The society will be publishing a monthly piece on its website, re the history of Kinsale and the District from local historians or those with a specific story to tell. . We are delighted that the first person to make that contribution is William Butler. A member of the OPW staff at Charles Fort, William has a fantastic knowledge on the subject of duelling and its history in Kinsale.
There will be blood tonight
Life in the eighteenth century was incredibly harsh. One in three children died before they got to their fifth birthday[1]. As a result, the average life expectancy in the United Kingdom and Ireland was below 39 years in the Year 1765. [2] Death was everywhere, especially during the Irish Famine 1740-1741 (known as Bliain an Áir the Year of the slaughter) which is estimate to have killed between 13% and 20% of the population. Life was seen as been short, harsh and unfair. So, life had to be lived and enjoyed, thus the Georgian period became known for its excesses. Bawdy plays, wild drinking sprees, outrageous behaviour, flamboyant fashions, gambling, prostitution and drinking all became the norm. All sections of society seemingly rejected fear of death in a mad dash to live life to its fullest.
Counterintuitively, this madcap free-spirited era witnessed the emergence of one of the strangest fashions of all time. The fashion for duelling amongst the wealthiest members of society. What defined the rich and powerful was their sense of honour. It had to be vigorously defended at all time. Even the slightest hint of dishonour or disrespect, no matter how trivial had to be erased immediately. Which in turn led to the duel. A formalised single combat which was fought to gain “satisfaction”, that is restoring your honour by showing you are willing to die for it. Duels became so popular in Ireland, that a set of rules were drawn up, known the Code Duello (the Irish duelling code of Honour). Adopted during the Summer assizes in Clonmel in 1777 this attempted to regularise duelling and prevent abuses from taking place.
[1] Peal Robert Meet the Georgians William Collins Books 2021 p XV
[1] www.statistica.com/statitics Life expectancy in the United Kingdom 1765-2020
Because there were some terrible abuses. Some duels were not fair combats between equals. Some duels were nothing less than murder. As we will see as we explore some British Military duels and around the town of Kinsale. Unsurprisingly, the young officers embraced the ethos of the duel even as king after king declared their hostility to the concept. Occasionally even threatening to dismiss any officer who fought a duel from the service. Yet the threats didn’t end the practice, and the lacklustre response from the judiciary seemed to imply a tacit acceptance of the duel as a method of resolving conflict. By law duels were clearly murder but judges and juries understood the concept of honour and as a result were reluctant to enforce the legislation.
There were a number of duels and proposed duels involving the military in Kinsale. Some were infamous even at the time. One of the earliest duels in Kinsale that we are aware of appears to be a clear case of murder. This “duel” involved a junior army officer and a navy captain. “Captain Hughes of the Ruby was killed in a duel by one Dodson, ensign in Colonel Atkins Regiment, the coroner found it was murder and the officer is in the county Gaol”[3]. Unfortunately, despite its notoriety at the time, I have not been able to find out anything else about this homicide.
A second, equally notorious duel happened in Kinsale in 1774. Two senior officers, Lieutenant Colonel Pigott and Major Bruce of the 38th Regiment who were at this time stationed at Kinsale, quarrelled after Bruce referred to the Colonel as “an Egyptian” by which he meant “a person of grovelling and mean principals (sic)”[4]. This insult led to Colonel Pigott challenging Bruce to a duel, which was settled with pistols.
Bruce received a musket ball to the ribs, this injury was so severe that his life was endangered. Luckily for him, Bruce recovered, only to receive a warning from the king that ‘if in his future deportment, there does not appear a very steady observance of discipline and decent behaviour, he must quit the service’. This duel broke numerous restrictions! Duels were supposed to be contests between equals, Major Bruce was one of Piggott’s subordinates and had he killed Piggott he would have been in line for promotion. No wonder the king was furious! Incidents like this threatened the whole concept of military discipline, and so Bruce had to be disciplined in case other ambitious officers might attempt to do the same thing.
[1] The National Archives U.K. Kew Adm 106/497/21 [1] Cambridge Chronicle and Journal Saturday 22nd January 1774 p 2
Another equally dubious duel had occurred in Kinsale in 1751. Ensign Sawyer of O’Farrell’s Regiment beat the servant of another officer for having given an impertinent answer to his wife. The other officer, Captain Wray allowed his servant to obtain a warrant of arrest for the assault, which caused the ensign to challenge the captain to a duel. According to Wray he first tried to dissuade Sawyer then drew him away into the countryside to talk him down. Ensign Sawyer reportedly drew his sword, wounding Wray in the left breast and arm before Wray ran him through with his sword. Sawyer died, confessing he was at fault[5]. Why did Wray bring Sawyer away from witnesses if he was attempting to cool him down?
Before the end of the Eighteenth century, another duel involving the military was fought in Kinsale. In 1796 a regimental Surgeon in the Sligo Militia named Mr Ryder was wounded in a duel by Ensign Cullen of the Antrim Militia[6].
The 32nd Regiment had a notorious reputation for duelling. On the 31st of August 1783 a duel broke out between two of their officers in the guard room of Tucky Street in Cork leaving one of them dead. This fashion for death continued into the nineteenth century. In 1805 a captain of the 32nd Regiment of Foot Cornwall Regiment fell in a duel with one of his fellow officers in the regiment[7]. Even after this tragedy the regiment’s penchant for duelling continued unabated.
[1] Aberdeen Press and Journal Tuesday 26th march 1751
[1] The Sporting Magazine 1796 Vol 8 P268
In his memoirs, Harry Ross Lewin recalled a challenge between one of his fellow officers and a local civilian. Fortunately, both men were persuaded by their seconds that the dispute wasn’t worth dying over, so they shook hands and decided to put whatever dispute there was behind them and to go out drinking together. The pair of would-be warriors got completely drunk, decided to borrow a boat and go sailing. By now they were so totally inebriated that they couldn’t manage to hold onto the boat and ended up falling into the water, much to the amusement of everyone watching[8].
As we have already seen it wasn’t just army officers who got involved in duels around Kinsale and thankfully for those involved not every duel ended in bloodshed. In 1824, a Royal Navy Officer Lieutenant Mc Daniel faced off against Gerald Henry Gibbons at Compass-Hill after an exchange of shots the police arrived, and both men decided that they had defended their honour and departed satisfied[9].
By the 1840s, duels were going out of fashion. Increasingly, the public began to believe that the whole notion of a duel simply revealed that there was one law for the rich and one law for the poor. As the opposition to duels increased, Judges began delivering longer sentences to duellists. The wealthy sought out safer ways to solve disputes, and by the middle of Queen Victoria’s reign duelling had faded into memory.
[1] Globe Wednesday 6th November 1805 p 3 “a meeting took place at Kinsale, between J.K. Esq. and Captain H. both of the 32nd. At the first fire, the latter was wounded”
[1] Ross-Lewin Major Harry With “The Thirty-Second” In The Peninsular And Other Campaigns p 66 [1] Belfast Newsletter Friday 10th December 1824
[1] Peal Robert Meet the Georgians William Collins Books 2021 p XV
[2] www.statistica.com/statitics Life expectancy in the United Kingdom 1765-2020
[3] The National Archives U.K. Kew Adm 106/497/21
[4] Cambridge Chronicle and Journal Saturday 22nd January 1774 p 2
[5] Aberdeen Press and Journal Tuesday 26th march 1751
[6] The Sporting Magazine 1796 Vol 8 P268
[7] Globe Wednesday 6th November 1805 p 3 “a meeting took place at Kinsale, between J.K. Esq. and Captain H. both of the 32nd. At the first fire, the latter was wounded”
[8] Ross-Lewin Major Harry With “The Thirty-Second” In The Peninsular And Other Campaigns p 66
[9] Belfast Newsletter Friday 10th December 1824