted to the rou 
 sideration of the assembly was the unhappy state of Ire- 
 land, almost brought to ruin by the dissensions and 
 misfortunes of her own children. "With a feeling of de- 
 votion as intense as that with Avhicli the sun-worshipper 
 turns to his god, the Ormond party now looked to 
 England, in the vain hope of etfecting some acconimoda- 
 tion with the king. But the project of sending deputies 
 to the royal person was soon abandoned, when the news 
 reached them of his captivity in Carisbrooke Castle. 
 The immediate effect which this astounding intelligence 
 produced, was the publication of an edict from the as- 
 sembly, calling the people to arms, and offering, to all 
 officers who would desert Inchiquin's standard, the same 
 grade which they held in their former employment, pro- 
 vided they declared for the confederates. A strong 
 inclination for peace pervaded the assembly, and the 
 Ormondist faction would have openly avowed it, could 
 they have'hoped to gain any th'nar like reasonable terms 
 from the parliament ; but their undeniable loyalty to 
 the king, which far exceeded their devotion to their 
 country, removed all hope in that regard. 
 
 As the means for protracting the war were now totally 
 exhausted, the question of a foreign protectorate was 
 openly mooted in the assembly. In the selection of 
 foreign princes Avho were deemed as most eligible, the 
 pope was the first whose name was introduced. Nor 
 were the agents from the French and Spanish courts 
 inactive Avhilst the question was being discussed. These 
 two courts had a serious interest in that subject, and 
 both put forward rival claims. Indeed Ireland was, for 
 both, the nursery of soldiers ; and a singular instance of 
 their mutual jealousies on the subject is recorded as 
 having taken place early in this year. M. Tallon and 
 Diego della Torre* had enlisted several regiments for the 
 two crowns, and sailed from Waterford with the levies ; 
 but they had not cleared the Irish coast when Tallon 
 attacked Torre's ships, and carried all the soldiers to 
 France. Thus the French envoy pressed the claim of 
 the French crovv^u, as more likely to be beneficial to 
 Ireland in case a foreign protectorate M'as determined on, 
 
 • Carte's Ornj. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 207 
 
 to the exclusion of Spain, which he represented as 
 intriguing with the Enghsh parliament. But the rival 
 pretensions did not meet much encouragement from the 
 assembly. 
 
 As to the pope, no matter how earnestly Rinuccini 
 might have wished to have him proclaimed protector, his 
 inability to furnish means would have been sufficient 
 reason for negativing such an appointment. But, along 
 with this consideration, the distance between Ireland 
 and Rome, would have rendered such an expedient per- 
 fectly useless. Tlie instructions which the nuncio had 
 received from his court were satisfactory on the subject ; 
 for he had been already warned, " not to let that point 
 ever come into consultation, as a protectorate at such a 
 distance could be of no use to the Irish, who could expect 
 but little succour from the pope ; moreover, it would 
 expose the Papal See to the jealousy of princes, and 
 exhaust its exchequer, beside a thousand other reasons 
 which forbade any thoughts of that nature."* 
 
 But these discussions were introduced into the as- 
 sembly by the Ormondist faction, without any real view 
 to their practicability. Their grand object was to 
 restore Ormond to power. The nuncio and prelates had 
 thought that the queen would have appointed Glamorgan, 
 now Earl of Worcester, to the viceroy alty of Ireland. 
 But Ormond who had been at St. Germains long before, 
 succeeded in depreciating the earl, and lessening him in 
 the eyes of her majesty In the last interview which 
 Ormond had with the king, he received a positive assu- 
 rance that he should one day return to Ireland invested 
 with the plenitude of power. And the queen, caught 
 by his obsequious flattery and magniloquent promises, 
 confirmed the determination of her consort. 
 
 A curious circumstance transpired during these debates. 
 A book, entitled "An Apologetic Discussion," written by 
 an Irish Jesuii, invalidating the title of England to the 
 sovereignty of the sister country, and exhorting the 
 Irish to elect a king from among themselves, had been 
 brought into the country, and widely circulated. It 
 was immediately concluded by the partizans of Ormond, 
 that the Irisli meant to place the crown on O'Neill's 
 
 ' Carte, p 2 
 
20S CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY 
 
 head, and thus renounce their allegiance to tlieif 
 rijjhtfiil sovereign. The book was, thereupon, con- 
 demned and ordered to be burned by the executioner ; 
 and the author, who had struck hard at English misrule, 
 was consigned to all the pains and penalties of high 
 treason, siiould he ever venture into the country.* 
 
 But the Ormondist party had now made up their minds 
 to adopt a more practicable course to realize their darling 
 project. By an act of the assembly it was resolved to 
 send agents to the Queen and Prince of Wales, and also 
 to the Pope and King of Spain. 
 
 The agents who were to proceed on these missions 
 were soon named. French, bishop of Ferns, and Nicholas 
 Plunket were to proceed to Rome. Muskerry, Brown, 
 and Heber MacMahon were appointed to the French 
 court. 
 
 Nor was this scheme without its hidden treachery. It 
 was the object of Ormond's partisans to remove from the 
 assembly all whom they knew to be hostile to their de- 
 signs. French and Plunket were in the interest of the 
 nuncio and clergy, and MacMahon. Bishop of Clogher, 
 was O'Neill's second in commana, and most useful to that 
 gallant chieftain. 
 
 When the nomination took place, MacMahon rose in 
 the assembly and declared that he would not leave the 
 kingdom. Loud murmurs of disapprobation followed 
 the announcement. A majority of fifty had already de- 
 termined the question, when the patriotic bishop ad- 
 dressed them in Latin: — "My lords and gentlemen, 
 hence I will not go. My character and motives have 
 been misrepresented in your English and French courts ; 
 my life, therefore, would be endangered ; and, setting 
 this consideration aside, my ignorance of the French and 
 Sassenagh languages must incapacitate me from taking 
 part in the negotiations you contemplate." The Or. 
 mondists were thunderstruck when thej heard this. 
 Many of them cried out that the confederation was dis- 
 solved and utterly ruined by the dissensions of the pre- 
 lates. Preston rushed out to collect his troops, for the 
 bishop was guilty of contempt, and it was likely he would 
 be committed to prison. The gates of Kilkenny were 
 
 * Vide llardiman's Hist, of Galway. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 *Afd 
 
 closed, and a messenger proceeded to O'Neill's liead- 
 quarters to inform him of tlie occurrence. When Owen 
 Roe heard the treatment whicli his friend experienced, 
 be sent back Avord that he wonld not act very leniently 
 Avitli the assembly if the slightest indignity were offered 
 to the prelate. 
 
 When the assembly received notice of O'Neill's inten- 
 tions, they dropped the question, and the Marquess of 
 Antrim was appointed in place of the bishop. Nor are 
 we to be surprised at the indignation of Owen Roe at 
 this moment. MacMa-hon was his confidant and friend ; 
 they loved each other with the tenderest affection. On 
 the morning of Beinburb the bishop shrived his chief, 
 and in that evening's ever-memorable sunset he Avas 
 charging at his side. MacMahon knew nothing of court 
 chicane and wily intrigue. The crozier was not any 
 longer useful to him in protecting his flock, and he 
 therefore had girt on the sword. He was to O'Neill 
 what Daiberto, Bishop of Pisa, was to Godfrey,* in 
 the days of the crusaders, and he would not be sepa- 
 rated from him. What business had that stern old bishop 
 in the saloons of St. Germains, when his people were in 
 arms for their lives, their altars, and homesteads ? 
 
 At no former period was there a greater want of 
 energy on the part of these Ormondists than at the pre- 
 sent moment. They were now paralysed by the effects 
 of their own imprudence. The prejudice which they 
 had excited against O'Neill was the cause of all the dis- 
 asters in the south ; and even now, when he was ready 
 to march, at the head of 12,000 foot and 1,500 horse, 
 they lacked the spirit which was required. But they 
 dreaded O'Neill, as if he meant to exterminate them, 
 root and branch ; and they hated the nuncio, as though 
 he were in concert with him to wrest the ecclesiastical 
 revenues out of their possession. When energetic action 
 was required they preferred going a-begging beyond 
 seas, and they consoled themselves with the hope of 
 being beneficial to the country by soliciting alms 
 from des})ots, when they should have been usefully 
 engaged in hunting them out at home. View it as v:e 
 will, the remnant of nationality Avas at this moment 
 
 * De Rossi " II conte Ugolino. 
 
210 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 in the hearts of O'Neill and the clergy, for they alone 
 were ready and willing to sacrifice all to it. 
 
 Those craven cowards, who could fight Avith "courtly 
 words," were now determined to bring over the Prince 
 of Wales ; and if they did not succeed in their designs, 
 they were to insist on the immediate recall of Lord 
 Ormond. 
 
 After a month's discussion, a draft of the instructions 
 to be given to the respective agents, was submitted to the 
 supreme council, and corrected by the bishops. When 
 corrected, they were signed by nine prelates and six lay 
 peers. The Koman agents were directed to assure the 
 pope, that they would insist upon such terms as would 
 secure the free and public exercise of the Catholic reli- 
 gion, on having a Catholic lord lieutenant, and pub- 
 lishing the religious articles at the same time with the 
 civil. They were then to solicit aids ; and, in case a 
 satisfactory settlement could not be had, they were to 
 implore the holy father to take on himself the protect- 
 orate of Ireland. 
 
 Those destined to France and Spain were charged to 
 solicit arms and money, and assistance to procure them 
 a happy peace ; and if they found such a peace could 
 not be had, and that the pope would decline the pro- 
 tectorship, they were to inform themselves where it could 
 be placed most for the advantage of the nation, and 
 manage it accordingly. 
 
 Such were the instructions ; but an important point 
 remained to be settled before the departure of the de- 
 puties — the appointment of members who were to govern 
 in the assembly whilst they av/aited answers to their 
 negotiation. The Ormondists proposed the very men 
 who had been instrumental in concluding the former 
 peace, and the clergy objected to them. A medium 
 M^as therefore agreed upon, that an equal number of both 
 should be chosen ; but Muskerry had made an arrange- 
 Uient early in the session, which in a great measure 
 sadly discomfited the party which was opposed to liis 
 views. 
 
 As members might be absent on an occasion when it 
 wuuld be necessary to sign or issue orders, he proposed 
 that Hupernumeraries should be appointed to fill tlieir 
 places ; and the result was, that forty-§ight were ap- 
 
COKFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 211 
 
 pointed who were all devoted to the interests of Or- 
 mond and MuskerrN*. In vain did the prelates protest 
 against this arrangement; and the bishop of Ferns, see- 
 ing that his absence was a trick devised by the anti- 
 clerical body, would fain withdraw from the embassy ; 
 but the Ormondists were now in a majority — masters of 
 the assembly ; and the council were, almost to a man, in 
 favour of their views. 
 
 The prelates knev/ well that Ormond would never 
 consent to any peace which would leave the Catholics in 
 possession of the churches, and the public exercise of 
 religion with all its splendour ; and they accordingly 
 drew up a document which tliey signed, pledging them- 
 selves tliat they would never consent that the queen or 
 prince of Wales should be invited over till the religious 
 articles sliould be secured, or that any peace shoidd be 
 made which would tend to lessen the public exercise of 
 their religion. 
 
 French and Plunket sailed from Waterford on the 10th 
 of February ; but. meeting with storms, were forced to 
 put back, and sailed again on the 17th. They brought 
 with them a strange document, signed by Owen 0'2^eill 
 and eight bishops, entreating the pope to raise Rinuccini 
 to the dignity of cardinal. Muskerry and Brown sailed 
 soon after ; — nor should it be forgotten that there was a 
 strict understanding between the nuncio and Muskerry, 
 that a special provision should be made for restoring the 
 " old Irish" to their plundered estates in Ulster. But 
 Muskerry was not sincere when he acquiesced in this 
 matter, for he had no notion tliat such justice should be 
 done the kinsmen and abettors of the man who had been 
 .1 thorn in the side of Ormond. Yet it is not honourable 
 to his memory that he left an impression on liinuccini's 
 mind that O'Neill would be restored, at the very mo- 
 ment when he was cordially opposed to such an ad- 
 justment. * 
 
 Th'e Earl of Antrim, whose services in the king's caua 
 entitled him to a much higher place in the royal esteem 
 sailed before his colleagues ; and he tliought he wool 
 have been immediately appointed lord lieutenant. B 
 
 » Carte, ii. 20. 
 
212 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 he was a Catholic ; and he had soon reason enough to 
 find himself undeceived. Could the urgent instance of 
 the nuncio and the Irish bishops have carried this point, 
 a great good would have been effected ; but Glamorgan 
 was refused ; and such was the fatal leaning to the bi- 
 fronted Ormond, that all hopes of the queen and prince 
 were centred in him. 
 
 They landed at St. Malo on tlie 14th of March, and 
 
 soon afterwards waited on the queen at St. Germains 
 
 TaafFe and Preston, who M'ere humbled by their recent 
 defeat, were now siding with the Ormond party in the 
 cry for peace, and forwarded private instructions to 
 Ormond, assuring him of their devotion to his interests, 
 but, above all, of their hatred of the nuncio, O'Neill, 
 ^nd the prelates, whom they represented as plotting the 
 introduction of some foreign power. They expressed 
 the most ardent desire for the advent of the Prince of 
 Wales, and only wanted assistance to march against 
 O'Neill, who was the only obstacle they dreaded. But 
 in case the prince would decline coming into Ireland, 
 they entreated to be furnisiied witli such instructions as 
 should guide them in all things conformable to the royal 
 feelings. 
 
 On the question of religion, however, they were pro- 
 foundly silent. As it had been agreed that this point 
 should not be touched tiU some communication came 
 from the deputies who had gone to Rome. The chief 
 and grand subjects which engaged their negotiation re- 
 garded temporal concessions, which were calculated to 
 secure to them their estates ; nor did they get a final 
 answer from the queen till the 13th of May. 
 
 That answer rated them on. tlieir rebellious conduct 
 in rejecting the former peace ; and to this fruitful soui'ce 
 were ascribed all tlie misfortunes of Ireland and of the 
 king himself. Adverting, then, to the question of re- 
 ligion, she assured the Marquess of Antrim in parti- 
 .cular, "that, under existing circumstances, there was 
 no giving them a final and conclusive answer ; but she 
 assured them, that she would soon give them some, such 
 as she should think fit to receive in Ireland more par- 
 ticular and full propositions from the Irish confederates ; 
 and that the person thus authorized should be instructed 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 in whatever was consistent with justice and his majes- 
 ty's honour."* 
 
 Such was the queen's reply. Much like every other 
 royal speech dictated by the minister, and far more full 
 of promise than good intentions. Ormond dictated it — 
 Queen Maria pronounced it. The person to be autho- 
 rized to restore peace to Ireland was the Marquess of 
 Ormond, and his adherents hastened back to prepare for 
 his advent. 
 
 Ormond, who had been secretly treating with Inchi 
 quin before the surrender of Dublin, still kept up a cor- 
 respondence with him ; and he had no reason to be dis- 
 appointed. Inchiquin was to the parliament what 
 Preston WaS ^o tlie confederates, fond of changing sides, 
 and actuated more by private resentments than a sense 
 of public duty to their respective parties. The vacilla- 
 tion of both these men was of great use to Ormond ; 
 and he could not but be rejoiced when he learned that 
 " Murrogh of the burnings" had once more declared for 
 the king. The monies which had been advanced to him 
 by the parliament, he declared were insufficient for the 
 payment and maintenance of his troops ; and, after a 
 short repose, he took the field again, and threatened 
 to re-enact the tragedy of Cashel in the city of Water- 
 ford. The vigilance of the garrison, however, com- 
 pelled him to abandon his deadly intentions, and he 
 marched into the county Kilkenny, murdering the pea- 
 santry, and exacting contributions. Jones, whose army 
 was reduced to great straits in Dublin, finding that 
 O'Neill's troops had retired on Kilkenny, now marched 
 out of the city, and secured provisions, having reduced 
 Maynooth Castle, which was but feebly garrisoned ; and 
 the simultaneous movements of Inchiquin and the par- 
 liament-governor of Dublin led many to think that it was 
 a preconcerted design between them both.f 
 
 The presence of O'Neill saved Kilkenny at this 
 moment, for Inchiquin had not the ability or the force to 
 meet him. All the mischief which Murrogh had com- 
 mitted up to the present did not amount to more than 
 mere border raids, and the supreme council held a 
 meeting at Clonmel, where Rinuccini made an ofier, 
 
 « Carte. f Rinuccini. p. 296. 
 
214 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 cn the part of Owen Roe, to advance into Munster, and 
 quarter his army in the very cantonments occupied 
 by Inchiquin's troops. But all these overtures were 
 rejected by the Ormondists, who had rather see O'Neill 
 extinguished than Inchiquin suffer the least molesta- 
 tion. 
 
 Exasperated by this determined opposition, which led 
 him to think that he was to be victimized, to the im- 
 placable resentment of Muskerry and his partizans, 
 O'Neill sent word to the council that he Avould imme- 
 diatly retire into the north, and leave them to shift for 
 themselves. But such was the nuncio's influence Avith 
 him, that he was induced to protract his stay in Leinster, 
 to keep watch and ward over the faction which was 
 secretly plotting his ruin. An event had lately trans- 
 pired which added to the hatred already conceived for 
 Owen Roe by the Ormondists. Whilst Rinuccini was 
 eagerly expecting the arrival of the Dean of Fermo, 
 with the supplies of money from Rome, the ship so 
 long expected was signalled from the ramparts of Dun- 
 cannon, and the Dean Massari landed at Waterford on 
 the 23rd of March. Along with the money there came 
 a letter from the pope to Oft'en Roe, extolling his love 
 for the religion of his fathers, and his chivalrous devo- 
 tion to his native land. The sword of the Earl of 
 Tyrone, "which had rifted the field like lightning at 
 Beal-an-atha-Buidhe," had been carefully preserved by 
 Father Luke Wadding ; and the hand of the pontiff 
 blessed the blade, and ordered it to be given to him 
 who well could wield it. This simple circumstance, 
 taken in c^Onnexion with O'Mahony's book, was the 
 signal for an outcry. O'Neill was to be a king ; the 
 book was the declaration of his sovereignty, and that 
 sword was the emblem of royalty. Henceforth no 
 matter on what side he stood, as long as a man could be 
 found to oppose him, O'Neill was doomed to ruin and 
 destruction.* 
 
 But the real intentions of Ormond's abettors did not 
 transpire till about the beginning of April, when Colonel 
 John Barry, the companion of Ormond in his flight from 
 London, landed in Ireland. He immediately gave out 
 
 GaU. of Irish Writers, p. 98. 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKKNNY. 
 
 •hat the marquess had a secret commission from the 
 'cing to treat with Tnchiquin, and having been furnished 
 /rith a safe conduct by the supreme council, he hastened 
 lo notify them of the fact. The Scotch who were 
 looped up in the seaport towns in Ulster, were anxious 
 \) change sides, and nothing now remained but the 
 coming of Ormond to unite all parties in a determined 
 league against Jones in Dublin and all those who were 
 in the interest of the parliament. 
 
 The supreme council gladly seized the opportunity of 
 writing to Murrogh, proposing a truce ; but, affecting 
 to disregard them, his answer was addressed to Dr. 
 Fennell, one of Ormond's creatures, demanding 4,000 
 dollars per month as the price of his adhesion. This 
 was gladly accepted, and the men who would not give a 
 fraction to O'Neill, readily accepted the offer of him 
 whose hands were stained with the blood shed at Cashel. 
 Two months before the supreme council had resolved 
 to raise an army of 7,000 infantry and 700 horse, but 
 now that Ormond was to come, tiie project was 
 abandoned, for he, forsooth, was a host in himself, and 
 nothing but his presence was required. 
 
 A proclamation, calling a meeting of the confederates 
 at Kilkenny on the 20th of April, was now circulated 
 throughout the land, and many and various were the 
 anticipations to which it gave rise. The question 
 which was to fix attention, was a treaty or truce with 
 Inchiquin. The Ormondists hailed it as the comsumma- 
 tion of their hopes, for it would restore their idol to power. 
 But, alas ! there were many who could easily foresee 
 that in the coming session the prophetic warning, too 
 often disregarded in Ireland, was to be fulfilled to the 
 very letter: — "Every kingdom divided shall be made 
 desolate." 
 
 Owen Roe was at Dunamase, girt by his faitliful fol- 
 lowers, while the confederates were assembling in the 
 'Aty of Kilkenny. Sad and anxious were the moments 
 ■which the gallant chieftain spent in the ancient halls of 
 the O'Moores, waiting the result of the delib(*rations of 
 his friends and foes. Oh ! how the lordly soul of the 
 Ulster general must have burned with indignation, whei 
 he reflected that the destinies of his country were now 
 to be poised by the descendants of those Norman 
 
516 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 barons who had secretly sworn to destroy him and 
 his. And all this, to propitiate Ormond and Murrogh 
 O'Brien ! The craven slaves had tied up his hands, 
 when he was ready to strike a blow which might have 
 saved the country; and they were now ready to pur- 
 chase the friendship of a blood-stained wretch, even at 
 the price of his extinction. What wonder, if he let 
 loose the creaghts whom these pusillanimous temporizers 
 so much dreaded? But the influence of the nuncic 
 withheld him. The dean of Fermo had come from the 
 Vatican, to convey to him the blessing of the holy 
 father. A considerable sum of money, from the same 
 source, and by the same agency, was placed at his dis- 
 posal ; and from the ramparts of that stronghold he often 
 turned his looks in the direction of Kilkenny, awaiting 
 the signal which was to call him forth to battle again 
 for tlie land of his sires. But, alas ! division and dis- 
 sensions have ever been the bane of Ireland. Such 
 were the causes which brought the Norman to our 
 shores ; and now the same spirit of discord was destined 
 t) work our ruin again : — 
 
 " Ex illo fluere, ac retro sublapsa refeiTi 
 
 Spes Danaum, fractae vires, aversa Dei mens." 
 
 Rinuccini was at Waterford when a letter from the 
 supreme council, now packed with the adherents of 
 Ormond, summoned him to attend the assembly. An 
 intercepted despatch from Inchiquin, which revealed a 
 conspiracy against the life of O'Neill, had fallen into his 
 hands; and some dark hints about an attempt to be 
 isade on his own person caused him to pause. 
 
 Before he ventured amongst tliem, he addressed a 
 reply to their summons, which set forth that, as they 
 were unable to carry on the war against Jon'es in Dublin 
 and Inchiquin in Munster, it was deemed expedient to 
 treat with ths latter, and thus leave them free to march 
 against Jon9s, and make themselves masters of the 
 metropolis. 
 
 But Rinuccini knew that it was a foregone conclusion, 
 and that they had determined to carry their point 
 against all opposition. He therefore wrote to the council, 
 to dissuade them, if possible, from making any truce 
 with Murrogh O'Brien. He besought them, above al' 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 217 
 
 things, to consider well the character of the man who** 
 hand they were now ready to grasp. That hand was 
 red with the blood so wantonly shed at Cashel ; and, but 
 a few days before, he who was now meditating an alliance 
 with them was anxious to take their lives, even at the 
 very walls of Kilkenny. " What!" -yvrote the nuncio, 
 "are you now going to bestow on Inchiquin those 
 monies which, if properly allocated, would send O'Neill's 
 army into the south, and utterly destroy those bandits 
 who, being disregarded by the parliament, are driven by 
 necessity to court your friendship? Europe is shocked 
 at the atrocities of this man, and will you parley with 
 him when you ought to avenge your brethren, sacrile- 
 giously murdered and plundered by his brigands. Ces- 
 sations and truces have been the ruin of the coun^ 
 try, and are you to make terms with a man who, if he 
 were not driven out by the famishing state of 
 his troops, would not dare to take the field ? 
 
 "Let me supplicate you to do something worthy of 
 yourselves and the confederacy. You have an army 
 ready to march, — send it into Munster, and leave me 
 free to inform the holy father that you have restored re- 
 ligion, and rescued the peasantry from the cruel and ex- 
 orbitant taxation imposed by a man on whose sincerity 
 you can place no reliance. I will attend your summons, 
 but before I come I have thought it well to put you in 
 possession of my sentiments."* 
 
 His epistle met a prompt and argumentative reply. 
 Inchiquin was fortified in almost all the strong places in 
 the south. It was not now the time to undertake sieges, 
 even though they had the means; "and granting that 
 ( VNeill's army could be sent into Munster, are we to 
 suppose," said the Ormondists, " that Jones and the other 
 parliamentarian generals will remain inactive? What 
 terms can we expect from the queen and Prince of Wales, 
 if. instead of niakhig war against their avowed enemies, 
 we reject the overtures of a man who is willing to figlit 
 with us under the same standard and for the same cause ? 
 The churches which he has desecrated we will restore, 
 and our care will be to see tlie plundered peasantry in- 
 demnified for their losses. Let us not then reject the 
 
 * Philop. Inen. 
 
218 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 overtures of the man whom our refusal will exasperate, 
 and drive back to the ranks of the parliament, and fi- 
 nally induce him to give Cork, Youghal, and Kinsale 
 into their hands. What doubts could be obtained of his 
 fidelity to the new cause since he had imprisoned those 
 who refused to sign for the king ? And as to his rapa- 
 city and sacrileges, which the Christian world must exe- 
 crate, remember that our own countrymen are at this 
 moment spoiling the peasantry almost under the walls of 
 Dublin. Write, therefore, to Rome — supplicate the 
 holy father to send us aid through Plunket and the 
 Bishop of Ferns ; and now that we are no longer appre- 
 hensive of Inchiquin, let us make a stern struggle for 
 the cause of that king to whom our oath of association 
 conscientiously binds us." 
 
 An additional argument was borrowed from the sup- 
 position that he sanctioned a truce which O'Neill was 
 about to negotiate with the Scotch, as if to convict him 
 of factious inconsistency. But these arguments were 
 unavailing. Rinuccini was firm in his resolve to oppose 
 the truce with Inchiquin. He dictated a letter in reply 
 to this, arguing that the parliamentarians in Dublin were 
 as badly off as the troops of Inchiquin in the south, 
 and that immediate action against one and the other was 
 more necessary than truces and diplomacy. He treated 
 the assumed inability of the confederates to carry on the 
 war as the result of pusillanimity, and concluded by de- 
 nying that he ever was concerned in any truce between 
 O'Neill and the Scotch. 
 
 But the object of this correspondence was to induce 
 the nuncio to proceed to Kilkenny, on the assurance that 
 nothing should be done " without his entire satisfac- 
 tion ;" but, in fact, it was not for the purpose of gaining 
 his concurrence, but rather to secure a portion of the 
 money which had been recently sent from Rome. 
 
 He proceeded, however, and the session commenced 
 on the 20th of April ; — it was doomed to be the last in 
 which he was ever to take part. 
 
 The question which now fixed the attention of Ireland 
 was that which had already formed the subject of the 
 correspondence between the nuncio and the supreme 
 coun-.il. The long catalogue of the reverses sustained 
 by the confederate arras, and the difficult es to which 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 2i9' 
 
 Ireland was reduced, furnished ample matter for the elo- 
 quence as well as intrigue of both parties. 
 
 The enemy, said the Ormondists, is almost at your 
 doors. Jones, aided by the rebel parliament of England, 
 is only waiting his opportunity to march against you, 
 ind Inchiquin in the south will soon be in a condition to 
 operate with him, if you reject the truce which he offers. 
 Under such circumstances, you cannot pause a moment 
 to conclude with him. We are destitute of means, and 
 cannot oppose him. The political articles which he pro- 
 poses are unobjectionable, and the two which regard re- 
 ligion must prove satisfactory in our present disastrous 
 condition. 
 
 The articles touching that most important subject 
 stipulated that no confederate Catholic should suffer any 
 injury in the free exercise of his religion, so long as the 
 said cessation should be observed ; tliat the property in 
 the actual possession of tlie clergy as well as of the 
 laity shall remain in the same undisturbed^state as it 
 had been whm the cessation commenced,' 
 
 Such were the conditions made by Inchiquin in the 
 matter of religion ; and be it observed, that it was re- 
 solved that the Catholic religion should not be exercised 
 in his quarters or garrisons. The enlightened policy of 
 Europe at the present day will not tolerate the perse- 
 cution of the Christian of any denomination in Turkey ; 
 and are we to wonder that an enlightened Italian, in the 
 year 1648, would not sign his consent to such terms on 
 behalf of the Catholics of Ireland ? 
 
 He took, however, the real view of the case, and re- 
 jected the terms, as far from consonant to the spirit of 
 the oath by which the confederates had bound them- 
 
 * The following are the articles of InchiquJn's treaty:— 
 " It is agi-eed and resolved, that none professing the Catholic reli- 
 gion, cleric or laic, suffer any molestation or detriment ft'om *.he Lord 
 Inchiquin, or any of his adherents, on account of the free exercise of 
 religion, and the perfomiance of its functions, during the continuance 
 of this truce, always excepting that it he not practised or exercised in 
 the garrisons or quarters of the said Lord Inchiquin. 
 
 " 2ndly. It is agreed and resolved, that the property pertaining to 
 laics and clerics, now in their possession, he secured to them respec- 
 tively, and continue to them, without any detriment, from the day on 
 which 'u'i truce commenced, with the same advantages as hefore, pro- 
 vided that they suhmit to this agreement, and do not decline to pay 
 the taxes and afford their contrihutions to the public cause." 
 
?20 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 selves, and manfully scorned the truce on such disho- 
 nourable proposals. 
 
 But the Ormondists in the council gladly acquiesced, 
 and, in a true sense, may be said to have preferred their 
 monarch and the possession of their revenues to their 
 God and religion. 
 
 "Make no truce with this man," said the nuncio, 
 " he has three times changed sides. If the massacre at 
 Cashel has left no trace on your memories, recollect that 
 a month ago he pillaged the town of Carriek, and slew 
 the inhabitants, who Avere Catholics, palliating the atro- 
 city by asserting he could not restrain bis soldiers. Re- 
 member, too, that he has driven the Catholic clergy out 
 of the cathedral of Callan, and introduced those who do 
 not profess your religion. Talk not of your inability to 
 carry war into his quarters. The army under Jones has 
 been worn out watching O'Neill during the summer, and 
 does not amount to more than 3,000 men. Preston, 
 with the troops recently levied in Leinster, ought to be 
 able to meet him. Inchiquin has not more than 3,0(M) 
 men in MAinster ; they are naked and hungry, and you 
 fear him when you ought to despise him. In Connaught 
 and Ulster, the Scotch are able to do little more than 
 commit robberies for their sustenance. At the present 
 moment Owen O'Neill has an army of more than 6,000 
 men. He is ready to act against Inchiquin in the south, 
 and I will supply monies to pay his troops, and thus rid 
 you of these scruples with which the ravages of his 
 soldiers have so long aflBicted you. I exhort you to 
 union of lieart and purpose ; and remember that your 
 rulers of England have never treated you. Catholics, 
 with respect, except when you stood in a united and for- 
 midable league."* The energetic remonstrance of the 
 nuncio produced an instantaneous effect. John, Arch- 
 bishop of Tuam, whose political tendencies were on the 
 side of Clanricarde, and consequently of Ormondi 
 seized a pen, and signed the condemnation of the truce, 
 and the same course was immediately adopted by thir, 
 teen of the bishops. But the truce had been already 
 concludtd between the Ormondists and Inchiquin a 
 iiungaivan. 
 
 » Rin. pp S12, 420 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. Tit 
 
 It had scarcely been signed when the Ormondists 
 proclaimed through the country that peace was restored, 
 and that they were soon to march on Dublin, and 
 drive Jones from the metropohs. Mountgarret, a* 
 the head of 300 horse, entered Kilkenny, to intimidate 
 the refractory and enforce obedience. But there was^ 
 terrible weapon still in reserve. The sword of Aoah 
 O'Neill was not potent to carry out the nuncio's views, 
 and he determined to have recourse to another, which, 
 if it did not pierce the flesh, effectually contributed to 
 divide the spirit. 
 
 Inchiquin's designs against O'Neill were now deve- 
 loped. Preston and Murrogh united their forces. They 
 had pledged themselves to see the truce observed, and 
 to resort to violence when it might be deemed necessary 
 Heavens ! that the petty feeling of jealousy could insti- 
 gate the scion of the house of Gormanstown to grasp 
 the bloody hand of Inchiquin, and pledge himself to de- 
 stroy the gallant O'Neill. Yet such was the case. All 
 who did not obey that fatal truce were to be pursued as 
 rebels, Fourteen bishops, the majority of the clergy, 
 and the popular feeling, were opposed to it. O'Neill was 
 Btill the unshaken friend of the hierarchy, and was in- 
 volved in the same condemnation. Far better for Pres- 
 ton that he had nobly fallen under the walls of Louvain, 
 ■when his laurels wiere fresh, than live to conspire against 
 the braver and the nobler soldier ; but he represented in 
 his own person the deadly hatred of his class for the 
 "old Irish" nobility. Taaffe, that braggart who found 
 that the prophecy of Knock-na-gaoll was not to be rea- 
 lized in his person, was also in arms, hectoring and va- 
 pouring over the new alliance. Clanricarde, who wor- 
 shipped England and everything English, hailed the dark 
 Btorm which lowered over the land ; for it only con- 
 cealed from his view for a moment the messiah of 
 his political faith. That messiah was Ormond. Clan- 
 ricarde, therefore, abandoned his neutrality, and 3,000 
 men assembled round him, to march against O'Neill. 
 Is it for this that 
 
 •' Glory guards Clanricardes grave''? 
 
 Seven days after the publication of the truce, a crowd 
 
222 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 was attracted to St. Canice's cathedral by a strange 
 document affixed to the gate. It was a sentence of 
 comminatory excommunication against all who would 
 respect the truce. On that same day, the Dean of 
 Fermo, by order of Rinuccini, took down the com- 
 minatory sentence and substituted another, latce senten- 
 tice, against all abettors of it, and an interdict against 
 all cities, towns, and villages in which it should be 
 received or observed. 
 
 Oh I it was a fearful expedient, and there is but one 
 consideration which can reconcile a true Irish heart to 
 this hasty proceeding — that is, the preservation of 
 O'Neill — for was not his life immeasurably more 
 valuable than a host of such men as Preston, Clan- 
 ricarde, or Muskerry? Alas', no other reflection 
 remains to palliate the cruelty of such a measure as 
 that of an interdict. Harsh and heartless we would 
 not hesitate to pronounce Rinuccini, if this act were 
 not meant to throw the segis of his spiritual authority 
 round the man who fought for the church of his 
 fathers. But, view it as we will, it was impolitic to 
 bar the gates which lead from earth to heaven, and 
 refuse the consolations of religion to the afflicted and 
 sorrowing spirit. Was it for this that brave hearts 
 sighed and toiled ? Or could the men who rose for 
 their religion in the year 1641 have anticipated that ere 
 seven years a dignitary of their own church would 
 have quenched the lamp, and forbidden the celebration 
 of the mass on those very altars for which fihey fought, 
 and bled, and died. 
 
 But, where is Rinuccini ? At day break on the 
 morning of the 27th he scaled the garden wall of his 
 house, and accompanied by two attendants, proceeded 
 through an unfrequented gate to Maryborough, where 
 jwen Roe lay encamped. The gallant chief Avas 
 ignorant of the doings at Kilkenny, and when he heard 
 of the truce he began to think of his personal safety. 
 His army had not been collected — 700 true hearts were 
 all the protection which now surrounded him, and when 
 he learned that it was the nuncio's intention to quit 
 the country, tongue cannot tell the pathetic grief of 
 the noble chieftain. Messengers were soon despatched 
 
CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 223 
 
 from Kilkenny with overtures to Rinuccini, inviting 
 him to return, and offering to cancel the truce if he 
 would advance £10,000 ; but the die was cast. O NeiU 
 and the bishops sent back a draft of some propositions 
 to the supreme council, which, after a lapse of twelve 
 days, were returned with such modifications as were 
 not acceptable. The delay in the transmission was to 
 give Preston an opportunity of collecting all his forces, 
 and surprising O'Neill. On the twelfth day after his 
 arrival in Maryborough, a messenger rushed breathless 
 into the apartment where Owen Roe and the nuncio 
 were conversing, stating that Preston with ten thousand 
 men were marching on Birr, four miles distant from the 
 camp. "At the announcement," says the nuncio, 
 " O'Neill's features underwent an extraordinary change : 
 astonishment was the first emotion, and then a sudden 
 palor shadowed his visage." But Preston did not 
 advance, and ignorance of O'Neill's numerical inferiority 
 saved him for the moment. 
 
 But the censures and the excommunication were 
 doing well. Preston's troops began to mutiny. Unlike 
 their chief they were not all "excommunication proot, ' 
 and 2,000 of them deserted to O'Neill— happily for the 
 latter ; for when the nuncio sent his confessor to Preston, 
 in the vain hope of winning him over, he declared that 
 either he or Owen Roe should speedily perish, and that 
 the opinion of eight bishops was against the validity of 
 the censures. 
 
 O'Neill and the nuncio bade an eternal adieu to each 
 other. The former broke up his camp ; and now that 
 the supreme council had dared to brand him as a rebel, 
 he hastened to collect his troops. Ten thousand foot, 
 and fifteen hundred horse soon rallied round the standard 
 of the " red hand." But let it be the work of him who 
 has written the Life of Aodh O'Neill to tell how his gal- 
 lant descendant vindicated the honour of his name ; how 
 he scared Preston on the broad plains of Leinster, and 
 baffled five generals at the pass of Ballaghraore. The 
 nuncio retired to Galway, and the din of arms gave 
 place for a while to theological controversy. 
 
 Walsh was the corriphaeus of those who impugned the 
 
22-i CONFEDERATION OF KILKj^NNY . 
 
 validity of the censures.* Four bishops who had sanc- 
 tioned the condemnation of the truce, now declared 
 themselves satisfied with some modifications which had 
 been introduced, and protested against the nuncio. The 
 supreme council issued a circular cautioning all ecclesi- 
 astical authorities against interfering with their subjects 
 on account of the censures or interdict. 
 
 Scandal juid division were the natural results, and a 
 deputation proceeded to Galway, warning Rinuccini 
 that an nppeal had been made to Rome against his " un- 
 canonioal proceedings." A scene ensued which it would 
 be needless to record. Suffice it to say, that priest was 
 armed against priest; secular and regular were alternately 
 engaged in the most acrimonious conflict of controversy ; 
 nor did greater excitement prevail in the days of Savo- 
 narola. 
 
 In vain did the nuncio endeavour to convoke a national 
 synod. He issued a summons to the bishops on the 13th 
 of July, to meet him on the 15th. Clanricarde's troops 
 blocked up every pass. O'Neill, who was now on the 
 borders of Leitrim, sent two regiments to facilitate the 
 approach of the bishops who yet remained on his side, 
 and Colonel Maguire lost his life in storming the Castle 
 of Drumruisk. 
 
 But all too late. The synod never met, and Rinuccini 
 hastened to retire from that fated land, where, to use his 
 own sentiment, *'he had never seen the sun." The 
 schemes and the hopes of his enemies were fully realized. 
 Ormond landed at Cork on the 29th of September, 1648. 
 He then proceeded to Carrick-on-Suir, where he was met 
 by the bishops and members of the supreme council, and 
 thence marched to Kilkenny. The life of Charles I. ter- 
 minated almost simultaneously with the existence of the 
 confederation, and a new era began to dawn on Ireland, 
 remarkable for its fidelity to that house of Stuart, which, 
 alas ! but ill requited her unhappy and misgoverned 
 children. 
 
 In the month of February, Rinuccini sailed frmn Gal- 
 way and proceeded to Rome. -The state of his own 
 
 • The gross aspersions cast upon the Jesuits, the chaiapions of the 
 cross and literature, by this disobedient friar, are as foul as any tha 
 their m odem maligners have penned. 
 
CONFEDERATIOK OF KILKENNY. 226 
 
 principality demanded his immediate attention, but it 
 was necessary that he should give Innocent X. an ac- 
 count of his luckless nunciature. Some fatality seems to 
 have been attached to that office. Nicholas Sanders, an 
 Englishman, sent by Gregory XIII., died of starvation 
 under a tree in the mountains of Kerry. Owen O'Hagan, 
 Bishop of Ross, who had been appointed by Clement 
 VIII., perislied in the wars of Tirowen with a sword in 
 one hand and a rosary in the other.* Could his prede- 
 oessors have been called from their graves to meet Rin- 
 uccini on his return, what a similarity of incident must 
 they not have narrated ? 
 
 Yet, let us do justice to the memory of the man. It 
 has been asserted, on the authority of Walsh and 
 the disappointed Callaghan,f that he was met Avith re- 
 buke on his return to Rome. " Temerarie te gessisti^ 
 are the words which Innocent X. is said to have applied 
 to him. But any charge from such men as Walsh or 
 Callaghan should be cautiously received. The former 
 stands convicted of malignmg many an illustrious name, 
 and echoed the cry of Ormond's pack, who denounced 
 the men of 1641 as "bloody rebels." The sycophant of 
 Ormond could entertain no kindly feeling for Rinuccini, 
 who laboured to reconcile him to the observance of the 
 monastic rules, which he boldly disregarded. Aiazzi, 
 Rinuccini's biographer, informs us that he was offered a 
 high place of dignity in the pontifical court, which he 
 modestly declined, preferring his pastoral charge at 
 Fermo. 
 
 Nor let it be said that he was a bigot ; whoever would 
 make the charge ought to reflect under what circum- 
 stances Rinuccini had to act. Had he not to contend 
 with men who were the avowed and unrelenting enemies 
 of the Irish Catholics ; and would he not have deserved 
 to be branded as untrue to his charge, if he did not urge 
 them on to win their own again ? Did he do aught tiiat 
 
 • AValsh's Hist, of the Rem. p. 34. 
 
 + The author of the Vindicise Hib. thought to become Bishop of 
 •rork, but was disappointed by. the Nuncio's veto. He subsequently 
 t>rodnccd his scurrilous work in reply to a book fi-om the pen of the 
 kev. Paul King, a pious and patriotic Franciscan friar. V. Bishop 
 Talbot's " Friar Disciplined." 
 
220 CONFEDERATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 ■was irreconcilable with enlightened policy, in insisting 
 on freedom of conscience and the untrammelled exercise 
 of that religion of which he was a minister ? 
 
 Will any one blame him for so far interfering in tem- 
 poral concerns, as to aid the plundered Catholics of 
 Ulster in wresting their property from the robber gripe 
 of the undertakers ? Yes : he had an incontrovertible 
 right to enforce these just demands ; and, when argu- 
 ment failed, he was justified in resorting to the sword. 
 Scotland had won religious independence by this wea- 
 pon, and why should not Ireland have tried it ? Let those 
 wlio would condemn him on the score of bigotry, reflect 
 that he was acting against men who had sworn tlie ex- 
 tirpation of the " idolatrous papists, " and then asktliem- 
 selves how can they justify their assertion ? His notions, 
 it is true, were purely Italian : he did not think Catho- 
 licity could flourish where it was unaccompanied by all 
 the pomp and splendour which he was accustomed to in 
 his own sunny clime. Catholicity in Ireland appeared 
 to him like a leafless branch of the miglity tree, and he 
 fain would see it in full flower. Perhaps, in this parti- 
 cular, he erred ; but, according to the rigid laws of 
 justice, he had a right to insist on the restoration of the 
 cathedrals and the ecclesiastical revenues to the Ca- 
 tholic clergy; and who will blame him if he sighed for 
 the day when he might hear Catholic psalmody pealing 
 in all the temples of the land ? No, he deserves not the 
 name of bigot; nor can the charge be sustained. 
 
 But a graver accusation is brought against him, — he 
 is charged with having divided the confederates. This 
 is an assumption : it supposes that they were united 
 before his advent. But it is false. Failure was the 
 result of their divisions, and he vainly sought to con- 
 vince them that they had within themselves all the ele- 
 ments of strength and power if they combined. Under 
 the walls of Dublin, was it his fault if O'Neill and 
 Preston fell on each other, and gave Ormond the satis- 
 faction of witnessing the two armies in deadly strife ? 
 Were not Muskerry and Preston, and Belling and Clan- 
 ricarde, the sworn friends of Ormond, and the avowed 
 enemies of thci Ulster Irish and their glorious chief? 
 But enough : the censures were inexpedient, but in one 
 
CONFEDERi^TION OF KILKENNY. 22? 
 
 eetise they were useful. The man who stood by his 
 creed had a right to be protected by it. He loved Ire- 
 land, and would have died for lier independence ; but he 
 lived to learn that Cromwell triumphed, and shed the 
 blood of her noblest sons. Amongst those, many werv» 
 of that party which clung to Rinuccini. They we.-e 
 faithful to the last, and lion-hearted when others shud 
 dered at their doom. General Purcell fainted when 
 Ireton pronounced his death sentence :* and Terence 
 Albert O'Brien, the bishop of Emly, scorned Ireton to 
 his teeth, and foretold that he should soon meet him at 
 the tribunal of God ; — and this was the case ; for the 
 blood of the bishop was not congealed on the block before 
 Ireton died of the nlague. 
 
 Heber Mac Mahon, bishop of Clogher, died nobly for 
 fatherland ; but in another place will the record be longer 
 and more minute. On the list of martyrs to religion and 
 country, you will nowhere find more illustrious names 
 than those, and they were all of Kinuccini's party and 
 sentiments. I dare not contrast Avith them the Ormond- 
 ists who survived these virtuous and patriotic men. 
 The storm swept harmlessly over their heads. Ormoud 
 got more by the revolution than his Norman ancestors 
 won bv the sword : his fortunes, and those of his ad- 
 herents, Avere created out of the ruin of the Catholics ; 
 for tliey Avere scattered to the four winds of heaven. 
 
 But It is time to record one proof of Kinuccini's love 
 of Ireland. On his return he caused frescoes to be 
 painted in the archiepiscopal palace at Fermo, of the 
 actions Avhich had been fought during his nunciature ; 
 the bad taste of one of his successors caused them to be 
 destroyed. It is to be regretted, for they Avould have 
 throAvn a light on this period of our history. How 
 gladly would the pilgrim turn from the tomb of Hugh 
 I O'Neill to the pictures of Bunratty, Beinburb, and BaU 
 
 ^ ' laghjuore ! But all that now remains, in that old city, 
 
 to°recaU tnc memory of the man, is the monumental 
 inscription. 
 
 The summaiY of an eventful life maybe collected from 
 
 a single line engraved upon it : — 
 
 " Ad foBderatos Catholicos .Hibemiaa pontiflcia legatione functo.' 
 
 I I » I5ib. Dom. 
 
 il 
 
 i , ~ ■ — ==»—-... 
 
^28 CONFEDI;RATION OF KILKENNY. 
 
 Above that tomb many of our exiled chieftains liave 
 trod and wept. Many a prayer, too, has been offered 
 within the cathedral of Fermo for " the dear old land 1" 
 Oh ! may she soon arise from thraldom and provinciaiisiiif 
 to take her place amid the nations 1 
 
1 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 TABLX OP THE LEVIES ORDERED BY THE 
 COUNCIL IN THE YEAR 1642. 
 Referred to at page 52. 
 Counties. Infantry. 
 
 Westmeath 3000 
 
 Meath 3000 
 
 SUPRBMB 
 
 Cavalry. 
 
 50 
 
 50 
 
 50 
 
 50 
 
 50 
 
 40 
 
 Kildare 3000 
 
 Wexford 3000 
 
 King's County 2800 
 
 Queen's County 2400 
 
 Wicklow 2400 
 
 Dublin 2000 
 
 40 
 
 50 
 
 Kilkenny City and County 3000 
 
 Louth 1700 
 
 Longford 3000 
 
 50 
 
 20 
 
 50 
 
 Carlow 2400 
 
 50 
 
 550 
 
 Total 31 700 
 
 
 owing let 
 yarded hy 
 organ and 
 
 i-MORGAN) 
 
 any newes 
 ent to the 
 as cheere- 
 
 4 
 
 I HAVE thought >t advisable to insert the foil 
 ter, referred to at page 120. It has been re 
 some as evidence of a collusion between Glare 
 Lord Ormond : — 
 
 •'LORD HERBERT (pretended EARLE OF GLi 
 HIS LETTER TO HIS LADY. 
 
 *' My dearest heart, I hope these will prevent 
 shal come unto you of me, since my comittm 
 Castle of Dublin. To which I assure thee I went 
 
 
230 APPENDIX. 
 
 fully and as willingly as they could wish, whosoever thej 
 were by whose meanes it was procured, and should as 
 unwillingly goe foorth, were the gates both of the Castle 
 and Town open unto me, until I were cleered, as they 
 are willing to make me unserviceable to the King, and 
 lay me aside, who have procured for me this restraint ; 
 When I consider thee a Woman, as I thinke, I know you 
 are, I feare least you should be apprehensive : but when 
 I reflect that you are of the House of Thomond, and that 
 you were once pleased to say these words unto me. That 
 I should never, in tendernesse of you, desist from doing, 
 what in honour I was obliged to doe, I grow confident, 
 that in this you w^ill now shew your magnanimity, and 
 by it the greatest testimony of affection, that you can 
 possibly afford me ; and am also confident, that you 
 know me so well, that I need not tell you how cleare I 
 am, and void of feare, the only effect of a good con-- 
 science, and that I am guilty of nothing, that may tes- 
 tifie one thought of disloyalty to his Majestie, or of what 
 may staine the honour of the family I come of, or set a 
 Brand upon my future posteritie. Courage (my heart) 
 were I amongst the King's Enemies you might feare ; 
 but being only a prisoner amongst his Friends and faith- 
 ful Subjects, you need doubt nothing, but that this cloud 
 will be soone dissipated, by the Sunne-shine of the King 
 my Master, and did you but know how well and merry 
 I am, you would bee as little troubled as my selfe, who 
 have nothing that can afflict me, but lest your apprehen- 
 sion might hurt you, especially since all the while I 
 could get no opportunity of sending, nor yet by any 
 certaine probable meanes, but by my Cousin Bruertons, 
 Master Mannerings, our Cousin Constable of the Castle, 
 and my Lord Lieutenant's leave : and I hope you and I 
 shall live to acknowledge our obligation to them, there 
 being nothing in this world that I desire more, then you 
 should at least heare from me ; And believe it (sweet 
 heart) were I before the Parliament in London, I could 
 justify, both the King and my selfe in what I have done, 
 And so I pray acquaint my Father, who I know so cau- 
 tious, that he would hardly accept a Lettor from me, 
 j but yet I presume most humbly to ask his blessing, and 
 
 i as heartily as I send mine to pretty Mall, and I hope 
 
 this day or to morrow will set a period to my businesse. 
 
 -J! 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 231 
 
 to the shame of those who liave been occasioners of 
 it: but I must needs say from my Lord Lieutenant, and 
 the Privie Councell here, I have received as much jus- 
 tice, nobleness and favour, as I could possibly expect : 
 the Circumstances of these proceedings are too long to 
 write unto you, but I am confident all will prove to my 
 greater honour; And my Right Honourable accuser, 
 my Lord George Digby, will be at last rectified and con- 
 firmed in the good which he is pleased to say lie ever 
 had of me hitherto, as the greatest afiliction that he 
 ever had, did doe what his conscience enforced hira 
 unto, and indeed did wrap up the bitter pill of the Im- 
 peachment of suspition of high Treason in so good 
 words, as that I swallowed it, with the greatest ease in 
 the world, and it hath hither had no other operation, 
 then that it hath purged Melancholy : for as 1 was not 
 at the present not any way dismayed, so have I not 
 since been any way at all disheartened. So I pray let 
 not any of my friends that's there, believe any thing, 
 nntill ye have the perfect relation of it from my sclfe. 
 And this request I chiefly make unto you, to whom I 
 remaine a most faithfull, and most passionately devoted 
 Husband and servant, " Glamorgan. 
 
 " Remember my service to my Brother, my cosin 
 Browne, and the rest of my good friends." 
 
 ** London : Printed for Edward Husband, Printer to the 
 Honorable House of Commons. March 17, 1645." 
 
 This document, preserved in the original at Rome, has 
 6een translated in that great organ of Catholicity, the 
 Dublin Review : .March !*il/>. It maybe regarded as 
 a perfect picture of that portion of Ireland which came 
 immediately under the notice of the Italian writer, who 
 is thought to have been Father Arr.amoni, the nuncio's 
 confessor. This letter must have been written imme- 
 diately after the arrival of the nuncio 
 
 ' ' The courtesy of the poor people among whom my 
 lord the nuncio took up his quarters, was unexampled. 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 A fat bullock, two sheep, and a porker, were instantlj' 
 slaughtered, and an immense supply of beer, butter, 
 and milk, was brought to him •, and even we, who were 
 still on board, experienced the kindness of the poor 
 fishermen, who sent us presents of excellent fish and 
 oysters of most prodigious size in the utmost abundance. 
 While we were creeping along in the frigate, in the 
 track of the nuncio, I observed a harbour about half-a- 
 mile in length, and a pistol-shot in breadth, so very 
 beautiful, that curiosity led me to take the boat and go 
 on shore, for the purpose of examining the wonders of 
 the place. In a short time I was surrounded by an 
 immense multitude of men, women, and boys, who had 
 come running down from different places in the mountains 
 to see me ; and some of them happening to observe the 
 crucifix which I wore on my breast, they all made a 
 circle round me, and kissed it one after another. After 
 this, they ma,de signs of the greatest afiection and 
 friendship to me, and conducted me, almost perforce, to 
 one of the nearest huts, where I was seated on a cushion 
 stuffed with feathers ; and the mistress of the house, a 
 venerable old dame, sat down beside me along with her 
 daughters, and offered to kiss me, according to the 
 usage of the country; and had I not explained by 
 signs, that this would not be becoming in one who bore 
 Christ crucified on his breast, and who accompanied the 
 nuncio as priest, I think they would have been offended. 
 The old dame then brought me in a wooden vessel, a 
 great draught of most delicious milk, expressing the 
 utmost anxiety that I should drink it. As it was of a most 
 excellent flavour I drank copiously of it, and was quite 
 revived by the draught. They all endeavoured to stand 
 as close to me as possible, and those who were able to 
 touch me, considered themselves happy ; so that it was 
 with difficulty I could disengage myself from them, in 
 order to return to the frigate : on the contrary, they 
 wished to escort me to the very water edge, and some 
 of the young men wished to accompany me altogether. 
 What is most remarkable, is, that in these wild and 
 mountainous places, and among a poor people who are 
 reduced to absolute misery, by the devastations of the 
 heretic enemy, I found, notwithstanding, the noble 
 influence of our holy Catholic faith, for there was not 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 2.33 
 
 one, man, woman, or child, however small, AVho could 
 not repeat, the Our Father, the Hail Mary, the Creed, 
 and the commandments of the Holy Church. 
 
 " The country through which we have passed, though 
 mountainous, is agreeable ; and, being entirely pasture- 
 land, is most abundantly stocked with cattle of every 
 kind. Occasionally one meets a long tract of valley, 
 interspersed with woods and groves ; vhich, as they are 
 neither high nor densely planted, partake more of the 
 agreeable than of the gloomy. For seventy miles the 
 country which we met was almost all of this character ; 
 but having once crossed the mountains, we entered 
 upon an immense plain, occasionally diversified with 
 hills and valleys, highly cultivated, and enriched witu 
 an infinite nural)er of cattle, especially oxen and sheep ; 
 from the latter of which is obtained the very finest of 
 what is called English wool. 
 
 ** The men are fine-looking and of incredible strength ; 
 they are stout runners, and bear every sort of hard- 
 ship with indescribable cheerfulness. They are all 
 devoted to arms, and especially now that they are at 
 war. Those who apply themselves to the study of lite- 
 rature are most learned ; and you meet persons of every 
 profession and science among them. 
 
 "The women are remarkably tall and beautiful, and 
 display a charming union of gracefulness with modesty 
 and devotion. Their manners are marked by extreme 
 simplicity ; and they freely mix in conversation every- 
 where, without suspicion or jealousy. Their costume 
 is different from ours, and somewhat resembles the 
 French ; except that they wear, besides, a long cloak 
 and profuse locks of hair, and go without any head- 
 dress, contenting themselves with a kind of handker- 
 chief, almost after the Greek fashion, which displays 
 their natural beauty to great advantage. They are ex- 
 tremely prolific, and almost all the women who marry 
 have large families. There are some who have as many 
 as thirty children alive ; and the number of those who 
 have from fifteen to twenty is immense ; and they all 
 are handsome, tall, and robust, the majority being light- 
 haired, and of a clear white and red complexion. 
 
 '* They give most superb entertainments both of licsh 
 and fish, for they have both in the greatest abimdaact 
 
234 APPENDIX. 
 
 They are perpetually pledging healths, the usual drinic 
 being Spanish wines, French claret, most delicious 
 beer, and most excellent milk. Butter is used on all 
 occasions, and there is no species of provisions which 
 is not found in the greatest abundance. As yet we 
 have all accommodated ourselves to the usages of tlie 
 country. [A line is here effaced.] They also eat fruit, 
 as apples, pears, plums, artichokes ; and all eatables are 
 cheap. A fat ox costs a pistole, a sheep thirty bajoechi, 
 a pair of capons or fowls, apaul, eggs a farthing a-piece, 
 and so on for the rest in proportion. You can have a 
 farge fish for a soldo. But game is so abundant that 
 they make no account of it at all. Birds jiay almost 
 be killed with sticks, and especially thrushes, blackbirds, 
 and chaffinches. Both the salt and fresh water fish are 
 most exquisite, and so abundant, that for three pauls 
 we bought one hundred and fifty pounds of excellent 
 fish ; as pike, salmon, herring, trout, &c., and all of 
 excellent quality. We got a thousand pilchards and 
 oysters for tM'enty-five bajoechi. 
 
 * ' Tlie horses are very plenty, stout, handsome, 
 swift, and cheap; so that for twenty crowns you 
 might buy a nag, which in Italj would be worth a 
 hundred gold pieces.** 
 
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 
 
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