RAINBOW FARMS    AUSTRALIA                                            

                                                                                                                 1691 - 1692 AD 

 

1691 AD May: Louis XIV, the French King, sent over St. Ruth, another of his Generals, to Ireland, who was to be in command of James 11's Royalist troops only, and he brought with him arms, supplies and money, but no troops and he did not hit it off with either, Richard Talbot the Earl of Tyrconnell, who was James 11's Lord Lieutenant in Ireland, or Patrick Sarsfield, who was now a very popular commander among the Irish forces as Richard Talbot wanted to try and hold their position in the City of Limerick, in Co. Limerick in the mid - north - west of the Munster Province on the eastern side of the River Shannon.  St. Ruth had decided to make a stand against the invading forces of William of Orange at the River Shannon crossing, that was situated further north near Ballinasloe in Co. Galway in Southern Connacht, as a further attempt to also protect the City of Galway.

June 30th: the invading forces of William of Orange, under the command of his General de Ginkel, had already managed to gain the town of Athlone in Co. Westmeath, on the eastern side of the River Shannon, in the south - west of Northern Leinster, which had been previously defended by St. Ruth also, and this now gave the Williamite forces access to the west of Ireland, and they crossed over the River Shannon into the Connacht Province. 

     Meanwhile, in the south James 11's Irish forces, who held the Tralee Castle of the Fitz Gerald Desmonds and the town of Tralee itself in Co. Kerry in the south - west of the Munster Province, were now forced to retreat and burn both, when William of Oranges'  forces also besieged the town there. 

July 12th: With the loss of Athlone in Co. Westmeath to de Ginkel the Dutch General, St. Ruth the overall Royalist commander, withdrew to the heights of Kilcommodan Hill, to the south of Aughrim in Co. Galway in Southern Connacht, where there was a bog stretching for a mile in front, and where there were only two approaches available to carry out an attack against his Irish forces with one to the right, near the hills of Urachree, and one to the left that went through a narrow causeway, which was defended by a castle that was situated there. De Ginkel the Dutch General, had around 18,000 men, and St. Ruth a few thousand more then that, but Fate would have it that during the battle St. Ruth was to be struck by a cannon ball, which took off his head. (In 1960 a Cross would be erected there in Aughrim, to commemorate all those who fell there during this particular battle.) Meanwhile, William of Orange himself, was attempting to capture the City of Limerick further to the south, below the Connacht Province, which was situated there on the east bank of the River Shannon in the Munster Province, while waiting for his artillery to follow him down from the town of Cashel in Co. Tipperary in the north - east of Munster and the arrival of more arms, that were being forwarded from the City of Waterford in Co. Waterford in the south - east of Munster, to Limerick but they could not get through.

 July 21st:  The City of Galway in Co. Galway in Southern Connacht, had by now surrendered to de Ginkel the Dutch General, and all of the hopes of James 11's Royalist Irish forces now lay further to the south with the defence of the City of Limerick on the east side of the River Shannon, in the mid - north - west of the Munster Province. (This was to be their only means of sustaining the fight now in Ireland against the invading foreign forces of William of Orange in Ireland.) Lauzun, who was another French General, was to eventually arrive into Ireland to replace the recently deceased St. Ruth, and he too was given command of the Royalist Irish forces, but he also considered that it was not a proposition to try and defend Limerick, and he headed north to Co. Galway to take de Ginkel head on instead. He handed over the defence of Limerick to the Governor of Limerick and Patrick Sarsfield the Royalist Irish commander, who had arrived back into Limerick with 20,000 Kerns / foot soldiers and 3,500 Marchi / Horsemen. (Patrick's mother was a daughter of Rory O More the Gaelic Milesian Irian Chieftain from Co. Laois in the mid - north - west of Southern Leinster, who was the commander of the Royalist Irish troops in England. Eventually the French General, Lauzan, was to be recalled back to France by Louis XIV together with his French troops. (After the City of Galway was to be besieged by de Ginkel the Dutch General on behalf of William of Orange, this once great City was to go into decline.)

    The Portumna Castle in Co. Galway in Southern Connacht, that had been constructed by the Burkes, and was still under the control of Burke the Earl of Clann Rickarde, stood up to the siege of the Williamite forces, while the Heberian Cianachta O Garas of Coolavin in Co. Sligo in the north - west of the Connacht Province, who had also supported James 11 there, were to lose all of their remaining territory and go into exile.

 August 3rd - 13th: Patrick Sarsfield, the Royalist Irish commander for James 11, was to be totally involved in defending the City of Limerick in Co. Limerick in the mid - north - west of the Munster Province, situated on the eastern side of the River Shannon, adjacent to Co. Clare, against the Williamite forces second ongoing siege of the City and he then received vital information from a French Huguenot, that the Williamite forces were expecting a siege train, that would be soon arriving into Co. Limerick, with further Military armaments to be used against the defenders in the City. With 500 - 600 of his cavalry he crossed over the River Shannon to the west into Co. Clare, and headed north - east until they came to Keeper's Hill, and with Galloping O Hogan guiding them on through the dark, they then crossed over the River Shannon again to the east near Killaloe, and into Co. Tipperary to once again go on down the eastern side of the River Shannon to Ballyneety, near Oola 17 miles to the north of Limerick City. Along the way they had found out that the Williamite forces were using "Sarsfield" as their password, and they utilized this to their own advantage and successfully detonated the Military supply train waiting there. (Nearby to Ballyneety are the ruins of Castle Otway where the Heberian Dal gCais Ui Bloid Ui Turlogh O Kennedy's originally had their castle, and where previously in 1684 AD John Otway had been granted the new English Estate of Templederry, and where in 1798 AD they were to raise their own yeomanry in their small family church.) (Galloping O Hogan's relations still reside in the area today.) After blowing up the Williamite siege train, Patrick Sarsfield and his men were to cross the River Shannon to the west once again at Banagher, and return to Limerick City to continue on with their mission to defend it against the invading Williamite forces.

August: William of Orange decided to hand over the total command of his Williamite forces to his Dutch General, de Ginkel, and he then left to return to England, leaving the City of Cork and the town of Kinsale in Co. Cork in Southern Munster, as the only other areas east of the River Shannon still under the control of the Royalist Irish forces, but both of these towns were to be eventually taken also by the previous defector, John Churchill who had been one of James 11's English Generals, in the coming Autumn. (He would later be rewarded for his defection becoming the English Duke of Marlborough, and receive the great Estate of Blenheim, and become the ancestor of Winston Churchill the future Prime Minister of Britain in the 20th Century.

      De Ginkel, the Dutch General, was by now heading south, after his victories at Aughrim and Galway in Co. Galway in the Connacht Province, and along the way he destroyed the O Brien Carrigogunnell Castle at Carrigaholt in Co. Limerick, and also the O Brien castle at Castleconnell there and he then concentrated all of his Williamite forces on the siege of Limerick City, and had a Williamite fleet of ships on the River Shannon to deter the French from giving the Irish any further assistance. Richard Talbot the Earl of Tyrconnell, James 11's commander, died suddenly, under mysterious circumstances, and Patrick Sarsfield then took over his position as the overall leader of the Royalist Irish forces in anticipation of defending the City of Limerick. 

September 2nd: De Ginkel attacked Limerick City with 10,000 of his Williamite forces, who were to push forward in 3 separate waves, into a breach in the walls that had previously been created by his cannon, but every Irish man, woman and child in the City fought them back, until 2,000 of the besieging Williamite forces were either dead or dying and after these 3 concurrent attacks, and the fact that they had failed to take the City, de Ginkel decided to cross over the River Shannon, to the west into Co. Clare, and began a further attack from across the Thomond Bridge, which he was able to secure. Rory O More who had been the Governor of Connacht had also previously defended Limerick, but the Munster Province had then surrendered to the defector, John Churchill, so Rory O More then engaged in dialogue with de Ginkel, and as the Royalist Irish forces could see no sign of further relief coming, Patrick Sarsfield capitulated and agreed to surrender up the City in what was to become known as the "Violated Treaty of Limerick" on the Thomond Bridge. 

October 3rd: The Ascendancy English Parliament's War on Ireland, on this particular occasion, was now officially at an end, but there were 2 sets of Articles involved in the Treaty, which represented both the Military and the Civil Parts, with the Civil Part being known as the actual "Limerick Peace Treaty " and they were both signed on the Thomond - Limerick Bridge by de Ginkel the Dutch General, and the Ascendancy English Parliament Lord Justices, and were ratified by William of Orange and his wife, Mary, the Episcopalian daughter of James 11.

      In the Military Agreement made on the Stone of the "Violated Treaty," which still exists today, it was agreed to surrender up the City of Limerick, on condition that the prisoners from both sides were to be released, and that transport was to be given for the Royalist Irish troops to go into exile in France, which became known as the "Flight of the Wild Geese," when 11,000 Irish troops left for France to serve under Louis XIV with the first contingent made up of 5,000 men, who left on the French ships, which were to arrive into Ireland only 2 days after the Limerick Treaty was signed. The other 6,000 men were transported by the English Government themselves, and 2,000 others retired from any further conflict, while 1,046 others joined up with the Williamite army and 4 of the De Lacy brothers who went with Patrick Sarsfield to France became Field Marshalls there as the Irish were secured for the French and Spanish armies as Irish Brigades.

      In the Civil Agreement it was guaranteed by the Ascendancy English authorities, that all of the Catholic Irish would be entitled to the same liberties as they had held under Charles 11, together with the same limited religious and legal tolerance, and there was to be no property confiscation or other repeat of Oliver Cromwell's harshness, but these specific conditions were to be conveniently left out during the ratification of the Treaty by the Ascendancy English Parliament.

      Although the French, had arrived 2 days after the signing of what was to become the "Violated Limerick Treaty," with a contingent of 3,000 troops and 10,000 arms, which had been a worry to William of Orange's Dutch General, de Ginkel, Patrick Sarsfield advised him that, "We have pledged our honour and the honour of Ireland," and he had immediately sent the French troops back to France.

     The loss of so many of the committed fighting Irish and their leaders was to once again remove the Irish fighting spirit and initiative for many years to come, so as to be there to correct the never - ending ethnic and religious oppression and ongoing confiscations that still lay ahead in Ireland, but it would have been an end to it all if the Ascendancy English Parliament had carried out their promises agreed to under the original "Treaty of Limerick"but true to their usual promises, they were to once again renege, and allowed the persecution and repression of the Irish to continue on. The Ascendancy in Ireland was also to make one further mistake, as the controlling merchants in the English Parliament, with their own personal economic agendas, continued to play on their prejudices and their inherent "siege mentalities" that were so entrenched in those who were now in authority in Ireland, backed up at all times by English Militia, who now once again totally controlled the lives of the Irish people, and nearly all of their confiscated territories. Later on when the merchants in the English Parliament felt that they were totally in control, they were to also increase their Commercial repression further on the whole Irish population, regardless of whether they were Catholic, Church of England / Ireland, Presbyterians or Dissenters (non - Conformists). From this year until 1845 AD, there was to be total Church of England Ascendancy control in England, and those among the Ascendancy in Ireland, although they were the minority, would continue to make life unbearable for the Irish Catholic majority at every opportunity to safeguard their Imperial position and hold on to their confiscated property. The  Ascendancy English Parliament were to make full use of their engrained prejudices and their "siege mentalities" for their own advantage also, to control the Ascendancy Anglo - Irish Parliament they were to set up, and especially also those of the Lowland Presbyterians in the Ulster Province, to further control the Irish population for their own British Imperial greed. They first began by bringing in their Popery Code, which was in reality only more Irish Penal Laws, "To prevent the growth of Catholics," and also violated the Civil Articles of Limerick previously agreed upon, in further attempts to degrade the rights of the Catholic Irish further, while at the same time they also introduced an Act containing a "Sacramental Test," which ensured not only Catholics, but all non - Conformists (Dissenters) in Ireland, including the Presbyterians in Ulster, were now also to be at their total mercy.

      Among the destruction that was carried out in the Ulster Province at this time was the Augher Castle in Co. Tyrone in Central Ulster, which was burnt down, as was the Cistercian Abbey at Dromore, while the Athlumney Castle at Navan in Co. Meath in the south - east of Northern Leinster was also burnt by Sir Launcelot Dowdall to stop his "enemies" from occupying it. From this date until the year 1715 AD there were to be another 50,000 Lowland Scottish families arriving into Ulster, who were to also be included in the denial of any Civil rights, as they too were to be made subject to the antipathy of those in authority from the Ascendancy Church of England / Ireland adherents, who though always in the minority, were now totally in control of Ireland, backed up by the Ascendancy English Parliament and their Military Militias. The Catholic Irish in Ulster, from now on, had hardly any land left to them there to survive on, and it was also at this time that the Anglo - Irish Estates of the Gernons / Gearnun / Garland / Mac Gartlan in Co. Monaghan in Southern Ulster, which had originally been granted to Roger de Gernon, who was originally with Strongbow 11 during the Anglo - Norman Invasion in 1170 AD, were given over to the English Bellinghams. 

      Land confiscation in Ireland began once again, as the new English Irish Penal Laws were introduced, and under their Banishment Act all of the Catholic Irish Bishops and clergy were banned from Ireland, but 1,000 remained regardless, with no intermarriage now allowed between Irish Catholics and Episcopalians and the other Dissenters (non - Conformists), which was to also bring about their disinheritance, while Irish Catholics were also forbidden to buy or rent any land in Ireland. As to the economics, heavy taxes were placed on Irish silver, glass, furniture and hops, while all goods to and from England were to be carried only by English ships, and Irish ships were forbidden from trading with any Colonial ports and all of the present Catholic Irish landholders, who still had any land left at all, were made to divide their land between all their sons, and if the eldest son or any younger son joined the Ascendancy Church of England / Ireland, he was to take over the whole of the land immediately, and the majority in Ireland under English Law once again became the desperate minority.

    Catholic Seminaries were now to be set up at Louvain, Douai, Palamanca, Rome and elsewhere to continue the Irish Catholic education for the young Irish priests who were to be educated mainly in the 18th Century AD. 

December: Rory O More the Gaelic Milesian Irian Chief from Co. Offaly in the mid - north - west of Southern Leinster, also left for France were he was to be eventually killed at the Battle of Landen.

     All of the Irish leaders were now gone, and by English Law none of the Catholic Irish was ever to be represented or sit in the Ascendancy Anglo - Irish  Parliament, which meant that 75 % of the population was to have no representation at all in Ireland, with all their natural liberties taken away, and these new English Irish Penal Laws were also to have an effect on the newly introduced 14 % of non - Catholic planters, who they were to also introduce into Ireland, as they too were soon to begin to feel the thrust of the ongoing economic oppression of the merchants in the English Ascendancy Parliament on their lives and that of their families. 

    From the Battle of the Boyne until the Battle at Fontenoy in 1745 AD in France, close on 450,000 Irish men were to die fighting in France, who were in reality trying to obtain Freedom for Ireland and during the 18th Century AD the Irish were to continue to go to Europe, with 5 Regiments in Spain, and 26,000 in the Irish Brigades in France.

     Robert Boyle who was born in the Munster Province in 1627 AD, who was the seventh son of Richard Boyle the English first Earl of Cork, who had invented an air pump and carried out experiments with electricity and had been one of the founders of the Royal Society, died.       

      After the "Violated Treaty of Limerick," there was to be still the odd "Irish Rebel," who did what they could to "sustain the rage" against the continuing Ascendancy ethnic and religious oppression, such as Edward Ryan (Ned the Head) from Upperchurch in Co. Tipperary in the north - east of the Munster Province, who became an outlaw in the territory there, robbing the rich to aid the poor, until a sizeable reward was put on his head and he was captured and beheaded, although a pardon was on the way.

1692 AD More Irish men left for France, Spain and other European Countries, where they all became part of the "The Wild Geese," who in their own way were doing their bit to create pressure elsewhere in exile, to try and bring about "Irish Freedom"

      William of Orange and his wife Mary, were in reality actually always under the control of the merchants in the Ascendancy English Parliament, and even though they had reneged on their "Violated Treaty" with the Irish, it had bought them no great commercial gain in the long run, as they further tried to disadvantage the population of Ireland in any way that they could for their own economic advantage and they were to certainly impoverish the whole Irish population, whether they were Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Dissenters or Catholic, but they were to carry it out so badly that those in control in England would no longer be getting back there own expenses from Ireland. They introduced further new English Laws into Ireland, where all of the great Oak Forests were to be cut down and sold, and the forests in Co. Kerry in the south - west of the Munster Province were to be wasted away until the last wood was taken from there to smelt iron for English purposes.

       The Irish during this period were still holding onto 20% of their land, while the 80% confiscated already, was held by the non - Catholic planters, of which 40%  of it up until this time had been granted by either Oliver Cromwell or William of Orange and they "outlawed" another 4,000 Irish men and confiscated another 1,500,000 acres, while endeavouring to force the Ascendancy Church of England / Ireland onto the general population in Ireland. It was also during this period that many more of the O's and Macs were also dropped from their Irish names, as they tried to conform to English Law and the imposed Episcopalian religion just to survive, and also to try to obtain employment, and pay the imposed Tithes to the Church of England / Ireland.  "The Act against the Catholic Irish, that had been passed in 1691 AD," was now brought in, which required the members of the Ascendancy Anglo - Irish  Parliament, in both houses, to openly declare against certain Catholic Irish doctrines.

      Lord Sydney was sent over to be the new appointed English Lord Lieutenant in Ireland.

September: The Bill to confirm the Articles in the "Violated Treaty of Limerick" was abandoned, with the intention of disarming the Catholic Irish and prevent them from joining the English Militia.

November 2nd: Lord Sydney the English Lord - Deputy in Ireland soon showed the overall future attitude of the English Ascendancy Parliament towards the Anglo - Irish Ascendancy Parliament in Ireland, when he brought their parliament to an end, because they would not consider his Money Bill, and he then also prorogued any further parliaments in Ireland in the future.

 

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