1572 and 1573.
[Sidenote: The Ulster colonisation project.]
The absence of Sir Thomas Smith in France and the lukewarm attitude of
the Lord Deputy delayed the Northern enterprise for some time, and when
young Smith at last landed, the 800 of which the Queen spoke had dwindled
to 100. He sailed from Liverpool on Friday, the sailors' unlucky day, and
reached Lough Strangford on the morrow. He sent to Sir Brian MacPhelim to
say that he had no designs except on the spiritual lands--no designs 'as
yet' he explained in writing to Burghley--but the chief would not see
him, and roundly refused to part with one foot of ground. The adventurer
hastened to the Lord Deputy, not to offer aid but to beg for it; but
Fitzwilliam, who had not been consulted, gave him little comfort, telling
the Queen that a singular ignorance had been shown of the jealous Irish
nature, and that the chance of success had been immeasurably lessened by
sounding the trumpet so loudly beforehand. Others besides Smith talked
loosely of all they were going to do in Ulster; one Chatterton boasting
that he had a grant of O'Hanlon's country. Fitzwilliam bade him hold his
foolish tongue; but he only talked the louder, and sent his brother to
Newry to spread the mischief further, and to have eight or nine bullocks
ostentatiously salted. 'To have rumours spread,' said the Deputy
bitterly, 'and a few beeves salted to mad men with, and to have no men
come to tame madmen with, I must think, or at least doubt, to be some
practice to disturb quiet government.' Tirlogh Luineach O'Neill wrote in
a covertly threatening tone to Fitzwilliam, professing not to believe
that Smith had really her Majesty's authority to take his namesake's
country, and advising him to let Sir Brian and Sorley Boy alone. Sir
Brian emphasised this advice by invading the Ards, killing Henry Savage,
burning the villages, and driving off all the cattle except what could be
hurriedly conveyed across the Lough into Lecale. Fitzwilliam could only
tell Sir Thomas Smith that he was sorry for his son's evil prospects, but
that soldiers were very scarce, and that, though his goodwill was great,
in material resources he 'had not enough to set out the main
chance.'[234]
[Sidenote: Collapse of Smith's enterprise.]
Sir Thomas Smith perhaps hardly expected to get nothing but criticisms
from the Lord Deputy. The reports complained of had been spread against
his will, and he had no intention towards the Irish but to make them
labour virtuously, 'and to leave robbing and stealing and killing one
another.' He suggested that, as his son could evidently effect nothing
for the present, Fitzwilliam should employ him in the Queen's pay to
defend the northern frontier of the Pale. As Fitzwilliam could not pay
even the few men he had, this was hardly a practical suggestion. The
O'Neills played fast and loose with the unfortunate young man. Sometimes
a minor chief would make friendly advances, and then, having seen the
nakedness of the land, would run off again, while Tirlogh Luineach and
Sir Brian MacPhelim evidently understood each other. It was only just
possible to defend Carrickfergus with the help of Captain Maltby, whose
company had narrowly escaped discharge, and who generally lay in Lecale.
From behind the walls of the fortress Smith railed continually at the
Lord Deputy, whose gloomy vaticinations had all been fulfilled. In
writing to the Queen and to Smith's father, Fitzwilliam merely lamented
that his power to help him was not equal to his will, but he told
Burghley that he thought it very hard that his credit at Court should be
undermined by the interest of a vain young man. Maintenance and not
stomach was what the adventurer required, and he wished Burghley could
see the letters he wrote to the Council. His impudent humour needed
rather to be purged than fed. Maltby, a man of ability and discretion,
fell to some extent under the influence of his sanguine comrade, and the
two persuaded Fitzwilliam to give them command of the garrison at Newry,
by way of operating against Sir Brian MacPhelim. They prophesied great
things, but did nothing; and Fitzwilliam, who had yielded to their
importunity for fear of Court slanders, cynically observed that he never
supposed they would do anything. Sir Brian, on the contrary, burned
Carrickfergus, and 100 men had to be sent in haste from Newry to protect
the pier, the store-house, and what little remained of the town. The
enterprise of the Smiths, from which so much had been expected and which
had been so much advertised, had utterly collapsed in less than a
year.[235]
[Sidenote: Fitzmaurice submits. Perrott thinks he will be a second St.
Paul.]
After his last overthrow by Sir Edmund Butler, Fitzmaurice no longer
attempted to make head, but sued for pardon and leave to serve her
Majesty in some other country, offering at the same time to disclose the
chief instigators of his revolt. He had still eighty kerne with him, and
found no difficulty in feeding his men either in Aherlow or in the wild
district between Macroom and Glengariffe. Perrott, who wished to hunt out
rather than pardon him, watched the ports so carefully as to frustrate
many attempts at evasion. At least one important emissary fell into the
Lord President's hands in the person of Edmond O'Donnell, a Jesuit, who
brought letters from Gregory XIII. to Fitzmaurice, and who was afterwards
hanged, drawn, and quartered at Cork. The pursuit of the arch-rebel
himself failed for want of provisions. The President was very much
against the established system of governing 'by intreaty,' and his object
was to make people fear him, 'so that they be not kept in servile fear.'
The Queen sent letters of thanks to Lords Clancare, Barrymore, Fermoy,
and Lixnaw, to Sir Thomas of Desmond, and to Sir Donough and Sir Cormac
MacTeige MacCarthy; and in the end, fearing lest he should escape to
Spain, Perrott thought it desirable to accept the submission of
Fitzmaurice. He appeared accordingly at Kilmallock, the town which had
suffered so much and so lately at his hands, accompanied by the seneschal
of Imokilly and other chief rebels. The suppliants knelt on both knees,
or, according to one account, even lay prostrate, and the President held
the point of his naked sword at Fitzmaurice's breast. 'Holding their
hands joined and cast upwards, and with countenances bewraying their
great sorrow and fervent repentance for their former life,' they
confessed their sins in Irish. Fitzmaurice repeated the confession in
English, owning himself the rankest traitor alive, and vowing to use his
sword for ever after only in her Majesty's service. As if to throw a
shade of ridicule upon the whole thing, Fitzmaurice absurdly declared
that he was allured by Clancare and Sir Edmund Butler. But Perrott was
forced to be content, and had similar ceremonies performed in other
towns, the inferior traitors wearing halters round their necks.
Fitzmaurice gave up one of his sons as a hostage, but it was arranged
that he himself should be set at liberty in case the Queen refused to
accept his submission. She was glad to find an excuse for saving money in
Munster, or anywhere else; and Perrott, with the strange inconsistency he
sometimes showed, soon persuaded himself that Fitzmaurice had really seen
the error of his ways, and would prove 'a second St. Paul.'[236]
[Sidenote: Desmond and his brother in the Tower, and harshly treated,
1568.]
The Presidency had proved expensive, but Perrott could report that no
armed bands were abroad, and that every corner of the province was safe
for unarmed travellers. Gilbert had done nearly as much before, but it
was clear that no permanent good could be done without sustained
expenditure. The experiment of ruling the Southern Geraldines without the
Earl of Desmond was accordingly abandoned for the time; and, in spite of
the warnings of Perrott and Fitzwilliam, Elizabeth may really have
thought that years of exile had tamed the Earl's unruly spirit. He had
indeed endured many humiliations. Arriving in London with his brother Sir
John, about Christmas 1567, he was allowed to frequent the Court, in
great want of money, but under no personal restraint. The brothers made
humble submissions, surrendering their lands to the Queen and begging for
the establishment of a President and Council in Munster; and the Earl
gave a bond in 20,000_l._ to observe the articles to which he was bound.
But his rash talk, and perhaps the letters which he was known to write,
gave offence, and both he and Sir John were sent close prisoners to the
Tower, where they were fain to beg 100_l._ for necessaries, including
clothes and shoes. They suffered from cold, and Sir John, who became
seriously ill, had not wherewithal to pay the doctor and apothecary:
anything that they did cost was paid for by the Queen, nothing whatever
being remitted from the Irish estates.[237]
[Sidenote: The Desmonds in London till 1573.]
Lady Desmond wrote to say Fitzmaurice had so wasted the country that she
could not get as much as would pay her travelling charges. 'I pray God,'
she concluded, 'send us joyful meeting or me short departure out of this
world. If you make any provision for me, I beseech you let the same be in
readiness in Bristol against my coming, and upon information thereof I
will in all haste repair towards you. Your loving, miserable wife,
'ELEANOR DESMOND.'
Soon after this she joined her husband, and remained with him during the
rest of his two years' confinement in the Tower. After that they were all
handed over to the keeping of Sir Warham St. Leger, who hated Ormonde,
and might therefore be supposed a kind gaoler to his enemy. Sir Warham
complained bitterly of the expense and trouble to which he was put; for,
besides the Earl and Countess and Sir John, there were thirteen or
fourteen servants, and they had not the price of a pair of shoes between
them. Shut up in St. Leger's small house in Southwark, they all suffered
in health and ran up a long bill for medicine.
[Sidenote: Birth of Desmond's son.]
It was about this time that Lady Desmond gave birth to the unfortunate
child whose dismal fate it was to know himself the last and weakest of
his race, and to die young without ever having known youth. Sir Warham
grew heartily tired of his guests, his kindness to whom brought suspicion
on himself. He even asked to be imprisoned to save him from further
danger. The restraints of the Desmonds were gradually relaxed, though St.
Leger remained their custodian, and by the beginning of 1572 there was
already much talk of sending them back to Ireland, Perrott being willing
enough to receive Sir John, but preferring that the Earl and Countess
should have a year of the Tower, since they had been using their liberty
to write letters encouraging Fitzmaurice to persevere in his
rebellion.[238]
[Sidenote: Desmond tries to escape. Martin Frobisher.]
That Desmond should try to escape from England was but natural, and his
choosing the time of the Paris massacre for an attempt probably shows
that some deeper plotters than he were trying to make him a pawn in their
game. There were many Irishmen about London, some of whom were known and
others suspected as the bringers of treasonable letters, and Burghley had
his counterplot ready. The famous sea-captain Martin Frobisher, as loyal
a subject as any Queen Elizabeth had, was probably directed to put
himself in the Earl's way. Ormonde, who came to London about this time,
dined with Desmond and said he would try to get him despatched for
Ireland; and it may be conjectured, though not very charitably, that this
was meant to lull him into a false security. Desmond was afraid to see
Frobisher, who, however, contrived to let him know that he was willing to
be bought, and that a ship of 100 tons and the island of Valentia might
be a suitable price. Desmond was a bad horseman, unable indeed to mount
without help, probably through the wound received at Affane, and was,
moreover, afraid to ride into Kent lest he should meet Sir Warham's men.
He preferred an oyster boat which would pass the Queen's ships at
Gravesend without being searched, and Frobisher promised to help him to
such a craft. So well was the farce acted that one of Burghley's spies
took credit for discovering the plot months after Frobisher had disclosed
all; the captain's wife having been employed to lay a false scent and to
implicate not only her husband but St. Leger, Jerome Brett, and others
who were supposed to be seeking revenge for their failure in obtaining a
grant of the Desmond territories in Munster. 20_l._ in money or land was
to be Frobisher's own reward for taking the whole party over to Stukeley
and for invading Ireland from Spain. Mrs. Frobisher, if she had any sense
of humour, must have been amused at the great secrecy enjoined upon her
by the spy whom she was hoodwinking. It is not unlikely that Burghley or
some underling of his was trying to get evidence of treasonable designs,
but if so the plan was changed, and, instead of sending Desmond to the
Tower or to Tower Hill, it was resolved to let him go back to Ireland. He
begged that Ormonde might be sent with him, ostensibly because his
arrival in Munster would be certain to drive the rebels out of his own
country into Tipperary; really, perhaps, because he was afraid to leave
the field clear for his rival at Court.[239]
[Sidenote: Desmond restored.]
After much writing and talking the terms of Desmond's return were at last
settled. He accepted the Anglican religious establishment in the fullest
manner, renouncing foreign jurisdictions and promising to assist all
bishops, ministers, and preachers. He undertook to keep the Queen's peace
generally, and in particular not to molest Lords Fitzmaurice of Kerry,
Barrymore, Courcy, and Decies, or any of the MacCarthies, O'Sullivans,
and O'Callaghans; and all dues properly chargeable to them were to be
levied only by legal process. The Earl bound himself to put down
Fitzmaurice's rebellion as soon as possible, to apprehend those who had
fled to foreign countries, and to leave such castles in the Queen's hands
as she might think necessary for the public interest. In general he was
to hold the same position as Kildare or Ormonde, and he agreed not to
exercise the palatinate jurisdiction which he claimed in Kerry until that
claim should have been legally determined in his favour. He further
promised to pay the debts he had incurred in England as soon as money
could possibly be scraped together.[240]
[Sidenote: Elizabeth gives advice to Desmond and his brother.]
The Queen granted the brothers an interview before their departure,
professed herself satisfied with the Earl's plain speech and good
intentions, 'and to Sir John she gave a privy nip, that as he hath a good
wit, so he should hereafter use it well. He, like one not unwise nor
unexpert, craved pardon, if anything heretofore were amiss, all should be
amended.' Burghley lectured Sir John again, at greater length no doubt,
and after a further delay of some weeks, caused probably by the Queen's
dislike to do anything in Burghley's absence, the restored exiles were
forwarded to Ireland in charge of Fitton, who had been appointed
Vice-Treasurer, and the settlement of whose quarrel with Clanricarde was
referred to the friendly offices of the Lord Deputy and Council.
Fitzwilliam had directions to do nothing without consulting Perrott, and
Perrott had been much averse to Desmond's return. Rejoicing in his
freedom, Desmond slipped through Wales, and Fitton heard nothing of him
till he reached Beaumaris. Perhaps the released prisoner expected what
actually happened, and had some half-formed plan of sailing before the
Vice-Treasurer and reaching Munster without running the gauntlet of the
Dublin politicians. Sir Thomas Smith had indeed given the sound advice
that, 'seeing her Majesty doth mind to tie the Earl to her service with a
benefit, it should be _ample, liberaliter et prolixe_ done, not _maligne
et parce_, which doth so disgrace it, that for love many a time it
leaveth a grudge beyond in the heart of him which should receive it that
mars the whole benefit.' But other counsels prevailed, and Desmond was
detained for many months in Dublin--a proceeding by no means calculated
to cause a lively sense of benefits conferred.[241]
[Sidenote: Walter, Earl of Essex.]
Having desperately resolved to pacify Munster by sending Desmond home,
the Queen made haste to create disturbance in Ulster by licensing private
conquest on a large scale. Smith had evidently failed, but she persuaded
herself that another might succeed if only he were adequately supported.
It was an age when nothing seemed impossible to the brave, and all men's
minds ran upon vague schemes of conquest, beyond unfathomed seas and over
unmeasured lands.
[Sidenote: His antecedents.]
A Raleigh and a Stukeley differed widely in moral and intellectual
stature, but they were not without such a generic likeness as a horse
bears to a donkey, or a lion to a cat. A vulgar projector like Chatterton
and a rash speculator like young Smith could do much harm and could
hardly do any good; but one of the most romantic and chivalrous of
English nobles was now about to risk his all upon the fatal shore where
Randolph had lost his life and Sussex had endangered his reputation.
Walter Devereux, Viscount Hereford, having married Lettice, daughter of
Sir F. Knollys, was first employed to prevent Mary Stuart's escape from
Tutbury, but found a better opportunity of distinction in
Northumberland's insurrection. He raised a troop of horse, and acted as
marshal of the royal army. Few or none of the old nobility had shown so
much zeal, and the Queen rewarded him with a garter and with the earldom
of Essex, a title which had been borne by his ancestors. He now offered
to show his gratitude by conquering a province for her Majesty at his own
risk.
[Sidenote: He proposes to colonise part of Ulster.]
As a preliminary step he required a grant from the Crown in fee of the
whole of what is now the county of Antrim, bounded by the sea from
Belfast to Coleraine, and on the land side by the Bann and Lough Neagh,
and including the island of Rathlin.
[Sidenote: His demands.]
The race of Hugh Boy O'Neill and the Scots claimants were not forgotten,
but Essex asked for authority by martial law over the whole of them, as
well as over his own followers. All fisheries, including those of the
Bann and Lough Neagh, and all tithes and other spiritualities were to be
comprised in the grant, and a commercial monopoly, free of customs for
seven years, was to be secured to the settlers. Essex demanded the right
to make galley-slaves of all Irish and Scots convicted--by martial law as
it seems--of treason or felony, to make war and peace, and to enact local
laws. He was to have all wardships and marriages, and the Dublin
government was to have no power of imposing any cess or tax.
[Sidenote: Grant to Essex.]
After some haggling Essex received a grant of all Antrim except the lands
belonging to the chartered townsmen of Carrickfergus, the town and
castle, and 1,000 acres for their support. He was freed from all cesses
for seven years, and none of his tenants were to be obliged to serve in
war beyond the limits of his grant. The grantee had unlimited power of
alienation to men of English birth, and authority for twelve years to
make new subdivisions or to rename old ones. He had all manorial rights
except pleas of the Crown, and the freedom of all markets in Ireland for
himself and his tenants. Free trade was granted with all lands in amity
with the Queen for seven years. The patentee had power to give leave of
absence to English tenants for twelve years on the appointment of a
substitute, and to admit 100 foreigners as denizens. The Queen agreed to
furnish 200 horse and 400 foot, the Earl providing a like number; and
each party was bound to keep those numbers up. Costs of fortification
were to be divided in the same way. Among the few things not granted were
gold and silver mines, and the right to coin money. The consideration
offered for this enormous grant consisted of the services to be rendered
and of property amounting to 800 marks, left him by the Earl of March's
will--a will of which the validity was disputed. Unpromising as this
scheme must have appeared to many of those who knew Ireland best, it was
advocated by Burghley, Sussex, and Leicester; and when failure
threatened, Elizabeth accused them of having persuaded her against her
better judgment. Sir Thomas Smith, in spite of his experience, was also
in favour of the project.[242]
[Sidenote: Great alarm in Ulster. Fitzwilliam disapproves the project.]
In spite of Fitzwilliam's efforts to keep it quiet, the intended
expedition was talked of in Ireland almost as soon as in London. The Lord
Deputy earnestly begged that action might follow quickly, since the
interval would certainly be filled with lies and cavillings. One cause of
delay was that Essex had no ready money. The Queen was, however, willing
to lend 10,000_l._ as first mortgagee of his property in Bucks and Essex,
worth 500_l._ a year. Nor was the bargain a bad one. In less than one
year 1,000_l._ was to be repaid, and in default, land worth 50_l._ a year
was to be forfeited. There was the same penalty for not paying a second
1,000_l._ within two years; and if the whole 10,000_l._ were not repaid
within three years, then the entire property pledged was to fall to the
Queen. A further cause of delay was Burghley's desire for fuller
information. Since the days of Henry VII. it had been the custom to send
special commissioners in cases where the ordinary official reports were
likely to be prejudiced or tainted, and Burghley now despatched Edmund
Tremayne with instructions to investigate necessary matters and to return
quickly, leaving to Fitzwilliam all that could not be done in a hurry.
Tremayne, who knew Ireland well, was strongly impressed with the
advantages of speed and secrecy, but he saw that much delay was
unavoidable, and advised that the Earl should put forth rumours of the
plan being indefinitely postponed. He was particularly anxious that the
whole force should come together, lest the Irish might be tempted to cut
off isolated bands. A servant of Essex who had brought letters to Maltby,
Piers, and Smith, was sent back so as to give colour to the report of a
postponement. But Lord Rich with 100 men, Sir Peter Carew and Sir Arthur
Champernowne with forty each, and other gentlemen with smaller companies,
could hardly make their arrangements secretly; nor could much promptitude
be expected from such a heterogeneous body. For the Earl himself there
had to be provided six pieces of artillery, much powder and match,
trenching tools, 150 calivers, sixty muskets, 200 bows, and two surgeons
at 16_s._ per month. 'I understand,' wrote Sir John Perrott, who had a
Pembrokeshire quarrel with the noble adventurer, 'that the Earl of Essex,
with a great rout, intendeth the conquest of the North. For her Majesty's
service I wish him success, but for himself I care not what cometh
thereof, for he and his friends have sought as much to discredit me in my
absence as in them lay.' Neither Perrott nor Fitzwilliam were in love
with the chivalric interloper, but they do not appear to have thwarted
him; indeed, the Queen specially thanked the former for his friendly
tone. Her instinct probably told her that men who had borne the burden
and heat of the day with but little reward would hardly be prejudiced in
favour of this courtly amateur.[243]
[Sidenote: Essex is sanguine.]
Confident in Burghley's support, Essex made light of opposition. The Lord
Deputy he had 'ever loved and liked well of,' though the conversation of
his friends at Court did not foreshadow his support. But the Queen was
all smiles and promises, and advised the Earl 'to have consideration of
the Irish there, which she thought had become her disobedient subjects
rather because they have not been defended from the force of the Scots,
than for any other cause,' and not to seek too hastily the conversion of
a people who had been trained in another religion. He answered that he
'would not willingly imbrue his hands with more blood than the necessity
of the cause requireth,' and that, when once the Irish had been brought
to due obedience, 'they would be easily brought to be of good religion.'
He was not destined to find either task particularly easy.[244]
[Sidenote: Proposed division of Antrim.]
Some of the land between Belfast Lough and Lough Neagh may have been
destined as a reserve for the O'Neills. An extant paper shows how it was
proposed to quarter the gentlemen adventurers, and what was kept for the
Queen and the Earl:--
Glenarm, Will. Morgan of Pencoed; Red Bay, Lord Rich; Bunneygal(?), H.
Knollys; Market-town (Ballycastle), several; Kenbane Castle, not
appointed; Dunseverick, Mr. Champernowne; Dunluce, Mr. Kelway; Portrush,
Mr. Fitton; Coleraine, the Queen; James MacHenry's cranogue at
Innisloughan, reserved to keep the ford of the Bann; Ballymoney, Mr.
Bourchier; Brian Carragh's cranogue on the Bann, reserved for the ford;
Castle Toome, Geo. Carleton; Massereene, not assigned; Belfast, the
Queen; the bottom beneath the cave having two little piles, Messrs.
Barkley and Brunker; Carrickfergus, the Queen; Magee's Island and the
mouth across, the Queen; Olderfleet (Larne), the Queen.
As a matter of fact, Essex never had a house of his own in Ulster.
[Sidenote: Essex sails, 1573. Gentlemen adventurers.]
Having taken leave of Elizabeth on July 19, 1573, Essex sailed from
Liverpool on August 16, accompanied by Lords Rich and Darcy, and with
enough men and stores to fill several vessels. They were blown down
Channel, some as far as Cork, but the Earl managed to land on one of the
Copeland Islands, whence he made his way to Carrickfergus: here he was
joined by Lord Rich, who, having got ashore at Kilcleif, near the mouth
of Lough Strangford, travelled under Maltby's escort by way of Belfast.
Others were forced to the Isle of Man. A large part of the soldiers
still lingered in England waiting for wine and other supplies; and Essex
found himself powerless to effect anything considerable. But he put on a
bold face, told Tirlogh Luineach that he was come to free the Irish from
the tyranny of the Scots aliens, and that he might find grace by helping
the work, but that otherwise he would waste him with fire and sword. The
Earl advanced to the Bann without meeting an enemy, but the inherent
disadvantage of making war by private contract soon became apparent. The
Scots withdrew behind the river, and reminded Essex of the fact that he
had no military authority outside the bounds of his grant.[245]
[Sidenote: At first things look promising.]
The adventurous Earl's first impression was, however, favourable; for Sir
Brian MacPhelim wrote to say that, though he had never seen him, he knew
of the forces which accompanied him, and of those which were still to
come. Sir Brian asked what terms he might expect if he returned to his
allegiance; and Essex answered that he would make none, but that simple
and immediate submission might give a first claim on her Majesty's
clemency. Sir Brian then sought an interview with Captain Piers, and,
accompanied by that officer, came into Carrickfergus, 'and in the most
public part of the house did on his knees make his submission, alleging
little for himself, but some unkindness towards Mr. Smith,' and desiring
oblivion and mercy in consideration of services to come. 'When I had
somewhat aggravated, to make her Majesty's mercy the greater, I took him
by hand, as a sign of his restitution to her Highness's service; with
promise to commend any desert of his hereafter.' Sir Brian's cattle were
in the Route, the district between the Bush and the Bann, and as sole
security for their owner's performance Essex had them driven into the
fields about Carrickfergus, where he supposed them to be in perfect
safety. The chief talked pleasantly of his hostility to the Scots, and
proposed to submit a plan for entrapping those who had sought to rebel in
his company. The Irish generally professed great joy at the strict
orders issued by the Earl against injuring them or taking their goods
without full payment, and at being allowed not only to reap their own
corn, but also what belonged to the Scots. On the whole, the natives
appeared admirably disposed, and great praise was due to Captain Piers
and Captain Maltby for their ability and diligence.[246]
[Sidenote: But the O'Neills soon show their real sentiment.]
So things went on, and for more than a fortnight all was merry as a
marriage bell, while Sir Brian had ample opportunities of measuring the
invader's real weakness. Then someone hinted to Essex that cows were
moveable property, and that he had better be on his guard. Piers was
accordingly sent with 100 mounted men to drive the stock close together
in the immediate neighbourhood of the castle, and he returned saying that
all was fast, that at least 10,000 head were in sight, and that he had
left trusty scouts who would find out what was going on, and give twelve
hours' notice of any intended mischief. The Earl said that he had his
suspicions; but either this was an afterthought or Piers was the reverse
of vigilant, for it was three o'clock next day before he found out that
Sir Brian had withdrawn his horned hostages twelve or fourteen hours
before, having bribed the scouts to say nothing about it. Five hundred
Scots had landed at Lough Foyle, and Sir Brian hastened to join his
forces to those of Tirlogh Luineach. Irish and Scots combined might hope
to escape the common enemy. The Earl mounted at once, and spurred after
Sir Brian for fourteen miles, when he was overtaken by night. The cattle
reached the shelter of thick woods, and Essex returned to learn that many
of the townsmen were in the plot. He imprisoned several, and regretted
deeply that he had no power to execute them. In his rage and
disappointment he professed to be glad that Sir Brian had thrown off the
mask, 'for now I have no occasion to trust the Irish, whereby I might
have been more abused, than by open force I shall.... My first actions
showed nothing but lenity, plainness, and an equal care of both nations;
my next shall show more severity of justice abroad, and less trust at
home.' It needed but small experience of Irish life to turn a Quixote
into something not very unlike a Pizarro; and Sir Peter Carew did not
conceal his joy that the true nature of the natives was now manifest, and
that the danger of their being overmuch trusted was at an end.[247]
[Sidenote: Young Smith is killed.]
The force collected at Carrickfergus consisted of 600 foot, 200 horse,
100 labourers, and 200 kerne. The adventurers were nominally 400 strong,
but most of them were still in England; 200 soldiers raised in
Somersetshire arrived armed with white sticks, though it was said that
Captain Barkley had 400_l._ for an outfit. The Northern horse, under
Captain Selby, complained that they were brought to a desert and that
they could not live on their pay, and the foot grumbled at having to give
fourpence sterling for rations. Provisions began to run short, and it
became necessary to fight even for the free passage of cows out of
Lecale. The escort sent to convoy them were attacked by Scots in the pass
between Carrickfergus and Belfast, and after four hours' skirmishing
found the Laggan flooded and had to return. Had it not been for the
intercession of Sussex, who remembered what he himself had endured in
Ulster, it is probable that Essex would have had nothing but water and
beef, and not too much of the latter; while the corn which he had at
great expense provided was diverted by the Bristol traders to some more
profitable use. Still, he was master in the field, though he sought in
vain for anything like a general engagement. Once Sir Brian ventured into
the neighbourhood with his herds, which had eaten up the grass in
Northern Antrim, and Essex set upon them near Massereene with 300 or 400
horse. The Baron of Dungannon did good service, William Norris behaved
with the utmost gallantry, and his brother John showed the qualities
which afterwards made him famous. The result was a prey of 400 cows and
the slaughter of some forty kerne and cowherds. 'But if I had been well
guided,' said Essex, 'or if my footmen had been come unto me, who were
then three miles from me, I had taken 10,000 of his kine, and caught
Brian and his company at a great disadvantage.' Much virtue in If. He
returned from this not very glorious foray to find that his precursor and
ally, the unlucky Smith, had been slain that day 'by the revolting of
certain Irishmen of his own household, to whom he overmuch trusted,
whereof one being retained by a rebel did kill him with a shot.' The
remnant of his men were unable to hold out at Comber, and sent to the
Earl for help, but 200 of his kerne took the opportunity to mutiny, and
he could do nothing. A few days later Essex reached Lough Strangford,
only to find Comber in ashes. The friendly Savages had led Smith's men
into the peninsula of Ards. Sir Brian was fully avenged of the authors of
those printed books which had filled him with such alarm. Smith's patent
remained in force during Elizabeth's life, and gave some trouble, but
nothing serious was ever attempted under it.[248]
[Sidenote: Return of Desmond. He is detained in Dublin, 1573.]
Fitton and Desmond arrived in Dublin on Lady Day, and the Earl was first
detained until the arrival of the Lord President. Perrott had always been
against his leaving England, and, being therefore in no hurry to reach
Dublin, he proceeded leisurely to beat out the embers of rebellion before
he should be practically superseded. The late insurgents professed much
fear lest the Earl should mislike their yielding after standing out so
long. The Lord President could, however, say that ways were safe, that
towns were no longer straitly shut up, that Kilmallock was rebuilt, and
that he had protected no rebel who had not first submitted. He had taken
no provision at the Queen's price, but had bought all in a high market,
greatly to his own loss; for no horseman could really support himself and
two horses, and keep his arms and armour in order for 6-3/4_d._ a day.
There were complaints that he had interfered too much in Tipperary,
although James Tobin, Ormonde's sheriff, had contumeliously refused to
execute his warrants for treason, a matter entirely outside the
palatinate jurisdiction. Tipperary was in consequence the most
disordered part of Munster. Forty-five malefactors were executed at
Limerick, and Perrott proposed to do the like at Cashel and Clonmel; at
the latter place confining himself to offences committed outside
Ormonde's jurisdiction. Nor was much lost by such forbearance, for,
whatever may have been that Earl's faults, he had not been remiss in the
way of executions. Independently of what the Butlers had done, the Lord
President could report that he had killed or hanged 800 persons with the
loss of only eighteen Englishmen. The wonder is that between sword and
halter there was any able-bodied man left in Munster.[249]
[Sidenote: Perrott in Munster.]
When Perrott had done his hanging he went to Dublin and reported that
Desmond was devoid of reason, and that nothing could be done with him.
The Earl, however, declared that the unreasonableness was in the
Government, who demanded of him more than he had promised, and when he
made fresh promises refused to accept them. His right to a palatinate
jurisdiction in Kerry was held void by the lawyers; he was ready to
exercise it only according to her Majesty's pleasure, and without
engrafting any Irish customs upon it, and he made no objection to the
establishment of courts leet and courts baron. As to coyne and livery, he
would forego them for six months, pending the decision of his cause. He
was more willing than able to abolish them permanently, but was quite
ready to agree to such a reasonable composition as impartial
commissioners might agree upon. On the other hand, he demanded immediate
restoration to his country, and all castles which he claimed either as
owner or mortgagee, except Castlemartyr and Castlemaine, which were
reserved to the Queen. This was all very well; but Desmond gave out
generally that there would be no more Presidents after Christmas, and
this was hardly the way to conciliate Perrott, who had a veto upon all
Munster matters. Sir John Fitzgerald was more pliable or more politic
than the Earl, and he risked little by loyal professions, for nothing
that he did or said really committed the Geraldine connection. On
promising to put down the Brehon law, to suffer no composition for
felony, and to abstain from gathering rhymers and dicers about him, he
was allowed to return into Munster, leaving his brother to endure 'an
easy restraint for a little time.'
[Sidenote: His reforms.]
There was probably some vain hope that Sir John would remit enough money
to pay the debts incurred in England--a subject about which there was
much correspondence, and which seems to have been thought nearly as
important as the state of Munster. Perrott went to Cork, where the
sessions were well attended and where he executed sixty more persons.
This, though quite a matter of course, was recorded with satisfaction;
but the Lord President took far greater pride in having forced the men to
give up their glibbes and in having bullied or coaxed the gentlewomen
into foregoing the great rolls which they wore on their heads. 'By wading
into this further danger,' he said, 'I am assured to have no wife in
these parts, and for England when I re-embark I look there to have none.
For all my gains here is for every white hair that I brought over with me
sixty, and a thin purse, how great soever the report went of things that
came to my hand by the Marseillyan ship.'[250]
[Sidenote: Case of a Marseilles ship.]
This vessel, the 'Peter and Paul,' belonging to Marseilles, but laden at
Lisbon with a rich cargo of pepper, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, soap, salad
oil, sugar, 'grains,' and cotton-wool, arrived at Youghal in November
1572. She had forty persons on board, chiefly Portuguese, but among them
were an Englishman, a Neapolitan, and two French passengers. Fitzwilliam,
upon some report of a general restraint of trade with Spain, which might
include Portugal, sent a commission to Perrott to detain the ship and to
sell the cargo. At Youghal it might have been impossible to protect her
from Piper and Garratt, two of the many pirates who at this time
infested British waters, and she was brought round to Cork, where the men
were billeted on the aldermen and allowed the run of the city. Perrott
petitioned for a grant of the cargo, but the owners, who were wholly or
partly French, complained to the Queen. Proceedings followed in the
Admiralty, and the goods were not sold; but the ship was found to be
rotten, and had to be unladen. This was carefully done: every article was
scrupulously accounted for, and the foreigners certified that nothing had
been extorted from them by way of ransom. It is the fate of every active
provincial governor to have many detractors among the stay-at-homes, and
Perrott's enemies raised a cry at Court accusing him of making away with
the cargo. His defence was complete and perfectly satisfactory to the
Government, but he continued to be troubled about it for some time, and
the voluminous correspondence extant shows how great was the commotion
excited.[251]
[Sidenote: Carew is forbidden to press his claims in Munster.]
As if Munster had not troubles enough, an attempt was made at this time
to revive Sir Peter Carew's shadowy claim to a principality there, and
some of the projectors renewed their offers to colonise parts of the
province. Fitzwilliam referred to Perrott, who reported strongly against
Carew. The mere disclosure of his title, he said, would rouse a nest of
hornets; and he protested against a private adventurer being allowed to
break the peace which he had established with great labour and
tribulation. Sidney had three soldiers to Fitzwilliam's one, yet it had
taxed his resources severely to still Carew's first commotion. It would
be cheaper for the Queen to buy him out than to let him meddle again. The
people saw clearly that what affected one would affect all, and Sir Peter
was obliged to promise not to stir further in the matter.[252]
[Sidenote: Perrott opposes Desmond's restoration.]
The more Perrott saw of Desmond the less he liked him. He had grumbled at
his return; had he known him better he would have cried aloud. He now
besought the Queen to have him taken back to England, for he would never
learn manners in Dublin, and could do nothing but harm in Munster. To
Burghley Perrott wrote still more unrestrainedly that the Earl was fitter
to keep Bedlam than to rule a newly reformed country. In Munster, wrote
the President proudly, the plough already laughed the unbridled rogue to
scorn, and daily improvement was visible. The poor prayed for the Queen.
The clansmen had almost given up swearing by their lords' hands. The
8,000 or 9,000 men capable of bearing arms honoured Elizabeth's name, and
their hands began to wax hard in labour as their feet once did in running
to mischief. The revenue might soon be expected to increase. 'If the
kings of England,' he said in language which must have appealed very
strongly to Elizabeth, 'have any one thing heavier upon their souls than
others, it is that they have not made a thorough conquest of this
realm.'[253]
[Sidenote: Threatening attitude of the Desmonds.]
The Queen gracefully thanked Perrott for his services, begged him not to
leave his post on account of his health, and proposed to send over an
English doctor who knew his constitution. But she did not recall Desmond,
who complained loudly of his long detention and declared his good
intentions, while admitting that he had made many rash speeches. It does
not seem to have occurred to him that a man who could not rule his tongue
was hardly fit to rule a province. In the meantime his officers left the
land waste, and seized Glin Castle in defiance of the President, whose
health obliged him to go suddenly to England without taking the vengeance
he had threatened. The highest praise which can be given him for his
government of Munster is to quote the words which the 'Four Masters' used
in derision:--'The departure of the President was lamented by the poor,
the widows, the feeble, and the unwarlike of the country.' No sooner was
his back turned than the Geraldines began to stir ominously. James
Fitzmaurice reopened his intrigues with Spain. Finding that his wife had
been writing amorous letters to Edward Butler, he divorced her summarily
and married O'Connor Kerry's widow, whose castle of Carrigafoyle, 'the
strongest and beautifullest' in West Munster, thus fell into his hands,
and offered a ready harbour for 'Jack Spaniard.' He conferred with
Clanricarde's sons--'a sage Parliament in God's name'--and to this Sir
John was supposed to be privy. Fitzwilliam saw that mischief was in the
wind, and meditated a journey to Munster, when Desmond, whose tone had
been gradually growing less submissive, cut the knot by escaping from
Dublin.[254]
[Sidenote: Desmond escapes from Dublin, and resumes the Irish dress.]
Being sent back to England was probably what Desmond really feared, for
he afterwards said he had received letters from England hinting at such a
thing. He complained of no harsh treatment in Dublin, where he was placed
under the Mayor's charge, but not closely confined. Either wishing for or
dreading an escape, his gaoler told the Government that the Earl was
welcome to his house and table, but that he would no longer answer for
his safe keeping. Some say that he was allowed out on parole, which he
kept for a fortnight and then broke. Telling the Mayor that he was going
out hunting, and that he would return at night, he went to Grangegorman,
and thence escaped by dint of riding into Munster. He was escorted
through Kildare by Rory Oge O'More and Piers Grace, both noted brigands
or guerillas, and received in the Queen's County by 400 O'Mores, and in
Limerick by James Fitzmaurice. At Lough Gur the Earl and Countess lost no
time about showing themselves in Irish dress, and we cannot doubt that
glibbes and rolls at once became fashionable again. All the Geraldines
hastened to arms, 'knowing no God, no Prince, but the Earl, no law but
his behests.' Desmond promptly gave out that he would allow no sheriffs,
thus practically deciding the palatinate question in his own favour; and
to all appearances he was soon as powerful as any of his ancestors had
been. Fitzwilliam wrote to warn the fugitive that he was in great danger
of losing all, but to Burghley he confessed his fear of a great
conspiracy. The lawyers were afraid to go circuit in Munster, and not a
single councillor could be got to go to Cork, where Perrott had lately
done such execution. In a few days Castlemaine and Castlemartyr, which
had taken so much pains to reduce, were again in Geraldine hands, and
there was soon nothing to show for Perrott's Presidency but the gibbeted
corpses of some malefactors, and the tears of 'the poor, the widows, the
feeble, and the unwarlike.'[255]
[Sidenote: The central district disturbed.]
The general course of government was neither smooth nor glorious from the
time when Elizabeth determined to restore Desmond to Ireland, until he
practically carried out her first intention by escaping from Dublin. Leix
and Offaly were almost as bad as they had ever been. In the former, Cosby
was forced by his weakness to wink at disorder. In the latter, Henry
Cowley, who was honourably distinguished as the only English officer who
really tried to rule legally, had to go to Dublin to beg in vain for one
hundred men. Without them he hardly knew how to get back to Philipstown,
outside which he could at the best scarcely stir. The general opinion was
that the Queen meant to leave all to Irish government. The miserable town
of Athenry had been plundered and left utterly desolate by Clanricarde's
sons, and an alderman danced attendance on Fitzwilliam and Fitton,
begging for help which they could not give. Ormonde's country in his
absence was scarcely better than the rebel districts, and the Graces,
who would have obeyed the Earl but no one else, carried off Sir Barnaby
Fitzpatrick's wife and daughter. Sir Barnaby pursued and recovered the
young lady, but her mother, who was in delicate health, spent some
miserable weeks in captivity in Tipperary and Kilkenny. King Edward's old
companion poured forth his grief to Sidney, and signed himself 'your poor
tormented friend.' Tremayne, who had orders to make special inquiries
about this outrage, reported that Fitzwilliam had followed it up well.
But Fitzwilliam could really do very little, for old Cormac O'Connor was
again at the head of a Scotch and Irish band who hovered between Leinster
and Connaught. The force of the country would not serve against the old
chief, nor do any damage to the native gentlemen; so that the whole brunt
fell on the scanty garrison and yet more scanty settlers. Athlone Castle
was actually entered by the rebels, and Connaught was left to its own
devices. Tremayne reported that Clanricarde was quite unable to restrain
his graceless sons. Fitton thought his late subjects might, perhaps, by
good management be persuaded to stay quiet as long as they liked, 'which
kind of quiet is no new thing in the politics of Ireland.' Like everyone
else, he attributed all to the Queen's ill-judged parsimony, 'sparing too
sparely I fear will cost more spending.'[256]
[Sidenote: Fitzwilliam and Fitton fall out.]
[Sidenote: A murder.]
For most practical purposes the two chief personages in the Irish
Government at this time were the Lord Deputy and Vice-Treasurer
Fitton--the bearer of the sword and the bearer of the purse. The way in
which they worked together was not edifying, nor calculated to impress
the natives with a sense of dignity and power. Having inquired into the
quarrel between Fitton and Clanricarde, the Lord Deputy and Council
decided that the former had made good his case, and they patched up a
precarious friendship between them. But in the daily intercourse between
hostile officials it was less easy to maintain a friendly appearance.
Fitzwilliam was a man of hasty temper, Fitton was said to be
vain-glorious and was certainly quarrelsome and litigious. An opportunity
for explosion was afforded by an affray between the Vice-Treasurer's
servant Roden, a gentleman's son--with the expectation of one hundred
marks a year, he notes, as if that had anything to do with it--and one
Burnell, a follower of the Clerk of the Council, and a friend of Captain
Harrington, the Lord Deputy's nephew. Roden broke Burnell's head with his
dagger, and Harrington threatened vengeance. According to Fitton's
account, Harrington's servant, James Meade, met Roden in the street some
days afterwards, and shouting 'Dead, villain!' immediately ran him
through the body. The coroner's jury found that the deed was done in
self-defence, but Meade was indicted for murder in the Queen's Bench, and
the Grand Jury found a bill for manslaughter, whereupon the Lord Deputy
granted a general pardon, and thus defeated both law and justice
entirely. Fitton asked to see the record of pardon, which he retained as
evidence, and, refusing to restore it, was imprisoned in the common gaol
during the Lord Deputy's pleasure. Next day Fitzwilliam thought better of
it, and summoned the Vice-Treasurer to the Council Board, but he refused
to take his seat, declaring that he had done nothing wrong, and that one
who had been judged a contemner of authority was unworthy to act as a
councillor. He pressed hard for a full inquiry, and the noise soon
reached the Queen's ears, who exonerated Fitton, told him to take his
seat again fearlessly, and to repute it praise and honour that he had
suffered for doing her Majesty good service. Fitzwilliam she rebuked
sharply for giving a pardon which she herself would have feared to grant,
lest the blood of slain men should cry vengeance upon the realm. It was
generally said in England, she informed the Irish Council, that they were
the Deputy's tools and Fitton only a true councillor. The Vice-Treasurer
was not likely to hide the letter addressed to himself, and the other
soon got wind in spite of every effort. To the Queen Fitzwilliam could
say little but that he was undeservedly disgraced, and longed to be
recalled, but he rated Fitton before one hundred persons, impeaching his
truth and honesty, and saying that if he kept away from the Council Board
he was but one councillor the less. Having his cue from the Queen, Fitton
dutifully attended next day, and must be allowed on the whole to have got
much the best of it. Fitzwilliam had not the temper to conceal his
feelings, though he dared not dispute her Majesty's decision, for he told
Burghley that the other was a deep dissembler and his professed enemy.
Malicious, false, and cowardly, he had given him two deadly bites, and
was to be distrusted for ever. 'God send me into the earth or to be tied
into a dungeon rather than to be coupled with such a venomous
person.'[257]
[Sidenote: Death of Lord Chancellor Weston.]
At this critical time death deprived the Irish Government of Lord
Chancellor Weston's services. He had held the Great Seal for six years,
respected by all the official world as a father to the commonwealth; and
the very Irishry lamented his loss. Weston was sincerely religious, not
without a tinge of Puritanism, and was filled with anxiety at the
condition of the Irish Church. Non-resident clergymen and desecrated
churches were the rule, and he felt that he was giving a bad example by
holding the temporalities of two deaneries, Wells in England and St.
Patrick's in Ireland. It was thus that scanty salaries were eked out both
before and after the Reformation. His conscientious scruples aggravated
his naturally weak health, mainly caused, as he believed, by the damp
climate, more probably by the want of vegetables and by unskilful
physicians. He left a widow who appears to have been worthy of him, and
an equally virtuous daughter, who was married first to Brady, Bishop of
Meath, and afterwards to Secretary Fenton. Catherine Fenton, the only
daughter of this second marriage, whilst in her nurse's arms, consented
in childish play to be the wife of Richard Boyle, afterwards Earl of
Cork. Many years later Boyle, a widower of four years' standing, actually
married the 'little lady' with whom he had played in his bachelor days.
That she inherited the virtues of her mother, grandmother, and
grandfather, may be inferred from the beautiful passage in which one of
the most powerful and successful men of his time has recorded his debt to
his second wife. 'I never,' he says, 'demanded any marriage portion,
neither had promise of any, it not being in my consideration; yet her
father after my marriage gave me 1,000_l._ in gold with her; but the gift
of his daughter unto me I must ever thankfully acknowledge as the crown
of all my blessings; for she was a most religious, virtuous, loving, and
obedient wife unto me all the days of her life, and the happy mother of
all my hopeful children, who, with their posterity, I beseech God to
bless.' Among the children were the famous Orrery, and the yet more
famous Robert Boyle.[258]
[Sidenote: Catholic intrigues. Rowland Turner.]
The relations of England both with France and Spain were at this time
extremely strained, and Antonio de Gueras, the Spanish Commissioner in
London, thought the expedition of Essex might be turned to good purpose.
The English refugees in Spain and the Low Countries kept pressing Philip
to invade Ireland, and Rowland Turner, calling himself Lord Audley, an
English priest from Louvain, was sent to Ulster with letters from De
Gueras to Sir Brian MacPhelim. Essex, the Spaniard wrote, was about to
land with 3,000 men and to exterminate the O'Neills. In order to
frustrate his plan, Sir Brian was advised to put himself under the
direction of Turner, a prudent, worthy, and faithful Catholic gentleman,
with 500 splendidly armed men awaiting his orders in England. Turner, who
had lately been in Spain, Scotland, and the Isle of Man, was well known
to the English Government; and his foolish boasts about hanging all
Protestants were not likely to enhance his reputation for ability or
discretion. Sir Brian, though very willing to keep off Essex, had no idea
of directly opposing Queen Elizabeth, nor of engaging in oecumenical
plots for the extirpation of heresy. Like Archbishop Fitzgibbon, he
feared that the English Catholics would make a tool of him, and throw him
away when a turn had been served. He received Turner very coldly, who
bitterly complained that he was not believed, though an exile for God's
sake and for that of the Irish. Captain Piers hinted to Sir Brian that
Turner's noble blood was fabulous, and the exile, while insisting upon
his own stainless pedigree, retorted that Piers himself was the son of a
scoundrel, and unworthy of being believed on his oath. His language,
indeed, though he wrote in Latin, was almost worthy of Marryat's
boatswain. The Irish were wretched, beggarly paupers, the slaves of the
English, who took their cattle and fished their waters without payment,
and held all their country either by force or fraud. By listening to
Turner the natives might change all this, and make the English their
slaves for ever. But they would not listen; and Turner shook the dust
from his feet, though Essex thought he could trace the effects of his
machinations. He was afterwards employed by Alva, and received money from
Philip, but he does not appear to have risked a second rebuff in
Ireland.[259]
[Sidenote: Essex can do little or nothing.]
After Smith's death Essex could do little but bemoan his hard fate and
confess that the people, 'to increase their own plague, had refused her
Majesty's mercies.' The causes of failure he thus sums up: 'Two great
disadvantages I find in this little time of my continuance here. The
first by the adventurers, of whom the most part, not having forgotten the
delicacies of England, and wanting resolute minds to endure the travail
of a year or two in this waste country, have forsaken me, feigning
excuses to repair home, where I hear they give forth speeches in dislike
of the enterprise to the discouragement of others. The second, that the
common hired soldiers, both horsemen and footmen, mislike of their pay,
and allege that they were not pressed by commission but by persuasion,
and therefore ought not to be detained in this service longer than they
like to stay. This is not hidden from the Irish, who also are fully
persuaded that this war is altogether mine, alleging that if it were your
Majesty's, it should be executed by the Lord Deputy, being your chief
general here; and therefore thinking that I must be in a short time
wearied with the charge, have confederated to stand in arms, which they
would never do with your Majesty unless it were in respect of me, whereby
I must acknowledge the weakness of myself, and so consequently of any
subject that shall attempt any great service, and therein part with his
prince either honour or profit. Therefore my humble petition is, that,
albeit the moiety of the charge be mine, according to my covenant with
your Majesty, that yet some means may be devised that all the officers,
soldiers, and dealers in this war may seem to be your Majesty's; the war
yours, and the reformation your Majesty's, and I only the instrument and
executor of this service; whereby all men shall either put on better
contentations and new courages, or else I with better warrant may punish
the mutiny and the base ignobility of the soldiers' minds.'[260]
[Sidenote: Falstaffian recruits.]
The Devon and Somerset men, under Captain Burrowes, showed a particularly
craven spirit, and began to desert at the prospect of active service.
Essex hanged a few without much effect, for they preferred both starving
and hanging to fighting. This is not surprising when we consider how they
were recruited. The Privy Council directed the Western gentlemen to call
for volunteers, and in default of a response to press those whom the
country could best spare. Of course they sent all the greatest
blackguards.
[Sidenote: The Irish profess to regard Essex as a mere private person.]
Captain Thomas Wilsford, who saw clearly how matters stood, reported that
the Irish were actuated 'by despair to farm any part of their lands. They
affirm they are no rebels, for that they say it is not the Queen's wars,
and that they do but defend their own lands and goods.' The English,
moreover, were unwarlike, 'through the fat, delicate soil and long peace
at home,' and unable to cope with the Irish, who, while retaining their
native hardiness, had become skilled in the use of weapons. The task was
too great for any but the Queen, though Essex was one to go through with
his undertaking even at the cost of his earldom. He 'shot not at the gain
and revenue of the matter, but rather for the honour and credit of the
cause.' It is not in this poetic fashion that flourishing colonies have
been founded, nor was the Earl himself sanguine, for he sent a trusty
messenger to England with a detailed account of his troubles; and indeed
nothing could be worse than the aspect of affairs, especially after the
escape of Desmond had made it hopeless to expect help from the Pale.[261]
[Sidenote: Appeal to Fitzwilliam against him.]
Essex could do nothing against the enemy, but some whom he considered
lukewarm friends were more within his power. Piers, being accused of
giving information to Sir Brian, was closely imprisoned and treated with
excessive harshness, though there does not appear to have been any
evidence against him. Nor was Fitzwilliam spared, for the Irish very
reasonably held that if the war was the Queen's the army should be led by
the Queen's Deputy, and it is probable that that experienced officer was
of the same opinion himself. Essex professed readiness to serve under him
as a private adventurer, but in the meantime accused him of encouraging
libels against Burghley and himself. 'He could be contented to hear me
ill spoken of openly in his chamber by his own servants, and he to show
countenance, as though he took pleasure in his man's words ... he can be
contented to sit in his chair and smile; and because I see further that
all the Irish messengers of Ulster are daily with his lordship and I no
way made privy to their petitions, or causes of their coming thither, I
conclude that underhand many things may pass to my disadvantage, for
already, whatsoever I require at any Irishman's hands, he appealeth to
the Lord Deputy.'[262] Captain Wilsford thought that Ulster was about
the quietest part of Ireland, and it is likely that Fitzwilliam, besides
a not unnatural jealousy, thought it extremely unreasonable that with the
scanty forces at his disposal he should be in any way called upon to
advance the Northern enterprise.
[Sidenote: The Marward abduction case.]
The carrying off of the Fitzpatrick ladies had created much stir at the
English Court, on account of the high position of the victims. That,
however, was in a remote part of the country, and the captives were
detained as hostages only. The story of an abduction of the day throws
more light upon the state of society than any number of political
disquisitions. Janet Marward, heiress and titular baroness of Skryne in
Meath, a manor worth some 200_l._ a year, was a royal ward, and the Queen
gave her wardship to Fitzwilliam, who sold it to her stepfather, Nicholas
Nugent, second Baron of the Exchequer. Her mother, besides being married
to a judge, was the daughter of a judge, John Plunket, Chief Justice of
the Queen's Bench. Nugent sold the unfortunate girl to his nephew, the
Baron of Delvin's brother. 'Afterwards, by procurement of the mother, the
maid, being but eleven years old, was made to mislike of Nugent and to
like of the young Lord of Dunsany, being of the Plunkets, whereupon there
fell great discord between the Houses of Delvin and Dunsany, and the maid
being by her mother and father-in-law brought into this city as the
safest place to keep her, on Friday last at night about twelve o'clock
the Baron of Delvin's brother, accompanied with a number of armed men,
the watch being either negligent or corrupted, entered one of the postern
gates of the city with twenty swords and entered by sleight into the
house where the maid lay, and forcibly carried her away, to the great
terror of the mother and of all the rest.' William Nugent married the
heiress without her own consent or that of her friends. But we may hope
that in time she got to 'like of' her lawless husband tolerably well, for
when he was in prison for conspiracy nine years after it is recorded that
she sent him some shirts. With such things going on under the very shadow
of Dublin Castle, it is no wonder that Fitzwilliam should clamour for
recall or that he should regret the hard fate of his three marriageable
daughters, who were losing their time in Ireland. Had they been heiresses
and royal wards their lot might have been still harder.[263]
FOOTNOTES:
[234] Thomas Smith, Junior, to Burghley, Sept. 10; Fitzwilliam to Mr.
Secretary Smith, Oct. 21; to Burghley, Oct. 26; to the Queen, Sept. 25;
Edward Maunsel to Fitzwilliam, June 11; Tirlogh Luineach O'Neill to
Fitzwilliam, Oct. 10; Maltby to Fitzwilliam, Oct. 14. Young Smith landed
Aug. 30, 1572.
[235] Sir Thomas Smith to Fitzwilliam, Nov. 8, 1572; Thomas Smith,
Junior, to Burghley, Nov. 21; Fitzwilliam to Burghley, Feb. 18, March 9,
and May 20, 1573.
[236] Perrott to Sir Thomas Smith, Jan. 28, 1572; to the Privy Council
(with Fitzmaurice's submission enclosed), March 3; to Burghley, April 12.
_Perrott's Life_, p. 73.
[237] Desmond to Cecil and to the Duke of Norfolk, Aug. 26, 1568; to the
Privy Council, Nov. 1; to the Queen, July 17, 1569; Sir John of Desmond
to Cecil, May 30, 1569; Note of 1,573_l._ 2_s._ 4_d._ issued out of the
Exchequer for the diets of the Earl of Desmond and Sir John, May 4, 1569.
[238] Sir John of Desmond to the Queen, May 30, 1569; Desmond to Cecil
and Norfolk, Aug. 26, 1568; to the Privy Council, Nov. 1; to the Queen,
July 17, 1569; Lady Desmond to her husband, Nov. 23, 1569; Perrott to
Fitzwilliam, Dec. 4, 1571; St. Leger to the Privy Council, Oct. 17, 1570;
to Burghley, June 6 and July 12, 1571.
[239] Declaration of Martin Frobisher, Dec. 4, 1572. Sir T. Smith to
Burghley, Jan. 10, 1573; W. Herle to Burghley, March 16, 1572. The two
last are in Wright, i. 454 and 475.
[240] Answer of the Earl of Desmond, Jan. 6, 1572-3, in _Carew_. Signed
by Desmond, Jan 21, in presence of several members of the Privy Council.
Sir John of Desmond signs as a witness.
[241] 'Her Majesty is so loth to sign anything that I know not what to
do.'--Sir T. Smith to Burghley, Jan. 10, 1572-3; Wright, i. 456; Fitton
to Burghley, April 10, 1573.
[242] Burghley, Sussex, and Leicester to Essex, March 30, 1574; Sir
Thomas Smith to Burghley, June 2, 1573. 'Her Majesty remaineth in one
opinion for my Lord of Essex. I trust it will continue, and his Lordship
had needs make much haste. The time draweth away, and winds be
changeable, and minds.'--Wright, i. 480. Essex's offers and an abstract
of the grant to him are in _Carew_; and also his covenant with the Queen,
May to July, 1573. See also Devereux, _Earls of Essex_, chap. i., and
Shirley's _Monaghan_.
[243] Brief of Provisions, &c., July 19. Instructions for Mr. Tremayne,
Clerk of the Council, June 9, 1573. Tremayne to Burghley, June 28 and 30,
and July 4; Fitzwilliam to the Queen, June 12; to Burghley, June 30;
Perrott to Warwick, July 14, in _Life_, p. 75; the Queen to Perrott, Aug.
10. Lanfey in Pembrokeshire was a residence of Essex, and he did not get
on well with his neighbour at Carew Castle.
[244] See two letters, June 20 and July 20, 1573, printed in _Lodge's
Portraits_ (Walter, Earl of Essex), from Essex to Burghley. In the R.O.,
calendared under Dec. 1574 (No. 81), is the paper above quoted, which
shows how complete a division of Antrim among the colonists was really
intended.
[245] Essex to Tirlogh Luineach O'Neill, Sept. 6; to Leicester, Sept. 15;
to the Privy Council, Sept. 16; Sir P. Carew to the Privy Council, Sept.
16.
[246] Essex to the Privy Council, Sept. 10.
[247] Essex to the Privy Council, Sept. 29; Sir N. Bagenal to Lord Deputy
and Council, Sept. 27; Sir P. Carew to Burghley, Sept. 29.
[248] Waterhouse to Burghley, Sept. 29; Sussex to Burghley, Oct. 15;
Essex to the Privy Council, Oct. 20 and 28; to Burghley, June 4, 1574.
[249] Perrott to the Privy Council, April 9; to Burghley, April 12 and
May 11; Fitton to Burghley, April 10.
[250] Russell's _Geraldine History_; Perrott to Burghley, May 11 and 18,
and June 18; to the Privy Council, May 21; to Leicester, May 18, in
_Carew_; Lord Deputy and Council to the Queen, May 25; Desmond's answers,
May 18.
[251] Testimonial under town seal of Cork, April 18. Perrott to Burghley,
April 19, with enclosures; to the Privy Council, May 11 and July 2;
Petitions of John Besse and John Moreau, May 11 and June 15; Fitzwilliam
to the Privy Council, June 13, with enclosures. _Perrott's Life_, p. 76.
[252] See State papers of April, 1573. Lord Deputy and Council to the
Queen, June 10, with enclosures; Essex to the Privy Council, Nov. 2.
[253] Perrott to Burghley, July 13; to the Queen, same date; N. Walshe to
Burghley, Sept. 26.
[254] Fitzwilliam to Burghley, Oct. 13; to the Privy Council, Nov. 5; the
Queen to Perrott, Aug. 10; Desmond to the Queen, July 17 and Oct. 28; to
the Privy Council, July 18 and Oct. 28; to Burghley, Oct. 28; Perrott to
Fitzwilliam, July 18; N. Walshe to Burghley, Sept. 26; Bishop of Cork
(Matthew Seaine) to Fitzwilliam, before Oct. 13.
[255] For Desmond's escape, after Oct. 28, and before Nov. 20, see Ware's
_Annals_, Harris's _Dublin_, and Smith's _Kerry_, all varying slightly
from each other. The account of the _Four Masters_, who say nothing of
his having given parole, cannot be reconciled with the dates. Lord Deputy
and Council to Desmond, Nov. 20; Fitzwilliam to the Privy Council, Nov.
20; to Burghley, Nov. 22 and 23; J. Walshe to Burghley, Nov. 30 and Dec.
2.
[256] N. White to Burghley, July 17; H. Colley to N. White, Oct. 10; to
Fitzwilliam, same date; Sir B. Fitzpatrick to Sidney, May 6; Tremayne to
Burghley, July 4; R. Mostyn to Fitzwilliam, Oct. 9; Fitton to Burghley,
June 12 and July 2; to Sir T. Smith, April 10, June 29, and Aug. 12.
[257] Fitzwilliam to Burghley, June 30, Sept. 10, and Oct. 13; to the
Queen and to the Privy Council, Sept. 10; Fitton to Sir T. Smith, June 3;
to Burghley, Sept. 6 and 17; Lord Deputy and Council to the Queen, June
12, with enclosures; the Queen to the Lord Deputy and Council, and to
Fitton, June 29.
[258] Perrott to the Privy Council, May 21, 1573; Weston, C., to
Burghley, Sept. 14, 1569, June 17 and Oct. 20, 1572; to Fitton, Feb. 8,
1573; Lord Deputy and Council to the Queen, June 10, 1573; Wallop to
Walsingham, May 7, 1584, and June 15, 1585; Earl of Cork's _True
Remembrances_. Sidney, Perrott, and Weston, all suffered from stone.
[259] News out of Spain in _Foreign Calendar_, Jan. 5, 1572. A. de Gueras
to the Rebels in Ulster, May 1573; Rowland Turner to Sir Brian MacPhelim,
May 1573; Essex to the Privy Council, Oct. 4; and see _Domestic
Calendar_, additional, Dec. 1573 and Aug. 1574.
[260] Essex to the Queen, Nov. 2, 1573.
[261] Instructions for E. Waterhouse, Nov. 2; Thomas Wilsford to
Burghley, Dec. 1.
[262] Essex to Burghley, Nov. 2 and Dec. 9.
[263] N. White, M.R., to Burghley, Dec. 12, 1573; Fitzwilliam to
Burghley, Oct. 13, 1573; petition to Burghley, Sept. 1582; Ormonde to
Burghley, May 30, 1583.