More on the 1798 Rebellion

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1798 Rebellion.

We are the boys of Wexford, who fought with heart and hand.

As the 18th Century was coming to a close, the anger and the frustration of the Catholic community was beginning to boil. For decades, they had lived under a system that was privileged towards Protestants – an unfair system that saw them suffer economically. In the years leading up to the Rebellion of 1798, both America and France had erupted into revolution, fueled by the ideals of equality, justice and democracy. Events in other countries eventually led to the creation of a group of nationalists called the United Irishmen, who were made up of both Catholics and Protestants, all of which believed in the establishment of a secular democracy.

In County Wexford, the sense of anger with the establishment continued to build, thanks in no small part to the events that transpired at Wygram in Wexford Town in 1793. There, a number of Irish rebels from Bunclody were halted by members of the 56th regiment as they attempted to free two of their neighbours from Wexford Gaol. During a skirmish between the two sides, eleven of the Irish rebels were shot and killed, with nearly a hundred more dying of their wounds as they attempted to flee the town. Afterwards, a number of survivors were captured and sentenced to death by hanging. This event is sometimes referred to as The First Rebellion, simply because it helped to fuel a sense of enmity that would eventually culminate in the insurrection of 1798.

The town of Wexford was not immediately involved in the 1798 Rebellion, as the rising had initially started in the north of the county. At the end of May in 1798, a force of about 10,000 rebel soldiers arrived at Three Rocks on Forth Mountain, which is on the outskirts of Wexford Town. At this point, the United Irishmen had a reason to feel confident, as they had already seized the town of Enniscorthy. At the time, they also had no idea that the uprising had been squashed in other parts of the country.

The arrival of this large force of Irish rebels sent the loyalist inhabitants of Wexford into a state of panic, as many of them were worried about what would happen to them if the town were to fall. The town’s garrison was small in comparison to the rebels and it was unable to adequately strengthen the town’s defenses in time. Rebel forces had also started to gather at Ferrybank, which is on the opposite side of Wexford Quay.

After British reinforcements from Duncormick retreated from the area and the town garrison experienced a heavy loss at the hands of the rebels, the remaining soldiers inside the town discarded their weapons and abandoned their posts, allowing the United Irishmen to walk into the town unopposed.

The first Republic of Ireland had been born.

During this phase of the 1798 Rebellion, a republican regime was established in Wexford under a civilian leadership. After a period of law and order within the town, an extremist faction of Pike Men led by Thomas Dixon managed to gain control of the streets of Wexford. Before that, loyalist prisoners had been protected from the random executions that seemed to be occurring elsewhere, simply because the moderate leadership within the United Irishmen saw them as a potential bargaining chip. This changed, however, as the more-moderate leaders of the United Irishmen were drawn to events that were occurring elsewhere in the county. This eroded the authority of the civilian leadership, allowing extremist factions within the town to take control.

When the leaders of the United Irishmen returned to Wexford, they were greeted with the horrible news that an atrocity had occurred. In their absence, roughly 100 loyalists had been put on “trial” by Dixon. These prisoners had been sentenced to death before being executed on Wexford Bridge.

The execution of these prisoners proved to be fatal for the leaders of the 1798 Rebellion, as many of them were executed on Wexford Bridge after the rising had been squashed and the British had regained control of the town.

Battle of Vinegar Hill, 21 June 1798 - Painting by William Sadler (1782-1839)

The Battle of Vinegar Hill, was an engagement during the Irish Rebellion of 1798 on 21 June 1798 when over 13,000 British soldiers launched an attack on Vinegar Hill outside Enniscorthy, County Wexford, the largest camp and headquarters of the Wexford United Irishmen. It marked a turning point in the rebellion, as it was the last attempt by the United Irishmen to hold and defend ground against the British military. The battle was actually fought in two locations: on Vinegar Hill itself and in the streets of nearby Enniscorthy.