Siege of Drogheda

E57820

The Siege of Drogheda was a brutal 1649 assault by Oliver Cromwell’s Parliamentarian forces on the Irish town of Drogheda, notorious for the mass killing of its Royalist and Confederate defenders and civilians.

All labels observed (6)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf massacre
military operation
siege
conflictOf Cromwellian conquest of Ireland
defensiveFeature medieval walls and gates
followedBy Siege of Wexford
hasAftermath intimidation of other Irish towns
surrender of several garrisons without resistance
hasAlternativeName Storming of Drogheda
linked to: Siege of Drogheda
hasArtilleryUse Parliamentarian artillery breached the walls
hasAttackerStrengthApprox about 10,000 to 12,000 men
hasBelligerent English Parliamentarian forces
linked to: English Army

Irish Confederate forces
linked to: Irish Confederates

Royalist garrison
hasCasualtiesDescription significant civilian deaths
very high among Royalist and Confederate defenders
hasCommander Arthur Aston
Oliver Cromwell
hasEndDate 1649-09-11
hasGarrisonStrengthApprox about 2,500 to 3,000 men
hasHistoricalDebate extent of killings and whether civilians were deliberately targeted
hasHistoricalReputation one of the most infamous atrocities of the Cromwellian conquest
hasKeyEvent death of Arthur Aston
killing of defenders at Millmount Fort
storming of St Mary’s Church
hasLanguageOfOrders Cromwell reported that no quarter was given to those in arms
hasLegacy long-term bitterness in Irish historical memory
symbol of Cromwellian brutality in Ireland
hasLocation County Louth
Drogheda
Ireland
Leinster
hasPrimaryAttackingForce New Model Army
hasPrimarySource Cromwell’s letters to the English Parliament
hasReligiousDimension violence between largely Protestant Parliamentarians and largely Catholic Irish
hasStartDate 1649-09-03
hasTownStatusAtTime walled town
hasYear 1649
notableFor breach of the town walls
killing of civilians
mass killing of defenders
slaughter after surrender
partOf Wars of the Three Kingdoms
politicalContext English Civil War and Irish Confederate Wars
linked to: English Civil War
precededBy landing of Cromwell in Ireland at Dublin in 1649
result Parliamentarian victory
tookPlaceIn Drogheda town
linked to: Drogheda
tookPlaceNear River Boyne

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (13)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Irish Confederate Wars significantEvent Siege of Drogheda
Irish Confederate Wars result Cromwellian conquest of Ireland
linked to: Siege of Drogheda
Henry Ireton battle Siege of Drogheda
Wars of the Three Kingdoms significantEvent Siege of Drogheda
Siege of Drogheda hasAlternativeName Storming of Drogheda
linked to: Siege of Drogheda
Siege of Wexford precededBy Siege of Drogheda
Siege of Clonmel relatedEvent Siege of Drogheda
Cromwell’s letters to the English Parliament mainSubject storming of Drogheda
linked to: Siege of Drogheda
Cromwell’s letters to the English Parliament describesEvent storming of Drogheda (1649)
linked to: Siege of Drogheda
Drogheda hasHistoricalEvent Siege of Drogheda (1649)
linked to: Siege of Drogheda
Arthur Aston conflict Siege of Drogheda
Cromwellian conquest of Ireland hasPart Siege of Drogheda
Cromwellian conquest of Ireland hasPart Storming of Drogheda
linked to: Siege of Drogheda