Street Fighting
The encouraged rebel army then swept past the Crown outposts and seized the Three Bullet Gate causing the garrison and populace to flee in panic. Without pausing for reinforcement, the rebels broke into the town attacking simultaneously down the steeply sloping streets but met with strong resistance from well-prepared second lines of defence of the well armed soldiers. Despite horrific casualties the rebels managed to seize two-thirds of the town by using the cover of smoke from burning buildings and forced the near withdrawal of all Crown forces from the town. However, the rebels' limited supplies of gunpowder and ammunition forced them to rely on the pike and blunted their offensive. The military managed to hold on and following the arrival of reinforcements, launched a counterattack before noon which finally drove the exhausted rebels from the town.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of New Ross (1798)
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