Description
The Gaelic Chieftain Sculpture Overlooking the Battlefield At Curlew Pass
Boyle, Co Roscommon, Ireland
The Battle of Curlew Pass was fought on the 15th of August 1599, during the campaign of the Earl of Essex in the Nine Years’ War, between an English force under Sir Conyers Clifford and a rebel Irish force led by Hugh Roe O’Donnell.
The English were ambushed and routed while marching through this pass in the Curlew Mountains, near the town of Boyle, in northwestern Ireland. The English forces suffered heavy casualties of 500 men. Losses by allied Irish forces were not recorded but were probably minimal due to having been firing from prepared positions and then routing a disorganised and demoralised enemy.
