In the summer of 1647, Murrough O’Brien (later created the Earl of Inchiquin), commander of the English Parliamentarian forces in Cork, ravaged and burned the Confederate territory in Munster. This caused severe food shortages and earned O’Brien the Irish nickname, Murchadh an Dóiteáin, "Murrough the Burner"[2] In addition, Inchiquinn took the Rock of Cashel, which was garrisoned by Confederate troops and rich in emotive religious symbolism. In the sack of the castle, O’Brien's troops massacred the garrison and all the clergy they found there.
The Confederates' Munster army was incapable of stopping O’Brien because of political infighting between officers who supported a deal with the English Royalists and those who rejected such a deal. Eventually, in reaction to the sack of Cashel and famine conditions, the Confederate Supreme Council replaced Donagh MacCarthy, Viscount Muskerry, as commander of the Munster army with Viscount Taaffe and ordered him to bring O’Brien to battle.
Taaffe was an English Catholic and not an experienced soldier. Although he had an excellent contingent of veteran troops under Alasdair MacColla, most of his men were similarly inexperienced.[1] Furthermore, the Irish troops were demoralised by the internal factionalism in their ranks and most of them had little loyalty to Taafe. O’Brien, on the other hand, had been commanding his force since 1642 and was well-experienced in battle. His troops were a mixture of well-trained Parliamentarian soldiers from England and British settlers who had been driven from their homes in the Irish Rebellion of 1641. The two armies met at Knocknanuss near Mallow, approximately 29 kilometres north of Cork.[2]
The battleedit
The battle that followed was essentially an uncoordinated rout of the Irish forces. Taaffe positioned his men on either side of a hill, so that they could not see one another. The result was that one wing of the Confederate army had no idea of what the other wing was doing. MacColla's men charged the Parliamentarians opposite them putting them to flight and killing a large number of them. Thinking the battle was over, they then took to looting the enemy's baggage train.[1][2]
However, on the other wing, O’Brien's cavalry had charged the raw Irish horsemen, causing them to run away. Despite Taaffe's desperate attempt to rally them, the Irish infantry followed suit, many of them being cut down by the pursuing roundheads. The pursuit continued for miles and not only resulted in heavy casualties among the Irish, but also in the loss of most of their equipment and supplies.[1][2] Inchiquin lost several senior officers, including the Judge-Advocate, Sir Robert Travers. MacColla and his men surrendered when they realised what had happened but were subsequently killed by their captors. Around 3,000 Confederates died at Knocknanauss, and up to 1,000 English Parliamentarians. The carnage did not stop after the fighting was finished. The next day a couple of hundred Irish soldiers were found sheltering in a nearby wood. These were promptly put to the sword.
Outcomeedit
When combined with the battle of Dungans Hill in County Meath, the defeat led to the collapse of the Confederate Catholic cause and forced them to make a deal with the English Royalists.
"Ireland's Wars: Knocknanuss". Never Felt Better. 4 December 2013. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
Plant, David (21 December 2007). "The Battle of Knocknanuss, 1647". BCW Project. David Plant. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
Stevenson, David (1980). Alasdair MacColla and the Highland problem in the seventeenth century. Edinburgh.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Further readingedit
McDonnell, Randall William (1906). When Cromwell came to Drogheda: A memory of 1649. Dublin.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) Chapter X 'Sack of Cashel and Battle of Knock-na-noss' Note; This is an 'historical novel', and not an eyewitness account.
January 01, 1970
battle, knocknanuss, this, article, includes, list, general, references, lacks, sufficient, corresponding, inline, citations, please, help, improve, this, article, introducing, more, precise, citations, june, 2020, learn, when, remove, this, message, part, iri. 52 31 N 7 53 W 52 52 N 7 89 W 52 52 7 89 This article includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations June 2020 Learn how and when to remove this message Battle of KnocknanussPart of the Irish Confederate WarsDate13 November 1647LocationKnocknanauss County CorkResultParliamentarian victoryBelligerentsParliamentariansConfederatesCommanders and leadersBaron InchiquinEarl of CarlingfordSir Alistair MacColl Strength6 000 foot1 200 horse 1 7 000 foot1 200 horse 1 2 Casualties and lossesUp to 1 000Over 3 000 KnocknanussBelfastDublinCorkclass notpageimage Ireland and Knocknanuss The Battle of Knocknanauss was fought in 1647 during the Irish Confederate Wars part of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms between Confederate Ireland s Munster army and an English Parliamentarian army under Murrough O Brien The battle resulted in a crushing defeat for the Irish Confederates Contents 1 Background 2 The battle 3 Outcome 4 See also 5 Citations 6 References 7 Further readingBackground editIn the summer of 1647 Murrough O Brien later created the Earl of Inchiquin commander of the English Parliamentarian forces in Cork ravaged and burned the Confederate territory in Munster This caused severe food shortages and earned O Brien the Irish nickname Murchadh an Doiteain Murrough the Burner 2 In addition Inchiquinn took the Rock of Cashel which was garrisoned by Confederate troops and rich in emotive religious symbolism In the sack of the castle O Brien s troops massacred the garrison and all the clergy they found there The Confederates Munster army was incapable of stopping O Brien because of political infighting between officers who supported a deal with the English Royalists and those who rejected such a deal Eventually in reaction to the sack of Cashel and famine conditions the Confederate Supreme Council replaced Donagh MacCarthy Viscount Muskerry as commander of the Munster army with Viscount Taaffe and ordered him to bring O Brien to battle Taaffe was an English Catholic and not an experienced soldier Although he had an excellent contingent of veteran troops under Alasdair MacColla most of his men were similarly inexperienced 1 Furthermore the Irish troops were demoralised by the internal factionalism in their ranks and most of them had little loyalty to Taafe O Brien on the other hand had been commanding his force since 1642 and was well experienced in battle His troops were a mixture of well trained Parliamentarian soldiers from England and British settlers who had been driven from their homes in the Irish Rebellion of 1641 The two armies met at Knocknanuss near Mallow approximately 29 kilometres north of Cork 2 The battle editThe battle that followed was essentially an uncoordinated rout of the Irish forces Taaffe positioned his men on either side of a hill so that they could not see one another The result was that one wing of the Confederate army had no idea of what the other wing was doing MacColla s men charged the Parliamentarians opposite them putting them to flight and killing a large number of them Thinking the battle was over they then took to looting the enemy s baggage train 1 2 However on the other wing O Brien s cavalry had charged the raw Irish horsemen causing them to run away Despite Taaffe s desperate attempt to rally them the Irish infantry followed suit many of them being cut down by the pursuing roundheads The pursuit continued for miles and not only resulted in heavy casualties among the Irish but also in the loss of most of their equipment and supplies 1 2 Inchiquin lost several senior officers including the Judge Advocate Sir Robert Travers MacColla and his men surrendered when they realised what had happened but were subsequently killed by their captors Around 3 000 Confederates died at Knocknanauss and up to 1 000 English Parliamentarians The carnage did not stop after the fighting was finished The next day a couple of hundred Irish soldiers were found sheltering in a nearby wood These were promptly put to the sword Outcome editWhen combined with the battle of Dungans Hill in County Meath the defeat led to the collapse of the Confederate Catholic cause and forced them to make a deal with the English Royalists See also editConfederate Ireland Irish battlesCitations edit a b c d e Ireland s Wars Knocknanuss a b c d e Plant References edit Ireland s Wars Knocknanuss Never Felt Better 4 December 2013 Retrieved 27 June 2020 Plant David 21 December 2007 The Battle of Knocknanuss 1647 BCW Project David Plant Retrieved 27 June 2020 Stevenson David 1980 Alasdair MacColla and the Highland problem in the seventeenth century Edinburgh a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link Further reading editMcDonnell Randall William 1906 When Cromwell came to Drogheda A memory of 1649 Dublin a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link Chapter X Sack of Cashel and Battle of Knock na noss Note This is an historical novel and not an eyewitness account Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Battle of Knocknanuss amp oldid 1202757008, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
