James II and The Jacobite War
In 1685 when James II set out to obtain religious toleration
for Catholics in Ireland, he had no idea that in less than four years he would
be leading an army of Catholics against William of Orange. Like James, Ireland
was subject to the effects of European events that were wholly beyond its
control. When William of Orange precipitated the Glorious Revolution in 1688 and
dethroned James II, Ireland was the least of his concerns as he engaged in a
power struggle with King Louis XIV. Pressured by France, James arrived in
Ireland with hope of regaining his throne. In many respects, the Jacobite army
was a French pawn to be used against William. Although the war in Ireland was
only a secondary front in a much larger war between the European powers, the
result determined the political and religious freedoms of those who would live
in Ireland for the following two centuries. "The two sides were more evenly
matched that in any other Irish war" (Byrne 487). Because victory was guaranteed
to neither side, the Jacobite war is one of the most critical points in Irish
history.
When Charles II died in 1685, James II became the King of England, Scotland,
and Ireland, and the Catholic revival began. Securing legal and enduring
toleration for his Catholic co-religionists was James' primary objective from
1685-1690 (Maguire 46). Consequently, less than six months after ascending to
the throne, James made Catholic champion Richard Talbot earl of Tyrconnell.
Within two years of assuming command of an Irish army regiment, Tyrconnell was
appointed lord deputy of Ireland on 12 February 1687. While in command of his
regiment, Tyrconnell catholicized and enlarged its composition by adding over
eight hundred catholic soldiers (Maguire 46). By the time James appointed
Tyrconnell lord deputy, 67 percent of the soldiers were Catholic and only a few
Protestant officers had not been dismissed. Tyrconnell, acting as lord deputy,
also filled important civil posts with Catholics. Within a year after
Tyrconnell's own appointment, a majority of judges, magistrates, and the central
administration were also Catholic (Maguire 49). As Catholic control increased,
so did the fears of the Irish and English Protestants. Irish Protestants feared
losing their land. In England, Ireland was viewed as a blueprint or precursor of
James' plans for England (Maguire 34). Though James' capable army could suppress
any local disorder, civil unrest grew in England and the threat of civil war
concerned the English parliament (Maguire 36).
The possibility of a civil war in England sparked fears in the Dutch Republic
as well. William of Orange, James' son in law and national leader of the Dutch
Republic, had long hoped to supplement his forces with England's in order to
mobilize against France's Louis XIV. A civil war would have left England in
disarray and unable to contribute to William's campaign against King Louis. A
civil war in England, an English coalition with France, an attack by Louis, and
James choosing a Catholic as the successor to the throne instead of William's
wife Mary, were all possibilities that spurred William and his forces to proceed
into England and land in Devon on 5 November, 1688 (Maguire 37). To the Tory and
Whig party members in England, William's arrival was not a surprise. Fearing
civil war and chaos as well, leading Whigs and Tories invited William to take
control of the country in July (Maguire xii). In September, William wrote the
Declaration which stated his reasons for invading England and then distributed
it throughout Europe.
James' decision to flee to France on 23 December 1688 and Williams' bloodless
ascension to the throne completed what historians call, "The Glorious
Revolution." William's concern about Ireland after gaining control of the throne
remained minimal until James landed at Kinsale, Co. Cork in March of 1689 with
French troops and munitions. To James, Ireland was the starting point from which
he could regain the throne in England. Initially, William viewed Ireland only as
a hurdle that had to be negotiated before he could concentrate on France and his
rival Louis XIV. James' arrival in Ireland with French support forced William to
focus his attention on the country that would become the battleground of the
"Cogadh Da' Ri', " or war of the two kings (Maguire 61).
When James arrived in Ireland, "he found in Ireland a Catholic body politic
loyal to the Crown but not loyal to the Crown's wider English interests"
(Maguire 57). The Jacobite Parliament that James had indirectly created demanded
the repeal of the Restoration land settlement. The Irish people cared less for
the highly political power struggle between James, Louis, and William, and more
about the local power struggle between Catholics and Protestants. Granted,
William claimed to be the savior of Protestantism, and James, the supporter of
Catholicism. Both, however, were proponents of tolerance and would not have
begun the war in the name of religion alone. In the eyes of the divided Irish
people, the outcome of the war would determine religious freedoms (Maguire 139).
The common people of Ireland had few hopes of owning land regardless of what
religion the country's leaders subscribed to (Maguire 139). Those few families
who owned land, however, had considerable power to control of religious freedoms
of the people. From 1689 to 1691, war engulfed Ireland.
James, who had never intended to release Ireland from the crown's control and
still wished to return to England as King, had a difficult time leading the
country. Fearing that he would lose the support of his Irish subjects, James
acquiesced to legislation that would repeal the Restoration land settlement and
a declaratory act that asserted that the Parliament of England could not
legislate for Ireland (Byrne 489). James would not, however, convene courts of
claims nor would he further the Catholic church in Ireland by offering anything
more than "liberty of conscience (Byrne 490)." In order to raise funds for the
needs of his war, James sponsored the brass, copper, and metal coinage of a
million Lire called "gun-money." Before James could begin his march to England,
however, he had to overcome the protestant dissenters in Ireland.
The siege of Irish Protestant stronghold Derry, proved more difficult than
anticipated by the Jacobite regime. Hindered by a lack of equipment, an
"undisciplined army, and an unenterprising command," Jacobite failed in their
attempts to seize the city and instead had to resort to a blockade (Byrne 492).
Under Major-general Kirk, two Williamite merchantmen broke through the boom that
spanned the river and "removed any prospect that Derry would be starved into
surrender" (Byrne 493). The resistance of Derry lowered the hopes of the
Jacobites while providing the Williamites their first success in Ireland.
Enniskillen, a second center of resistance, also defended itself well against
overwhelming odds. These two Protestant bastions thwarted James' attempt to gain
control of the north.
The Jacobite army's failures at Derry and Enniskillen were soon followed by
disorder and widespread desertion (493). The French officers detested living in
Ireland and their Irish allies (Maguire 62). James' hopes of defeating William
in England were crushed, however, Tyrconnell "showed remarkable energy in
rebuiding the army and organising the army to resist invasion" (493). William's
February 22, 1689 proclamation that called for surrender with promises of
property and toleration had failed to produce a Jacobite response. The Jacobites
wouldn't submit to Protestant control without a fight. Consequently, William
chose the duke of Schomberg to lead an Irish expedition that would bring Ireland
under Williamite control.
Schomberg and his army of 19,000 landed in Belfast on 13 August 1689 and
marched as far south as Dundalk, where he waited for supply ships to bring much
needed provisions. After two months of waiting for adequate supplies, the wet
and marshy terrain that Schomberg occupied just north of Dundalk took its toll.
"Reports came in that the Williamite army was short of provisions and riddled
with sickness (Byrne 495)." Hearing this, James decided to advance toward
Dundalk and challenge Schomberg. Schomberg's subsequent decline provided the
Jacobites a moral victory before both sides withdrew to winter quarters (Byrne
495).
Determined to gain control of Ireland, William and a fleet of 300 ships
arrived in Belfast on 14 June 1690. Comprised of Dutch, Germans, Danes, English,
and Huguenots, Williams army of 36,000 immediately marched south until he met
James at the Boyne. James' force of 25,000 Irish and French troops waited behind
the south bank. James, disregarding French advice to abandon the "indefensible"
and "fordable" position on the Boyne, made the defeat of the Jacobites almost
inevitable (Byrne 498). On the first day of bombardment, William was slightly
wounded. His tactics, however, were sound. Sending a small force upstream to
divert the enemy strength from the fords of Oldbridge, William concentrated the
mass of his forces on a frontal attack. The diversion worked better than
expected, causing James and the majority of his army to also move upstream. When
William crossed at the fords of Oldbridge, he encountered only Tyrconnell and
his cavalry. After a valiant battle in which Schomberg and George Walker, the
hero of Derry, were killed, the surprised and outflanked Jacobite army retreated
in disarray (Byrne 498). The first into Dublin, James then scurried to Kinsale
and abandoned Ireland on July 4, 1690 (Byrne 498).
After the victory at the Boyne, William possessed control of Dublin and most
of eastern Ireland. Although Tyrconnell and the French desired to make terms
with the Williamites, "the darling of the army", Patrick Sarsfield, opposed
surrender and prompted the Jacobite's greatest victory at Limerick (Byrne 501).
The resistance had gathered momentum after turning back a Williamite attack at
Athlone. A naturally strong position on the Shannon, Limerick provided the
rallying Jacobites with another opportunity to foil William's progress.
Sarsfield's heroics stopped a Williamite convoy which was carrying ammunition
and heavy guns toward the Shannon (Byrne 501). The rest of the Irish resistance
group courageously held the city and prompted William to return to England
(Byrne 501).
The success at Limerick did not, however, keep the French from leaving. Full
of dissension, the Irish resistance gained small victories while slowly giving
up city after city to a larger and more equipped Williamite force led by Dutch
general Ginkel. Offering security of estates to officers and the promise of
other liberal measures, Ginkel avoided a second possible catastrophe at Limerick
by finally convincing Sarsfield and the Irish resistance to quit the fight and
come to the bargaining table. Many requests by the Irish leadership were
granted. All those in the Irish army were given free transport to France if
desired. For those who stayed in Ireland, the treaty of Limerick applied. The
first article promised Catholics freedom of worship "as was consistent with the
laws of Ireland" during the reign of King Charles II (Byrne 506). The second
article granted pardon and property rights to those who held out in Limerick as
well as those in any other Irish garrison as long as they swore allegiance to
William (506). Twelve thousand men followed Sarsfield to France to become the
renowned "wild geese" regiments of Ireland. Of the remaining men, two thousand
went home, and a thousand joined William's forces in the Netherlands to fight
against France (Byrne 506).
Although the Jacobite war may only have been a small wrinkle in William's
greater scheme of defeating France's King Louis XIV, the war decided the balance
of power in Ireland for the following two centuries. Ending the Catholic revival
and securing James a spot in the bitter memories of many, the Jacobite war
reestablished Protestant control of Ireland. Soon after the treaty of Limerick,
William and Mary imposed a series of penal laws that limited the rights of
Catholics even more. To ensure that Protestant ascendancy would never again be
threatened, Catholics faced a future of renewed oppression and political
impotence.
Even in present day Ireland, the effects of the Jacobite War are still
visible. Tensions between Catholics and Protestants still exist and often result
in violence. Annual celebrations mark the Williamite victories at the Boyne and
Derry, while Irish Catholic songs eulogize those who held out at Limerick and
Athlone (Byrne 487). Granted, the institutionalized oppression of the Catholics
has dissipated. The memories and bitterness, however, continue to shape the
Irish experience.