Hugh Roe was imprisoned in the Castle of Dublin. Thence in 1590
he made his escape, but was captured in the County of Wicklow and
brought back. In the year 1591 he made his escape again, and was not
recaptured ; but, under romantic circumstances, made his way home.

At the time of his return his father, Hugh, son of Manus, was
older and feebler than ever. In fact, he was never a strong man in
any sense. Hugh Roe's mother, a very capable woman, resolved tliat
her son should be the new O'Donnell, and induced her husband to
resign m his favour. Most of his feudatories, however, determined
to resist him. From this course they were diverted partly by the
extraordinary energy of Hugh Roe, who was at the time only nine-
teen years of age, and partly by the fact that the Government, not
knowing exactly what to do with him, sent orders that he should be
obeyed as the O'Donnell. As the result of all this, Hugh Roe,
accompanied by Tyrone, came before the Viceroy at Dundalk,
prostrated himself in the usual stjde, swore oaths of allegiance, and
returned to Donegal as the Queen's O'Donnell. So the boy, however
famous as a rebel, commenced his career as the Queen's O'Donnell.
This fact should never be forgotten l)y those who at the same time
admire Hugh Roe as a patriot, and denounce the Queen's MacGuires,
the Queen's O'Reillys, etc.

Eventually Hugh rebelled and joined the confederated lords of
Ulster. For this rebellion no one can fairly blame him. It was
certainly the purpose of the Government to drag down and destroy
all the great northern lords, Hugh Roe amongst the number. Hugh
and the rest determined to have a fight for it first ; and I know of no
law which forbade them. Most of the Plantagenet kings had sworn
themselves as vassals of the King of France, yet none of them, who
had occasion, hesitated to renounce his allegiance and draw sword
against his suzerain.

Hugh Roe, having been proclaimed as the Queen's O'Donnell,
speedily brought the recalcitrant lords of Tyrconnall under his
dominion. Then he began to revive in Connaught the lapsed
seignory, or overlordship of his ancestors. Possibly through the
young chieftain's teeming brain passed thoughts of himself as King
of Ireland. He was not afraid of O'Neill, i.e. Hugh, Earl of Tyrone,
in spite of the latter's years and experience and great power. In a
State paper signed by Tyrone, that lord writes, and with perfect truth,
" Tyrconnall has been most times a match for Tir-Owen " (Tyrone),
i.e. " the House of O'Donnell has been most times a match for my
house, the House of O'Neill." And this was true.

Hu"h Roe's military operations had been hitherto chiefly confined
to Connaught. He had beaten Sir R, Bingham, and compelled the
Queen to recall him in disgrace. He raided the Royalist territoiie.s
of Connaught perpetually, and even made more than one victorious



Pacata Hibernia. 17

raid through Connaught against Munster, Eventually the Queen's
people invaded Tyrconnall by sea. Hugh Roe beat the Queen's army
into its fortifications at Derry, and leaving a sufficient force to hold
it in check, resumed his operations on Munster. He was recalled
by the news that his cousin Nial Garf, i.e. Nial the Rough, had
made common cause with the invaders. Now who was Nial Garf]
He wasthe grandson and heir of Calvach O'Donnell, to whom the
Queen by Patent had granted all Tyrconnall, and to his heirs, in
tail male. Nial Garf, if the Queen of Ireland's patent was good for
anything, was rightful lord of all Tyrconnall. Nial seized this
opportunity of asserting an indubitable right, and all his barons and
gentlemen went with him enthusiastically in that business, main-
taining that their lord was O'Donnell under the Queen's hand, Hugh
Roe only by an order in Council and sheer force, having no just
claim to the chieftainship either by English law or Irish. So Nial
Garf rebelled, and in his rebellion, drew after him at the very start
a third of Tyrconnall. Presently Cahir O'Dogherty, Lord of Innish-
owen according to patent, and divers others of Hugh's subject lords,
joined the invaders, and Hugh Roe was obliged to fight at home for
very existence. More than half of Tyrconnall was at this time
opposed to him. I look npon this as the most brilliant period of his
career. He fought and practically beat the Queen's forces and those
of his revolted lords, and at the summons of Don Juan, marched at
once and marched straight for Kinsale. We have met Hugh Roe
upon his march. We find that he did not run away from Carew, but
stiffly stood against him, that utilizing an opportunity he evaded him
with great dexterity and marvellous dispatch, and succeeded in
getting into West MunsU'-r without being attended or followed by any
pursuing army.

Carew, who would not fight him when he met him, afterwards
poisoned him at his leisure. See Preface.



VOL. IT.



CHAPTER XV.

A part of Don Dermutio's examination concerning a practice for the
taking or killing of the Lord President — A sally made by the
enemy in Kinsalc — A Spanish captain slain — Master Hopton
died of a hurt — The Earl of Thomond landed at Castlehaven
with supplies of horse and foot — Supplies of horse and foot
landed at Waterford — The Queen's lleet and supplies of foot
with munitions, etc., arrived at Cork — Castle ny Park at-
tempted to be taken by us, but the enterprise failed — A
council of war called by the Lord Deputy.

The dangerous hazard wLich the President was in
this journey I may not omit to relate, as well for
the peril he ran as for his temper in not seeming
to see that which he perfectly knew and despising
it ; for Dermond MacCarty, called by the Spaniards
Don Dermutio, taken as you have heard at the siege
of Rincorran, being examined by the Council con-
fessed to them that Cormock MacDermond, Lord of
Muskerry, had intelligence with Don John, and cer-
tain presents had been mutually given and received,
and that the said Cormock had undertaken, and faith-
fully promised, to deliver up the President to Don
John alive or dead. The President was himself pre-
sent at this examination, which notwithstanding, he
took the said Cormock and ten horsemen, his
followers, along with him, rode with him, ate and
drank with him, and many times had private con-
ference with him, not seemiug to take notice of any



Pacata Hibernia. 19

treacherous intent; besides his army consisbing of
three thousand or thereabouts, what with country
risings-out, and under captains in pay,^ two thousand
of these were of Irish birth, no less aifected to the
rebels than to themselves ; and I can well assure the
reader upon good grounds that if our forces had re-
ceived any disaster they would all have turned Turks
and cut the throats of their own commanders.

The eighth, certain ships to the number of
thirteen were discovered, passing by Kinsale to the
westward, but afterwards it proved to be the
supplies sent out of England with the Earl of
Thomond.

The Spaniards by that time had got knowledge of
the departure of a good part of our forces, and there-
upon supposing us to be much weakened (as it cannot
be denied that we were) and inferior to them in town
in bodies of men, they drew out about noon the

^ Carew was plainly in no " dangerous hazard" during his abortive
expedition against Hugh Roe, for though he brought Lord Muskerry
with him, he only allowed him to be accompanied by ten of his
followers. What Stafford surmises as to the attitude of his Irish troops
in the event of Carew's being defeated by Hugh Roe, seems to be an
unworthy slander. The Irish soldiers of the Queen were truer to
their salt than her English soldiers.

The Queen's generals had sustained many defeats at the hands of
the insurgent lords in this war, yet no such treachery as Carew appre-
hended ever occurred. When Hugh Roe, for example, in the battle
of the Curlew Mountains utterly overthrew the President of Connaught,
though the President's army was almost wholly Irish, nothing of the
kind happened.

Certain it is that at least one other Irish lord, perhaps many, were
playing a double game at this time. O'Sullivan Bere, while affecting
to be a Queen's man, havmg just emerged into power as the Queen's
O'Sullivan Bere, wrote to Don Juan offering to rise-out in his favour
with 2000 men if the Spaniard would give him arms and pay for 1000.
This is related by the chieftain's nephew, P. O'Sullivan^ who, blinded
by his devotion to the cause of Spain, does not seem to think that
there was anything unworthy of a chieftain or a gentleman in his
Tincle's action.

c 2



20 Pacata Hibernia.

most part of their forces, and anon after sent some
threescore shot and pike to the foot of the hill close
by our camp, leaving their trenches very well lined for
their seconds. Some of ours were presently drawn
out to entertain the skirmish with those that came iip,
and another strong party was sent out towards
Rincorran, who from the bushy hill played in flank
upon their trenches and beat them from the same ;
so that they that were first sent out close to our camp
being beaten back by our shot, and thinking to find
the seconds they left behind them, were disappointed
by the quitting of their trenches, and by that means
driven to follow the rest to the succour of the town.
Our men, following them with much fury, hurt and
killed divers, amongst whom they brought off the
body of a sergeant, and possessed the enemy's trenches,
which the enemy, being reinforced, made many
attempts to regain, but were repulsed and beaten
back into the town. "We heard by divers that Don
John committed the sergeant-major (who commanded
then in chief) presently after the fight, and threatened
to take off his head, commended highly the valour of
our men, and cried shame upon the cowardice of his
own, who, he said, had been the terror of all nations,
but now had lost that reputation, and he gave straight
commandment upon pain of death (which he caused
to be set upon the town gates) that thenceforth no
man should come off" from any service until he should
be fetched off by his ofiicer, though his power were
spent or his piece broken, but make good his place
with his sword. Captain Soto, one of their best
commanders, was that day slain, for whom they made
very great moan, and some twenty more besides
were hurt, which could not l)ut bo many. On our



Pacata Hibernia. 21

side only some ten were hurt and three killed, among
whom Master Hopton, a gentleman of the Lord
Deputy's, was sorely hurt, and since died thereof. If
this skirmish had not been readily and resolutely
answered on our part the Spaniards had then dis-
covered the smallness of our numbers, and would no
doubt have so plied us with continual sallies that we
should hardly have been able to continue the siege.

The same day we had news of the Earl of Tho-
mond's landing at Castlehaven with one hundred horse
and one thousand foot of supplies out of England in
thirteen ships, which by violence of foul weather had
been driven to the westernmost part of Ireland, and
with great difficulty recovered Castlehaven aforesaid,
whence the fifth day following he came with horse
and foot to the camp at Kinsale. The next day, being
the eleventh, we were advertised that Sir Anthony
Cooke and Patrick Arthur were landed at Waterford
with two thousand foot and some horse.

The twelfth. Sir Richard Levison, admiral, and Sir
Amias Preston, vice-admiral, of the Queen's fleet for
Ireland, with ten ships of war, arrived at Cork with
two thousand foot, besides munitions, cannoneers,
carpenters, wheelwrights, smiths, etc. Presently the
Lord Deputy sent them direction to come to Kinsale.

The thirteenth, nothing was done either by us or
the enemy.

The Queen's ships with much difficulty recovered the
harbour of Kinsale. The admiral. Sir Richard Levison,
and the vice-admiral. Sir Amias Preston, came to the
Lord Deputy's camp. That day and the next day the
two thousand land forces were put on shore, and
before that we had certain news of the arrival of the
other forces from Barnstaple and Bristol at Waterford



22 Pacata Hibernia.

and Castlehaven ; but they were not then come to the
camp, nor in many days after.

The Lord Deputy, coming from aboard the ships,
a great shot was made at him from the town, whence
they might discern him in the head of a troop, and
yet missed him very little.

Some of the Queen's ships, having direction, began
to play upon a castle on the island, called Castle ny
Park, held fit next to be taken, to invest the town on
that side. They broke off some part of the top, but
finding that they did it no greater hurt they left off
shooting, and the rather because that day and the two
next proved so extremely stormy and foul that as the
ordnance could not be landed nor anything else well
done ; yet, out of an extraordinary desire to efi'ect
something, the seventeenth being the most happy day
of Her Majesty's coronation, which we meant to have
solemnized with some extraordinary adventure if the
weather would have suffered us to look abroad, we
sent at night, when the storm was somewhat appeased,
the sergeant-major and Captain Bodley with some four
hundred foot to discover the ground of Castle ny
Park, and to see whether it might be carried with the
pickaxe, which was accordingly attempted ; but the
engine^ we had got to defend our men while they were

^ This engine was called the soto in Ireland and Scotland, but
elsewhere the mantelet. It was a strong wooden house, set on wheels
and protected with raw hides. Being pushed close to a castle, the
soldiers within it began to mine away at the castle walls. Meantime
the defenders threw down upon it from the battlements great stones,
hoping to smash it.

Clilford once brought such a sow against Sligo Castle. It was
destroyed by the skill of a Scotch engineer called Crawford.
Crawford had a contrivance on the battlements by which he alternately
raised up and let fall upon the sow with devastating force an enor-
mous beam of timber.



Pacata Hibernia. 23

at work being not so strong as it should have been,
they within the castle having store of very great stones
on the top, tumbled them down so fast as to break
it, so that they returned with the loss of two men and
proceeded no further in that course.

The same day, the Lord Deputy called a council of
war, wherein it was propounded that now that Her
Majesty had plentifully furnished us with men,
munition, and victuals, we were to consider our own
strength, and the best way either to attempt the town
or to continue the siege. We were also to consider
the force of the enemy within Kinsale, and what aids
they were likely to have out of the country, and of all
other commodities or incommodities that were to
happen on either side. The conclusion and resolution
was that we should invest the town with all celerity
to keep it short of relief, and before the making of a
breach to break their houses that they might find no
safety in them and thereby be exposed to the like
incommodity of cold that we felt in the camp ; in
doing thereof it was conceived that many would be
slain and endanger the destroying their magazines
of powder and victuals ; for if presently we should
make a breach and attempt it by assault there was no
difference between a weak place stored with bodies
of men and a strong fortified town ; besides the enemy
had ground sufficient, if a breach were made, to cast
up new earthworks which would put us to more toil
and loss of men than an old stone wall ; and, in the
opinion of all the chiefest of the army, it was concluded
that we could not do the enemy a greater pleasure, or
unto ourselves a greater disadvantage, than to seek to
carry it by breach before the forces in the town, either
by sword or sickness, were weakened.



24 Pacata Hibernia.



NOTE TO CHAPTER XT.

I don't knoTv whether such -will be the opinion of military men,
but it seems to me that the Queen's commanders showed a gi'cat deal
of incompetence throughout the whole of this business. It almost
looks as if they wished to waste time and make the war-job as long
as possible. Surely an active and resolute general would have burst
a breach forthwith in those weak walls, and sent his men into it, and
not wasted blood and time and opportunity over those small seaward-
looking forts, or have sent half his force off into the middle of
Ireland to meet O'Donnell, resultlessly, as it turned out.

Moreover time was very pressing, for another Spanish army was on
the sea, and the two insurgent armies of Ulster were on the march.

Mountjoy in his dispatches always alleges want of men, yet at the
time when he dispatched Carew against Hugh Roe he had at least
8000. Even now after the arrival of Thomond with his forces and
the forces from Barstable, as well as the army of Connaught, he
would not venture upon the breach-and-storm method, but commenced
what turned out to be a quite useless bombardment.

I may add that though Stafford, writing for English readers, did not
like to mention the fact, the only reliable portion of the Queen's army
was the Irish portion. Mountjoy in his dispatches gives a deplorable
account of the English. They could only fall sick and die, or run
away in hope of getting back to England. Indeed, there must have
been universal mismanagement. During the siege Mountjoy, ac-
cording to the testimony of our author, lost " six thousand " men,
and let it be remembered that, at this date, and in Ireland, even
four thousand men constituted a great host. Mountjoy relates that
the English soldiers were so stupid and lethargic that they would die
rather than erect huts for themselves. Their huts were built for
tliem by their Irish comrades, rude structures of sods or wattles.
The Queen's soldiers apparently had to sleep on the dank earth,
which killed off the Englishmen by thousands. Her Irish soldiers,
warriors by trade, were constitutionally better able to rough it, and,
no doubt, had many contrivances by which they rendered cami") life
in bad weather less deadly. We may therefore safely assume that
most of the six thousand lost in the siege were English. Mountjoy
succeeded in killing ten times more of his men than the Spaniard could
ever have slain in the breach. All this time the lords of IMunster
were watching eagerly and endeavouring to guess which party would
prove the stronger, all quite empty of enthusiasm or public prin-
ciple, but all very intent upon the main chance.



CHAPTER XVI.

The Earl of Thomond with his supplies came to the camp — Castle
ny Parke surrendered by the Spaniards — A Spanish captain
wounded, whereof he died—A brave act of a private soldier —
Approaches made nearer to the town — The Lord President with
the Earls of Thomond and Clanricard returned to the camp —
A sally made by the Spaniards.

The Earl of Thomond, also, with one thousand
foot and one hundred horse, having been by
force of weather driven far to the westward, and
with much difficulty had recovered Castlehaven, came
thence by sea to the port of Kinsale. The Lord
Deputy, to refresh his men and horses, sent them to
Cork, for in their healths they were impaired ; and
that evening some Spaniards fled from Kinsale and
voluntarily came to our camp.

A demi-cannon was unshipped as soon as it was
calm and placed on this side of the water, which
played most part of that day upon that castle, and
broke many places, but made no breach that waa
assaultable. In the night they of the town attempted
to relieve the castle by boat, but were repelled
by Captain Tolkern and Captain Ward, who lay
with their pinnaces between the island and the town.

The demi-cannon played again, and a cannon
then landed and placed by it, with some ordnance
also out of the ship, though they served to small



26 Pacata Hibernia.

purpose. About noon one hundred men were sent
with Captain York and Captain Smith to view if
the breach were assaultable, and though they found
it was not, yet the Spaniards within, being no longer
able to endure the fury of the shot, hung out a sign
for parley upon the first show of our men and.
yielded themselves and the castle upon the promise of
their lives only ; which being accepted, they brought
them presently to the camp, being in number seven-
then. Before the castle was yielded the Spaniards
in the town made divers shot at Captain Tolkern's
pinnace with a piece of ordnance which they
mounted a day or two before close to the gate of the
town, but did no hurt at all to her ; the pinnace
warping nearer to the other side under the hill,
and at last riding safely without a shot. The
same day a platform was made upon a ground of
advantage, not far from the camp, that com-
manded one part of the town, that under the
favour thereof we might the better make our nearer
approaches, which at that time we could hardly
have done by reason of the great frost, and a demi-
cannon mounted upon it, with which some shot was
made at the town, and a sentinel taken anon after-
wards affirmed that the first shot went through the
house that Don John was in and did otherwise great
hurt.

Another cannon was brought up and planted by
the demi-cannon, which the night before was brought
from the ship, and this day the Lord Deputy went
over into the island to view how thence the town might
be best annoyed and invested.

Also the prisoners who were taken at Castle
Park were sent to Cork with direction to the



Pacata Hibernia. 27

Mayor to send them and all the former prisoners
into England, the serjeant-major and the com-
manders of Rincorran and Castle ny Park ex-
cepted ; and this day a great number of Irish women
and children were put out of Kin sale to try their
fortunes in the country.

Four other pieces were planted by the cannon
and demi-cannon, which altogether played into
the town; one of these shot killed four men
in the market-place and struck off a captain's
leg, called Don John de Saint-John, who is since
dead of the hurt.

That evening one James Grace, an Irishman,
ran out of Kinsale, assuring the Lord Deputy that
Don John at his landing was five thousand men,
and that he was yet three thousand strong; that
he had four pieces of ordnance well mounted ;
that the Irish who were with him were so much
affrighted with our artillery that Don John had much
to do to hold them, whose departure, if it should
happen, would be a great want to him, for by
them he received ease and comfort ; and that Don
John's house, where he lodged, had been shot through
with a great shot.

The six pieces began again about ten o'clock
to batter upon the town, and so continued till
night, in which time, and in all men's judgments,
as by report of the prisoners we took, they did
great hurt to the town. This day, while the
Lord Deputy, the marshal, and the serjeant-
major were viewing the ground where the approaches
were intended, a private soldier of Sir Francis
Barkley's, in the face of the Guards attempting
to steal, as he had done divers times before.



28 Pacata Hibernia.

a Spanish sentinel, who was seconded with four
that he saw not, fought with them all five, whereof
one of them was the serjeant-major, whom he had
almost taken, and when he found he could do
no good upon them all he came off without other
hurt than the cutting of his hand a little with the
breaking of a thrust which one of them made at
him, and hurt the serjeant-major. The Lord
Deputy this night began to make his approaches
nearer the town, and for that purpose caused some
1000 foot to be drawn out by Sir John Barkley, Sir
Benjamin Berry, and Captain Bodley, who continued
the work all night, and although the ground was
extremely hard by reason of the frost, and the night
very light, yet they brought the work to very good
perfection. The enemy played all night upon
them with great volleys, but hurt but three men
neither in the trenches nor in divers sallies they
made, in the one whereof a squadron of our new
men beat them back to the gates. In the evening his
Lordship sent directions to Sir Richard Levison to
land three culverins this night and to plant them
on the island, about Castle ny Parke, that thence they
might likewise make battery upon the town, and
Sir Richard drew in the admiral and vice-admiral
between the town and the island, whence they did
great hurt in the town next day.

All the artillery still played ; but because the shot
from the ships did but little hurt, save only upon the
base town, the Lord Deputy gave directions to make
very few shot unless it were at the high town.
In the afternoon, the Lord President, the Earls of