King William's Progress to the Boyne. No. 2

Ulster Archaeological Society

King William's Progress to the Boyne. No. 2Source: Ulster Journal of Archaeology, First Series, Vol. 1 (1853), pp. 130-136Published by: Ulster Archaeological SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20563454 .

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a TProipeet ff exvmze^vu?MS

coetwa </??e tOPmce wne&e Juna Vv-iffia. tu mnc/ecf m J te fat t?.

A. The King in the Mary Yaclit Cap* CoUi?is

B... Prince George in the Henneretta Yacht Cap* Sanderson

Q. The King goeing a Shoare in ?r Clo: CJtouells Barg

~D. S? C Shovell, Bear Adm11 of the Blew in the Monk with his Squadron x Bonfiers on the Shoare

*

KDsG WILLIAM'S PEOGBESS TO THE BQYM.-No, 2.

About 3 o'clock ou the 14th of June 1690, King William landed at Carriekfergus, accompanied

by Prince George of Denmark, his brother-in-law, and attended by the Duke of Ormond, the Earls

of Oxford, Portland, Scarborough, and Manchester, besides other distinguished individu?is. The ac

companying illustration is reduced from the one giyeu in Captain G-reenvile Colliu's i?

Coasting

Pilot;" and although rude, most probably gxyes a correct representation of the scene, as this officer

had the honor of commanding His Majesty's yacht, the "

Mary.."?It may be mentioned, as some

what remarkable, that the only other Government Survey of Carriekfergus Bay was that made in

1841, by Captain Beechey, R. N,, *who; like bis predecessor Collins, had the honor of piloting the

only other Royal visitor to the harbour, Queen Victoria.?His Majesty, on landing, rode through Z



131

this ancient town, and most probably visited the site of what King James the I. designates "

our

Boyal Palace of Mountjoy." Crowds of people are stated to have assembled, who welcomed the King

with continual shouts and acclamations. The inhabitants still point out, at the quay of Carrickfer

gus, the stone on which he first placed his Boyal foot ; and at the late Exhibition of Antiquities, in the Belfast Museum, amongst other relics connected with this period, the chair was shown on which

he had afterwards rested.* As the forces disembarked at the ?i Old Whitehouse," or what is now bet

ter known as u Maced?n Point," the King, without much delay, proceeded to place himself at their

head. The remains of a house are still shown there, where he is said to have rested ; having been

joined, at that place, by the B?ke Schomberg, the Prince of Wirtemberg, Major-General Kirk,

and others. The former brought with him his coach, drawn by six horses, for the use of the King,

who is described in the "Tillare Hibernicum" as having driven over the strand to Belfast, attended

by a single troop of horse and a few gentlemen. This will appear rather an extraordinary statement to

many persons at the present day ; but it is a well-ascertained fact that, within less than a century,

it was a common practice to cross the strand in this manner: tbf?deep deposit of mud, now ?accu

mulated there, being of very recent date, and probably occasioned by the extensive plantations along

the shore sheltering it from the wind, "

The uncertainty of the time and place of His Majesty's landing, and the suddenness of the news was

such, that few of the multitude that flocked to Belfast to see it had their ends, the General's motion

was so quick : yet before they got into the town there were abundance that met them, and, coming to

the North Gate/ he was received by the magistrates, of Belfast in their formalities:0 a .guard of

the Foot-guards, and a general continued shout, and shouts of

' God save the King/?

' God bless

our Protestant King,'?' God bless King William.' His Majesty went directly to the castle, which

had been some time before prepared for him, where he alighted; and went into an apartment appointed

for him.') a

The chart, already referred to, shows all the high grounds in the neighbourhood covered with bon

fires ; and it appears, from the authority above adduced, that the streets of the town were lighted up, and that signals, repeated from guns stationed at different points, notified the important event of the

day to all the surrounding country. The curious Ordnance Survey of the town (now in the British

Museum,) made by Captain Phillips, in 1685, shows the North Gate mentioned above, as well as the

Castle of Belfast : these have been copied as appropriate illustrations of the present article,

A very interesting account of King William's proceedings is given in a small duodecimo volume

a This was long preserved at Castle Upton : about a century since it came into the possession of Mr. Bur leigh, of Burleigh Hill, and was subsequently given to a gentleman now residing at Carrickfergus. t> At the extremity of what was lately Mary Street. Belfast.

c The Sovereign or chief magistrate was Captain Robert Leith, who had resumed his office by virtue of the

Dulce of Sohomberg's proclamation of 14th Sept. 1689, restoring ancient charters which had been superseded by James. When the King reached the Castle, this officer, on his lmeea,

" humbly presented the rod of authority,"

wliich was graciously returned; and then, again kneeliiig, he presented the Corporation address. d Villare Mibernicum.



132

published at Amsterdam in 1691, and evidently written by an eye-witness of the events described.

It is entitled "

Histoire de la R?volution d'Irlande, arriv?e bous Guillaume HT."6 We give some

extracts from this in the original French considering that they would lose a portion of their interest

in a translation. The first is an account of the address presented to the king at Belfast. "D?s que

Sa Majest? p?t estre compliment?e, plusieurs adresses luy furent pr?sent?es, tant de la part du

Clerg? de l'Eglise Anglicane, que de celuy des Presbiteriens ; les Tilles de Londonderry and de Bel

fast, nomm?ment, luy donn?rent en cette rencontre des marques sensibles de leur v?n?ration, de leur

z?l?, and de leur attachement inviolable. Nous ne rapporterons point iey tontes ces diff?rentes adres

ses ; nous nous contenterons d'en mettre une de deux comt?s ; elle est eoneeu? en ces termes.

SIRE, Nous les Sh?rifs, les Juges de pais, et les Gentilshommes des Comt?s de Bowne et

d3Antrim, congratulons, de tout nostre c ur, Vostre Majest?, sur son heureuse arriv?e dans

ce Royaume ; and nous offrons tres-humblement ? "Vostre Majest? nos sinc?res remercimens

des grandes peines and des p?rils ausquels Elle s1 expose, pour nous r?tablir dans l'exercice de

nostre Religion, dans nos Lib?riez, di ns nos Biens, and dans nos Droits. Nous ne doutons

point que comme Dieu-s'est servi de Vostre Majest? pour estre l'instrument miraculeux,

du r?tablissement de ces Biens and de ces Avantages dans le Royaume d'Angleterre, Vous ne

le soyez aussi clans ce Pa?s afflig? ; ce que nous prions la Providence Divine d'effectuer.

Nous supplions aussi le Seigneur, et bien ardemment, de donner ? Vostre Majest? un long

et heureux Regne. Ge sont., SIRE, les voeux and les souhaits de ceux qui sont avec un

tr?s-profond respect, &c,"

There is a modern earth-work, two miles from Belfast, on a commanding eminence, in

the grounds of Richard Langtry, Esq., of Portwilliam, supposed by some to have been thrown

up at this period. The authority for this opinion cannot be ascertained; and there is no

reason to suppose that William found it requisite to employ his soldiers in any work of de

fence in a place where he was surrounded by friends, The work is hot large, but is formed ac

cording to modern practice, and for resisting an attack by Artillery. It has been asserted that there

are old documents extant in which this earth-work is called "

Fort Essex," which would throw back

the date of its erection to a still earlier period : and, on the part of the same hill (called the Trench

Hill) fronting towards Belfast is another earth-work, seemingly very ancient, covering one of the

? caves' so frequently met with throughout the north of Ireland, but which is not included in the re

gular intrenchment. It is possible that this fortification was thrown up rather^for practice to young

engineers than for actual use, as its dimensions are very confined.

It has been already mentioned that the king proceeded to the Castle of Belfast ; other notices of

this visit state that he remanied for five days, and lodged at the house of Sir William Franklin, the

* We have been favoured with the use of this volume from the library of Herbert F, Eore^ Eso;,, County Wex

ford.



133

site of which is now occupied by the Donegall Arms Hotel. It is more probable, however, that some

of his suite occupied this house. The Corporation Minutes record that his Majesty staid five nights in Belfast, and was

c< very well pleased with the inhabitants, and the town and its catenation, and said

(when within the Castle, and the doors being open to the garden,)?that was like "Whitehall.,,

It is. stated in some accounts that, on reaching Belfast, His Majesty immediately issued a Procla

mation, from His iC

Coubt at Belfast, prohibiting the army from laying waste the country ; indeed

his whole course seems to have been, as far as possible, conciliatory.?The following extract from a

rare published letter, dated 25th August 1689, is curious from it's detailing the prices of provisions

in Belfast and its vicinity, as ordained by General Schomberg, while prosecuting the siege of Car

riekfergus/ i;

To our great surprise, and no less joy, we found the whole country full of corn, and all manner

of provision, whose plenty you may guess at by the following table of rates set up at the market-cross

of this place, (Belfast), and the which is so satisfactory that,.while I was transcribing it, I heard the

sellers say, it was enough in all conscience, and almost doubl? what they got before our landing.

IUms set upon aooDS and tiot?ais to be sold in the gamp beeore Carbickfei?qtjs, and

ALIi OT??EB PLACES HEREABOUTS.

Wheat the barrell, containing B2 Winchester pecks, or two Winchester }

barrells, .., .,, .., .,, ... I

Mault the barrell, containing 44 Winchester pecks or two barrells and )

a-half, ... ... .)

Old oats by the mault measure,

New oats, the same measure,

Oatmeal, the peck containing 16 quarts, ...

Fresh butter, 18 ounces to the pound,

Salt butter, 16 ounces to the pound,

New-milk-cheese," a pound,

Scim'd-milk'-cheese, a pound, ...

New milk, 2 quarts for ...

Scim'd milk, or buttermilk, 4 quarts,

Brandy, a quartern, ... ... .. .

Hay, a hundred weight,

Fresh bee-? a pound,

00 13 00 q

00 15 00

00 10 00 00 06 00 00 01 00

00 00 02 00 00 02 00 00 PL 1 00 00 01

00 00 01

00 "00 01 00 00 03 00 00 08 00 00 00, 3

f?his letter has "been communicated to us "by the kindness of William Pinkerton, Esq., Ham, near Kiclimond? Surrey.- It is from the King's collection of historical tracts in th<j British Museum.



184

Mutton, a

pound, ... ... ... ... ... ... 00 00 01

Geese, a piece, ... ... ... ... ... ... 00 00 08

Hens, a piece, ... ... ... ... ... ... 00 00 04

'Eggs,. 8. for a ... .. . 00 00 01

White-bread, 15 ounces for ... ... ,.. ... ... 00 00 01

Household, or oat bread 20 ounces, ... ... ... ... 00 00 01

Aquavita, a quartern,

... ... ... ... ... 00 00 02

To which all persons are hereby required to conform at their peril ; and if any conceal their said

goods, and keep them from the market, in expectation of greater rates, the same shall be seized."

On Sunday the 15th June the King attended at the old church in High-street, where St. G-eorge's now stands, and heard a sermon preached by Dr. Royse, on Hebrews vi. ii.

i? Through faith they

subdued Kingdoms"?on that day and the next he was waited on by the nobility, gentry, and mili

tary, and received addresses from the Episcopal and Presbyterian clergy. . The ; King is understood to have remained at Belfast for five days, and then to have joined his

army, which consisted (according to the French work already quoted,) of sixty-two squadrons of ca

valry, and : fifty-two battalions of infantry, in four divisions. The van-guard was commanded by

Lieutenant-General Douglas? the right wing by Major-General Kirk; the left wing by the Earls

of Oxford and De Solms; and the main body by His. Majesty, in person, the Duke of Schomberg,

and Monsieur de Scravemoer. "

Les choses estant ainsi dispos?es il fust r?solu de faire marcher

l'Arm?e vers Market-hill, et d'entrer ensuite dans le grand chemin qui conduit d1 Armagh ? Dun.

dalke. Le Roy, au mesme temps, commanda Monsieur de Scravemoer, Major-G?n?ral, pour aller

avec trois cens cavaliers, et deux cens dragons, reconnoistre les Emiemis, voir o? l'on pourroit camper,

et s'approcher aussi pr?s de Dundalk qu' il luy seroit possible, afin d'observer la contenance des Enne

mis, qui estoient en cet endroit-l?, au nombre de neuf ou dis mille hommes ; le reste de l'Arm?e du

Roy Jaques estant du c?t? de la rivi?re de Boine.33 ,

After breakfasting at Belfast, His Majesty resumed his advance towards the Boyne ; but about two

miles on his way to Lisnegarvy [Lisburn] he was overtaken hj a heavy shower of rain. Observing some very large trees near the road,?a short distance within the present avenue-gate of "Granxnore,

" the

residence of Mrs. Templeton,?the King, with the habit of an old campaigner, took shelter under one

of them. Mr. Ecoles,8 however,?the gentleman who at that time resided at the place,?requested the

King and his staff to honor him by making use of his house. The invitation was accepted, and his

Majesty partook of some refreshment; some barrels of home-brewed ale being sent to such of the

? Mr. Ecoles was great-grandfather to the celebrated chemist Dr. Joseph Black, the originator of the theory of 'latentheat.'



135

escort as remained under the trees. As the rain continued without abating, and the King was suffer

ing from severe head-ache, he consented to repose himself for some hours ; after which, as the

weather improved towards evening, he resumed his march. The name by which this house had been

previously distinguished is not now known :?in an old will it is simply called <? Malone." However,

in 1775, it is mentioned in another will as "

Orange Grove," a name very probably given to it soon

after the King's visit. The tree which sheltered the king was long an object of interest to his admirers : it

was blown down, however, during a violent storm in 1796, the same which dispersed the French fleet off

Bantry Bay. The Orangemen afterwards adopted the next tree as the memorial : and this also has

eeased to exist, having been destroyed by another storm in 1808. The accompanying lithograph re

presents Orairmore as it stood previous to some alterations lately made by the present proprietor. It

is, perhaps, the last remaining example, in this neighbourhood, of the residence of an English settler in

the reign of Elizabeth. ; The name of the original occupant is not known. Within the last thirty

years it was commonly known, among the old residents in the district of Malone, as the "

Big House,"

The present name was given to it by the late eminent naturalist, Mr. Templeton, as descriptive of the

giaut chesnut trees which form so striking an object in front of the house.?Mr. Templeton, in a

Journal dated September 1809, makes the following note which possesses some interest with refer

ence to the present subject. "In a conversation with Mr. Logg about the time when 'Shaw's

Bridge' was built, he mentioned his father having informed him that he had heard from old people that this bridge was built out of the ruins of an old castle, situated on the brow of the hill above called Castle Calm; long before the erection of the ?Long Bridge' of Belfast, where there was then

a ferry; and that where c Brumbridge' is now built there was a wooden foot-way. In leases which

Mr. Legg has seen, the hinds, in the immediate neighbourhood of Shaw's Bridge, were under a much

higher rent in 1680 than other lands in the vicinity. Mr, Logg'? father remembered to have hoard

the present Mr. William Russell's grandmother state, (when about the ago of 75,) that her father

told her there was a wooden bridge across the Lagan a little below the place where Mr. Russell's house

now stands ; and the present Mr. Legg recollects large ?stones and pieces of wall lying in the river,

which were removed when the canal was making," h

As the King passed through the village of Lambeg, near Lisburn, he was addressed in French by Rene Buhner, a Huguenot, who had fled.from France, with others, on the revocation of the Edict

of Nantes, and settled in the neigbourhood of this village. After having explained to his Majesty the

cause of his being in this country, as the King was going on, he asked permission to embrace his Ma

jesty, who assented; and having received the salute on the cheek, the King, stooping from his horse

towards Buhner's wife, a pretty Frenchwoman, said,?a and thy wife also,"?and saluted her heartily.

The King stopped at Lambeg House, then belonging to the Wolfendons, now the property of Mr,

i? With respect to'tho erection of these bridges, and tho 'forges/ &c, on the Lagan, somo curious information will be ?j'iyen in a futuro JS? umlber.



&^M.

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136

Bichard Niven : the chair he used, while there, is now in the possession of Mrs. Christian in Der

riaghy.

It was necessary to cross the river Lagan at this part by an ancient ford, and here one of the wag

gons broke down, which caused some delay. It was repaired with timber furnished from the neigh

bouring manufactory of Mr. Wolfenden, and a pike, which fell from the disabled waggon, remained

a long time in his family. Two persons of this name had, at the time, their works at this part of the

river ; one, on the county Antrim side manufacturing blankets, the other, on the county Down side

making paper :?they were originally Germans.

There is an entry on record in the Vestry Brook of the Cathedral of Lisburn, stating that his Ma

jesty King William III. and army marched through that town in 1690, and encamped at Blaris} on

his way to the Boyne ; but did not stop there, as he proceeded to Hillsborough. The late Dr. Cup

plos, when Kector of the parish of Lisburn, alias Blaris, was called upon, in the course of his duties,

to visit a parishioner called Connor, who told the Doctor, among other matters, that he had a

perfect recollection of-seeing the army of King William pass on their way to the Boyne :?that he

saw Ms Majesty alight from his horse, and throw the reins over a bush, which is still in existence

and known as "

the King's Bush," on the present road to Blaris. grave-yard. This old man, Con

nor, died shortly afterwards, aged 110, and possessed his faculties to the last:1 he was an inhabitant

of Blaris, near the locks on the canal.

The army encamped on Blaris Moor, on the part which is now intersected by the road to Dub

lin, and known as the townlands of Magheragarry and Tannabrick ; and the place where the cavalry

were stationed from this circumstance retains the name of ll

Trooper Eield."

?Many remarkable instances of longevity hare been noticed in this locality.



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King William's Progress to the Boyne. No. 2

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