Siege of Derry

During the “ Glorious Revolution ” of 1688, the King of England, James II, who secretly converted to Catholicism, was removed from power by rebels led by his Protestant daughter Maria and her husband, William of Orange . The vast majority of the population of Ireland professed Catholicism, and Jacob II greatly helped the Irish Catholics: for example, he appointed the Catholicos Richard Talbot, 1st Earl of Tyrkonnell, as the Lord Deputy of Ireland, and again allowed Catholics to be elected to the Irish Parliament, to hold official posts and serve in army. Irish Catholics hoped that Jacob would return to them the lands that Oliver Cromwell had taken from them in 1649-1653. Thus, Jacob was counting on the help of Ireland in the establishment and consolidation of his power.

Richard Talbot, who was the Acting Vice-King of Ireland, sought to do everything possible to ensure that all the garrisons of Ireland submitted to Jacob. He paid particular attention to Ulster, where the population predominantly professed Protestantism. By November 1688, only Enniskillen and Derry in Ulster disobeyed James II. 76-year-old Alexander McDonnell, 3rd Earl of Antrim, was ordered to subdue the cities and establish units loyal to the king there; he gave his consent, but within a few weeks he picked up soldiers for his army whose height was at least six feet. A force of 1,200 Scottish “red-footed” Catholics ( English Redshanks ) advanced to Derry, expecting a quiet surrender of the city (Earl Antrim followed in a luxurious carriage). However, when the army was already 50 meters from the line of the city, 13 young students of Derry artisans ran out and closed the gates of the city, after which they calmly went to church service.

On December 10, Jacob left London, was arrested, but on December 23 he again escaped and moved to France. His cousin Louis XIV came to the aid of Jacob II, who promised Jacob to help return the throne. On February 13, 1689, meanwhile, William of Orange and his wife Maria were crowned King William III and Queen Mary II. On March 12, in the south of Ireland in the town of Kinsale, Jacob's army landed from 6 thousand French soldiers. Dublin was taken by Jacob, from where the army marched with the support of the Irish to the north. With the slogan "Now or never, now and forever" ( English Now or never, now and forever ) the army went to the rebellious Derry.

The governor of the city, Robert Lundy, having learned about the approach of Jacob’s troops, recalled reinforcements sent by Colonel Cunningham, who arrived at the Foyle River: Lundy wrote in a letter on April 15 that the city could surrender to the enemy in the coming days due to lack of money and food ^[1] . He convened a meeting with his supporters to discuss the terms of surrender, but news of this infuriated all the townspeople. At night, Landy, fearing reprisal, changed clothes and fled the city with some of his supporters, after which he boarded a ship and sailed to Scotland. Major Henry Baker led the defense with the help of Colonel Adam Murray and Major George Walker, an Anglican priest. Their response to the daring motto of the Catholics was the slogan "Do not give up" ( Eng. No Surrender ) ^[2] .

On April 18, the Jacobites arrived at the walls of Derry: all the buildings outside the city walls were burned down by the townspeople so that the Catholics did not decide to hide there and build small defensive points. King Jacob and his retinue drove 300 yards to the Bishop's Gate and ordered them to surrender. In response to this, the townspeople shouted “Don't give up” and even tried to shoot the king. A group of artillerymen, which served the largest urban cannon, " Growling Meg, " managed to shoot an enemy from this weapon: the core killed one of the pages of the king ^[3] . Three more times, James II unsuccessfully demanded that the townspeople surrender, after which he began a siege. Both sides fired at each other every day, and illness and hunger began in the city. The townspeople ate cats, dogs, and rats, but did not give up. Jacob was forced to leave for Dublin, and Richard Hamilton took command.

The fleet of William III, led by Admiral Rook, arrived in Lough Foyle on June 11 to help the besieged. The ships refused to break through the protective docks on the Foyle River in Kalmore. However, on July 28, by order of General Percival Kirk, three armed merchant ships - Mountjoy, Phoenix, and Jerusal - began ramming docks under the cover of the frigate Dartmouth with Captain John Lick. The Mountjoy failed to ram the docks, so he had to be knocked down from the frigate "Swallow" in order to destroy the docks and launch the fleet. The Catholics, seeing the fleet, were forced to retreat and leave the city.

Derry withstood a 105-day siege: about 8 thousand inhabitants of the city with a population of 30 thousand died from hunger, disease and wounds. The victory of the Protestants over the Catholics shook the position of Jacob II, who was soon defeated finally on the Boyne River and expelled from England.

Every year, Protestants organize a march of students of Derry artisans around the walls of the city, and a large parade is also held in Derry itself. During the festivities on the occasion of the victory over the Catholics, the scarecrow of Robert Lundy is sometimes burned. In memory of the siege, the song “ Derry's Walls ” was written. Currently, the parades are held quite peacefully, although they were often marked earlier by mass fights and clashes .

In English

• The Siege of Derry in Ulster Protestant Mythology
• Apprentice Boys of Derry
• The maiden city festival
• Another Account of the Siege of Derry
• Derry and Enniskillen in the Year 1689: The Story of Some Famous Battle-fields in Ulster by Rev. Thomas witherow

In Russian

• City of Hopes - Londonderry
• Siege, battle and rebellion. Saucy Derry