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Daniel O’Mahony

AN IRISH LEGEND IN THE SPANISH WAR

Nana’s Book Nook is delighted to give shelf space to a new addition: Daniel
O’Mahony – An Irish Legend in the Spanish War by (O Mahony Society member)
Dominique Barbier.
My high school World History curriculum was profoundly Anglo-centric. If I’m
being completely transparent, I will admit that IF there had been any discussion
of what happened in Europe following the Flight of the Wild Geese in the late 17th
Century, I must have slept through it, as I recall little to nothing of historical significance about that period on the continent.
Through the O Mahony Society, I remembered hearing the name Daniel O’Mahony and had a very vague idea that he was a person of
historical notoriety, and my brain placed him somewhere around the Jacobite rising in the late 17th Century. That was the extent of
my understanding.
Therefore, when my copy of this book arrived, I was delighted to read the jacket copy summary of my next reading endeavor:

“Daniel O’Mahony, who will remain in history as the Brave of Cremona, descends from a long line of Irish aristocrats, including the
famous seneschal of Desmond Teige-Mer-Gagh. In 1706, the king of France sent him to Spain to serve in the War of the Spanish
Succession, which would confirm Philip V, a grandson of Louis XIV, as king of Spain. Colonel of an Irish dragoon regiment bearing his
name, lieutenant general of the Spanish army, commander of the Order of Saint James, Count O’Mahony brilliantly contributed to the
great adventure of the Wild Geese, those Irish soldiers who enlisted in European armies. In Italy, at the head of the Dillon regiment, he
was in the forefront at the Battle of Cremona, where he repelled the surprise attach of Prince Eugene of Savoy. He was then tasked
with bringing to the kind at Versailles the news of the victory. In Spain, he heroically defended Alicante and turned the tide at the
Battle of Almansa. Later, his son Demetrius served as the King of Spain’s ambassador to Vienna, and his great-nephew, Barthelemy
O’Mahony, received the Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Louis from Louis XVIII at the Tuileries Palace in 1823.”
That jacket copy did exactly what it was supposed to do: it gave me an overview of the who, what, where, and when for Daniel and some
of his descendants. I was intrigued but had no idea I would be completely captivated before finishing the first chapter.

Monsieur Barbier’s writing style is, without a doubt, engaging. This is not just a bunch of names and dates on the page: he weaves a
historically accurate story that is easy to follow, and this reader was given a concept of the human beings who contributed to this part
of history. His research is thorough, well-sourced, and referenced.

The book is richly illustrated with contemporaneous etchings, images of people and places, and a marvelous use of maps. Particularly
effective was how the same political map of the Iberian Peninsula was repeatedly present in various chapters of the book, but with
different cities or regions highlighted that spoke to the topic at hand.
For one whose recall of Iberian geography was limited to knowing where Portugal is, where Galicia is, and roughly where the cities
of Barcelona and Madrid can be found, having the same map at my disposal built upon my understanding. “Travelling” with Count
O’Mahony from military campaign to military campaign suddenly became more real, as this reader had a sense of relative distance
and I tried to envision what it must have been like to travel with tens of thousands of soldiers, cavalry, cannons, and supplies in the
early 18th Century.

There is also a component of family genealogy included, detailing Daniel’s ancestors and his progeny. It includes M. Barbier’s
connection to Daniel O’Mahony. This reader is confident that many will find that material informative and fascinating.
At roughly 170 pages, “Daniel O’Mahony” is a relatively quick read, and one that is as enjoyable as it is enlightening.

Available through Amazon, it is one this Nana recommends!

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