THis is to acquaint you, how we drew all our forces we had in Munstor to­geather, to give the Rebels Battaile, who were comming to lay their seige before Corke; And being very strong, having with them the best Demicannon that was in the Castle of Limericke, and 2. Sakers, the one of brasse, and the other of Jron, with the which they have taken the Castle of Ashketon, my Lady Dudleys Castle, and all the Castles within 20. myles of us, in the province of Munster, and the Lord Muskery, L. Roch, Generall Barry, Purcell, and all the rest of the Rebels Cavalrye, did ingage all the honour and creditt, and the Major of Limericke also, to the value of many Thousand pounds, for the safe returne of the aforesaid Guns into Limericke againe. Upon Wednesday the last of August, Orders came from my L. Jnche queen to Kinsale, that 100 men might be chosen pre­sently to march, with the which 100. men, I was [Page 2]by my Lord Inchequeene commanded to goe withall, vpon Thursday the 1. day of September I marched from Kinsale by 3. a clock in the morning, and came to Corke by 12 of the clock and was commanded to march through the Towne to a place where my Lord Inchequeen himselfe mustered his forces, to know how strong we were for present service after that we presently marched away and came to Mallow that night, being 12 miles from Corke, and vpon Friday the second of September, we marched to Butfoard, being 4 miles further where we met together with all the forces we could make in the whole Province of Munster, viz. from Kinsale, Bandonbridge, Corke, and Youghall, and we were found strong about some 400. horse and 1600. foote, and our horse was very ill horst and armed, yet neverthelesse, my Lord, and all of vs did put on our resolution to fight, the Rebells Campe was then within foure miles of us, and did lye in such a place, where they had a bogge about them, they being of horse and foote about ten thousand strong, all very well armed, they having 3 times as many Musketiers as we had, also better horse, and better armed then our horse by farre.

The enemy likewise had 100. Muskets that they wanted men to cary them, but they made an account to have gotten all Munster before Michaelmas day. This day above mentioned, we saw some 600. of the Rebels Horse, on Satterday being the 3. of September, about 4. of the clock in the morning, we marched towards them to Pristcarel, where they were strongly encamped having made a strong Fort, with the great Peece called the Elizabeth of Limericke mounted ther­upon, and hard by that they had a Battery, where the 2. other Guns were mounted, and a great high ditch round about this Fort, and the Bat­tery, and within a Musket shot from thence, they had a Brestworke, and within halfe a Musket shot from the fort, they had a strong Castle which they tooke but the night before, and be­tween these, a fortification of great strength, there the Rebels stood in Bataile array.

And this Satterday Morning about Eight of the Clocke, our Feild peeces played upon them; And their peeces played upon us.

And thus continuing till about nine of the [Page 4]clocke in the morning, our horse and 500. Mus­ketiers did charge the body of the Rebels, and I was (my selfe) commanded to charge upon a for­lorne hope onely with a 100. Musketiers, our Horse was once beaten to a retreat, in which time, we all thought to have had the worst of the day, but we stood to it with 500. Musketiers, and having by the Almighty providence of God, the Sun and the Winde on our backs, blinded them so with the smoake of our guns, that ther­by both their horse and foote confnsedly made their retreat, upon the which, all our horse charg­ed most bravely the second time upon them, and likewise so did these 500. Musketiers, and did put them all to flight, into, and over the boggs; and moreover they did forsake their Brestworke, Battery, Fort, and Castle, where we tooke the great gun called the Besse of Limericke, being of 6.80 weight, and the other 2. sakers, with some 5. barrells of powder, and 2. barrells of match, all the hands of our side that came to fight that day was onely 500. musketiers at the most, and hardly 400. horse, we hold it, (for which we give God wany thanks) the greatest overthrow that ever the Rebels hath had, they being so [Page 5]mighty and strong, and we so weake; we slew above 1200. of them, being all most of their cheifest Commanders, and we lost but 12. at the most, onely the greatest losse that we had, the which did encourage the Rebels very much before we came to the Bataile, that the Gover­nor of Bandonbridge, was kild out of an Am­bush, and stript naked, he was the Lord of Kine­almekie, the Earle of Corkes Sonne.

Wee took Colonell Butler prisoner, Pursell is shott, and they say my Lord Muskery, I saw Ge­nerall Barry run hard for it upon his white horse, and the Major of Limericke with him, all the for­ces that wee left behinde us in all our Garrisons in Munster, was not above 2 or 300 men, able to passe vpon duty, therefore all the province of Munster stood vpon us then, & now we stand in a great deale of extremitye, for want of more forces, for about 5000. horse and foote would cleare this province and preserve it, our compa­ny here have recruted, and the souldiers and Offi­cers in generall do stand in great neede of their pay, and wee stand in great doubt, that wee shall be in great want of Victualls before winter is halfe done, becauese we are not strong enough [Page 6]to fetch it in, this was the great worke of the Lord who did direct and fight for us, that his power and providence in his owne cause might be the more cleerly discerned by us, for they had all taken the Sacrament to fight it out to the last man, also it was reported the Fryers had given many of them charmes to keepe them shotfree, so in every thing it is plain, the Lord was our deliverer, and we shall I hope in few dayes be able to gather some reliefe for our Townes, so I Rest.