Barbarous system of warfare pursued by the Irish government. In discriminate massacre of the Irish, men, women, nad children. St. Leger, Monroe, Coote, Hamilton, Grenville, Ireton, and Cromwell, bathed in blood. Five days' butchery in Drogheda. Detestable hypocrisy of Cromwell. A medal and gold chain awarded to a noyadist. Extermination of man and beast, for twenty-eight miles!!! "Thou hypocrite! First cast out the beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to pull out the mote that is in thy brother's eye." "I will a tale unfold, whose lightest word Will harrow up thy soul."-Shakspeare. I HOPE I have thoroughly satisfied the reader that the stories as well of the extreme cruelty practised by the Irish during the insurrection, as of the extraordinary numbers that were massacred, are utterly 'destitute of foundation. They were originally fabricated by one of the basest of the scribblers who have surreptitiously obtruded themselves into the honourable class of historians; but have been since bolstered up by historians of high celebrity. I now proceed to display the infernal spirit by which the armies of the government were actuated throughout the whole insurrection, and to prove I. That those armies, with the most brutal and Vandalic rage, burned or otherwise destroyed whole towns and villages for many miles square, without any discrimination between the innocent and the guilty; II. That unarmed and defenceless husbandmen and towns-people, with their wives and children, were wantonly butchered without the least pretext of treasonable practices. III. That priests, monks and friars, were peculiar objects of vengeance, and were hung up or shot down like wild beasts. IV. That soldiers who had been overcome in battle-ceased to make resistance thrown down their arms-and begged for quarter-were slaughtered by hundreds, sometimes by thousands. V. That after surrender made, and quarter promised, the faith solemnly pledged to the Irish was often perfidiously violated, and they were barbarously butchered in cold blood. VI. In one word, that a more murderous system of warfare never prevailed, in any age or any country; that many of the government commanders were as merciless and bioodthirsty as Attila or Genghis Khan; and that some of the scenes of slaughter were so horrible, particularly at Cashel, Drogheda, and Wexford, that they never were and never could be exceeded, and have been rarely equalled. In this investigation, I voluntarily subject myself to a disadvantage, of which the world has hitherto scarcely afforded any precedent. I had provided a large body of authentic testimony, from Clanrickarde, Castlehaven, Walsh, Curry, and other writers on the Irish side of the 1 question, of which I proposed to avail myself. But, being determined to remove all possible ground for cavil, I have laid the whole aside; and shall rely solely on two species of authorities, which must overwhelm all opposition, and settle this question eternally. The first is the despatches and documents of the sanguinary ruffians who perpetrated the murders, desolation and depredations; and the second, the statements of the Anglo-Hibernian historians. I thus place myself in the predicament of a man who has a process at law, and has prepared ample proofs to establish his claims; but finding his antagonist's documents so strong and so powerful against their owner, as to render his own unnecessary, he throws them into the fire: and, as far as respects the contents of this chapter, one of the most important in the work, it would not be affected, if every page, written in defence of the Irish, were committed to the flames. If, under such circumstances, I make out my case, to use the legal phraseology, it will afford the strongest proof that can be desired or conceived, of the intrinsic goodness of the cause, and of the extent of the delusion that has prevailed on the subject. I am well aware of the advantages I forego by this course; but I forego them cheerfully, having no more doubt of the result, than that the sun, now setting in the western horizon, will rise again, resplendent, in all its majesty and glory, to illumine a grateful and admiring world. Those, however, who wish to peruse a list of the murders and massacres perpetrated on the Irish, as recorded by the writers of that nation, are referred to the appendix to Clarendon's "History of the Irish Rebellion," where there is a large collection to be found, with due detail of time and place. Resting wholly on plain matter of fact, I am unfortunately debarred of the rhetorical flourishes of "lakes and rivers of blood," "spirits chaunting hymns," "ghosts rising from the rivers, and shrieking out revenge," and all those other tales of horror," and "suggestions of frenzy," which decorate the pages of the long train of historians, from Temple to Leland, who have exhausted the powers of eloquence in embellishing the legends of "the execrable Irish rebellion." But I feel full confidence, that a "Round unvarnish'd tale" will "put them down," in the estimation of every upright and candid reader. It is difficult to conceive the intensity of the satanical rage with which the government soldiers were actuated against the Irish. The Spanish bloodhounds, let loose by the tiger, Pizarro, on the defenceless Peruvians, did not more eagerly devour their quivering limbs, than those ferocious barbarians fleshed their swords in the victims of their horrible passions-young and old-male and female. For ten, twenty, or thirty miles, in the open country, nothing in human shape, escaped them. Neither man, woman, nor child, "though but a span long," escaped their infernal fury. When, sated with slaughter, they took prisoners, and brought them to camp, it was with difficulty they could be prevailed on to refrain from butchering them there. To this temper Borlace bears testimony, although somewhat obscurely in the following paragraph. "The soldiers were then grown so implacable to the Irish, as they would scarce endure any ordinary Papist, much less suffer a rebel to be admitted amongst them."857 The case of a priest of the name of White, chaplain of the countess of Westmeath, strongly illustrates this insatiable rage for blood and slaughter. The marquess of Ormonde, with all his power, as commander in chief of the army, was unable to save the life of this unfortunate clergyman, against whom no crime was alleged but his clerical character. He had surrendered himself to the marquess, who had given him a protection. But having ventured from the countess's house, he was seized, and though Ormonde strove to save him, even only to take him to Dublin for trial, it was in vain. A mutiny took place, and the marquess was obliged to abandon him, to sate the rage of an infuriated soldiery, by whom he was immolated on the altar of fanaticism and national rancour.* The Irish writers accuse sir Charles Coote of issuing orders to the butchering parties he sent out in every direction, "not to spare the least child though but a span long."858 This charge is corroborated by the following statement of the rev. Dr. Nalson. "I have heard a relation of my own, who was captain in that service, relate, that no manner of compassion or discrimination was shewed either to age or sex; but that the little children were promiscuously sufferers with the guilty; and that if any who had some grains of compassion reprehended the soldiers for this unchristian inhumanity, they would scoffingly reply, Why? Nits will be lice, and so would dispatch them."859 This was an attempt to carry completely into operation the horrible plan of extirpating the whole race; the deliberate adoption of which I have proved, in a preceding part of this work, and which was for some time acted upon by the ruling powers. For the accomplishment of this grand object, the slaughter of the "lice," that is, the full-grown men and women, was not deemed sufficient: the destruction of the "nits," or children, was necessary to complete the magnificent scheme of a new plantation of the kingdom! Chapter XXV. contains the sanguinary orders of the lords justices to murder "all the males able to bear arms in places where the rebels were harboured." 66 "In the execution of these orders," says Leland, "the justices declare, that the soldiers slew all persons promiscuously, not sparing the women, and sometimes not the children."7860 "He did endeavour to have saved him, at least, till he might be brought to Dublin. But the whole army (which was possessed by the parliament, and by the lords justices, with a very bitter spirit against the Roman Catholic clergy) mutinied upon it, and in the end, compelled the marquess to leave him to that justice, which they were authorized to execute, and so the man was by them put to death."561 857 Borlace, 70. 858 Ireland's case briefly stated, 43. SCO Leland, III. 198. To this horrible fact, Warner bears testimony, in nearly the same words.* But was not this the consequence the miscreants calculated on producing? Could they have reasonably expected any other? When the devouring sword is invited from its scabbard by public authority, for the indiscriminate slaughter of "men able to bear arms," will not the expiring and bed-rid wretch be despatched to the other world, as a man" able to bear arms ?" Will his cassock protect the priest? her bonnet or shawl the pity-inspiring female? or its cradle and tender cries the helpless infant? No: he must be a mere novice in human nature and human affairs, who entertains a doubt on the subject. *"Such indeed was the tenor of all their orders; though they knew -for they own it in their letters-that the soldiers in executing these orders, murdered all persons that came in their way promiscuously, not sparing the women, and sometimes not the children."sa "Monroe put sixty men, EIGHTEEN WOMEN, and two priests to death, at Newry."80 "The lord president of Munster, St. Leger, is so cruel and merciless, that he causes honest men and women to be most execrably executed, and amongst the rest, caused a woman great with child to be ript up, and three babes to be taken out of her womb, and then thrust every of the babes with weapons through their little bodies. This act of the lord president hath set many in a sort of desperation." Lord of Upper Ossory's letter to the earl of Ormonde.864 "Sir Theophilus Jones had taken a castle, put some men to the sword, and thirteen priests, having with them two thousand pounds."65 "Their friars and priests were knocked on the head promiscuously with the others, who were in arms. 97866 "Letters from Ireland, that the lord Inchiquin relieved some garrisons of the English in Tipperary, entered Carricke, and fortified a pass to make good his retreat, blew open the gate of Cullen by a petard, entered the town, took two castles by assault, and put three hundred soldiers to the sword, and some women, notwithstanding order to the contrary.' 99867 "Sir William Parsons hath by late letters advised the governor to the burning of Corn, and to put man, woman, and child, to the sword; and sir Adam Loftus hath written in the same strain."68 "The army, I am sure, was not eight thousand effective men; and of them it is certain there were not above six hundred killed; and the most of them that were killed were butchered after they had laid down their arms, and had been almost an hour prisoners, and divers of them murdered after they were brought within the works of Dublin."7869 The bishop of Clogher "having detached colonel Swiney with a strong party, to make an attempt upon Castledoe, in the county Donegal, he ventured, contrary to the advice of the most experienced 862 Warner, 194. 863 Leland, III. 203. 864 Carte, III. 51. 867 Idem, 296. The annexed journal of the desolating career of the duke of Ormonde, who is praised by Carte, Warner and Leland for his moderation, in an expedition into the county of Meath, where he burned every thing for about twenty miles square, will enable the reader to officers, with 3,000 men, to fight sir Charles Coote, with near double his number, at Letterkenny. Major general O'Cahan, many of his principal officers, and fifteen hundred common soldiers, were killed on the spot; and the colonels Henry Roe, and Phelim M’Tuol O'Neile, Hugh Macguire, Hugh Mac-Mahon, and others, slain after quarter given."870 "He [Monroe] at lord Conway's instance, who attended him in the expedition, advanced with 3,600 foot, three troops of horse, and four field pieces; but, after taking a view of the place, on July 15, [1642,] seeing some parties of the enemy, who had no powder to fire, making a prey of cattle, and killing 700 country people, men, women, and children, who were driving away their cattle, he returned the next day to Newry."871 "Sir Charles Coote, immediately after his inhuman executions and promiscuous murders of people in Wicklow, was made governor of Dublin."879 *Sunday morning, April 3, 1643. AFTER PRAYERS, the army marched towards the Naas, burning several villages of the rebels in their march. "April 4. The army marched to Kilcullin, burning in their march, the villages in their way, which belonged to the rebels. April 5. The army marched from thence to Athy, and in their way burnt the castle and town of Killtruth. 66 April 11. The troops in their return back, marched through O'Dunn's country, and burnt all the country until they came to Castle Cuff. "Sir Patrick Wymes burnt all the villages belonging to Dempsie, and returned back that night with the troop to the fort of Mary-borough. "April 13. The army marched through to Athy, and burnt a great part of the territory of Clanmaleero, a country belonging to the lord Dempsie in rebellion."973 "If in the execution of martial law, he [St. Leger] spared neither sex nor age, his countrymen frequently expressed a generous indignation and horror at his barbarity."874 "The same part which lord Inchiquin was playing in Munster, by burning, plundering, and destroying the country, even to the gates of Limerick, was acted by sir C. Coote in Connaught, with a design, as it was supposed, to relieve Boaratty; but he contented himself with wasting and burning the estates of lord Clanrickarde, about this time made a marquess, for his eminent sufferings and fidelity, to whose care and activity in the first year of this rebellion he confessed that he owed his own, and his garrison's preservation."875 "The townsmen of Padstow took an Irish vessel in their harbour, 870 Carte, II. 113. $72 Idem, 259. $73 Rushworth, V. 507, 8, 9, 10. 874 Leland, III. 178. 871 Idem, I. 311. $75 Warner, 371. 3 |
