Flight of the Earls through Switzerland
On September 14, 1607, a group of prominent Irish nobles left Ulster and sailed out into European exile. Among them were Hugh O’Neill, Earl of Tyrone, Rory O'Donnell, Earl of Tyrconnell, and a scholar and writer named Tadhg Óg Ó Cianáin. Ó Cianáin’s travel diary reveals fascinating glimpses and positive impressions of early modern Switzerland as the exiles traveled through the country.
James Blake Wiener
James Blake Wiener is a world historian, Co-Founder of World History Encyclopedia, writer, and PR specialist, who has taught as a professor in Europe and North America.
Website: worldhistory.org
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"…Bâle [Basel], a fine, strong, old, remarkable city…There is a very good bridge [Mittelbrücke] in the centre of the city over the river…Those who occupy and inhabit it are heretics. There is a very large church [Basler Münster] in the middle of the city in which there were images, and pictures of Luther and Calvin and many other wicked evil writers…It alone is the main entrance to the land of the Swiss called Helvetia."
Ó Cianáin found the Swiss countryside between Liestal and Sursee equally enchanting and worthy of commentary, especially as it contrasted with an Ireland largely denuded of its forests. Continuing their brisk march, the exiles covered five leagues to Sursee. Along the way, they passed the walled town of Olten on the Aare River—Ó Cianáin mistook it for the Rhine in error—and continued via Zofingen.
On March 16, 1608, the travelers reached Lucerne after transiting through Sempach. Ó Cianáin and the Irish met a warm welcome, as coreligionists, when they crossed the Kapellbrücke. The beauty of Lucerne’s houses delighted the Irish, but Ó Cianáin, again, struggled to find his geographical bearings, mistaking the Reuss for the Rhine River.
![In Lucerne, the exiles crossed the Kapellbrücke. Ó Cianáin noted: "[We] crossed the river Rhine by a very long bridge, which had a good roof over the whole length of it… "](https://blog.nationalmuseum.ch/app/uploads/irische-grafen-luzern.webp)
On March 17, 1608, the Irish began their approach toward the Gotthard Pass. The date coincided with St. Patrick’s Day – a holiday traditionally celebrated with much fanfare and feasting – but they had no luck as they crossed the Teufelsbrücke. Wintery conditions caused one of O'Neill’s horses to slip and fall into the Schöllenen Gorge with considerable financial losses:
"One of Ó Néill's horses, which was carrying some of his money, about £125, fell down the face of the high, frozen, snowy cliff which was in front of the bridge. Great labour was experienced in bringing up the horse alone…The next day the Earl [O'Donnell] proceeded over the Alps. O’Neill remained…He sent some of his people to search again for the money. Though they endured much labour, their efforts were in vain…"
Although the Irish had crossed the breadth of Switzerland in only a week’s time, Ó Cianáin is clear in his diary that the particularities of the Old Confederation, aside from the bad roads, greatly impressed the exiles:
[We] had traversed forty-six leagues of the country of the Swiss…it was strong, well-fortified, uneven, mountainous, extensive, [but] having bad roads…
"…In themselves they form a strange, remarkable, peculiar state. They make their selection of a system for the government of the country each year…Half of them are Catholics and the other half are heretics, and by agreement and great oaths they are bound to one another for their defence and protection against any neighbour in the world who should endeavour to injure them or oppose them in upholding the public good with moderation and appropriateness…"
Near the Kolumbankirche in Andermatt, there is a memorial stone in remembrance of the Irish who passed through Switzerland. kirchen-online.org
"It is said of the people of this country that they are the most-just, honest, and untreacherous in the world, and the most-faithful to their promises. They allow no robbery or murder to be done in their country without punishing it at once. Because of their perfect honour they alone are guards to the Catholic kings and princes of Christendom."
Upon their arrival in Milan, Ó Cianáin and his liege lords learned that they still had not acquired letters of safe conduct from Spain. After several weeks in Lombardy, they moved to Rome, arriving on April 29, 1608. The warm climate brought ill health to the Irish and many perished from malaria: O'Donnell died of a fever three months after his arrival; Ó Cianáin, himself, would die in 1610 of poor health. O’Neill made repeated plans to return to Ireland and retake his lands, but he died before doing so in 1616. The Borghese Pope Paul V begrudgingly granted the surviving Irish nobles meager pensions as they suffered from illnesses and struggled to find adequate lodgings. The Irish exiles continued to petition for Spanish political and material assistance, but it never came.
Ó Cianáin’s diary provides a compelling glimpse into the longstanding relationship between Switzerland and Ireland, highlighting their early modern connections and inviting renewed interest in a friendly, shared past. From 1500 to 1800, continental Europe attracted thousands of Irish students, clerics, soldiers, and merchants—many of whom found their way to Switzerland to study, work, and worship. Their experiences represent a rich historical legacy still waiting to be uncovered and recognized.
