Corpus of Electronic Texts Edition
Chapters towards a History of Ireland in the reign of Elizabeth (Author: Philip O'Sullivan Beare)

Chapter 11

Roderick O'Donnell reconciled to the Queen.

AS Roderic was passing by Lough Sewdy, a town in Meath the town artisans and English mechanics, and Anglo-Irish garrison, thought they would do a brave feat and prove their loyalty by pursuing him and so they rashly engaged in battle armed, some with staves, some with swords, some with spears, but at the first onset of Roderic's cavalry they quickly turned tail. The garrison endeavoured to rally the fugitives, but being surrounded by the cavalry, about 200 of them were cut off, scarcely enough to tell the tale escaping the slaughter. Roderick, having returned home, suffered for some months from dysentery. Meanwhile the royalists made expeditions by land and water from Donegal, and without opposition besieged and battered with cannon Ballyshannon fort. Tuathal O'Gallagher, who held the fort with 56 Irish and 4 Spaniards, made a brave and protracted defence to maintain the walls and when these were broken down fled with his men by night, leaving only one sick man, Owen O'Dwyer, who on the following day, as the royalists entered, killed one of them with a gunshot and brandished his spear until promised quarter, but

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the enemy treated him with the faith of the English religion, and having taken his arms from him put him to death with the women and boys, in number 300. Oliver Lambert, an English knight and Governor of Connaught, set out to establish a garrison in Sligo. Roderick, who was now well again, routed him in a battle in the Curlew mountains, and slew many in the pursuit to Boyle, whither they retired, and as they proceeded thence to Roscommon with the cavalry and musketeers, one behind each horseman, Roderick overtook and cut off many of them. Oliver was again prevented marching to Sligo by Roderick and O'Connor Sligo whom Roderick had set at liberty, and who successfully fought Lambert not far from Boyle. However although unable to reach Sligo by land, the English occupied it by sea. Seven companies of Englishmen under Leonard Guest, a knight, unexpectedly landed there, and quickly fortified the place. Roderick ordered the adjoining crops to be cut down. The English sallied out to prevent this and Roderick came to support the reapers. A battle ensued in which 300 English were laid low and the rest fled to their fortifications.

Although the English abhorred the titles and names of Irish chiefs and had often issued proclamations to abolish them, nevertheless they were sometimes content to create chiefs in order that they might ruin one another. Thus Richard Burke, the son of Deamhan-an-chorrain, was made The MacWilliam by the royalists, and cut off in battle by Roderick. Meantime an army was being assembled in Spain to be sent into Ireland with O'Donnell, but he most unfortunately died, and on hearing of his death Roderic's comrades were filled with grief and despair of any aid from Spain. MacSweeny Banagh joined Garve. Tuath took his own course. Roderic, exhausted of powder and other ammunition, made peace with the Queen, and so did O'Connor Sligo and others. Garve had himself inaugurated O'Donnell by O'Ferrall, and for so doing was imprisoned in Derry by the English, who hate the Irish titles and wished to abolish such inaugurations. Garve escaped to a thick wood where he assembled his forces and party. Roderic and Dowcra, joining their forces, stripped him of his goods and shattered his resources. Hence it came to pass that of his party 4,000 men, women and children died of famine, and himself reduced to poverty fled into England less valued now by the English than Roderic.