The Courts Martial of 1798-99

When Lord Cornwallis arrived in Ireland in July 1798 he was shocked at the bloody mindedness of the government forces, especially of both officers and men in the Irish units. He stated that "It shall be one of my first objects to soften the ferocity of our troops, which I am afraid, in the Irish Corps at least, is not confined to the private soldiers." He also disapproved of the wholesale flogging of suspects and others being thus coerced to give evidence for the prosecution at courts martial. Lord Cornwallis also noted that in Dublin Castle "The conversation at my table always turns on hanging, shooting, burning, etc., and if a priest is put to death the greatest joy is expressed by the whole company." This expansive book is based almost exclusively on hitherto unpublished sources. These are the courts martial papers which were not available to the public for the two hundred years since the Rising.