122-575: The Act for the Setling of Ireland imposed penalties including death and land confiscation against Irish civilians and combatants after the Irish Rebellion of 1641 and subsequent unrest. British historian John Morrill wrote that the Act and associated forced movements represented "perhaps the greatest exercise in ethnic cleansing in early modern Europe." The Act was passed on 12 August 1652 by
244-589: A land settlement , or plantation after his conquest of Ireland Oliver Cromwell reputedly said the remaining Irish landowners would go to "Hell or Connacht", referring to their choice of forced migration west across the river Shannon, or death, thus freeing up the eastern landholdings for the incoming English settlers. In the Williamite War in Ireland (1689–91), the Jacobites also retreated behind
366-622: A 19th-century historian of the rebellion, concluding "it is far from clear on which side the balance of cruelty rests". The Scots executed Irish prisoners taken in a skirmish near Kilwarlin woods outside Dromore , while James Turner records that after retaking Newry, local Catholics were lined up on the banks of the Newry River and killed "without any legal process". On Rathlin Island , Scottish soldiers from Clan Campbell were encouraged by their commanding officer Sir Duncan Campbell to kill
488-628: A Breacaun to fish between Limerick City and Plassey until 1929. In 1929, the construction of a dam at Ardnacrusha severely impacted salmon breeding and that, and the introduction of quotas, had by the 1950s caused salmon fishing to cease. However, recreational fishing still goes on. Further down the Shannon Estuary at Kilrush the Currach was used to catch herring as well as drift netting for salmon. Dublin City Council published
610-680: A Protestant threat to "extirpate the Catholic religion", reinstated original Irish language place names and banned the use of English. Following their repulse at Lisnagarvey in November, rebels killed about 100 Protestants at Portadown by forcing them off the bridge into the River Bann , and shooting those who tried to swim to safety. Known as the Portadown massacre , it was one of the bloodiest such events to take place in Ireland during
732-563: A Scottish Covenanter army and local Protestant militia . This left approximately two thirds of Ireland under rebel control. In May 1642, Ireland's Catholic bishops met at Kilkenny , and declared the rebellion a just war . Along with members of the Catholic nobility, they created an alternative government known as Confederate Ireland . For the next ten years, the Confederacy fought a three-sided war with Irish Royalists, Scottish Covenanters and English Parliamentarians . The roots of
854-759: A certain rank in the army. The Privy Council of Ireland was dominated by English Protestants. The constituencies of the Irish House of Commons gave Protestants a majority. In response, the Irish Catholic upper classes sought ' The Graces ', and appealed directly first to James I and then his son Charles , for full rights as subjects and toleration of their religion. On several occasions, they seemed to have reached an agreement under which these demands would be met in return for raising taxes. However, despite paying increased taxes after 1630, Charles postponed implementing their demands until 3 May 1641 when he and
976-477: A distinction between the rebels of 1641 – who were deemed unlawful combatants – as against those who had fought in the regular armies of Confederate Ireland , who were treated as legitimate combatants provided that they had surrendered before the end of 1652. The 1641 rebels and the above-mentioned Royalist leaders were excluded from the pardon given to soldiers who had surrendered: they were to be executed when captured. Roman Catholic clergy were also excluded from
1098-701: A forgery claiming he had been authorised by Charles I of England to secure Ireland against his opponents in England and Scotland . Many Royalist Anglo-Irish Catholics responded by joining the uprising, and the rebellion spread throughout Ireland. In November, rebels besieged Drogheda and defeated a government relief force at Julianstown . Especially in Ulster, thousands of Protestant settlers were expelled or massacred , and Catholics killed in retaliation. By April 1642, Royalist troops held Dublin , Cork , and large areas around them, with much of Ulster occupied by
1220-474: A goddess in a river is common in Irish mythology and typically represents the dissolving of her divine power into the water, which then gives life to the land". A small myth about Sionann tells that the legendary hunter-warrior Fionn mac Cumhaill was attacked by a number of other warriors at Ballyleague, near north Lough Ree. It is said that when Fionn was near to defeat, Sionnan rescued him, and he arrived with
1342-488: A large independent Dissenter membership who strongly empathised with the plight of the settlers of the Ulster Plantation , who had suffered greatly at the start of the Irish Rebellion of 1641 and whose suffering had been exaggerated by Protestant propaganda, so the Act was also a retribution against those Irish Catholics who had started or prolonged the war. Also money to pay for the wars had been raised under
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#17327720793951464-506: A list of a 104 men who were excluded from pardon for life and estate. This list includes members of the nobility, the landed gentry, army officers, and clergy. It includes royalists as well as supporters of the Confederation. The first ten people on this list are: The list does not recognise many of the titles created by Charles I and Charles II, such as James Butler's Marquessate of Ormond, created on 30 August 1633 The Act made
1586-713: A mint for making coins, and a press for printing proclamations were set up in Kilkenny. The Confederation eventually sided with the Royalists in return for the promise of self-government and full rights for Catholics after the war. They were finally defeated by the English Parliament's New Model Army from 1649 through to 1653 and land ownership in Ireland passed largely to Protestant settlers. River Shannon The River Shannon ( Irish : an tSionainn, Abhainn na Sionainne or archaic an tSionna )
1708-402: A number. The reason is that there is no particular end to a river that empties into an estuary. The 344 km length relates to the distance between Shannon Pot and a line between Kerry Head and Loop Head , the furthest reaches of the land. (It also assumes the current shipping route via Ardnacrusha, which takes 7 km (4.3 mi) off the distance.) The 280 km distance finishes where
1830-461: A publisher who admitted paying for fictitious atrocity tales. Recent research suggests around 4,000 were killed in the attacks, with thousands more expelled from their homes, many of whom died of exposure or disease, leading to an upper estimate of around 12,000 deaths. This represents around 10% of the total settler population in Ireland, though in Ulster the ratio of deaths would have been somewhat higher, namely around 30%. They were used to support
1952-640: A revolt known as the Bishops' Wars against Charles I's attempt to impose Church of England practices there, believing them to be too close to Catholicism. The King's attempts to put down the rebellion failed when the English Long Parliament , which had similar religious concerns to the Scots, refused to vote for new taxes to pay for raising an army. Charles therefore started negotiations with Irish Catholic gentry to recruit an Irish army to put down
2074-500: A small pool in the townland of Derrylahan on the slopes of Cuilcagh Mountain in County Cavan , Republic of Ireland , from where the young river appears as a small trout stream. Surveys have defined a 12.8 km (4.9 sq mi) immediate pot catchment area covering the slopes of Cuilcagh. This area includes Garvah Lough, Cavan, 2.2 km (1.4 mi) to the northeast, drained by Pollnaowen . Further sinks that source
2196-642: A swift coup d'état to gain control of the Protestant -dominated central government , instead it led to the 1641–1653 Irish Confederate Wars , part of the wider Wars of the Three Kingdoms . Despite failing to seize Dublin Castle , rebels under Felim O'Neill quickly over-ran most of Ulster , centre of the most recent land confiscations . O'Neill then issued the Proclamation of Dungannon ,
2318-596: A topography quite different from the long upper reaches. Here the river falls by 30 m (98 ft) in only 20 km (12 mi). William Ockenden, also from England, was placed in charge of works on this stretch in 1757 and spent £12,000 over the next four years, without fully completing the task. In 1771 parliament handed over responsibility to the Limerick Navigation Company , with a grant of £6,000 to add to their subscriptions of £10,000. A lateral canal, 8 km (5 mi) long with six locks,
2440-524: Is a traditional freshwater river for about 45% of its total length. Excluding the 102 km ( 63 + 1 ⁄ 2 mi) tidal estuary from its total length of 360 km (224 mi), if one also excludes the lakes ( L. Derg 39 km (24 mi), L. Ree 29 km (18 mi), L. Allen 11 km (7 mi) plus L. Boderg , L. Bofin , L. Forbes , L. Corry ) from the Shannon's freshwater flow of 258 km ( 160 + 1 ⁄ 2 mi),
2562-690: Is the major river on the island of Ireland , and at 360 km (224 miles) in length, is the longest river in the British Isles . It drains the Shannon River Basin , which has an area of 16,900 km (6,525 sq mi), – approximately one fifth of the area of Ireland. Known as an important waterway since antiquity, the Shannon first appeared in maps by the Graeco-Egyptian geographer Ptolemy ( c. 100 – c. 170 AD). The river flows generally southwards from
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#17327720793952684-546: The Commons , leading to further delay and allowing the rebellion to spread. With the situation deteriorating, in February 1642 the two sides put aside their differences and agreed to send 2,500 Scots to Ulster. Parliament now adopted two measures intended to manage concerns over control of the forces needed for Ireland and how to raise funds for it as quickly as possible, both of which had significant consequences. On 15 March,
2806-747: The Laggan Army . Many politicians and officials in Dublin and London opposed Scottish intervention in Ulster, seeing a well-armed and independent Presbyterian army as a threat to the status quo, and Parliament continued recruiting English regiments. On 21 December, the Lords approved a Scottish army of 10,000 but the Covenanter government insisted they should also be given control of the three largest ports in Ulster, Carrickfergus, Coleraine and Derry , along with land grants. These demands were rejected by
2928-546: The Long Parliament made it clear that Irish Catholics who did not demonstrate their loyalty would have their lands confiscated under the Adventurers' Act , agreed on 19 March 1642. Charles was also forbidden by parliament to pardon those accused of rebellion. Thirdly, it looked initially as if the rebels would be successful after they defeated a government force at Julianstown in November 1641. This perception
3050-476: The Militia Ordinance brought the military and county militia under the control of Parliament, rather than the king. When Charles refused to give it his royal assent , Parliament declared the legislation in force regardless, marking a major step on the road to civil war. On 19 March, the Adventurers' Act invited members of the public to provide loans which would be repaid with land confiscated from
3172-644: The Parliament of Ireland , along with 226 commoners. The Assembly elected a Supreme Council of 24, which controlled both military and civilian officers. Its first act was to name the generals who were to command Confederate forces: Owen Roe O'Neill was to command the Ulster forces, Thomas Preston the Leinster forces, Garret Barry the Munster forces and John Burke the Connaught forces. A National Treasury,
3294-788: The River Suck and canal, while Boyle is connected via the Boyle canal, the river Boyle and Lough Key . There is also the Ardnacrusha canal connected with the Ardnacrusha dam south of Lough Derg. Near Limerick, a short canal connects Plassey with the Abbey River , allowing boats to bypass the Curraghower Falls, a major obstacle to navigation. Lecarrow village in County Roscommon is connected to Lough Ree via
3416-798: The Rump Parliament of England, which had taken power after the Second English Civil War and had agreed to the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland . The conquest was deemed necessary as Royalist supporters of Charles II of England had allied themselves with the Confederation of Kilkenny (the confederation formed by Irish Catholics during the Irish Confederate Wars ) and so were a threat to the newly formed English Commonwealth . The Rump Parliament had
3538-516: The Salmon of Wisdom who swam there, becoming the wisest being on Earth, in others, she merely drank from the well. At any rate, the waters of the well are said to have burst forth, drowning Sionann, and carrying her out to sea. Notably, a similar tale is told of Boann and the River Boyne . It is said that Sionann thus became the goddess of the river. Patricia Monaghan notes that "The drowning of
3660-609: The Shannon Pot in County Cavan before turning west and emptying into the Atlantic Ocean through the 102.1 km (63.4 mi) long Shannon Estuary . Limerick city stands at the point where the river water meets the sea water of the estuary . The Shannon is tidal east of Limerick as far as the base of the Ardnacrusha dam . The Shannon divides the west of Ireland (principally the province of Connacht ) from
3782-503: The "Supreme Council of the Confederate Catholics". The rebels henceforth became known as Confederates. The synod re-affirmed that the rebellion was a "just war". It called for the creation of a council (made up of clergy and nobility) for each province , which would be overseen by a national council for the whole island. It vowed to punish misdeeds by Confederate soldiers and to excommunicate any Catholic who fought against
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3904-474: The 1640s. In nearby Kilmore , English and Scottish men, women and children were burned to death in the cottage in which they were imprisoned, while in Armagh as a whole, some 1,250 died in the early months of the rebellion, roughly a quarter of the local settler population. In County Tyrone , modern research has identified three blackspots for the killing of settlers, the worst being near Kinard , "where most of
4026-566: The 1641 rebellion derived from the colonisation that followed the Tudor conquest of Ireland , and the alienation of the Catholic gentry from the newly-Protestant English state in the decades following. Historian Aidan Clarke writes that religion "was merely one aspect of a larger problem posed by the Gaelic Irish, and its importance was easily obscured; but religious difference was central to
4148-645: The 1642 Adventurers' Act , that repaid creditors with land forfeited by the 1641 rebels. These and other creditors had mostly resold their property interests to local landowners who wanted these recent property transfers reconfirmed by an over-riding Act, for the avoidance of doubt. Ten named leaders of the Royalist forces in Ireland, together with anyone who had participated in the Irish Rebellion's early stages and who had killed an Englishman other than in battle, lost their lives and estates. The Act includes
4270-635: The Anglo-Irish Catholic families. In the judgement of historian Pádraig Lenihan, "It is likely that he [Wentworth] would have eventually encountered armed resistance from Catholic landowners" if he had pursued these policies further. However, the actual rebellion followed the destabilisation of English and Scottish politics and the weakened position of the king in 1640. Wentworth was executed in London in May 1641. From 1638 to 1640 Scotland rose in
4392-701: The Assuring, Confirming and Settling of lands and estates in Ireland" ratified previous decrees, judgments, grants and instructions made or given by the various officers and councils in applying the 1652 Act. All Ordinances and Acts of Parliament passed during the English Civil War and the Interregnum were considered void after the English Restoration as they had not received Royal assent . In 1662, an Act of Settlement 1662 (after
4514-698: The British families planted... were ultimately murdered". Elsewhere at Shrule in County Mayo , Protestant prisoners were killed by their Catholic escorts, despite attempts by their officers to intervene. Killings of Catholics also took place, including the murder of two dozen at Islandmagee by members of the Carrickfergus garrison in November 1641. The arrival of a Covenanter army in Ulster in April 1642 led to further such atrocities, William Lecky ,
4636-581: The Catholic Irish must go "to Hell or to Connaught", west of the River Shannon . However, according to historian Padraig Lenihan, "The Cromwellians did not proclaim 'To Hell or to Connaught'. Connaught was chosen as a native reservation not because the land was poor; The Commonwealth rated Connaught above Ulster in this respect". Lenihan suggests that County Clare was chosen instead for security reasons – to keep Catholic landowners penned between
4758-524: The Catholic armies of France and Spain , particularly the Army of Flanders . They formed a small émigré Irish community, militantly hostile to the English-run Protestant state in Ireland, but restrained by the generally good relations England had with Spain and France after 1604. In Ireland itself, resentment caused by the plantations was one of the main causes for the outbreak and spread of
4880-475: The Confederation. The synod sent agents to France, Spain and Italy to gain support, gather funds and weapons, and recruit Irishmen serving in foreign armies. Lord Mountgarret was appointed president of the Confederate Council, and a General Assembly was held in Kilkenny on 24 October 1642, where it set up a provisional government . Present were 14 Lords Temporal and 11 Lords Spiritual from
5002-639: The English Privy Council instructed the Lords Justices of Ireland to publish the required Bills. The advancement of the Graces were particularly frustrated during the time that Wentworth was Lord Deputy . On the pretext of checking of land titles to raise revenue, Wentworth confiscated and was going to plant lands in counties Roscommon and Sligo and was planning further plantations in counties Galway and Kilkenny directed mainly at
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5124-542: The English against the Irish; and all and every person and persons (both principals and accessories) who since the said first day of October, 1641, have killed, slain, or otherwise destroyed any person or persons entertained and maintained as officers or private soldiers, for and on the behalf of the English against the Irish (the said persons so killing, slaying, or otherwise destroying, not being then publicly entertained and maintained in arms as officer or private soldier under
5246-468: The Irish Catholic upper classes were not opposed to the sovereignty of Charles I over Ireland but wanted to be full subjects and maintain their pre-eminent position in Irish society. This was prevented by their religion and the threat of losing their land in the Plantations. The failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605 had led to further legal discrimination against Catholics. The Protestant Church of Ireland
5368-771: The Lecarrow canal. Jamestown Canal and the Albert Lock form a link between the River Shannon, from south of Jamestown , to Lough Nanoge to the south of Drumsna . According to Irish mythology , the river was named after a woman (in many sources a member of the Tuatha de Danaan ) named Sionann (older spelling forms: Sínann or Sínand), the granddaughter of Manannán mac Lir . She went to Connla's Well to find wisdom, despite having been warned not to approach it. In some sources she, like Fionn mac Cumhaill , caught and ate
5490-442: The Limerick Vikings clashed with those of Dublin on Lough Ree and were defeated. In the 17th century, the Shannon was of major strategic importance in military campaigns in Ireland, as it formed a physical boundary between the east and west of the country. In the Irish Confederate Wars of 1641–53, the Irish retreated behind the Shannon in 1650 and held out for two further years against English Parliamentarian forces. In preparing
5612-427: The Parliamentarian government. The Commonwealth initially had harsh plans to remove the formerly-Scottish Presbyterians from north-east Ulster – as they had fought with the Royalists in the later stages of the war. However, this was reversed in 1654, and it was ruled that the plantation would apply to Catholics only. In Irish popular memory of the Cromwellian Plantation, the Commonwealth is said to have declared that all
5734-455: The Restoration) aimed to reduce its effect on Protestant and "innocent Catholics". This Act returned some lands to prominent Irish Royalists, but left most of the land confiscated from Irish Catholics in Protestant hands. all and every person and persons, who at any time before the tenth day of November 1642 (being the time of the sitting of the first General Assembly at Kilkenny in Ireland), have contrived, advised, counselled, promoted, or acted,
5856-414: The Shannon Navigation Act of 1835 appointing five Commissioners for the improvement of navigation and drainage who took possession of the whole navigation. Over the next 15 years, many improvements were made but in 1849 a railway was opened from Dublin to Limerick and the number of passengers fell dramatically. Freight, which had risen to over 100,000 long tons (100,000 tonnes) per year, was also halved. But
5978-455: The Shannon after their defeat at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. Athlone and Limerick, cities commanding bridges over the river, saw bloody sieges. (See Sieges of Limerick and Siege of Athlone .) As late as 1916, the leaders of the Easter Rising planned to have their forces in the west "hold the line of the Shannon". However, in the event, the rebels were neither well enough armed nor equipped to attempt such an ambitious policy. Though
6100-417: The Shannon estuary joins the estuary of the River Fergus , close to Shannon Airport . Longer claimed lengths emerged before the use of modern surveying instruments. At a total length of 360.5 km (224 miles), it is the longest river in Ireland. That the Shannon is the longest river in the British Isles was evidently known in the 12th century, although a map of the time showed this river as flowing out of
6222-551: The Shannon has always been important for navigation in Ireland, there is a fall of only 18 m (59 ft) in its first 250 km (160 mi). Consequently, it has always been shallow, with 0.5 m (1 ft 8 in) depths in various places. The first serious attempt to improve navigability came in 1755 when the Commissioners of Inland navigation ordered Thomas Omer , a new immigrant from England, possibly of Dutch origin, to commence work. He worked at four places between Lough Derg and Lough Ree where natural navigation
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#17327720793956344-402: The Shannon is a major river by the time it leaves Lough Ree with an average flow rate (at Athlone weir) of 98 m /s (3,500 cu ft/s), larger than any of the other Irish rivers' total flow (apart from the River Corrib at Galway ). The main flow of the river is affected by some distributaries along its course, many of which rejoin it downstream. The Abbey River flows around
6466-437: The Shannon, as a freshwater river, is only about 161 km (100 mi) long. Apart from being Ireland's longest river, the Shannon is also, by far, Ireland's largest river by flow . It has a long-term average flow rate of 208.1 m /s (7,350 cu ft/s) (at Limerick ). This is double the flow rate of Ireland's second highest-volume river, the short River Corrib (104.8 m /s [3,700 cu ft/s]. If
6588-496: The Stone of Sionann, threw the stone, and the warriors were immediately killed. It further says that Fionn was afraid of the power of the stone and threw it into the river, where it remains at a low ford , and that if a woman named Be Thuinne finds it, then the world's end is near. The Shannon reputedly hosts a river monster named Cata, the first known mention being in the medieval Book of Lismore . In this manuscript, we are told that Senán , patron saint of County Clare , defeated
6710-408: The bridges high enough for navigation. Since then the leisure trade has steadily increased, becoming a great success story. There are also many canals connecting with the River Shannon. The Royal Canal and the Grand Canal connect the Shannon to Dublin and the Irish Sea . It is linked to the River Erne and Lough Erne by the Shannon–Erne Waterway . Ballinasloe is linked to the Shannon via
6832-500: The command and pay of the Irish nation against the English). Irish Rebellion of 1641 [REDACTED] England 1641–42 Irish Rebellion 1642–49 1649–53 Cromwellian Conquest The Irish Rebellion of 1641 was an uprising in Ireland , initiated on 23 October 1641 by Catholic gentry and military officers. Their demands included an end to anti-Catholic discrimination, greater Irish self-governance, and return of confiscated Catholic lands . Planned as
6954-409: The confiscation of Catholic-owned land to increase their own holdings, buying land off the Adventurers. In addition, smaller grants of land were given to 12,000 veterans of the New Model Army who had served in Ireland, much of which was also resold. Decisions on confiscations and awards were based on mapping and data in the Down Survey made in 1655–56. In June 1657, the Act of Settlement 1657 "for
7076-461: The country, but the plot relied on surprise rather than force to achieve their objectives, after which they would issue their demands, in expectation of support from the rest of the country. The plan to seize Dublin Castle was foiled when one of the ringleaders, Hugh Og MacMahon, revealed details to his foster-brother, a Protestant convert named Owen O'Connolly. He promptly informed one of the Lord Justices, and MacMahon and Maguire were arrested, while
7198-420: The cultural divide between these groups, especially at elite social levels, was narrowing; many of the Old English spoke Irish , patronised Irish poetry and music, and have been described as being " More Irish than the Irish themselves ". Writing in 1614, one author claimed that previously the Old English "despised the mere Irish, accounting them a barbarous people, void of civility and religion and [each viewed]
7320-443: The declaration is now accepted as a forgery, many of the Anglo-Catholic gentry were dismayed by indiscriminate anti-Catholic measures taken by the Dublin authorities, including those who had initially condemned the rebellion. The suspension of the Irish Parliament on 17 November deprived them of the political means to resolve these issues and the declaration provided cover for moderates such as Nicholas Plunkett to make common cause with
7442-482: The disbanding Irish army. Unfavourable economic conditions also contributed to the outbreak of the rebellion. This decline may have been a consequence of the Little Ice Age event of the mid 17th Century. The Irish economy had hit a recession and the harvest of 1641 was poor. Interest rates in the 1630s had been as high as 30% per annum. The leaders of the rebellion like Phelim O'Neill and Rory O'Moore were heavily in debt and risked losing their lands to creditors. What
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#17327720793957564-481: The discharges from all of the rivers and streams into the Shannon Estuary (including the rivers Feale 34.6 m /s [1,220 cu ft/s], Maigue 15.6 m /s [550 cu ft/s], Fergus 25.7 m /s [910 cu ft/s], and Deel 7.4 m /s [260 cu ft/s]) are added to the discharge at Limerick, the total discharge of the River Shannon at its mouth at Loop Head reaches 300 m /s (11,000 cu ft/s). Indeed,
7686-405: The discovery of a reduced eel population. This scheme ensures safe passage for young eels between Lough Derg and the Shannon estuary. Though the Shannon estuary fishing industry is now depleted, at one time it employed hundreds of men along its length. At Limerick , fishermen based on Clancy's Strand used the Gandelow to catch Salmon . The Abbey Fishermen used a net and a boat type known as
7808-415: The east and south ( Leinster and most of Munster ; County Clare , being west of the Shannon but part of the province of Munster, is the major exception.) The river represents a major physical barrier between east and west, with fewer than thirty-five crossing points between the village of Dowra in the north and Limerick city in the south. By tradition the Shannon is said to rise in the Shannon Pot ,
7930-408: The end of the last glacial period . Ptolemy 's Geography (2nd century AD) described a river called Σηνος ( Sēnos ) from PIE * sai -/ sei - 'to bind', the root of English sinew and Irish sin ‘ collar ’, referring to the long and sinuous estuary leading up to Limerick. Vikings settled in the region in the 10th century and used the river to raid the rich monasteries deep inland. In 937
8052-402: The insurgency, including previously peaceful Munster where St Leger had imposed a brutal martial law regime. When the rebellion began, Phelim O'Neill sought to exploit divisions between English and Scots settlers by offering the latter protection, hoping thereby to gain their support. This strategy initially contributed to the rapid spread of the revolt, in part because the Dublin government
8174-422: The insurgents held most of counties Armagh , Tyrone , Fermanagh and Monaghan . The Proclamation of Dungannon , issued by O'Neill on 24 October, stated they had taken up arms only to defend their freedoms and meant no harm to the king's subjects. This was followed on 4 November by the Newry declaration which claimed Charles had approved the rising to secure Ireland against his opponents in England. Although
8296-446: The interest of the Commonwealth of England" lost three-quarters of their land. The Commissioners in Ireland had power to give them, in lieu thereof, other (poorer) lands in Connacht or County Clare in proportion of value and were authorised "to transplant such persons from the respective places of their usual habitation or residence, into such other places within that nation, as shall be judged most consistent with public safety." This
8418-405: The local Catholic MacDonnells , who were related to the Campbells' enemies in Scotland, Clan MacDonald . They threw scores of MacDonnell women over cliffs to their deaths. The killings were brought under some degree of control by Owen Roe O'Neill , who in July 1642 was given command of Irish forces in Ulster and hanged several rebels for attacking civilians. Though still brutal, the war thereafter
8540-400: The long term, the 1641 massacres intensified existing sectarian animosity on both sides, although modern historians argue the killings had an especially powerful psychological impact on the Protestant community. Dr. Mary O'Dowd wrote they "were very traumatic for the Protestant settler community in Ulster, and left long-term scars within that community". Contemporary Protestant accounts depict
8662-454: The lower Shannon above Limerick. The old Killaloe to Limerick canal with its five locks was abandoned and the head race constructed from Lough Derg also served for navigation. A double lock was provided at the dam. In the 1950s traffic began to fall and low fixed bridges would have replaced opening bridges but for the actions of the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland which persuaded the Tánaiste to encourage passenger launches, which kept
8784-682: The masses of Irish Catholics surrounding them [who] were and always would be, unregenerate and cruel enemies". Although Charles, the English Parliament and Scottish Covenanter government all agreed the rebellion should be crushed, doing so was delayed by political tensions. Charles was in Edinburgh when he received news of the uprising on 28 October and immediately urged the Scots to send troops to Ulster , once approved by their colleagues in England. On 4 November, Parliament voted to send weapons and gunpowder to Ireland and recruit 8,000 men to suppress
8906-554: The meantime, Charles sent weapons, gunpowder and a small number of Scots volunteers to Ireland at his own expense, but had insufficient money to finance an expedition on his own. James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormond , a member of one of the leading Old English families and Protestant convert, was made commander of Royal forces in Ireland and recruited three infantry regiments from the refugees flooding into Dublin. Several prominent Ulster Scots were also commissioned to raise troops, including Robert Stewart and his brother William, who formed
9028-411: The monster at Inis Cathaigh . Cata is described as a large creature with a horse's mane, gleaming eyes, thick feet, nails of iron, and a whale's tail. Another story has an oilliphéist flee its home in the Shannon, upon hearing that Saint Patrick has arrived to remove its kind from Ireland. Despite being 360.5 km (224.0 mi) long, it rises only 76 m (249 ft) above sea level , so
9150-670: The new freeholders. In the next of the Plantations of Ireland , the confiscated land was granted to the "Adventurers". The new owners were known as "planters". The Adventurers were financiers who had loaned the Parliament £10 million in 1642, specifically to reverse the 1641 rebellion, and the Act had been signed into law by Charles I just before the start of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms (see Adventurers' Act 1640 ). Many of Ireland's pre-war Protestant inhabitants also took advantage of
9272-465: The new settlers. The Tudor conquest of the late 16th and early 17th century led to the Plantations of Ireland , whereby Irish-owned land was confiscated and colonised with British settlers. The biggest was the Plantation of Ulster , which utilised estates confiscated from the northern lords who went into exile in 1607. Around 80% of these were distributed to English-speaking Protestants, with
9394-462: The newcomers. The pre-Elizabethan population of Ireland is usually divided into the native Irish and Old English, many of whom were descendants of medieval English and Anglo-Normans settlers. These groups were historically antagonistic, with English settled areas such as the Pale around Dublin , Wexford , and other walled towns being fortified against the rural Gaelic clans. By the 17th century,
9516-623: The northeastern, eastern, and southern shores of King's Island , Limerick before rejoining the Shannon at Hellsgate Island . The Shannon Callows , areas of lowland along the river, are classified as a Special Area of Conservation . Settlements along the river (going upriver) include Kilrush , Tarbert , Glin , Foynes , Askeaton , Shannon Town , Limerick , Castletroy , Castleconnell , O'Briensbridge , Montpelier , Killaloe , Ballina , Portumna , Banagher , Athlone , Lanesborough , Carrick-on-Shannon , Leitrim village and Dowra . The river began flowing along its present course after
9638-544: The opportunity, a small group of Irish Catholic landed gentry (some of whom were Members of Parliament ) plotted to take Dublin Castle and other important towns and forts around the country in a quick coup in the name of the King, both to forestall a possible invasion and to force him to concede the Catholics' demands. At least three Irish colonels were also involved in the plot, and the plotters hoped to use soldiers from
9760-521: The other as a hereditary enemy" but cited intermarriage "in former ages rarely seen", education of the Gaelic Irish and "the late plantation of New English and Scottish [throughout] the Kingdom whom the natives repute a common enemy; but this last is the principal cause of their union". In addition, the native population became defined by their shared Catholicism, as opposed to the Protestantism of
9882-811: The outbreak of the First English Civil War in August 1642 ended the flow of reinforcements and money from England and a military stalemate ensued. By early 1642, there were four main concentrations of rebel forces; in Ulster under Felim O'Neill, in the Pale around Dublin led by Viscount Gormanston, in the south-east, led by the Butler family – in particular Lord Mountgarret, and in the south-west, led by Donagh MacCarthy, Viscount Muskerry . In areas where British settlers were concentrated, around Cork , Dublin, Carrickfergus and Derry , they raised their own militia in self-defence and managed to hold off
10004-506: The pardon, as the Cromwellians held them responsible for fomenting the Irish Rebellion of 1641 . The remaining leaders of the Irish army lost the vast majority of their estates, causing Catholic land ownership to fall to just 8% across the island. To have been merely a bystander was itself a crime, and anyone who had resided in Ireland any time from 1 October 1649, to 1 March 1650 and had not "manifested their constant good affection to
10126-424: The post 1607 Plantation. Due to take place on Saturday 23 October 1641, armed men led by Connor Maguire and Rory O'Moore were to seize Dublin Castle and its arsenal , then hold it until help came from insurgents in neighbouring County Wicklow . Meanwhile, Felim O'Neill and his allies were to occupy strategic points in Ulster. The English garrison of Ireland was only about 2,000 strong and scattered around
10248-684: The pot include Pollboy and, through Shannon Cave , Pollahune in Cavan and Polltullyard and Tullynakeeragh in County Fermanagh , Northern Ireland . The highest point in the catchment is a spring at Tiltinbane on the western end of the Cuilcagh mountain ridge. From the Shannon Pot, the river subsumes a number of tributaries before replenishing Lough Allen at its head. The river runs through or between 11 of Ireland's counties , subsuming
10370-497: The rebel forces. Within a few months of the rebellion's outbreak, almost all of the Catholic gentry had joined it, including the Anglo-Irish Catholics. There are three main reasons for this. First, local lords and landowners raised armed units of their dependents to control the violence that was engulfing the country, fearing that after the settlers were gone, the Irish peasantry would turn on them as well. Secondly,
10492-435: The rebellion as a complete surprise; one stated that it was "conceived among us and yet we never felt it kick in the womb, nor struggle in the birth". Many argued Catholics could not be trusted and in Ulster, Protestants commemorated the anniversary of the rebellion for over two hundred years. According to historian Pádraig Lenihan, this "helped affirm communal solidarity and emphasise the need for unrelenting vigilance [against]
10614-498: The rebellion as war in defence of the catholic religion. On 10 May 1642, Archbishop O'Reilly convened another synod at Kilkenny . Present were 3 archbishops, 11 bishops or their representatives, and other dignitaries. They drafted the Confederate Oath of Association and called on all Catholics in Ireland to take it. Those who took the oath swore allegiance to Charles I and vowed to obey all orders and decrees made by
10736-862: The rebellion in Scotland, in return for granting longstanding requests for religious toleration and land security. Composed largely of Irish Catholics from Ulster, an army was slowly mobilised at Carrickfergus opposite the Scottish coast, but then began to be disbanded in mid-1641. To the Scots and Parliament of England , this seemed to confirm that Charles was a tyrant, who wanted to impose his religious views on his kingdoms, and to govern again without his parliaments as he had done in 1628–1640. In early 1641, some Scots and English Parliamentarians even proposed invading Ireland and subduing Catholics there, to ensure that no royalist Irish Catholic army would land in England or Scotland. Frightened by this, and wanting to seize
10858-574: The rebellion or war in Ireland, or any the murders or massacres, robberies, or violences committed against the Protestants, English, or others there. That all and every person and persons (both principals and accessories) who since the first of October, 1641, have or shall kill, slay, or otherwise destroy any person or persons in Ireland, which at the time of their being so killed, slain, or destroyed, were not publicly entertained and maintained in arms as officers or private soldiers, for and on behalf of
10980-724: The rebellion, combined with Poynings' Law , which required Irish legislation to be approved by the Privy Council of England . The Protestant-dominated administration took opportunities to confiscate more land from longstanding Catholic landowners. In the late 1630s Thomas Wentworth , the Lord Deputy of Ireland , proposed a new round of plantations designed to expand Protestant cultural and religious dominance. Delays in their implementation caused by Charles' struggles with his political opponents in England and Scotland meant that Catholics still owned over 60% of land in 1641. Most of
11102-438: The rebellion, murders, or massacres done or committed in Ireland, which began in the year 1641; or have at any time before the said tenth day of November 1642, by bearing arms, or contributing men, arms, horse, plate, money, victual, or other furniture or hablements of war (other than such which they shall make to appear to have been taken from them by mere force and violence), aided, assisted, promoted, acted, prosecuted, or abetted
11224-603: The rebels. Rumours also circulated that radical Protestants were seeking to replace Charles I with his exiled German nephew the Elector Palatine , paving the way for increased repression of Irish Catholics. The influential Lords of the Pale joined the rising in early December, while rebels in Cavan were led by Philip O'Reilly , the local Member of Parliament , and Mulmore O'Reilly, the High Sheriff . Dundalk
11346-524: The rebels. This need to ensure these were repaid and maintain government credit was one of the factors behind the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland in 1649. In the first few months of 1642, Ormond regained much of the Pale, relieved Drogheda, re-took Dundalk and defeated a rebel force at Kilrush on 15 April. On the same day, the Covenanter army led by Robert Monro landed at Carrickfergus and recaptured Newry on 1 May. By mid-1642, Protestant forces in Ireland totalled 40,000 infantry and 3,600 horse, but
11468-614: The relationship between the government and the colonists". During the decades between the end of the Elizabethan wars in 1603 and the outbreak of rebellion in 1641, the political position of the wealthier landed Irish Catholics was increasingly threatened by the English government of Ireland. As a result, both the Gaelic Irish, and the Old English communities increasingly defined themselves as Irish and were viewed as such by
11590-449: The remainder going to "deserving" native Irish lords and clans. By 1641, the economic impact of the plantations on the native Irish population was exacerbated because many who retained their estates had to sell them due to poor management and the debts they incurred. This erosion of their status and influence saw them prepared to join a rebellion, even if they risked losing more. Many of the exiles, such as Eoghan Ruadh Ó Néill , served in
11712-536: The remaining plotters slipped out of Dublin. Warnings of an imminent rising had also been communicated to Dublin by Sir William Cole . Despite this failure, the rebellion in Ulster went ahead and Felim O'Neill and his allies, including Rory Maguire , quickly captured positions throughout the province, including Dungannon , Charlemont Fort , Newry , Tandragee , Portadown , Mountjoy Castle , Castleblaney and Carrickmacross . Those that did not surrender, such as Enniskillen Castle , were besieged and within two days
11834-552: The rising but the situation was complicated since any such army would be legally controlled by the king. A series of alleged Royalist military conspiracies in 1641 and rebel claims that Charles supported their actions heightened fears he would turn it against his opponents in England and Scotland, rather than the Irish. The Covenanters urged the English Parliament to fund a Scottish army rather than recruiting their own, arguing it could reach Ireland more easily and would be independent of both Charles and his Parliamentary opponents. In
11956-408: The river from Battlebridge to Lough Allen , which was opened in 1820. In the latter part of the 1820s, trade increased dramatically with the arrival of paddle-wheeled steamers on the river which carried passengers and goods. By 1831 14,600 passengers and 36,000 long tons (37,000 tonnes) of freight were being carried. This put new pressure on the navigation and a commission was set up resulting in
12078-472: The river is easily navigable, with only a few locks along its length. There is a hydroelectric generation plant at Ardnacrusha belonging to the ESB . Shipping in the Shannon estuary was developed extensively during the 1980s, with over IR£ 2 billion (€2.5 billion) investment. A tanker terminal at Foynes and an oil jetty at Shannon Airport were built. In 1982 a large-scale alumina extraction plant
12200-724: The river sections and there were still shoals in the summer months, as well as a lack of harbour facilities at Limerick, and boats were limited to 15–20 long tons (15–20 tonnes) load, often less. With the approaching opening of the Grand Canal , the Grand Canal Company obtained permission from the Directors General of Inland Navigation, and asked John Brownrigg to do a survey which found that much of Omer's work had deteriorated badly, so they started repairs. After protracted negotiations on costs and conditions,
12322-484: The said rebellion, murders, or massacres; all and every Jesuit , priest, and other person or persons who have received orders from the Pope or See of Rome, or any authority derived from the same, that have any ways contrived, advised, counselled, promoted, continued, countenanced, aided, assisted, or abetted; or at any time hereafter shall any ways contrive, advise, counsel, promote, continue, countenance, aid, assist, or abet
12444-483: The sea and the river Shannon. The Cromwellian transplantation, particularly in Ulster, is often cited as an early modern example of ethnic cleansing . Some Irish prisoners were forcibly sent on ships to the West Indies where they became indentured servants on sugar cane plantations belonging to British colonialists. One of the best known islands the Irish flocked to when their period of indenture came to an end
12566-615: The south of Ireland. There are some tributaries within the Shannon River Basin which have headwaters that are further in length (from source to mouth) than the Shannon Pot source's length of 360.5 km (224 miles), such as the Owenmore River , total length 372 km (231 mi) in County Cavan and the Boyle River , total length 392.1 km (243.6 mi) with its source in County Mayo . The River Shannon
12688-486: The town and retreated. This setback and the stubbornness displayed by the town's defenders allegedly made a deep impression on the attackers, since it showed hopes of a quick and relatively painless victory in Ulster were over optimistic. Further south, the rebellion spread into counties Leitrim , Longford , Wicklow, Wexford , Tipperary and Kildare . The Dublin government called it "a most disloyal and detestable conspiracy" by "some evil affected Irish Papists", which
12810-641: The tributary rivers Boyle , Inny , Suck , Mulkear and Brosna , among others, before reaching the Shannon Estuary at Limerick . Many different values have been given for the length of the Shannon. A traditional value is 390 km (240 mi). An official Irish source gives a total length of 360.5 km (224.0 mi) (being 258.1 km [160.4 mi] fresh and 102.1 km [63.4 mi] tidal). Some Irish guides now give 344 km (214 mi). Some academic sources give 280 km (170 mi), although most will refuse to give
12932-460: The victims resisted. They intensified as the rebellion progressed, particularly in Ulster where many had lost land in the post 1607 Plantations, while attacks on local Protestant clergy were in part due to resentment at the relative wealth of the Church of Ireland in that province. Other factors included religion and culture; in County Cavan, rebels justified the rising as a defensive measure against
13054-663: The view of the rebellion as a Catholic conspiracy to wipe out all Protestants in Ireland, a narrative constructed in the Depositions , a collection of victim reports gathered between 1642 and 1655 and now housed in Trinity College Dublin . In 1646, these accounts were summarised in The Irish Rebellion , a book by John Temple , in which he urged the military re-conquest of Ireland and segregation of Irish Catholics from British Protestants. In
13176-543: The work the commissioners carried out failed to solve the problems of flooding and there were disastrous floods in the early 1860s. Given the flat nature of most of the riverbank, this was not easily addressed and nothing much was done till the twentieth century. One of the first projects of the Irish Free State in the 1920s was the Shannon hydroelectric scheme which established the Ardnacrusha power station on
13298-472: The work was completed by 1810, so that boats drawing 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) could pass from Athlone to Killaloe . Improvements on the lower levels were also undertaken, being completed by 1814. When the Royal Canal was completed in 1817 there was pressure to improve the navigation above Lough Ree. The Jamestown Canal was repaired, harbours built and John Killaly designed a canal alongside
13420-639: Was Montserrat . The reality was that a landowner and his family might be dispossessed and awarded land in Connacht, and be obliged to live there, generally as a tenant farmer. An example was Thomas FitzGerald of Turlough , whose parents were moved from Gorteens Castle to land granted in Turlough, County Mayo . The vast majority of the population, outside the 6 counties that would later be partitioned into Northern Ireland, were expected to remain where they lived, and to continue as tenant farmers or servants under
13542-419: Was aimed at "a general massacre of all English and Protestant inhabitants". In December, troops led by Charles Coote , Governor of Dublin Castle, and William St Leger , Lord President of Munster , attacked rebel-held areas in counties Wicklow and Tipperary respectively, expeditions characterised by "excessive and indiscriminate brutality" against the general Catholic population. This provoked many into joining
13664-461: Was built at Aughinish . 60,000-tonne cargo vessels now carry raw bauxite from West African mines to the plant, where it is refined to alumina. This is then exported to Canada where it is further refined to aluminium. 1985 saw the opening of a 915 MW coal-fired electricity plant at Moneypoint , fed by regular visits by 150,000-tonne bulk carriers. A trap and transport scheme is in force on the Shannon as part of an eel management programme following
13786-444: Was fought according to the code of conduct both O'Neill and the Scottish commander Robert Monro had learned as professional soldiers in mainland Europe. Contemporary pamphlets published in London contained lurid details of the massacres and suggested over 200,000 Protestants (more than entire settler population) had lost their lives. These figures were recognised even then as wildly exaggerated and in November 1641 Parliament jailed
13908-517: Was interpreted by the English Parliamentarian authorities in Ireland who ordered all Irish land owners to leave for those lands before 1 May 1654 or be executed. However, in practice, most Catholic landowners stayed on their land as tenants and the numbers of those either transplanted or executed was small. Protestant Royalists, on the other hand, could avoid land confiscations if they had surrendered by May 1650 and had paid fines to
14030-524: Was more, the Irish farmers were hard hit by the bad harvest and were faced with rising rents. This aggravated their desire to remove the settlers and contributed to the widespread attacks on them at the start of the rebellion. A creditor of O'Neill's, "Mr Fullerton of Loughal ... was one of the first to be murdered in the rebellion". The rebellion was planned by a small group of Catholic landed gentry and military officers, many of whom were Gaelic Irish from Ulster who had lost lands and influence in
14152-441: Was not total, his own brother being one of those who took part in these actions. A contemporary Catholic source wrote that O'Neill "strove to contain the raskall multitude from those frequent savage actions of stripping and killing" but "the floodgate of rapine, once being laid open, the meaner sort of people was not to be contained". It has been argued the initial purpose of the attacks was economic and killings occurred only when
14274-402: Was obstructed, by installing lateral canals and either pound locks or flash locks . He then continued north of Lough Ree and made several similar improvements, most notably by creating the first Jamestown Canal which cut out a loop of the river between Jamestown and Drumsna , as well as lateral canals at Roosky and Lanesborough . The lower Shannon between Killaloe and Limerick had
14396-466: Was occupied, while an army under Brian McMahon moved south from Ulster towards Dublin and on 21 November besieged Drogheda from the north. Others advanced through County Meath and blockaded the town from the south, then defeated a relief force sent from Dublin at Julianstown on 29 November, inflicting over 600 casualties. On 28 November, around 8,000 rebels besieged Lisnagarvey but after losing some 300 men in an unsuccessful assault, they set fire to
14518-442: Was soon shattered when the rebels failed to take nearby Drogheda , but by then most of the Catholic gentry had already committed themselves to rebellion. The Catholic gentry around Dublin, known as the "Lords of the Pale", issued their Remonstrance to the king on 17 March 1642 at Trim, County Meath . Hugh O'Reilly (archbishop of Armagh) held a synod of Irish bishops at Kells, County Meath on 22 March 1642, which legitimised
14640-477: Was started but the company needed more funds to complete it. In 1791, William Chapman was brought in to advise and discovered a sorry state of affairs – all the locks had been built to different dimensions and he spent the next three years supervising the rebuilding of most of them. The navigation was finally opened in 1799, when over 1,000 long tons (1,000 tonnes) of corn came down to Limerick, as well as slates and turf . But even then, there were no tow paths in
14762-449: Was the only approved form of worship, although it was a minority even among Irish Protestants, many of whom were Presbyterians. Both they and the majority Catholic population were required to pay tithes to the church, causing great resentment, while practicing Catholicism in public could lead to arrest, and non-attendance at Protestant service was punishable by recusant fines. Catholics could not hold senior offices of state, or serve above
14884-418: Was uncertain who to trust and thus delayed a coordinated response. The situation changed when it became clear the rising had been only partially successful, while the breakdown of state authority prompted widespread attacks by the Catholic peasantry on Protestants, regardless of nationality. They were soon joined by members of the gentry; O'Neill's authority was largely confined to County Armagh and even there
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