Beauchamp Bagenal Harvey (died 28 June 1798) was a barrister and a commander of the

United Irishmen The Society of United Irishmen was a sworn association in the Kingdom of Ireland formed in the wake of the French Revolution to secure "an equal representation of all the people" in a national government. Despairing of constitutional refor ...

in the Battle of New Ross during the

1798 Rebellion The Irish Rebellion of 1798 ( ga, Éirí Amach 1798; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ''The Hurries'') was a major uprising against British rule in Ireland. The main organising force was the Society of United Irishmen, a Irish republicanism, ...

. He was the eldest son of Francis Harvey of Bargy Castle, Wexford, who was one of the six Clerks in Chancery, and his wife and cousin Nartha Harvey. Bagenal was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. During his years in Dublin he entered a relationship with Elizabeth Smith, with whom he had two sons. He was a Protestant who was known for his liberal principles and as a supporter of

Catholic emancipation Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, and later the combined United Kingdom in the late 18th century and early 19th century, that involved reducing and removing many of the restricti ...

. From June 1792 he was a member of the

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

Society of United Irishmen, founded by James Napper Tandy and

Archibald Hamilton Rowan Archibald Hamilton Rowan (1 May 1751 – 1 November 1834), christened Archibald Hamilton (sometimes referred to as Archibald Rowan Hamilton), was a founding member of the Dublin Society of United Irishmen, a political exile in France and the Unit ...

. Just before the outbreak of the 1798 Rebellion Harvey was arrested at his home on 26 May 1798 at 11.00 p.m. A rebel colonel,

Anthony Perry Anthony Perry (c. 1760– 21 July 1798), known as the "''screeching general''" was one of the most important leaders of the United Irish Wexford rebels during the 1798 rebellion. Background Perry was born in County Down, Ireland to a Protest ...

, divulged the information after giving in to torture by Crown forces. He was imprisoned at Wexford Gaol until its occupation by the rebels, and on his liberation, he was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the rebel forces, perhaps against his will. His first plan was to advance westwards via New Ross into County Kilkenny in hope of finding new supporters for the rebellion.

Battle of New Ross

Harvey was in command at the Battle of New Ross on 5 June 1798, in which the rebels were defeated. The rebels outnumbered the British force and had a rebel emissary Matt Furlong deliver surrender terms. While bearing a flag of truce Furlong was shot, prompting 500 of the rebels under

John Kelly of Killanne John Kelly (Kelly of Killanne) (1773 – c. 25 June 1798) lived in the town of Killanne in the parish of Rathnure, west of Enniscorthy, in County Wexford in Ireland, and was a United Irish leader who fought in the Irish Rebellion of 1798 ...

to charge. The attack had some initial success with two-thirds of the town in possession of the United Irishmen. They quickly ran out of ammunition and were forced to rely on their pikes. With the arrival of British reinforcements, the rebels were defeated.

Flight, arrest and execution

On 7 June Harvey resigned at Sliabh Coillte, disgusted with his defeat and the ensuing

Scullabogue Barn massacre The Scullabogue massacre was an atrocity committed in Scullabogue, near Newbawn, County Wexford, Ireland on 5 June 1798, during the 1798 rebellion. Rebels massacred up to 200 noncombatant men, women and children, most of whom were Protestant, ...

. He was replaced as Commander-in-Chief by Philip Roche and returned to

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 ...

where he was appointed President of the town committee. Confident that a treaty would be negotiated on the rebels' behalf by Lord Kingsborough, the captured loyalist commander of the North Cork Militia, he retired to his family home at Bargy Castle. Shortly afterwards he and John Henry Colclough, dressed as peasants, travelled to a cave on the Greater Saltee Island from whence they planned to escape to republican France. They were, however, betrayed and Harvey was arrested by Ralph James, an officer of the Irish

Yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army Reserve, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of different military roles. History Origins In the 1790s, f ...

, and brought to Wexford town. He was tried, convicted and hanged on Wexford bridge on 28 June 1798, with Colclough, Roche and

Cornelius Grogan Cornelius Grogan (1738?–1798), was a United Irishman and commissary-general in the insurgent army of Wexford in the Rebellion of 1798. Biography Grogan was born about 1738, the eldest son of John Grogan of Johnstown Castle, Wexford, by his wi ...

. His body was afterwards beheaded, the trunk thrown into the River Slaney and the head displayed on a spike on the courthouse. His corpse was recovered by his friends and buried in Mayglass cemetery, near Mountpleasant House, the house he lived in before he died. He was unmarried and succeeded by his brother James, who recovered the attainted family estates 12 years later. In his memoirs Jonah Barrington listed Harvey as a rebel supporter in April 1798, before the rebellion started. Thomas Collins, the government spy in the Dublin Society of United Irishmen, had also informed

Dublin Castle Dublin Castle ( ga, Caisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a former Motte-and-bailey castle and current Irish government complex and conference centre. It was chosen for its position at the highest point of central Dublin. Until 1922 it was the s ...

about his republican views as early as 1793. The Rev John Graham wrote in his diary for 16 June 1798, "The Wexford Rebels have taken the command away from Bagenal Harvey and given it to one Clinch, a Popish Priest", so it may be that Harvey did not resign his commission. Father Clinch of Enniscorthy was killed on 21 June on the retreat from Vinegar Hill.

Family

Harvey secretly married in 1797 Judith Dockrell, but his only known children were from his liaison with Elizabeth Smith. He was a cousin of the founder of

Bagenalstown Bagenalstown ( ), officially named Muine Bheag (), is a small town on the River Barrow in County Carlow, Ireland. History and name The town grew within the townland of Moneybeg, from Irish ''Muine Bheag'' or ''Muinebheag'' (meaning "small t ...

in County Carlow, and was an ancestor of General Beauchamp Doran.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harvey, Bagenal Year of birth missing 1798 deaths Alumni of Trinity College Dublin People executed by the Kingdom of Great Britain People executed by the Kingdom of Ireland by hanging Protestant Irish nationalists United Irishmen People from County Wexford Executed Irish people Irish duellists

Battle of New Ross

Flight, arrest and execution

Family

See also

References