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Spain and the invasion of Ireland, 1601–2

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 July 2016

John J. Silke
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Extract

References in the consultas on Ireland in the Simancas archives continually remind the student of the larger background against which the invasion of 1601–2 took place. It was a background in which the emphasis insofar as Spanish foreign relations were concerned was on disengagement. But while Spain had concluded peace with France, sent out overtures to England, was seeking to extricate herself from the costly Dutch war and conducted negotiations even with Constantinople, she yet maintained a jealous care for her greatness. Thus war with France threatened to erupt over Savoy; Spain continued support to Archduke Albert, sovereign of the Netherlands, in his struggle against the United Provinces; she sought to support the emperor's eastern war against the Turk by attacking the Berbers in the Mediterranean; and she tried to extract better peace terms from England by creating a diversion in Ireland.

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Articles
Information
Irish Historical Studies , Volume 14 , Issue 56 , September 1965 , pp. 295 - 312
Copyright
Copyright © Irish Historical Studies Publications Ltd 1965

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References

1 Braudel, F., La méditerranée et le monde méditerranéen à l’époque de Philippe II (Paris, 1949), pp. 1070–3.Google Scholar

2 Elliott, J.H., Imperial Spain, 1469–1716 (1963), pp. 279–95.Google Scholar

3 Fernández Duro, C., Armada española (Madrid, 9 vols, 1895–1903), iii. 118–26, 129–32, 166–7Google Scholar; Elizabethan government and society (1961), edd. BindofT, , Hurstfield, and Williams, , pp. 359–60.Google Scholar

4 Quoted in Ciudad de Dios, cxxx (1922), P. 15.

5 Aguado Bleye, P, Manual de historia de España (8th ed., Madrid, 1959)ii. 944–5,Google Scholar Elliott, , Imperial Spain, pp. 279–81.Google Scholar

6 Barrionuevo’s report to council of war (Archivo Generai de Simancas, Guerra Antigua 3143).

7 Cf. Rodríguez Villa, A., Ambrosio Spínola (Madrid, 1904), pp. 23–5, 30Google Scholar; Correspondance de la cour d’Espagne sur les affaires des Pays-Bas au xviie siècle, ed. Lonchay, H. and Guvelier, J., i : Philippe III, 1 1598–1621 (Brussels, 1923), p. 97 Google Scholar

8 Cf. Reportorium Novum, i (1955), pp. 94–5.

9 Cf. letters from O’Neill, , in Archiv. Hib., 2 (1913), pp. 286–7Google Scholar; in ibid., iii (1914), pp. 235–6; in Cal. S.P. Ire., 1599–1600, pp. 337–8 and in Cal. Carew MSS, iii. 349–50; and from Mattheo de Oviedo, in Report. Nov., i. 92–109; Lombard, P., De regno Hiberniae sanctorum insula commentarius, ed. Moran, P.F. (Dublin, 1868).Google Scholar

10 Henry, L.W., ‘The earl of Essex and Ireland, 1599’ in Inst. Hist. Res. Bull., 32 (1959), pp. 1–23 CrossRefGoogle Scholar; ‘Contemporary sources for Essex’s lieutenancy in Ireland, 1599 in I.H.S., xi (1958), pp. 8–17. FrHicks, S.J., had already, in Archiv. Hist. Soc. Iesu, 34 (1955), pp. 100–1,Google Scholar indicated the importance of the denial by the Cecilian faction to Essex of the 200 carriage horses he asked for. Mr Henry’s description of Ó Clérigh’s Life of Red Hugh and Lombard’s Commentarius as embodying ‘the Irish oral tradition of nearly a generation later’ (I.H.S., xi. 16) must be corrected. The Commentarius was written in 1600; and Ó Clérigh was not only close to the events he chronicles but wrote largely from personal experience of them.

11 Don Fernando de Barrionuevo, who had brought the cargo to Killybegs in 1599, had been instructed to encourage O’Neill and O’Donnell to continue their struggle and to assure them that the king would do what he could to assist them (Barrionuevo’s report to council of war (A.G.S., Guerra Antigua 3143)).

12 O’Neill to Lombard, 7 Mar. 1599; same to Clement VIII, 28 Sept. (Vatican Archives, Borghese, ser. III, vol. 124 C, ff. 9 and 5; Archiv. Hib., ii (1913), pp. 283–4, 286–7); Lombard, Commentarius, p. 174; O’Neill, to Philip, , Dungannon, , 31 Dec. 1599 (Cal. S.Ρ Ire., 1599–1600, pp. 337–8).Google Scholar

13 Sessa to Philip, 11 May 1600 (A.G.S., Estado 972).

14 O’Clery, , Life of Hugh Roe, p. cxvi; Lambeth MS 608 (Cal. Carew MSS, 1589–1600, p. 523).Google Scholar

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16 Sessa to Philip, Rome, 19 Apr. 1600 ; same to same, 11 May (Estado 972); Hicks, L., ‘Sir Robert Cecil, Father Persons and the succession, 1600–1’, in Archiv. Hist. Soc. Iesu, 24 (1953), pp. 111–17Google Scholar

17 Council of state to Philip, Madrid, 4 May 1600 (Estado 840, f. 104; Estado 2511 ; Cal. S.P. Spain, 1587–1603, pp. 657–8); Philip, to O’Neill, , 17 Apr. (Vatican Archives, Borghese, ser. III, vol. 98 C, f. 92 Google Scholar; Archiv. Hib., iii (1914), pp. 237-8; ibid., xxiv (1961), p. 58); Prada to Ibarra, Madrid, 10 May (Estado 185).

18 Cf. Chudoba, B., Spain and the empire, 1519–1643 (Chicago, 1952), pp. 174–5Google Scholar; Aguado Bleye, P., Historia de España, 2. 569–70, 708.Google Scholar

19 Cf. Harris Willson, D., King James VI and I (1956), pp. 142–58.Google Scholar

20 Documentation for the peace-talks in Estado 2511 and Winwood, R., Memorials, 1597–1603, ed. Sawyer, E. (3 vols, 1725),Google Scholar bk in. Cf. Hamy, L., ‘Conference pour la paix entre l’Angleterre et l’Espagne tenue a Boulogne en 1600’, in Société Académique de Boulogne-sur-mer Bulletin, 7 (1906), pp. 434–60Google Scholar; Cal. S.Ρ Venice, 1593–1603, pp. xxv–vii.

21 Cf. Williamson, J.A., The Tudor age (1953), p. 402,Google Scholar Elliott, , Imperial Spain, p. 283.Google Scholar

22 Qui Angliam vincere vellet ab Ybernia incipere debet. The English form of the couplet, much in vogue at the time, is from Froude, England: Wolsey to Elizabeth (rev ed., 1862–70), x. 480.

23 Discourse by Gerda, [1600] (Estado 185; abbreviated version, Estado 840, f. 80).

24 Sessa, to Philip, , 27 Nov. 1600 (Estado 972). Cf. Cal. S.P. Ire., 1601–3, p. 160.Google Scholar

25 Consulta by council of state, Valladolid, 4 Aug. 1601 (Estado 840, f. 276; Estado 961; Cal. S.P. Spain, 1587–1603, p. 676).

26 Caracena, governor of Galicia, to Philip, 28 Jan. 1601 (Guerra Antigua 3143; Report. Nov., i. 355); Schedules (Estado 840, ff. 41–6; Cal. S.P. Spain, 1587–1603, p. 685).

27 Villa, Rodriguez, Ambrosio Spínola, pp. 25–7, 29–30Google Scholar; Cerrolaza, A., Spínola : un genovès en Flandes (Madrid, 1946), pp. 36–7.Google Scholar

28 Memorials and estimates (Estado 840; Cal. S.P. Spain, 1587–1603, pp. 684–5); Muster, Lisbon, 1 Sept. (Guerra Antigua 3144); Account by López de Soto, 26 Oct. (Guerra Antigua 3144); Brochero to Philip, Gascaes, 6 Nov. 1601 (Guerra Antigua 3145); Account by Gapt Albornoz (Guerra Antigua 3144); Pacata Hibernia, ed. O’Grady, S. (2 vols, 1896), 2. 345.Google Scholar

29 Cf. Silke, J.J., ‘Why Aguila landed at Kinsale’, in I.H.S., 13 (1963) PP. 236–45.Google Scholar

30 Aguila to Philip, Kinsale, 8 Oct.; Account by Albornoz, cit.; Junta to Aguila, Valladolid, 3 Oct. (Guerra Antigua 3144).

31 Moura to Philip, Lisbon, 22 Oct.; Aguila to same, Kinsale, 31 Oct.; Junta to Zubiaur, to Juan de la Concha, to López de Soto, Valladolid, 31 Oct. (Guerra Antigua 3144); Caracena to Philip, Corunna, 24 Oct. (Guerra Antigua 587).

32 Padilla to Philip, Puerto Maria, de S., 10 Dec. (Estado 840, f. 166; Cal. S.P. Spain, 1587–1603, pp. 690–1Google Scholar; cf. pp. 686–9).

33 Conde de Polentinos, Epistolario del General Zubiaur, 1568–1605 (CS.I.C., Madrid, 1946), passim.

34 Cf. Cal. S.P. Ire., 1601–3, PP.81–165, passim.

35 For the battle, cf. Hayes-McCoy, G.A., in Studies, 38 (1949), pp. 307–17.Google Scholar Whether or not the intention was to throw Tyrrell’s van into the town — and this is a moot point — it seems certain that the attack on the English emplacements was to take place that morning rather than the following night. Zubiaur (or rather López de Soto for him) states that O’Neill agreed to occupy on the morning of 3 January a position assigned to him by Aguila, whereupon the latter would sally out and join with him in a combined attack on the enemy : Que quedaron de acuerdo con . . . Aguila que aquel día se pondría con toda su gente en un recuesto donde… don Juan le señaló, que haziendo cierta señal que pudiese salir y dar por su part en los enemigos. Epistolario de Zubiaur, p. 128, and cf. p. 137.

36 Epistolario de Zubiaur, pp. 128, 137, 138; Memo by Oviedo for king and royal council, 27 Jan. (Guerra Antigua 3145; Report. Nov., i. 115–16, Aguila to Philip, Cork, 26 Feb. (Guerra Antigua 3145); News from London, 17 Jan., old style (Estado 620).

37 Cf. Cal S.P. Spain, 1587–1603, pp. 703–7

38 Consultas by council of war, Valladolid, 8 Mar 1602 (Guerra Antigua 589); same, Valladolid, 19 Mar. (Guerra Antigua 591); Philip to Medina Sidonia, 30 Mar., same to commissaries heading for Lisbon, 30 Mar. (Guerra Antigua 592); Lopez de Soto, ‘Causas . . que obligan a amparar a Yrlanda’ (Real Academia de Historia, Colección Salazar, L, t. 24, ff. 61–5V); Council of war, 6 Apr. (Guerra Antigua 589).

39 Villa, Rodríguez, Ambrosio Spínola, pp. 30–65.Google Scholar

40 Consulta by council of war, Valladolid, 12 July 1603 (Guerra Antigua 3143).