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Article THE BATTLE OF THE BOYNE. ← Page 2 of 8 →
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The Battle Of The Boyne.
nation . " I came not to Ireland , " said he , " to let grass grow under my feet . At Loughbrickiand , his whole army assembled from their different quarters , and were joined by the king and his train . William ordered them to change their encampment , that he mi ght review the regiments on their march to the new ' ground . The officers imagined ^ that on a tempestuous and dusty day ' ' he would content himself with
, a general view from some convenient station ; but they saw . him dart quickly into the throng , riding eagerly from place to place , examining every regiment and every troop distinctly and critically . His soldiers were thus pleased and animated , every man considering himself as under the immediate inspection of his royal leader , who took his quarters in the camp , was the whole day on horseback at the head of
an advanced party , viewing the adjacent country , reconnoitering , or directing the accommodations necessary for his " soldiers . When an order was presented to him to be signed fur wine for his own table , he passionately exclaimed , that his mett should be first provided ; " Let them not want , " said he , " I shall drink water . " An army of thirty-six thousand , men , thus animated and excellently appointed , advanced southward to decide the fate of Ireland , while , the fleet
coasted slowty in view , to supply them with every necessary , and thus to increase their confidence . ¦ Six days had elapsed from the time of William ' s landing , when James received the first intelligence that a prince who he confidentl y ¦ believed must be detained in England by faction and discontent / was already on his match to meet him . He committed the guard of Dublin to militia
a , under the command of Lutterel , the governor , and marched with six thousand French infantry to join the main body cf his army , which , at the approach of the enemy , had retired from Dtmdaik and Ardee , and now lay near Drogheda , on the banks of the river Boync . His numbers were about thirty-three thousand . His council of officers reminded him , that the naval armament of France
vvas completed , and the fleet perhaps already on the English coast ; that Louis had promised , as soon as the squadron attending on William should return , he would send a fleet of frigates into the Irish ' seas to destroy his transports ; that he would be thus fatally detained in Ireland , while Britain was threatened b y foreign invasion , and the domestic enemies of the reigning prince concerting an insurrection . - In such circumstances , they advised him to waiUlie event of those designs formed in his favour , not to hazard an enp-aarement ao-ainst
superior numbers , to strengthen his garrisons , to march to the Shannon with his cavalry and a small body of foot , and thus to maintain a deiin .-ive war against an enemy which , in a strange and unfriendl y climate , without provisions or succours , must gradually perish by disease and famine . James , on the contrary , contended , that to abandon the capitalwere to confess himself subdued that his
-, ; repu tation must be irreparabl y ruined ; that the Irish , who judged by appearances , would desert ; and , what was ff still more moment , his friends in England and Scotland must be dispirited , and deterred from their attempts to restore him . He expressed satisfaction , that
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Battle Of The Boyne.
nation . " I came not to Ireland , " said he , " to let grass grow under my feet . At Loughbrickiand , his whole army assembled from their different quarters , and were joined by the king and his train . William ordered them to change their encampment , that he mi ght review the regiments on their march to the new ' ground . The officers imagined ^ that on a tempestuous and dusty day ' ' he would content himself with
, a general view from some convenient station ; but they saw . him dart quickly into the throng , riding eagerly from place to place , examining every regiment and every troop distinctly and critically . His soldiers were thus pleased and animated , every man considering himself as under the immediate inspection of his royal leader , who took his quarters in the camp , was the whole day on horseback at the head of
an advanced party , viewing the adjacent country , reconnoitering , or directing the accommodations necessary for his " soldiers . When an order was presented to him to be signed fur wine for his own table , he passionately exclaimed , that his mett should be first provided ; " Let them not want , " said he , " I shall drink water . " An army of thirty-six thousand , men , thus animated and excellently appointed , advanced southward to decide the fate of Ireland , while , the fleet
coasted slowty in view , to supply them with every necessary , and thus to increase their confidence . ¦ Six days had elapsed from the time of William ' s landing , when James received the first intelligence that a prince who he confidentl y ¦ believed must be detained in England by faction and discontent / was already on his match to meet him . He committed the guard of Dublin to militia
a , under the command of Lutterel , the governor , and marched with six thousand French infantry to join the main body cf his army , which , at the approach of the enemy , had retired from Dtmdaik and Ardee , and now lay near Drogheda , on the banks of the river Boync . His numbers were about thirty-three thousand . His council of officers reminded him , that the naval armament of France
vvas completed , and the fleet perhaps already on the English coast ; that Louis had promised , as soon as the squadron attending on William should return , he would send a fleet of frigates into the Irish ' seas to destroy his transports ; that he would be thus fatally detained in Ireland , while Britain was threatened b y foreign invasion , and the domestic enemies of the reigning prince concerting an insurrection . - In such circumstances , they advised him to waiUlie event of those designs formed in his favour , not to hazard an enp-aarement ao-ainst
superior numbers , to strengthen his garrisons , to march to the Shannon with his cavalry and a small body of foot , and thus to maintain a deiin .-ive war against an enemy which , in a strange and unfriendl y climate , without provisions or succours , must gradually perish by disease and famine . James , on the contrary , contended , that to abandon the capitalwere to confess himself subdued that his
-, ; repu tation must be irreparabl y ruined ; that the Irish , who judged by appearances , would desert ; and , what was ff still more moment , his friends in England and Scotland must be dispirited , and deterred from their attempts to restore him . He expressed satisfaction , that