The Battle of Carlow took place in Carlow town, Ireland on 25 May 1798 when Carlow rebels rose in support of the 1798 rebellion which had begun the day before in County Kildare. The United Irish organisation in Carlow led by a young brogue-maker named Mick Heydon who had taken over the leadership following the arrest of the previous leader, Peter Ivers, who was arrested with several other leading United Irishmen at Oliver Bond's house in March of that year, had assembled on the night of the 24th and set off at dawn to attack the County town. Picking up more volunteers along the way, their numbers swelled to around 1,200 and marching unopposed, the rebels quickly reached the centre of the seemingly deserted town.
However, the forewarned garrison had prepared a deadly ambush, posting men at every window and rooftop. As the rebels relaxed after their apparently easy victory, the concealed soldiers poured volley after volley of gunfire into the masses of exposed rebels. Taken completely by surprise, the shocked and poorly armed rebels broke and fled only to run into another army ambush. The survivors tried to escape by breaking through adjoining houses and cabins which were set alight by the pursuing soldiers causing the deaths of 200 of the inhabitants. One survivor William Farrell wrote of the carnage;
I know a man as gentle as any who woke to realize his house was on fire [and] threw on some clothes and ran to the street carrying his young daughter. He was instantly shot dead and his child.[1]
An estimated 500 rebels and civilians were killed in the streets of the town with no reported losses to the military. Another 150 were executed in the repression over the following ten days. A local man became known as "Paddy the Pointer" is reported to have helped to identify escaped rebels to the military by riding around the town and pointing them out. A memorial, where remains of many of those who perished that day were flung into a "Croppy Hole" (mass grave) is located at Carlow-Graigue, or Graigue-Cullen as it is now known.
References
- ^ Voice of Rebellion - Carlow in 1798: The Autobiography of William Farrell (ISBN 0863276873)
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
United Irishmen
British Army
