The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1898-08-20
HIS DIABOLlCAL PROSECUTIONS
Weyler, the Spanish Butcher, lisa
Saint Beside Him.
THE SLAUGHTER AT DROGHEDA
Repetition of Atrocities in the
Town of Wexford.

| Few pages of Irish history are SO in
! tcrestin5 DIS the fearful nine months
campaign of bloo, and slaughter Of
| Oliver Cromwell, begun on Aug. l.i, 1919,
and lasting till May of the following
year. In March, 1G49, he was made
lieutenant general CT the forces in Ire
| lnnd. On the 18th of August, 1649, he
set sail from Milford Haven, and landed
III Dublin the following day. He brought
with him 5000 foot. 1000 horse, and an
abundant supply of all kinds of military
stores. short time previous to Crom-
wells coming tho parliament of England
mad passed an act. commanding that no
officer or soldier. either by sea or land,
snail give any quarter to an Irshmnn,
or to any Papist born in Ireland. and
that all lrlsllmcn, and all Papists shall
be excepted in all cupitulations, and
agreements, and that upon the taking Of
every such lrishman or Papist they shall
be put to death. To read of Cromwcll's
conquest one would believe that he de-
sired to fulfill this act to the letter.
| A few days later Cromwell was Joined
by other forces, and was ready to take
tho field with an army of 1900 men.
| OConncll, in his Memoir of Ireland"
thus says of Cnmwcll's departure for
ireland: Il now come to the master
demon; he who STEPPED his hands in the
blood of his sovereign, and came to
ireland rocking from that crime; in Or
der, by horrible crucitics committed on
the Irish, to acquire popularity in Eng
I; land"
On tho 2lth day of August he issued A.
| proclamation notifying the soldiers he
had assumed the supreme command.
and promising protection to "all we'll
| minded persons" On the 1st of Scptem-
| Der he marched for Droghcda which
| was garrisoned with 5000 troops under
| tho command of Sir Arthur Ashton.
Cromwell arrived before the town on the
Bird, and put his batteries into position
by the 10th. or the siege and the cap-
| turc OF the town, Cromwell thus wrote.
II don't believe that any officer cscapcd
with his life save only one"
After gaining entrance to the town.
says Dr. l.ingard "the conn,lcroys d.
rcctcd their fury against the townsmen
i ana on the next morning (Scpt 12) 1000
unrcssting Victims were massacred
within tho walls of the great church. No
| distinction was made" DR.. Warner n
Protestant clergyman, in his account Of
this massacre agrees with Lngarl that
the slaughter was terrible. Cromwell in
his message to the English parliament.
| thus speaks Of this massacre, saying:
| That they Uhc Irish) had the insolence
on the last Lords day, to thrust out the
Protostants (from that church), and to
have the mass said there
| Carte, the English historian, thus
writes: "All the officers and soldiers of
| Cromwells army promised quarter, But
| when they had once all in their power
and feared that no hurt could be done
| them, Cromwell gave orders that no
quarter should be given The marquis
of Ormond says: "That on this occasion
Cromwell excesded himself, and anv-
thing he had ever heard of, in breach
Of faith and bloody inhumanity; and
that the cruelties exercised there for
five days after the town was taken
| would make as many several pictures of
| inhumanty as the Book of Martyrs"
And Leland thus adds: "a number of
ccclesiastcs were found within tho
| walls; and Cromwell ordered his soldiers
to plunge their weapons into the help-
| less wrctches." Lord Clarendon also
gives the following account of the bar
bartics: "rhc encmy entered the
works. he says, "and put every man
to the sword, and after entering the
town. they executed all manner of cruel
I ty, and put all the northumberland,
| woman and child-to the sword For
| five days the streets of Drogheda ran
with blood says Lingard. England"
says O'Conncll, ;in what letters of blood
have you not written your cruel DOM
lnation IN Ireland?"
| When the news of this reached Eng
| land, the house Of commons, on Oct. 2,
passed the following: For this import
ant success we appoint a thanksgiving
| day to be held on Nov. 1 throughout the
nation. A letter of thanks, approving of
the execution done at Drogheda as an
act of both justice to them and mercy
to others who may be warned by It."
| mo country on the face of the earth,''
says O'Connell. commenting on the
above, lever suffered SO much from an
other as Ireland has suffered from Eng
land; nor is any country on the face
of the earth 80 stained with diabolica1