Battle of the Boyne

battle_name=Battle of the Boyne

The competing sides

Commanders

The opposing armies in the battle were led by the Roman Catholic King James of England, Scotland and Ireland and opposing him, his son-in-law the Protestant William III ("William of Orange") who had deposed James from his English and Scottish thrones in the previous year. James' supporters still controlled much of Ireland and the Irish Parliament. James' also enjoyed the support of the French King, Louis XIV, who did not want to see a hostile monarch, such as William, on the throne of England. To support James' restoration, Louis sent 6000 French troops to Ireland to support the Irish Jacobites. William was already Stadtholder of the Netherlands and was able to call on Dutch and allied troops from continental Europe as well as from Britain.

Related Topics:
Roman Catholic - James - Protestant - William III - Irish Parliament - Louis XIV - Jacobites - Stadtholder - Netherlands

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James was a seasoned general who had proven his bravery when fighting for his brother — King Charles II — in Europe, notably at the battle of the Dunes in 1658. However, recent historians have noted that he was prone to panicking under pressure and to making rash decisions. William was also a seasoned commander and able general but had yet to win a full battle. Many of his battles ended in bloody stalemates, prompting at least one modern historian to argue that William lacked an ability to manage armies in the thick of battle. William's success against the French had been reliant upon tactical maneuvers and good diplomacy rather than force. His diplomacy had assembled the League of Augsburg - a multi-national coalition formed to resist French aggression in Europe. From William's point of view, his takeover of power in England and the ensuing campaign in Ireland was just another front in the war against Louis XIV of France.

Related Topics:
Battle of the Dunes - League of Augsburg - Louis XIV of France

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James II's subordinate commanders were Richard Talbot, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell, who was the Lord Deputy of Ireland and James' most powerful supporter in that country; and the French general Lauzun. William's second in command was the Duke of Schomberg, a 75-old professional soldier. He had formerly been a Marshal of France, but had been expelled in 1685 from his native country by Louis XIV because he was a Huguenot Protestant.

Related Topics:
James II - Richard Talbot, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell - Lord Deputy of Ireland - Duke of Schomberg - Marshal of France - 1685 - Louis XIV - Huguenot - Protestant

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Armies

The Williamite army at the Boyne was about 36,000 strong, composed of troops from many countries. Around 20,000 had been in Ireland since 1689, commanded by Schomberg. William himself arrived with 16,000 more in June 1690. William's troops were in general far better trained and equipped than James' were. The best Williamite infantry were from Denmark and the Netherlands, professional soldiers equipped with the latest flintlock muskets. There were also a large contingent of French Huguenot troops fighting with the Williamites. William did not have a high opinion of his British troops, with the exception of the Ulster Protestant irregulars who had held Ulster in the previous year. The English and Scottish troops were felt to be politically unreliable, since James had been their legitimate monarch up to a year before. Moreover, they had only been raised recently and had seen little combat. The Jacobites were 25,000 strong. James had several regiments of French troops, but most of his manpower was provided by Irish Catholics. The Jacobite's Irish cavalry, who were raised from among the dispossessed Irish gentry, proved themselves to be high calibre troops at the battle. However, the Irish infantry, predominantly peasants who had been pressed into service, were not trained soldiers. They had been hastily trained, badly supplied and only a minority of them had functional muskets. In fact, some of them at the Boyne carried only farm implements such as scythes. On top of that, the Jacobite infantry who had firearms were all equipped with the obsolete matchlock musket.

Related Topics:
1689 - June - 1690 - Denmark - Netherlands - Flintlock - French - Huguenot - Ulster - Jacobites - Cavalry - Infantry - Matchlock

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