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Dublin, 1171During the summer Rory O'Connor, the High King, blockaded the town with large forces. He had brought up his own Connacht-men and lay encamped with them at Castleknock. With him were Tiernan O'Rourke of Breifne and Meath, O'Melaghlin, also of Meath, and O'Carroll of Oriel, each with his following. Rory was aided also by MacDonievy, King of Ulidia – that is, the present Antrim and Down – who was encamped at Clontarf, and by Murtogh, nephew of Dermot MacMurrogh, by O'Toole, and by other Leinster rulers, who were at Dalkey. The presence of Don ell O'Brien, King of Thomond, seems doubtful; he is said to have been encamped at Kilmainham. Even without O'Brien, Strong-bow's opponents were very numerous. Contemporaries place the force commanded by Rory alone at 30,000. This must be much exaggerated; but Rory and his allies represented the best of the Irish fighters, and they were well placed, north and south of the Liffey, to enforce the blockade.There seems to have been no possibility of an Irish assault. Attacking fortifications was not an Irish specialty. Rory and his allies did not take part in Haskulf's fight, and may not have come up-or may not all have come up-when it occurred. The remnants of Haskulf's force may have co-operated with them afterwards. The impression given by the meagre accounts which we have of the events of the summer is of a two months' blockade or siege during which little, if any, serious fighting occurred. Rory's seeming inactivity was not, however, without effect. In Dublin supplies ran short. Blockaded by land and sea and experiencing, as well, the momentary displeasure of King Henry II, which prevented the despatch of supplies from England, the Normans had to tighten their belts. Laurence O'Toole, the Archbishop, who was in Dublin but apparently in touch with affairs outside, is said to have done his best to encourage their Norse and Irish opponents to intensify the blockade. In September Strongbow offered to negotiate with the High King. But Rory overestimated his own strength and tried to gain too much. He proposed peace on the condition that Strongbow and his intruders might retain Dublin, Wexford and Waterford, but no more-they could have neither Leinster, which Dermot MacMurrogh had purported to give them, nor any other part of Ireland which they might covet. It was contrary to every inclination of the Normans to accept a condition such as this, which would coop them up behind walls. They reacted in the spirit of the enterprise to which they were committed, aggressively. 'What are we waiting for?' cried Maurice FitzGerald. 'Do we expect help from our own people? Nol This is how we stand: we are Englishmen to the Irish and Irishmen to the English l' They were abandoned by King Henry to fend for themselves, and if they wanted better terms than Rory offered they must fight for them. The history of the Battle of Dublin, 1171 continues here Taken from Irish Battles by G.A. Hayes-McCoy, published by Appletree Press. Further reading: A Little History of Ireland by Martin Wallace with illustrations by Ian McCullough. Click here for more information on the book. Battle of Dublin: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 7 | |
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