Limerick Castle taken, June 1642.
Death of St. Leger. Inchiquin vice-president, June 1642.
Battle of Liscarrol, Sept. 1642.
The army which Inchiquin had driven from before Cork came together again at Limerick, and St. Leger had no force to molest it there. After standing neutral for a time the city had joined the confederates, but the castle was held by Captain George Courtenay with sixty men and very little powder. Supplies were ordered by Parliament, but did not reach the garrison. The Irish stretched a boom across the river, which prevented any relief by water, and ran mines under the works, while the garrison were harassed by a continual fire from the walls of the cathedral. Courtenay capitulated on June 21, and Barry and Muskerry went south again with three pieces of cannon taken in the castle. Among these was a thirty-two pounder weighing about three tons, which was laid in the scooped-out trunk of a tree and dragged up hills and through bogs by twenty-five yoke of oxen. The whole county of Limerick was soon in Irish hands. St. Leger died on July 2, and the sole command then devolved on Inchiquin. His position as vice-president was confirmed by the Lords Justices, who associated Lord Barrymore with him for the civil government, but the latter died at Michaelmas. Patrick Purcell, acting as major-general under Barry, took up a strong position at Newtown near Charleville, but was beaten out of it by Inchiquin with very inferior numbers. This check caused a long delay, but at last Barry advanced with six thousand foot and five hundred horse and sat down on August 20 before the strong castle of Liscarrol. Here he was joined by Lord Dungarvan, who had just taken Ardmore Castle and hanged 117 men, leaving the women and children at liberty. A garrison of thirty men could do little against the fire of heavy guns, and Liscarrol surrendered on September 2. On the 3rd, Cromwell’s lucky day, Inchiquin advanced, as he supposed, to their relief. His force of 3000 foot and 400 horse was about half of Barry’s, but much better armed and disciplined. The Irish, having a good position under the walls of the castle, were at first successful against the charge of a small division of horse consisting of Cork and Bandon men, without even helmets; but Lord Cork’s son Kinalmeaky, ‘who was clothed with armour of proof’ was shot dead. Though one else fell, his followers were driven back in confusion and the battle seemed lost, but the foot stood firm, and Inchiquin, coming up with some more regular cavalry, succeeded in rallying the fugitives. He killed Oliver Stephenson, the Irish cavalry leader, with his own hand, and had himself more than one narrow escape, being wounded in the head and hand. The Irish were routed and ‘recovered Sir William Pore’s bog near Kilbolaine,’ where they were out of reach. Inchiquin only lost some twelve men killed, and Barry is said to have lost seven hundred, but the victory was not of much use, for there were neither money nor provisions to follow it up. Liscarroll Castle was reoccupied, and three pieces of cannon brought from Limerick were taken. Inchiquin then fell back to Mallow, and dispersed his men in garrisons, while the Irish went to their several homes.[19]
The Scots in Ulster, June 1642
Kinard burned.
Charlemont retained by the Irish.
There was perpetual fighting in Ulster during the summer of 1642. Monro marched on June 17, with about 2000 men, from Carrickfergus to Lisburn, where he was joined by Lord Montgomery and others with some 1100 foot and four troops of horse. Lord Conway brought his regiment and five troops of horse. Next morning the Scots general, with his own foot and nearly all the horse, marched through the plain to Dromore, while Montgomery cleared the woods of Killultagh, most of the Irish flying across the Bann with their cattle and ‘burning the country all along.’ The fighting was not severe, and the two divisions coalesced somewhere near Banbridge. Monro, being short of provisions, decided not to follow the enemy into Tyrone, and went off with some troops of cavalry towards the Mourne mountains, leaving the other leaders to do the best they could. Three hundred cows were captured, and the bulk of the army came to Kinard. A priest was also taken, ‘Chanter of Armagh and a prime councillor to Sir Phelim O’Neill, who was since hanged, but would not confess or discover anything.’ The chief had gone to Charlemont, and his men ran away who ‘for haste did not kill any prisoners,’ so his house was burned, which was ‘built of free stone and strong enough to have kept out all the force we could make.’ Two hundred miserable captives were released, in rags and with faces like ghosts. The plunder was considerable, including Sir Phelim’s plate, which was on carts ready to carry off. News was heard of Lady Caulfield, who was ‘kept at a stone house near Braintree woods,’ and here Captain Rawdon found her with her children, just in time to prevent the rebels from taking her off into the forest. Rawdon was not so successful in the case of Lady Blaney, who had been carried away into the wilds of Monaghan the night before he came on the scene. As he rode through Kinard the second time there was ‘nothing left quick but angry dogs and embers.’ Charlemont had been strengthened with some skill, and there was no possibility of taking it without guns, though Sir Phelim was nearly captured trying to go there, and had to fly into Tyrone. Dungannon was afterwards taken and garrisoned, with the usual hangings, Sir William Brownlow and other prisoners there having overcome the rebel guard ‘with the help of some Irish that had formerly had relation to them.’ Two brass guns were taken, but they were not heavy enough to make the difference at Charlemont, and on the eighth and ninth days the army returned from Armagh through Loughbrickland to Lisburn. A great many cattle had been taken, and all not eaten or stolen were divided among the men, one to every four foot soldiers and to every two troopers.[20]
Desultory character of the war.
On June 25 Clotworthy left Antrim with 600 men in twelve boats built for the service on Lough Neagh. On the flat Tyrone shore little resistance was made, and Mountjoy was taken with no loss. Here he entrenched himself strongly, and ‘notwithstanding the next was the Lord’s day’ spent it in building huts for his men. Before leaving it to be maintained by a garrison of 250 men he scoured the woods as well as he could, and lost very few men, though the pressure of hunger was severe, for he could not catch cows without cavalry, and there were 500 rescued British prisoners of both sexes and every age to feed along with the soldiers. The want of horse was partly supplied by making 200 men strip to their shirts for lightness, and they did not object, thinking it mean to wear armour against men that had none. Generally speaking the Irish would not stand against them, but they seemed to have ammunition enough, which was said to come from Limerick. One hundred cows were taken near Moneymore, after which the soldiers fared better, but there was much sickness from want of proper food, and from having to sleep on the ground.[21]