The Battle of Rathangan is the name given to a military engagement between the forces of the British Crown and 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 reform, ...

during the 1798 rebellion. On 24 May 1798 a group of rebels from the

led by a Captain Doorley attacked the town of

Rathangan, County Kildare Rathangan (; ) is a town in the west of County Kildare, Ireland. , the population was 2,611. It is located from the centre of Dublin, and from Kildare, at the intersection of the R401, R414, and R419 regional roads. The Slate River and t ...

which was being defended by a small corps of

yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army, British Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Army Reserve, descended from volunteer British Cavalry, cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of ...

led by Captain James Spencer; the rebels held the town for four days. However, on 28 May 1798 two squadrons of the

7th Dragoon Guards The 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1688 as Lord Cavendish's Regiment of Horse. It was renamed as the 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards for Princess Charlotte in 1788. ...

were sent to re-capture the town. The commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Stephen Mahon, took one squadron into the town while the other waited outside. A pitched battle then took place with heavy losses on both sides.

References

Battles of the Irish Rebellion of 1798 History of County Kildare {{Ireland-hist-stub