October 23: Outbreak of the Rebellion. Catholic rebels make an attempt to seize
Dublin but their plan is discovered at the last minute and abandoned. In
Ulster in the north, Phelim O'Neill takes
Charlemont.
November 28, A rebel attack on
Lurgan, in east Ulster, is beaten off by Protestant settler forces.
November 29:
Battle of Julianstown, an English government force is defeated by Irish Catholic insurgents after it was sent to relieve
Drogheda.
November:
Portadown Massacre, The English Protestants in
Portadown are driven onto a bridge over the river Bann and then shot, piked or drowned.
December 30, the first English reinforcement, 1,100 men under
Simon Harcourt, arrives in Dublin.
December, the lords of
the Pale enter the rebellion, as do the Catholic landowners in counties Roscommon, Mayo, Sligo, Tipperary and Kilkenny.
1642
Rebellion breaks out in Clare and Limerick in the west and Antrim in the north.
Charles Coote routs a rebel force at
Swords in Dublin.
March: Drogheda is relieved by English troops.
19 March: the English Parliament passes the
Adventurers' Act, allowing for the mass confiscation of Catholic land in Ireland.
March: the Irish Catholic Bishops convene a meeting at Armagh about how to bring the rebellion under control and channel it into the pursuit of Catholic political aims.
April 3, 10,000 Scottish troops land in Ulster, sent by the Scottish Parliament to put down the rebellion. English reinforcements land at Dublin and Cork from February to May.
15 April:
Battle of Kilrush. A rebel force is defeated by English troops near
Athy, county Kildare.
Scottish troops under the Earl of Argyle massacre several hundred Catholic civilians at
Rathlin Island. Another massacre is reported at Newry.
July, Irish Catholic Clergy and nobles draft an Oath binding the rebels together in common cause of upholding the Catholic religion, the liberty of Ireland and the King's rights.
July, Irish general
Owen Roe O'Neill returns to Ireland, landing at
Raphoe, Donegal to help the Catholic cause. Thomas Preston, another veteran of the Spanish army, lands at Wexford.
August 22, the
English Civil War breaks out between the King and Parliament. English forces in Ireland split along these lines.
September 3,
Battle of Liscarroll. A Catholic army led by Garret Barry is defeated by English Protestant forces near Liscarroll, Cork.
October 24, the
Confederate Catholic Association of Ireland is established, with its own constitution and capital at Kilkenny. In November it strikes its own
coinage It will govern most of Ireland as a de facto sovereign state until 1648.
1643
English Royalist forces take
Timolin, 200 Catholic civilians were killed by Ormonde's army.
March 18,
Battle of New Ross, English Royalist forces defeat a Confederate Catholic army under Thomas Preston.
June 13, O'Neill's Ulster Army is routed by the
Laggan Army at
Clones, losing many of its veteran soldiers. He abandons much of central Ulster to rebuild his army.
June, a Confederate force under
James Tuchet, Earl of Castlehaven defeats the Cork army of Inchiquin at Funcheon Ford. This would prove to be the only significant defeat of the Cork Protestant army in the 1640s.
September: The Ulster army led by Owen Roe O'Neill defeats an Irish Protestant force at the Battle of Portlester.
September: A ceasefire known as the Cessation is arranged between the Confederates and English Royalists under Ormonde, effective from 15 September. Negotiations start to create a more formal alliance. Many Royalist troops are withdrawn to fight in England. The Scots in Ulster remain hostile to the Confederates.
November, 4,000 of the English royalist troops in Dublin are sent back to England.
1644
The Confederates launch an offensive of 6,000 men, led by Castlehaven, against the Scots in Ulster, but it proves inconclusive.
A foray by the Scots into Confederate territory in
County Longford is turned back at the bridge at
Finnea by a force under
Myles "the Slasher" O'Reilly.
The Confederates send 1,500 troops to Scotland under
Alasdair MacColla to fight on the Royalist side there.
The English Royalist troops in Cork defect to the Parliament.
28 March, The Ormonde Peace is signed, committing the Confederates to an alliance with the English Royalists in return for concessions to Catholics. It is condemned by Rinuccini and the Catholic Bishops.
An English Parliamentarian naval force lands at
Dingle and sacks the town.
The parliamentarians occupy
Bunratty Castle but are then besieged by Confederate troops and forced to surrender.
Confederate Armies under Preston and O'Neill march on Kilkenny to reject the Ormonde peace. Those who signed it are arrested.
O'Neill and Preston besiege Dublin, held by the Royalist Earl of Ormonde. However they lift the siege due to bad weather and a failure to agree on strategy.
1647
Spring: Inchiquin launches a major offensive in Munster, quickly capturing Dromana, Cappoquin and Dungarvan.
June 1647: Ormonde surrenders Dublin to the English Parliamentarians, preferring them to the Catholic Confederates.
August: The Confederate Leinster Army is destroyed by an English Parliamentarian force at the
battle of Dungan's Hill, in county Meath.
Owen Roe ONeills Ulster Army lays waste to the area around Dublin, burning food supplies to prevent the Parliamentarian army under from advancing into Confederate territory.
November 1647:
Battle of Knocknanauss. The Confederate Munster Army is routed by the Parliamentarians in county Cork.
1648
Inchiquin, Protestant commander in Cork, changes sides, from the English Parliament to the King and signs a truce with the Confederates.
The Confederates sign the Second Ormonde Peace - a revised deal with the Royalists. The Confederation splits over the Treaty and a civil war breaks out between the pro-Royalist Confederates and the hardline Catholics, led by Rinnucini and most powerful in the Ulster Army of Owen Roe O'Neill.
The English Parliamentarian garrison at Derry is besieged by the Scots, who have also signed an alliance with the Royalists.
Owen Roe O'Neill relieves the Parliamentarians besieged at Derry in return for supplies and offers to make a separate peace with them.
1649
February- Ormonde returns to Ireland, and after arriving at Kilkenny, dissolves the Catholic Confederation.
May: New Model Army troops assault Clonmel but are beaten off with heavy casualties. The garrison slips away and the town surrenders on terms the next day.
Cromwell leaves Ireland
Charles II repudiates the Second Ormonde Peace and his alliance with Irish Catholics. Cromwell publishes lenient surrender terms for Protestant Royalists.
The Protestant Royalist garrisons in Munster defect to the Parliamentarian side.
8 August, Parliamentarian attacks on Charlemont are repulsed with heavy losses.
14 August, Charlemont surrenders.
10 August, Waterford surrenders to Parliamentarian troops.
12 August, Duncannon surrenders.
25 October,
Battle of Meelick Island, the Irish Connaught Army is routed and the Parliamentarians cross the Shannon into the west of Ireland.
October, Henry Ireton arrives before Limerick but has to lift the siege and retire to winter quarters.
December, Ormonde, erstwhile Royalist commander, flees for France.
1651
April, due to persistent guerrilla warfare by Irish Catholic bands, reprisals on civilians in several areas including county Wicklow and much of the south are proclaimed by the Parliamentarians.
June: Ireton arrives again before Limerick and constructs fortifications for a long siege
Siege of Limerick (1650–1651).
July 1651:
Battle of Knocknaclashy, an Irish force trying to relieve Limerick is defeated and scattered near
Banteer, Cork.
May, most of the bigger Irish guerrilla bands surrender under terms published at Kilkenny, allowing them to go abroad to serve in Catholic armies.
12 August:
Act for the Settlement of Ireland 1652 is passed by the English
Rump Parliament, allowing for the mass confiscation of Catholic owned land and the execution of those held responsible for the rebellion 1641.
1653
27 April, The last organised Irish Catholic force, Phillip O'Reilly, surrenders at Cloughoughter, county Cavan.
October 23: Outbreak of the Rebellion. Catholic rebels make an attempt to seize
Dublin but their plan is discovered at the last minute and abandoned. In
Ulster in the north, Phelim O'Neill takes
Charlemont.
November 28, A rebel attack on
Lurgan, in east Ulster, is beaten off by Protestant settler forces.
November 29:
Battle of Julianstown, an English government force is defeated by Irish Catholic insurgents after it was sent to relieve
Drogheda.
November:
Portadown Massacre, The English Protestants in
Portadown are driven onto a bridge over the river Bann and then shot, piked or drowned.
December 30, the first English reinforcement, 1,100 men under
Simon Harcourt, arrives in Dublin.
December, the lords of
the Pale enter the rebellion, as do the Catholic landowners in counties Roscommon, Mayo, Sligo, Tipperary and Kilkenny.
1642
Rebellion breaks out in Clare and Limerick in the west and Antrim in the north.
Charles Coote routs a rebel force at
Swords in Dublin.
March: Drogheda is relieved by English troops.
19 March: the English Parliament passes the
Adventurers' Act, allowing for the mass confiscation of Catholic land in Ireland.
March: the Irish Catholic Bishops convene a meeting at Armagh about how to bring the rebellion under control and channel it into the pursuit of Catholic political aims.
April 3, 10,000 Scottish troops land in Ulster, sent by the Scottish Parliament to put down the rebellion. English reinforcements land at Dublin and Cork from February to May.
15 April:
Battle of Kilrush. A rebel force is defeated by English troops near
Athy, county Kildare.
Scottish troops under the Earl of Argyle massacre several hundred Catholic civilians at
Rathlin Island. Another massacre is reported at Newry.
July, Irish Catholic Clergy and nobles draft an Oath binding the rebels together in common cause of upholding the Catholic religion, the liberty of Ireland and the King's rights.
July, Irish general
Owen Roe O'Neill returns to Ireland, landing at
Raphoe, Donegal to help the Catholic cause. Thomas Preston, another veteran of the Spanish army, lands at Wexford.
August 22, the
English Civil War breaks out between the King and Parliament. English forces in Ireland split along these lines.
September 3,
Battle of Liscarroll. A Catholic army led by Garret Barry is defeated by English Protestant forces near Liscarroll, Cork.
October 24, the
Confederate Catholic Association of Ireland is established, with its own constitution and capital at Kilkenny. In November it strikes its own
coinage It will govern most of Ireland as a de facto sovereign state until 1648.
1643
English Royalist forces take
Timolin, 200 Catholic civilians were killed by Ormonde's army.
March 18,
Battle of New Ross, English Royalist forces defeat a Confederate Catholic army under Thomas Preston.
June 13, O'Neill's Ulster Army is routed by the
Laggan Army at
Clones, losing many of its veteran soldiers. He abandons much of central Ulster to rebuild his army.
June, a Confederate force under
James Tuchet, Earl of Castlehaven defeats the Cork army of Inchiquin at Funcheon Ford. This would prove to be the only significant defeat of the Cork Protestant army in the 1640s.
September: The Ulster army led by Owen Roe O'Neill defeats an Irish Protestant force at the Battle of Portlester.
September: A ceasefire known as the Cessation is arranged between the Confederates and English Royalists under Ormonde, effective from 15 September. Negotiations start to create a more formal alliance. Many Royalist troops are withdrawn to fight in England. The Scots in Ulster remain hostile to the Confederates.
November, 4,000 of the English royalist troops in Dublin are sent back to England.
1644
The Confederates launch an offensive of 6,000 men, led by Castlehaven, against the Scots in Ulster, but it proves inconclusive.
A foray by the Scots into Confederate territory in
County Longford is turned back at the bridge at
Finnea by a force under
Myles "the Slasher" O'Reilly.
The Confederates send 1,500 troops to Scotland under
Alasdair MacColla to fight on the Royalist side there.
The English Royalist troops in Cork defect to the Parliament.
28 March, The Ormonde Peace is signed, committing the Confederates to an alliance with the English Royalists in return for concessions to Catholics. It is condemned by Rinuccini and the Catholic Bishops.
An English Parliamentarian naval force lands at
Dingle and sacks the town.
The parliamentarians occupy
Bunratty Castle but are then besieged by Confederate troops and forced to surrender.
Confederate Armies under Preston and O'Neill march on Kilkenny to reject the Ormonde peace. Those who signed it are arrested.
O'Neill and Preston besiege Dublin, held by the Royalist Earl of Ormonde. However they lift the siege due to bad weather and a failure to agree on strategy.
1647
Spring: Inchiquin launches a major offensive in Munster, quickly capturing Dromana, Cappoquin and Dungarvan.
June 1647: Ormonde surrenders Dublin to the English Parliamentarians, preferring them to the Catholic Confederates.
August: The Confederate Leinster Army is destroyed by an English Parliamentarian force at the
battle of Dungan's Hill, in county Meath.
Owen Roe ONeills Ulster Army lays waste to the area around Dublin, burning food supplies to prevent the Parliamentarian army under from advancing into Confederate territory.
November 1647:
Battle of Knocknanauss. The Confederate Munster Army is routed by the Parliamentarians in county Cork.
1648
Inchiquin, Protestant commander in Cork, changes sides, from the English Parliament to the King and signs a truce with the Confederates.
The Confederates sign the Second Ormonde Peace - a revised deal with the Royalists. The Confederation splits over the Treaty and a civil war breaks out between the pro-Royalist Confederates and the hardline Catholics, led by Rinnucini and most powerful in the Ulster Army of Owen Roe O'Neill.
The English Parliamentarian garrison at Derry is besieged by the Scots, who have also signed an alliance with the Royalists.
Owen Roe O'Neill relieves the Parliamentarians besieged at Derry in return for supplies and offers to make a separate peace with them.
1649
February- Ormonde returns to Ireland, and after arriving at Kilkenny, dissolves the Catholic Confederation.
May: New Model Army troops assault Clonmel but are beaten off with heavy casualties. The garrison slips away and the town surrenders on terms the next day.
Cromwell leaves Ireland
Charles II repudiates the Second Ormonde Peace and his alliance with Irish Catholics. Cromwell publishes lenient surrender terms for Protestant Royalists.
The Protestant Royalist garrisons in Munster defect to the Parliamentarian side.
8 August, Parliamentarian attacks on Charlemont are repulsed with heavy losses.
14 August, Charlemont surrenders.
10 August, Waterford surrenders to Parliamentarian troops.
12 August, Duncannon surrenders.
25 October,
Battle of Meelick Island, the Irish Connaught Army is routed and the Parliamentarians cross the Shannon into the west of Ireland.
October, Henry Ireton arrives before Limerick but has to lift the siege and retire to winter quarters.
December, Ormonde, erstwhile Royalist commander, flees for France.
1651
April, due to persistent guerrilla warfare by Irish Catholic bands, reprisals on civilians in several areas including county Wicklow and much of the south are proclaimed by the Parliamentarians.
June: Ireton arrives again before Limerick and constructs fortifications for a long siege
Siege of Limerick (1650–1651).
July 1651:
Battle of Knocknaclashy, an Irish force trying to relieve Limerick is defeated and scattered near
Banteer, Cork.
May, most of the bigger Irish guerrilla bands surrender under terms published at Kilkenny, allowing them to go abroad to serve in Catholic armies.
12 August:
Act for the Settlement of Ireland 1652 is passed by the English
Rump Parliament, allowing for the mass confiscation of Catholic owned land and the execution of those held responsible for the rebellion 1641.
1653
27 April, The last organised Irish Catholic force, Phillip O'Reilly, surrenders at Cloughoughter, county Cavan.