Corpus of Electronic Texts Edition
Chapters towards a History of Ireland in the reign of Elizabeth (Author: Philip O'Sullivan Beare)
Chapter 7
Maguire encounters with disadvantage the Royalist Army and loses Enniskillen by treachery.
WHILE these events were in progress, the two armies which the Queen had ordered to be mobilised against Maguire, were got together. One was led by Henry Bagnal, knight, Marshal of Ireland, and Governor of Ulster, who had under him far from contemptible forces from Irish and English garrison troops and recent Irish levies. He had 700 horse, the greater part of which, as well as a considerable part of the foot, was commanded by Earl Tyrone, who thought it would be very unsafe for him not to assume the appearance of obeying the Queen's orders. Maguire, much alarmed at the impending danger, besought O'Donnell to help him. He got from O'Donnell a few Irish gallowglasses and Scottish bowmen and armed some of his own mercenaries, of whom nearly 100 were cavalry, but he was still very inferior in strength to the enemy. Bagnal
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with all his forces encamped on the south side of the river Erne, intending to cross the ford called Belacooloon and attack Maguire's mercenaries who had fled thither. Maguire encamped on the other side of the river. The battle began by hurling missiles on either side. The royalists had the advantage in numbers, in equipment, and position, since they had a much larger number of foot, 700 horse against 100, and gunmen against archers, and of course, the bow could not send the arrow as far as the gun sent the leaden bullet. Moreover the gunners were able from a wood which adjoined the river bank, to attack with impunity the Catholics who were standing on open ground, while the archers could not well aim their arrows against the royalists protected by the thickness of the wood. When, in this way, the fight had been carried on with great loss to the Catholics, Earl Tyrone, who commanded the royalist cavalry, set spurs to his horse and forced the ford with all his cavalry and charging the Catholics, totally routed them, but did not pursue them far, as he was pierced in the thigh by an Irish foot-soldier, and Maguire with his cavalry came to the rescue of the foot. In this battle the Catholics lost under 200, and the royalists very few. The ancient enmity between Tyrone, who had been seriously wounded, and Bagnal, was increased by this victory, as each claimed for himself the glory thereof. Bagnal because he was the commander of the army and because as Governor of Ulster the others were under his authority: Tyrone, because he had brought up the greater part of the cavalry; had crossed the ford with the horse; had put the Maguirites to flight; had all the risk; and had been wounded. Wherefore, when asked by Bagnal to certify to the latter's valour in letters to the Queen and Viceroy, Tyrone replied that he would tell them the truth. O'Donnell, who was coming to Maguire's assistance with a larger number of cavalry, gunmen, and gallowglasses, arrived the night after the battle, and would have attacked the enemy, were it not that he was privately asked by messengers from Tyrone to have a care of the latter's safety, and not surround the Protestants while he was in their camp, which he would soon quit, as in fact he did, fearing lest Bagnal would throw him into chains, and so send him to the Viceroy (as it was believed he had orders to do). That very night he fled, wounded as he was, from the camp to his town of Dungannon, where he was soon cured under medical treatment. At this time Richard Bingham, Governor of Connaught, captured Enniskillen rather by
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the treachery in the garrison than by force. This is an island surrounded by the small Lough Erne, and on which Maguire had a castle fortified by a double ditch. Against this Bingham led fifteen companies of foot and four of horse collected in Connaught partly from the English. but chiefly from Irish Catholics, and marched through Breifny, O'Rourke's country, at this time wasted and ruined. Ferried over in pontoons and small boats, he for some days in vain assailed the castle, which was defended with great bravery by 80 men. Seeing clearly that he was only wasting his energy, he sounded a parley with the defenders. One who was not of noble birth, but in whom the defenders principally trusted their safety and the castle, on account of his intimacy and influence with Maguire, by whose munificence he had been enriched, came to Bingham's camp. This man was not inaptly nick-named the boar's or sow's son, for besides being of ungainly build and ugly countenance, he had projecting from his mouth two huge teeth like a sow's or boar's tusks. Corrupted and seduced by Bingham's promises and bribes, he arranged to betray the castle, and then returned to his own people as if resolved to defend the Castle to the death. When the truce had expired Bingham attacked the Castle in the usual way. The defenders each defended his own post. The boar's son, as if fighting bravely and stoutly, showed himself to the enemy on the outer ditch. They bore down on him in great numbers. He, as arranged, fled and left the place undefended, and as soon as he got within the second ditch quickly turned about. Thither also the enemy following, he allowed them in, and fell back on the Castle gate, which, upon his entry, the soldier there stationed hastened to close and fasten against the advancing enemy, but the sow's son with a blow of his drawn sword felled him to the ground and throwing open the gates let in the enemy who slew all the defenders except the traitor. Even the old men, children and women who had fled to the castle were thrown headlong from the top of the bridge which connected the island with the mainland. Having placed a garrison in the Castle, Bingham and Bagnal beat a hasty retreat, already distrusting Tyrone, and fearing O'Donnell and Maguire would be reinforced by large forces.
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