Colonel Philip O’Reilly of Ballynacargy’s Troop of Horse
Somehow, despite the best efforts of real life trying to hinder my painting of little men, I've managed to make some more progress on my Catholic Confederation army. Here's the second of two units of cavalry.
Philip MacHugh O'Reilly was the son of Hugh O'Reilly of Ballynacargy, County Cavan, and Katherine MacMahon. The family were deemed to be one of the ‘deserving’ native Irish families whose land was not taken during the Ulster plantation. Not to be confused with Hugh O'Reilly, the Catholic Archbishop of Armagh.
Contemporary sources refer to him as a lawyer, but there's no existing evidence of him having attended Inns of Court in England. He may well have received legal training on the Continent, prior to accepting a command in the French army.
Philip inherited the family estate on his return to Ireland. He would play an active role in local politics, holding a number of important roles, before being elected as MP for County Cavan in the 1640 parliament.
As MP, he sat on the committee that drew up charges of treason against the Lord Chancellor, Sir Richard Bolton and others. It was during the time that he began to forge links with Rory O'More and Eoghan Ruadh O'Neill (who just happened to be his brother in law).
Invovlement with these men led to his participation with a plot against the Dublin administration.
October 1641, Philip and his nephew Mulmore O'Reilly, sheriff of Cavan, assumed command of the rebel forces in the county. Unsurprisingly he was expelled from Parliament as a result. In November he would muster his forces at Virginia.
Philip captured Belturbet, Kells, and Navan in quick succession, at all times treating the Protestant population honourably, a trademark of his leadership.
On the 27th November O'Reilly crossed the Boyne into the Pale, and would inflict a crushing defeat at Julianstown on a government force sent from Dublin to relieve Drogheda. O'Reilly's victory proved instrumental in convincing the nobility and gentry of the Pale to join forces with the northern insurgents, and establish the Confederate Catholic Association in Kilkenny.
O'Reilly took part in the unsuccessful siege of Drogheda during the winter of 1641–2, before leading his men into the camp of Eoghan Ruadh O'Neill after the latter's arrival in Ireland in July 1642. Surprisingly it was only in mid-1642 that he raised his own soldiers, accepting the a commission as colonel of a mixed infantry and cavalry regiment. He, and his mixed regiment, fought in all the major northern campaigns, including Benburb.
O'Reilly sat on the first Confederate Supreme Council in November 1642 and attended a number of general assemblies in Kilkenny. He was named in the 1646 peace treaty as a Commissioner of Trust to rule in association with the Royalist Lord Lieutenant, James Butler, Marquess of Ormonde. O'Reilly, however, opposed the treaty and the subsequent truce.
In the Confederate Civil War that resulted, the majority of Ulster leaders who had held land in 1641 abandoned Eoghan Ruadh O'Neill, but O'Reilly remained loyal. After O'Neill's death, O'Reilly unsuccessfully contested the election to replace him, but nonetheless agreed to serve under the new commander, Heber MacMahon Bishop of Clogher. MacMahon would suffer a crushing defeat at Scarrifhollis, Donegal in June 1650. O'Reilly survived and took command of the remnants of the Ulster Army.
For the next three years he fought a guerrilla campaign against the Parliamentarians, and his was the last formal surrender of the War in April 1653, at Cloughoughter Castle . His reputation for the humane treatment of Protestants throughout the conflict convinced Cromwell to spare his, and his men's lives, being sent into exile.
O'Reilly and his men would head to Spain as mercenaries in Spanish service, for use in the campaign against Portugal. Unhappy with the conditions he encountered, O'Reilly convinced the authorities in Madrid to transport the regiment to Dunkirk in August 1654. The following year his troops were involved in the first mutiny in the Spanish army in over half a century, although it is not known if O'Reilly played any direct role in these events. The Spanish authorities arrested him in 1660 on charges of corresponding with the Cromwellian regime, seeking terms in order to return home. They disbanded his regiment and distributed the troops elsewhere. He is believed to have died in 1655, and was buried in the Irish monastery of St. Dominick in Louvain, Belgium.
I've decided to equip these men as lancers. If you are wondering, the figures are all Peter Pig, Scots lancers, an officer from the 'command in helmet' pack, and a mounted dragoon ensign. Oodles of headswaps, with only two original heads surviving.
As with all my Irish, clothing colours are based upon Sir J T Gilbert's (History of the Irish Confederation and the War In Ireland 1641-1643) description of the Confederates fighting at Kilrush being almost indistinguishable from the bog due to the dark colours they wore. All armour has had a coat of satin varnish after its coat of matt, to give a hint of shiny polished metal.
No known guidon, so a little bit of conjecture based around the family's armorial coat. Thanks to Stuart at Maverick Models for tolerating my continued "can you just..." requests.
Regular readers may be pleased to hear that after creating the casualty marker figure (yes, even he got a headswap) I still have all my digits, and no blood was lost.
Getting close to 'finishing*' my Confederate Army; just some officers to go.
* one of those deep philosophical concepts, do we ever actually finish a project when it comes to toy soldiers?
Excellent as ever. The commission for a mixed regiment is interesting whether it was a bespoke reaction to the conditions or available resources. I am sure I have seen other examples of raising a regiment of foot and a troop of horse. It makes me wonder whether there was intention to brigade the latter and, if so, how would that work.
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