Francis Fergus O'Farrell

Francis Fergus O’Farrell was an Irish soldier of the seventeenth century who settled in the Dutch Republic and served in the army of William III. He was cashiered following his surrender of the town of Deinze in 1695 but reinstated in 1696 and ended his career as a Major-General.

Early life
For centuries, the O'Farrells were lords of Annaly, the previous name for County Longford with their main seat at Mornin Castle. Unlike many, they managed to retain this despite the chaotic 17th century in Ireland; in 1709, Colonel Roger O'Farrell was Member of Parliament for Longford.

Career
By 1688, O’Farrell was Lt-Colonel in one of the regiments of the Scots Brigade that accompanied William III to England in November 1688, what is commonly called the Glorious Revolution. There was very little fighting; the vast majority of James II's army simply changed sides and he went into exile in France. On 1 March 1689, O'Farrell was commissioned Colonel of the Earl of Mars Regiment of Foot, later the 21st Foot or Royal Scots Fusiliers in place of Thomas Buchan, a Scottish Catholic who remained loyal to James. As was customary, it now became Farrell's Regiment of Foot and was sent to Flanders later that year to fight in the Nine Years' War.

O'Farrell took part in most of the major engagements, including Walcourt, Steinkirk and Landen and his regiment is listed in 1691 as 'O'Farrell's Fusiliers,' 'Fusilier' being a designation reserved for elite units. However, in July 1695 as commander of the garrison at Deinze he surrendered it to the French without resistance, the town of Diksmuide doing the same. The reasons remain obscure; one suggestion was bribery.

Prisoners were normally exchanged as soon as possible but the French retained the 6,000 - 7,000 troops captured at Diksmuide and Deinze due to a dispute over the terms of their surrender. Shortage of manpower was becoming an issue and the French used a various methods to encourage prisoners to enlist in their army, including moving officers and men into prison cells; O'Farrell wrote to a friend on 5 September complaining of this treatment.

William dealt harshly with the officers from Deinze and Diksmuide; Ellenberg was executed in Ghent on 30 November, O'Farrell dismissed and those who signed the surrender documents court-martialled. However, most were quickly reinstated including O'Farrell who was reappointed in 1696.

In January 1706, during the War of the Spanish Succession, he was appointed Major-General and served in Spain and Portugal; records state he was in the employment of the King of Portugal.

Family
O'Farrell had several daughters; Diana married the Earl of Effingham in February 1713 and died sometime before 1728