312 
IRELAND. 
landing in Donegal from Dunkirk, with a confiderable 
fupply of arms and ammunition, was chofen generaliffimo 
of the northern confederacy. The earl of Leven, in a 
letter to O’Nial, exprefl'ed his furprife that a man of his 
reputation (hould have come to Ireland to fupport fo bad 
a caufe ; but received for anfwer, that O’Nial’s coming 
for the relief of his country was more reafonable than his 
lordfliip’s march into England againft his king. 
The rebels in other parts were likewife encouraged by 
fupplies from abroad ; the French minifter, cardinal Ri¬ 
chelieu, deeming it the wifeft policy to find the Englilh 
fufficient employment at home: Two veffels with arms 
and ammunition arrived at Wexford j and were followed 
by three ffiips of war, and fix other veffels, bringing ar¬ 
tillery and other warlike ftores, a number of engineers 
and five hundred officers. Similar fuccours were lent in 
twelve other Ihips from different ports of France. By 
thefe fupplies the infurgents were even enabled to employ 
armed veffels to crude in the Irifh channel; and the 
Jcarcity, already great in the capital from the devaftation 
of the country, was increafed by the capture of feveral 
Ihips laden with provifions. 
From the arrival of Owen O’Nial, hoftilities were con- 
duffed with lefs barbarity on the part of the rebels. 
Though a bigot in religion, that officer manifefted fucli 
horror of the atrocities committed by fir Phelirh and his 
followers, that he let fire to the hou'fes of the molt noto¬ 
rious murderers, declaring that he would rather join the 
Englilh than fuffer wretches who had fo difgraced their 
caufe to efcape with impunity.. Various are the ftatements 
of the number of protelfants put to death in Ireland dur¬ 
ing this calamitous period; feme writers eftimating it at 
150,000, and others reducing it to 30,000 and lefs; while 
the calculation of Warner, whole hiltory founded on po- 
fitive evidence and Ifrifl enquiries feems moft defervingof 
credit, makes the viflims amount to no more than 4000 
who perifned by violent means, and 8000 by ill ufage. In 
many parts of the country, at the commencement of the 
rebellion, the colonilts had been driven from their homes 
in fuch a deftitute condition, that numbers perilhed by 
famine and the inclemency of the weather. 
Hitherto the rebels had been without union or any plan 
of operations; but in 1642 means were adopted for giv¬ 
ing a confiltent form to their proceedings. To this end, 
a provincial fynod of the catholic clergy was firll held at 
Armagh; and afterwards, in May, a general fynod of all 
the provinces at Kilkenny. Here the members of a fu- 
preme council were nominated with the concurrence of 
the nobility and gentry, and a national convention was 
appointed to meet in the fame place in October. By this 
convention, compofed of the Romiffi lords and prelates, and 
the deputies from the feveral counties and principal towns, 
was affigned to each county a council of twelve perfons, 
impowered to decide in all matters cognizable by juftices 
of the peace, pleas of the crown, fuits for debt and per- 
fonal attions, and to nominate all county officers except the 
high-ffieriff. From thefe lay appeals to provincial coun¬ 
cils, each confifting of two deputies from every county in 
the province, appointed to meet four times a-year, and to 
aft with fome limitations as judges of aflize. From the 
provincial councils appeals were to lie to what was Ityled 
The Supreme Council of the confederate Catholics of Ire¬ 
land, compofed of twenty-four perfons chofen by the ge¬ 
neral convention. Twelve of thefe were to refide at Kil¬ 
kenny, or fome other convenient town ; no fewer than 
nine could compofe a council; and, to carry any meafure, 
the concurrence of two thirds of the fitting members was 
neceffary. To this affembly was committed the conduct 
of the war, the appointment of all officers civil and mili¬ 
tary, and the nomination of fheriffs. The general affem¬ 
bly commanded all perfons to be faithful to the king, 
and to maintain his juft prerogative, but utterly denied 
the authority of the Irifh government adminiftered by “a 
malignant party to his highnefs's great differvice, and in 
compliance with their confederates the malignant party 
in England.” They profefled to adopt as their rule of go¬ 
vernment, the common law of England combined with the 
ll3tutes of Ireland, fo far as they were confiftent with the 
rights and immunities of the catholic religion. 
While the infurgents were thus gaining ltrength by 
their union, their opponents, following the tide of Eng- 
lifli affairs, became divided into the parties of royalilts 
and parliamentarians, each of whom eagerly fought to 
gain over the army of Ireland to their fide. The majo¬ 
rity of thofe troops, influenced by Ormond, who for his 
fervices had been created a marquis, favoured the caufe 
of the king; while the lords juftices and their depend¬ 
ants were the decided adherents of the parliament. The 
jealoufies and difeuffions arifing from this fource could 
not but prove highly advantageous to the confederate 
Irifh, and had nearly involved Ormond and the army un¬ 
der his command in deftruction. He had marched for 
the purpofe of reducing Rofs and Wexford ; and, in full 
reliance on the promife of the lords juftices to fend him 
ftores by fea, he laid fiege to the former place. Difap- 
pointed in his expeftation, repulfed in an affault on the 
town, and having provifions for only three days remain¬ 
ing, he was obliged to raife the fiege. His fituation would 
have been defperate, if general Prefton, the commander of 
the rebels in Leinfter, who, with a far fuperior force of 
6000 foot and 600 horfe, occupied a defile through which 
Ormond was obliged to pafs, had maintained his pofition. 
Confident of victory over an enemy enfeebled by want of 
fufficient food and the feverity of winter, he quitted his 
ftrong poft, and advanced into the plain, where Ormond, 
by a fkilful difpofition and fpirited attack, threw the rebel 
troops into confufion, and preffed them with fuch vigour, 
that they were routed with the lofs of 500 men and all 
their ammunition and baggage. This viflory would have 
been ftill more decifive but for the behaviour of the En- 
glifh cavalry under lord Lifle, who, immediately after the 
aftion, left Ormond to fhift for himfelf. 
Meanwhile Galway fell into the hands of the infur¬ 
gents; and it appeared highly probable that the few re¬ 
maining provinces in Connaught would yield to their ef¬ 
forts. In Munfter, a detachment under fir Charles Va- 
vafor was defeated by lords Mufkerry and Caftlehaven 
with the lofs of 600 men killed, 700 mufkets, and all the 
artillery and baggage. In Ulfter, the Scotch under Mon¬ 
roe were repulfed with lofs by Owen O’Nial, who, though 
afterwards difeomfited by an Errgllfti force under fir Ro¬ 
bert Stewart, yet, being well fupplied by the fupreme 
council, maintained a fuperiority over his necellitous 
adveffaries, who were not only unpaid, but unable any 
longer to procure fubfiftence from the exhaufted inha¬ 
bitants. 
The ftate of the kingdom feemed imperioufly to de¬ 
mand an accommodation with the rebels; and, to pave 
the way to it, the king removed Parfons from the office 
of lord juftice, and appointed fir Henry Tichburne in his 
place. A royal commiffion was ifi'ued, authorizing the 
marquis of Ormond to treat with the infurgents; who, 
after fome negociation, on the 15th September, 1643, con¬ 
cluded an armiftice for one year; the confederates ftipu- 
lating to pay the king 30,000k one half in money in fe¬ 
veral payments, and the other in cattle. This treaty, 
equally reprobated by violent catholics and fanatic puri¬ 
tans, was of no real fervice to the king. Lord Byron, at 
the head of 3560 troops fent by Ormond to England, was 
defeated in Chelhire by Fairfax with the lofs of nearly 
half his force, and all his artillery, baggage, and ammu¬ 
nition. Though farther reinforcements were fent from 
Ireland, nothing of confequence was effected. Some of 
the tranfports being intercepted by Ihips of war belong¬ 
ing to the parliament, increafed the number of victims 
facrificed by the rage of civil and religious bigotry. 
Among the reft, a veffel bound to Briftol being in this 
predicament, the parliamentary commander fele£ted 70 
a men 
