to the Irish on this occafion, expoftulated with his grace in fo huffing a manner, that it looked as if he meant to challenge him; and his grace, waiting upon his majefty, he defired to know if it was his pleasure, at this time of day, that he should put off his doublet to fight duels with Dick Talbot; for fo he was usually called. Talbot hereupon, was fent to the tower, but after fome time was released upon his fubmiffion."

CHAP.

XXV.

A dangerous confpiracy of the puritans.

is ever

THE confcioufnefs of having done a wrong attended with fome fear of refentment from the party injured. Such was the Duke of Ormond's fituation at this juncture, with refpect to the defpoiled Irish.' "He had fpies and intelligencers in every part of Ireland, who ferved him fo well, that there was not the least motion among them, but it came to his knowledge." Complaints, indeed, that wretched privilege of fufferers, were heard from all parts; but no traces of a confpiracy, nor even endeavours for redress were any where discovered. The cafe was very different with thofe rebellious fectaries, who had got poffeffion of their eftates. For upon the restoring of a few innocents, legally adjudged fuch," they conceived fuch

a

2 66

refentment

a "I confefs (fays Lord Arlington in a letter to Ormond ou this occafion) it will be a hard matter to be very secure of those who see their eftates enjoyed by other men, till time hath accuftomed them to fuch digeftion." State Let. by Brown, p. 408.

"This country (Ireland)," fays the Earl of Effex, lord lieutenant in 1675, "has been perpetually rent and torn since his majesty's restoration. I can compare it to nothing better, than the flinging the reward, upon the death of a dear, among a pack of hounds, where every one pulls and tears where he can for himself; for, indeed, it has been no other than a perpetual fcramble." State Lett. p. 334.

3 C

refentment against the government, for not having divided the spoil of the whole nation among them, that they entered into two dangerous confpiracies on that account; firft, in 1662, to furprise the caftle of Dublin, and afterwards in 1665, for a more desperate purpofe. For, at this latter period, there was a general defign concerted in England, Ireland and Scotland, to rife at one time, and to fet up the long parliament, of which above forty members were engaged. Measures had been taken to gather together the disbanded foldiers of the old Cromwellian army; and Ludlow was to be general in chief. They were to rife all in one night, and to fpare none that would not join in the defign; which was to pull down the king, with the houfe of lords; and, insteads of bishops, to set up a fober, and painful ministry." In thefe confpiracies feveral prefbyterian ministers, and feven members of the Irish parliament, were found to be engaged. The prisons of Dublin were crowded with thefe minifters; and the members of parliament were ignominiously expelled.

6

3 Orrery's State Lett. vol. i. p. 225. 5 Com. Jour. vol. i.

Lord

4 Cart. Orm. vol. ii. 6 Carte ubi fupra.

The Duke of Ormond, in order to quiet the fears of these rebellious fectaries, in a letter to the speaker of the Irish commons, March 9th, 1662, very pertinently reminds them, "that the support and fecurity of a true proteftant English interest, was the earnest defire of his majesty, and the affiduous endeavour of him his fervant, would clearly appear, when it should be confidered, how the council and parliament were compofed ; and withal if it be remembered of whom the army confifted; who were in judicature in the king's courts; who were appointed by his majesty for executing the act of fettlement, and who were in magiftracy in the towns and counties; in which trufts, adds he, is founded the fecurity, interefts, and preference of a people." Com. Jour. vol. ii. f. 299. These were almost to a man, either notorious promoters or secret abettors of the late ufurpation and regicide.

"Vaft fums of money (fays Lord Orrery) were levied for the carrying on this confpiracy, and they had corrupted the most part of the foldiers that were in any freeholds; these freeholds they were to furprize, and to put all that oppofed them to the fword." State Lett. vol. i. p. 225-6.

Lord Orrery, from whom this account is mostly taken, has confessed a truth on this occafion, which he certainly never intended fhould be made public. In a private letter to the Duke of Ormond, he tells him, "that he had brought over Captain Taylor, one of the leaders in this latter confpiracy, to make confes, hions to him; and that he had, as well as he could, laid open to him, the inexpreffible mercy of his majef. ty to that vile party he had engaged himself with; not only in pardoning to them their paft crimes, but also giving them the lands of many who had ferved under his royal enfigns abroad, to pay the arrears which had been contracted against his fervice at home." Such, in those days, were confeffedly the rewards of loyalty, and the punishment of rebellion in Ireland!

CHA P. XXVI.

The Duke of Ormond apologizes for the favour he had fhewn to the Cromwellian party in Ireland.

2

THE Duke of Ormond's ftrange partiality in favour of the partizans of the late ufurpers, to the ruin of fo many thousands of his majesty's loyal, innocent, and meriting subjects, is thus more frangely accounted for

7 State Let. vol. i. p. 226.

A remarkable inftance of this partiality we find in one of his grace's letters to John Walsh, Efq; one of his commiffioners. "You know," fays he, "what my inftructions have been to my commiffioners and fervants: to give up, even whilft I might legally do otherwise, whatever I was poffeffed of, which was but fet out to adventurers or foldiers, though they had not cleared their title in the court of claims." Cart. Orm. vol. ii. Append. fol. 34.

This partiality will appear ftill more ftrange, when it is confidered, "that his grace was the first of that family of the Butlers, that was educated a proteftant; that his mother Lady Thurles, his brothers, fifters, and all his relations continuing

Roman

for by himself. Having, in his speech to parliament on paffing the first act of fettlement, given a most odious and fhocking defcription of these ufurpers, as "murderers of his majesty's father, and ufurpers of his inheritance; whofe endeavours were inceffant to destroy his person, and to blast his fame; who drove him into exile, and all the afflicting circumstances of that miferable state of a king." He thought fit in a fubfequent speech to the fame parliament, on paffing the explanatory act, to obferve, "that it might feem liable to fome objection, that whilft he declaimed against the proceedings of these men, he yet undertook to see them ratified." After which, he ludicroufly, and as if he were fporting with the deftruction of a whole people, adds, " to this I fhall only for the prefent fay, that unjuft perfons may fometimes do juftice; and for inftance, I will affure you, that Ireton, at Limerick, caufed fome to be hanged that deferved it almost as well as himself."

Thus, according to the Duke of Ormond's cafuiftry, Ireton's fuppofed merit in hanging up fome catholics at Limerick (obnoxious perhaps to his grace, though otherwise

VOL. II.

I

K

Borl. Hift. of the Irish Rebel.

Roman catholics, ftill remained in the Irish quarters during the late infurrection; and fuch of them as were able to bear arms, as Lord Muskerry, Colonel Fitzpatrick, his brother-inlaw, his brother Colonel Butler of Kilcash, and Colonel George Mathews, and others his relations, as the Lord Mountgarret, Dunboyne, and divers other lords and gentlemen of his name and family, were generals or commanders of lower quality in the army of the confederates." See Earl of Anglefea's Let. to the Earl of Caftlehaven, p. 62.

b This regicide, "with his own hand, wrote that precept which was fent out under the hands and feals of the others, on the 8th of January 1648, for proclaiming their court for trying his majefty, to be held in the painted chamber on the 10th of the fame month." Trial of the Regicides, p. 10.

"He was once determined to destroy all the inhabitants, men, women and children of a whole barony in Ireland." Morrice's Life of Orrery, p. 33

otherwife good fubjects ), entitled that regicide's vile adherents to be legally invested with the estates and properties, of fo many thousands of the innocent and loyal natives; and that too in breach of articles, by which his grace had folemnly engaged to see these natives restored. But

The chief of those executed at Limerick by Ireton's order, were the titular Bishop of Emely, Major General Purcell, Sir Geoffry Baron, Sir Geoffry Gallway, and the mayor of that city. Thefe Ireton caufed to be put to death, in revenge for their noble perseverance in defending that city, though infected with the plague, for his majefty. "Ireton had fent in articles of furrender, in which he infifted that about feventeen of the principal perfons of the place, who were still for holding it out, fhould be excepted (from mercy). But these made fo ftrong a party, that the treaty was broke up, without any agreement. But the town being afterwards furrendered (by the treachery of Colonel Fennel), the Bishop of Emely, Major General Purcell, &c. were taken in the Peft-house, where they were hid." Ludlow's Memoirs, vol. i. p. 370, &c. Ireton himself, a few days after he had taken Limerick, caught the infection, and died of it there. Ludlow, from whom the above is cited, was one of the judges of that court-martial, which condemned these gentle

men.

The very words of the 2d article of the furrender of Limerick are, But whereas through the practice of fome perfons, more eminent and active than the reft, the generality of the people (of that city) were partly deluded and deceived, by keeping them in vain expectations of relief from one time to another; and partly overawed and enforced by their power to concur, and contribute thus long to the obftinate holding out of the place: therefore the perfons hereafter named, which are Major General Hugo O'Neil the governor, Major General Purcell, Sir Geoffry Gallway, Lieutenant Colonel Lacy, Captain George Wolfe, Captain Lieutenant Sexton, the Bishop of Emely, John Quillan, a Dominican Friar, Capt. Laurence Welsh, a Prieft, Francis Wolfe, a Francifcan Friar, Philip O'Dwyer, á priest, Alderman Dominick Fanning, Alderman Thomas Stretch, Alderman Jordan Roche, Edward Roche, burgefs, Sir Richard Everard, Dr. Higgen, Maurice Baggot of Baggot'stown, and Jeffery Baron, being as aforefaid the principal appearing in fuch practices in this fiege and the holding out fo long, fhall be exempted from any benefit of this article or any article ensuing; and such of them as can be found within the garrifon fhall be rendered up at mercy, upon the furrender of

the