Siege of Clonmel
| date | April - May 1650 |
|---|---|
| place | Clonmel , Ireland |
| output | Parliamentary troops take over the city |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
|
Confederate troops from Ulster |
English Parliamentary New Model Army |
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| approx. 1,500 | 8,000 |
| losses | |
|
low |
1,500 to 2,000 |
The siege of Clonmel took place in the Irish city of Clonmel from April to May 1650 during the retaking of Ireland by Oliver Cromwell .
The city was defended by 1,500 men under Hugh Dubh O'Neill , a veteran of sieges from the Thirty Years' War . Cromwell, who was ordered back to England by the English Parliament to fight the local revolt of the royalists, was therefore in a hurry to take the city, which is why he ordered his approximately 8,000 men to attack immediately instead of a lengthy siege. Cromwell's artillery managed to cut a breach in the city wall, through which the infantry would rush in and open the main gate for the cavalry .
But O'Neill had a coupure (wooden palisade ) built by all the strong townspeople at the break and secured by artillery , musketeers and pikemen . The palisade was V-shaped, began directly in the opening and reached almost 50 meters into the city. Furthermore, O'Neill had two cannons filled with chain balls positioned.
The parliamentary infantry attempting to break through the breach was slaughtered several times by the concentrated fire and ultimately refused to penetrate the fatal trap again . Finally, Cromwell's elite cavalry, the so-called Ironsides, made another attempt . They attacked this place for over three hours, but at nightfall and with no prospect of success, Cromwell ended the attack.
But O'Neill's men were almost out of ammunition, and so they used the cover of darkness to leave town for Waterford . Cromwell, who hadn't noticed anything about the escape, now tried diplomatic channels to negotiate the surrender and assured the town that life and property would be protected. However, Cromwell, annoyed when he realized the city was no longer defended, forbade his troops to violate the negotiated securities for the city. This fact is often used as a counterexample when discussing Cromwell's Drogheda massacre .
The New Model Army lost at least 1,500 men in this siege - several hundred were injured. This was the army's greatest loss in a day.