The History of the Town and County of the Town of Galway Chap. V. From 1641 to the Restoration of Charles II. 1660. Opulence of Galway at the commencement of the Irish rebellion, 23rd October, 1941 - Report of Sir Francis Willoughby, governor of St. Augustine's fort, near Galway, on that event - The care of the earl of Clanricarde to secure the peace of the county - Loyal resolutions of the town - Disputes with the fort - Massacre at Shruel - Revolt of the town, and siege of the fort - The fort relieved, and the town submits to the earl of Clanricarde - Violent proceedings of the governor of the fort - He bombards the town - Lord Forbes arrives with a fleet in the bat - Besieges the town - His barbarous conduct - The fort besieged, taken and demolished - The town declares in favour of the Irish, and against the parliament - Persists in its loyalty to the kind - Several fortifications built - Tumults in the town, occasioned by the pope's nuncio on the question of the cessation - Compelled at length to proclaim it - The nuncio departs from Galway - The town advances money to the state - Grateful acknowledgements of Charles II. - Dreadful plague in the town - Marquis of Ormond takes shipping in Galway, and leaves the kingdom - Negociations with the duke of Lorraine - His ambassador arrives in Galway - The town besieged by the parliamentary forces under Sir Charles Coote - Its strenuous defence and final surrender - The plague rages - Cruel proceedings against the inhabitants - Licentiousness of the soldiery - Unjust measures of the rulers in Dublin, contrary to the articles of surrender - The corporation new modelled - The ancient inhabitants turned out of the town, and the houses destroyed - Plans of the government relative to Galway - Lands and houses valued and sold - Total decay of the town at the time of the Restoration. Opulence of Galway at the commencement of the Irish Rebellion, 23d October 1641 A period is now arrived, which will be for ever memorable in the history of Ireland, and in the transactions of which our town acted a very conspicuous part. Already, for upwards of sixty years, since the troubles raised by the Mac-an-Earlas were appeased, Galway enjoyed peace and tranquility under the rule of its own magistrates. Warmly attached to the ancient religion of the land, firm in its allegience to the crown, and obedient to the laws, it had arisen to an eminent degree of respectability, wealth and national consequence, when the never to be sufficiently lamented rebellion, or civil war, broke out in Ireland, on the 23d. Of October, 1641. Report of Sir Francis Willoughby, governor of St. Augustine's fort, near Galway, on that event Sir Francis Willoughby, who was then governor of St. Augustine's fort, near Galway, (which had been thoroughly repaired at considerable expense, in 1636, and rendered one of the most complete fortifications in the kingdom,) in the month of October, 1641, departed for Dublin, leaving the fort, with two companies, under the command of his son, captain Anthony Willoughby. He arrived there on the night of the 22d, and stated, in council, that neither at Galway, nor all the way from thence, did he observe the least disposition in any of the inhabitants to rise; nor did he entertain any suspicion for the safety of his own person: and yet, had the design of an insurrection been general, he conceived the rebels might have thought the seizing of him of some advantage towards gaining possession of that important fortress.[a] The care of the earl of Clanricarde to secure the peace of the county Ulick, the fifth earl of Clanricarde, governor, for life, of the town and county of Galway, having fortunately returned to Ireland in the summer of 1641, was then at his castle of Portumna. [b] As soon as he heard of the troubles, he took every precaution for the security of the county. On the 28th October he dispatched messengers to Galway, to Sir Richard Blake, with an account of the breaking out of the rebellion, and directions that the town should be most strict and vigilant in its watch and guards. This information was immediately communicated to the mayor and council: arms and ammunition, with which they were but badly provided, were supplied: orders were issued to strengthen the town gates where they were weak and defective, and the guards and watches were doubled. On the 6th of November his lordship arrived; he remained two days, during which time he put the town and fort in the best possible posture of defence, augmented the two companies of the latter to two hundred men, and directed the mayor and corporation to furnish it with provisions, with which it was but indifferently stored; and, to provide for his own company in Loughrea, he took out of the store-house one hundred firelocks and as many pikes; but more than half of these, upon trial, was found unserviceable. Loyal resolutions of the town The consternation of the town was considerably increased by the archbishop of Tuam deserting his castle, and flying for refuge to the fort, and the subsequent treacherous surprisal of lord Clanricarde's castle of Aghnenure, in Iar-Connaught, by young Morough-na-dubh O'Flaherty. On the 11th, a general assembly was convened in the tholsel; and it was, amongst other things, unanimously resolved, "that to the last man the said town of Galway would lose their blood and lives in his majesty's service, in the defence. and for the safety of the said fort and town." The fort was furnished with one hundred pecks of wheat, fifty pounds worth of timber and other necessaries, all of which were to be paid for upon the restoration of tranquility in the kingdom. Notwitstanding these exertions, some misunderstanding interrupted the harmony which hitherto subsisted between the fort and town. Captain Willoughby, who was a young and unexperienced man, of hot and ungovernable temper, began to conduct himself in the most rash and violent manner towards the townsmen, who, on their part, were not without a large portion of pride, and particularly piqued themselves on entertaining high notions of honor. With these dispositions, on both sides, disputes were inevitable. Willoughby, on some trifling or pretended occasions, imprisoned some of the inhabitants, and placed guards of musketeers on their goods and ships; and the town, exasperated at those proceedings, seized and imprisoned some soldiers belonging to the fort. At this juncture the earl of Clanricarde hastened to Galway, and with difficulty prevailed on the town to furnish the fort with supplies, which they had before refused to do without ready money. He remained in the town from the 5th to the 11th of February, and from the 1st to the middle of March; [c] and, so far succeeded in composing those unhappy differences, the mayor and corporation, on the 13th, signed a declaration, wherein they stated, "the fast fidelity of their ancestors to the crown of England, and how far this ancient colony hath been trusted and beloved by the kings successively, and in what happy condition and prosperity they lived under their powerful protection." They then declared their allegience and determination, at the hazard of their lives, lands and goods, to preserve the town in obedience, to defend his majesty to the utmost of their power and contribute for the mutual defence of the town and fort, for his majesty's service. Willoughby, on the same day, signed a similar declaration of mutual amity and defence; and lord Clanricarde departed, on the 14th, well pleased at having reconciled two such important places, upon which the peace and security of the province so much depended. Revolt of the town, and siege of the fort In the meantime the town declared its intention to invest the fort, and made every preparation for the purpose, by raising a battery, and blocking up all the passages to it, in order to reduce it by famine. They were joined by some country gentlemen, and about thirteen or fourteen hundred men from lar-Connaught and daily expected considerable assistance from Mayo: but, on the 13th of March captain Willoughby having received intelligence that a large body of the Iar Connaught forces would, on that night, quarter in the east suburbs, he immediately set fire to all the houses in that direction, and the people within the town were vexed and mortified at beholding the entire in flames and burned to the ground. The earl of Clanricarde, whose first object was to supply the fort with provisions, dispatched about one hundred and forty carriages of wheat, malt, and several other necessaries, to his castle of Oranmore, from whence they were safely conveyed to the fort by water. He then raised what forces he could muster in the country, to the number of seven hundred foot, and near two hundred horse, and on the 2d of April arrived at Oranmore; where, finding that the two only land passages towards the fort, which were narrow, were occupied by the enemy's cannon, it was judged dangerous to attack the besiegers, particularly as they were entrenched in a craggy place, where his horse, which was the principal strength, could be of no service. He thereupon resolved to distress them by cutting off their supplies of provisions, of which they were already scarce; and with this view he placed strong garrisions in his castles of Oranmore, Clare-Galway, and Tirellan; the last of which was situate upon a neck of land commanding the river of Galway, and was committed to the charge of lieutenant Dermot O'Daly, a brave officer,[c] who, with three companies of and thirty musketeers, performed most essential services. The rest of his troops he quartered up and down the barony of Clare, upon the tenants and estates of the townsmen and their friends, and with his horse scoured the plains, hindering all resort to the market, or any supply of provisions. The effects of these prompt and vigorous measures were soon felt, and produced discontents among the people within, and their auxiliaries without. The higher classes of the inhabitants were not favourable to the violent proceedings which had taken place, and the remainder dreaded their consequences and result. Meetings were accordingly held, and it was at length resolved to propose terms of adjustment and pacification. The fort relieved, and the town submits to the earl of Clanricarde The earl of Clanricarde, anxious for many pressing reasons, to terminate this dangerous revolt peaceably and with expedition, entered into a cessation of arms to the end of the month. In the mean time commissioners were appointed to treat with his lordship; and on the 23d of April, Sir Dominick Browne, Richard Martin, esq., and alderman Browne, for the town, and Sir Valentine Blake and Theobald Burke for the county, presented certain propositions, many of which the earl would not at all hearken to. Several meetings were held; but before the terms could be finally adjusted, captain Ashley, in the Resolution, a ship of thirty guns, four hundred tons, and one hundred and thirty men, arrived in the bay, having on board two pieces of cannon, forty barrels of powder, thirty thousand weight of biscuit and other provisions for the fort. On receiving this seasonable supply, Willoughby, whose enmity was implacable, was, with difficulty prevented by the earl from bombarding the town. The inhabitants in dismay sent Geoffry Browne, Richard Martin, esqrs. and others to his lordship, with new, and, as they supposed, more acceptable proposals, but he now refused to listen to anything less than an absolute submission. The terms which he dictated to them were, to dismiss their garrison, send away the army from the camp, and give hostages; lay down their arms, restore all the goods taken from the English, dismount the ordnance pointed against the fort, and demolish the new bulwarks; to sell or issue out no powder, ammunition or arms, but by warrant from his lordship; to deliver all the powder and ammunition, which were then in the town, into the hands of special commissioners; and, finally, that no powder or arms should be admitted to land in the town, but be brought directly to the fort. These conditions were discussed at a public meeting of the corporation; and although considerable clamour was raised in the town, and most violent opposition given by the clergy, [f] all except the last were agreed to. But the camp before the fort becoming greatly distressed for provisions, and at length breaking up, the earl, on the 10th of May, took possession of their trenches, and poured thirty-three great shot from his heavy ordnance into the town, at the same time summoning them by a trumpet to surrender. The mayor desired time until the next day, when, after much debating, the submission was resolved upon, and signed.[g] On the following morning Geoffry Browne and John Blake, both lawyers, and Martin Skerrett and Peter D'Arcy, merchants, were sent as hostages, and on the 13th the gates were thrown open. The mayor, attended by the adlermen and several of the burgesses, attired in their robes of office, awaited the coming of the earl at the cross which divided the town and fort, and there he made his public submission, and delivered up the keys. The "young men" laid down their arms, and his lordship received the town into his majesty's protection, until his further pleasure concerning them should be known. Violent proceedings of the governor of the fort Thus, at a time pregnant with the greatest danger, was "one of the strongest and most important towns in the kingdom, inferior to none for its trade, riches, strength and situation," [h] reduced to obedience by the single exertion and influence of the earl of Clanricarde, unassisted by the state and almost without bloodshed. The disaffected throughout the province were greatly disheartened at this signal success, which was the more fortunate, as one Francis D'Arcy, a merchant of the town in a ship laden with corn, arms and ammunition, had only two or three days before put into a creek in Iar-Connaught, and carried the entire to Galway. By this means, besides the stores of provisions, a most seasonable supply of ten pieces of ordnance, sixty muskets, and two thousand seven hundred pounds weight of powder, fell into the earl's hands. The provisions were ordered for the use of the fort, and the arms to supply that and other garrisions through the country. - This happy result gave universal joy to every class of persons but the disaffected. The lord justices also, whose views were very different from those of lord Clanricarde, entirely disapproved of his receiving the submission, or granting protection to the town, and expressly directed him to receive no further submissions, but to prosecute the rebels and their adherents, harbourers, and relievers, with fire and sword; and they soon after issued orders to all commanders throughout the kingdom, tending to the extermination of the Irish Catholics. Sir Richard Blake, Sir Roebuck Lynch, Patrick D'Arcy, Richard Martin, Patrick Kirwan, the Recorder, and several others of the most respectable natives and inhabitants of Galway, had incessanly laboured, first to prevent, and afterwards to terminate, the commotions in the town. Many of them, being in danger of their lives from the fury of the rabble, were obliged to retire, but had now returned at the request of the earl of Clanricarde, who hoped by these means to preserve peace within the town, while he laboured for the security of the county. All his measures, however, were soon frustated by the conduct of Willoughby and Ashley, the captain of the ship Resolution, that lay in the harbour. The latter, who, in disposition, much resembled Willoughby, was also extremely covetous, and a violent parliamentarian, and, either out of avarice or from principle, made it a point to violate the pacification. He first seized and pretended to make a prize of Francis D'Arcy's ship, although she lay under the protection of the fort. He landed his men, and plundered the sea-coast all round the bay, pillaged Sir Richard Blake's house at Ardfry, and carried away his goods and cattle, and those of his tenants. Richard Morris, an old tenant of lord Clanricarde's in Iar Connaught, coming in a boat to Galway with some goods to discharge his rent, had the entire seized by Ashley's men, and no satisfaction could be obtained for any of these doings. Captain Wlloughby's conduct was equally outrageous; his soldiers endeavoured to hinder all recourse to the town, and those who attempted to have access to it were robbed by them. Although the town had puncually performed the articles agreed upon, yet the governor, without any cause, seized upon a large house or inn near the great gate, called the Bull, then kept by some English innkeepers, and in this he placed a garrison which considerably annoyed the inhabitants. He also sent a garrison to Castle-Gare, stationed another near St. Dominick's abbey at the west, and placed disorderly sentinels at every gate, who abused such as offered to go out, attempting to take them prisoners to the fort, and exercise martial law upon them, besides killing and robbing the poor people that came to market, burning their fishing-boats, and not suffering them to go out. Captain Willoughby bombards the town When the inhabitants ventured to remonstrate with him on these proceedings, he threatened to discharge his ordnance into the town; and, not satisfied with the usual supplies from the country, he sallied forth in conjunction with captain Ashley, and with parties of horse and foot indiscriminately burned and broke open houses, carried away goods, and plundered the entire district, to the extent of upwards of one thousand sheep, and two hundred head of cattle. This system of rapine and devastation had the effect, which perhaps the perpetrators intended, of exasperating the whole country. Captain Willoughby, in one of his predatory excursions with a trumpeter and a troop of horse, coming to a town of lord Clanricarde's made a prisoner of one Redmond Burke, (serjeant of a company in the forces which lord Clanmorris had raised for his majesty's service,) a man of good character and an experienced soldier, respected and well allied in the country him he bound, and, with two others, carried; to the fort, and had immediately hanged, (in the view of the town's-people, who were looking on from the walls,) under the commission for martial law, which he lately received from the lords justices. [i] After this outrage, which was little better than deliberate murder, he proceeded to open hostilities against the town, and, as if in a fit of frenzy, without any provocation, burned all the suburbs, the houses whereof were set for more than one thousand pounds a year rent, and obliged upwards of seven hundred families to retire within the walls, to the great incumbrance of the town. He killed several of the inhabitants, assaulted and scaled the walls by night, and fired his cannon into the town for an entire day, though it produced no other effect than a vast lavish of powder, and a discovery of the small injury his ordnance could do to the town, together with the retreating back into the fort of all the guards and sentinels that had been placed near the gates. All these desperate proceedings were well calculated to create, and did accordingly cause universal discontent and resentment, and occasioned and hastened the general and successful confederacy which afterwards ensued, and effected the destruction of the fort, and finally ended in the total subversion of the royal authority in the country. Lord Forbes arrives with a fleet in the bay Such was the situation of affairs about Galway, on the 7th of August, 1642, when considerable agitation and suspence were occasioned in the town by the appearance of squadron of seventeen ships, on the morning of that day, sailing into the bay. They came to anchor in the road, and boats were soon observed to pass and re-pass between them and the fort. This was the fleet of Alexander, lord Forbes, who was appointed by parliament, (without his majesty's concurrence,) lieutenant-general of the additional forces raised by the London adventurers, to waste the coasts of Ireland in a privateering way. His first exploit, after his arrival, sufficiently indicated his intentions, and put the town on its guard against him. He landed a body of men on the county of Clare side of the bay, and burned the houses and wasted the lands of Daniel and Turlough O'Brien, the only two gentlemen in that country who adhered to their allegience, invariably relieved the English, and assisted with their long boats and provisions for the relief of the fort, when it was besieged. Lord Forbes declared openly against the late pacification, and required the town to receive a garrison of his men. A messenger arrived from him with a letter for the mayor, and the form of a submission which he insisted upon, by which they were to confess themselves to have been rebels, and humbly submitting to beg his majesty's intercession for them to the parliament of England, and to declare they would admit such governors as the king and state should appoint, and until then put themselves under the protection of lord Forbes. This was followed by a proclamation of safe conduct to repair to his ship,[k] but the town's-people were too wise to be caught in such a snare, and his lordship was a good deal mortified to find that they refused all his proposals, and declined to receive his garrison, or to make the submission he required. On the contrary, insisting upon the pacification which they had made and observed, they applied to the earl of Clanricarde for protection. His lordship represented to lord Forbes the fatal consequences that would attend a breach of the pacification and the commencement of hostilities against the town by endangering the peace of the country, and making it the seat of war, which he would be totally unable either to prevent, or effectually oppose. Forbes besieges the town But Forbes, stimulated by Willoughby and Ashley, and governed by the advice of the famous fanatic, Hugh Peters, whom he brought with him as his chaplain, and who was afterwards hung and quartered for his rebellious proceedings and the murder of the king, was entirely deaf to every remonstrance of reason or discretion. He landed his men on the west side of Galway, took possession of St. Mary's Church, planted two pieces of ordnance against the town, and burned all the surrounding villages. In this extremity lord Clanricarde, and lord Ranelagh, president of Connaught came to Tirrelan, to endeavour to pacify matters; and, even while there, they could perceive the country around on fire, and heard of several women and children inhumanely killed by his men. They exerted all their power and influence to put a stop to these proceedings, and to persuade lord Forbes to withdraw his forces, and leave the town and country in quiet; but even these entreaties would have proved ineffectual, had he not perceived what little effect his battery had upon the walls, and that his men were becoming troublesome for want of payment. At length, finding himself unable to take the town, or to execute his designs against it, he quit the bay on the 4th of September, and sailed for Limerick; after having, with brutal rage, defaced St. Mary's church, dug up the graves in that ancient burial-place of the town, and burnt the coffins and bones of those that lay there interred; which barbarbous conduct served but to make his memory detested, and exasperated the minds of a people already rendered almost desperate from the treatment which they received. Immediately after his departure, a pinnace, which he left behind him in the bay, took a merchantman belonging to the town, valued at nearly six thousand pounds, and made her a prize. Thus were these ill-fated people doomed to suffer all the miseries of war, and to be treated as enemies or the worst of rebels, at a time when they were desirous of peace, and particularly zealous in the cause of the king, and in the public avowal of their loyalty and allegience. That there were, at the same time, many discontented and disorderly persons in the town is certain. The young men and lower orders would not be governed by the magistrates: the influence and interference of the clergy, who from the beginning, were advocates for violent measures, were considerable; and the failure and prevention of their trade and traffic, at home and abroad, (a great portion of which, between the ships in the bay and the neighbouring towns, was usurped with many advantages by Willoughby;) all conspired gradually to lessen the influence of the earl of Clanricarde in the town, and to prepare for the courses which were afterwards adopted. The fort besieged, taken and demolished The disputes between the town and fort still continued unabated. The gates remained closed, and all intercourse was stopped. Willoughby, having seized some of the inhabitants, caused William Lynch, a freeman, to be executed on board one of the ships in the harbour, and kept one Geoffry Lynch under sentence of death in the fort; while the town forces, on the other side, killed several of his soldiers. Both parties at length appealed to the earl of Clanricarde. Willoughby offered to sign such propositions, for the safety of the town and accomodation of all matters, as they should require; and they accordingly proposed to throw open the east gate, and allow free traffic, on condition that he and all others resident in the fort, should take an oath to be true and faithful to the king, and admit none to the fort, or under its protection, or within the reach of their cannon, that adhered, to the parliament of England, in opposition to the king; that they should not molest the town, or any member thereof, by sea or land; that they should restore all prisoners, goods and chattels taken since the last pacification, and particularly the ship seized by the pinnace, or its value: and towards the conclusion of these conditions and proposals, which were presented to lord Clanricarde by Sir Richard Blake and Patrick D'Arcy, they "humbly intreat his lordship to take the present condition of this town into his serious consideration, and beseech him not to forget his ancestors love to it, and their hereditary and never interrupted zeal and propension to love, honour and serve him and his family; and, after a sad contemplation of their representations unto him that he may please to take that resolution thereupon that may be suitable to his favour, piety, honour and justice, and that he may be sure this town, in all fortunes, will continue the affection, obedience and respect it owes him." - Notwithstanding all their endeavours, this treaty ended in nothing, owing to the insincerity and delays of Willoughby. Even while it was depending, his soldiers made two sallies into the country; killing, in the first, by their own confession, a dozen of poor innocent people, men, women and children; and, in the other, pillaging all the remains of Sir Richard Blake's stock at Ardfry. But what most of all evinced the real principles and intentions of the inhabitants of the fort, was the conduct of captain Constable, commander of one of the ships that came to assist it. This man, standing on the rampart of the fort next the town, called with a loud voice twice over to the townsmen on the walls, "A new king, you rogues and traitors; your king is run away, you shall have a new king shortly, you rogues." From all these and other circumstances it was at length concluded that the fort was no longer in his majesty's obedience, but entirely at the disposal of the parliament. At this crisis, colonel John Burke arrived in Galway, where he was joyfully received, having been some time before appointed lieutenant-general of Connaught by the general assembly of Catholics which met at Kilkenny on the 24th of October, 1642. Colonel Burke was born in the county of Mayo: he was a man of great prudence and discretion, a brave experienced soldier, (having served upwards of thirty years in the service of Spain,) and high in the confidence of the town and country. He at first endeavoured to keep a fair correspondence with the fort, offered to open the gates; have the benefit of markets and free intercourse between it and the town, provided they contained themselves within bounds, were obedient to the directions of lord Clanricarde, desisting from spoiling, burning or plundering the country, killing or taking the town's-men prisoners, or relieving or aiding the puritans that daily come in ships unto them, and who were the king's declared enemies. These amicable propositions being all rejected by Willoughby, and the castle of Clare-Galway having, on the 28th of February, 1643, through the contrivance of Jonakin Lynch, the earl of Clanricarde's tenants there, the carelessness of the warders, and the management of a Franciscan friar, been surprised by captain Thomas Burke, of Anbally, the acquisition or such a place of such strength and importance at once determined their future proceedings. Colonel Burke declared against the fort, and called upon the several gentlemen of the country to levy forces for the purpose of besieging it. Accordingly, in April, 1643, Francis and John Bermingham, son and grand-son of lord Athenry, Sir Ulick Burke, Hubert Burke of Dunamon, Redmond, Rickard and Thomas Burke of Kilcornan, Derrymacloghny and Anbally, the three Teige Kellys of Gallagh, Aughrim and Mullaghmore, Sir Valentine Blake, Sir Roebuck Lynch, and other principal gentlemen of the county, took up arms, and marched with considerable strength towards Galway. Colonel Burke put himself at their head, and about the latter end of that month began to inclose the fort at a distance, and fortify some passages towards the sea, to hinder any relief from that quarter. He invested it with upwards of a thousand men, and posted a body of troops at Clare-Galway and Athenry, to prevent any movement which might be attempted by lord Clanricarde. Provisions becoming scarce in the fort, captain Willoughby who, on his part, was not inactive, dispatched a party of fifty men to make booty in Iar-Connaught: they were discovered by the town, who sent some companies to lie between them and their boats, and most of them were cut off. In the beginning of May the siege was pushed on with vigor; the town undertaking to defray the expense, and supply the forces which were drawn out of the country and the county of Mayo for that purpose. Two bulwarks and batteries were erected; one on the point of St. Mary's church in the west, called Rintinane; and the other on the opposite point of Rinmore; and a chain was drawn across the harbour to hinder access by the sea. Lord Clanricarde was unable to afford any relief. Rear-admiral Brooke, in the ship Providence, arrived in the bay in the beginning of June, with provisions and arms for the fort; but the batteries on the points of Rinmore and Rintinane hindered him from approaching. He endeavoured in the night to throw in supplies, but his long boats, being met by those of the town, were forced to retire. Captain Willoughby, being thus disappointed of succour, desired permission from colonel Burke to deliver the fort to lord Clanricarde; but this, in the moment of success, he refused to agree to, on any other terms than that his lordship should take the oath of union or association, and not dispose of the place without the consent of the several persons under-named.[l] These terms the earl, with that consistency and loyalty which always marked his proceedings and character, totally rejected. Willoughby was then forced to treat for a surrender to the confederates. Articles having been accordingly agreed upon and signed, [m] he surrendered that important fortress on the 20th of June, and also the castle of Oranmore, without the knowledge or consent of lord Clanricarde. The time of the surrender happened fortunately for the confederates; for on the following day, three large ships arrived in the bay with assistance. Captain Willoughby and his men embarked on Sunday, the 25th June, in the Bonaventure, commanded by vice-admiral Swanlea, the Providence, commanded by rear-admiral Brooke, two pinnaces and a barque sent them by the town; [n] thus leaving, by his misconduct, the second fort of importance in the kingdom in the hands of the confederate forces, who soon after caused it to be demolished, by order of the supreme council. The town declares in favour of the Irish, and against the parliament The rejoicings in Galway, on the surrender and demolition of the fort, were excessive; public prayers and thanksgiving were offered up for this signal event and happy deliverance from its troublesome and dangerous neighbour. On the 6th of August they threw open their gates to the Irish, and immediately after raised three hundred pounds to enable them to lay siege to Castle-Coote, in the county of Roscommon, which, with lord Clanricarde's towns of loughrea and Portumna, were the only places of strength that held out in the province. Several fortifications built Although the town was thus freed from exterior annoyance, the inhabitants wisely foresaw, from the unsettled and turbulent state of the times,- that many serious troubles were likely to follow. They, therefore, resolved to be prepared against any future hostile attempts which might be made, and, accordingly, before the end of the year 1643, finished the east and south-east rampart, beginning at the great bulwark of the east gate, and extending from thence round to the little bridge which led to St. Augustine's abbey, together with the wall commencing at the works erected in the mayoralty of William Martin, and leading from thence, in a south-east direction, to the point of Cean-na-bhalla, at the quay. For some years after this period several considerable additions were made to the fortifications. In 1645 the strong bulwark about Lyons-tower was built as well to protect the abbey of St. Francis as to guard the little gate. The flanker about the new tower, and also that adjoining Lyons-tower, with the wall and ramparts, were completed in 1647, under the superintendence of the mayor and Walter Joes, for the defence of the town walls, and of the shipping in the pool. These works were soon after furnished with twelve heavy pieces of cannon, consisting of four brass and four iron of twelve, and four iron of eighteen pound ball, which were purchased in France by the direction of the corporation, and brought over by Francis D'Arcy. The gates were all repaired, and the new flanker outside the east gate was built in 1649. The following year the rampart and bastions, from thence to Kirwan's tower, were completed, which finished the line of fortifications round the town, and rendered it, particularly for defence, the most considerable in the kingdom. The affairs of the confederates proceeded prosperously in Connaught, until the defeat and slaughter by Sir Charles Coote, of the titular archbishop of Tuam in 1645, in his attempt to recover Sligo. The important consequences which followed this event, particularly that attending the discovery, among the archbishop's papers, of an authentic copy of the famous private treaty between Charles I. and the earl of Glamorgan, are fully detailed in all the histories of this period; but the subjoined dispatch, from the abbot of Kilmannock to the warden of Galway, contains a more satisfactory account of the affair itself than is elsewhere to be found. [o] During all the vicissitudes of these unhappy times, the town steadily adhered to its original declaration of allegience to the king, which it embraced every opportunity of publicly testifying. An offensive publication, intitled "Dis putatio apologetica de jure regni, &c." was about this time written and published by Connor O'Mahony, an Irish Jesuit, at Lisbon: its principal intention was to recommend the separation of Ireland from England, and to stimulate the descendants of the old Irish to choose a king of their own nation, and throw off the English yoke. This book was condemned by the supreme council at Kilkenny [p] and ordered to be burned; but the mayor, sheriffs, burgesses and commonalty of Galway previously assembled on the subject, and published a declaration, expressing their abhorrence of these pernicious doctrines. This document, which contains a manifestation of their then principles, is, for its curious import and singularity of expression, laid before the reader. [q] About the same time the corporation farmed, from the commissioners-general of Connaught, for two thousand four hundred pounds, the excise, thirds and rents arising out of the town and county, for they ear ending the 1st May, of 1648: the principal part of the money was immediately advanced, and the remainder stipulated to be paid within a few months. Trade seemed on the increase; and the town, amidst the grievous troubles which agitated the remainder of the kingdom, enjoyed for a while a reasonable portion of peace and security. Tumults in the town, occasioned by the pope's nuncio on the question of the cessation The assembly at Kilkenny having found it necessary to conclude a cessation of arms with lord Inchiquin, president of Munster, Rinuncini, the Pope's nuncio, immediately published a declaration against it. From this the assembly appealed, and was supported by a great body of the clergy of the kingdom, together with the army under the command of the marquis of Clanricarde, lord Taaffe and general Preston. In vain the nuncio fulminated his excommunications; his measures and party fell into discredit. In this dilemma he sought refuge in Galway, where he had some abettors, particularly the warden and others, whom his presence and exhortations stimulated to open acts of violence and commotion. The mayor was desirous to proclaim the cessation, but was prevented by the populace, who forced their way into his house, and wrestled the ensigns of authority from his hands; but this insolence occasioned such a tumult, that, had they not been immediately restored by the very hand that took them. the consequences would have been lamentable; and, even as it was, two or three men were killed. The carmelite friars, shewing some resistance against this proud ecclestiastic, their dwelling was assaulted by night, and their persons abused. In a fit of rage he ordered their bell to be pulled down, and placed two priests at the entry to their chapel, to keep the people from resorting there to prayers. Those who favoured the cessation were declared under censure; the churches were closed, and all divine offices interdicted. In this state was the town, when the archbishop of Tuam, who declared against these measures, arrived. Having desired to see the nuncio's power for assuming such authority, he refused to produce it, whereupon the prelate told him to his face that he would not obey: "Ego," answered the nuncio, "non ostendam:" "et Ego," replied the archbishop, "non obediar ;" and he immediately after caused the church doors to be opened by force. The nuncio, finding himself thus opposed, summoned a synod to meet in Galway on the 15th of August; but the council forbidding the clergy to attend, and ordering all civil and military officers to stop their passage, they were unable to meet. Lord Clanricarde having been, in the mean time, reinforced by Inchiquin, laid siege to the town on the 14th of August, and, hindering all access of provisions by land or water, the promoters of those violent proceedings, unprepared for a siege, were forced, about the 4th of September following, to surrender. They were then put under articles to proclaim the cessation, pay a considerable sum of money, and renounce the nuncio, who, thus finding all his measures frustrated, took shipping at Galway, on the 23d of February following, and departed from the kingdom. The town advances money to the state The English and Irish armies being now united, under the command of the marquis of Ormonde, Galway advanced him five thousand pounds [r] on the security of the customs of the town, in aid of his intended campaign against the parliamentary forces. Upon this occasion his lordship knighted Walter Blake, the mayor. Grateful acknowledgements of Charles II The melancholy news of the king's violent death soon after reached the town, and was received with every manifestation of sorrow. His successor, Charles II., was immediately proclaimed with the greatest solemnity. The mayor had afterwards the satisfaction of receiving the following letter from his majesty. "Charles R. "Trusty and well-beloved, we greete you well. Wee have been duly informed of the loyalltye and good affection that you and the cittie of Galway have expressed to us at all tymes, but especiallye of late, when others have soe shamefully betrayed the trust we reposed in them, by resigning themselves into the hands and power of the rebells: wee do Ibte not but you will constantly continue the same loyalltie to us, with due care for the preservation of our just authority amongst you; and for your encouragement therein, wee assure you that wee are not only truly sensible of what you have alreadye done for our service, but as that cittie of Galway is one of the principal citties that hath eminently continued their loyalltye and devotion to us, soe shall we in due time conferre such priviledges and favour upon you as may be lasting monuments of your deserving above others, and of our particular grace and acceptation thereof, and soe wee bid you farewell.-Given at our court in Jersey, the 4th day of Februarye, 1649, in the second year of our raigne.[s] "To our trusty and well beloved the mayor and aldermen of our cittie of Gallwaye." The day this communication was received in Galway was one of the last days of its greatness and prosperity. For upwards of a century after this period, war, pestilence and persecution, succeeding each other in rapid and melancholy succession, afflicted its devoted community, and reduced this once opulent, populous and respectable town to the most unenviable situation. Since the commencement of the civil commotions, a degree of insubordination and licentiousness had prevailed amongst the inhabitants, which it was not in the power of the magistracy either to suppress or control; and vices, before unheard of and unknown, and indeed incompatible with the integrity and simplicity of former manners, were now become prevalent and familiar. [t] Dreadful plague in the town The population of the town had also increased considerably, several persons from the country flocking in with their families and property for protection; and in this crowded state was the place when the plague made its appearance, in the month of July, 1649, and continued to rage with unabated violence until the end of April following, during which time it swept away upwards of three thousand seven hundred of the inhabitants, including two hundred and ten of the most respectable burgesses and freemen with their families. Those who survived or escaped the contagion gradually left the town, as the only means of preservation, until it was almost entirely deserted of its inhabitants. They assembled in the country; and, having made a collection of two thousand marks to pay physicians and provide necessarles for the sick, they formed a committee of health, whose judicious measures and assiduity finally succeeded in eradicating the infection. An entry of this memorable visitation, made in the corporation book in the year 1650, concludes with these words: "It is to be ever remembered how our Saviour, out of the abundance of his mercy, hath, about our Lady's day in lent last, freed and cleared this town and all the inhabitants thereof from the said sickness, so as they have returned to their own dwellings and ever since do inhabit them with as much security as ever before." Marquis of Ormond takes shipping in Galway, and leaves the kingdom The town was no sooner freed from this dreadful visitation, than it became again involved in all the distracting politics of the times. The marquis of Ormond, having determined upon leaving the kingdom, arrived here in the beginning of December, accompanied by lord Inchiquin, colonels Vaughan, Wogan, Warren, and about twenty other persons of distinction, all of whom sailed from Glaneinagh, in the bay, on board the Elizabeth. of Jersey, a small frigate of twentyfour guns, and, after a hard passage of three weeks, landed at Perose, in Basse Bretagne. At the same time, a large Dutch ship, called the Seven Stars, sailed from Kilcolgan, which arrived at another port in France. The marquis of Clanricarde, who succeeded as lord deputy, soon after he arrived in town, and knighted the mayor, Sir Oliver Oge French; but he could not, however, prevail on the inhabitants to admit a garrison, or any number of troops, but what should be entirely under their own control. Negotiations with the Duke of Lorraine In the latter end of February, Stephen de Henin, abbe of St. Catherine, and ambassador of the duke of Lorrain, arrived in the bay of Galway, with offers of assistance and relief for the nation. The marquis of Clanricarde, as soon as he was apprised of his coming, repaired to Tirellan, and appointed a committee, composed of bishops, nobility and the gentry then in the town, to treat with him; but on ascertaining his proposals, which were, that the duke, his master and his successors, should be accepted as protectors of Ireland, with royal powers, and that some towns should be put into his hands, as security for what he should expend in recovering the kingdom, the lord deputy, with strong expressions of resentment, totally rejected them, as entirely derogratory to the king's honor and authority, and, preparing to depart from Tirellan, refused the abbe even an audience of leave. This reception so intimidated the ambassador, that he immediately changed his conditions, and consented to advance twenty thousand pounds on the security of the city of Limerick and town of Galway, without any other stipulation. To this the marquis assented, referring all articles relative to the protectorship to be adjusted by a treaty at Brussels, which was to be managed by the queen, the duke of York and lord Ormond. He then issued a warrant of freedom to the town, [u]> and articles of agreement were concluded between the ambassador and the mayor, sheriffs, burgesses and commonalty, by which it was covenanted that the town should be governed according to its charters, be free from any imposition of taxes by the duke, or pay of his soldiery, secure in their persons, goods, lands, estates and possessions, upon which if any injury should be committed, full reparation should be made; and, finally, that the town should not be liable to repay the twenty thousand pounds or any part thereof, except its just proportion. Sir Nicholas Plunket and Geoffrey Browne, Esq., were dispatched by the lord deputy to Brussels, with directions to conclude the treaty in conjunction with lord Taaffe. How this afiair was conducted and ended, may be found in all the histories of those times. They entered into articles with the duke, contrary to the directions which they had received. The lord deputy made a formal protest against this unwarrantable proceeding; and Lorrain, taking the opportunity, from some private unexplained reasons, put an end to the treaty. The town besieged by the parliamentary forces under Sir Charles Coote Whilst this hollow negociation was going forward, the parliamentary forces proceeded with rapid strides towards the conquest of the kingdom. Preston, the gallant Irish commander, betrayed and gradually defeated in every other quarter, finally threw himself with a few troops into Galway, where he was intrusted with the chief command, and honored with the title of governor. The town was soon after invested by Sir Charles Coote and commissary-general Reynolds and was quickly reduced to a state of blockade. The castles of Tirellan, Oranmore and Clare-Galway were taken; and on the 12th of August, 1651, the enemy pitched their camp between Lough-a-thalia and Suckeen, within a few hundred yards of the walls. Limerick having surrendered on the 27th of October, a council of war was held by Ireton, to determine whether he should immediately march with his army towards Galway. The general himself and several officers were for this measure; but others complaining of the ill condition of their men, through sickness and severe service, and the near approach of winter, it was resolved that, for the present, they should summon the town to accept the conditions originally tendered to Limerick. Accordingly, on the morning of the 9th of November, dispatches arrived from the lord deputy for the governor, (inclosing letters also to the mayor and inhabitants), in which, after some pointed reflections, he informs him that if he shall freely communicate the proposals to the town's-people, and be himself "waving the frivolous impertinences of a soldier's honor or humor rather," inclined to capitulate, he might then expect to partake in the benefit of the conditions; but that if he smothered or suppressed them, he might be sure that his head would pay for the trouble or mischief that should follow. [x] Enraged at this threat, Preston, on the 12th, returned an angry answer of defiance, telling Ireton that the "heads of those with him were as unsettled on their shoulders as any he knew of within the town." The communication for the inhabitants was artfully contrived to create distrust of the garrison; but the example of Limerick operated more powerfully; they seemed inclined to yield, and accordingly desired to know the particulars of the conditions which he proposed. In the mean time, Preston, dreading the event of a surrender, by which his life would be endangered, took shipping in the bay, and went to France. Before any further negociation could take place, Ireton died in Limerick, of the plague, on the 29th of November, and was succeeded in command by lieutenant-general Ludlow. On the death of this "gloomy republican," a momentary gleam of hope passed over the desponding minds of the inhabitants of Galway, and they again determined on the most vigorous resistance. About the beginning of December Coote again proposed the conditions offered to Limerick, but they declined the treaty. Hostilities warmly commenced, and continued with various success on both sides, until some reverses experienced by the town, changed the face of affairs. Being in a state of strict blockade, and provisions beginning to grow scarce, about eighty of the inhabitants went privately out of the town, and seizing one hundred head of cattle, designed to drive them in, but being met on their return by a party of the enemy, upwards of sixty were killed, and the cattle retaken. This disappointment was followed by another much greater; for two vessels laden with corn, endeavouring to get into the harbour, were pursued by two parliamentary frigates, who took one, and forced the other on the rocks, near the islands of Arran, where she was lost. [y] These disasters were considerably heightened by the increased population of the town, which was crowded by multitudes of the nobility, clergy, and other persons of rank and interest in the kingdom, who flocked hither as their last place of refuge and safety. Meetings were frequently held to deliberate upon the state of affairs, at which the marquis of Clanricarde generally presided; and it was at length resolved, when too late, that proposals should be made for a general pacification and settlement of the kingdom. Accordingly dispatches to that effect were sent by the marquis to general Ludlow, on the 14th of February, requiring at the same time, a safe conduct for commissioners to carry on the treaty. To these proposals Ludlow, on the 24th, returned a vague and indefinite answer, merely informing him that the settlement of the nation belonged to the parliament, who he was assured would not capitulate with those who ought to be in submission, and stood in opposition to their authority; but "if the Lord inclined their hearts to submission, such moderate terms would be consented to, as men in their condition could reasonably expect." submission here intimated may easily be conceived to have meant little else than an absolute surrender of their lives and liberties to the mercy of the besiegers. The great council (as they were still called) again assembled within the town, and resolved to propose a cessation of arms, and demand a licence for commissioners to repair to the parliament in England. These proposals having been also rejected, [z] the principal part of the nobility and men of rank, then in the town, took shipping in the bay, and left the kingdom in despair. Its strenuous defence and final surrender Thus circumstanced, the inhabitants unanimously resolved to sell their lives as dearly as they could. Every preparation, both offensive and defensive, was vigorously made; the fortifications were refitted; communication with the country was renewed, and succours contracted for, which would have enabled them to protract the war, and even render its issue in some degree doubtful. These preparations, though they excited the alarm and raised the fears of the enemy, had, however, no other effect than that of rendering them more inclinable to terms of accommodation. The great dearth of provisions, which now threatened the besieged with all the horrors of approaching famine, at length obliged them to submit to a treaty of capitulation with Coote. Commissioners on both sides were appointed; and the conditions originally offered to Limerick, by Ireton, were now made the basis of the articles, which were finally agreed upon, and signed on the 5th of April, 1652. By these articles, the town, forts, fortifications, &c. were to be delivered up to Sir Charles Coote for the parliament on the 12th instant; all persons within the town were to depart with their goods to any other part of the nation, or beyond the seas. The same time was allowed the clergy to quit the kingdom; and all those comprized in the second article were to have an indemnity for past offences, except Dominick Kirwan and others who were concerned in the attack on captain Clarke's ship on the l9th of March, 1641. The inhabitants were to enjoy their estates to them and their heirs for ever, in all houses, castles, lands, &c. within the town and the old and new liberties, with liberty to let and set same, but, in case of sale, to pay a third part of the price to the state of England. They were to be charged with no contribution but in proportion with other cities and towns, and were to enjoy two parts of their real properties in all places within the state's dominion, but subject to regulations for remuneration when contiguous to castles, fortifications or streights. Upon surrender of the town, they were to enter into, and enjoy all their real estates, until persons should be appointed by the parliament to dispose of one third thereof for its use; and the composition of five thousand pounds, insisted upon for the third part of their goods and chattels, was referred to commissioners for remittal or mitigation. The corporation charter and privileges were guaranteed, and liberty to trade provided for. All prisoners, natives or inhabitants of Galway, or the islands of Arran, were to be liberated without ransom; and all ship goods or merchandize, taken by land or sea, going to, or coming from the town, were to be restored. A breach of the articles was to be deemed only the act of the person committing it. The lord president, Coote, was to procure them to be ratified and confirmed, within twenty days by the commissioners, and also to be secured by an act of parliament. Sir Valentine Blake, Sir Oliver Ffrcncll, John Blake, esq. and Dominick Blake, were to be delivered as hostages; and, finally, the new castle at Tirellan and the fort in Mutton-island were to be surrendered by twelve o'clock at noon on the day following. [aa] These were the conditions upon which the town of Galway surrendered to the parliamentary forces, and which will for ever remain an idelible memorial of the perseverance and bravery of its inhabitants, who, after a siege of nine months, during which they suffered every human privation, at length succeeded in obtaining such articles as, if honorably observed, would have had no other effect on the town than that of transferring its allegience to the then ruling power; but how flagitiously they were afterwards infringed in every particular, as will appear in the sequel. Sir Charles Coote, without delay, transmitted an account of his proceedings to the commissioners of the parliament in Dublin, for their approbation. His dispatches arrived on the 11th of April at the castle, and, though it was then the hour of midnight, a council of war was immediately summoned. The articles were taken into consideration, and, having been unanimously considered as too favorable to the besieged, several resolutions were entered into, which were almost entirely subversive of their spirit and meaning. The result of this conference was dispatched back that night, in order, if at all practicable, to prevent the ratification of the treaty, or if it should, in the mean time, be concluded, to have their counter-resolutions, explanatory of its meaning, signed as soon after as possible; but they arrived too late for the former purpose, and the latter was justly rejected by the inhabitants, as an open violation and infringement of the articles. The town was surrendered on the 12th, and the colonel Peter Stubbers marched in with two companies of foot. The commissioners at Dublin exculpated themselves to the council of state and parliament in England from having consented to the articles, but, at the same time, stated that Sir Charles Coote, in granting them, had, in their judgment, acted very faithfully, and conceived that what he consented to was for the service of the state; and, if he had not made those concessions, there was great possibility that more troops would be brought into the town, which would have kept all the forces in those parts occupied during the summer. From the moment the articles were signed, it was resolved to violate them. Coote informed the commissioners, that if the parliament ordered that no Irish or Papists should be permitted to reside in any garrison in Ireland, he was sure the inhabitants of Galway would declare themselves bound by such a law, and that they would not insist upon the articles. By these and similar contrivances they were gradually evaded, not, however, without leaving a perpetual stain of the character of the then unprincipaled rulers of the country. Cruel proceedings against the inhabitants With feelings of the deepest emotion, the attention of the reader will now be turned towards the state of affairs within this devoted and unhappy though once prosperous and flourishing town, whose inhabitants were the first in Ireland that took up arms in defence of their religion and king, and the last, either in Great Britain or Ireland, that laid them down. The surrender was followed by a famine throughout the country, by which multitudes perished. This was again succeeded by a plague, which carried off thousands both in the town and the surrounding districts; so that the severest vengeance of heaven seemed now to have been poured down on the heads of this devoted community. Many, driven to despair by the severities inflicted upon them, instead of avoiding the pestilence, sought refuge in death from their merciless persecutors. This dreadful visitation continued for two years, during which upwards of one-third of the population of the province was swept away, and those who survived were doomed to undergo sufferings to which even death itself was preferable. Col. Stubbers, who was appointed military governor of the town upon its surrender, under pretence of taking up vagrants and idle persons, made frequent nightly excursions, with armed troops into the country, and seized upwards of a thousand people, often without discrimination of rank or condition, whom he transported to the West Indies, and there had sold as slaves.[bb] But the town was the great scene of persecution. Immediately after the surrender, a contribution, amounting to four hundred pounds monthly, was imposed contrary to the articles, which terminated in the total ruin of the inhabitants. This excessive charge was exacted with the utmost severity. An author who was then in the town relates,[cc] that unless it was paid to the last farthing, at a certain hour, every Saturday, of which notice was then given by beat of drum or sounding of trumpets, the soldiers rushed to the houses of the inhabitants, and, with their muskets pointed to the breasts of the inmates, threatened them with immediate death, unless paid whatever they thought proper to demand; and when, from the continual payments, the town's people were unable any longer to discharge it, such articles of household furniture as the soldiery could find, even to the clothes of the women, were seized, and sold in the market-place for whatever they would bring; so that, according to this author, the return of Saturday, being the period of payment and visitation, seemed to the inhabitants to realize the idea rormed of the day of judgment. the sounding of the trumpets striking them with almost equal terror. Licentiousness of the soldiery Henceforth the most violent acts of oppression and injustice openly took place without any control. The king's arms and every other emblem of royalty were torn down; upwards of fifty of the Catholic clergy were shipped to the islands of Arran and Bophin, until they could be transported to the West Indies; and, being allowed but two pence a day each for their support, they were nearly famished. The churches and abbies were converted into stables for the dragoons, the chalices and sacred vessels used as drinking cups, and the old and valuable libraries of the clergy burnt or sold to the shops. The mayor and aldermen, though expressly protected by the articles, were repeatedly abused and dragged to prison, for daring to remonstrate with the licentious soldiery, who set no bounds to their brutality and violence [dd] Unjust measures of the rulers in Dublin, contrary to the articles of surrender - The corporation new modelled The inhabitants having repeatedly, but in vain, appealed to the governor against these atrocities, at length ventured to represent their grievances to the commissioners in Dublin:[ee] they received, however, such replies as shewed they were to expect no relief from that quarter. After several specious and evasive answers, to preserve the appearance of justice, orders of reference were made to the very persons complained of: they were finally informed that the articles of surrender, being still under consideration in England, could not be interfered with; and they were thus dismissed, to undergo even worse treatment than before for at all presuming to complain. In the mean time the state was not inattentive to the security of the town. The east and west citadels were built, and several new works added to the east fortifications. It also appears that the very men who were hourly violating all the laws of religion and humanity, with their usual consistency of character, now considered it necessary to erect a meeting-house "for the service of GOD," the expenses of which they took care should be defrayed by applotment on the Catholic inhabitants. The question concerning the articles of surrender having been at length decided in England against them, contrary to the public faith, and to every law of nature and nations, the final destruction of the inhabitants was now determined upon. The first step taken was to extinguish the old corporation; and accordingly upon a petition from the English "Protestant inhabitants" of the town, an order was made by the council of state, on the 25th of October, 1654, that the mayor and other chief officers should be "English and Protestants," and in case the then mayor or other chief officers were "Irish Or Papists," that they should be removed. This order was immediately carried into execution; and Thomas Lynch Fitz-Ambrose, the mayor, John Blake, the recorder, and Richard Lynch and Anthony French Fitz-Peter, the sheriffs, were deposed; and, in their place, colonel Peter Stubbers, the governor, was appointed mayor, Robert Clarke recorder, and Paul Dodd and Marcus Lynch FitzThomas [ff] sheriffs. The English soldiers were next made free, and the old members of the corporation finally disfranchised. The ancient inhabitants turned out of the town, and the houses destroyed This measure was only the prelude to others more serious: it was next determined to banish all the native inhabitants out of the town, and to supply their place with an English colony. An order was accordingly made by the lord deputy and council, on the 23d of July, 1655, that all- persons who claimed or had any right to any houses or other real estate, within or contiguous to the town, being popish recusants, should remove themselves and their families thereout before the 1st of November then ensuing, being paid, pursuant to the articles their full value; and in case they should refuse or neglect to do so, the officers and soldiers were required to remove them. [gg] Before the time limited for compliance with this ordinance had expired, another was issued more immediate in its operation; for "the state taking into consideration the extraordinary strength of the town, and the great intercourse the inhabitants had for many ages with the dominions of the king of Spain, and conceiving it probable that the Spaniard might entertain more than common hopes from that circumstance, under colour of giving succour to the king of the Scots," (Charles II.) they accordingly, on the 30th of October, ordered, "that all the Irish and other popish inhabitants should be forthwith removed out of thr town, in order that accommodation should be provided for such English Protestants, whose integrity to the State would entitle them to be trusted in a place of such importance." This order was carried into effect by Coote, the lord president, with unrelenting severity.[hh] The wretched inhabitants, without distinction of rank or sex, except a few who were oppressed by sickness and years, were driven out of the town in the midst of winter, (which was, at the time, peculiarly severe,) and were forced to take shelter by the ditches and in poor cabins in the country, without fire or sufficient clothing, in consequence of which many fell victims to the uncommon inclemency of the season. Thus deprived of its inhabitants, who were succeeded only by soldiery, the town presented the appearance of a military camp, without either order or regularity, and soon fell to decay. The superb houses, which, in the language of the Annals, were fit "to lodge kings and princes," and are described as the best built and most splendidly furnished of any in the kingdom, were seized upon and occupied by the lowest of the populace, until they were completely ruined. The trifling trade which recently remained had now entirely ceased; and the town, thus circumstanced, resembled a rich bee-hive plundered of its treasures, while its industrious people lay smothered and destroyed. Plans of the government relative to Galway The work of destruction being thus complete, the ruinous situation to which this unfortunate town was now reduced, at length forced itself on the attention of the governing party; and an expedient was soon devised, which it was supposed would remedy all that had been done. An act was passed in the parliament of England, on the 17th of September, 1656, "for the ascertaining and effectual setting out of lands and houses in Ireland, in consideration of losses sustained by Anthony Edwards and others, the well-affected inhabitants of the city of Gloucester," during the siege which that city sustained against the royal forces in 1642. The intentions of this act not being yet carried into execution, Henry Cromwell, the lord deputy, embraced this as a favourable opportunity for planting Galway with English settlers, to whom the forfeited lands and houses could be disposed to the amount of £10,000. being the compensation to be made to Gloucester. Having accordingly consulted the council in Dublin on the subject, he forwarded dispatches to England on the 7th of April, wherein, after stating that the public would suffer considerably, if some speedy and effectual course were not immediately taken for planting the town of Galway, he adds, "His highness hath too perfect an understanding of that place, as wee need not add much; howbeit we may be bold to say, that for the situation thereof, voisenage and commerce it hath with Spaine, the strayts, West Indies and other places, noe town or port in the three nations (London excepted) was more considerable, nor, in all probability, would more encourage trade abroad or manufactures at home, than this, if well improved. It is a town made very defensive both by art and nature, and consists of many noble buildings, uniform, and most of them of marble, which that country hath plenty of; yet by reason of the late horrid rebellion and generall waste then and since made by the impoverisht English inhabiting there, many of the houses are become very ruinous; and inasmuch as there appears more encouragement for this new plantation than formerly (for that no Irish are permitted to live in the citty, or within three miles thereof, the better to accomodate the inhabitants with conveniences, the place becomes better secured,) and merchants have more hopeful gain by trade, than when the interest of the towne was in the Irish and other Papists that lived there." It was then proposed that the town and lands about is, and other lands near Athlone, and at Ballinrobe, in Mayo, or such part as should be thought fit, should be sold to the corporation of Gloucester, by whom the town could be colonized; and he concluded by recapitulating the many advantages which would result from such an undertaking. The project was favorably received by Cromwell, and agreed to by the citizens of Gloucester, who sent over doctor Thomas Clarges, as their agent, to transact the business. Decay of town Lands and houses valued and sold A survey of the forfeited lands was accordingly made,[ii] of which Dr. Clarges was put into possession. The several forfeited houses in the town were also surveyed and valued by captain William Webb and James Hinds; [kk] and although they were, on the 17th of February, 1657, declared to be in the real and actual possession of Anthony Edwards and Thomas Whitcome, in trust for the purposes contained in the Gloucester act, yet no immediate exertions were made to promote the plantation. But Cromwell having, just about that time, ordered that another sum of £ 10,000. which had been formerly allowed the town of Liverpool for its losses in the parliamentary interest, should be satisfied out of the remainder of the houses in Galway, the lord deputy again pressed the subject of the colonization and improvement of the town, as well on the inhabitants of Liverpool as those of Gloucester. He represented to them, that for building, situation and strength, the town was of very great importance to the security of the nation; and was most advantageously situated for trade, having the sea open, and free for Spain, the Straits, the Indies and other places; and that, before the rebellion, it was inhabited by many wealthy and flourishing inhabitants; and that it would concern them to use their utmost diligence for speedily planting the place with English Protestants, by whom the houses, then ruinous, might be repaired, and commerce, which was then utterly decayed, might be revived. The reader may anticipate that all these designs proved abortive; the wished-for plantation never took place, having been perhaps only prevented by the unexpected and happy revolution which immediately afterwards followed. Total decay of the town at the time of the Restoration. The appalling scene of atrocities, hitherto opened to the view of the reader, is now drawing to a close. On the 15th of September, 1658, Richard Cromwell was proclaimed lord protector in Galway, with great rejoicings. The contemptible corporation of the day, having no more victims to persecute, began to quarrel amongst themselves; and their disputes became so violent that the government was obliged to interfere, and threatened to annul the charter, and abolish their privileges. On the 7th of August, 1659, an order issued to apprehend lord Clanricarde, Sir Richard Blake, and the other principal gentlemen of the county; and on the 22d, colonel Thomas Sadlier, the governor, was ordered to remove "all the Irish Papists" out of the town and liberties, and not permit them to return without licence from the commander of the forces. Other instances of persecution afterwards occurred, but they gradually decreased, both in number and severity; and some appearance of moderation and justice was finally introduced, and for a while established, by the restoration. [../../../includes/logo.htm]