Siege of Limerick (1690)

Siege of Limerick (1690)
Part of the Williamite War in Ireland
A 1690 etching of the siege
Date August–September 1690 Location Limerick, Ireland Result Jacobite/French victory
Belligerents
Williamites	Jacobites  France
Commanders and leaders
William III of England	Earl of Lucan
Strength
25,000 men	14,500 infantry in Limerick 2,500 cavalry in Clare
Casualties and losses
~3,000 killed in assault 2,000 died of disease	~400 killed in action

Limerick, a city in western Ireland, was besieged twice in the Williamite War in Ireland in 1689–1691. On the first occasion, in August to September 1690, its Jacobite defenders retreated to the city after their defeat at the Battle of the Boyne. The Williamites, under William III, tried to take Limerick by storm but were driven off and had to retire into their winter quarters.

Strategic background

Following the

There were, however, sufficient Jacobite troops to defend Limerick. A total of 14,500 Jacobite infantry were billeted in Limerick itself and another 2,500 cavalry in County Clare under Sarsfield. Moreover, the morale of the ordinary soldiers was high, despite the defeat at the Boyne. That was due to the circulation of an ancient Irish prophecy that the Irish would win a great victory over the English outside Limerick and drive them out of Ireland. That may seem bizarre, but such prophecies were then an important part of Irish popular culture. Williamites mocked such superstition in songs such as Lillibullero.

Lauzun's deputy, Marquis de Boisseleau, backed the hardliners in their attempts to defend the city and oversaw improvements to Limerick's defences.

Sarsfield's raid at Ballyneety

William of Orange and his army reached Limerick on 7 August 1690 with 25,000 men and occupied Ireton's fort and Cromwell's fort (built during the Siege of Limerick (1650–1651)) outside the city. However, he had with him only his field artillery, as his siege cannon were still making their way from Dublin with a light escort. The siege train was intercepted by Sarsfield's cavalry, (600 men guided by "Galloping Hogan") at Ballyneety, and destroyed, along with the Williamites' siege guns and ammunition.^[1] That meant that William had to wait another ten days before he could start bombarding Limerick in earnest while another siege train was brought up from Waterford.

Assault on Limerick

By then, it was late August. Winter was approaching, and William wanted to finish the war in Ireland so that he could return to the

His siege guns blasted a breach in the walls of the "Irish town" section of the city, and William launched his assault on 27 August. The breach was stormed by

Williamites retire

William's men had suffered about 3,000 casualties, including many of their best

Following the siege, William Dorrington was made governor of the city and preparations began to improve the fortifications. Limerick was to remain a Jacobite stronghold until it surrendered after another Williamite siege the following year. After the loss of the last major stronghold, Patrick Sarsfield led the army into exile in the Flight of the Wild Geese to the Continent, where they continued to serve the cause of James and his successors.

Bibliography

• Childs, John. The Williamite Wars in Ireland. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2007.
• Simms, J.G. Jacobite Ireland, London 1969.
• Mangan, H. (1903). "Sieges of Derry and Limerick" . In O'Brien, R. Barry (ed.). Studies in Irish History, 1649-1775. Dublin: Browne and Nolan. pp. 1–65.
• Wauchop, Piers. Patrick Sarsfield and the Williamite War, Dublin 1992.

References

External links

• Webpage on the Williamite sieges - including good maps and photos