Prosperous Heritage
THE DEAD FIELD
The forgotten souls of the Cork Militia and Welsh Militia who died during the battle of Prosperous in 1798, may never have received a proper burial. Many of the soldiers who fell in Prosperous on the 24th May 1798 are reported to have been buried on a plot of ground close to the battle site, what the locals refer to as “THE DEAD FIELD”.
We do know that the scoundrel, Phil Might - the informer, was interned in the old Killybegs graveyard. It was said that for years after no grass grew on his grave, while Captain Swayne’s body was burned in a barrel of tar (the same stuff that he was infamous for pitch-capping with).
The Dead Field is said to be between the right side of the laneway to the current parochial house, or what was Lady Mapletoft's house at the time of the rebellion, and the left of Ann Street.
There may be a possibility that some of the front of Ann Street estate may have been erected over some of the grave site... We may never know!
