The battle of Kinsale was one of the main factors that eventually caused 'the downfall of the last of the Gaelic Lordships and the end of the old Irish world.'

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The battle of Kinsale was one of the main factors that eventually caused ‘the downfall of the last of the Gaelic Lordships and the end of the old Irish world.’   So much lay to be gained and lost by both sides at the time of the battle in 1601.   There were problems between the English and Irish before the battle and after the English victory Irish fighting morale was dead.   The main figures involved in the battle were the English, native Irish and the Spanish.   England saw Ireland as a colony to be controlled, while the Native Irish were eager to return to their traditional ways of life and independence without interference.   The battle of Kinsale was one of many concerning the difference of opinion within Ireland.   English victory did not only defeat the Irish but it killed some of the oldest Irish traditions and ways of life, before the battle the Irish were strong and independent up until the battle they held a proud attitude towards their victories.   A different nation and attitude developed from the defeat; suddenly a determined nation was giving up.  Would the English have been defeated if the course of events leading up to the battle had been different?

Hugh O’Neill and Hugh O’Donnell led their own and other allied armies against the English in a vicious Nine Years War prior to the battle of Kinsale.   Both O’Neill and O’Donnell had their own personal motives against the English.   O’Neill had previously allied himself with the O’Donnell family using powerful marriage connections making this one of the most powerful alliances in Ireland.

O’Neill was familiar with English customs as he had grown up following them.   He received an English education and was familiar with the English style of battle and army.   Despite the fact that he was Catholic he was loyal to the Queen, joining England in battle against Irish rebels many times.   O’Neill however recognised the power held by others in Ireland and desired more power for himself, including more territory for himself.   He saw that Ormond was quite powerful within Ireland and O’Neill saw his own position as equal to that of Ormond.   Ormond controlled much of Munster, but he was a relative of Queen Elizabeth, which allowed her to trust him, O’Neill was not eligible for this position, as he was not related to her as Ormond was.   The Protestant infiltration did not go unnoticed by O’Neill.   As a Catholic born Gaelic Lord he may have seen this as a threat, not just to his native religion but also to the customs upheld by the Gaelic Lords.  

It is also obvious that O’Neill supported the O’Donnell family.   An old Irish tradition, which stated that one Hugh O’Donnell, who follows another Hugh O’Donnell, is to become high King of all Ireland.   Red Hugh’s father was also called Hugh so the superstitious Irish immediately adopted this idea.   This did not go unnoticed by the Lord Deputy, Perrott, he saw the traditional and O’Donnell as a threat.   Red Hugh showed promise and his mother was determined he would succeed his father; she went to great measures to ensure this.   He was sent all over Ireland to many powerful families to be fostered and educated.   His promise as a strong leader was what led to his capture by the English, and his detention in Dublin Castle where he was held for five years until his escape.   O’Neill himself appealed a number of times for Hugh O’Donnell’s release, and eventually aided him in his escape.

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During these five years many political and religious advances were made in the communication between the English and the Irish.   Perrott, Lord Deputy sent an army to occupy O’Donnell’s native Tyrconnell.   It was in 1593 that O’Donnell escaped.   He headed directly towards his homeland of Donegal and immediately gathered an army to drive the English out; despite his ill health he was successful.   The English had kidnapped O’Donnell in an attempt to gain a firm hold over dangerous clans yet this had backfired and made him a much more bitter enemy towards them.  

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