Tyrone's Rebellion Flashcards
Long term causes: religion
After the break from Rome, Ireland remained Catholic which raised concerns that the Irish may support a Catholic crusade against England.
Settlers saw it as their God given duty to convert Irish and the Irish linked protection of Catholicism to the protection of Irish practises
Long term causes: plantation
The English Lord Deputy, Sussex, fortified the Pale and encouraged English settlers to move into territoy just outside the Pale to ‘civilise’ the Irish
Attempted plantation in Ulster, the most gaelic part of Ireland
Short term causes: Councils
E pursued a more hardline policy after the revolt of the N. Earls by setting up the Councils of Connaught and Munster
Subdivided Irish regions into English style counties to anglicise the Irish.
Led to 2 unsuccessful rebellions in Munster
Short term causes: composition + example
Used to increase hold over Ireland. This was when the English tried to get payments that would usually be split between them and Irish lords to be paid directly to them.
1585- Irish landlords agreed to pay 10 shillings for every 50 hectares of land they owned and in exchange, they had to accept English style gov.
Short term causes: incursions into Ulster 1570s
The O’Neill’s governance of Ulster was disputed by the O’Donnells. As the English encroached on Ulster, the two clans united against a common enemy.
Short term causes: incursions into Ulster 1570s (English response)
1574- killed 200 members of O’Neill clan at a feast they had invited the clan to
1575- killed 500 members of O’Donnell clan in a suprise raid
Significant damage to Anglo Irish relations
Short term causes: Tyrone’s grievances
1593- Maguire attacked English garrison in Ulster and Tyrone helped to capture him. He recieved no recognition for this but he wanted governance of Ulster (his family goverened it in the past)
He was overlooked in favour of englishmen with connections to E. Appointments to office were dominated by English due to patronage
Tyrone’s army in 1595
1000 cavalry, 4000 musketmen and 1000 pikemen (well equipped/ trained)
Support from other Ulster cheiftans e.g. O’donnell and Maguire because they have a common enemy.
Many Irishmen had deserted the English army to join the cause
Spanish support under Philip 2nd
Philip saw it as his duty to help fellow Catholics.
Irish Spanish contact as early as 1593. Further negotiations for money, men and a 2nd Armarda to Ireland.
Armarda dispersed by strong winds which forced many of the ships to return to Spain
Spanish support under philip 3rd
1601- Sent troops to Ireland but some ships carrying weapons were separated in a storm. When they reached Kinsale, only 3400/6000 men were there.
Too late because the rebellion was already weakening
Why did the English lose the Battle of Curlew Pass?
Essex ordered Sir Conyers Clifford to rescue O’Connor (an Anglo Irish chief loyal to England)
They had to pass through the Curlew mountains which led to the deaths of 12 800 out of 17 200 Englishmen and the death of Clifford because they were ambushed
Causes: crackdowns on Irish
Execution of Hugh Roe McMahon
Causes: walter releighs
Confiscates large portions of Irish lands for himself
Why did the English see the Irish as savages?
They had different customs like tanistry instead of male primogeniture and blood fueds
What happened during the battle of clontribet (1595)?
Bagenal marched his 1750 men towards Monaghan where they were ambushed by Tyrone’s 4000 men. Tyrone ran out of gunpowder and Bagenal had to be rescued at sea
In the early stages, how many men did the gov promise to give to Lord Deputy Russell?
2000 but they only gave him 1616 but they were in poor condition
What happened between 1596-98?
Negotiations between Tyrone and E and negotiations with Phillip II of Spain
What happened at the battle of yellow ford (1598)?
Tyrone and his 5000 men attacked Bagenal’s 4200 men. Bagenal and 830 of his men are killed. Emcouraged by Tyrone’s success Munsters overthrew the plantation and killed/captured the settlers.
What happened at Curlew Pass (1599)?
Essex orders Clifford to rescue O’connor with 1490 footmen. Theyare ambushed and Clifford along with 1/3 of his army are killed
What happened at the Battle of Kinsale (1601)?
With an army of 7000, Mountjoy beseiged Kinsale and Tyrone marched south to meet the Spanish. They had an army of 6500 and the English defeated them.
Siege of Dunboy (1602)
Carew lays seige to Dunboy to stop the Spanish giving Tyrone weapons and gold. Mountjoy chased Tyrone into the woods and his followers submitted to the English
How did Hugh o’Neill’s dispute for leadership contribute to him rebelling?
To resolve the dispute, Lord Deouty John Perrot wanted to split Ulster between the two claimants to weaken Ulster so that England could control it.
O’Neill was very opposed to this
How did Lord Deputy John Perrot’s actions lead to Hugh Roe O’Donnell rebelling?
O’Donnell was involved in a dispute for control over the clan so the Lord Deputy decided to weaken the clan by having him kidnapped and imprisoned in Dublin Castle.
He escaped, became disillusioned with the English and started the rebellion with Maguire
Was Hugh Roe O’Donnel a skilled soldier/military commander?
Yes
How did the English authorities’ actions lead to Florence MacCarthy joining the rebellion?
They stoked tensions between him and his uncle (leadership challenge) and when MacCarthy attempted to seize his lands, he was imprisoned in the tower of london.
When did Florence MacCarthy join the rebellion and how long was he involved with it for?
1600 (remained neutral until the English tried to destroy his estates)
2 months
Role of Bagenal in starting the rebellion
Member of the English gentry who had a dispute with Tyrone over the right to be overlords over the O’Hanlon clan (incursions into Ireland)
Power struggle between him and Tyrone led to Tyrone feeling more alienated
Bagenal’s role in the rebellion
Marshall of the English army in Ireland.
His poor military prowess led to his men being deated at Clontribet and YellowFord (was killed at Yellowford)
When does Bagenal defeat Maguire?
1593
Role of Essex in putting down the rebellion
Became Lord Lieutenant of Ireland but underestimates rebel forces
Captures Cahir Castle but his men are ambushed at Curlew Pass.
Meets with O’Neill to negotaite a truce but Elizabeth got angry so he dispersed his army and went back to court.
Role of Mountjoy in putting down the rebellion
Arrived as the new Lord Deputy in 1600.
Destroyed Irish countryside to deprive rebels of food (effective)
Laid seige to Kinsale, forcing O’Neill to march South where he defeated O’Neill and forced him to retreat to Ulster where he surrendered
How many men did Mountjoy have?
13 200 men
(English weaknesses) Elizabeth’s income. Give an example
Her income of about £300 000 per year was not enough to deal with financial costs of war. eg maintaining English forces in the Netherlands costed £100 000 a year
(English weaknesses) how much money had Elizabeth spent on campaigns in Ulster by 1597?
£300 000 (a year’s income)
(English weaknesses) what was the largest expense for the English goverment?
Tyrone’s rebellion
(English weaknesses) repercussions of financial weaknesses on the war effort
Most English soldiers were untrained and the government had to rely on trained bands. (Reduced effectiveness of army)
There was nearly a mutiny of Kentish cavalry because they did not want to be sent to a ‘dangerous’ Ireland
