Interested in military history since an early age, (the product of a post World War Two childhood spent watching war movies starring John Wayne and Audie Murphy or reading ‘comics’ such as The Hotspur and The Victor) I have been intrigued for some time by the obelisk erected to the memory of Robert Ross (of Bladensburg) in Rostrevor, County Down, Northern Ireland - the British army general who captured Washington briefly in 1814 and famously, or infamously, burnt the ‘White’ House, though not before eating the dinner which had been prepared for President Madison who had decamped in an unseemly rush.

General Ross obelisk in his native village of Rostrevor, pictured during refurbishment - note the 'original' American flag

Designed by the Irish architect James Hoban, ‘legend’ has it that the residence of the President of the United States became known as the ‘White’ House when the charred building was painted white in the aftermath of the inferno. As the White House Historical Association puts it, however, the colour of the building has ‘nothing to do with the burning of the house by the British in 1814, although every schoolchild is likely to have heard the story that way’. http://www.whitehousehistory.org/06/subs/06_a01.html

Myth or not, there can be no denying the enduring legacy of Ross’s burning of the ‘White’ House, (and other public buildings in Washington, including the Capitol) as a seminal moment in the history of the United States of America, demonstrating the fragility of its newly won independence. Tour guides in the US Capitol building routinely recount the tale of the attack on the city led by General Ross, immortalised in a visual depiction on the famous dome of the Capitol - as my wife and I were to discover during a trip to DC in 1995 when I contributed a paper to an historical symposium at the Folger Shakespeare Library. We also had the privilege of mixing with the crowds during the ‘Million Man March’ at the time, though, owing to Public Transport difficulties on the day, we lost out on the opportunity to take up an invitation to visit the Generals’ Mess at the Pentagon which had been extended to us by the now Chief Historian to the Pentagon, Dr Hans Pawlisch, a published expert in my own field of Early Modern Irish History.

Following his seizure of Washington, General Ross led an attack on Baltimore. At an early stage of the engagements he was shot dead. The British attack on Baltimore has subsequently become immortalised in the words of the American National Anthem, The Star Spangled Banner.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Star-Spangled_Banner

http://www.miketodd.net/encyc/anthem.htm

My interest in the Ross obelisk on the shores of Carlingford Lough was sparked even more when I moved to Rostrevor in 1988 to live within a virtual ‘stone’s throw’ from the ‘monument’. Sadly, during the Troubles in Northern Ireland the obelisk has lain neglected. The history of the Ross family in Rostrevor, as it happens, transcends the traditional political divide. Descending from a Scottish commissioner for the Plantation of Ulster, family descendants ultimately converted to catholicism, with the family providing the organ for the local church.

Irishmen, the famous ‘Wild Geese’, have been fighting in ‘foreign’ lands for some 400 years ago. During the recent 400^th anniversary commemorations of the Flight of the Earls in Rome, Ambassador Seán Ó Huiginn emphasised the importance of the departure of the earls of Tyrone and Tyrconnell from Ireland in 1607 as an important juncture in world history. It facilitated the completion of the English conquest of Ireland. Ambassador Ó Huiginn speculated about how differently things might have worked out in world history had not the food and manpower resources of Ireland been available to the British as they developed their empire.

Ireland is known as the ‘Land of saints and scholars’ – it is just as apposite to describe it as the ‘Land of saints and scholars – and soldiers’. The followers of the earls of Tyrone and Tyrconnell were in great demand as mercenary troops following their spectacular victories against the English at the end of the sixteenth century. By the early years of the subsequent century, Irishmen were serving in Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Russia and Poland.

Artist’s impression of a ‘wild’ Irishman, possibly in Swedish service. The

original German legend around the contemporary image states: ‘In such

bizarre costumes, the 800 Irishmen (or madmen) walk around Stettin.

They are resilient and resourceful people who, if they don’t have bread to eat,

dig. When necessity demands, they can walk twenty miles a day. In addition

to their muskets, they are armed with bows and arrows and long knives’.

See John Childs, Warfare in the Seventeenth Century (London, 2001), p.97.

General Ross, arguably, is not just an important figure in world history but his career typifies the contribution of Irishmen to military history in so many lands whether it be the Irish Guards, peacekeepers in Lebanon or Kosovo, or the famous ‘Fighting 69^th’ in US history.

Thus, with time I intend to develop a website about General Ross and to undertake further research. I hope to liaise with interested parties in Ireland, the UK and the USA. From a local viewpoint, however, it is with a tremendous sense of pride that I view the Ross memorial in Rostrevor with its panoramic views of Carlingford Lough – the most beautiful place in the world (other places may be as beautiful – not more beautiful). Slieve Foy, in the Cooley mountains, looms on the right hand side – a mountain named after the sleeping giant, Finn MacCool following his mythical battle with another giant. Finn, picking up a giant piece of earth, cast it at his foe, thereby creating Lough Neagh and the Isle of Man. Legend has it that a pebble fell as he assailed his enemy, that pebble becoming known as Clough Mór – the Big Stone – a popular tourist vantage point on the slopes of Slieve Martin (Mourne mountains) – on your left as you peer down Carlingford Lough from Ross’s memorial. This is the land that inspired for C.S.Lewis’s Narnia and, in the words of Percy French, ‘Where the mountains of Mourne sweep down to the sea’.

Fortunately, the ending of the ‘Troubles’ in N.Ireland, has coincided with Newry and Mourne Council acquiring ownership of the Ross memorial. I include below the inscription on the monument. It is currently being refurbished and is already attracting considerable attention. Note that an intrepid individual managed to hoist the 'original' American flag. Much like Ross’s capture of Washington, the existence of the flag was only transient – taken down by the end of the weekend it was hoisted with a view to discouraging others from risking their lives scaling the scaffolding.

INSCRIPTION ON THE OBELISK IN ROSTREVOR

Major-General Robert Ross

Served with distinction in Holland, Egypt, Italy, Spain and France.

Conquered in America, and fell victorious at Baltimore.

Born 1776, Hilden 1799, Alexandria 1804, Maida 1806, Corunna 1809, Vittoria 1813, Ortho 1813, Pyranees 1813, Bladensburg 1814, Baltimore 1814.

The Obelisk

The officers of a grateful army

which, under the command of the lamented

MAJOR GENERAL ROBERT ROSS,

attacked and dispersed the American forces

at Bladensburg on the 24^th of August, 1814,

and on the same day victoriously entered Washington,