Orange and Green: A Tale of the Boyne and LimerickHenty, G. A. (George Alfred)
History
Orange and Green: A Tale of the Boyne and Limerick
Henty, G. A. (George Alfred)
Historical fiction; Ireland -- History -- War of 1689-1691 -- Fiction
"I have read that portion of your letter to the king, who is furious at
the evil conduct of his troops. He has, all along, done everything in his
power to repress it; but when not under his immediate eye, it seems as if
all discipline was lost, and the troops behaved rather as a horde of
savages than as soldiers. After what had happened, I cannot blame you for
the opinion you express in your letter, or for your determination not to
trust yourself and Claire in this camp, although I am sure that the king
would send a detachment of his own Dutch guards with you to Dublin. I
trust that you will, as soon as the work you have undertaken is over, go
to our cousins at Galway, and take ship without delay to England, where I
will at once join you, when I hear of your arrival there.
"Please express to Captain Davenant and his son the extreme obligation
under which I feel towards them, and assure them that I look forward to
the time when this unfortunate struggle shall be at an end, and I can
meet them and thank them personally. It will be a satisfaction to you to
be able to inform them that I have, this morning, obtained from the king
a peremptory order on the commission in Dublin, to stay all proceedings
in the matter of Captain Davenant's estate near Bray, which was on the
list of confiscated properties. I am forwarding this by one of the royal
messengers, who leaves with despatches today, and, when I visit Dublin, I
shall do myself the pleasure of calling on Mrs. Davenant, and of setting
her mind at ease."
While Walter had been at his worst, his father had been away for only a
few hours. After his interview with Sarsfield in Limerick, a messenger
arrived from that general, ordering Captain Davenant to bring his troop
into the city at once. It was four in the afternoon when he arrived, and
he at once went to General Sarsfield's quarters.
"Let the men dismount, Captain Davenant, and let them and the horses
feed. We have a long ride before us tonight. I have just heard that
William's siege artillery is coming up, under a weak escort, and I mean
to get round in the Dutchman's rear and destroy it. He shall find that
Limerick is not to be taken as easily as he expects.
"He has had a disagreeable sample of our quality today. A deserter
brought in news of the exact position of his tent, and our artillery have
been giving him such a peppering that, from the church tower, we see that
he has been obliged to move his camp."
As soon as it was night, four hundred cavalry were in the saddle.
Sarsfield placed himself at their head, and rode twelve miles up the
Shannon to Killaloe. Crossing the river there, he made a wide sweep with
his cavalry, until he was in the heart of the Tipperary mountains, in
rear of William's camp.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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