into our Camp we understood that the Earl of Tyrconnel who since K. James's leaving of Ireland stiles himself Lord Lieutenant of Ireland having some jealousie of the Earl of Trone Governor of Waterford sent for him to Lymerick and made Old Collonel Lacy Governor in his stead and that the Enemy had in it about 1600 Men. Collonel Eppinger who was sent from Dublin with a small Party by Sea towards Wexford that being Deserted as you have heard took Possession of the Place and secured a Garrison in it he found a Considerable quantity of Provision there and his Men a little after took 400 Head of Cattle from the Raparees who had taken them a little time before from the Countrey People on whom they have ever since the Battle of the Boyne committed many Outrages and done much Mischief July 12th We came to a place called Bennets-bridge within 16 Miles of Waterford where we Encamped Here we understood that on the 18th the Enemy quitted Cloâ—mel notwithstanding it is a very Considerable Pass lately strengthned by the addition of several new Fortifications and Major-General Sarsfield was Posted there with 5000 Irish but on the approach of our Army in it's Neighbourhood he retired towards Lymerick This day four French Officers came over to us they gave an account That the Earl of Tyrconnel and the Count de Lauzun were Fortifying of Lymerick the remains of the Army being in that Neighbourhood but in a very ill Condition having lost all their Baggage This day the King dined with the Duke of Ormond at the Castle of Killkenny On the 20 th We Decamped from Bennets-Bridge and Marched about 7 Miles to a place called Rossen Narrow and the next day being the 21 th We came to Carick His Majesty Commanded a Trumpet to be sent to Summon Waterford requiring them to Surrender the Place They desired time till the next Morning when they sent out Articles but the King not approving thereof let them know that they should go out with their own Arms and Baggage only and that if they did not accept thereof but stayed till they were Attacked he would give them no Quarter However they sent some of their Scruples again the next day and Major-General Kirk was sent thither with five Regiments and several Pieces of Cannon to answer them the next day in the Afternoon the Capitulations were Signed and the next day after the Garison Marched out with their Arms and Baggage the Number of 1600 and were conducted to Mallow 12 Miles in their way to Lymerick The Garrison would not have had so good terms only His Majesty had Compassion on 300 Protestant Families in the Town Several Officers staid behind in the Place and Prayed His Majesties Protection The same day the Lord Dover and Lord George Howard with several others submitted themselves to the King The French when they first came to Lymerick took Possession of it with their Infantrey under the Command of the Count de Lauzun and they would not suffer any of the Irish to come into the Town so that the Lord Tyrconnel and General Sarsfield with their Irish where forc'd all to Encamp without the Town July 25th The King viewed the Walls of Waterford without entering into the Town and returned back to the Camp which was about three Miles distant where all things were ready for an Attack His Majesty dined in the Camp and then returned to Carick that Night From Waterford His Majesty sent a Summons to the Governour of Duncannon Fort Captain Michael Burk offering the same Capitulation which had been granted to Waterford and letting him know if he refused or delayed to Comply he must expect no Mercy He insisted upon six days to consult the Lord Tyrconnel which being refused he declared he would take that time whereupon the Cannon was ordered down in order to an Attack but the next day being the 26th In the Evening Sr. Cloudsly Shovel appearing with Sixteen Frigats in View it so terified them that the Governour writ to Major-General Kirk that they would accept of what had been offered which His Majesty being made acquainted with he was pleased to order That they should still have the Benefit of the Articles that were at first propos'd and the Fort was accordingly Surrendred whereby we are possessed of a very advantagous Post which commands the River of Waterford On the 27th His Majesty left the Camp and set forward for Dublin resolving to return immediatly for England On the 29th The King arriv'd a Chappel-Izod where He Published his Second Declaration as followeth William and Mary King and Queen of England Scotland France and Ireland To all the People of Our Kingdom of Ireland whom it may concern William R. ALthough Our former Declaration of the 7th of July last past hath not hitherto produced those Effects of Gratitude and Obedience from several of Our Rebellious Subjects which We justly expected Yet being willing to Compassionate those who are misled and to extend Our farther Grace as well in granting unto some a longer time to lay hold of the Advantages already offered as to enlarge Our Clemency unto others We do now farther Declare That as to all poor Labourers Common Soldiers Country Farmers Ploughmen and Cottiers whatsoever As also to all Citizens Townsmen Tradesmen and Artificers who remained at home or who having fled from their Dwellings shall by the Five and Twentieth Day of this Instant August repair to their usual place of Abode surrendring up what Arms they have to such Justices as are or shall be appointed by Us not only to receive the same but to Register the Appearances of such as shall submit to Our Authority We do hereby Declare That We will not only Pardon them as to their Lives and Liberties for all Violences they have done and committed by Authority of their Superiors during the Rebellion but We do also promise to secure them in their Goods their Stocks and Cattle and all their Chattels personal whatsoever Willing and Requiring them to come in and where they were Tenants there to preserve the Harvest of Grass and Corn for supply of the Winter But forasmuch as many of them had a legal Right to the Tenancy of several Lords some holden from Protestants and some held from Popish Proprietors who have been concerned in the Rebellion against Us Our Will and Pleasure is That all those Tenants who hold from our good Protestant Subjects do pay their Rents to their Respective Landlords And the Tenants of all those who have been in the present Rebellion against Us do keep their Rents in their hands until they shall have notice from the Commissioners of Our Revenue unto whom they are to Account for the same But whereas we are farther Advertiz'd that several of these Ranks aforementioned who have adhered to Our said Declaration do complain of ill treatment from our Soldiers and of the loss of Goods and Stock on pretence that such Stock and Goods were formerly by them Plundered
if they had been alive from the Dead the Streets were fill'd with Crowds and Shouts and the Roman Catholicks now lay in the same terrors as they had done some few days before At Eight this Night one Troop of Dragoons came as a Guard to an Officer that came to take charge of the Stores It was impossible the King himself coming after this could be welcom d with equal joy as this one Troop the Protestants hung about the Horses and were ready to pull tâ—e Men off them as they march'd up to the Castle Next Morning b ing Fryday the 4th the Duke of Ormond and Monsieur Overkirke came in with Nine Troops of Horse and the King being encamped by Finglass came on Sunday to St. Patricks Church and heard a Sermon preach d by Dr. King concerning the Power of God Of which that which seem'd to us greatest on Earth mighty Armies was a faint shadow The King went back to his Camp to dinner not suffering any Soldiers to come into the City except a few for Guards By some Persons in our Army that have viewed the Dead at the Boyne I am told that there were not above sixteen hundred killed on both sides though perhaps you may hear of greater Numbers in England which is a wonderful thing that so small a loss should disperse the whole Irish Army who seemed to be blown away only by a Wind from God July 5. The Town of Wexford declared for his Majesty the manner or it was thus Collonel Butler Lord Lieutenant of the County hearing that the late late King James was gone by on Wednâ—sday last he posted after him and from Duncannon wrote to his Son to come to him and to follow the late King James to France He wrote also another Letter to Captain Kelly to come away with his Company and set the Castle of Wexford on Fire which was under his command but this Letter falling into the hands of an English Merchant where Collonel Butter was quartered he did not deliver it but told the Captain how he was sent for concealing that part of the Letter about burning the Castle and so soon as he and his Company were gone the Protestants there rose disarmed the Papists and seized the Castle and at their humble Request by two Messengers His Majesty sent some few days after a Regiment with Arms and Ammunition to secure them we continued in our Camp to refresh our selves till July 9. At which time early in the Morning his Majesty caused us to decamp from Finglass to a place called Cromlin three Miles on the South side of Dublin This Day was Published at the Camp Their Majesties Declaration which follows The Declaration of William and Mary King and Queen of England Scotland France and Ireland To all the People of the Kingdom of Ireland to whom it may concern William Rex AS it hath pleas'd Almighty God to bless our Arms in this Kingdom with a late Victory over our Enemies at the Boyne and with the Possession of our Capital City of Dublin and with the general Dispertion of all that did oppose Vs We are now in so happy a Prospect of our Affairs and of extinguishing the Rebellion of this Kingdom That we hold it reasonable to think of Mercy and to have Compassion upon those whom We judge to have been seduced wherefore We do hereby Declare We shall take into our Royal Protection all poor Labourers Common Souldiers Country Farmers Plough men and Cottiers whatsoever as also all Citizens Townsmen Tradesmen and Artificers who either remained at home or having fled from their dwellings shall by the the First day of August next repair to their usual Places of Abode Surrendering what Arms they have to such Justices of Peace as are or shall be appointed by Vs not only to receive the same but also to Register the Appearance of such of the said Persons as shall come in and submit to Our Authority For Our Royal Intention is and We do hereby Declare That we will not only Pardon all those poor People as to their Lives and Liberties who shall come in by the time aforesaid for all Violences they have done or committed by the Command of their Leaders during the War but We do promise to secure them in their Goods their Stocks of Cattle and all their Chattels personal whatsoever Willing and Requiring them to come in and where they were Tenants there to preserve the Harvest of Grass and Corn for the supply of Winter But forasmuch as many of them had a Legal Right to the Tenancy of several Lands some holden from Protestants and some from Popish Proprietors who have been concerned in the Rebellion against Vs Our Will and Pleasure is That all those Tenants who held from our good Protestant Subjects do pay their Rents to their respective Landlords And that the Tenants of all those who have been concerned in the present Rebellion against Vs do keep their Rent in their Hands until they have notice from the Commissioners of Our Revenue unto whom they are to account for the same And as We do hereby strickly forbid all Violence Rapine and Molestation to any who shall thus come in and remain Obedient to Vs so for those of this or any other Rank or Quality who are already in Our Quarters and within our Power and Obedient to Vs We do hereby charge and require That they be not molested in any sort without Our special Command For the desperate Leaders of the present Rebellion who have violated those Laws by which this Kingdom is united and inseparably annexed to the Imperial Crown of England who have called in the French who have Authorized all Violences and Depredations against the Protestants and who rejected the Gracious Pardon We offered them in our Proclamation of the 22th of Feb. 1688. s We are now by God s great Favour in condition to make them sensible of their Errors so are We resolv'd to leave them to the event of War unless by great and manifest demonstrations We shall be convinced they deserve our Mercy which We shall never refuse to those that are truly Penitent Given at our Royal Camp at Finglass near Dublin the 7th day of July 1690. In the Second Year of Our Reign July 11th We continued in our Camp at Cromlin till this Morning When the King set out to Kilkenny with a part of the Army General Douglass with another Part went some days before towards Wexford July 14th His Majesty Encamped at Inchiqueen 21 Miles from Dublin where News was brought to the Camp that Cavan and Sligo had Voluntarily Surrendred and that the Irish Villains called Raparees had burnt Longford and the Lord Longfords House July 15th His Majesty with the Army Encamped at Castle Dermote On the 1 6th We Marched to Caterlough which was but five Miles On the 1 7th We Encamped about Kelly leaving the Road to Kilkenny that City being above four Miles out of our way here by some Deserters come
them Talk with their damn'd Irish Brogue on their Tongues but they were separated from us by a Bog which was very deep and so scituated that we could not possibly Attack them This Night it was resolved at a Council of War that the Army should March towards the Town in order to Battle for we understood as you have heard That the Country being very close and full of Hedges and Ditches the Enemy had lined them to defend the approaches to the Town Accordingly the next day being the 9th our whole Army Decamped by Five in the Morning Colonel Earl leading the Van with Two Hundred Horse and Dragoons and One Thousand chosen Foot out of all the Regiments in the Army both English and Forreigners Upon our approach we found the Enemy drawn up within Two Miles of the City of Lymerick whereupon Colonel Earl ordered his advanced Troops to make a Halt until the rest were come up Then our Horse pushed them for near a Mile their Horse at first made a shew as if they would make vigorous Resistance and stood our first Charge but soon afterwards gave way when they threw themselves behind the Hedges and Fired so from thence that our Horse could not come to them Upon which we brought some small Field-Pieces to Fire upon them and at the same time the 1000 Detached Foot were ordered to Attack them Accordingly about One a Clock Colonel Earl led on his Foot who run on with that Bravery tho' the Enemy made a great Fire through the Hedges and continued this sort of Fighting for Two Hours advancing within Four Hundred yards of the Town and possessing themselves of Two advantagious Posts called Ireton's-Fort and the Old Kirk and such was the Bravery Courage and Resolution of our Men that their Officers could hardly stop them there notwithstanding they were told it was His Majesty's Express Order Then the Besieged began to Fire from the Town with their Great Guns which killed us some Men but in all this days Action we had not above 35 Killed and Wounded tho' above 250 of the Enemy were Killed in their several Retreats among which were several Officers of Note besides divers taken Prisoners Our Pioneers were imployed most part of the Afternoon in levelling the great number of Trenches the Enemy had cast up for their Defence Between Six and Seven in the Evening His Majesty ordered a Trumpeter to be sent with a Summons to the Town and as the Deserters hath since Informed us a great part of the Garrison with some of the Officers were for Capitulating but Monsieur Boiseleau who is Governor Duke of Berwick and Colonel Lutterel c. resolutely oppos'd it making a Speech to the Garrison of the great Divisions there were in England and that 50000 French had made a descent and said the Prince of Orange would be obliged to draw off His Army in few days to defend the Kingdom of England and thereupon prevailed upon them to stand to their Arms. The Trumpeter was sent back with this Answer from Monsieur Boiseleau the Governor That as King James had intrusted him with that Garrison he would recommend himself to the Prince of Orange by a vigorous Defence About Eight at Night the King went to his Camp a little Mile from the Town having been on Horseback from Four in the Morning giving the necessary Orders and exposing himself amidst the greatest of dangers wherein His Royal Highness the Prince of Denmark did every where accompany His Majesty The Cannon ceas'd not all the while to Play from the Town several of the Shot coming over His Majesty's Tent and some falling near it The same Evening a Party of the Royal Regiment and other Dragoons was sent to view the Ford at Annaghbeg a place about Two Miles above the Town where Six of the Enemies Regiments of Foot Three of Horse and Two of Dragoons Commanded by Berwick and Lutterel were Posted on the other side of the River with a Breast-work to cover them who all Fired upon our Men but being such extraordinary Marksmen they neither Killed nor Wounded any of them The Enemy being thus posted so very advantagiously that we expected to have met with great difficulties and opposition in passing the River which is very Rapid and the bottom Stony but the Enemy in the middle of the Night abandoned their Station with great precipitation so that Lieutenant General Ginkle and Major General Kirk who were Commanded by the King with a Detachment to force their way over passed the River the next Morning early being the 10th with about Five Thousand Horse Foot and Dragoons selected out of the several Regiments the Horse and Dragoons first and the Foot afterwards who went almost to the middle in Water and yet the River is shallower now than has been known for many Years About Eight a Clock the King went over in Person accompanied with His Royal Highness the Prince of Denmark and the Heer Bentink Earl of Portland and Monsieur Overkirk c. and Three Regiments of Foot with some Pieces of Cannon were posted there About Four in the Afternoon His Majesty upon the Information he had receiv'd by some Deserters That the Lord Tyrconnel was with a small Camp about Six Miles from Lymerick in the Road to Galway sent out a Party of Horse under the Command of a Lieutenant Colonel to get a farther account of them but they were retired from thence before our Men came up We had likewise an account this Night brought to our Camp by a Deserter That the Count De Lausun lay with his Men near the City of Galway the People there refusing to receive them into the Town The 11. was spent in visiting the several Posts and giving the necessary Orders about the Siege The 12. His Majesty Commanded Brigadeer Stewart with a Detatchment and Four Pieces of Cannon to go early this Morning and Attack Castle Connel which is of considerable Strength scituated on the Shannon about Four Miles from Lymerick There were in it above 140 Men Commanded by Captain Barnwel who had refused to Surrender upon the Summons sent him the Night before but no sooner saw the Cannon but submitted at Discretion The same day Advice came into our Camp That General Sarsfield having with 5 or 600 Horse and Dragoons passed the Shannon Nine Miles above Lymerick had about Two that Morning surprised near a place called Cullen Eight Pieces of our Cannon of 18 Pound Ball which were coming with some Waggons laden with Powder and Ball from Kilkenny under the Guard of a Squadron of Horse and a small Party of Foot The Enemy Killed all they met Men Women and Children in all about sixty the rest escaping the Women and Children that belonged to the Wagoners and Gunners they Murdered most Barbarously in their Beds they Blew up the Powder which burst Two of the Guns the other Six with the Pantons being left intire and fit for Service and they likewise Burnt some of the Carriages