Early Western Civilization

Traces the development of western civilization in 20 year time periods from 1050 to the present, in Europe and the New World.


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August 28, 2012

James II's Battle of the Boyne


In 1685, Charles II died and all hell broke loose when his brother, the openly Catholic and French supported James II, succeeded him. Members of parliament implored the Protestant William of Orange -- husband of the king's daughter, Mary -- to rescue England.

William of Orange landed with his troops, met James II at Salisbury Plain and the king fled to France -- leaving his troops to fend for themselves.

James II was deposed in 1688 and was replaced as monarch the next year by his Protestant daughter, Mary, and her Dutch husband, William of Orange.

The French king then stirred up Catholic support in Ireland and Scotland and, buoyed with false hope, James II landed in Ireland in 1689. He met William of Orange's army of British, Dutch, Huguenot and German regiments at the disastrous Battle of the Boyne in 1690 and again fled back to France leaving his troops leaderless.

In England in 1688 -- around Salisbury -- and in Ireland two years later in 1690 -- around Kilkenny -- there were thousands of young Catholic soldiers from all over Europe roaming wounded, starving, penniless, desperate and leaderless over the countryside having been deserted by James II. Many of these young men would have stayed where they fought their last battle, marrying local girls or living a shiftless life.

That the struggle to restore the Stuarts to the English throne continued in Scotland and Ireland despite James II's woeful leadership shows that it was more a Catholic cause than a succession issue. And, while his son's efforts to be the warrior prince that his father wasn't lived on in romantic history, Bonnie Prince Charlie was no better than his father at leadership.

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