Examination of Patrick Clinton

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25 May 1641
<y> Patrick Clinton of Dowth in the County of Meath bailif to and servant to Sir John Netervill Knight aged 34 yeares or

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or therabouts beeing duly sworne & examjned <z> saith that about a fortnight after Allhallantide Last was twelvemonth their (as hee takes it for the time) the Rebells Laid seege to Drogheda and to the number as hee heard of six thowsand, and saith that many of them beeing were quartered at Grange=geth within 2 miles of Dowth and some of them approched afterwards neerer to Drogheda about Tolloghallan and and that <a> about the number of 100 of them came to the towne of Dowth about a month after their [ ] the their coming of the Arm y to Grangegeeth, and the examinant some 40 or 50 of the m beeing abroad in the fields on some occasions, and returning from the fields into Sir John Netervills howse about 4 of the clock in the evening hee there found <b> 40 or 50 of the said Rebells, some of them in the hall, some in the bawne, and some in the kitchin, and divers swords drawen Layd in the hall, and when the examinant then heard that the porter who had charge of the Gate o f the bawne of the said house had comitted the care therof to a boy of about 12 yeares of age, and that by

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<c> by that boyes negligence those Rebells gott into the howse, and that they saith that they staid there some 3 howres, and [ ] suppt there, and soe departed saving 4 or 5 who lodged there that night who (as the examinant heard) were of the o Neiles and the rest lodged that night in the Towne, and <d> saith that hee heard not that any resistance was given to the entrance of the said Rebells into the said howse, Hee saith alsoe that when the examinant [ ] returned from the fields into the said house as aforesaid, the said Sir John was then in his castle chamber in the Castell of the said howse, and expressed displeasure at the porter for suffering the said Rebells to goe enter into the said howse, and saith that some of the said Rebells suppt in the hall some in the barne, and some in the <f> Towne. Hee further saith that at an other time about Christmas was twelvemonth some 18

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18 or 20 of the Rebells came to the said Sir John Netervills said howse, and dyne did eat there, as the examinant heard, at his returne to the howse, hee beeing abroad in the fields <g> when they were in the howse. Hee further saith that when the Rebells went from Grangegeth to Tolloghallen and other townes therabouts Sir John Netervill did endeavor two severall times to leave his own <h> house at Dowth, and to goe to Drogheda, and to that end hee sent one of his servants named Christopher Dungan to passe over the foord of statling, & to trye whether the Cuntry were cleere on that side the river to passe to Drogheda, and the said Dungan was taken by Coll m the Rebell Coll macBriens men, and his clothes band taken from <i> him, and so e the said Dungan returned home that night And the next day after, the said Sir John himself took on him an other mans cloke that

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that soe hee might not bee knowen, and (with 3 servants namely the examinant Arthur <k> Wolger, and a third whose name the examinant now remembreth not) went from his own howse along by the river side thinking to goe to Drogheda that way, and when hee came to the maddo e of Proudfootstowne seeing the wa vnderstanding that the way was full of Rebells; hee returned to his <l> howse. Hee further saith that after the Rebells came to Grangegeeth aforesaid, and before they came to Tolloghallon the said Sir John Netervill went severall times from his own howse at Dowth to Drogheda & returned back to his howse from Drogheda to his said howse & lodged at his own howse and lodged one night in that time at <m> Drogheda, Hee likewise saith that

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that shortlie after the Rebells coming to Tolloghall a n to Tolloghallan (but the certaine time hee remembreth not) the said Sir John Netervill went from his own house at Dowth to Slane beeing 2 miles from Dowth and much about the same time (but whether before or after hee remembreth not) the said Sir John went from Dowth aforesaid to Balligart beeing 5 miles from Dowth <n> Hee also saith that shortly after the seege of Drogheda was raised Sir John Netervill, hearing that the Earle of Ormond was at Garristowne, departed from his owne house (taking one of his servants namely Cornelius Moran with <o> him) and swome over his horses over the river of Boyne, & hee and his said servant passed the river in a Currogh, and soe went

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went (as the examinant heard) to Garistowne to the Earle of Ormond
<p> Hee further saith say that the said Cornelius Moran about a yeare agoe tould the examinant that hee the said Cornelius was examjned before Sir Robert Meredith concerning Sir John Netervill and the said Cornelius then also tould the examinant that the said, Sir Robert did threaten to rack the said Cornelius <q> for not telling some thinges that hee could not tell, saying that although hee was tall hee would make him a handfull longer,
Patricke Clinton
Jo: Borlase
Hen: Tichborne
Ric: Bolton Canc
Ormonde
Roscomon
Cha: Lambart