L30/11/329/22

Long tract commencing ‘In order to give a distinct idea of the of the insurrection in Dublin on 23 July [1803] and to afford the means of forming an impartial judgement upon the conduct of the Irish Government, it will be necessary to take a short view of the state of the Country after the Preliminary and Definitive Treaties of Peace.’ Describes the events surrounding the Irish Rebellion of 1803. See also L30/11/329/28

After Sep 1803

From: 1803 To: 1803

The rebellion of 1798 cannot be said to have been completely subdued. Many of the original instigators remained, though some were in custody and others had fled, and they managed to keep in communication and keep the spirit of disaffection alive. Without foreign aid they could have little expectation of success, but their agents in France were active, the expectation of invasion was raised, and it was evident that so long as the war continued the tranquillity of the Country could only be secured by the distribution of a considerable military force, amounting on 1st October 1801 to upwards of 50,000 men. The Martial Law Act was continued by the United Parliaments in its first session for twelve months from 25 March 1801. This strengthened the hands of Government by the power that it gave. From 5th October 1801, when the news arrived of Prel. 3 Articles of Peace having been signed in London, no court martial was ordered under martial law, and several prisoners in the goals of Wicklow and Kildare for acts connected with rebellion, were tried by Special Commission. This measure was approved by Lord Charles Clare, who recommended Justice Downes and Justice Chambert for the Special Commission. The winter passed without any outrage being committed, even in the most disturbed parts of Ireland. After the Definitive Treaty considerable reductions took place in the military from disembodying the Militia, disbanding of the Fensible Regiments and two battalions consisting principally of men who volunteered from the militia in 1799. Despite this great reduction of the military force, from nearly 60,000 (including Militia) to less than 20,000, the country remained tranquil. On the approach of the winter following the Peace, apprehensions were expressed by several in the counties of Kildare, Tipperary and Limerick that a system of robbery and outrage would be renewed, and applications were made for troops to be quartered in several of those places from which they had been removed on the great reduction of the army. It was impossible to comply with these applications except in a few particular instances, for example in Croduff, Kildare where a tenant of Lord Courtown had been fired at and desperately wounded and was for some time in considerable danger from the vengeance of the family which he had succeeded in the farm. Another outrage was committed on the borders of counties Wexford and Tipperary in June 1802. These outrages did not appear to have arisen from any political cause and other than these, and a few instances of mail robberies, every part of Ireland was tranquil. However, reports prevailed of disaffection and disturbance in county Limerick, particularly in the Barony in the immediate neighbourhood of the city, where there was a garrison of 1,500 men. At a meeting held at Limerick, consisting of several gentlemen and magistrates, it was resolved to present a memorial to the Lord Lieutenant requesting him to proclaim the County in a state of disturbance. This application rendered a strict investigation necessary, and accordingly Mr Oliver was asked to call a general meeting of the magistrates to ascertain the real state of the County and the cause of the alarm which prevailed in the neighbourhood of the city at a time when other districts were tranquil. The meeting did not confirm the resolution to request the Lord Lieutenant to Proclaim the County, and did not agree on any particular system of conduct. The effect was to increase the irritation and alarm, and a propensity to exaggerate every outrage or robbery into an organised system of dissatisfaction or rebellion. From the difficulty of relying on any reports from Limerick, it was decided that Mr Wickham and one of his law officers should proceed to the city to ascertain the real state of the county and trace the causes of the outrages which had been reported. Nothing could be ascertained respecting the supposed intention to attack the city which had been communicated to General Morrison in an anonymous letter and which had occasioned great alarm, not could it be proved that at any time a hundred men had been assembled in any part of the county. The attack on Colonel Bourchier’s house which was the most atrocious outrage of which any proof could be deduced, appeared to have proceeded partly from the particular unpopularity of that gentleman in the neighbourhood. The persons guilty of the outrage were tried by a special commission, and as well as two persons who had been guilty of murder during the rebellion and whose guilt was proved, were executed. About the same time, a special commission was also appointed for the counties of Waterford and Tipperary, for the trial of several persons guilty of an outrage at Four Mile House. Other persons guilty of burglaries were also tried; of 13 convicted 4 were pardoned and 9 were executed. Immediately after the close of the Special Commission a Memorial was transmitted to the Lord Lieutenant desiring him to proclaim county Tipperary ‘in a state of disturbance or in danger of becoming so.’ The impropriety of acceding to this request was too obvious to admit of a moment’s hesitation, first because it was reasonable to expect that the examples to be made under the sentences of the Special Commission would be attended with the most salutary effect and secondly because it did not appear that the powers of the Insurrection Act could be enforced, except in cases where the disturbance of the district was connected to sedition and rebellion. At this period, it must be recollected, that discussions were going on with the French government and it was presumed that in any determinations to be taken by the First Consul, a consideration of the State of Ireland would have the greatest weight. It was therefore of great importance to ascertain the real state of the Country and to prevent wilful misrepresentation of the general disposition of the people. A detailed statement was transmitted to the Secretary of State on 25th January 1803 of the result of the investigations in Limerick, from which it will appear that far from wishing to suppress the truth, the sole object of the Irish Government was to prevent exaggeration. The King’s message on the dispositions of the French was delivered to Parliament on the 8th of March and from that time concerns began to be entertained that the spirit of disaffection would again appear in Ireland, if the discussions with France should terminate in a renewal of the war. The state of Ireland was therefore represented as affording strong reasons for avoiding hostilities as long as they could be avoided. It must be remembered that after the signature of the Definitive Treaty at Amiens, the persons in confinement at Fort George had been liberated; some pardoned, others pardoned on condition of transportation and sent to Hamburgh, and that many persons then in confinement in Ireland were discharged and pardoned on condition of leaving the country. Those who were thus banished were permitted to retain their property in Ireland and therefore had a right to maintain a correspondence in the country and with family and friends, which the law did not prohibit. In March, intelligence was communicated to Government on the return of Quigley and others of the exiled Irish, who were endeavouring to sound the dispositions of people in Kildare. An agent was sent, who reported on the improved disposition of the people and the unwillingness of any of the middle class, who had property to lose, to engage in any scheme of rebellion. There was also intelligence of secret meeting of the disaffected being held in Dublin, amongst others at the house of Stocdale the printer, but there were strong grounds for believing these meetings consisted of a few persons and that they had made no progress in engaging large numbers to their cause, if that was their object. As the prospect of war became apparent, different representations were made to the English Ministry of the necessity of suspending the Habeas Corpus Act in Ireland. The strongest representation was from the Chancellor of Ireland, who was in London in April. It was hoped that the disposition of the Irish people was such that the measure would not be necessary, but the request made as a precaution. It had been settled before the war that General [Henry Edward] Fox was to succeed Sir William Meadows as commander of the forces in Ireland, and on 18th March, the Duke of York told Lord Pelham that the General would immediately be sent to Ireland as a lieutenant general under Sir William Meadows until 1st June, when he would assume command. He arrived on 25th May, and on 1st June Sir William Meadows resigned. On June 10th, Fox had a conversation with the Lord Lieutenant regarding the state of the Country and the probability and effect of a French invasion. Lord Hardwick observed that the establishment of signal station on the coast and of a system of telegraph to communicate intelligence would be a great advantage: letters were sent with a view to obtaining the assistance of the Board of Ordnance and the Board of Admiralty. Lord Hardwicke considered it necessary for public safety since the renewal of the war with France, that the Government should have the power to detain suspected persons and that it did not appear to be of so much importance to have a Martial Law Act, as there had been no difficulty of late in obtaining convictions. In June and the beginning of July, Mr Marsden repeatedly conversed with General Fox about the state of the country. [Alexander Marsden, under-secretary]. In consequence of the representations made detachments of troops were stationed at Roberts Town and Donboyne. On 13th July General Fox set out for Athlone and Galway. About 10 o’clock in the evening of the 16th July an explosion occurred in Patrick Street, Dublin, which was supposed to have been occasioned by an attempt to manufacture gunpowder. Two men were found in the house; one died on the way to hospital; the other was burnt and otherwise hurt. The following morning, at a very early hour, two men were observed by the watchman carrying a large cask, which they set down at the door of a house in Kevin Street belonging to Palmer, father of a notorious rebel and himself strongly suspected of disaffection. On perceiving that they were observed, the men ran away, having knocked at the door. The cask appeared full of ball cartridges and pike heads. Palmer, who arrived at the door to find two watchmen near the house, came out, shut the door and walked away. The watchmen took the cask, but were soon met by a party who rescued it and laughed at the idea of the watchmen supposing they could keep it. Investigations the following day yielded no additional information. The details were communicated to General Fox in a letter sent by the Lord Lieutenant, but the letter was not received by General Fox before he returned to Dublin on 21st July. Fox met Lord Hardwicke on the 23rd, and was informed of the incidents, and also of the concerns of Mr [Edward] Clarke of Palmerstown. Clarke is the Commissioner of the Peace and the proprietor of a cotton manufactory near Dublin, with frequent opportunities of judging the general disposition of the lower orders of manufactures as well as those employed more immediately under his own supervision. On 21st July Clarke had stated that he was very apprehensive that some mischief was going on among his manufacturers at Palmerstown. The following day, he reported that he had been deceived in his opinion; his workmen had assured him that they had no grievances or cause of complaint. On the morning of 23rd July, Clarke returned and informed Mr Marsden that it was with great pain he felt himself obliged to unsay what he had stated the day before; he had observed symptoms among his workmen which revived his former suspicions, including a request that they might receive their wages at an early hour in the afternoon. This, and other information, induced Marsden to notify Lord Hardwicke of the alarm prevailing in Dublin, and to request he come to the Castle with General Fox. They arrived at about 3.15pm. Marsden reported a circumstance communicated by Alderman Manders, that a Roman Catholic priest had told him of an intended rising and that he had information from Kildare of considerable agitation a Nass. It was by this time ascertained that considerable numbers from the country had come into town during the morning, and that large bodies were then on different roads from the city of Kildare. All the information and intelligence supported the idea of an attempt being directed at the metropolis. The conversation turned to some of the principal points to which it would be necessary to attend, including a guard to protect the powder mills at Clondalkin, and the doubling of the guard of 20 men at Chapel Izod, with a view to counteracting the intentions of the body of manufacturers from Palmerstown. The Pigeon House was also considered, as well as the Magazine and Phoenix Park, the Bank, and the two prisons of Kilmainsham and Newgate. There was discussion of intelligence about a man connected with the disaffected in Dublin, one of those whom it was intended to arrest if the Government had been armed with the power of detaining suspected persons; it was stated that he lived near one of the avenues to the town. General Fox was too little acquainted with Dublin to know the area described. When Marsden had concluded his statement of all the information he had received and the action suggested, General Fox took his leave, apparently with the intention of sending immediate orders to the field officer, Col. Vassall that the garrison should be ready to act on the first appearance of a disturbance in the city, that posts where troops were already stationed might be put on their guard and if necessary reinforced; that troops might be so disposed as to act in every quarter. These precautions, with patrols, seemed to be all that was necessary and not only would have prevented any assemblage of people, but might have intercepted many of the Kildare rebels on their return to the country, and if discreetly managed, were not likely to create much alarm. Mr Marsden was to remain at his office in the Castle; the Lord Lieutenant returned to the The Park between 5 and 6 o’clock, under the impression that immediate notice would be given to the officers and troops of the garrison to hold themselves in readiness, and not entertaining the smallest doubt that as the Commander of the Forces had been appraised of the grounds of apprehension as well as of the principal points which required attention, that any rising which might be attempted would be immediately supressed. At 7 o’clock in the evening, Colonel Aylmer of the Kildare Militia called at Phoenix Park with intelligence that a party were to proceed from Maynooth to Dublin, and that it was part of their plan to attack the Lodge in the Phoenix Park. Lord Hardwicke appraised General Fox of the information in a note. This is the letter used by Fox as proof that the preparations which the Commander of the Forces had made against the insurrection were greater than the Lord Lieutenant had expected. ‘The unfortunate events and atrocities of the night are too well known to require repetition.’ [The main target was Dublin Castle, highly symbolic target as the seat of British government in Ireland. The main combat of the rebellion took place on Thomas Street where a major riot broke out. There, Robert Emmet (the leader of the rebellion) witnessed a British dragoon being pulled from his horse and executed. At one point, the rebels on Thomas Street saw the Lord Chief Justice of Ireland, Lord Kilwarden, He was dragged from his carriage and hacked to death, although his daughter was allowed to escape. Sporadic clashes continued into the night until finally quelled by the military at the estimated cost of 20 military and 50 rebel dead.] It has since appeared that though precautions were taken in the course of the event (at a much later hour than might have been expected) with a view to particular objects, the powder mill at Clondalkin, the Pidgeon House and Chapel Izod, yet no general precautions were adopted with a view to prepare the officers and troops, and that the general officers of the garrison were not summoned to the Royal Hospital till 9 o’clock. It appears from the evidence of Lt. Brady on the trial of Byrne [James Byrne, baker, charged with high treason and hanged at Townsend Street, Sept. 17th 1803]. Brady’s evidence was that no orders had been sent to the barracks in James Street or Cork Street at 9.45pm, for it was in consequence of the rebels having assembled in the neighbourhood of the barracks that he was proceeding with a detachment of the regiment to Colonel Brown’s lodgings on Usher Quay when he fell in with a party of rebels, mainly armed with pikes, who dispersed on receiving his fire. Brady’s passing through Thomas Street was a mere matter of accident. It was before this that Lord Kilwarden [Arthur Wolfe, 1st Viscount Kilwarden] fell in with a party of rebels after they had been deserted by their leaders. Before the murder of Lord Kilwarden and his nephew Richard Wolfe, a dragoon was piked in Thomas Street as he was returning to the Royal Hospital after delivering a message to Brigadier General Manby. In a statement of this sort it is necessary to dwell upon those circumstances which are generally known. The discovery of the depot of piles and ammunition, as well as the rebel proclamations. The formation of the depot and the secrecy with which it was formed may require explanation. [Robert] Emmett, the leader of the conspiracy, received a legacy of £3,000 from his father, Dr. Emmett, all of which Robert dedicated to the cause. It appears that very few were acquainted with this preparation and that those whom it was necessary to employ in the course of the week preceding 23rd July were not suffered to leave the depot for fear of detection. This circumstance accounts for the secrecy with which this part of the plan was conducted, but it certainly contributed to diminish the chances of success for the strength arising from numbers appears to have been entirely sacrificed to the security of a limited communication. The Kildare deputies, about 8 or 10 of them, arrived in Dublin about 11 o’clock in the morning of the 23rd having heard that the Dublin people would not act they began by questioning Emmett closely in respect to his means and preparations, insisted on being introduced to the other leaders and that they should see the depot of arms which had been mentioned to them. Emmett refused to introduce them to the other leaders, but agreed to show the depot to two of them immediately. On their return, they reported to their co-delegates that there was a quantity of pikes, of ball cartridges and of combustibles, but no firearms, at which the Kildare people declared that they would have nothing to do with it and the whole of them returned to their homes, sending back their followers.

item

Clare, Charles,
Downes,
Chambert,
Stopford, James Thomas [4th Earl of Courtown],
Yorke, Philip (3rd Earl of Hardwicke),
Oliver,
Wickham,
Morrison,
Bourchier,
Quigley,
Fox, Henry Edward,
Meadows, William,
Marsden, Alexander,
Palmer,
Clarke, Edward,
Manders,
Vassall,
Aylmer,
Wolfe, Arthur, 1st Viscount Kilwarden,
Emmett, Robert,
Brady,
Byrne, James,
Wolfe, Richard,
Manby

public disorder, Ireland, CRIME & PUNISHMENT, legal process, France, Napoleonic Wars, courts martial, County Wicklow, Kildare, militia, Tipperary, Limerick, County Wexford, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, executions, Waterford, Secretary of State, Dublin, LAW & ORDER, Board of Ordnance, Admiralty Office, County Galway, Athlone, gunpowder, watchman, Commissioner of the Peace, alderman, Dublin Phoenix Park, Dublin Castle, rioting, treason