August
Elizabeth, however, was not a ruler likely to allow a country the possession of which she knew, in the then condition of Continental affairs, to be of almost vital importance to the very existence of England, to slip thus easily from her grasp. She resolved to send across the Channel such a force as would not only, she felt sure, speedily crush the rebels, but would extend her authority over the whole island, and make her in reality ” Queen of Ireland.”
In her selection of a leader for the expedition she allowed herself to be swayed rather by feeling than by reason. Her choice fell on Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, a handsome man of thirty-two, having many superficial advantages, but whose success in military affairs had not, so far, been remarkable. He was the son of Walter Devereux, Earl of Essex, whose attempt at a Plantation in Ulster had ended so unfortunately, and since Leicester’s death in 1588 he had been the Queen’s chief favourite.
The title of Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, more honourable than that of Deputy, was now conferred on him. The army placed under Essex’s command was, with the exception of that which followed Richard II in 1394, the largest that had ever crossed from England to Ireland. It numbered 16,000 infantry and 1,300 cavalry, all well armed and equipped. If the troops already in the country be added, we may estimate that the Lord Lieutenant had at his command a force of at least 21,000 or 22,000 men.
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July
Ofcourse, the efforts of the Queen were not acknowledged in Rome, and the Pope himself made appointments to Sees, when vacancies occurred owing to either death or ” removals for heresy.” The position of Papal bishops was a very dangerous one, as Elizabeth regarded them as most serious obstacles to the success of her religious policy. Large rewards were offered for their apprehension, and, when captured, they were imprisoned, for years or for life, often in dark and filthy dungeons into which the light of day never penetrated.
Nor was the Irish Catholic Church without its martyrs during Elizabeth’s reign and that of her successor. Several prelates and a great many of the clergy suffered death for their faith. The execution of Dermot O’Hurley, Archbishop of Cashel, in 1584, was accompanied by circumstances of great atrocity. His feet, enclosed in metal boots partly filled with oil and butter, were ” toasted ” in a fire, till the flesh fell from the bones. He was afterwards hanged. Bishop Patrick O’Hely of Mayo was also tortured on the rack, before being put to death (1578). Laymen and women who gave shelter to bishops or priests were often punished
by imprisonment.
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July
Above: Portrait of Queen Elizabeth
After the death of Queen Mary in 1558 {chap, vii.) her half-sister, Elizabeth, succeeded, as already mentioned, to the English Crown. Elizabeth was as great a champion of the Reformation as Mary had been of Catholicism. Of religious zeal she herself had little or none, but she desired ecclesiastical uniformity throughout her dominions, and the establishment of a well-ordered State Church of which she should be the head. This Church should, of course, extend its sway over Ireland also.
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