Sir John Fitzgerald was an Irish soldier of the seventeenth century, best known for serving as Governor of Tangier during the 1660s. He commanded the

Tangier Garrison The Tangier Garrison was the land force which oversaw the defence of English Tangier between 1661 and 1684 when it was evacuated. It was part of the English Army, the de facto standing army that Charles II of England, Charles II established foll ...

during this time. He later participated in the

Williamite War in Ireland The Williamite War in Ireland took place from March 1689 to October 1691. Fought between Jacobitism, Jacobite supporters of James II of England, James II and those of his successor, William III of England, William III, it resulted in a Williamit ...

(1689–91) on the Jacobite side.

Continental service

Fitzgerald was a Roman Catholic. Following the

Cromwellian conquest of Ireland The Cromwellian conquest of Ireland (1649–1653) was the re-conquest of Ireland by the Commonwealth of England, initially led by Oliver Cromwell. It forms part of the 1641 to 1652 Irish Confederate Wars, and wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three ...

, he went into exile in Continental Europe. He commanded a regiment of Irish exiles in the service of Charles II, serving alongside the Spanish Army at the Battle of the Dunes in 1658. He became known for his connections with Charles' younger brother

James, Duke of York James II and VII (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) was King of England and Monarchy of Ireland, Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II of England, Charles II, on 6 February 1 ...

. Following the Restoration in 1660, the regiment marched to the English-held fortress at

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

Tangier

As Charles had acquired

Tangier Tangier ( ; , , ) is a city in northwestern Morocco, on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The city is the capital city, capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah Prefecture of Moroc ...

in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

from Portugal in the

Marriage Treaty The Marriage Treaty, or Anglo-Portuguese Treaty, was a treaty of alliance that was agreed between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Portugal and concluded on 23 June 1661. It led to the marriage of Charles II of England and Catherine of ...

, it was decided to bring Fitzgerald's and another Irish regiment under Lisagh Farrell to form the garrison at Tangier. At the time the

Penal Laws Penal law refers to criminal law. It may also refer to: * Penal law (British), laws to uphold the establishment of the Church of England against Catholicism * Penal laws (Ireland) In Ireland, the penal laws () were a series of Disabilities (C ...

against Catholics meant that the regiments couldn't join either the

Irish Army The Irish Army () is the land component of the Defence Forces (Ireland), Defence Forces of Republic of Ireland, Ireland.The Defence Forces are made up of the Permanent Defence Forces – the standing branches – and the Reserve Defence Forces. ...

or English Army. The garrison reached Tangier in 1662. The following year the Governor Andrew Rutherford, 1st Earl of Teviot amalgamated the two Irish regiment's under Fizgerald's command. After Teviot's death during the Battle of Tangier against the

Moors The term Moor is an Endonym and exonym, exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslims, Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a s ...

in 1664, he was temporarily replaced by

Tobias Bridge Sir Tobias Bridge fought for Parliament in the English Civil War, and served the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell during the Interregnum. After the Restoration, he served King Charles II.Papp. 150/ref> During the English Civil War, Bridge fought ...

. Fitzgerald was then formally appointed as governor. During his time in Tangier, Fitzgerald fought a duel with a fellow officer Palmes Fairborne.Childs p.130

References

Bibliography

* Childs, John. ''The Army of Charles II''. Routledge, 1976. 17th-century Irish military personnel Irish knights Irish soldiers Irish Jacobites Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Irish soldiers in the army of James II of England Soldiers of the Tangier Garrison Governors of Tangier Irish colonial officials {{Ireland-bio-stub