On the road between Castlebar and Belcarra, near the village of Tully, a small stone bridge fords a slow-moving river. The river runs through low boglands in the townland of Logaphuill parallel to the Cottage Road and east of French Hill.
On 27 August 1798, several French dragoons under the command of Bartholomew Teeling were killed at or near this bridge by English forces under the control of Robert Jocelyn, 2nd Earl Roden. In one account, a group of Roden's dragoons, nicknamed foxhunters, saw a small French party pursuing them. They lay in wait beneath the bridge and shot Teeling's escort and a number of Grenadiers. In another version, Teeling approached the English under a flag of truce to offer terms but was fired on. The French were buried on what became known as French Hill.
In 1875, local politician James Daly and Fenian leader Pat Nally decided to build a monument to honour the French dead and a collection was organised. The remains of French soldiers, uniforms and French coins were reputedly discovered during the works. Charles Stuart Parnell and John O'Connor Power attended the monument's unveiling in December 1877.
By the late 1870s, a rift had opened between Daly and the Land League. Daly, a league co-founder, accused the league executive of failing evicted tenants, profiting from league funds, and pursuing radical policies that would not bring immediate relief to tenant farmers. Daly believed the league wanted to discredit him. The police account blamed the differences on Daly's refusal to account for Land League funds and a belief Daly pocketed a large portion of the money collected for the French Hill Monument. Daly robustly denied the allegations.
On 25 May 1896, Daly met Maude Gonne in Castlebar and took her to French Hill, where he gave her a five-franc piece found in the grave of a French soldier and a bullet discovered in the area. Afterwards, Gonne went to Sion Hill, where French soldiers were buried. She promised to deliver a lecture to raise funds to renovate the French Hill Monument.
On Sunday, 28 August 1898, a large gathering in Castlebar celebrated the Franco-Irish victory of a century earlier. Notwithstanding a storm and heavy showers, people assembled on Sion Hill at 11.00 a.m. The Islandeady contingent of the United Irish League under a 98 banner was the first to arrive, followed by the Ballina 98 Club. At midday, a wagon arrived with a French delegation. The band played the French national anthem, and loud cheers came from the crowd at the mention of Humbert, Hoche, and Tone. Commandant Du Chateau placed wreaths from the Société de la Jeune Irlande, Paris, and the Société du Souvenir Francaise upon the French graves at Sion Hill.
The bands played 'Who Fears to Speak of 98' and 'The Marseillaise'. Castlebar was decorated with French, American, and green flags and the colours of the United Irishmen. A procession then set out for French Hill, where garlands, including a large bronze wreath, were placed at the monument.
Newspapers reported the gathering on the Green in Castlebar to be one of the largest ever held there. There were fifteen bands and an extensive array of colourful and decorative banners. Daly chaired a meeting noting their objectives to celebrate the memory of the dead, to welcome French and American delegates, and to declare their determination to abide by the principles of '98 until Ireland was free.
William Doris proposed a series of resolutions in which he commended the organisers; thanked the French delegation; pledged every 'constitutional and physical' means to free Ireland; and called on American support. Maude Gonne spoke about the heroic men who nearly succeeded in freeing Ireland. Speaking in French, Cipriani recalled countries that had won their freedom. Cox of Boston called for Irish people to unite in their opposition. Unity was also the central theme of Commandant Du Chateau's speech—speeches followed by John Dillon, MP., William M. Field, MP., William O'Brien and Gaelic revivalist William Rooney.
Between 25 and 27 August 2023, Castlebar will again commemorate the Races of Castlebar with music, parades, banners, re-enactments, speeches, and storytelling. Image: French Hill, Le Petit Parisien, September 1898.
