On December 21st the entire Irish army marched up and settled themselves to blockade the English. The besiegers were now in their turn besieged, and were cut off from the interior of the country, whence their supplies of fresh food had been drawn. Under these circumstances, it could not be long till men and horses- began to suffer from starvation and disease.   The Irish had, therefore, only to remain quiet and allow the army of their enemies to melt away of its own ... Read More

In 1565 Sydney came again as Deputy, and endeavoured to negotiate with Shane with a view to a permanent peace, but he found him more exacting in his demands, and haughtier in speech, than ever. " For the Queen, I confess she is my sovereign lady, yet I never made peace with her but by her own asking," he said. " My ancestors were Kings of Ulster. Ulster was theirs and shall be mine. . . . With this sword I won ... Read More