destroying everything belonging to the English that came in their way, and defeating their armies in several battles. Moving southwards, they stormed and burned Dundalk and Ardee; and at this latter place they set fire to the church of the Carmelite friary, in which a number of people had taken refuge, and burned them all to death. From first to last the campaign was carried on with great cruelty, and with reckless waste of life and property. All food except what was needed for the use of the army was destroyed, though there was a famine, and the people were starving all over the country.

The two leading Anglo-Irish noblemen at this time were Richard De Burgo the Red Earl of Ulster, and Sir Edmund Butler the lord justice. The Red Earl, who was lord of the greatest part of the two provinces of Ulster and Connaught, and was by far the most powerful nobleman in Ireland-much more high and mighty than even the lord justice-raised a large army, chiefly in Connaught, and set out in quest of the invaders. His march north through the Irish districts was perhaps more savagely destructive than that of Bruce, if indeed that were possible; and his reason for thus destroying the property of the Irish people as he marched along, was that he believed they were all in favour of Bruce, which was not the case.

Felim O'Conor the young king of Connaught had joined De Burgo and accompanied the English army. But he was recalled to Connaught to suppress a rebellion of some of his subjects. This weakened De Burgo, who was now attacked by Bruce at Connor near Ballymena and wholly defeated; and he fled back to Connaught crestfallen, with the broken remnants of his. forces.

A body of the defeated English fled eastwards

to Carrickfergus and took possession of the castle, which they gallantly defended for months against the Scots. Soon after the battle at Connor, Bruce had himself proclaimed king of Ireland and formally crowned. Marching next into Meath-still in 1315— he routed an army of 15,000 men under Roger Mortimer at Kells; and at the opening of the new year (1316) he defeated the lord justice, Sir Edmund Butler, at Ardscull near Athy.

Carrickfergus Castle n 1840. From Wright's "Ireland Illustrated."

The preceding harvest had been a bad one, and scarcity and want prevailed all over the country. Nevertheless the Scottish army, wherever they went, continued to ravage and destroy all they could not consume or bring away, multiplying tenfold the miseries of the people, both English and Irish.

Felim O'Conor, having crushed in blood the revolt in Connaught, now changed sides and declared for Bruce. Intending to expel all the English from the

province, he marched to Athenry with a large army; but was there defeated and slain, in 1316, in a great battle by William De Burgo and Richard Bermingham. This was by far the most decisive and fatal defeat ever inflicted on the Irish since the invaders first set foot on Irish soil. Eleven thousand of O'Conor's army fell, and among them nearly all the native nobility of Connaught; so that of all the O'Conor family there survived only one chief, Felim's brother, able to bear arms.

The band of English who had taken possession of Carrickfergus castle held out most heroically, and now Bruce himself came to conduct the siege in person. Reduced to starvation, the brave garrison at last surrendered on condition that their lives should be spared.

King Robert had come over to aid his brother; and early in the spring of 1317 they both set out for Dublin with an army of 20,000, destroying everything in their march. They encamped at Castleknock; but the citizens of Dublin took most determined measures for defence, burning all outside the walls, both houses and churches, to deprive the Scots of shelter; so that the Bruces did not think it prudent to enter on a siege; and they resumed their destructive march till they reached Limerick. But as they found this city also well prepared for defence, and as there was still great scarcity of provisions, they returned northwards after a short stay. They had to traverse the very districts they had wasted a short time before; and in this most miserable march, vast numbers of them perished of cold, hunger, and disease-scourged by the famine they had themselves created.

After this, King Robert, believing it hopeless to attempt the complete conquest of the country, returned to Scotland; but Edward remained, determined to fight.

it out to the end. The two armies rested inactive, and there was a lull for a time, probably on account of the terrible dearth of food. But now came an abundant harvest, and both sides prepared for action. Bruce turned south for another conquering progress, but was met at Faughart two miles north of Dundalk with an army much more numerous than his own, under Sir John Bermingham. He was strongly advised not to fight till more men, who were on their way from Scotland, should arrive; but he was rash and headstrong, and despised his opponents, declaring he would fight if

they were four times more numerous. A.D. 1318 The battle fought here on the 14th October terminated the war. The issue was decided chiefly by Sir John Maupas, an AngloIrish knight, who made a dash at Bruce and slew him in the midst of the Scots. Maupas was instantly cut down; and after the battle his body was found pierced all over, lying on that of Bruce. The invading army was defeated with great slaughter; and the main body of the survivors, including the De Lacys, escaped to Scotland. Bermingham had the body of Bruce cut in pieces to be hung up in the chief towns in the colony, and brought the head salted in a box to king Edward II., who immediately created him earl of Louth and gave him the manor of Ardee.

And so ended the celebrated expedition of Edward Bruce. Though it was a failure, it shook the AngloIrish government to its foundation and weakened it for centuries. Ulster was almost cleared of colonists; the native chiefs and clans resumed possession; and there were similar movements in other parts of Ireland, though not to the same extent. There had been such general, needless, and almost insane destruction of property, that

vast numbers of the people of all classes, settlers and natives, chiefs and peasants, lost everything and sank into hopeless poverty. The whole country was thrown into a state of utter disorder from which it did not recover till many generations had passed away. And to add to the misery, there were visitations of famine and pestilence-plagues of various strange kinds-which continued at intervals during the whole of this century. The native Irish historians of the time regarded the expedition of Bruce with great disfavour; for they looked upon it as answerable for a large part of the evils and miseries that afflicted their unfortunate country.

T the end of the last chapter it was stated that the Anglo-Irish government was greatly shaken by the Bruce invasion: it now grew weaker year by year; and the English, far

from invading new territories, had more

than they could do to defend those they had already acquired. For the Irish, taking advantage of their dissensions and helplessness, attacked them everywhere and recovered a great part of their lands.

Moreover, about this time the English all over the country were fast becoming absorbed into the native population. The Irish, like the Celtic tribes every

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