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Sack of Cashel

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and then began to deploy. The attack was led by around 150 dismounted horse officers (who wore more armour than the foot) with the remainder of the infantry following; troops of horse rode along the flanks of the advancing force to encourage the infantry. The Irish soldiers attempted to drive off the attackers with pikes while the civilians inside hurled rocks down from the walls: in turn, the attackers hurled firebrands into the compound, setting some of the buildings inside on fire. Although many were wounded, the Parliamentarians gradually fought their way over the walls, pushing the garrison into the church.
190: 27: 662:. What was more, the Irish Confederates were themselves split over the terms on which they should sign a peace deal with the King. A deep rift developed within their ranks in 1647 between those who were prepared to accept a mere toleration of Catholicism in return for an alliance with the English Royalists and those who in effect wanted Ireland to be a Catholic kingdom, albeit under the sovereignty of the Stuart monarchy. This infighting was to fatally hamper the war effort of the Confederates in Munster and make possible the Protestant sack of Cashel. 264: 221: 825: 202: 133: 271: 285: 299: 313: 748:
Arriving with his army at the Rock, Inchiquin called for surrender within an hour. The defenders of the churchyard offered to negotiate, but that was refused, and on the afternoon of 15 September the assault commenced. The Parliamentarians were first reminded of earlier atrocities against Protestants
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He won the army over within an hour. A ceremony was afterwards arranged in which Glamorgan handed over command to Muskerry but this was merely to save face. Muskerry desired to turn his full attention to the politics of the Irish Confederations supreme council, and so immediately after the ceremony,
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Initially, the Irish defenders managed to protect the Church, holding off the attackers trying to get through the doors, but the Parliamentarians then placed numerous ladders against the many windows in the church and swarmed the building. For another half an hour, fighting raged inside the church,
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In the end, all the soldiers (save a single major) and most of the civilians on the Rock were killed by the attackers. The Bishop and Mayor of Cashel along with a few others survived by taking shelter in a secret hiding place. Apart from these a few women were spared, after being stripped of their
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Inchiquin had already launched two minor raids against Cashel, and he now had the opportunity to launch a major assault. The Parliamentarian forces first stormed nearby Roche Castle, putting fifty warders to the sword. This attack terrified the local inhabitants of the region, some of whom fled to
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In consequence, the Confederates had no option but to sign a truce with Inchiquin, an act which deeply alienated many Confederates and Catholic clergy, who had been appalled at Inchiquin's brutal tactics in Munster. These divisions would lead to the brief but bloody Irish Confederate Civil War in
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as evidence of the futility of defending Ireland without Royalist support. In the short term, Lord Taffe came under intense pressure from the Confederate leadership to engage Inchiquin. When he did so in November, the politically divided and badly led Munster army was routed and destroyed at the
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until the depleted defenders retreated up the bell tower. Only sixty soldiers of the garrison remained at this point, and they thus accepted a call to surrender. However, after they had descended the tower and thrown their swords away, all were killed.
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and those sympathetic to the Royalist lord Ormonde. The former were enraged by the attack and desired retribution against Inchiquin and his army, but the Ormondist faction saw the Sack of Cashel and a subsequent raid by Inchiquin's men into
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Glamorgan was not popular, partly because he was English but also because he lacked money to regularly pay the soldiers. Muskerry was unsatisfied with the direction the Irish Confederate Supreme Council was headed under the influence of
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and a few towns along the south coast, which remained in the hands of Protestant settlers. For five years, the province had been fought over by the Irish Confederation and Protestants, led by the Baron of Inchiquin.
816:, with statues smashed and pictures defaced. The deserted town of Cashel was also torched. Lord Inchiquin was even alleged to have put on the Archbishop's vestments and mitre in mockery of Roman Catholicism. 677:, an English Catholic nobleman who had been granted command of the army by the Confederate Supreme council for reasons of political expediency, being aligned neither to the Royalist nor clerical faction. 696:
Even worse, while the Munster Army was paralysed by the intrigues of its commanders, Inchiquin's Protestant forces had embarked on a highly destructive campaign in Confederate-held territory.
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in 1643, when 200 civilians were killed by Ormonde's English Royalist army, but many more than this were killed at Cashel, and the Rock of Cashel was one of the chief holy places of the
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clothes, and a small number of wealthy civilians were taken prisoner, but these were the exceptions. Overall, close to 1,000 were killed, amongst them Lieutenant-Colonel Butler and
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The atrocity at Cashel caused a deep impact in Ireland, as it was the worst single atrocity committed in Ireland since the start of fighting in 1641. Previously, the most infamous
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The political ramifications in the Irish confederation were also profound, serving to exacerbate the split between the Catholic party headed by
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1648. Inchiquin withdrew his support for the English Parliament in the same year and entered into a Royalist alliance with the Confederates.
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The sack of Cashel occurred against the background of a complex conflict in the south of Ireland. In 1642, most of the province of
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of the mayor of Cashel, as well as the coach of the bishop, were captured. The plunder was accompanied by acts of
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who hoped to keep the Munster army intact for their own ends. As a result, Inchiquin was able to advance on
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and realised that he was in a position to influence the army of Munster and thereby strengthen his hand.
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of the church, many of the slain civilians had also brought their valuables with them. The sword and
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The Rock of Cashel, the citadel in which the defenders of Cashel attempted to hold off the assault
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Despite the massacre, Inchiquin converted to Roman Catholicism while in exile in France in 1656.
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in 1992. The bodies in the churchyard were described by a witness as being five or six deep.
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Seymour, St. John D (1917). "The Storming of the Rock of Cashel by Lord Inchiquin in 1647".
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English Parliamentarian sack and slaughter of the Confederate Ireland-held city of Cashel
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garrison were executed along with a number of civilians and the castle was sacked.
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Alasdair MacColla and the Highland problem in the seventeenth century
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An Apprenticeship in Arms: The Origin of the British Army 1585-1702
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The political and military situation was further fragmented by the
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hiding places, while hundreds of others fled promptly to the
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had fallen to Irish Catholic rebels with the exception of
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The slaughter was followed by extensive plunder and
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At that time, the Munster army was commanded by 1172: 1221:Massacres during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms 654:in which the Catholics gave their support to 606:, took place on 15 September 1647 during the 350: 940: 836:amongst the Catholic population was that at 1162:: CS1 maint: location missing publisher ( 1139:: CS1 maint: location missing publisher ( 357: 343: 71:Learn how and when to remove this message 823: 699: 658:, and the Protestants after 1643 to the 34:This article includes a list of general 1068: 922: 907: 1173: 1056: 1017: 970: 958: 934: 270: 1186:Battles of the Irish Confederate Wars 1098: 633: 338: 1107:"The Sack of Cashel, September 1647" 20: 1231:Anti-Christian sentiment in Ireland 716:, then in early September captured 13: 40:it lacks sufficient corresponding 14: 1247: 1035: 1021:An Illustrated History of Ireland 1011:"A Compendium of Irish Biography" 946: 1036:Doyle, Jim (15 September 2018). 311: 297: 283: 269: 262: 251:c.500-800 (including civilians) 219: 200: 188: 131: 25: 995:A Compendium of Irish Biography 852:or "Murrough of the Burnings". 689:Muskerry resigned in favour of 284: 1216:Massacres committed by England 1018:Cusack, Margaret Anne (1868). 976: 298: 1: 1206:Attacks on churches in Europe 1003: 735: 1105:Inchiquin (9 October 2008). 1083:10.1093/ehr/XXXII.CXXVII.373 895: 890:List of massacres in Ireland 819: 509:1649–53 Cromwellian Conquest 312: 7: 1201:History of County Tipperary 1196:Anti-Catholicism in Ireland 883: 857:Giovanni Battista Rinuccini 756: 704:In the summer of 1647, the 238:c.300 (excluding civilians) 10: 1252: 842:Catholic Church in Ireland 618:was taken by a Protestant 330:Ireland and Rock of Cashel 1148:Stevenson, David (1980). 1062:Confederation of Kilkenny 382: 245: 232: 212: 181: 141: 130: 122: 117: 1226:Cashel, County Tipperary 983:Blessed Thomas Stapleton 730:Cashel, County Tipperary 218:Lt-Colonel Butler   207:English Parliamentarians 1125:Manning, Rober (2006). 652:First English Civil War 395:1641–42 Irish Rebellion 55:more precise citations. 1236:Massacres of Catholics 871:battle of Dungans Hill 829: 783:Irish Catholic Martyrs 622:army commanded by the 608:Irish Confederate Wars 368:Irish Confederate Wars 213:Commanders and leaders 125:Irish Confederate Wars 867:Battle of Knocknanuss 827: 764:Roman Catholic priest 700:Inchiquin's offensive 675:the Earl of Glamorgan 660:Parliament of England 246:Casualties and losses 1038:"The Sack of Cashel" 850:Murchadh na Dóiteáin 828:Murrough the Burner. 602:, also known as the 327:class=notpageimage| 985:CatholicSaints.info 97: /  1211:Looting in Ireland 1099:General references 830: 706:Baron of Inchiquin 634:The Munster mutiny 624:Baron of Inchiquin 604:massacre of Cashel 195:Irish Confederates 1181:Conflicts in 1647 1042:Seamus Dubhghaill 1013:. 2 January 2007. 787:Pope John Paul II 667:Donough MacCarthy 665:On 12 June 1647, 595: 594: 376: 375:Eleven Years' War 258: 257: 177: 176: 149:15 September 1647 81: 80: 73: 1243: 1167: 1161: 1153: 1144: 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Oxford. 1111:Inchiquin 896:Citations 820:Aftermath 802:vestments 794:sacrilege 779:Beatified 656:Charles I 644:Cork city 557:Tecroghan 532:Waterford 502:Rathmines 472:Duncannon 403:Portadown 1060:(1882). 884:See also 834:massacre 812:against 798:chalices 773:pioneer 757:The sack 628:Catholic 542:Kilkenny 452:New Ross 387:Timeline 241:c.2,500 233:Strength 154:Location 1116:22 June 1048:22 June 838:Timolin 671:Ormonde 640:Munster 610:, when 552:Macroom 547:Clonmel 522:Wexford 477:Benburb 425:1642–49 418:Kilrush 291:Belfast 89:52°31′N 49:improve 1091:551044 1089:  1027:11 May 527:Arklow 497:Dublin 487:Cashel 462:Clones 305:Dublin 254:c.300 170:Result 159:Cashel 92:7°53′W 38:, but 1087:JSTOR 947:Doyle 846:Irish 1164:link 1141:link 1118:2020 1050:2020 1029:2011 806:mace 800:and 766:and 712:and 598:The 319:Cork 146:Date 1079:doi 1071:EHR 785:by 720:in 614:in 1177:: 1160:}} 1156:{{ 1137:}} 1133:{{ 1109:. 1085:. 1075:32 1073:. 1040:. 915:^ 373:or 161:, 1166:) 1143:) 1120:. 1093:. 1081:: 1064:. 1052:. 1031:. 997:. 949:. 358:e 351:t 344:v 74:) 68:( 63:) 59:( 45:.

Index

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52°31′N 7°53′W / 52.52°N 7.89°W / 52.52; -7.89
Irish Confederate Wars

Cashel
County Tipperary
Irish Confederates
England
English Parliamentarians
Executed
Baron Inchiquin
Sack of Cashel is located in Ireland
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v
t
e
Irish Confederate Wars
Timeline
1641–42 Irish Rebellion
Portadown
1st Drogheda
Julianstown
Kilrush
1642–49
1st Limerick
Glenmaquin

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