As the sun rose over Ireland on the 1st July
1690, residents of Drogheda were awoken by the clamour coming from just west of the town. The deposed King James II of England crossed
the river Boyne during the night near Oldbridge and made camp. Here he would attempt to reclaim the throne
from his son-in-law, King William III of England (known as William of Orange). As William’s forces gradually came into
view, their superior numbers and weapons, as well as greater experience, were on full
display. But James held a strong defensible position
on the south bank. The encounter on this battlefield is one of
those that are felt throughout Europe to this day. At stake were the British throne, French dominance
on the continent and religious power in Ireland. On the banks of the River Boyne, the next
four hours will change the continent of Europe, forever… The reign of King Charles II concluded on
February 6th, 1685, after a near quarter of a century. Though broadly successful in the aftermath
of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, the king had failed his subjects in one major respect
by not siring a LEGITIMATE heir. His successor was his controversial younger
brother James, who in just three years of rule had managed to make many an enemy throughout
the Kingdom. Through a series of actions, including his
undermining of the law that prohibited Catholics from serving in public office, the new King
had alienated many of his supporters who, fearing a repeat of the English Civil War
unpleasantness, now began conspiring to remove him from power, balking at the prospect of
a Catholic royal dynasty ruling the firmly Protestant England. However, James’s kingship was not the only
show in town. Before James’ accession, King Charles II
had arranged a protestant match for his niece Mary, over the objections of her father. Mary was wed to William, the PROTESTANT prince
of Orange, who’s ambition was nothing short of ruling the Kingdom of England… “I much prefer apples to those bitter Orange
bastards” ~ William of Orange The prince of Orange had a decent royal pedigree
in his own right as a son of another Mary – James’ sister - and was widely acknowledged
as the premier protestant champion on the continent. William certainly took his role very seriously
as the counter-weight to the most catholic and absolute of monarchs King Louis XIV. William had strived to build an anti-French
alliance in the League of Augsburg, however, though impressive on paper, his main target
for recruitment was England, her powerful navy presenting an enticing prospect for combating
their powerful enemy - France. For William, his marriage to the second-in-line
to the throne may have soothed his own fears of a catholic takeover in England. In his mind, James was not getting any younger
and without a male heir his succession would be a brief (if unwelcome) aberration before
the succession of his own wife. However, events in England threw William’s
fondly held hopes into doubt. On 10th June 1688, Queen Mary birthed a healthy
baby boy – this was the last straw. Fears heightened of an English slide back
into Catholicism and absolutism. And, unfortunately for James, seven prominent
Protestants had already been in negotiations with William across the Channel. Worse, whispers circulated that the Royal
birth was IN FACT a fraud, the newborn smuggled into the Queen’s chamber with a warming
pan. Although this was untrue, if believed, such
a rumour would’ve made any Catholic dynasty defunct before it even began. Unsurprisingly, William of Orange himself
found it convenient to believe these nonsensical claims, given his own ambition. Every bullet has its billet.
~ William of Orange Ready for war, the Prince of Orange was held in port throughout October by adverse winds. King James believed God protected him. However, God’s protection was apparently
lifted as William was able to sail out to sea on November 1st, borne by a so-called
‘Protestant wind.’ He sailed with his army through the English
Channel and made landfall at Torbay on November 5th, with, with 11,000 foot and 4000 horse. Many English nobles announced their support
for William, swelling the prince’s ranks. The king of England fielded around 24,000
troops that marched to Salisbury to confront the invaders. However, James proved to be his own worst
enemy, as following news of mutiny and defection in his own ranks he lost his nerve and elected
to withdraw to Reading. This meekness provoked more defections, including
high-ranking men, the most prominent of which was John Churchill (the future 1st Duke of
Marlborough), and the Duke of Grafton. With his confidence spent, James ultimately
fled to France and was subsequently deemed to have abdicated the throne. William triumphantly entered London on the
18th December and on 11th April 1689, he was crowned King William III, alongside his own
wife Mary, both crowned as co-monarchs. In around just six weeks, William had effectively
conquered England and without any military action. “Matters have come to a point that the monarchy must be dominant
or put to an end” ~ James II of England However, James – despite his ignominious
flight – was not quite ready to give up the fight. With fiscal support from King Louis XIV, who
also loaned him 6000 French troops, James made his way across the Channel. The venue for the showdown, however, would
not be England, but Ireland. Many of the majority Catholic Irish recognized
James as the legitimate English monarch, and in return he promised religious freedom to
the Irish, nullified the confiscation of land from Irish leaders, which had occurred in
the 1640’s, and favoured their cause over the issue of Parliamentary autonomy. The tide in Ireland began to shift towards
the Catholic majority. James’ man in Ireland, Earl of Tyrconnel,
had been quietly recruiting Catholics into his army. Pockets of resistance existed, mostly concentrated
in the north. Eastern Ulster had been secured with the victory
at Dromore on the 14th March, thus pushing the protestants west. Meanwhile James himself had landed in Ireland
on the 12th March, with French troops, as well as English, Scots, and Irish volunteers. Back north, the almost-exclusively Protestant
people of Derry had refused a replacement Jacobite garrison on the 7th December 1688
and when James himself was fired upon on the 18th April 1689 the 105-day siege commenced. However, despite much time, blood and toil
the defenders held out, with Williamite vessels breaking the boom across the River Foyle on
the July 28th and relieving the city. On the 31st July, the Jacobites conceded defeat
and withdrew. Back in England, King William felt his position
in his newly-won kingdom secure enough to commit to Ireland. He selected the 75-year-old Duke of Schomberg
to lead the expeditionary army west; the idea was simply to engage and defeat the Jacobites
in a decisive engagement. “It is not necessary to hope in order to act, nor to succeed
in order to persevere” ~ William of Orange Schomberg’s army landed in Bangor Bay on
the 13th August and forced the surrender of Carrickfergus on the 27th after a week-long
siege. With the loss of Ulster, James balked at the
advice of French councillors to withdraw west. With the way to Dublin open, he instead elected
to prevent its fall. His main force thus moved near to Drogheda
and the Duke of Berwick was ordered to harass Schomberg’s advance. Berwick’s efforts perhaps did more damage
than was usual in such circumstances; having impeded Schomberg’s advance through a concerted
programme of destruction this – as well as the worsening weather conditions – took
a significant toll on the Williamite forces. Schomberg halted near to Dundalk and soon
disease did what the Jacobites had not in reducing the ranks of the Williamite army,
an epidemic of camp fever reducing Schomberg’s ranks by nearly a third. Meanwhile near Drogheda, James was in an aggressive
mood. Wishing to press Schomberg, he ordered his
army to within a cannon’s shot of Schomberg’s defences. Days passed with much starring and sabre-rattling. Seeing that his challenge was not accepted,
James grew in confidence. Eventually, however, it was the Jacobite forces
that withdrew, though morale was bolstered in the largely green Jacobite ranks at Schomberg’s
unwillingness to engage them. The refusal of battle at Dundalk nudged James
and many of his army at Dublin into jubilant overconfidence. Meanwhile Parliament in England began to question
the prosecution of the war, particularly the supply of the suffering men, and so William
– desiring to end the conflict quickly – resolved to take command personally. “There is one certain means by which I can
be sure never to see my country’s ruin: I will die in the last ditch”.
~ William III of England With an army comprising 15,000 soldiers, as
well as siege guns, ammunition, and a war chest of £200,000 in silver, King William
set sail from Hoylake, near Liverpool on 11th June 1690. In Ireland, Schomberg took the initiative
in forcing the Jacobite surrender of Charlemont. King William landed at Carrickfergus. Surmising correctly that James would not allow
him to seize Dublin unfought, he made its capture his objective. On 22nd June at Dundalk, forward units of
both armies clashed, and though the Williamites came off worse, James ordered a withdrawal
back south to Drogheda, intending to use the river Boyne as a shield against the advancing
enemy. Early on Monday the 30th June, the first of
William’s troops arrived on the high ground overlooking the Boyne, the king arriving soon after. Deciding to probe the Jacobite positions,
William sent parties to the bridge of Slane and also Oldbridge, his men suffering under
small-arms and artillery fire. What happened next was both bizarre and almost
decisive. Apparently unsatisfied with this reconnaissance,
William himself mounted his horse with several staff and rode to the ford of Oldbridge and
then – perhaps to the astonishment of the Jacobites watching – he halted for a picnic. Unwilling to let such an opportunity slip
by a group of Jacobite horseman – possibly including Tyrconnell and the duke of Berwick
– rode down to the river parallel to William and positioning two small cannons took their
shot as the king’s party mounted to depart. The first shot killed a man and several horses,
but it was the second that struck true; ricocheting off the ground, it struck King William in
the shoulder. News quickly spread through both armies that
William had fallen. News of the event even rapidly made its way
to Paris where jubilant crowds burnt effigies of the king and the Bastille fired a feu de
joie in celebration. Cheers and relief also spread through the
Williamite ranks, however, as far from being dead, William – having had his wound dressed
– made a point of riding openly through the camp, accompanied by Frederick Schomberg. The battle would be fought after all. On the eve of battle, William heard rival
plans of attack; some advising him to redeploy to an area that would be easier to cross,
while the more aggressive among them were all for forcing a crossing at Oldbridge. William, however, settled on his own plan;
deducing that he had numerical superiority the Count of Schomberg would cross at Slane
with the right wing, while his father – the duke – would attack at Oldbridge with the
main body; the king himself would lead the left wing to cross at a point just below Yellow
Island. As the first rays of sun lighted the morning,
the Count of Schomberg had already began to march his 7000 men towards the bridge at Slane,
but when informed of its damage, redirected towards Rossnaree. There his forward cavalry was met with the
withering fire of Jacobite dragoons under Tyrconnell’s nephew Niall O’Neill. Though initially successful, as the Williamite
infantry and guns lumbered into view the weight of fire cleared the way and the Count’s
wing began crossing the Boyne. At the Hill of Donore, James and his own war
council were far more pessimistic of their chances. Initially having decided on withdrawal towards
Dublin, the Jacobite plans were quickly revised as their fears of a flanking manoeuvre materialised. It was at this point that James made the fateful
decision to square up against William at the Boyne. Mistaking the Count of Schomberg’s flanking
force for the whole Williamite army, James had some two-thirds of his own force march
to intercept. At Oldbridge, James had left the remainder
of his army, under Tyrconnell, Berwick and Hamilton – a force of around 8000 foot and
horse – to take on some 24,000 Williamites. A brutal barrage of Williamite artillery battered
the Jacobites for an hour, before it was followed by the terrifying sight of Dutch Blue Guards
inching across the Boyne. Advancing in formation, the bodies of the
Guards formed a human dam, raising the water level up to their chests; this necessitated
them raising their muskets and satchels above their heads. As the first line clambered onto the south
bank, Jacobite fire tore through them. Though checking this initial line of attackers,
the subsequent lines of Dutch infantry overwhelmed the Jacobite line, in a furious and foggy
melee. Meanwhile, the Huguenot brigade began crossing
the Boyne at Grove Island, shortly followed by the Anglo-Dutch Brigade to the east. Though the Earl of Antrim’s Regiment of
Foot did march to counter the former, their long-range fire was ineffective, while other
regiments point blank refused to engage. With Williamite numbers inexorably increasing,
the situation had reached breaking point for the Jacobites. The dogged Dutch Guards were now supported
by fresh Huguenot units and four more battalions from the Williamite centre were now poised
to cross in support of the spearhead at Oldbridge. Compounding the danger, the Danish Brigade
further along began crossing via Yellow Island. With the buckling of the Jacobites to their
left and facing such frightful odds, Antrim’s regiment also withdrew. As the Jacobite infantry was shattered, the
Earl of Tyrconnell ordered a cavalry charge of some 1000 Irishmen; if they could drive
the Blue Guards back into the river, they may have a chance. Across the Boyne, King William could spy the
wave of hooves bearing down on his Guard, muttering “My poor guards... my poor guards...” Yet as the Jacobite horse engaged under the
Duke of Berwick, the disciplined Blue Guard met them with musket shot and the bayonet
and the Jacobite cavalry swarming around them. Richard Hamilton had tried to organise a counter
charge of the Irish infantry; however, most were raw recruits, unaccustomed to and unwilling
to engage in the bloody melee that would ensue. Instead, Hamilton attached himself to the
cavalry being organised to charge by Tyrconnell. The Life Guards, as well as Tyrconnell’s
own regiment, and also Parker’s Regiment, under Hamilton’s command, thundered back
into the emerging ranks of the Williamites. Meanwhile, the old Duke of Schomberg led his
own brave charge into the hellscape, leading his cavalry to his own death. The seventy-five-year-old was slashed in the
head with a sword, before supposedly being shot in the neck. At Yellow Island, both Jacobite Dragoon regiments
successfully checked the advance of the Danes, some of whom had gained a slim beach-head. However, upon withdrawing slightly to reform
and continue pressing the attack, Lord Dongan fell and, with this shock in morale, both
units withdrew hastily south. As for King William, he was not idle that
day. Upon seeing his army cutting their way across
at Oldbridge, he elected to lead his own cavalry force downstream via Drybridge. This crossing was deeper, with man and horse
struggling to make the crossing. So that on touching the south bank, William,
still much affected by the injury from the cannon shot to his shoulder, collapsed to
the ground for a few minutes to catch his breath. With William’s crossing of the Boyne with
large numbers of cavalry, the game was up; the Jacobites had managed to pin down the
Williamite infantry due to their lack of cavalry, but with this advantage lost a general Jacobite
withdrawal south ensued. King William himself led his cavalry to harass
the retreating Jacobites, but was met with stiff resistance at both Donore graveyard
and then Platin Hall; indeed at the former the fighting was confused enough that the
king himself narrowly avoided death by pistol shot at the hands of one of his own men. Even if tragedy had struck, however, the overall
momentum of battle was incontrovertibly with the Williamite forces. Some three miles west, King James had sat
idle glaring at the inactive Count of Schomberg’s wing, which had stalled before some marshy
ground below his position. As news reached him of the disaster at Oldbridge,
James considered taking the fight to the younger Schomberg, but on advice from his scouts he
thought better of it. When he also spied some of Meinhard’s units
begin to move south, as if to cut off any line retreat to Dublin, James’s nerve once
more cracked and he ordered a general withdrawal. William did not press the fleeing James because,
among other reasons, his main body were still reorganising and resting after the fight on
the south bank, and the Jacobite garrison still held Drogheda to their rear. By day’s end, the field belonged to the
Williamites… The effect was not an immediate collapse of
Jacobite resistance by any means, but the outcome did shatter James’s own resolve
to fight on. He fled to Dublin, where he reportedly lay
the blame for the defeat at the feet of his Irish soldiers. As for the bulk of James’s army, many grumbled
that he had thrown victory aside through his poor judgement in unwittingly moving the troops
away from the main theatre of battle; indeed, the majority of the Jacobites that day never
unsheathed their swords or fired a shot. As for James himself, he sailed for France
on the 4th July and later died there in 1701. Despite the victory, the Battle of the Boyne
did not immediately result in Williamite victory in Ireland; indeed two sieges of Athlone and
Limerick, respectively, in the following weeks were unsuccessful and it would not be until
the decisive Battle of Aughrim over a year later that Jacobite hopes were finally extinguished. The Treaty of Limerick ended the conflict
later in October. As for William himself, he would reign jointly
and then alone as king of England, Ireland, and Scotland until his own death in 1702. He remains a polarising figure in Ireland
to this day.
It’s just as well Billy’s horse Belle was fast during this battle
It's always fascinating how a group of anti-European, anti-Catholic homophobes worship a gay Dutch guy who joined forces with a Pope
Didn't Billy have a seizure when they waded across the river?
Jim Alistair- It hapwened in a gwubbry fowormn contrwee.
Who won?
Am I losing it? At 2.42 there's a quote, attributed to William of Orange, that he said: "I much prefer apples to those bitter orange bastards".
Honestly, I get they this is a little joking with the quotes, but this is just confusing. Is it a mistake?