Broghill made a general.
His campaign against Muskerry.
His victory near Kanturk, July 26.
Superstition of Muskerry’s men
Lord Broghill thought his services had been insufficiently acknowledged, and when Cromwell left Ireland he announced that he would obey no one but Ireton and Adjutant-General Allen. Ludlow sympathised with his discontent, though he occupied in command of the cavalry the very post that Broghill coveted. This, he assured Ireton, he would never have accepted but as a matter of duty and in obedience to positive orders. He advised that something should be done to content Broghill, who, after much discussion, was appointed Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance, with the rank of a general officer. In July 1651 he was detached to intercept Muskerry, with not more than 600 foot and 400 horse as a field force; but his own troop, consisting of reformadoes or unemployed commissioned officers, was particularly efficient. Muskerry collected nearly 3000 men, of whom about one-third were cavalry or dragoons, in the woods near Drishane, where he had defeated Colonel Elsing in the previous winter, and he got over the Blackwater to Dromagh without fighting. At Castlelyons, Broghill had a message from Ireton ordering him to use every exertion to intercept the Irish army. On the 21st he went to Mallow with this object, and next day followed them towards Castle Ishin, on the border of county Limerick, coming upon their outposts at midnight in a storm of rain and wind. Muskerry doubled back to Dromagh, ‘but through a place and country that the very Teigs themselves could hardly march in,’ leaving Broghill to bar the road to Limerick. On the 24th the Irish were at Drishane again, whither Broghill followed next day, crossing the Blackwater, which had risen much from the great rain. Unable to bring them to action, he determined to return to Mallow for fresh provisions and take up a position at Courtstown, where he could watch the road to Fitzpatrick’s position at Galbally. Before they had marched half a mile the enemy suddenly appeared on the hills to his rear, and at last their whole force descended into the plain at Knockbrack, to the south of Banteer railway station. Broghill’s men fought with great alacrity, and he thought ‘better knocking’ had never been known in Ireland. One division of Irish pikemen particularly distinguished themselves, and all fought well, but, though almost surrounded by superior numbers, the veterans had the best of it. Broghill narrowly escaped with his life, which was specially aimed at, the Irish soldiers calling to each other to ‘kill the fellow with the gold-laced coat.’ He lost under thirty men killed, but there were four or five times as many wounded, and he admits that his force was extremely shattered. Having no means of keeping prisoners safely, he had given orders to make none, and at least 600 were killed, but a few officers were taken to Cork. The priests had exhorted the Irish to fight, and fortified their speech with holy water and charms, many of which were ‘found quilted in the doublets of the dead,’ and there was also a large stock of spare ones. A specimen guaranteeing the wearer against war, water, fire, and pestilence, was sent for parliamentary inspection: it claimed to have been approved by the Council of Trent, and it was supposed that the Virgin Mary would appear to the owner fourteen days before his death.[213]
The last battle.
Ireton and Ludlow in Clare, Aug.-Sept.
Guerrilla warfare.
Pirates in the channel.
The fight at Knockbrack was the last in this war which deserves the name of a battle. There was a prophecy current among the country people that there would be one on that spot, and that the English would get the day. Broghill noted that it was like Naseby, fair weather at the beginning, then a thunderstorm, and then sunshine again. It made the relief of Limerick impossible, and Ireton was justified in firing salvoes of artillery and musketry. But guerrilla warfare continued in many places, and the besiegers were always in danger of being attacked. At the end of August or beginning of September Ireton and Ludlow were both in Clare, catching horses and cows, but seldom their masters, and placing a garrison at Clonroad to curb Clare Castle. Seizing the opportunity of their absence, two thousand foot sallied out of Limerick and almost surprised the cavalry guard; but the latter ‘immediately mounted, and being not accustomed to be beaten,’ drove them back into the town. Muskerry again collected some force, but Broghill easily dispersed them, and the Irish general soon retired to Galway. Occasionally the Parliamentarians suffered small reverses. Meelick, for instance, was recaptured by Fitzpatrick at the beginning of August, the garrison being all asleep. Phelim M’Hugh O’Reilly attacked Finnea on August 5, but was beaten back with great loss; and there were other considerable bodies of the Irish still together in Leinster and Ulster. ‘I found them unwilling to fight,’ says Hewson, ‘though their numbers be great.’ But they sometimes surprised and routed small bodies of troops, and they exhausted the country and made it impossible for the people to contribute towards the support of the army. The detached Parliamentary garrisons could just hold their own, but were scarcely able to act on the offensive. Early in October Venables made an attempt on Ballinacargy, O’Reilly’s chief stronghold in Cavan, but was foiled, the Irish retreating to a bog whenever he advanced, and watching to intercept provisions, so that he had to return to Dundalk. It was evident that nothing of importance could be done as long as Limerick held out and kept the main strength of the army occupied. Even within a few miles of Dublin, Sherlock kept 2000 men among the mountains, and there was no force to attack him. Meanwhile, the coast was but carelessly guarded, no Government ships being seen between July and October. At Carrickfergus and at Wexford rovers took many English vessels out of the harbours, and it was as hard to get in the customs as the assessments from the country.[214]