The Battle Of The Boyne

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THE BATTLE OF THE BOYNE (1690) Word Count: 3,717 (Excluding Bibliography) Introduction The battle of the Boyne is among the epic historical events in the history of Ireland. The battle pitted James II against his son-in-law King William III. The two armies commanded by the two men met at the banks of River Boyne, outside Drogheda on July 1st (old style, July 12th Gregorian calendar.), 1690 to take part in a battle that would forever change the power balance, religious supremacy, and power games in Western Europe (Connolly, 2008). The armies consisted of soldiers drawn from countries all over the western spheres of Europe. The two men leading the opposing armies both claimed to be the rightful king of England. Although the war was not necessarily about Ireland, it took place in Ireland and became rather iconic in the eyes of the Irish. Most affected by the outcome of the battle were the Irish Protestants who viewed the Williamites’ victory as a triumph of the Protestants over the hitherto powerful Roman Catholic Church (Connolly, 2008). For a good understanding of the battle of the Boyne, one needs to explore the circumstances preceding and surrounding it exhaustively. Like many other wars that occurred in historical times, there were certain main events and individuals who played central roles in the battle Major among these occurrences preceding the battle of the Boyne was the Glorious Revolution. Upon succeeding his brother Charles II, James II’s intransigent politics angered the English Parliament at Westminster, prompting it to invite James II’s son-in-law William of Orange and his wife Mary to dethrone James II. The Parliament which was significantly Protestant feared that James II would establish a Catholic dynasty in England. The birth of James II’s son, the Prince of Wales, also referred to as “The Pretender” made the situation tenser for the
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