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| The Great Siege of 1689 |
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A part from the erection of a prison at Ferryquay
Gate and the loss of some cannons 'lent' to the Parliamentary
forces in 1650, the Walls lay virtually neglected for 40 years. |
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| The deterioration
that resulted in their weakened condition at the time of the
Great Siege was noted by Lord Macaulay, the 19th century historian.
His account was based on an inspection of the Derry fortifications
by a French engineer, Jean Thomas. Lord Macaulay wrote: |
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| And in truth, to a military eye, the defences
of Londonderry appeared contemptible. The fortification consisted
of a single wall overgrown with grass and weeds: there was no
ditch even before the gates: the drawbridges had long been neglected:
the chains were rusty and could scarcely be used: the parapets
and towerswere builtafter a fashion which might well move [engineers]
to laughter; and these feeble defences were on almost every
side commanded by heights. Indeed those who laid out the city
had never meant that it should be able to stand a regular siege,
and had contented themselves with throwing up works sufficient
to protect the inhabitants against a tumultuary attackof the
Celtic peasantry. |
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| There was great controversy over the Walls, mainly
because they were not built in the normal pattern of that period.
They lacked a moat, a counterscarp (the outer side of the ditch),
buttresses, outworks and suitable platforms for the few cannons
they had. But no-one could explain why, if the Walls were so
badly constructed, the army of King James could not capture
the city. |
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| Whatever the reasons for the failure of the Great
Siege, its cause was well known. The Protestant people of England
were fearful of their Catholic king, James II, and replaced
him. Prince William of the Netherlands, also a Protestant, was
approached to lead a bloodless revolution in November 1688 which
forced James to flee to France. |
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| Captain Francis Nevill’s of the besieged
Derry in !689. |
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| In Ireland there was armed resistance amongst
the Catholic Irish and English troops loyal to James. A contingent
of these Jacobite forces (as they were known) arrived at Derry's
Ferryquay Gate on 7 December 1688. Led by the Earl of Antrim,
they had been sent by Tyrconnell, the Catholic viceroy, to take
over command of the Derry garrison. |
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| As the city's own troops had been sent to Dublin
some weeks beforehand, the Protestant inhabitants feared a massacre.
Thirteen apprentices of the city rushed to close the Gates and
this action marked the symbolic beginning of the Great Siege.
It is still celebrated today but on 18 December each year due
to the change in calendar systems. |
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| When Colonel Robert Lundy returned with the garrison's
forces, he set about strengthening the Walls against a Jacobite
attack. He ordered the building of a triangular defensive wall
(a ravelin) outside Bishop's Gate and also outworks to Windmill
Hill in the west and south to the west and south to the river. |
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| On the eve of the siege, all the buildings outside
the city Walls (on both sides of the Foyle) were set alight
by the defenders to prevent them being used as cover by the
besiegers. |
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| On 18 April 1689 King James II arrived at Bishop's
Gate in the mistaken belief that if he requested the garrison
to surrender they would accede. His only reply was a barrage
of shot which not only repulsed the Jacobites but registered
the actual beginning of the siege. Four times King James demanded
the surrender of the city. Four times he was refused. Frustrated,
he returned to Dublin leaving his generals to besiege the Walls
for 105 days. |
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| During the siege the Walls were continuously bombarded
by James's forces under Marshal Dc Rosen. Cannons and mortars
caused great damage, mostly to the section between Bishop's
Gate and Butcher's Gate which received the brunt of the attacks. |
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| To reinforce the bulwarks the defenders made running
repairs by using barrels filled with earth and gravel to replace
the smashed parapets. At various times they had to place timber
and sods outside against the Gates to protect them from the
enemy's 'battering pieces'. They even built a small fort (from
casks filled with clay) outside the Walls in the vicinity of
Lord Docwra's Bulwark. It is called Walker's Fort in maps of
the period, probably because the then joint Governor, Rev George
Walker, ordered its construction. |
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| By such makeshift means and by venturing outside
occasionally to disrupt the enemy, the defenders contrived to
defy the besiegers until relief came on 28 July 1689. |
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| Dr William King, Bishop of Derry (1691-1702),
said the siege failed because the besiegers were cowards. The
supporters of King James argued it was the lack of cannons,
mortars, scaling ladders and battering rams which made their
task almost impossible. |
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