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Deposition of Martha Piggot

  • Reference:  MS 815, fols 374r-378v
  • County: Queens County
  • Date: 31/10/1646
  • Type: Dublin Original
  • Nature of Deposition: Arson, Assault, Desecration, Military Action, Multiple Killing, Robbery, Stripping, Words
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  • How to Cite
    • fol. 378v


    (Note: these pages were bound in back to front and therefore foliated in reverse order.)
    539
    Martha Piggot widdowe the Relicte of John Piggot of Disarte in the Queenes County Esquire Lately deceased being duely sworne & examined before vs by vertue of his Maiesties Comission vnder the broade seale of this kingdome to vs & others directed beareing date &c. deposeth & saith That since the first of 8 ber 1646 & by meanes of the present Rebellion in this kingdome she Lost & was forceably robbed & dispoiled of her goods & Chatles vizt houshould stuffe, weareing apparell, Jewells, rings, Corne debts and Catle of all sortes to the value of fiue Thousand one hundred & Twenty pounds or therabouts.
    The deponent being further examined deposeth. That vpon Sunday morneing being the fourth of this Instant October this examinats said husband & the rest of the protestants in his Castle haueing assembled together to serue god in prayer, word was brought suddenly vnto him that a number of horsmen of the Rebells Army appered in a boddy neere the said Castle, principally <A> Comanded by Barnaby Dun of Tenyhensy in the said County gentleman Capteine Lieutenant to Lewis Moore, wherevpon this Examinats husband (vnderstanding that they came to sumon the said Castle of Disarte) appered at the gate with a guard of musketiers & there, entertained a courteous parly with the said Dun & others who demanded the said Castle to be deliuered vpp to Roger Moore of Bellaneth Esquire for his Maiesties vse, to whome this examinats husband answered that the Castle was his owne Inheritance descended vnto him from his ancestors & that he alwayes kepte it for his Maiesties vse & therefore would not deliuer the possession of it to any Moore breathing or words to that effecte, vppon which Answere the said Dun & his confederats departed for that present & the deponents husband returned to the said Castle But soone after specially vppon Tuesday following being the sixte of this Instant one Therlagh

    fol. 378r


    540
    <B> o Neale accompanyed with Capteine Therlagh o Quyne & Thomas <B> Ovington of Tankardstowne in the said County gent & divers diuers others with a Trumpett came the second time to sumon the said Castle to be deliuered vpp to his Excellency Owen Roe o Neale for his Maiesties vse, to whome this examinats husband made answere almost in substance, as he did the first time to witt that he held that Castle from his Maiestie & would therefore keepe it still for his Maiesties vse, or words to that effecte, & made further answere, that the Irish already haue beene his vtter vndoeing and ruyne, & that he thought winter time was noe seasonable weather, for him his wife children & family, to goe begging & turneing to his owne vnnaturall Coossen German, the said Ovington (a man <C> of Brittish parentage & yet associating himselfe to the Rebells) tould him, Thom Ovington well mayest thou come to somon my Castle, but when I am gon Roger Moore will send you quickly after me, after which passages the said parties retreate attempting nothing against the said Castle for that present This Examinat further deposeth That aboute three a clocke that day the enemy appered with their Army horse & foote before the said Castle & began to play vppon the same, & first they sett fire in all the Corne in the Towne the rage whereof growing extreame violent, in soe much as this examinats out houses & other houses of office takeing fire, & parte of the very Castle the fflankers being sett on fire, & the men within consisting onely in number three score & fourteene persons, whereof there were onely thirty musketiers, who being ouermatched

    fol. 377v


    541
    with the multitudes of the Rebells & likewise ouercome with the scorching heate of the said fire, wherevpon this examinat & others begun to be Importunat with her said husband to call for Quarter & to embrace it, if happily it might be obteined, which of a Longe time (notwithstanding much earnestnes) he would hardly condescend vnto, but at length he yeelded to this examinats importunity, & presently Quarter was called for, which the assayllants seemed to Like well & appointed <C> Capteine Reagan, Captaine Dardis & Lieutenant ffarrell to parly concerneing the same, & they approached therevpon to the Castle grate & then & there parlyed with the deponents husband for the said Quarter, & after some entercourse it was concluded that the Condicions should be drawen vpp & fully agreed vppon by Barnaby Dun Esquire (this examinats brother in Lawe being then in the said Castle) who to that purpose in the heering of the said parties was appointed by the deponents said husband to goe forth & to conclude the said Quarter as he thought ffitt, with which the assailants seemed to be very well pleased, but before the said Dun went out of the said Castle this examinat & her said husband (presumeing that all would doe well, & withall vppon this entercourse obserueing that they left of shooting of both sides) did withdrawe themselues from the Castle grate, (to avoide the vehement heate of the fire & the noysomnes of the smoake which Lasted certaine houres) & went vpp staires into other roomes of

    fol. 377r


    542
    The said Castle but yet noe sooner was the said Barnaby <D> dun gon out of the Castle grate, but his owne sonn & others of his acquaintance among the rebells (as himself & others since confessed) dragged him away not admitting the least motion of any Quarter & instantly the multitudes of the Rebells rushed into the said Castle. This Examinats husband & the rest that were in the vpper roomes seeing themselues thus betrayed & heereing a greate noise comeing vpp staires, did sett on a resolution to vindicat themselues to the vttermost, & to worke they went, endeavouring at least to stopp their furious rushing any <Se more page 605> ffurther, & to that purpose they threwe seuerall stooles and chaires a paire of verginalls & other luggadges atwarte the staires head, which made the Rebells stand, soe that they could not conveniently run any further, wherevpon this examinats said husband did further conferr with the said <E> Reagan, Dardize, ffarrell, & others (then standing vppon the staires) for a Quarter, who with oathes, & protestacions faithfully promissed as they were souldiers & gent to giue this examinats husband & the rest faire Quarter for their Liues, which made him confident of faire performance, that incontinently he gaue directions to cleere the staires, which was noe sooner don then the Rebells [ ] most treacherously with swords & skines drawen ran violently vppon this examinats said husband, who being ouerlayed with multitudes soe that he could make noe longe resistance, after they

    fol. 376v


    543
    dissarmed him, they presently stripped him starke naked together with this examinat, William Piggott her sonn of the adge of nyneteene yeeres & Two of her grandchildren & seized vpon this examinats three daughters vizt Jane, Mary, & Sibilla Piggott whome they likewise stripped together withall or most parte of the men women & children within the said Castle to the number of 150 persons or thereabouts & <whome they> likwise stripped them all naked. And theis blooddy rebells were not satisffied with the plundering of the said Castle & the strippings of men women & children (fewe onely excepted that accidentally escaped in the throng by getting the wa tch word which was Sancta Maria) but alsoe in a most barbarously & inhumaine <ff> maner butchered & murthered this examinats husband & her said sonn before her face, her self & her said Two grandchildren standing naked in the roome as spectators of that inhumane massacre, & the Rebells not contented with sundry mortall wounds in his boddy giuen by them,but alsoe [ ] (modestly woud blush to relate it) this examinats husband Lying dead & breathles vppon the grounde some of those cruell execucioners slitted & scarred his priuate partes in many peeces. This examinat further saith that the Rebells were soe invectiue & malitious to her said husband in his life time, that after he was dead, they tooke his dead Carkas thus pittifully mangled & put him sitting as s he is credibly informed in one of his owne chaires, takeing glory in Triumphing ouer his dead Corps with spitefull & malitious words against himself and his family calling him puritan & round head such besides was their cruelty towards him that they would not admitt him any Christian buryall from Tuesday till Friday, giueing forth in speeches that his dead corps should neuer be burryed but there rott aboue grounde, but such tyme as this {examinat}

    fol. 376r


    544
    would ransom the said Corpes for mony, it being well known that the rebells themselves were the wicked Instruments of the vtter ruyne of this examinats estate husband & family but afterwards seeing noe ransome likely to be had, nor this examinat able to pay any, they dragged his dead corpes with a halter aboute his necke & threwe him into a ditch, at length by much entreaty & by a peticion, the generalls of the Rebells would admitt him buryall in the nexte adjoyneing Church yard, but vpon noe Tearmes within the body of the parish Church, but yet their vnsatiable malice was not yet extinguished, but per secuted [ ] this examinats husband to his graue alsoe, for as the deponents is credibly informed by Mrs Barrington & others, that since the buryall of this examinats said husband the rebells came & remoued his corpes & vnshrewded him. The deponent being furthe{r} examined saith That the very same day & houre the rebells <G> aboue mencioned with their Complices (notwithstanding their former promisse of Quarter) did most inhumanely murther Mr Robert Brereton viccar of disarte aforesaid a constant preacher, who at that instant being vpon his knees at his prayers to almightie God, before he made an end of his prayers, was cruelly murthered, & in derision to his function they tore a Leafe out of a Bible (as they did to all the Bibles in the said Castle teareing all their Leaues & Scattered & strawed them about the Courte) & put this leafe vnto the said Breretons hand (being already dead) calling to him & bidding of him to preach to his patron this examinats husband nowe dead, as he did
    (continued on 374r)

    fol. 375v


    545
    The deponent further saith That shee heard seuerall of the Rebells after takeing of the said Castle of Disart did spitefully inveigh & rayle against the Lord Lieutenant calling him a Traytor a Rebell & a Parliament rogue, & that his excellency was the onely cause of spilling the bloode that was lost in that Castle, because of his longe treateing with the Irish theis three yeeres past concerneing peace, & yet they were nowe satisfied that he neuer intended really to conclude the same, And when this examinat & the rest of the stripped protestants there were comeing away the rebells rebells would aske what; will you goe to Dublin, wee will packe you all thither & there keepe you till you eate one another &c

    fol. 375r


    546

    N
    I

    fol. 374v


    547
    (continued from 376r)
    often in his Life time, with many such scornefull words, & afterwards his corpes being pittyfully mangled, they dragged him to the doore & there was left for a certaine space for them that came in & out to tredd vppon. The deponent further saith That besides the murthering of her said husband, her sonn & Mr Brereton there was fforty men more or therabouts put to the sword in the said Castle notwithstanding their perfidious promisse of a Quarter namely Patricke Couran, James Couran, William Couran, Derby Couran, John Courane, Donnell o Braddan, Teig o Braddan, William Conny, Richard Smith & his man, Thomas Stevens, James Bradder, Donnogh o Conrath Henry ffortus Thomas Tuite & his child William Ward (a man of three score & ffifteene yeeres and John Dun a man of foure score yeeres and Cnogher mcDonnell Donnell McCnogher, William McCnogher, Donnell o Mulchale, William o Hicky Donnell o Hicky Callagh ffitz Patricke James o Hellan John o Hellan Donnell o Bergin Carroll o Bergin, Dermod o Lallor Teig o Lallor John O Mulloy Hugh o Mulloy Morris Dun Donnell o ffullane & John o fullan{e} Hugh Collier & seuerall others which were burnt in the houses that tooke fire & she saith that they left behind them such of them as were m arried or widdowes & children begging to the number of 83 persons And this examinat further saith That the Rebells after Comitting the said Barbarous murthers, demolishing this examinats dwelling house & the vtter ruyne of her estate, were not therewith contented, but most barbarously carried this examinat, her daughter, & other women naked through through their campe (as spectacles to be viewed & Laughed at by their rebellious kernes) to a wast house belonging to the said Robert Brereton & there caused this examinat to sitt downe starke naked onely her stocking vppon her feete vpon a dung hill haueing onely betweene her & the dung a sheaffe of oates strawed ouer, where she continued all that night, at length a Country woman (one of this examinats poore Tenants) pittying the deponents nakednes stripped her selfe of her coate, and threwe it over this examinates shoulders to couer her withall, That night the deponent by entreaty & much importunily vppon her kneese wrought with one ffarrell (a colonell among the <K> Rebells) to bring her children & grandchildren vnto her which was accordingly donn & being all stripped, this deponent made stript with an ould caddowe (which she parted amonge some of them) to couer their nakednes withall & the nexte day { }
    <This examinat & her children were conveyed to kilmencky & Sir William Gilberts house & further she deposeth not
    Martha Pigott
    Juram coram nobis vltimo 8bris 1646
    Hen: Clogher
    Hen: Brereton>

    fol. 374r


    548

    Martha Piggots examination taken vltimo Octobris 1646
    Queenes County



    Henry Brereton
    Henry Jones



     

Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2