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An extract from
Pacata Hibernia :
or, A history of the wars in Ireland during the reign of Queen Elizabeth,
especially within the province of Munster under the government of Sir George Carew,
and compiled by his direction and appointment

by Sir Thomas Stafford & George Carew, Earl of Totnes (Lord President of Munster), 1633
(1896 Edition)

A Joint Letter from the Lord President and the Earl of Thomond to the Lords of the Council.

It may please your Lordships : Although I, the President, have by my letters advertised the Lord Deputy, the manner in what sort the Earl of Ormond was taken, which I think is by his Lordship sent unto you, yet, we think it our duties to make relation thereof unto your Lordships, and to make known unto your Honours how accidentally we were witnesses of his misfortune. On Monday, the 7th of April, we departed from Dublin, and upon Wednesday at night we came to Kilkenny, where we found the Earl of Ormond. In our company we had 100 horse, dispersed in the country ten or twelve miles distant from us by the Earl's officers. As soon as we came unto him, he acquainted us, that he had appointed the next day to parley with Owny MacRory ; we told his Lordship that we would attend him. And I, the President, desired his Lordship that my 100 horse might be sent for to go with us, for his Lordship's better guard, which he refused, thanking me for my offer, saying that he had no need of them. The next day, being the tenth of this present, after dinner, his Lordship not having in his company above the number of seventeen horsemen (as his followers) armed, and

RORY OGNE O'MOORE.
(Father of Owney MacRory.)

not little above the like number of all sorts, whereof we were part, and the rest lawyers, merchants, and others upon hackneys, with no other weapons than our swords, rode out to the place of meeting, eight long miles from Kilkenny, called Corronneduffe, upon the borders of Ydough ; leaving his Lordship's own company of two hundred footmen short (of the place of parley assigned) above two English miles. The place where we met with the rebels was upon a heath ground, descending towards a narrow straight, having on either side of us a low shrubby boggy wood, within three pikes' length (at the farthest) from the place where we parleyed, and the like distance from the straight aforesaid, the choice whereof we much disliked. Owny MacRory, when he came unto us, brought with him a troop of choice pikes, leaving in a little plain beyond the straight, within half Culvering shot of us, in our sight, all his gross, being in all to the number (as Redmond Keting, one of the rebels, did swear unto me, the President) five hundred foot strong, and twenty horse, whereof three hundred were Bonoughes, the best furnished men for the war, and the best appointed that we have seen in this kingdom. At our first meeting, and so during the parley (which was appointed for some good causes best known to his Lordship), they stood (as they might) every one trailing his pike, and holding the cheek thereof in his hand, ready to push. The Earl himself was upon a little weak hackney, unarmed (as all we were that were about him), standing so near with the side of his hackney to the rebels, as they touched him. After an hour and more was idly spent, and nothing concluded, we and others did pray his lordship to depart ; but he, desirous to see that infamous Jesuit Archer, did cause him to be sent for ; as soon as he came, the Earl and he fell into an argument, wherein he called Archer traitor, and reproved him, for sending, under pretext of religion, Her Majesty's subjects into rebellion. In this meantime the gross of the rebels had left their standing in the plain, and some crept into the shrubs aforesaid, and others did so mingle themselves among us, that we were environed, and stood as if we had been in a fair, whereof divers did advertise his lordship. And at last I, the Earl of Thomond, willed Owyne to put back his men ; and I, the President, desired his Lordship to be gone, for that I did not like their mingling with us ; wherewith, as his Lordship was turning his horse, at an instant they seized upon him, and us two. His Lordship was in a moment drawn from his horse ; we had more hanging upon us than is credibly to be believed ; but our horses were strong, and by that means did break through them, in tumbling down (on all sides) those that were before and behind us, and (thanks be to God) we escaped the push of their pikes (which they freely bestowed) and the flinging of their skeines, without any hurt, saving that I, the Earl of Thomond, received with a pike a wound in the back. The Earl's horsemen (which were armed) were far from us, for every one was dispersed, and talking with particular rebels, about the bordering business, so as we do protest unto your Lordships, in all we were not above ten unarmed men near unto him, and as soon as the alarm was raised, every man of his followers came away, without looking behind him. After we had cleared ourselves (within a butt length at the most), we made halt, and called for the trumpet, and cried upon the Earl's men for a charge, but none stood by us, but Captain Harvey, Captain Browne, Master Comerford, a lawyer, and three of our servants, which was all the company that we had then, and all of us, without armour or other weapon than our swords, so as for want of more company, we were enforced by the enemy's shot to leave them the ground ; but we do assure your Lordships, the place wherein we parleyed was of such advantage to the enemy, that 500 foot would not have cared for 500 horse, and therefore (his Lordship having no foot with him) it was impossible to do the enemy any harm with horse : this treachery (for we must term it in respect of his Lordship's confidence in the valour of his own men, and also in his opinion that the enemy durst not show him this foul measure) was contrived by that villain Archer, and none was made acquainted with it, but Owny MacRory, two Leinster men, and four bonnaghes, for if more had been trusted, there is no doubt but his Lordship should have had knowledge of it ; Owny MacRory laid his hands on me, the President, as they report, and (next unto God) I must thank the Earl of Thomond for my escape, who thrust his horse upon him, and at my back a rebel newly protected (at my suite), Brien MacDonoghe Kevenaghe being a foot, did me good service, and wounded one of the traitors, that laid hands on the Earl of Ormond ; for the rest I must thank my horse, whose strength bore down all about him. On our side there was but one man slain, not above five hurt, whereof Pierce Butler (a kinsman of the Earl's) was one, who behaved himself valiantly ; and about fourteen taken prisoners ; and of the enemy was one slain, and a few hurt ; the prisoners were taken by their own negligence, who were grazing their horses. The taking of this great lord breeds unsettled humours in these parts, for all the gentlemen of the country (whereof some of them were his true followers) for want of a defender are wavering; others, which in their own dispositions were naught, and contained themselves as subjects but for fear of his power, are now at liberty, and we fear will shortly declare themselves. To keep them from present uproars, I, the President, did immediately send for six hundred foot of the Munster companies, which were at Waterford, and the hundred horse, which were in the country, to the town of Kilkenny, which hath wrought good effect, and stayed the unsettled humours ; besides, thereby it did assure the Lady of Ormond, and her daughter, which otherwise had been subject to many dangers, so sorrowful a lady in all our lives we have not seen ; and do believe, that if it had not pleased God that we at that time had been there, she would hardly have undergone those griefs that did oppress her; for besides the loss of her husband (in being prisoner with those rogues) she beheld the apparent ruin of herself and her daughter, and no less danger of both their lives ; the guard whereof she committed unto us, not being assured of those that serve her, for there is divers that pretend to be the Earl's heirs; first, Sir Edmund Butler, his second brother, which Sir Walter Butler, the Earl's nephew (whose blood is not attainted), I will not yield unto, because his uncle Sir Edmond is not restored in blood ; and the Viscount Mountgarret thinks that he ought to be Earl of Ormond, for many reasons which he pretends. This controversy could but breed great danger to the Countess and her daughter, for that either of those would be glad to possess themselves in the Earl's houses, and the doubt who is to succeed him breeds unsettled humours in the gentlemen of the country that be followers to the Earl, everyone addicting himself to the party they affect, whereby there is a general distraction, which would have broken out into a dangerous rebellion if the forces and we had not been here to keep them in awe ; besides, we did not neglect to send for all the lords and gentlemen in the country (that are of the best quality), and have temporized with them ; so as we hope, the dangers were like to ensue, will be for a time well appeased. Also understanding that Balliragget, a house of the

Map from the 1810 edition (a facsimile of the 1633 map). Source

Lord Mountgarret's, in which there is a ward for the Queen, keep as a pledge for his loyalty, that the same was attempted to be won by the Viscount's sons, who are in rebellion; and immediately upon the Earl's taking, lay before it, in hope to starve the soldiers (for their last day's victuals was spent), I, the President, did take up in Kilkenny, upon my credit, victuals, and with a strong convoy of horse and foot, have revictualled it, for six weeks, whereof the Lord Deputy is advertised, praying him to be careful before that victual be spent ; and because that all things be continued in good order ; we thought good to remain in Kilkenny, until the Lord Deputy should determine of some course, so to hold it for Her Majesty's benefit, the country's good, and the Countess and her daughter's safety ; wherein we were enforced to make large disbursements of our small stores, for dieting in that time of the horse and the foot troops, whereof I, the Earl, defrayed the charges of my own company of two hundred foot, and I, the President, of all the rest, during our abode there, which was eight days. In this meantime we, understanding that Mountgarret's sons (which are in rebellion) did come to spoil the country near to Kilkenny ; we sent out some part of our troops, who lighted upon some of their men ; and amongst them which they slew, there was one of the Butlers, a near kinsman to Mountgarret and a leader slain, and the traitors driven to their woods, being enforced to leave their enterprise.

Source: archive.org