Ireland under the Tudors, with a Succinct Account of the Earlier History. Vol. 2 (of 3)

CHAPTER XXX.
1572 and 1573

The Ulster colonisation project

The absence of Sir Thomas Smith in France and the lukewarm attitude of the Lord Deputy delayed the Northern enterprise for some time, and when young Smith at last landed, the 800 of which the Queen spoke had dwindled to 100. He sailed from Liverpool on Friday, the sailors’ unlucky day, and reached Lough Strangford on the morrow. He sent to Sir Brian MacPhelim to say that he had no designs except on the spiritual lands – no designs ‘as yet’ he explained in writing to Burghley – but the chief would not see him, and roundly refused to part with one foot of ground. The adventurer hastened to the Lord Deputy, not to offer aid but to beg for it; but Fitzwilliam, who had not been consulted, gave him little comfort, telling the Queen that a singular ignorance had been shown of the jealous Irish nature, and that the chance of success had been immeasurably lessened by sounding the trumpet so loudly beforehand. Others besides Smith talked loosely of all they were going to do in Ulster; one Chatterton boasting that he had a grant of O’Hanlon’s country. Fitzwilliam bade him hold his foolish tongue; but he only talked the louder, and sent his brother to Newry to spread the mischief further, and to have eight or nine bullocks ostentatiously salted. ‘To have rumours spread,’ said the Deputy bitterly, ‘and a few beeves salted to mad men with, and to have no men come to tame madmen with, I must think, or at least doubt, to be some practice to disturb quiet government.’ Tirlogh Luineach O’Neill wrote in a covertly threatening tone to Fitzwilliam, professing not to believe that Smith had really her Majesty’s authority to take his namesake’s country, and advising him to let Sir Brian and Sorley Boy alone. Sir Brian emphasised this advice by invading the Ards, killing Henry Savage, burning the villages, and driving off all the cattle except what could be hurriedly conveyed across the Lough into Lecale. Fitzwilliam could only tell Sir Thomas Smith that he was sorry for his son’s evil prospects, but that soldiers were very scarce, and that, though his goodwill was great, in material resources he ‘had not enough to set out the main chance.’²³⁴

Collapse of Smith’s enterprise

Sir Thomas Smith perhaps hardly expected to get nothing but criticisms from the Lord Deputy. The reports complained of had been spread against his will, and he had no intention towards the Irish but to make them labour virtuously, ‘and to leave robbing and stealing and killing one another.’ He suggested that, as his son could evidently effect nothing for the present, Fitzwilliam should employ him in the Queen’s pay to defend the northern frontier of the Pale. As Fitzwilliam could not pay even the few men he had, this was hardly a practical suggestion. The O’Neills played fast and loose with the unfortunate young man. Sometimes a minor chief would make friendly advances, and then, having seen the nakedness of the land, would run off again, while Tirlogh Luineach and Sir Brian MacPhelim evidently understood each other. It was only just possible to defend Carrickfergus with the help of Captain Maltby, whose company had narrowly escaped discharge, and who generally lay in Lecale. From behind the walls of the fortress Smith railed continually at the Lord Deputy, whose gloomy vaticinations had all been fulfilled. In writing to the Queen and to Smith’s father, Fitzwilliam merely lamented that his power to help him was not equal to his will, but he told Burghley that he thought it very hard that his credit at Court should be undermined by the interest of a vain young man. Maintenance and not stomach was what the adventurer required, and he wished Burghley could see the letters he wrote to the Council. His impudent humour needed rather to be purged than fed. Maltby, a man of ability and discretion, fell to some extent under the influence of his sanguine comrade, and the two persuaded Fitzwilliam to give them command of the garrison at Newry, by way of operating against Sir Brian MacPhelim. They prophesied great things, but did nothing; and Fitzwilliam, who had yielded to their importunity for fear of Court slanders, cynically observed that he never supposed they would do anything. Sir Brian, on the contrary, burned Carrickfergus, and 100 men had to be sent in haste from Newry to protect the pier, the store-house, and what little remained of the town. The enterprise of the Smiths, from which so much had been expected and which had been so much advertised, had utterly collapsed in less than a year.²³⁵

Fitzmaurice submits. Perrott thinks he will be a second St. Paul

After his last overthrow by Sir Edmund Butler, Fitzmaurice no longer attempted to make head, but sued for pardon and leave to serve her Majesty in some other country, offering at the same time to disclose the chief instigators of his revolt. He had still eighty kerne with him, and found no difficulty in feeding his men either in Aherlow or in the wild district between Macroom and Glengariffe. Perrott, who wished to hunt out rather than pardon him, watched the ports so carefully as to frustrate many attempts at evasion. At least one important emissary fell into the Lord President’s hands in the person of Edmond O’Donnell, a Jesuit, who brought letters from Gregory XIII. to Fitzmaurice, and who was afterwards hanged, drawn, and quartered at Cork. The pursuit of the arch-rebel himself failed for want of provisions. The President was very much against the established system of governing ‘by intreaty,’ and his object was to make people fear him, ‘so that they be not kept in servile fear.’ The Queen sent letters of thanks to Lords Clancare, Barrymore, Fermoy, and Lixnaw, to Sir Thomas of Desmond, and to Sir Donough and Sir Cormac MacTeige MacCarthy; and in the end, fearing lest he should escape to Spain, Perrott thought it desirable to accept the submission of Fitzmaurice. He appeared accordingly at Kilmallock, the town which had suffered so much and so lately at his hands, accompanied by the seneschal of Imokilly and other chief rebels. The suppliants knelt on both knees, or, according to one account, even lay prostrate, and the President held the point of his naked sword at Fitzmaurice’s breast. ‘Holding their hands joined and cast upwards, and with countenances bewraying their great sorrow and fervent repentance for their former life,’ they confessed their sins in Irish. Fitzmaurice repeated the confession in English, owning himself the rankest traitor alive, and vowing to use his sword for ever after only in her Majesty’s service. As if to throw a shade of ridicule upon the whole thing, Fitzmaurice absurdly declared that he was allured by Clancare and Sir Edmund Butler. But Perrott was forced to be content, and had similar ceremonies performed in other towns, the inferior traitors wearing halters round their necks. Fitzmaurice gave up one of his sons as a hostage, but it was arranged that he himself should be set at liberty in case the Queen refused to accept his submission. She was glad to find an excuse for saving money in Munster, or anywhere else; and Perrott, with the strange inconsistency he sometimes showed, soon persuaded himself that Fitzmaurice had really seen the error of his ways, and would prove ‘a second St. Paul.’²³⁶

Desmond and his brother in the Tower, and harshly treated, 1568

The Presidency had proved expensive, but Perrott could report that no armed bands were abroad, and that every corner of the province was safe for unarmed travellers. Gilbert had done nearly as much before, but it was clear that no permanent good could be done without sustained expenditure. The experiment of ruling the Southern Geraldines without the Earl of Desmond was accordingly abandoned for the time; and, in spite of the warnings of Perrott and Fitzwilliam, Elizabeth may really have thought that years of exile had tamed the Earl’s unruly spirit. He had indeed endured many humiliations. Arriving in London with his brother Sir John, about Christmas 1567, he was allowed to frequent the Court, in great want of money, but under no personal restraint. The brothers made humble submissions, surrendering their lands to the Queen and begging for the establishment of a President and Council in Munster; and the Earl gave a bond in 20,000l. to observe the articles to which he was bound. But his rash talk, and perhaps the letters which he was known to write, gave offence, and both he and Sir John were sent close prisoners to the Tower, where they were fain to beg 100l. for necessaries, including clothes and shoes. They suffered from cold, and Sir John, who became seriously ill, had not wherewithal to pay the doctor and apothecary: anything that they did cost was paid for by the Queen, nothing whatever being remitted from the Irish estates.²³⁷

The Desmonds in London till 1573

Lady Desmond wrote to say Fitzmaurice had so wasted the country that she could not get as much as would pay her travelling charges. ‘I pray God,’ she concluded, ‘send us joyful meeting or me short departure out of this world. If you make any provision for me, I beseech you let the same be in readiness in Bristol against my coming, and upon information thereof I will in all haste repair towards you. Your loving, miserable wife,

‘Eleanor Desmond.’

Soon after this she joined her husband, and remained with him during the rest of his two years’ confinement in the Tower. After that they were all handed over to the keeping of Sir Warham St. Leger, who hated Ormonde, and might therefore be supposed a kind gaoler to his enemy. Sir Warham complained bitterly of the expense and trouble to which he was put; for, besides the Earl and Countess and Sir John, there were thirteen or fourteen servants, and they had not the price of a pair of shoes between them. Shut up in St. Leger’s small house in Southwark, they all suffered in health and ran up a long bill for medicine.

Birth of Desmond’s son

It was about this time that Lady Desmond gave birth to the unfortunate child whose dismal fate it was to know himself the last and weakest of his race, and to die young without ever having known youth. Sir Warham grew heartily tired of his guests, his kindness to whom brought suspicion on himself. He even asked to be imprisoned to save him from further danger. The restraints of the Desmonds were gradually relaxed, though St. Leger remained their custodian, and by the beginning of 1572 there was already much talk of sending them back to Ireland, Perrott being willing enough to receive Sir John, but preferring that the Earl and Countess should have a year of the Tower, since they had been using their liberty to write letters encouraging Fitzmaurice to persevere in his rebellion.²³⁸

Desmond tries to escape. Martin Frobisher

That Desmond should try to escape from England was but natural, and his choosing the time of the Paris massacre for an attempt probably shows that some deeper plotters than he were trying to make him a pawn in their game. There were many Irishmen about London, some of whom were known and others suspected as the bringers of treasonable letters, and Burghley had his counterplot ready. The famous sea-captain Martin Frobisher, as loyal a subject as any Queen Elizabeth had, was probably directed to put himself in the Earl’s way. Ormonde, who came to London about this time, dined with Desmond and said he would try to get him despatched for Ireland; and it may be conjectured, though not very charitably, that this was meant to lull him into a false security. Desmond was afraid to see Frobisher, who, however, contrived to let him know that he was willing to be bought, and that a ship of 100 tons and the island of Valentia might be a suitable price. Desmond was a bad horseman, unable indeed to mount without help, probably through the wound received at Affane, and was, moreover, afraid to ride into Kent lest he should meet Sir Warham’s men. He preferred an oyster boat which would pass the Queen’s ships at Gravesend without being searched, and Frobisher promised to help him to such a craft. So well was the farce acted that one of Burghley’s spies took credit for discovering the plot months after Frobisher had disclosed all; the captain’s wife having been employed to lay a false scent and to implicate not only her husband but St. Leger, Jerome Brett, and others who were supposed to be seeking revenge for their failure in obtaining a grant of the Desmond territories in Munster. 20l. in money or land was to be Frobisher’s own reward for taking the whole party over to Stukeley and for invading Ireland from Spain. Mrs. Frobisher, if she had any sense of humour, must have been amused at the great secrecy enjoined upon her by the spy whom she was hoodwinking. It is not unlikely that Burghley or some underling of his was trying to get evidence of treasonable designs, but if so the plan was changed, and, instead of sending Desmond to the Tower or to Tower Hill, it was resolved to let him go back to Ireland. He begged that Ormonde might be sent with him, ostensibly because his arrival in Munster would be certain to drive the rebels out of his own country into Tipperary; really, perhaps, because he was afraid to leave the field clear for his rival at Court.²³⁹

Desmond restored

After much writing and talking the terms of Desmond’s return were at last settled. He accepted the Anglican religious establishment in the fullest manner, renouncing foreign jurisdictions and promising to assist all bishops, ministers, and preachers. He undertook to keep the Queen’s peace generally, and in particular not to molest Lords Fitzmaurice of Kerry, Barrymore, Courcy, and Decies, or any of the MacCarthies, O’Sullivans, and O’Callaghans; and all dues properly chargeable to them were to be levied only by legal process. The Earl bound himself to put down Fitzmaurice’s rebellion as soon as possible, to apprehend those who had fled to foreign countries, and to leave such castles in the Queen’s hands as she might think necessary for the public interest. In general he was to hold the same position as Kildare or Ormonde, and he agreed not to exercise the palatinate jurisdiction which he claimed in Kerry until that claim should have been legally determined in his favour. He further promised to pay the debts he had incurred in England as soon as money could possibly be scraped together.²⁴⁰

Elizabeth gives advice to Desmond and his brother

The Queen granted the brothers an interview before their departure, professed herself satisfied with the Earl’s plain speech and good intentions, ‘and to Sir John she gave a privy nip, that as he hath a good wit, so he should hereafter use it well. He, like one not unwise nor unexpert, craved pardon, if anything heretofore were amiss, all should be amended.’ Burghley lectured Sir John again, at greater length no doubt, and after a further delay of some weeks, caused probably by the Queen’s dislike to do anything in Burghley’s absence, the restored exiles were forwarded to Ireland in charge of Fitton, who had been appointed Vice-Treasurer, and the settlement of whose quarrel with Clanricarde was referred to the friendly offices of the Lord Deputy and Council. Fitzwilliam had directions to do nothing without consulting Perrott, and Perrott had been much averse to Desmond’s return. Rejoicing in his freedom, Desmond slipped through Wales, and Fitton heard nothing of him till he reached Beaumaris. Perhaps the released prisoner expected what actually happened, and had some half-formed plan of sailing before the Vice-Treasurer and reaching Munster without running the gauntlet of the Dublin politicians. Sir Thomas Smith had indeed given the sound advice that, ‘seeing her Majesty doth mind to tie the Earl to her service with a benefit, it should be ample, liberaliter et prolixe done, not maligne et parce, which doth so disgrace it, that for love many a time it leaveth a grudge beyond in the heart of him which should receive it that mars the whole benefit.’ But other counsels prevailed, and Desmond was detained for many months in Dublin – a proceeding by no means calculated to cause a lively sense of benefits conferred.²⁴¹

Walter, Earl of Essex

Having desperately resolved to pacify Munster by sending Desmond home, the Queen made haste to create disturbance in Ulster by licensing private conquest on a large scale. Smith had evidently failed, but she persuaded herself that another might succeed if only he were adequately supported. It was an age when nothing seemed impossible to the brave, and all men’s minds ran upon vague schemes of conquest, beyond unfathomed seas and over unmeasured lands.

His antecedents

A Raleigh and a Stukeley differed widely in moral and intellectual stature, but they were not without such a generic likeness as a horse bears to a donkey, or a lion to a cat. A vulgar projector like Chatterton and a rash speculator like young Smith could do much harm and could hardly do any good; but one of the most romantic and chivalrous of English nobles was now about to risk his all upon the fatal shore where Randolph had lost his life and Sussex had endangered his reputation. Walter Devereux, Viscount Hereford, having married Lettice, daughter of Sir F. Knollys, was first employed to prevent Mary Stuart’s escape from Tutbury, but found a better opportunity of distinction in Northumberland’s insurrection. He raised a troop of horse, and acted as marshal of the royal army. Few or none of the old nobility had shown so much zeal, and the Queen rewarded him with a garter and with the earldom of Essex, a title which had been borne by his ancestors. He now offered to show his gratitude by conquering a province for her Majesty at his own risk.

He proposes to colonise part of Ulster

As a preliminary step he required a grant from the Crown in fee of the whole of what is now the county of Antrim, bounded by the sea from Belfast to Coleraine, and on the land side by the Bann and Lough Neagh, and including the island of Rathlin.

His demands

The race of Hugh Boy O’Neill and the Scots claimants were not forgotten, but Essex asked for authority by martial law over the whole of them, as well as over his own followers. All fisheries, including those of the Bann and Lough Neagh, and all tithes and other spiritualities were to be comprised in the grant, and a commercial monopoly, free of customs for seven years, was to be secured to the settlers. Essex demanded the right to make galley-slaves of all Irish and Scots convicted – by martial law as it seems – of treason or felony, to make war and peace, and to enact local laws. He was to have all wardships and marriages, and the Dublin government was to have no power of imposing any cess or tax.

Grant to Essex

After some haggling Essex received a grant of all Antrim except the lands belonging to the chartered townsmen of Carrickfergus, the town and castle, and 1,000 acres for their support. He was freed from all cesses for seven years, and none of his tenants were to be obliged to serve in war beyond the limits of his grant. The grantee had unlimited power of alienation to men of English birth, and authority for twelve years to make new subdivisions or to rename old ones. He had all manorial rights except pleas of the Crown, and the freedom of all markets in Ireland for himself and his tenants. Free trade was granted with all lands in amity with the Queen for seven years. The patentee had power to give leave of absence to English tenants for twelve years on the appointment of a substitute, and to admit 100 foreigners as denizens. The Queen agreed to furnish 200 horse and 400 foot, the Earl providing a like number; and each party was bound to keep those numbers up. Costs of fortification were to be divided in the same way. Among the few things not granted were gold and silver mines, and the right to coin money. The consideration offered for this enormous grant consisted of the services to be rendered and of property amounting to 800 marks, left him by the Earl of March’s will – a will of which the validity was disputed. Unpromising as this scheme must have appeared to many of those who knew Ireland best, it was advocated by Burghley, Sussex, and Leicester; and when failure threatened, Elizabeth accused them of having persuaded her against her better judgment. Sir Thomas Smith, in spite of his experience, was also in favour of the project.²⁴²

Great alarm in Ulster. Fitzwilliam disapproves the project

In spite of Fitzwilliam’s efforts to keep it quiet, the intended expedition was talked of in Ireland almost as soon as in London. The Lord Deputy earnestly begged that action might follow quickly, since the interval would certainly be filled with lies and cavillings. One cause of delay was that Essex had no ready money. The Queen was, however, willing to lend 10,000l. as first mortgagee of his property in Bucks and Essex, worth 500l. a year. Nor was the bargain a bad one. In less than one year 1,000l. was to be repaid, and in default, land worth 50l. a year was to be forfeited. There was the same penalty for not paying a second 1,000l. within two years; and if the whole 10,000l. were not repaid within three years, then the entire property pledged was to fall to the Queen. A further cause of delay was Burghley’s desire for fuller information. Since the days of Henry VII. it had been the custom to send special commissioners in cases where the ordinary official reports were likely to be prejudiced or tainted, and Burghley now despatched Edmund Tremayne with instructions to investigate necessary matters and to return quickly, leaving to Fitzwilliam all that could not be done in a hurry. Tremayne, who knew Ireland well, was strongly impressed with the advantages of speed and secrecy, but he saw that much delay was unavoidable, and advised that the Earl should put forth rumours of the plan being indefinitely postponed. He was particularly anxious that the whole force should come together, lest the Irish might be tempted to cut off isolated bands. A servant of Essex who had brought letters to Maltby, Piers, and Smith, was sent back so as to give colour to the report of a postponement. But Lord Rich with 100 men, Sir Peter Carew and Sir Arthur Champernowne with forty each, and other gentlemen with smaller companies, could hardly make their arrangements secretly; nor could much promptitude be expected from such a heterogeneous body. For the Earl himself there had to be provided six pieces of artillery, much powder and match, trenching tools, 150 calivers, sixty muskets, 200 bows, and two surgeons at 16s. per month. ‘I understand,’ wrote Sir John Perrott, who had a Pembrokeshire quarrel with the noble adventurer, ‘that the Earl of Essex, with a great rout, intendeth the conquest of the North. For her Majesty’s service I wish him success, but for himself I care not what cometh thereof, for he and his friends have sought as much to discredit me in my absence as in them lay.’ Neither Perrott nor Fitzwilliam were in love with the chivalric interloper, but they do not appear to have thwarted him; indeed, the Queen specially thanked the former for his friendly tone. Her instinct probably told her that men who had borne the burden and heat of the day with but little reward would hardly be prejudiced in favour of this courtly amateur.²⁴³

Essex is sanguine

Confident in Burghley’s support, Essex made light of opposition. The Lord Deputy he had ‘ever loved and liked well of,’ though the conversation of his friends at Court did not foreshadow his support. But the Queen was all smiles and promises, and advised the Earl ‘to have consideration of the Irish there, which she thought had become her disobedient subjects rather because they have not been defended from the force of the Scots, than for any other cause,’ and not to seek too hastily the conversion of a people who had been trained in another religion. He answered that he ‘would not willingly imbrue his hands with more blood than the necessity of the cause requireth,’ and that, when once the Irish had been brought to due obedience, ‘they would be easily brought to be of good religion.’ He was not destined to find either task particularly easy.²⁴⁴

Proposed division of Antrim

Some of the land between Belfast Lough and Lough Neagh may have been destined as a reserve for the O’Neills. An extant paper shows how it was proposed to quarter the gentlemen adventurers, and what was kept for the Queen and the Earl: —

Glenarm, Will. Morgan of Pencoed; Red Bay, Lord Rich; Bunneygal(?), H. Knollys; Market-town (Ballycastle), several; Kenbane Castle, not appointed; Dunseverick, Mr. Champernowne; Dunluce, Mr. Kelway; Portrush, Mr. Fitton; Coleraine, the Queen; James MacHenry’s cranogue at Innisloughan, reserved to keep the ford of the Bann; Ballymoney, Mr. Bourchier; Brian Carragh’s cranogue on the Bann, reserved for the ford; Castle Toome, Geo. Carleton; Massereene, not assigned; Belfast, the Queen; the bottom beneath the cave having two little piles, Messrs. Barkley and Brunker; Carrickfergus, the Queen; Magee’s Island and the mouth across, the Queen; Olderfleet (Larne), the Queen.

As a matter of fact, Essex never had a house of his own in Ulster.

Essex sails, 1573. Gentlemen adventurers

Having taken leave of Elizabeth on July 19, 1573, Essex sailed from Liverpool on August 16, accompanied by Lords Rich and Darcy, and with enough men and stores to fill several vessels. They were blown down Channel, some as far as Cork, but the Earl managed to land on one of the Copeland Islands, whence he made his way to Carrickfergus: here he was joined by Lord Rich, who, having got ashore at Kilcleif, near the mouth of Lough Strangford, travelled under Maltby’s escort by way of Belfast. Others were forced to the Isle of Man. A large part of the soldiers still lingered in England waiting for wine and other supplies; and Essex found himself powerless to effect anything considerable. But he put on a bold face, told Tirlogh Luineach that he was come to free the Irish from the tyranny of the Scots aliens, and that he might find grace by helping the work, but that otherwise he would waste him with fire and sword. The Earl advanced to the Bann without meeting an enemy, but the inherent disadvantage of making war by private contract soon became apparent. The Scots withdrew behind the river, and reminded Essex of the fact that he had no military authority outside the bounds of his grant.²⁴⁵

At first things look promising

The adventurous Earl’s first impression was, however, favourable; for Sir Brian MacPhelim wrote to say that, though he had never seen him, he knew of the forces which accompanied him, and of those which were still to come. Sir Brian asked what terms he might expect if he returned to his allegiance; and Essex answered that he would make none, but that simple and immediate submission might give a first claim on her Majesty’s clemency. Sir Brian then sought an interview with Captain Piers, and, accompanied by that officer, came into Carrickfergus, ‘and in the most public part of the house did on his knees make his submission, alleging little for himself, but some unkindness towards Mr. Smith,’ and desiring oblivion and mercy in consideration of services to come. ‘When I had somewhat aggravated, to make her Majesty’s mercy the greater, I took him by hand, as a sign of his restitution to her Highness’s service; with promise to commend any desert of his hereafter.’ Sir Brian’s cattle were in the Route, the district between the Bush and the Bann, and as sole security for their owner’s performance Essex had them driven into the fields about Carrickfergus, where he supposed them to be in perfect safety. The chief talked pleasantly of his hostility to the Scots, and proposed to submit a plan for entrapping those who had sought to rebel in his company. The Irish generally professed great joy at the strict orders issued by the Earl against injuring them or taking their goods without full payment, and at being allowed not only to reap their own corn, but also what belonged to the Scots. On the whole, the natives appeared admirably disposed, and great praise was due to Captain Piers and Captain Maltby for their ability and diligence.²⁴⁶

But the O’Neills soon show their real sentiment

So things went on, and for more than a fortnight all was merry as a marriage bell, while Sir Brian had ample opportunities of measuring the invader’s real weakness. Then someone hinted to Essex that cows were moveable property, and that he had better be on his guard. Piers was accordingly sent with 100 mounted men to drive the stock close together in the immediate neighbourhood of the castle, and he returned saying that all was fast, that at least 10,000 head were in sight, and that he had left trusty scouts who would find out what was going on, and give twelve hours’ notice of any intended mischief. The Earl said that he had his suspicions; but either this was an afterthought or Piers was the reverse of vigilant, for it was three o’clock next day before he found out that Sir Brian had withdrawn his horned hostages twelve or fourteen hours before, having bribed the scouts to say nothing about it. Five hundred Scots had landed at Lough Foyle, and Sir Brian hastened to join his forces to those of Tirlogh Luineach. Irish and Scots combined might hope to escape the common enemy. The Earl mounted at once, and spurred after Sir Brian for fourteen miles, when he was overtaken by night. The cattle reached the shelter of thick woods, and Essex returned to learn that many of the townsmen were in the plot. He imprisoned several, and regretted deeply that he had no power to execute them. In his rage and disappointment he professed to be glad that Sir Brian had thrown off the mask, ‘for now I have no occasion to trust the Irish, whereby I might have been more abused, than by open force I shall… My first actions showed nothing but lenity, plainness, and an equal care of both nations; my next shall show more severity of justice abroad, and less trust at home.’ It needed but small experience of Irish life to turn a Quixote into something not very unlike a Pizarro; and Sir Peter Carew did not conceal his joy that the true nature of the natives was now manifest, and that the danger of their being overmuch trusted was at an end.²⁴⁷