Battle of Clontibret (1595):

This battle was one of the earliest battles in the Nine Years War. This was also one of the earliest victories for Hugh O’Neill and the Irish. This was the first battle we truly saw the army of O’Neill, his army had around four thousand people consisting of contingents from the O’Neills, MacMahons, and Maguires, as well as Scottish Mercenaries. The army deployed an enlarged force of cavalry and musketeers. The English cavalry were slaughtered, but Sedgreve’s sacrifice had given Bagenal the breathing room he needed to get the column moving. The Irish had blocked all the passages through the bog, but slowly the English pushed on. The veteran troops from Brittany performed well, but many of Bagenal’s men were ‘new come to the wars. This war was significant for O’Neill because it marked the first win for the Irish Army and displayed this advanced military that the Irish had been working on. This victory boosted O’Neill’s reputation and demonstrated his military capabilities.

Battle of the Yellow Ford (1598): 

This battle is considered one of O’Neill’s greatest victories. This war was ignited due to the creation of a bridge by an English Deputy to deep into O’Neill’s territory. When O’Neill had received intelligence that this great army was approaching him, he sent his messengers to O’Donnell, requesting that he come to his assistance against this overwhelming force of foreigners who were coming to his country. O’Donnell proceeded immediately, with all his warriors, both infantry and cavalry and a strong body of forces from Connacht, to assist his ally against those who were marching upon him. The Irish of all the provinces of Ulster also joined the same army, so that they were all prepared to meet the English before they arrived at Armagh. O’Neill’s army was around 5,000 people which was unlike what anyone had seen, he armed 80% of his men with calivers which were lighter muskets. O’Neill and his army would eventually win this battle and this would ultimately spark the Nine Years War.

Siege of Carrick Fergus (1597): 

North East Ulster was fought over a lot. This had become the English-only foothold in Ireland. It was the result of a failed attempt to colonize that corner of Ireland in the 1570s. On October 4th the English led a group of about 700 men to the city of Carrick Fergus. However, Oneill had drawn the English into a trap. MacDonnell had hidden 800 troops to his rear, which included Scots bowmen, swordsmen, and Irish pike but more significantly 500 Irish shot. Without warning, shots poured into the English ranks from Tyrone’s shot hidden on rough ground. For a counterattack, the Scots and Irish surged around and broke the formation of the crown troops. John Chichester was the leader of that English force and was shot in the head and killed. This led to O’Neill decapitating Chichester and keeping his head as a treasure. This battle was important to O’Neill because again due to his military intelligence, he was able to beat another British army. This eventually leads to O’Neil capturing this town in Ulster and dealing a blow to the control the English had in Ulster.

 

Battle of Kinsale (1601): 

In contrast to the other battles mentioned in this section, this battle was not an Irish success. This battle to many historians is the ultimate turning point in the Nine Years War. At this time O’Neill was the leader of the Gaelic Irish Lords and even formed an alliance with the Spanish. The Irish army had about 12,000 people. The Irish knew going into this battle that they would be outnumbered however the call for support to the Spanish would provide them a lot more military support unfortunately the weather had blown them to the bottom of Ireland forcing them to be very late to the battle. This caused the Spanish army to suffer from the lack of supplies and food, and O’Neill was forced to go to their aid. He fully understood that should this first Spanish force suffer defeat, he would be unlikely to receive further military help.  Lord Mountjoy’s forces were incapable of surrounding the town of Kinsale and its surrounding area (now called Belgooly), but they seized some higher ground and subjected the Spanish forces to constant artillery fire. However, The English navy surrounded the Irish with 10 Naval ships, and The English cavalry rode through the surrounding countryside destroying livestock and crops.

This ultimately led to the surrender and fleeing of O’Neill. However, his importance in this battle is unlike any other. An army the size of 12,000 was unheard of at this time in Ireland, being able to resist a force like England was unlike anything that had happened before, and the ability to unify the Irish state is something he is held in high regard for. Though his military strategy was outmatched if the Spanish had arrived on time and in the right location history could’ve gone a lot differently.