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Biography of Patrick Sarsfield PATRICK SARSFIELD ( - 1693) soldier. Born Lucan, County Dublin
The name Patrick Sarsfield is intrinsically linked with the City of Limerick and it's history as the man who was instrumental in the defence of Limerick during the Siege's of 1690, 1691 and the subsequent Treaty of Limerick. He was born at Lucan near Dublin, about 1650 and died at Huy in Belgium in August 1693. On his mother's side he was descended from the O'Moores, princes of Leix. His grandfather, Rory O'Moore, lead the Irish rebellion in 1641, an attack that antagonized England and brought about the invasion of Cromwell.
Sarsfield first saw service in the army of Luxembourg as an ensign in Monmouth's Regiment of Foot. He then served in the army of King Louis XIV of France from 1671-1678. After James II accession to the English throne in 1685 he served under his commander in Ireland, Richard Talbot. When James was deposed and left for France in 1688, Sarsfield followed him and subsequently landed with him at Kinsale in the following year. James recognized his bravery, but thought him incapable of high command. Nevertheless in 1689 Sarsfield captured Sligo and secured all Connaught for the king. It was in the early months of the war against William III that Sarsfield distinguished himself. He was a cavalry commander and later was promoted to major general. After defeat at the battle of the Boyne and James II departure to France, Sarsfield rallied the defeated army to lead the defence of Limerick.
It was largely through Sarsfield that Limerick was defended so well, and it was he who destroyed William's siege train in 1690, the most brilliant exploit of the whole war. James was so well pleased with him that he created him Earl of Lucan. In the campaign of 1690 he held a subordinate position under St. Ruth. The two often disagreed, and at Aughrim, St. Ruth allowed Sarsfield no active share in the battle, leaving him in command of the cavalry reserve. When St. Ruth fell Sarsfield could not turn defeat into victory, but he saved the Irish from utter destruction. In the second siege of Limerick he lead the defenders, but finding prolonged resistance impossible assented to the Treaty of Limerick, which ended the war. Shortly after Sarsfield signed the Treaty of Limerick, a French fleet arrived with reinforcements and many urged Sarsfield to tear up the Treaty and fight on. This he would not do and having given his word of honour he kept it. Believing they had negotiated a treaty that guaranteed the rights of their people, perhaps as many as twenty thousand Irish soldiers sailed with Sarsfield to France. The treaty Sarsfield committed to, would not be honoured by the English. With cruel irony they tore it up and replaced it with the Penal Laws, stripping Irish Catholics of their land, persecuting them for their religion and removing every right of citizenship. On this note of dishonour and betrayal began the saga of "The Wild Geese."
Sarsfield joined the army of France, leading the Irish Brigade. At Landen in 1693, he commanded the left wing of Luxembourg's army, and there received his death wound. There is a tradition that as he lay mortally wounded he put his hand to his wound, and seeing it covered with blood, he lamented that the blood was not shed for Ireland. He was carried to Huy where he lingered for a few days and died.
Although not a native of the city, Sarsfield has always been remembered by the citizens of Limerick as a local hero and adopted as one of their own. Along with the sport of rugby and the river Shannon, the name Patrick Sarsfield is synonymous with the city. Near King John's Castle there is a monument called the Treaty Stone on which it is reputed the failed Treaty of Limerick was signed. In addition to Sarsfield Street and Sarsfield Bridge there is a monument in his memory at Cathederal Place near St. Johns Cathederal (view picture). It is the pose from this monument which is shown on the logo for the Patrick Sarsfield Celtic Supporters Club.
Brief History of the Patrick Sarsfield Celtic Supporters Club
The Patrick Sarsfield Celtic Supporters Club is based in Limerick City, in heart of the Mid-west of Ireland. The club was founded in 1997 and has grown steadily each year since. The motive behind establishing the club was to set up a local base in Limerick for Celtic Supporters and to assist them with getting match tickets for games at Celtic Park.
The Club is now based in TBA The first meeting for the Club took place in The Holy Ground Bar, St John's Square, Limerick, on 25th May 1997 (The 30th anniversary of the European Cup victory in Lisbon). The first committee of the club elected on that night were
Chairman: Billy Hogan,
Vice Chairman: Denis O'Flynn,
Secretary: Martin O'Dea,
Tresurer: Tom Pigott,
P.R.O.: Blaise Phelan,
Committee Members: Brian O'Carroll, Tom Constable, Ger Hogan and Mark Delaney.
Honourary President: Joe Dunn of the Greenock Travel Club.At that stage the Club had only 1 Season Book, 15 members and about £2.50 in the kitty. As a result of friendships built up over previous years, the Club quickly forged links with the Greenock Travel Club near Glasgow. The relationship between the two clubs has grown strong in the few years since the formation of the Club and regular visits are made between Greenock and Limerick.
The Club initially joined the Scottish Association in Glasgow in July 1997 but left after the formation of the Association of Irish Celtic Supporters Clubs (AICSC), which Patrick Sarsfield C.S.C. joined as a founder member. The AICSC has proven to be a very successful and active association in organising Irish supporters clubs with everything from match tickets, to accommodation and arranging dedicated trips to various European matches. It has also served as a collective voice in raising the interests and concerns of Irish supporters with Celtic Football Club. Click on the link to visit the AICSC Web site.
Patrick Sarsfield C.S.C. now has 16 season book holders, around 100 members (and still £2.50 in the kitty) (you just can't get away from the biscuit tin mentality - Ed.). The principal function of the Club is to make it possible for Celtic supporters to visit Paradise and see their team play by assisting with accommodation and arranging for match tickets to be available, which is never an easy task when there are 54,000 season book holders in a stadium with a capacity of 60,000. A very important secondary function of the club in keeping with the Celtic tradition is in generating funds for charitable causes.
The current committee now consists of the following who's contact details are shown in the Contact Us section.
Chairman: Billy Hogan,
Secretary:TBC,
Treasurer/Ticket Officer: Richard Hough,
Registrar: Paul Averell,
Merchandise: Kevin Davies,
PRO/Web Page: Martin O'Dea,
Honourary President: Joe Dunn of the Greenock Travel Club.
Limerick, Ireland has always been a stronghold of support for Glasgow Celtic Football Club. To view the maps below, click on the image to enlarge fully.
Welcome to Limerick
Limerick City, with a population of over 52,000 with another 25,000 living in the suburbs, is the third largest city in the republic of Ireland. It is the regional capital of the Mid-Western Region (population of over 310,000), which embraces the city of Limerick and the counties of Limerick, Clare and Tipperary N.R.. The city contains the principal offices of Limerick Corporation and Limerick County Council, together with the head-offices of the Mid-Western Health Board and Bord na gCon.
Also located in the city are the Regional Headquarters of the Army, the Garda Divisional Headquarters, the Regional Head Offices of the Electricity Supply Board, Income Tax and Irish Rail, the Area Headquarters of the District and Circuit Courts and Land Registry, the Regional Local Office of FAS, and the Limerick District Headquarters of the Post Office. Visit Limerick.com - has lots of interesting information about Limerick City and County. Visit Limerick-City.com for latest news and Limerick related links.
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