aid from the countries where they had taken refuge, and which they had served so well.

His ability.

164. Owen Roe O'Neill chosen as leader. The leaders of the Irish, having determined to act, gathered their armies together, and sent an invitation to Owen Roe O'Neill, a nephew of the great Hugh

OWEN ROE O'NEILL

O'Neill, earl of

Tyrone, to take command. Owen Roe was then in the Netherlands, and was an admirable leader and a most accomplished man, who wrote and spoke Latin, French, Spanish, and English, as well as Irish, his mothertongue. He had

won renown on numerous continental battlefields, and was well fit

From a portrait on wood supposed to have been painted ted, both by genby a celebrated Dutch artist

ius and training, to

lead a national party, not only in council, but in the field.

165. Outbreak of the rebellion. The plan finally agreed on by the Irish leaders was to open the campaign by an attack on Dublin in October, 1641. O'Moore was to surprise Dublin Castle, while at the same time Sir Phelim O'Neill was to attempt the capture of a number of English forts in Ulster, and thus give the signal

and

for a general uprising. In spite of repeated warnings, the Dublin government had no realization of what was taking place till the last moment, when the Maguire lords justices arrested two of the leaders, Ma- MacMahon guire and MacMahon, who were sent to London, captured. convicted, and hanged. The authorities at once strengthened Dublin, so that, if need be, it might stand a siege. If the attack on Dublin failed, on the other hand all

Ulster.

Ulster was soon in the power of the national leaders. Sir Phelim O'Neill, by the subterfuge of a false commission from the king, gained possession of O'Neill in Charlemont Fort; and Newry, Dungannon, and other strongholds were also taken. Sir Phelim was now at the head of thirty thousand undisciplined men, drawn from among the dispossessed tribesmen, whose Merciless one desire was to seek revenge and plunder. devastaFor a few days the determination to avoid unnecessary bloodshed was carried out. Then the army

tion.

began to burn and kill. It was the progress of Mountjoy repeated, but with the tables turned. The blood of thousands, innocent and guilty, flowed together; settlers and natives, Protestants and Catholics, butchered each other. In many instances Protestants were protected from the army through the interposition of the Catholic clergy.

166. Four parties in Ireland. At the beginning of 1642, we find four fairly well defined parties in Ireland, each of which had control of an army. First Old Irish. was the Old Irish, which stood for total separation from England. This party included those who had suffered most from the plantations and the religious persecutions. They were in possession of Ulster. SecAnglo-Irish ond came the old Anglo-Irish or Normans, who Catholics. had suffered in the same way, though not so severely. They stood for civil and religious liberty, but in political union with England. They occupied the central and southern parts of the country. These two parties were both Catholic, but, from lack of union, they greatly weakened their cause. Third, there were the Presbyterians and Puritans, under Robert Monro in Ulster, adherents of the English Parliamentarians and working with the Scottish Covenanters, the most bitter enemies of the king. They were naturally extremely hostile toward the Catholic parties. Fourth, there were the Royalists, with their strongRoyalists. hold in Dublin. They belonged to the Anglican established church, which recognized the king of England as its head.

Puritans.

167. Arrival of Owen Roe O'Neill. For nearly a year fighting went on in Ulster, the Old Irish under Phelim O'Neill attacking Monro and his Puritans with varying success. Sir Phelim was a bad general, so Monro

the Old

began to gain ground steadily. Ulster had become a wilderness during months of relentless warfare and devastation, when the Irish cause was strengthened by the arrival of the long-expected Owen Roe O'Neill, in July, He takes 1642. He brought a large number of conti- command of nental officers with him from Belgium, where Irish. he had done brilliant service for the Spanish armies. With his headquarters in Tyrone, in the heart of his ancestors' territory, he and his officers immediately set about forming a disciplined army, drilling and training recruits to add to the Old Irish army. The new general immediately put an end to all acts of lawlessness and cruelty, ordered the release of the Protestant prisoners, and punished many of those who had been guilty of outrage and violence.

Aimed to

unite all

Catholics.

168. Confederation of Kilkenny. Both Catholic armies now had competent leaders and were fairly well equipped, but there was no union, either of purpose or of organization, between them. An important step toward attaining this end was now taken in the Confederation of Kilkenny, an elected representative body which assembled at the suggestion of the Catholic bishops, on October 24, 1642. It had as its main aim the union of the various Catholic interests into one solid party. The confederation was well supplied with funds, and spent largely on shows and pageants. We read of an endless series of illuminations, banquets, and balls. The members of the great Norman houses of Leinster vied with each other in display. The Supreme Council journeyed in state from Kilkenny to Wexford, from Wexford to Waterford, from Waterford to Limerick and Galway, surrounded by hundreds of horsemen with drawn swords, and accompanied by numerous officials. We hear of civil and

military representations, of comedies and stage-plays, feasts and banquets, and "palate-enticing dishes " during the journey.

169. The Parliament of Kilkenny. The parliament which met on October 24, 1642, consisted of eleven bishops, fourteen lords, and two hundred and twentysix commoners. Its first official act was a formal declaration of loyalty to the king, for no sooner had the new parliament met than the Royalists of Dublin proceeded to denounce its organizers as rebels. Its second act was to assume the government of the country, according to the provisions drawn up at a preliminary meetSupreme Council ing. A Supreme Council of twenty-four memelected. bers was elected, six being chosen from each province. This council minted money and enlisted soldiers to form a national army.

His false overtures.

170. Attitude of Charles I. Owen Roe O'Neill was at the head of the Old Irish army in Ulster, opposing Monro; while Preston, with the Anglo-Irish in Leinster, was opposed to the Royalists. The king meanwhile continued his policy of short-sighted self-seeking, breaking pledges whenever he saw a slight temporary advantage. The chasm between him and his parliament was growing daily wider; he was, therefore, willing enough to make friends with the Supreme Council of the Confederation at Kilkenny, hoping to use them as allies in his English wars. His ministers, and especially Ormond, appointed lord lieutenant in 1644, caused this plan to miscarry. Moreover, when attacked in parliament, and accused of seeking help from Ireland, Charles did not hesitate to disown the authorities at Kilkenny, saying he had never had anything to do with them. At this, the latter were very naturally disgusted.

171. Lack of union among the Catholics. The Pope