Rebellion, Invasion and Occupation
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REBELLION, INVASION AND OCCUPATION: A MILITARY HISTORY OF IRELAND, 1793-1815 A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in History in the University of Canterbury by Wayne Stack University of Canterbury 2008 Dedicated to Susanne, Seamus and Niamh Contents Abstract 1 Preface 3 List of Tables 6 List of Maps 7 Maps 8 Chapter 1 – An Introduction: the British military in Ireland in the Eighteenth Century – towards crisis 15 Chapter 2 – The militia 34 Chapter 3 – The yeomanry 59 Chapter 4 – British military presence and the Management of the Irish Garrison up to 1798 87 Chapter 5 – 1798: Irish Roles in the Suppression of Rebellion and Defeat of Invasion 129 Chapter 6 – Outcomes from 1798 184 Chapter 7 – Conclusion 210 Appendix 1- Table of Permanent Barracks in Ireland, August 1811 223 Appendix 2 - Table of Temporary Barracks in Ireland, August 1811 225 Bibliography 228 1 Abstract The history of Ireland is complex, and has been plagued with religious, political and military influences that have created divisions within its population. Ireland’s experience throughout the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars highlighted and intensified such divisions that have influenced Irish society into the twenty-first century. This body of work is an analysis of the British army in Ireland during the period 1793 to 1815, which proved to be a critical era in British and Irish history. The consequences of the events and government policies of that time helped to determine the social and political divisions within Ireland for the following two centuries. The intension of this thesis is to provide an analytical synthesis of the military history of Ireland during this time, focusing on the influences, experiences and reputations of the various elements that comprised the Irish military forces. This revisionist study provides an holistic approach by assessing the militia, yeomanry, fencible and regular regiments in relation to their intended purpose within Britain’s strategy. By focussing on deployment, organization, performance, leadership and reputations, as well as political and military background, a number of perpetual misconceptions have been exposed, especially in relation to the negative historiography surrounding the Irish militia and yeomanry due to sectarian bias. This work shows that Ireland became an important facet of the tactical and strategic thinking of both the French and British governments at this time, with Britain needing to defend the kingdom against any possible invasion to secure its own defence. This resulted in the British military occupation of a kingdom whose population had been polarised by civil rebellion, invasion and renewed religious bigotry. A close examination of the military history of the kingdom during these 2 crucial years provides a better understanding of how the Irish became, and remained, a socially and politically divided people, while being subjected to the political and military dominance of Britain. 3 Preface In 2003 I enrolled at the University of Canterbury as a mature student to study for a degree in history. After eighteen years in the New Zealand Police, and with a young family, I considered it time that I re-evaluated my career options. I had always been a prolific reader of history and my thirst for historical knowledge remained unquenched, so undertaking a programme of formal study was the obvious option for me to take. During my undergraduate study I was fortunate enough to enrol in Eighteenth-Century Rebellions in Britain, a course taught by Professor John Cookson, which sadly, due to his later retirement, is no longer available to students. This course introduced me to the 1798 Irish Rebellion, a revolt which I had previously known very little about but which now intrigued me, especially due to my Irish ancestry. Thus, the decision to conduct a study of the military history of Ireland during the period of 1793-1815 for my Masters thesis proved a natural choice in that it combined my longstanding interests in military and Irish history. In this thesis I have attempted to provide a balanced synthesis of the military history of Ireland during these turbulent times, by examining the various elements of the Irish military establishment, the roles they played and the events with which they were involved. What became very obvious early in my reading was that the Irish played a significant part in the defence of Britain, as well as their own country. Until recently, the traditional British bias towards the Irish has been responsible for the limited recognition of this, especially in regard to the Irish militia. Generally lacking the training, discipline and professional supervision of regular regiments, the militia provided the majority of troops who effectively contained and extinguished the rebellion prior to the bulk of the reinforcing British regiments arriving from Britain. 4 Admittedly, I found myself having some empathy with the plight of the militiamen in dealing with their fellow Irishmen, when reflecting on my own service as a policeman in my home-town of Westport, where on occasions I was required to act as an agent of the government in containing aggressive protests against unpopular government policies affecting the local economy. My sincere thanks must go to John Cookson, whom I am heavily indebted to in regard to this work. It was he who initially suggested the topic to me and agreed to supervise me in this endeavour after he had already supervised my Honours dissertation. Not only has he provided me expert advice and guidance in ensuring that the thesis has developed from the raw draft initially presented to him, but he also provided me with his collection of primary source notes and microfilm that have proved invaluable. Although well-deserved, his retirement is a loss to the University of Canterbury and to future history students. I am also indebted to Graeme Dunstall, who as my senior supervisor provided sound guidance and critique that ensured the improved structure of the thesis. Thanks must also go to Judy Robertson, office administrator of the School of History, for her welcoming smile and helpful manner that has ensured my time studying history has remained hassle free. I would also like to acknowledge the dedication and professionalism of the other academic staff of the School of History who have provided me with enthusiasm and support throughout my time at Canterbury. Undoubtedly, my greatest thanks must go to my wife, Susanne, whose love, support and sacrifice has ensured that I have been able to take my passion for history to another level. She encouraged me to follow my dream when others questioned my sanity in relinquishing ‘a perfectly good salary’ to lead the impoverished life of a student with a family. However, the student lifestyle has ensured that I have been able 5 to combine study with quality family time, with my children, Seamus and Niamh, unable to avoid being indoctrinated with my views of historical issues. Thus, it is to my family that I dedicate this work. 6 List of Tables Table 2.1 – Proportion of Catholics to Protestants in the Irish militia, p. 40 Table 2.2 – Irish militia, 1802: Catholic and Protestant rank & file of the Light infantry brigade, p. 42 Table 3.1 – Yeomanry: Provincial comparison, p. 69 Table 3.2 – Yeomanry Corps establishment, 1796-1815, p. 86 Table 4.1 – The armed forces of the crown in Ireland, 1 January 1793 to 1 January 1800, p. 96 Table 5.1 – Irish militia involvement in the 1798 rebellion, p. 135 Table 6.1 – Yeomanry cavalry and infantry numbers, 1796-1815, p. 188 Table 6.2 – Irish establishment, 1793-1802, p. 195 Table 6.3 – Irish militia: rank & file strength, p. 199 7 List of Maps Map 1 – Ireland in the eighteenth century (Source: Notes supplied by Professor Cookson) Map 2 – Locations of Rebellion action and French expeditions (Source: Pakenham, The Year of Liberty, revised edition, abridged by Toby Buchan, p. 112) Map 3 – Proposed Distribution of the Irish Garrison, Summer 1796 (Source: Camden to the duke of Portland, 21 March 1796 – National Archive, Kew, HO 100/60) Map 4 – Rebellion in County Kildare, May 1798 (Source: Pakenham, The Year of Liberty, revised edition, abridged by Toby Buchan, p. 114) Map 5 – French invasion of County Mayo, August 1798 (Source: Pakenham, The Year of Liberty, revised edition, abridged by Toby Buchan, p. 117) Map 6 – Rebellion in County Wexford, May-June 1798 (Source: Pakenham, The Year of Liberty, revised edition, abridged by Toby Buchan, p.115) Map 7 – Rebellion in Ulster, June 1798 (Source: Pakenham, The Year of Liberty, revised edition, abridged by Toby Buchan, p. 116) Map 8 – Irish Yeomanry: County density, 1797 (Source: Blackstock, An Ascendancy Army, p. 119) Map 9 - Irish Yeomanry: County density, 1803 (Source: Blackstock, An Ascendancy Army, p. 120) 8 Map 1 9 Map 2 10 Map 3 11 Map 4 Map 5 12 Map 6 13 Map 7 14 Map 8 Map 9 15 Chapter 1 An Introduction: the British military in Ireland in the eighteenth century- towards crisis. The history of Ireland is colourful and complex, and has been plagued with religious, political and military influences that have created divisions within its population for nearly one thousand years. Ireland’s experience throughout the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars highlighted and intensified such divisions that have influenced Irish society into the twenty-first century. The intention of this thesis is to provide an analytical synthesis of the military history of Ireland during this time, focusing on the influences, experiences and reputations of the various elements that comprised the forces in Ireland. To date only a small number of comprehensive academic studies have been made of the Irish establishment at this time, with only three comprehensive studies fully focussing on either the Irish militia or the Irish yeomanry.