The siege of Donegal took place in August 1601 during the
Nine Years' War
The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...
in Ireland, when a
Gaelic Irish army led by
Hugh Roe O'Donnell laid siege to the town of
Donegal.
[McGurk p.113-16] The garrison of the town was a mixture of
English troops and allied Gaelic troops led by
Niall Garve O'Donnell. Heavy fighting took place during the month-long siege in which
Donegal Abbey was destroyed by an accidental gunpowder explosion. Having suffered several repulses, Hugh Roe O'Donnell abandoned the siege and moved his army southwards to
Munster
Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...
where a
Spanish force had arrived to support the Irish which culminated in the
Battle of Kinsale. In his absence, Crown forces were able to use Donegal as a base to capture the strategic town of
Ballyshannon
Ballyshannon () is a town in County Donegal, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located at the southern end of the county where the N3 road (Ireland), N3 from Dublin ends and the N15 road (Ireland), N15 crosses the River Erne. The town was inc ...
.
Conn O'Donnell was killed during the siege, while fighting for the Crown.
References
Bibliography
* McGurk, John. ''Sir Henry Docwra, 1564-1631: Derry's Second Founder''. Four Courts Press, 2006.
1601 in Ireland
Donegal
Donegal (town)
Donegal
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