Cromwell’s Legacy in Kilshannig Parish

Introduction

Oliver Cromwell, by Samuel Cooper. Portrait courtesy of National Portrait Gallery.

While Cromwell probably never set foot in Kilshannig, he still left a huge imprint in the parish and much of the land changed hands from Catholic to Protestant ownership as a consequence of his actions. It would take a substantial book to document much of the devastation that followed his evictions and outlawing of the senior members of the O Callaghan and O Mullane families and the land grants given to his backers in payment for their services. This article will give only a glimpse of the repercussions of Cromwell’s campaign and the devastating effects on the parish. Kilshannig parish in 1641 was only about 10,000 acres in size, mostly on good farming land along the Blackwater Valley. While much of the remainder 17,000 acres were classed as the Bog Of Boghera , unprofitable mountain or suitable mainly for hunting and sporting activities.

The story of Cromwell’s invasion of Ireland can be traced back to 1641. Following the Plantation of Ulster and the eviction of Catholics that occurred, an insurrection by the displaced natives commenced in 1641 which eventually led to Cromwell invading Ireland. Cromwell also had another, more pressing, motive for the invasion and that was the fear that the native Irish chiefs and some influential Anglo Norman Catholic lords would unite to support the monarchy or even win independence for Ireland.

1641 Depositions

Following the Desmond Rebellion of the 1580’s the three Desmond (Deas Mumhan) South Munster) counties of Kerry, Cork and Waterford were laid waste by the British to ensure that Catholics would never again pose a threat to British rule. The plight of the displaced Catholics was described as horrific due to starvation and scenes were recorded of people crawling out of the woods on their hands and knees as they were too weak to stand. The plantation of these counties then took place that brought in adventurers, speculators, farmers and tenants who got grants of land. These planters became known as “undertakers” as they had to undertake to spy on the Irish. As the 1641 Rebellion spread across the country some of those planters were subjected to hostility, had property damaged, animals stolen and land grabbed back. They lodged claims for compensation to the British authorities and these claims were recorded and labelled “the 1641 Depositions” that are now stored in Trinity College and are free to view on the internet.

A number of claims for compensation were lodged against the O Callaghans and O Mullanes in Kilshannig. One claim is worth mentioning. A number of Busteed brothers availed of the land grants and three of them settled in Gortroe and Gortmolire townlands and lodged such claims. Interestingly a descendant of one of these, a Frank Busteed, became an officer in the IRA during the War of Independence and was reputed to be very involved in the capture and execution Mrs. Lindsay and her coach driver, as spies, following the Dripsey ambush.

The Battle Of Knocknanuss – 1647

The insurgent Catholics swept across Ulster, driving out the planters who fled towards Belfast but got trapped on the shores of Lough Neagh. There, the attack continued and many were slaughtered or drowned trying to escape and gruesome details emerged of atrocities committed by the Catholics, much of it Protestant propaganda. This event seems to have influenced Cromwell’s opinion of Catholics and fuelled his drive to practically eliminate them. The rebellion spread throughout the country and led to the forming of the Confederation of Kilkenny, a combination of native clans and old Anglo/Norman lords to support the monarchy and possibly win freedom. Donough O Callaghan who was the clan chief through his marriage to Connogher of the Rock’s grand daughter and only heir was an important member of the Confederation and suffered most from the confiscations.

In 1647, the Confederate army confronted Cromwell’s Parliamentarian supporters at Knocknanuss a few miles north of Castlemagner, and only about 7 miles from Kilshannig where they suffered a terrible defeat. This battle was recognised as the bloodiest fought in the entire British Civil War when over 4,000 confederates were killed. The O Callaghans and O Mullanes fought on the side of the monarchy at this battle and that sealed their fate as they were outlawed , evicted from Kilshannig and had much of their property seized.

Kilshannig Evictions

Once Ireland was subdued, the evictions and outlawing of Cromwell’s opponents began and, in Kilshannig, this meant the O Callaghans and O Mullanes were very much in the firing line. The 1641 deposition claims were also taken into account in the decision making. These proceedings took place in an orderly fashion, each case was examined and the severity of the dispossessions were related to the evidence against the unfortunate Catholics. Some lost a lot while others only a proportion of their holding. Pobal Ui Ceallacháin, which was over 40,000 acres in extent, stretched from the Clydagh River to Dromtarriffe along the fertile Blackwater Valley and took in about 10,000 acres of farming land in Kilshannig parish. The parish was much smaller then and was controlled by various O Callaghan families and the O Mullanes. Many of these families lost land and Donough O Callaghan of Clonmeen and Dromineen, lost most of his property and was banished to East Clare. The O Callaghans lost about 24,000 acres in total, seventeen O Callaghan families were deported while some remained to farm on reduced holdings . Many of the O Callaghan tenants remained behind to become tenants to the new ascendancy classes.

The O Mullanes, who controlled approx. 2,000 acres of territory were subject to the O Callaghans and they too were outlawed ,lost Brittas and moved to Whitechurch to other O Mullane property. The phrase “to hell or to Connaught” has been credited to Cromwell when outlawing his opponents but he never uttered these words. That sentence was a cant that developed legs.

The Down Survey

Cromwell needed 2 million acres of good farming land to pay his debts and the confiscation of Catholic property was an easy option to fulfill his obligations. Sir William Petty was appointed to survey, in detail, the confiscated lands and this was the first detailed land survey carried out in Ireland and it became known as the Down Survey which was completed by 1657. Much speculation surrounds the name, some experts claim it refers to the fact that detailed maps and accounts were written down for the first time, while others claim it refers to the laying down of measuring chains during the survey. These maps and the depositions are free to search on the internet but Kilshannig Parish is not surveyed in great detail as are some other parishes but it is an interesting map nevertheless.

Down Survey by Sir William Petty.

Land Distributions

Sir William Petty seems to have got the job to define the acreage of land to be allocated to various supporters of Cromwell and, below, I mention some of the main beneficiaries in Kilshannig.

• Sir Richard Kyrle – He was a general in Cromwell’s army and was rewarded with Dromineen Castle and 1,000 acres of O Callaghan land. As the castle was damaged a number of times it was not in good condition when Kyrle got it and he seems to have resided elsewhere but the land provided good revenue from the tenants who remained after the O Callaghan expulsion in 1654. In 1667 Kyrle was made governor of the state of Carolina in the USA and died there in 1684. None of his family wanted to return to Ireland and the property was sold to a relative, Richard Newman in 1686.
• Richard Newman – Having bought out Kyrle the Newmans decided to increase the size of the estate and purchased another 5,000 acres of O Callaghan land for a paltry £60. Richard Newman who became the most significant landlord in the parish had his estate upgraded to manorial status, the only one in the parish, that conferred additional privileges on him. The Newman family is covered in a separate article.
• The Lombards – They had legally acquired 358 acres of O Callaghan land in Gortmolire in 1620 and having been declared innocent of involvement in the 1641 Rebellion were able to purchase the confiscated O Mullane property in Brittas which was adjoining their estate. The O Mullanes then seemed to mortgage their remaining land to the Lombards who were staunch Catholic and one of only a few who gained from the re-distribution of confiscated Catholic property. It should be noted here that the Lombards became Protestant in 1717 to hold onto their estate, intact, under the penal laws. The Lombard family is covered in a separate article.
• Lord Kingston, Mitchelstown – Obtained about 970 acres mainly in Dromore.
• Others – About another 1,000 acres was allocated to a number of other planters.
• Unprofitable Mountain – Around 10,000 acres of Kilshannig parish were classed as unprofitable mountain in Griffiths Valuation of 1852 and this proportion would have been much greater in 1657 but most of this area was outside the parish at that time.

Ascendancy Classes

Kilshannig House. Photo courtesy of Donie O Sullivan.

If the Catholics thought the worst was over they were in for a rude awakening. Most of them ended up as tenants to these new, unscrupulous, adventurers who now wanted their pound of flesh. Land that was worth a shilling (6 cents) an acre and sometimes bought for less was rented out to the tenants at greatly inflated rates and many estates had paid off their costs in one year making these new landlords extremely wealthy in a few short years and paved the way for a new class of ascendancy, Protestant, landlord. By the early 1700’s these landlords began to show off their wealth by building massive mansions with pleasure grounds, deer herds and all sorts of sporting and recreational facilities.

Woodford House. Photo courtesy of Donie O Sullivan.

Kilshannig parish had its share of such demesnes and a few of these mansions survive to this day such as Kilshannig House, Woodford House in the grounds of Mount Alvernia Hospital and Dromore House now part of Nazareth Nursing Home. Some more mansions such as Lombardstown, Millford, Old Dromore, Danesfort, Betsborough etc are no more. There were also a number of lesser but still substantial mansions built in the parish and the vast majority were located in the fertile Blackwater valley area.

Dromore House. Photo courtesy of Donie O Sullivan.

Before Cromwell, 80% of the land of Ireland was Catholic owned despite the Protestant plantations of Ulster, Laois/Offaly and half of Munster. After the confiscations, the Catholic share had dropped to 20% and much of this was in Clare and Connaught.

1837 Samuel Lewis Notes

Lombardstown House. Photo courtesy of Noel Smyth.

In 1837, the above noted historian and antiquarian published details of many parishes in County Cork and Kilshannig was included which gives a good insight into the parish, its history, antiquities and significant seats of the aristocracy at that time. Some listed properties were owner occupied such as the Lombards, Newmans, etc. while others were on lease.

He named 11 of the more significant seats in the parish that give a glimpse of what became of the good farmland in the parish as a consequence of Cromwells confiscations. All 11 estates were Protestant owned and the following is his list with the occupiers named :-

• Dromore, Newmans.
• Danesfort, Lombard.
• Millford, Footts.
• Woodford, Ware.
• Clyda, Becher.
• Clydaville, Shankey.
• Lombardstown, Bolster
• Aldworth, Hunt.
• Dromore Upper, Williamson
• Betsborough, Magner.
• Newberry, Newman.

Danesfort House. Photo by late Rev. Henry Swanzy

Lewis also notes that about 10,000 acres, which was the original parish size, comprised good farmland.

The Penal Laws

When it was thought the plight of the Catholics could not get worse along came the Penal Laws that really turned them into slaves, denied them their religious freedom, education, inheritance rights and ownership of some property that forced them into smaller and smaller holdings. The townland of Shanavoher in the parish was typically sub divided into small holdings and almost 200 years later, Griffiths Valuation records of 1852 show the farm size had reduced to about 7 acres each on what was once described as unprofitable mountain. The potato became the stable diet as it could feed a family on small acreage. Many Catholic families had to survive on a few acres and when the blight destroyed the potato crops, it suited the British Government to lay the blame for the Great Famine on the blight but not on its own penal laws or inertia in dealing with the problem.

Land Reform

Gradually a number attempts were made to secure better conditions for tenant Catholic farmers and various uprisings, mini wars, rebellions, boycotts, land reform organisations etc. throughout the 1800’s led to land reform acts being passed. Some prominent Protestant landlords were to the forefront in agitating for reform. A number of land acts were passed by Britain in the late 1800’s and in 1903 the Wyndham Land Act was a major breakthrough. The British government grant aided tenants to buy out their tenancies and also grant aided landowners to sell, finally enabling many tenants to purchase outright their tenancies and once again, own their own properties. Much of this transfer took place in the early 1900’s and before the Easter Rising and it would appear that many estate owners saw the writing on the wall and availed of the grants. The landed gentry did not give up easily and many held onto good incomes through ground rents in villages and towns throughout the country.

Glantane Catholic Parish

This parish was formally Kilshannig Catholic parish named after St. Seannach but was taken over by Henry 8th’s Established Church in 1581, the forerunner to the Church Of Ireland with the monarchy as its head. Cromwell and the penal laws that followed, tried to destroy Catholicism but failed. Towards the end of the 1700’s the penal laws began to be relaxed and eventually Catholic Emancipation arrived in 1829. The first Catholic church to be built in the parish in 200 years, with the relaxation of the laws, was constructed in Glantane in 1821 and this became the Catholic parish name as Kilshannig was now the Protestant parish. Both parishes are identical in size and area.

This is a brief attempt to trace Cromwell’s awful legacy in Kilshannig Parish and to pull together bits and pieces of information scattered amongst various books, magazines, repositories, and historical documents. I must acknowledge John Joe Kavanagh’s research in this area in his book “Kilshannig and Surrounds” that I have devoured countless time.