VPon notice of sundry false reports cast abroad, whereby the honour and inte­grity of the Lord of Inchiquin, Lord President of this Province, was endea­voured as maliciously as undeservedly to be traduced, The Officers of this Army (who have been eye witnesses of his Lordships actions and proceed­ings, and are very sensible how innocently his Lordship suf­fers herein) took into their serious consideration, how ne­cessary and meet it was for them to declare their know­ledges in each particular, as well for the vindication of his Lordship, who it hath pleased Almighty God in his pro­vidence to make a principall instrument in preserving the remnant of the poore Protestants here, and in preventing the designes of these bloody Rebels in the continuing of the unnaturall Warre there) as also for the honour and service of the Parliament (in preserving persons of ho­nour [Page 2] and quality by them eminently imployed, from un­just aspersions, which may be conceived to reflect with no small prejudice upon their affairs, in relation to the pub­like.) And thereupon they did unanimously make this Attestation, which you shall herewith receive, to be pub­lished there where the scandals were raised, as yee see occasion.

I have no newes to certifie you of, save that by the un­happy losse of Bunratty, (soone after Lieutenant Colonell Mac Adam was slaine) the Rebels are at liberty, and now in preparation to fall upon us, and in their hopes of a sud­den peace to be concluded between the Lord of Ormond and them; and of the slow coming of supplies unto us, they have swallowed us up already in their own conceits, but they shall be sure to finde the best resistance that it shall please God to enable us to give them, and that very faithfully. And so Sir this being to no other purpose, I rest,

FInding in a private Pamphlet, a scandalous passage which may eclipse the honour and reputation of the Right Honourable the Lord Barron of Inchiquin, now Lord President of Munster, in that he did not formerly take in the Castle of Blarny, so neere the Garrison of Cork, as though his Lordship had overslipt opportunities to have taken in the same; And whereas we heare it hath been suggested into England, that his Lordship hath had some secret correspondencie with the Irish, whereby he hath, during these Warres, been extraordinarily favourable un­to them in some points; And whereas in the third place [Page 3] another scandal hath bin endeavoured to be fastned on his Lordship, That he hath converted the entertainment due to the Souldier and Officer of the Army, and which might have bin conveniently paid them, into his owne purse, & transport­ed severall sums of money into forraign parts. We therefore, whose names are underwritten, make this ensuing attesta­tion, to vindicate (as in justice we ought) his Lordships ho­nour, and do confidently and truly averre, in answer to the first scandall (against all foule-mouthed detractors,) That upon the death of the late Lord President, a great debate arising at a Councel of War at Downraile, who should have the power of commanding the Army, and ordering the Warre untill some Commission should come from the State at Dublin, or out of England, the generall Vote cast the weight on the Lord of Inchiquins shoulders, who under­taking the Warre, prosecuted the Warre against the Re­bels, by taking severall Castles in that then plentifull Coun­try, called Roches Country, thereby (besides the weakning of the Rebels) his Lordship gained meanes to maintaine the Army which was then like to be distressed, there being scarce any provision in the stores, as also he lay ready to receive the Enemy, which his Lordship heard by intelli­gence were falling out of the County of Limricke, into the County of Corke that way, and thereby his Lordship ob­tained by Gods providence those two remarkable Victo­ries of Newtowne and Liscarroll, in either of which (espe­cially the latter) had the Rebels prevailed, or not been op­posed untill they came over the black water, our interest in Munster was likely to be lost; from Liscarroll his Lord­ship returned back to Corke with a resolution to fall on Blarny, but that resolution being debated at a Generall Councell of Warre at Corke, it was by a Generall consent concluded, It was neither seasonable nor feasible, by rea­son [Page 4] of the mortallitie of the Souldiers, who died in mul­titudes, and want of Victuals to carry the Army forth to lie in the field; for his Lordship was then so necessitated, that to maintaine the Souldiers he was constrained to bil­let them on the severall Towns, they giving them but one meale a day for about twelve weeks together, and to send about one thousand Horse and Foot to quarter at Down­raile and Malloe, under the command of Major Generall Jephson, to live by gaining their owne subsistence by taking now and then some small preys from the Rebels: all the succeeding winter his Lordship was forced likewise to im­ploy all the forces in preying severall parts of the Coun­trie to gaine a livelihood for them (no supplies comming out of England to relieve him) and in sending some part of the Army to relieve Rathbarry in the West, or to fetch off divers distressed English, who were besieged by the Irish of those parts: And after that the Army that lay in the severall Garrisons of Corke, Kinsale, Bandon, Malloe, and Downraile; was imployed in burning and harrowing all Muskry in severall places at once, to dis-inable them to maintaine a siege threatned against Corke, and to which end they had provided severall sorts of graine in great quantities in that Country, and in Mac Donoghs Coun­try, the Army still rather decreasing then otherwise, and no supplies comming out of England, yet his Lordship car­ried as convenient a number as he could of Horse and Foot to relieve Capaquine, (a Garrlson of ours in the County of Waterford) to stop the Enemy from falling on it; and after that, the Army was sent in May into Ibawne, where divers Castles were taken, and thereby the Army sti [...]l refreshed, That being done, and the Army retiring, the Garrisons being spent out and not able to diet the Souldiers any longer, his Lordship was constrained (to [Page 5] keep the Souldier from disorder at home, & to encourage them by getting somewhat abroad) to march towards Kilmalock, and doubting that that part of the Country would not afford any store of prey, his Lordship sent Major Story with a good party into Kerry (which was a Country full of Cattle) to bring a prey from thence, and to bring it to the Leaguer of Kilmalock, where still wants oppressed, and so his Lordship was con­strained to returne home, and Sir Charles Vavasor went to his former designe to Cloghleigh, which though he tooke, yet he unfortunately lost presently after, with most of his men, which much weakned the Army; and yet his Lordship advanced in the end of July the same yeare to releeve Lismore (besieged by the Rebels) which he did, and strengthened that Garrison, and after his re­turne the Army was sent againe into Ibawne to reape the plentifull Harvest, they at their being there the May be­fore found would then be, which much disadvantaged the Rebels; and (besides the sustinance it gave the Army) it releeved the two Townes of Kinsale and Bandon, the latter whereof had it not been for that worke had peri­shed, together with the Souldiers; (the Inhabitants all of them were in that penury and want) while these things were in action the Cessation came in, during which time no Hostile attempts were made on either side, and so his Lordship could not but forbeare Blarny, which during the times of former open Hostility was most strongly guarded with Horse and Foot, besides a considerable part of the enemy still in the Country to releeve it. After the Cessation when his Lordship re-assumed the Warre, the Army here was very weake, and he (still expecting aide out of England) did with the advice of many Counsells of [Page 6] Warre forbeare any attempt against Blarny, though a great eye-sore unto him; and the Irish still threatning to sit downe before Corke, and to besiege it; his Lordships chiefest indeavours was to raise what men he could possi­ble in these parts, and to fortifie the Townes that they might not finde him so altogether unprovided as they hoped they should, as also to borrow money where pos­sible he could procure any, even from the English that were left, engaging his Honour for satisfaction upon the first landing of any supplies: All these his Lordships wants, the many Remonstrances sent from the Counsell of Warre here to Mr. Speaker, the often sending of A­gents to both the Honourable Houses can too lamentably speake; In the yeare last past the Earle of Castle-haven came downe with a Potent Army, tooke all our out-Garrisons, besieged Youghall, which with much trouble and cost, by contribution of the well-disposed English in our other Garrisons though not in the best condition) was defended, releeved, and the Rebels raised their Siege in November; At which time by reason of the na­kednesse of the Souldier, and many wants, the Army was not able to be in the Feild; And if his Lordship had been better supplyed then he was it was held not safe (the Rebels being retired but to the confines of our Quarters) And in December his Lordship was entreated by the Com­manders and Officers to make his addresse in person to the Honourable Houses for supplies; All which passages shew convincingly how almost impossible it was for his Lord­ship to take in Blarny, for he had still his hands full of other businesse of no small consequence, besides his great wants, that he was compelled to abstaine from falling on that place though somewhat obnoxious.

[Page 7] For the said second aspertion, though generalls are difficult to be wiped off, because particular enumerations of defences are not of the same latitude with the generall accusation; yet we who have been usuall eye witnesses of his Lordships Actions, and of the entercourses his Lord­ship hath had with the Jrish, and we with whom he hath advised, when his Lordship treated with any of them, can justly assert, as we doe here professe, That no man could deale more advisedly with them to the best of our un­derstandings, and to the advantage of the Army, then his Lordship did from time to time, and none did or could prosecute his owne Nation and Kinred more then his Lordship did those of his Nation and Kinred, whom he found dis-affected to the Worke he had undertaken for the suppressing of the Rebels; We can demonstrate by particulars his Lordships dis-affections to the Irish, as his turning the Irish out of the walled Townes, his taking of his Uncles Castle of Ballimartre, and burning it, his hanging a Popish Deane there, and a Frier in Corke before the turning out of the Citizens out of the Towne, as also divers other particulars.

To the third and sharpest stinge of a viperous tongue, we likewise (whose fortunes were not so great as to lose or forbeare our entertainements) because we have re­ceived from his Lordship all just satisfaction as farre as we saw the money come in, can testifie for his Lordship that he hath made many hard shifts to procure money and meanes for the Army, and that he turned what he recei­ved or procured to the best advantage of the carrying on of the Warre. We were not so blinde but we could see and discerne what came in, nor were we so Meale-mouthed as to hold our peace; if we saw any money assigned for [Page 8] our releefe drop into anothers mans purse, for never was any money or provision that came for the use of the Ar­my disposed of, but his Lordship participated to some of the Commanders and Officers in chiefe, how he could and would distribute it to the Garrison Souldiers and Officers; Nay, we can confidently, because knowingly, say, That his Lordship hath divers times disbursed of his owne monies, and borrowed of his nearest friends to defray the Charge of the Army when in want, and to keep the Souldiers together from murmering, Neither did ever Souldiers better comply with a Generall then these here did with his Lordship, even in the midst of their wants; and when their pay was (as divers times of necessity it was) shortned, saying publiquely, That if his Lordship had it we should not want, God send him more. All the particulars herein contained are knowne by some or other of us, whose names are hereunto subscribed, the greatest part of them to most of us. All of them are come unto us by such information from one another as we have reason to beleeve them to be true; and there is no one thing in this instrument which any of us knoweth to be untrue.

since I writ my last we have taken Piltowne by storme, which was a very strong place, and (after a serious view there­of) I much admired that it proved so feasible, for our men were first to gaine a strong out-worke of earth, Moated about 20. Foot from the bottome of the Graffe; as likewise a strong wall'd court of at least 12. Foot high, and after that another small Court of equall strength with the former before they could approach the Castle; of all which notwithstanding they presently possest them­selves, with the losse of some men, and wounding about 20. but when they had taken all these, they found it a very difficult taske to enter the Castle it selfe, and whilst they were endeavouring with barres of Iron to force a passage; the Rogues from the top of the Battlements threw downe stones so fast upon the heads of our men below, that they hurt many of them, yet in spight of all these brushes at last they got into the lower roomes, but the [Page 10] Rogues still defended it, and brake downe the stone staires to p [...]event our men from getting up to them; we therefore finding, that without much mischiefe it was impossible to get them downe; We were forced to lay Powder below, and blow them and the Castle up together, which we did last night: My Lord President at his first Summons thereof promised them faire Quarter, if they would surrender it before he discharged three Peeces of Ordnance against it, which they refusing were by that meanes afterwards (the Souldiers being also incenst) deprived of all their lives, it being taken by storme, only the women and children were turned out by the Rebels of their owne accord; Sir, upon the peace concluded between the Lord of Ormond, and the Rebels, there are great differences arising amongst them, the Popes Nuncio and the Clergie being much against it, and the Laiety for it; if our supplies of men and other necessaries so long expected, and often represented thither, arrive at us in time, we shall not doubt but to give a good accompt of our indea­vours, but if they be delayed it will be impossible for us to ad­vance the interest of the State here as we desire; and therefore we are hopefull we shall have supplies by the next faire wind. I have no more at present, but that I am