Owen Roe O Neill

the O Reilly connection

Hi Guys

I'm looking for some books on the life of Owen Roe O Neill. I'm interested in the Siege of Arras and his return to Ireland. Can anyone recommend any?

Thanks

iniscealtra

a quick search yielded this

• Jerrold I. Casway, Owen Roe O'Neill and the Struggle for Catholic Ireland, 1984, University of Pennsylvania Press
• Padraig Lenihan, Confederate Catholics at War
• Deana Rankin, Between Spenser and Swift - English Writing in seventeenth century Ireland
• James Scott Wheeler, Cromwell in Ireland
• Tadhg Ó Hanrachain, The Catholic Reformation in Ireland

the O Reilly connection

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123314805#Comment_123314805

Thanks. Have you read any?

Aurelian

I've read Confederate Catholics At War. Probably not the place to start.

I'd suggest starting with his entry on dib.ie and see what's referenced their for further reading. There are also scholarly articles out there about his career on the continent.

yagan

I read the James Scott Wheeler book years ago and if I recall rightly it didn't get too much into the political personal backstories but was excellent in describing how warfare progressed in Ireland during that era. I think he mentioned how O'Neill had brought his experience from fighting in the low countries but that he found it hard to get Irish fighters to adopt the latest tactics.

silliussoddius

….

yagan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123320289#Comment_123320289

Would that not be the hugh oneill era you're thinking of?

Aurelian

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123320289#Comment_123320289

I don't recall him being mentioned in that book though I could be wrong. He would have been a very marginal figure at that time.

the O Reilly connection

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123319839#Comment_123319839

Is there any mention of O Neill at Arras and the pople who were there with him?

yagan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123320418#Comment_123320418

It's been years since I read it but at best my recollection is that O'Neill was noted as experienced in the type of siege warfare like Arras before arriving with Rinucini in Ireland. He had knowledge of the type of field canon now common that would render Irish medieval walled towns as very vulnerable unless an earthen embankment was built behind them, like the one that's still visible in the grounds of Canices Cathedral in Kilkenny.

As I stated previously he did try to train and drill Irish recruits into ways he was used to fighting for Spain, but until Cromwell arrived Irish fighters had never seen that type of field army.

Edit to add, i read a lot of books once about that era and the one I found best for detailing the dynamics of conflict in that era was Cromwell: An Honourable Enemy by Tom Reilly.

Conall Cernach

I'd recommend The Battle of Benburb 1646 by Clive Hollick. It's not heavy on details of O'Neill's career with Spain but it is a great account of his greatest victory in Ireland.

banie01

Jim O'Neill's The nine years war, has some great info and a very good bibliography to jump off into more specific Roe O'Neill research from.

https://www.fourcourtspress.ie/books/2017/nine-years-war

Outside of pure academic publishing, you may well find something that gives an insight into his Spanish service via Osprey Publishing as they really do carry a huge amount of niche military history publications and monograms.

Aurelian

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123320702#Comment_123320702

For the benefit of the OP is Owen Roe mentioned in this book at all?

silliussoddius

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123320313#Comment_123320313

You’re right. My mistake.

the O Reilly connection

That's great. Thanks for your help!