Richard Tyrrell (c. 1545 - after 1632) was an Anglo-Irish Lord of Norman ancestry who commanded rebel Irish forces in the Irish Nine Years War, most notably at the Siege of Kinsale. [1] He was considered one of Hugh O'Neill's most accomplished allies. [2] [3]
Born about 1545, [4] [lower-alpha 1] Tyrrell was a member of the Old English Tyrrell family. The Tyrrells were the Lords of Fartullagh, a barony in County Westmeath based on the village of Tyrrellspass, and had held this position since the time of Henry II. [2] [4] [3]
Sources differ on Tyrrell's upbringing and the identity of his immediate family. The Annals of the Four Masters names his father as Thomas Oge Tyrrell, son of Richard. [2] [6] However, he may have been born in Spain, [4] [1] the son of Phillip Tyrrell and his Spanish wife. [4]
Richard Tyrrell had a brother, William, who assisted him in negotiations with the English in 1600. [2] He was also foster-brother to Charles O'Connor of Offaly, an Irish rebel known to the Spanish as "Don Carlos". [7] [2] O'Connor is sometimes mistaken for Prince Carlos, heir apparent to King Philip II of Spain. [8] [4]
Tyrrell saw military service for the English-backed Crown forces in Ireland. In 1565, he was falsely accused by the Earl of Kildare of the murder of Garrot Nugent, son of the Baron of Delvin. As a result, he subsequently allied himself with the Irish cause [4] after spending some time in custody.[ citation needed ]
When the Nine Years' War commenced in 1594, Tyrrell became a commander of the rebel forces in Leinster under Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone. In 1597 the Crown forces commenced a new campaign, involving a three-pronged attack on Ulster, aiming to link up in Ballyshannon. [9]
One force under Robert Barnewall, with 1000 men from the Pale, marched from Mullingar towards Tyrell's small band of 300 men. Despite Barnewall's great numbers, Tyrrell managed to ambush the force by leading Barnewall into thick woods, then attacking them from the front whilst his lieutenant O'Connor attacked from the rear. Only one man escaped, and Barnewall was taken as a prisoner for O'Neill. [3] [9] [10] The location of the battle became known as Tyrrellspass. [3]
In recognition of his military victories, Súgán Earl James FitzThomas FitzGerald appointed Tyrrell Colonel General of O'Neill's Munster forces. [2] [9]
In June 1600, Tyrrell and his brother William negotiated with an English emissary for a pardon from Queen Elizabeth I. Despite his loyalty to O'Neill, Tyrrell elected to keep these negotiations secret. [2] The same year, Lord Deputy Baron Mountjoy was sent to Ireland by the Queen to quell the rebellion. [4]
Tyrrell had established himself at "Tyrrell's Island" - a bog in Westmeath, [2] the exact location of which is not known [4] - with a force of 400 men. [2] Mountjoy besieged "Tyrrell's Island", but Tyrrell escaped and joined O'Neill in Ulster. [4]
In December 1601, Tyrrell captured Killurie Castle and Walter Castle, in Firceall and Upper Ossory, respectively. [2]
Captain Richard Tyrrell joined Hugh Roe O'Donnell on his march southwards to Kinsale. [4] [2] On 3 January 1602, the battle of Kinsale began between the Irish Gaelic and English Tudor forces. During the battle, Tyrrell commanded an infantry squadron of 600 men - 400 of his own troops, plus 200 Spanish soldiers commanded by Captain Alonso de Ocampo. [2]
The English emerged victorious in the battle, and Tyrrell's troops, like the rest of the confederate forces, faced a decisive defeat. [2] O'Neill retired to Ulster and Tyrrell decided to submit to George Carew, Lord President of Munster, [4] after which he retired to County Cavan with his brother William. [2]
Around 1601, Tyrrell married Doryne O'More, daughter of Irish noble Rory O'More. They had four children - Richard, Catherine, Annabel and Elish. [2] [11] Catherine married famed physician Owen O'Shiel. [12]
One source suggests he may have married a woman named Maud which whom he had two children, Godfrey and Rita. [4]
In 1632, he was detained by authorities while heading to Flanders. [4] [2] Tyrrell had raised a company of 100 men, to be commanded by his son Richard, to ship from Dublin to Dunkirk. Allegedly, he had a contract with captain Thomas Preston of the Army of Flanders. Tyrrell and his son were questioned by the English administration, and eventually dismissed back to Ireland. [2]
In his old age, he became known as "Old Captain Tyrell." [2]
The date and circumstances of Tyrrell's death are unknown. According to the Dictionary of Irish Biography , he was last recorded in 1648 - though this would make him over 100 years old. [2]
Thomas Preston, 1st Viscount Tara was an Irish soldier of the 17th century. After lengthy service as a mercenary in the Spanish Army, Preston returned to Ireland following the outbreak of the Rebellion of 1641. He was appointed to command the Leinster Army of the Irish Confederacy, enjoying some success as well as a number of heavy defeats such as the Battle of Dungans Hill in 1647 where his army was largely destroyed. Like other Confederate leaders, Preston was a Catholic Royalist. He remained in close contact with the Lord Lieutenant the Marquess of Ormonde, and was a strong supporter of an alliance between Confederates and Royalists against the English Republicans.
The siege of Kinsale, also known as the battle of Kinsale, was the ultimate battle in England's conquest of Gaelic Ireland, commencing in October 1601, near the end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, and at the climax of the Nine Years' War—a campaign by Hugh O'Neill, Hugh Roe O'Donnell and other Irish lords against English rule.
The Nine Years' War, sometimes called Tyrone's Rebellion, took place in Ireland from 1593 to 1603. It was fought between an Irish confederation—led mainly by Hugh O'Neill of Tyrone and Hugh Roe O'Donnell of Tyrconnell—against English rule in Ireland, and was a response to the ongoing Tudor conquest of Ireland. The war began in Ulster and northern Connacht, but eventually engulfed the entire island. The Irish alliance won numerous victories against the English forces in Ireland, such as the Battle of Clontibret (1595) and the Battle of the Yellow Ford (1598), but the English won a pivotal victory against the alliance and their Spanish allies in the siege of Kinsale (1601–02). The war ended with the Treaty of Mellifont (1603). Many of the defeated northern lords left Ireland to seek support for a new uprising in the Flight of the Earls (1607), never to return. This marked the end of Gaelic Ireland and led to the Plantation of Ulster.
Sir Rory O'Moore, also known Sir Roger O'Moore or O'More or Sir Roger Moore, was an Irish landowner, and is most notable for being one of the four principal organisers of the Irish Rebellion of 1641.
Rory O'More, also known as Rory Oge O'More, was an Irish noble of the O'More clan. As Lord of Laois, he rebelled against the English Tudor forces.
Sir Cahir O'Doherty was the last Gaelic Chief of the Name of Clan O'Doherty and Lord of Inishowen, in what is now County Donegal. O'Doherty was a noted loyalist during Tyrone's Rebellion and became known as the Queen's O'Doherty for his service on the Crown's side during the fighting.
Tyrrellspass Castle is a medieval castle in Tyrrellspass, County Westmeath, Ireland. Dating back to circa 1411, it is the only remaining castle of the Tyrrells who came to Ireland around the time of the Norman Invasion.
Events from the year 1603 in Ireland.
Tadhg Dall Ó hUiginn was an Irish poet.
Maol Muire Ó hÚigínn, also Maol Muire Ó Huiginn, was an Irish Catholic clergyman. A Franciscan, he was appointed Archbishop of Tuam by the Holy See on 24 March 1586, and died in office.
Nuala O'Donnell was a noblewoman of the O'Donnell dynasty who took part in the Flight of the Earls. She was known as "the Lady of the Piercing Wail".
Rory Caoch O'More was an Irish noble. He ruled as Lord of Laois until his death in 1547 at the hand of his brother Giolla Pádraig O'More.
Giolla Pádraig O'More,, also spelt Giollapádraig, anglicised Gilla-Patrick, was an Irish noble. He was Lord of Laois from 1547 until his death in 1548.
Giolla Pádraig O'More, anglicised Gillapatrick, was an Irish noble. He was Lord of Laois from about 1398 until his death in 1420.
Cathal O’Connor Faly, anglicised Charles O'Connor, was an Irish rebel of the sixteenth century. He was known by the Spanish as Don Carlos or Don Carolo - though he is not to be confused with Don Carlos, Prince of Asturias.
Brian O'Connor Faly,, also called Bernard, was an Irish noble and Lord of Offaly.
Owny MacRory O’More was an Irish chieftan and rebel. Considered the "last great Lord of Laois", his death marked the end of the O'Mores as one of the most important Irish clans.
Owen O'Shiel was an Irish physician. He was the chief military surgeon of the Irish Catholic Confederation from 1642 to 1650, during which he was personal physician to military leader Owen Roe O'Neill.
Calvagh O'More, also known as Callagh, The Calough or Charles, was an Irish-born loyalist of noble ancestry.
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