246 



IRELAND. 



taken. 



History, enemy to the Catholic religion ; and, as such, the people 

 V ~"V'' were enjoined not to obey his orders, but only those of 

 an assembly of the clergy ; a sentence of excommuni- 

 cation was at the same time passed against all who 

 should adhere to him, or pay him subsidy or obedience. 

 These violent measures of the clergy were rendered 

 still more so, by a declaration made by the king, in 

 order to please the Scotch, in which he expressed his 

 abhorrence of popery, and pronounced the treaty with 

 the Catholics of Ireland void. Ormond's sole hope was 

 now placed in the Commissioners of Trust, who had 

 the management of the civil affairs of the king; but 

 when they deserted him, by declining to take decisive 

 measures, and passing over the violence of the clergy, 

 he determined to leave the kingdom. This he accord- 

 ingly did, after having appointed Clanricard his depu- 

 ty. As the confederates had now gained their object, 

 by having a Catholic governor, and as the army was 

 wholly Catholic, it was supposed that all causes of dis- 

 content and disunion would be removed ; but so far 

 from this being the case, the clergy, still anxious to 

 raise their own power, secretly intrigued against Clan- 

 ricard, and actually sought to place a foreign prince on 

 the throne of Ireland. This prince was the Duke of 

 Lorrain, with whom they opened a negociation, which, 

 however, was very prudently broken oft" by the Duke, 

 when he learned that the republicans were fast advanc- 

 * ing in their plan to subjugate the whole country. 

 Limerick It was now determined by Ireton to lay siege to Li- 

 and Galwjy merick. In order to defend this important place ef- 

 fectually, Clanricard offered to throw himself into it ; 

 but this was refused by the magistrates, and Hugh 

 O'Neil was admitted to take the command of the gar. 

 rison. The measures he took for the defence of the 

 place, were aided by the approach of winter and the 

 sickness of the republican troops, and probably would 

 have saved it, had not the troops and inhabitants been, 

 divided among themselves, and the prevalent party 

 opened the gates to Ireton. This general intended, 

 immediately on the surrender of Limerick, to have be- 

 sieged Galway ; but he was taken off by a pestilence 

 which then raged, and was succeeded in the command 

 by Ludlow. The death of Ireton at first inspirited the 

 inhabitants of Galway ; but the fate of this place was 

 tjecided like that of Limerick, by internal disputes, and 

 it was surrendered without any opposition. Clanricard 

 upon this fled from the south into the north of Ireland, 

 where at first he met with some slight success, but at 

 length being obliged to capitulate, he was permitted to 

 transport himself and his troops to any foreign country 

 which was not at war with England. 



Soon afterwards, Fleetwood arrived in Ireland, as 

 commander-in-chief of the forces ; but in this capacity 

 he had little or nothing to do, the whole country ha- 

 ving been subdued, or intimidated into submission. 

 Executions and forfeitures now commenced, and both 

 were carried to an excessive degree. 



In 1654, Cromwell having become Protector, sent his 

 son Henry into Ireland to examine into the state of af- 

 fairs, and at the same time ordered that 30 members of 

 the new parliament, which he called, should be chosen 

 from this country. The conduct of his son was judicious 

 and humane ; abuses were reformed in the administra- 

 tion of justice, and in the general policy of the coun- 

 try, so that the Irish generally seemed desirous of sup- 

 porting Cromwell, and were in fact, during the re- 

 mainder of his life, more quiet and contented with his 

 rule than the people of Britain. 



Henry 

 Cromwell 

 in Ireland. 

 A. D. 1664. 



On the death of Cromwell, when the restoration of History. 

 Charles 1 1. seemed probable, {he royalists in Ireland be- Wp Y" 11 '' 

 gan to resume their intrigues, in which they were so 

 successful, that in a short time they made themselves 

 masters of the castle of Dublin, Athlone, Limerick, 

 Drogheda, and in fact nearly the whole kingdom, and 

 Charles was proclaimed in all the great towns. 



While the royalists were thus advancing their own 

 interest, and that of the king, the old Irish Catholics, 

 as usual, were indulging in proceedings and schemes 

 the most violent and outrageous ; these were represent, 

 ed to his majesty as in fact rebellious ; and the conse- 

 quence was, that Charles, on his arrival in London, 

 issued a proclamation commanding a prosecution of all 

 Irish rebels. The settlement of the lands was the next 

 object of the king ; and a declaration for this purpose 

 was issued in May 1659. The great end in view was Act O f stt . 

 the compensation of 'all the innocent and meritorious tlement, 

 Irish ; but, in doing this, it was necessary to preserve A. D. 165*. 

 to the soldiers such lands as had been allotted to them. 

 The persons ordered to be first restored were innocent 

 Protestants or Catholics, to whom no lands had been 

 assigned in Connaught ; next the innocent who had 

 taken decrees for such lands ; then those who had been 

 dispossessed by the two first classes were to receive 

 their reprisals, as it was called ; and, lastly, those Irish 

 were to be restored who claimed the benefit of the peace 

 of 1648, or who had served abroad under the king. Such 

 lands as might remain after these grants, were to be 

 given as a recompense to those who had supplied, pre 

 viously to 1649, arms, provisions, &c. Three new 

 lords justices were appointed. Charles' next step re- 

 lated to the church; the four archbishops, and 12 bi- 

 shoprics, were filled with some of the most eminent 

 clergy, which was a prelude to the regular and full re- 

 establishment of Episcopacy. 



It was in vain, however, that the king expected, by 

 these measures, to satisfy all parties, or to restore una- 

 nimity and satisfaction to a country which had been so 

 long the prey of discord and discontent. The settle- 

 ment of the lands was displeasing to almost all classes ; 

 and the interests of the old Irish Catholics, the other 

 Catholics, the Protestant royalists, and the Puritans, 

 were so much at variance, that the discontents arising 

 from the settlement were much extended and deepen- 

 ed. 



In vain a parliament was summoned, to sanction by 

 their vote the proceedings of the king ; in the Com- 

 mons, the majority was returned by those who were 

 adverse to the Catholics, as they possessed the greatest 

 parts of the land, and the whole interest in the corpo- 

 rations. The Catholics had no members, and little in- 

 fluence in it ; and it was even proposed that a law 

 should be passed to exclude them. But the Commons, 

 not being able to carry this law, they endeavoured t 

 raise alarms of conspiracies ; but here also they were 

 disappointed. There was also a difference of opinion 

 between the two houses regarding the settlement ; the 

 Commons wished to pass it into a law without any al- 

 terations, whereas the Lords wished to make such al- 

 terations as justice seemed to demand. As the king 

 would of course decide those differences of opinion, the 

 various parties sent agents to London. It was now that 

 the Catholics felt the consequences of their former vio- 

 lent .and disloyal conduct; proofs of all their proceed- 

 ings were laid before the king, who, from these, was 

 convinced that they had tendered the sovereignty of 

 Ireland to the Pope; and, if he declined it, to any other 



