Nine Years War (1594-1603) Research Papers (original) (raw)

Battlefield or conflict archaeology is a relative newcomer to archaeology in Ireland. For many years, battlefields in Ireland were considered to contain nothing of archaeological value; they belonged to the world of the historian. Paramount amongst these is G.A. Hayes-McCoy, who could be said to have laid the foundations for all subsequent work, with his studies of Scots mercenary forces in Ireland (1937) and Irish battles (1969). Pioneering work on battles such as the Little Bighorn in 1875 in eastern Montana, USA (Scott et al. 1989) and Naseby, Northamptonshire, UK in 1645 (Foard,1995) demonstrated the potential of combining archaeological methodology with historical sources. Interest gathered pace with such spectacular discoveries as the mass grave from the battle of Towton (1461) in north Yorkshire (Fiorato et al. 2000). The ensuing programme of archaeological investigation on the site did much to refine the methodology for battlefield survey (Sutherland 2000). Since then there has been a steady increase in interest from professional and public alike, with numerous international conferences, popular television programmes and internet discussion groups (Freeman and Pollard 2001; Pollard and Oliver 2002; Scott et al. 2007; CAIRN: Conflict Archaeology International Research Network, at http://cairnworld.free.fr/index.php). The first regional authority in the British Isles to take action to protect battlefields was English Heritage, who in 1995 published the Register of Historic Battlefields. It identified over forty battle sites and provided management and conservation advice to land owners, developers and planners. In 2009, Historic Scotland decided to compile a list of Scottish ambushes on 18 January 1594 (ibid. 203). A week later, Dowdall turned his attention to Maguire's stronghold at Enniskillen. The castle of Enniskillen (SMR 211:039) stood on the strategic crossing between lower and upper Lough Erne. Its stout masonry walls were proof against the light artillery at Dowdall's disposal, but it fell on the 2 February 1594, after a nine day siege. Later that day Dowdall sent a letter to lord deputy Fitzwilliam in Dublin, describing the assault 'by boats, by engines, by sap and by scaling' (NA SP 63/173, f. 64). Alternative accounts contradict his report, such as that by Captain Thomas Lee who claimed that the garrison surrendered on terms that were later reneged upon (Morgan 1993, 155). Much later, in 1621, Don Philip O'Sullivan Beare also suggested that the ward was betrayed (Byrne 1903, 72-73). The latter accounts ended with the slaughter of all those defending and sheltering in the castle, which was then garrisoned with fifty foot and twenty-four horse under the command of a constable, James Eccarsall (TNA SP 63/175, f. 92). Maguire was determined to retake the castle and set about this with the aid of Hugh Roe O'Donnell, Cormac Mac Baron O'Neill, and many other adherents to the Earl of Tyrone. On 17 May 1594, three and a half months after it was taken, Irish forces established a blockade of the castle. Eccarsall, the constable, set out on a boat armed with a robinet (a light cannon) to investigate, but was soon forced back by enemy fire, with several of his party wounded (ibid. f.39). Retreating to the castle, he compelled the Irish to keep their distance with the three light cannon, one on the boat and two mounted on platforms at the castle. A letter to the constable of Cavan on 26 June reported that Maguire and Cormac Mac Baron had surrounded them in force and had been joined by Scots. The ward was harassed by fire around the clock for the space of twelve days, giving them little rest. Eccarsall requested that