Battle of Deputy's Pass

The Battle of Deputy's Pass was fought in County Wicklow, Leinster, in Ireland, on 29 May 1599, during the Nine Years War (Ireland). It was fought between the Irish forces of Felim McFiach O'Byrne (Fiach McHugh O'Byrne's son) who were part of Hugh O'Neill, earl of Tyrone's Confederation of Irish Lords, and Sir Henry Harrington, the English seneschal in County Wicklow.

Background context of the battle
The O'Byrnes had been allied to the Earl of Tyrone since the outbreak of the Nine Years War in 1593. Fiach McHugh had operated in concert with O'Neill, so much that he was described as the earls' 'right arm in Leinster'. However, when Fiach was killed in 1597, the power of the O'Byrne's appeared to wane. When Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex was appointed Lord Lieutenant in 1599, he ordered Harrington into Wicklow to deal with the remaining O'Byrnes and their allies, the O'Tooles. Harrington's force consisted of five foot companies, but four of them were inexperienced levies recently raised in England. The only experienced foot company was that of Captain Loftus, whose men were mostly Irish. The companies were organised into a regiment under the immediate command of Sir Alexander Radcliffe. To this was added fifty horsemen commanded by Captain Charles Montague. Harrington decided to take his force out to make reconnaissance of the Irish fortifications on the ford of the Avonmore River at Rathdrum, and possibly to give his raw troops some experience in field craft. His first attempt to view the Irish position on 28 May failed. Harrington returned to his camp approximately a mile from the ford. A second effort to view the Irish fortifications was made on 28 May but this was turned back due to poor weather. Therefore, Harrington ordered he men to march back to Wicklow town.

The battle
The army stretched out in a column, in the leads was the van, then the baggage, followed by the battle and then the rear, though Captain Atherton, the Sergeant-Major of the army, had little doubt the weight of any Irish attack would fall on the rear of the column. Consequently, the horse were stationed at the rear. The army had marched little over a mile before the Irish shot began skirmishing with the rear elements of Harrington's force. The Irish tried to take a ford to block the advance, but the English secured the crossing, with the shot of the English rear skirmishing with the Irish allowing the rest of the army to pass unhindered.

The march continued for another two miles to another ford, with the rear continuing to hold O'Byrne's Irish shot at bay. Again the English shot secured the crossing, as Irish fire slackened, possibly due to a shortage of gunpowder. Harrington placed 40-50 shot behind an earth bank on the left flank of the column on the far side of the ford. The Irish brought up a stand of pikemen, but their approach was limited to the English left, as the right of the column was protected by thick gorse bushes. Atherton gathered 60-80 men in a detached force to counter-attack the Irish pike. The English shot behind the bank were to hold their fire until Atherton attacked, but instead prematurely fired a single volley at the Irish pike then abandoned their position. Without the support from their shot Atherton's men refused to charge the Irish, then withdrew to the main body of the English column.

When Atherton made good the column he discovered the shot had fled, abandoning the main stand of English pike. Now exposed to Irish gunfire, the English pike became disordered as they pressed to make the crossing. The Irish exploited English confusion when the Irish pike charged into the English rear, killing many without any resistance offered. Montague's cavalry charged to support the panicking infantry, but the head of the Irish pike square opened, allowing the horse to pass through. The Irish pike speared the English horse as they passed, including Montague who was wounded by a pike thrust to his side. . Despite their officer best efforts the English soldier's resistance collapsed. The rout continued with the Irish slaughtering Harrington's men to within one and a half miles of Wicklow town. All the English companies lost their colours, except for Captain Loftus, but they were later recovered by the English horse. After the battle Radcliffe estimated the army had lost 250 men killed, missing or deserted.

Aftermath of the battle
The first reports of the battle suggested that the fault lay with the inexperience of the majority of the troops. Harrington initially put the blame squarely on the English pikemen for refusing to fight, but by the time of the court-martial in July Harrington, supported by two of his officers (Captains Linley and Mallory) were blaming Captain Loftus and his Lieutenant Walsh. This was convenient as Loftus had died from his wounds and could not refute their accusations. Their version was supported by a map drawn of the battle, possibly drawn by Montague (Harrington's nephew). Loftus and Walsh were found guilty by the court-martial. Loftus was already dead but Walsh was executed by firing squad. Mallory and Linley were not found guilty but they were cashiered, losing command of their foot companies. The men in Loftus' company were sentenced to death but this was commuted to decimation by drawing lots. Even by Elizabethan standards this was considered excessively harsh. Though Harrington was not charged with misconduct he never received a command of this size again.