Montgomery manuscripts

The Montgomery Manuscripts.
423
I was also y e s d yeare 1649 on y e 25 of June swome Gentl n of y<= Privy Chamber by S r W m
ffleming, whose certificate thereof is yet extant, & also on Record in Whitehall, by vertue whereof
I had uninterrupted passage into all publique roomes there, and a key which Lett me into y e gallerys &
cockpitt from y e Garden, and St. James park. 1 ™
In this place I may also incert a passage or event of my Life, w ch brought me an esteem and
deference in y e county of Antrim, town of Carrickfergus, & castle of Dublin, and it came to pass
as followeth viz.
When y e surprizall of Carrickfergus Castle 10 ^ by a Schoolmaster and some Olivarian Soldiers
had occasioned y e duke of Ormond to send by sea, half y e Royall foot Regiment and other com-
panys & himself to come for y e reduction thereof, I heard of his graces journey with y e troop of
Guards and met him at Lisnegarvah.
Sworn Gentln
of ye Privy
Chamber.
Of ye surprise
of Carrickfer-
gus Caslle.
James Shaw, surveyor-general of Ireland, to be kept and
preserved by him, . . . and that the three rooms in
the new Custom House Dublin, commonly called the
Green Chamber, formerly in the possession of the Trustees
(or the 1649 officers, with the presses, books, and writings
therein, be by inventory delivered into the custody of the
said Surveyor General, for the better preservation and
using of the said books, papers, writings, and premises.'"
— Gilbert's History of Dublin, vol. ii. , pp. 136, 137.
102 St. James Park. — The 'gallerys' here mentioned
run along the two sides of the grand banqueting house
and across the end over the door of entrance. There was
another smaller gallery for the use of the guards, which
was pulled down about the year 1839-40, when the in-
terior of the banqueting house underwent a thorough
repair and restoration. The great attraction of this apart-
ment is the ceiling, with its series of paintings by Rubens,
but their vast height removes them beyond close inspec-
tion, and the spectator must be content to admire their
brilliant and harmonious colouring. The ' Cockpit' has
long since disappeared, and the space once occupied by
it and the tennis court is now appropriated by the treasury,
and the offices of the secretaries of state. The ( garden'
adjoined St. James's Park, the latter stretching between
Whitehall and St. James's palace. Charles I. had fitted
up a chapel in the latter building, from which lie walked
across this park to Whitehall, the place of his execution.
— Knight's Cyclopaedia of London, pp. 51, 52.
'°3 Surprizall at Carrickfergus Castle. — This affair
at Carrickfergus, which occurred in the spring of
1666, was more serious in its nature and results
than the author's notice would lead us to infer. He
has thrown some new light, however, on the sub-
ject, by ascribing the surprisal of Carrickfergus castle
on that occasion to a "schoolmaster and some Oliva-
rian soldiers." Unfortunately, he does not mention
the schoolmaster's name. McSkimin's account, collected
from Carte, Cox, and the Journals of the Irish House of
Commons, is as follows : — " 1666. In April, the garrison,
consisting of four companies of foot, mutinied for want of
their pay, but were soon quelled. It is likely, however,
that their grievances were not redressed, for the mutiny
again broke out with greater violence, on the 22nd of the
following month. Choosing one Corporal Dillon for their
commander, they prepared for defending themselves.
They drew out a list of their grievances, inviting other
garrisons to join them, and sent a copy to the Earl of
Donegall, then in the town ; upon which he waited on
them, and did his utmost to bring them to order, but with-
out effect. On the 25th same month, the Earl of Arran,
son to the Duke of Ormond, arrived at Carrickfergus, in
the Dartmoor frigate, with four companies of foot guards;
and on the 27th his grace of Ormond arrived with ten
troops of horse. In the evening a general assault was
made on the town, the Earl of Arran attacking it by sea,
and Sir Wm. Flowers by land : on which the mutineers
retreated into the castle, with the loss of Dillon their com-
mander, and two others. The assailants had two killed
and six wounded. Same evening the Earl of Donegall
and the mayor effected their escape from the town ; and
so many of the mutineers deserted, that their number was
reduced to 120 men. On the next day, they hung out a
white flag, and desired to capitulate ; and on the earl's
assurance of safety, one Proctor and another mutineer
were let down the castle wall, to treat of terms ; but the
earl refusing to listen to any proposal short of unconditional
submission, they returned into the castle. The mutineers,
however, although they had still a month's provisions,
surrendered at discretion the same day, about two o'clock.
On the 30th, 1 10 persons were tried, nine of whom were
executed, and the others sent to Dublin, whence they were
transported. Two companies of the guards being left in
the garrison, his grace returned to Dublin, on which the
House of Commons appointed a deputation of their body
to wait on him with their thanks for suppressing the
mutiny. The corporation received thanks of government
for their loyalty on this occasion, and gave a splendid
entertainment to the Earl of Arran ; and in the following
July, a company of militia being raised for the defence of
Carrickfergus, the mayor for the time being was appointed
to command." — History of Carrickfergus, pp. 62, 63. In
a letter from William Pinkerton, esq., F. S.A., to the
editor, there is the following interesting passage : — " I
have a full account of Ormond's journey to the North to
quell the mutiny. The chief mutineers were named Proc-
tor Dillon and Williams. Proctor Dillon (one name) was
killed, and Williams was hanged. These names are in a
letter written by the earl of Donegall. Sir Geo. Rawdon,
in a letter to Eord Conway gives an interesting account
of the whole affair. He met Ormond at Dromore, and
was with him all the time assisting at the Court-Martial,
which was held in Joymount. He- says that 10 men were