Siege of Kinsale
| date | October 2, 1601 to January 3, 1602 |
|---|---|
| place | The town of Kinsale , south coast of Ireland |
| output | English victory |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
|
Irish defense with Spanish auxiliaries |
English troops |
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| total approx. 9,500 | total approx. 7,500 |
| losses | |
|
approx. 1,200 dead |
unknown |
Clontibret - Carrickfergus - Yellow Ford - Curlew Pass - Cahir Castle - Moyry Pass - Kinsale - Dunboy
The Siege of Kinsale (also Battle of Kinsale , English Siege of Kinsale , Irish Cath Chionn tSáile ) was the decisive battle in England's (ultimately) successful endeavor to bring Gaelic Ireland back under control. The siege was part of the Nine Years War - a rebellion by Aodh Mór Ó Néill , Aodh Rua Ó Dónaill and other Irish clan leaders against English rule in Ireland and lasted from October 2, 1601 to January 3, 1602. Due to the participation of Spanish troops applies this siege also as part of the Anglo-Spanish War (1585–1604) between Protestant England and Catholic Spain.
background
Despite the fall of the Spanish Armada in 1588 and the failure of other Spanish expeditions in northern Europe , Philip III. confident of pushing back the English (and thus Protestant) influence in Europe. He therefore offered help to the Irish rebels in the hope that more English armies would be needed in Ireland and thereby the English influence in the Netherlands , which, supported by England, long rebelled against Spanish rule and along the Atlantic sea routes would decline .
Philip sent Don Juan de Aguila and Don Diego Brochero to Ireland along with 6,000 soldiers and a considerable amount of weapons and ammunition, together with the controversial Jesuit James Archer . But the ship with the most veterans and the guns could not reach Ireland. Only 3,400 men landed on October 2, 1601 in Kinsale , south of Cork - at the opposite end of the Irish island from the Irish rebel fortresses in Ulster . This geographic factor was decisive for the outcome of the siege.
After the Lord Deputy of Ireland , Charles Blount, 1st Earl of Devonshire ( Lord Mountjoy ), learned of the Spanish landing, he withdrew as many soldiers from the area around The Pale as possible to the town of Kinsale besiege. At the same time, separately from each other, O'Neill and O'Donnell set out with a total of 5,000 infantrymen and 700 cavalrymen on the arduous 480 km long journey. A dangerous endeavor, since Ulster was left virtually defenseless, and it was difficult to maintain the troops over this long distance.
The siege
Lord Mountjoy's forces were unable to completely encircle Kinsale, but did manage to capture some nearby heights from which they regularly exposed Spanish troops to artillery fire. The English cavalry rode through the surrounding villages and destroyed cattle and crops; nevertheless, the English also sought support from the population.
But O'Neill and O'Donnell were also able to successfully cut off supplies from the English troops, and in early December the lack of food and bad weather began to have an effect on the besieging British army; many soldiers died of dysentery and malaria .
In the meantime, a small group of soldiers from Spain reached the Irish troops as reinforcement, but the coordination between Irish and Spanish army units did not go smoothly. On December 24th, 1601 Jul. / January 3, 1602 greg. Irish and Spanish troops launched their main attack. They split into three armies led by Richard Tyrell , Hugh O'Neill and O'Donnell to launch their attack that night. But because of poor coordination (and possibly disagreements between the leaders), they did not manage to achieve their goal by daybreak. Mountjoy's scouts spotted them early, and so Mountjoy, who left only a few regiments to protect the camp, led his forces to a hill northwest of the city where the two troops met.
O'Neill was already in control of the hill and was ready to defend it as his allies stood by on several sides. But when none of these troops moved, he ordered a retreat into the surrounding moorland in the hope of luring the English cavalry into this marshy area. Ultimately, due to the numerical superiority of the English troops, O'Neill's men were overrun by the cavalry, which was also able to prevent a flank attack by O'Donnell's troops. The Spanish commander Aguila in the city of Kinsale thought the sounds of battle were a ruse by the English to lure his troops out of the city and did not intervene. He made another crucial mistake when he thought the approaching English troops were the expected Irish support. He ordered his men to surrender the city to what he believed to be the victorious Irish army, and when he saw the banners of the English it was too late. He eventually fled back to the Spanish ships.
After brief firefights, the English troops succeeded in taking the city of Kinsale and peace talks with Aguila began. This defeat ended the Spanish aspirations in Ireland and much of the Irish resistance. The remaining Irish troops returned to Ulster, where the war ended two years later.