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ravished from them by the tyranny of the Crown, marched under the conduct of Owen Koe O'Neile; both generals of the Irish nation; the one descended of Eng- lish extraction through many descents; the other purely Irish, and of the family of Tyrone; both bred in the wars of Flanders, and both eminent commanders there, and of perpetual jealousy of each other; the one of the more frank and open nature; the other darker, less polite, and the wiser man; but both of them then at the head of more numerous armies apart, than all the king's power could bring into the field against either of them." Most of Preston's operations were unfortunate. He was defeated by the Marquis of Ormond at New Eoss on the i8th March 1644, and obliged to retreat across the Barrow, with a loss of 500 men, his baggage, and am- munition. He assumed a neutral attitude in some of the negotiations between Or- mond and Einuccini; but in August 1646 he co-operated with O'Neill to intercept Ormond in his march on Kilkenny, and compel his subsequent disastrous retreat to Dublin. The same autumn Preston and O'Neill marched against Dublin, wasting much time on the way, so that their combined forces, numbering some 1 6,000 foot and 1,600 horse, did not take up apositionatLucan until the i ith November. Ormond had been able to effect little for the defence of Dublin, beyond burning crops and destroying mills in the neigh- bourhood, and had the Irish generals acted in concert, nothing could have saved it from falling into their hands. They lost nearly a week in dissensions. Carte goes so far as to say that Preston hated O'Neill, and O'Neill despised Preston. On the 1 6th news reached them of the reception of a Parliamentary force into Dublin, where- upon they precipitately abandoned the siege, and sought winter quarters. Soon afterward, Preston appeared not unwill- ing to side with Ormond; but Einuccini brought him back to act nominally with O'Neill. On 8th August 1647 he was de- feated by Jones, the Parliamentaiy General, at Dungan Hill, near Trim, where he occu- pied a strong position with 7,000 foot and 1,000 horse. Jones, with an army said to have numbered but 2,000 men, marched from Dublin to dislodge him. Preston rashly abandoned his entrenchments, in the hope of overwhelming the enemy while forming for the attack; but his forces were met with undaunted bravery, quickly thrown into confusion, and completely routed. Einuccini admits a loss of 3,000 sol- diers and 106 officers: "All our banners were taken; all the baggage seized. The 446
spoil, in which were several barrels of pow- der, cannot be put down at less than 50,000 crowns. Preston's baggage also fell into the hands of the enemy. . . 1,500 heretics were left upon the field." Father Meehan says Preston's losses were reck- oned at 5,470 killed; while the Parlia- mentarians — Einuccini's " heretics" — had only twenty killed and very few wounded. In his retreat, Preston burned Naas, Har- ristown, and Moyglare, while Jones retired to Dublin with his prisoners — "Nor would he allow the standards taken from the Confedei-ates to be brought in triumph to the city, for that would be attributing to man the work which was due to the Lord alone." Preston subsequently sided with the Marquis of Ormond and the Anglo-Irish party, and wrote, after his excommiinication by Einuccini: " I hold your censures to be invalid; and as for O'Neill, I have pursued him to Mary- borough, fully resolved that either he or I shall fall in mortal combat." However, 2,000 of his troops went over to his adver- sary, and left him almost without an army. In the summer of 1650 Preston gallantly defended Waterford against Ireton's army, and according to the terms of the surren- der on 6th August, was allowed to march out and proceed under safe conduct to Athlone, with standards flying, trumpets sounding, pistols and carbines loaded. He was created Viscount Tara by patent dated at Ennis 2nd July 1650. Excluded by Cromwell from pardon for life and estate, he retired to the Continent, where he died before 14th August 1662, possibly at Bruges. Einuccini says he was "very subject to fits of anger, in which he was so rash and out-spoken that he had often to retract with apologies what he had said; so hasty in his warlike enterprises that he was sometimes called inconsiderate." His grandson, the 3rd Viscount, died wdthout issue in 1674. [John Preston, descended from his younger brother, was, for his vote in favour of the Union, created Baron Tara in 1800.] S3 85t 93 i86t .71 295
Preston, William, author of several poems, plays, and essays, was born in Dub- lin in 1753. Educated at Trinity College, and called to the Bar in 1777, he was at one time Commissioner of Appeals. He assisted in founding the Eoyal Irish Academy. Allibone gives a full list of his works. His tragedy. Democratic Rage, published in 1793, was very successful. He died in Dublin, 2nd February 1807, aged 53. One notice of his life states that " he was a man of great literary attain- ments, . . not surpassed by any of his contemporaries." . '^ '-"^ 332
