Battle of Knocknaclashy The battle of Knocknaclashy , took place in County Cork in southern Ireland in 1651 . In it , an Irish Confederate force led by Donagh MacCarthy , Viscount Muskerry was defeated by an English Parliamentarian force under Roger Boyle , 1st Earl of Orrery . It was the final pitched battle of the Irish Confederate Wars and one of the last of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms . The Campaign . Most of the province of Munster had fallen to the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland in 1649 - 50 . Oliver Cromwell had led an assault by the New Model Army from the south - east of Ireland , while Roger Boyle had inspired a mutiny among the English Royalist garrison in Cork , causing them to defect to the Parliamentarians . This had outflanked the defences of Irish Confederates and English Royalists , causing them to retreat behind the river Shannon into Connacht , where the held the fortified cities of Limerick and Galway . Henry Ireton , went on to besiege Limerick . The only organised Irish forces remaining in south Munster were those of Donagh MacCarthy , Viscount Muskerry , who held out in the mountainous area of west Cork and county Kerry – which was his clan ’ s native territory . In July 1651 , Muskerry set out from Ross Castle in Killarney to try to relieve the besieged defenders of Limerick . He rallied his men by spreading a prophecy that the Irish would win a great battle over the English – such predictions were commonly believed in Irish culture at that time . Muskerry marched in the direction of Mallow with 3000 infantry and some cavalry , hoping to link up with bands of Irish guerrillas or " tories " on the road north . However , Ireton had positioned Boyle in Cork to prevent such a move and Orrerry ’ s Parliamentarian force intercepted the Irish at Knocknaclashy , near the village of Banteer . The battle . The Parliamentarians were outnumbered but were better trained and supplied than the Irish and had more cavalry , which was a big advantage in open country . The two sides exchanged a volley of musketry at close range and then closed hand to hand . The Irish cavalry were scattered in the first charge , leaving their infantry alone . However , the infantrymen , mostly armed with pikes , bravely charged their adversaries . Orrerry ’ s men were almost outflanked by the Irish pikemen , but recovered the advantage by charging the flank of the Irish line . Orrerry reported that his horsemen broke into the Irish pike squares at the " angles " ( corners ) by riding up , firing their pistols , reloading and repeating the process until there was a large enough gap in the formation for the English cavalry to break in with their swords . In this way , Orrerry ’ s men turned the flank of the Irish line and put them to flight . Hundreds of Irish soldiers were ridden down by the Parliamentary cavalry in the subsequent pursuit . Orrerry ordered the killing of all prisoners except " men of good quality " ( i . e . of high social rank ) who could be ransomed . He also related that his men found Catholic " charms " sown into the clothing of the Irish dead , which promised that the wearer would be invulnerable to weapons . The Parliamentarians recorded losses of only 26 dead and 130 wounded , although it is likely that many of the wounded would have also later perished from their injuries . The surviving Irish , including Muskerry , retreated in disorder to Ross Castle , where they surrendered in 1652 .