The Williamite War in Ireland (1689-1691) was a significant conflict that took place in the context of the broader struggle for the English, Scottish, and Irish thrones following the Glorious Revolution of 1688.
The war was essentially a fight between two rival kings: James II, a Catholic who had been deposed by the Protestant William of Orange, and William III, who had taken the throne with his wife, Mary II, James's Protestant daughter.
Cause of the Williamite War
The Glorious Revolution in 1688 saw the overthrow of James II by his daughter Mary and her husband, William of Orange, who were invited by English nobles to take the throne. James fled London in 1688 to France, where he gained the support of the Catholic King Louis XIV.
The Irish, particularly the Catholics, were, by and large, supportive of James although William did enjoy support in the northern province of Ulster where many Scottish and English settlers had taken land during and after the plantations of Ulster.
The Irish Catholics hoped that James would restore their lands and rights, which had been significantly curtailed after the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland and the subsequent Protestant ascendancy. Thus, Ireland became a crucial battleground in James's attempt to regain the throne.
James arrives in Ireland
James ll arrived in Ireland at Kinsale on 12 March 1689 along with 6000 French soldiers. They moved north to Dublin where he gathered reinforcements of Irish Jacobites and Protestant Royalists.
In Ulster, an army loyal to James had been raised by Alexander MacDonnell, the 3rd Earl of Antrim. They positioned themselves on the eastern shores of the Foyle, close to the port of Derry. In County Down, some 2,000 Jacobite troops marched north from Drogheda and engaged a force of 3,000 Williamites at Dromore in County Down.
One of the earliest events of the war was the Siege of Derry between April-August of 1689. With this larger army, James proceeded to Derry joining with the Earl of Antrim and Richard Hamilton. The Protestant inhabitants of Derry, fiercely loyal to William, refused to surrender to James's forces. The siege lasted 105 days and became a symbol of Protestant resistance. The siege was eventually lifted when Williamite forces broke through James's blockade, marking a setback for the Jacobites.
William arrives in Ireland
On 14th June 1690 William of Orange arrived in Belfast Lough with a force of 36,000 men. They were made up of English, Dutch, German-Danish and French Huguenots soldiers. This army turned south with the capture of Dublin in mind.
The most famous battle of the war, the Battle of the Boyne, took place on July 1, 1690. William III personally led his army against James’s forces near the River Boyne, just north of Dublin. Despite being outnumbered, William's better-equipped and trained forces decisively defeated James, who fled to France shortly after the battle. The victory was a turning point in the war, solidifying William's control over Ireland.
Defeat of the Jacobites
After the defeat at the Boyne, the Jacobite forces retreated to the west, making their last stand in Limerick. The city withstood an initial Williamite siege in 1690, but a renewed siege in 1691 forced the Jacobites to surrender. The Treaty of Limerick was signed on October 3, 1691, ending the war. The treaty offered lenient terms to the Jacobites, allowing them to leave for France ("The Flight of the Wild Geese") and promising protection for Catholics who swore allegiance to William. However, these promises were later largely ignored.
The impact of the Williamite War
The Williamite victory confirmed Protestant control over Ireland, leading to over a century of Protestant dominance. The Penal Laws were introduced to systematically suppress the rights of Catholics, severely restricting their ability to own land, practice their religion, or hold public office.
