Williamite War in Ireland - Schomberg's Campaign

Schomberg's Campaign

On 13 August 1689 William's army under Marshal Frederick Schomberg, 1st Duke of Schomberg landed at Ballyholme Bay in County Down and, after capturing Carrickfergus, marched unopposed to Dundalk. James's viceroy Tyrconnell, commanding the main Jacobite army, blocked Schomberg's passage southwards but did not give battle. The two armies remained encamped opposite each other in cold, wet weather for several weeks before they withdrew to winter quarters. The Williamites lost several thousand men from disease in this campaign, even though they did not fight a single major engagement with the Jacobites. Moreover, they found themselves harassed throughout the winter of 1689 and in the following two years by Irish Catholic guerrillas known as rapparees. Schomberg's troops continued to die from disease in their winter quarters because of the harsh weather and poor food supplies. The lack of food was partly from bad management, but also because the Jacobites devastated the countryside as they retreated. The local civilian population also suffered terribly from this tactic.