When King William raised the siege of Limerick and returned to England, Cunningham's dragoons were ordered into winter quarters; but were suddenly recalled in consequence of Brigadier-General Sarsfield having invested the castle of Birr, in the King's County:—after the flight of the enemy from before this post, they remained encamped near Birr, while additional fortifications were being raised, and subsequently went into quarters.
1691
In the month of May, 1691, several ships arrived at Dublin from England with men and provisions, and great diligence was used in preparing for an early and vigorous campaign: the Inniskilling dragoons took the field this summer, and joined the army commanded by Lieutenant-General de Ginkell, on the 6th of June, on its march towards Ballymore, which place was captured after a short resistance. Athlone was also taken, and the army advanced against the French and Irish forces under General St. Ruth, in position near Aghrim, in the county of Galway, about three miles beyond Ballinasloe.
Arriving in front of the enemy about mid-day on the 12th of July, the English and Dutch regiments of horse guards, and a squadron of Cunningham's dragoons, were sent forward to force the enemy from a pass in the middle of a bog which lay in front of the Irish army, in which service they succeeded; and two hundred men of the regiment drove the enemy from a ford on the right of the opposing army in gallant style, and from the pass of Urachree. St. Ruth sent forward fresh troops, and the Inniskilling dragoons being also supported, a considerable body of troops was soon engaged at this point, and the enemy was eventually driven back. The English generals met, and after some deliberation, resolved on a general engagement, and between four and five in the afternoon the battle began. After several hours' sharp fighting, in which the Inniskilling men gave fresh proofs of their innate bravery and contempt of danger, the adverse army sustained a decisive overthrow, and was chased from the field of battle until the darkness of the night and a thick misty rain put an end to the pursuit. During the action, the French general, St. Ruth, was killed by a cannon ball, as he rode down Kilcommoden hill, and his fall so dismayed King James's army that it was soon thrown into confusion and routed.
Cunningham's Inniskilling dragoons had one lieutenant, one cornet, and forty-one non-commissioned officers and private soldiers killed; one captain, one lieutenant, and twenty-seven men wounded on this occasion.
After the victory at Aghrim, the army advanced to Galway, and the Inniskilling dragoons were employed before this fortress during the siege, which was terminated on the 21st of July, by the surrender of the place. The English forces subsequently moved towards Limerick, where the wreck of King James's army was assembled; but Sir Albert Cunningham was left with his regiment of dragoons in the county of Galway.
Sligo was subsequently invested by a circular chain of posts at a distance from the town, and one troop of the Inniskilling dragoons was stationed at the abbey of Ashro, near Ballyshannon, and the remainder at Loughrea, Hedford, and Shrewl. The governor of Sligo, Sir Teague O'Regan, proposed conditions for surrendering the town; but afterwards receded, when a closer blockade of the place was resolved upon.
At the same time Sir Albert Cunningham was directed to proceed with his regiment to Castlebar, to join the Irish forces under Sir Baldearg O'Donnel, who had agreed to abandon the interests of King James, and to join the English army with his brigade.
This Baldearg, or Balderick, O'Donnel, was descended from one of the branches of the Tyrconnel family; his ancestors having fled to Spain after the rebellion of 1607, he was born and educated in that country. The Irish, with their characteristic superstition, cherished an idle prophecy, that a descendant of that old family, who would be distinguished by a red mark, as this man was, would free their country from the English yoke. The coincidence of his family and name,—Derg, or Darg, signifying red, induced them to send for him from Spain, and he arrived at Limerick in September, 1690, when thousands flocked to him; but he disappointed their expectations, and achieved nothing worthy of record. After the battle of Aghrim, he was so alarmed, that he kept, with his followers, in the mountains in the county of Mayo for some time, and at length tendered his submission to the government of King William, and promised to bring a considerable number of men over with him, for a stipulated reward.
When the Inniskilling dragoons arrived at Castlebar, O'Donnel's men were found in a state of mutiny, many of them resolving to adhere to the interest of King James; but the commotion was eventually appeased, and they arrayed themselves under King William's banners. On the 4th of September Sir Albert Cunningham took post with part of his regiment at Coloony, five miles south of Sligo, intending to join O'Donnel on the following day, and approach nearer the besieged town. During the night seven hundred select men of King James's army, commanded by Colonel Scott, issued from Sligo, and, being favoured by a foggy morning, surprised the detachment of Inniskilling dragoons in their camp near Coloony, at day-break on the following morning. The troopers finding themselves suddenly assailed by superior numbers, mounted their horses and galloped to Abbey Royle, in the county of Roscommon. The enemy killed about twenty men, took Sir Albert Cunningham prisoner, and captured the tents, cloaks, and baggage belonging to the dragoons.