CAMEO The boom was a strong bar cast across the estuary below the city, shutting out the entrance of ships with relief. Just as the famine was The Siege of becoming grievous, a flotilla of thirty vessels was seen advancing on Lough Foyle; but, to the absolute anguish of the inhabitants, it sailed away again. Derry. 1689. The commander was the barbarous Kirke, who was probably halfhearted in the cause, as well as pitiless, for he declared that as the boom was guarded by a land-battery at each end, it was hopeless to force it, and he left the people to their fate, only sending them a message that they should "husband their provisions.” This, when Major Baker had already died from privation and insufficient food, loathsome articles were all that could be had; the last fragments of bread were kept for the Holy Communion. Hamilton besought the brave defenders to take pity on themselves; but the cry was still "No surrender!" Rosen, who had again joined furious at the delay, declared that if the city held out beyond the 1st of July, he should drive all the Protestant inhabitants of the neighbourhood to perish with hunger between the walls and the camp, and though all the English and Irish generals protested, he actually carried his cruel threat into execution. The helpless crowd were fired upon from the walls before they were recognized; but the soldiers who drove them were weeping for pity, and they only shouted encouragement to their friends within. As the only chance of saving them, the garrison erected a gibbet and threatened to hang their prisoners, among whom were some persons beloved by the army, and this brought the Irish soldiers to the verge of mutiny. However, Hamilton had had time to send a messenger to James, and obtain from him an order that the unfortunate multitude should be released, and allowed to return home. With them the garrison sent some of their most helpless inhabitants, receiving in their stead strong men. Meantime, Kirke learnt that his cowardice had excited great indignation in his superiors, and Marshal Schomberg, whom William had made Commander-in-Chief in Ireland, sent peremptory orders that the relie should be attempted. Kirke was obliged to obey, but even then he merely permitted two brave masters of merchantmen, laden with provisions, to make the venture, Micaiah Browning of the Mountjoy, and Andrew Douglas of the Phenix, under convoy of Captain Leake of the Dartmouth, also a volunteer. It was the 28th of July, and there were only two days' rations of any sort of sustenance left in the city, when the famished inhabitants beheld the three ships sailing up Lough Foyle with a fair wind. The only navigable passage was close to the camp and batteries of the enemy, and the famished heroic inhabitants crowded their ramparts, watching in agony as the Irish batteries opened fire on the vessels, on whose progress hung life or death. The frigate shortened sail and replied to the battery. The gallant Browning, under cover of the smoke, dashed the Mountjoy at the boom, and broke through it; but the vessel was driven ashore by the force of the shock. The Phanix sailed through the opening, and while the Irish were flocking down to seize the stranded Mountjoy, the tide and the recoil of her own guns floated her, and she followed her companion to the rescue. "And the bells are madly ringing, and a hundred voices singing, And the old man on the bastion has joined the triumph stave.' By ten at night the ships were at the quay, all the citizens hurrying down, by midnight all hunger was appeased; for a day or two longer the besiegers still fired! but at daybreak on the 2nd of August, the sentries announced that they were in full retreat! The siege had lasted since the second week in March. More than half the population had perished, and the remainder were ghastly spectacles; but they still had the gallantry to rush out and attack the retreat, though they were driven back with loss. Their resistance has ever since been the pride of their city, and the anniversary of the closing of the gates has been the special holiday of the apprentice lads. Throughout the siege, the Enniskillen Protestant bands had harassed Rosen's army, surprising outposts and cutting off convoys of provisions. Lord Mountcashel was sent by James, some days before the relief of Derry, with 5,000 men to reduce them. He began by trying to take the border fortress of Castle Crom, on Lough Erne, where many of the Protestant families had taken refuge. Not being able to bring his artillery over the surrounding bog, he made two sham cannons of tin, pointed them, and summoned the garrison to surrender; but they defied him, sallied out, drove him back, and captured the mock artillery which afforded them infinite amusement. From Kirke they obtained weapons for themselves, and became so formidable that James sent a considerable force under General Macarthy, who had just put down Lord Inchiquin's resistance at Munster. Sarsfield was to attack them from Connaught, the Duke of Berwick on the north side. This last had much of the genius of his uncle of Marlborough, and he alone was successful in his attacks. Sarsfield's men were dispersed, and Macarthy, with 5,000, received a great defeat at Newton Butler from Colonel Wolseley with only 2,000. These brave men struggled through the bog and threw themselves on Macarthy's batteries in the right. The Irish General gave the command to the centre, “Wheel to the widy," meaning them to turn and support the right. They took it for "Wheel to the right-about," and thereupon faced round and began to march off the field, whereupon the rest of the troops broke and fled! The Enniskillens pressed on them and gained a complete victory, slaughtering savagely. 2,000 Irish were killed, 600 driven into Lough Erne, 400 prisoners taken, among them Macarthy himself, lamenting that he had not been slain. Before this disaster, James had met his Irish Parliament on the 7th of May, 1689, in the Inns of Court. Except four Bishops, whose loyalty CAMEO XIV. Relief of Derry. 1689. CAMEO The Irish Parliament. 1689. bound them to attend, a very few Peers, and six Commoners, it was wholly Roman Catholic. James opened it in person, in royal robes, with a crown on his head, and made a moderate and conciliatory speech, which was not followed up, although one act of this Parliament promised liberty of conscience to all sects, and gave the tithes to the pastors of the Communions of the persons who paid them. There was an Act of Attainder against all suspected of disaffection, 3,000 in number, including ladies and children, unless they surrendered by a certain day, and even limiting the King's power of pardon. Of course, too, they reversed the Act of Settlement, and they also enacted that no act of the English Parliament should bind Ireland, and in fact their "Home Rule" went on much too fast for James, who was an Englishman after all. The schools and colleges were seized, and as to the University of Dublin, the King commanded the Provost and Fellows to name a Romanist, called Greene, as senior Fellow, and when they refused and had recourse to the courts of law, he sent soldiers to turn them out of Trinity College, made the Chapel into a powder magazine, and the rooms into barracks; but put the library in charge of a priest, who took great care of it, while awaiting the Jesuits whom James intended to place there. The Parliament granted the King £20,000 monthly, which grant he instantly doubled by Royal Proclamation, against the remonstrance of all his Irish nobility. "If I cannot do this, I can do nothing!" he exclaimed. However, £40,000 a month was more than Ireland could raise, so he set up a Bank, and coined tokens out of a mixture of old cannon, broken bells, and pots and pans, calling shillings and guineas what was worth little more than farthings. Traders would have been ruined by taking these at their nominal value, and either raised their prices, or refused to sell at all. This was prohibited by Royal Proclamation, death was denounced against any one who presumed to give more than thirty-eight shillings of this base compound for a golden guinea, and soldiers were charged to see that the shopkeepers sold at the price which was ruin to them. This extraordinarily wrong-headed monarch was doing his best to alienate even the island he had deemed faithful to him! The Irish gentlemen also were much vexed at his preference for foreigners, to whose advice he listened alone, and who seem to have hindered his responding effectively to the summons of Dundee. By this time, William III. had been able to send Schomberg to Ireland. The old Marshal landed at Carrickfergus in the end of August, with about 10,000 men ; but the best English troops were required elsewhere, and the army he had at his disposal were either raw English recruits, French Huguenots, Dutch, Germans, and Danes, mostly mercenary soldiers, like the terrible regiments of the Thirty Years War. Count Solus, the second in command, was Dutch, and therefore a favourite with William. Schomberg marched to Belfast, where he was joined by the Enniskilleners, and hoped to gain a decisive victory; but he soon found that his army was in no state to give battle, being for the most part untrained and undisciplined. He therefore encamped at Dundalk, there to teach his troops drill, riding and musketry; but it was a very wet season, the ground was soaked, the men suffered much from diseases of all kinds, and besides were shamefully ill-supplied with provisions by a commissary, who afterwards was dismissed from the service. This of course led to plunder of the neighbourhood, and outrages were committed on all parties, gaining them the name of the black banditti. The Enniskilleners, mostly old Cromwellians or their sons, were equally violent towards Catholics, though not so lawless or profane. They could only fight in their own way, and were so unamenable to discipline that one of Schomberg's officers said, "It was as hard to keep the Enniskillens within a camp as a regiment of March hares in a circle of a yard diameter." James joined Rosen, and showed himself before the camp, but durst not attempt to storm it, nor would Schomberg come out to attack him. Rosen told him, "If your Majesty had ten kingdoms you would lose them ;" and the English at home said, "Schomberg did nothing, and James helped him." They retreated, and Schomberg, on the arrival of some fresh regiments, moved to Belfast; but the jolting of the waggons over the wretched roads caused the death of many of the sick, and many lay down to die, so that it was said that the troops marched through a lane of the dead! James sent urgent entreaties to Louis for further help, complaining of the uselessness of the Irish, and Louis sent him 5,000, commanded by Lauzun, who was to supersede Rosen, and requiring as many Irishmen in exchange. Those whom James sent, after the regular Irish fashion, when out of their own country, became admirable soldiers. Charlemont was held for James by an old gentleman called Teague O'Regan, a little hunchback, usually dressed in a huge wig, a white hat with a long feather, a scarlet coat, and jackboots. Schomberg, who was much amused with what he heard of him, offered excellent terms; but the answer was, "That old knave, Schomberg, shall not have this castle." However, when famine forced him to surrender, Schomberg still treated him honourably, and asked him to dinner. Meantime an Irish priest and a dragoon entered on a controversy ending in blows, and one of O'Regan's people rushed in to complain. "Served him right," said the old man. to argue with a dragoon!” "What business had a priest William himself came over on the 14th of June, with Prince George of Denmark, and the young Duke of Ormond, having sent before him a grand park of artillery, and a considerable force, chiefly of Huguenots and Dutch. He landed at Belfast, and on Schomberg's joining him at Loughbrickland, was at the head of 36,000 men. He was considerably CAMEO XIV. Battle of the 1689. CAMEO Victory of the Boyne. puzzled how to reward George Walker, of Derry, whether, as he said, to make him a Colonel or a Bishop; and on the death of the diocesan, Derry was bestowed on the warlike priest. In the churches of the North, King William was prayed for in the Liturgy; in those of the South, King James. The latter, with Lauzun, advanced with an army increased by 8,000 French, who had been exchanged at Brest for 4,000 Irish. His army amounted to somewhere about 20,000 men, encamped on the banks of the Boyne, near Drogheda. He was determined to risk a battle, but sent to Waterford to secure a ship for his retreat, in case of being defeated. William, who had very little time to spare for Ireland, and was determined, as he said, not to let the grass grow under his feet there, marched towards the river, and on the evening of the last day of June, beheld his uncle's army on the opposite bank. "I am glad to see you, gentlemen," he could not help exclaiming. "If you escape me now, the fault will be mine." He admired the rich green of the country, and said, “It is worth fighting for." The Jacobite army was well posted, so as to command the passage of the river, which was not wide, but deep. The nearest bridge was at Slane, five miles off, and there were only two fords, one at Oldbridge close at hand, the other lower down, near to Drogheda. James had concentrated his army so as to prevent crossing at Oldbridge, and the position was so formidable, and the banks so steep, that Schomberg gave his voice against attempting a passage; but William knew that a retreat would do him infinite harm in the eyes of all the nations concerned, and he rode up and down the bank, reconnoitring so that he was recognised. Presently he sat down with his staff on the grass to take some refreshment. Two French cannon were aimed at the party, so surely that William himself and Prince George of Hesse both fell; but in a moment it proved that it was only Prince George's horse that had been killed, and that William had only received a slight flesh wound on the shoulder. He was soon on the alert again, and, indeed, spent nineteen hours on horseback that day, and rode through the army at midnight by torchlight. By four in the morning of the 1st of July, he was in the saddle again, putting his troops in motion, causing all to wear green sprays in their caps to distinguish them from the enemy, who wore white paper cockades. It was sadly needful where English was against English, Irish against Irish, French against French. The right wing was detached, under Schomberg's son, to cross the river at Slane bridge, and thus turn the enemy's flank. His left wing, nearly all cavalry, were to cross under his own command at the lower ford, while the centre, all infantry, under Marshal Schomberg, were to force the passage at Oldbridge. Young Schomberg's troops passed the bridge, and were attacking O'Neil's dragoons, when Lauzun, fearing that the retreat would be cut off, led his best French regiments to support O'Neil, thus leaving his centre to the command of James, Tyrconnel and Hamilton. |